Evidence of meeting #77 for Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities in the 39th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was amendment.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
Pursuant to clause 108 of the Standing Orders, the committee will now resume its debate on Mr. Savage's motion.
Mr. Savage, I know that when we ended the last meeting we said we would get right back to your motion before we looked at going clause by clause. So why don't we look at your motion right now?
Liberal
Michael Savage Liberal Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS
Thank you, Chair.
I think we had begun debate on the motion, and the motion has been stated. My reasons I stated last Thursday, and I'm prepared to listen to whatever discussion takes place and then hopefully have a vote or any amendments. Obviously the timing on the motion was May 31, and we're going to have to deal with that.
Conservative
Liberal
Michael Savage Liberal Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS
Well, I would change my motion, just the last part of my motion, from May 31 to June....
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
Okay.
We have an amendment now, “that those officials be called upon to appear on an emergency basis on June 7, 2007”.
Is that okay?
Conservative
Mike Lake Conservative Edmonton—Mill Woods—Beaumont, AB
Are we voting on the amendment? How does that work? Does he have to have unanimous consent to even make an amendment?
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
No. That's the amendment. We will vote on the amendment before we vote on the main motion.
Is there any discussion on the date of that amendment?
Conservative
Lynne Yelich Conservative Blackstrap, SK
No discussion.
Most importantly, I hope he has taken into consideration that perhaps the officials have better things to do than to come before us; perhaps they're busy trying to put the program out. We don't agree with having them come forward right now because we're busy trying to get the employability study and some of the other important issues before us. However he wants to write it, it's fine with us for June 7.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
Sure.
I think he's taken that into consideration, by giving them a week to get ready.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
Okay.
If there is no other discussion on the amendment, I'll call the vote on the amendment.
(Amendment agreed to)
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
Now let's go to the main motion. Is there any more discussion on the main motion?
Mr. Lake.
Conservative
Mike Lake Conservative Edmonton—Mill Woods—Beaumont, AB
I'd just like to suggest that it seems as if every single time we've come in here over the last little while we have a new motion from Mr. Savage on this. I would respectfully suggest that when he goes away for the weekend, he think about all the different things he might want to bring up on this issue and put them into one comprehensive motion, as opposed to waking up every morning and thinking “I'd like to do this now”. It does seem rather ridiculous.
We have a lot of things to discuss on this committee--some very important things. Our employability study has been pushed back and pushed back in terms of all the different things over and over again, and obviously we have other legislation coming forward. Hopefully this will be the last motion, but if there are any more, maybe we can actually get them put into one thing.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
I'm sure this will be the last motion until the next motion. I'm pretty confident about that.
As there's no more discussion, I'll call the vote on this particular item, the motion as amended.
(Motion as amended agreed to)
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
My next discussion is—and I'll just throw this out to the committee—that we are supposed to look at the employability study next week and start going through the recommendations. It's a fairly lengthy document, I can assure you. I was wondering if we could have our meetings on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. We should carve out an hour for Mr. Savage before we get into that. Then we could see how our schedules go from there, and it would free up Thursday afternoon.
Mr. Silva.
Liberal
Mario Silva Liberal Davenport, ON
I mentioned to you already, Mr. Chair, that Tuesday mornings and sometimes Thursday mornings I have the human rights committee at 11 o'clock. If you want to have it from 9 to 11, that's another story. Then I'm available, but certainly after 11 it becomes a problem.
Conservative
Lynne Yelich Conservative Blackstrap, SK
We don't accommodate everybody's other meetings because we have a draft here, so I can't.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
I understand that, and that's the challenge.
I'm just putting it out there. One of the suggestions I have is that maybe we meet with....
Go ahead.
Liberal
Mario Silva Liberal Davenport, ON
I'll say that's a bit of an unfair comment, Mr. Chair. The fact is that there was a schedule for this committee, and then I was also put on another committee that had a different schedule. Now you're asking to change this schedule that is in conflict with another one. Certainly when I joined this committee and the other one, there was no problem of conflict.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
That's a fair comment, and that's why we want to get the will of the committee as we move forward on that.
Mr. Lessard, followed by Mr. Lake.
Bloc
Yves Lessard Bloc Chambly—Borduas, QC
Mr. Chairman, I have always been in favour of adding more time to allow us to move forward with our work. We have a fairly heavy workload.
I would also like to know what is happening with our motion in which we asked to receive the lists of applications and grants under the federal Summer Jobs program by June 1, which happens to be tomorrow. I expect that we will receive this list today, so that we can take it with us and to review it.
Has there been any response to our motion?
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
I believe, from what I understand—I could be wrong—that the information will be forwarded to the clerk on the 1st, as discussed. So it will be ready when it was requested.