Welcome, ladies and gentlemen.
Before we move on to a continuation of our study and the witnesses today—we're still waiting for two witnesses to arrive but I do want to start the meeting on time—I'd like to inform the committee on a couple of fronts.
First of all, our travel proposal was presented to the liaison committee earlier this week and turned down by liaison. That's the bad news. The good news is that they asked if I could re-present with a less expensive version, which we had prepared, if you recall. Our clerk had provided us with an all-committee-members travel proposal that the committee voted to present and that I presented on behalf of the committee, but there was also a lesser version that would mean fewer committee members attending and a smaller budget. The feedback given to me at liaison was that I should come back with a lesser proposal and it might be looked upon differently.
So it will be the committee's decision, as to the direction they wish me to take on this. We will need to deal with this, along with three other items.
You may have heard that committees are going to be required to go paperless. We will have approximately 30 days with which to comply with that, so we need to have a discussion and prepare for that as a committee.
Secondly, I believe there are four motions from committee members that I'm aware of that we should deal with in committee business, and we also have to deal with the eternal flame project again. It's coming up for our discussion, our direction for that.
So those things said, I'm presenting them more for information at the start of today's meeting to let you know that those are the things that we will fit into the schedule on March 24, which is our first meeting back. I've asked our support people here to structure the meeting in such a way that we have a panel of witnesses and then ample time, perhaps up to an hour, to do our committee business.
Committee members, is there anyone here who would want to handle this differently than I'm proposing? Seeing none, then we'll proceed on that basis.
Again, good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to meeting 47 of the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities. We're continuing today with our study entitled exploring the potential of social finance in Canada.
Today we have another split panel of expert witnesses to provide their testimony. In the first hour, from the Canadian Union of Public Employees, we have their national president. No, I've just been told he could not make it, so the national president will not be here, but we do have Ms. Margot Young, the senior research officer. I'm not sure I have the name of the second witness but I will get that shortly.
We also have appearing in person Mr. Andrew McNeill who is the national representative of the National Union of Public and General Employees, and moving back to the Canadian Union of Public Employees, the president's designate today is Ms. Rampure. Thanks very much.
Witnesses, each organization has up to 10 minutes to provide testimony.
So Mr. McNeill, please start us off, and then we'll move into questioning.