Evidence of meeting #2 for Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities in the 43rd Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was chair.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Liberal
Han Dong Liberal Don Valley North, ON
I'm just considering the interpreters. They listen carefully and very closely through their earpieces. I would suggest that members of this committee could speak with a pretty level tone to help the health and safety of our precious translators.
Thank you.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sean Casey
Thank you, Mr. Dong. That's a fair point, but Mr. Vis is worked up about this subject, and he's welcome to express himself.
Go ahead, Mr. Vis. Please be considerate of the interpretation staff.
Conservative
Brad Vis Conservative Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC
I'm not worked up, Mr. Chair. I would challenge that assertion. I think every member of Parliament should be worked up about all the money that's been spent, and money that I voted for, but now, as parliamentarians, we have the responsibility to scrutinize how that money is being spent and we need those ministers to appear.
We're trying to do this in good faith together. We cannot amend those motions. We have a right. We agreed to it as a committee and we have to stick to our guns and do the work we were elected to do. If some members don't want to do that, they can have someone else sub in. I want to know how money is being spent. I want to spend time on the estimates. I want to know what department officials are doing. That's why we're here. We can't take more away from that than we already have.
NDP
Leah Gazan NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
I have a point of order, Mr. Chair.
Thank you to my honourable colleague, MP Vis, for his comments.
I certainly am a very flamboyant person at times myself, but I do feel that in this committee, that respectful conduct.... I didn't come here to listen in a headphone to people screaming. I think it's very clear with the interpreters and the kinds of ear problems they're having that this is an issue, particularly right now. I'd just ask that we have respectful discussions and make our positions really clear. I certainly will do that as well.
That's my point of order. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Conservative
Rosemarie Falk Conservative Battlefords—Lloydminster, SK
Thank you, Chair.
This is something that I, as well as my constituents, am getting sick and tired of, so I'm speaking as the member of Parliament for Battlefords—Lloydminster in Saskatchewan on behalf of my constituents who want government to work together.
Honestly, if the ministers can't make this a priority.... This is one of the most important committees, I would argue. We have everything from babies to seniors, from families to labour and everything in between. Everything that goes through our committee tangibly touches a Canadian at some point in their life, and if the ministers cannot make it a priority to come to our committee and give us the respect to do what we've been elected to do, which is to ask questions and to hold the government to account, this is a new all-time low. I would expect that everybody on this committee is going to work together in the team Canada approach that we hear about in the chamber all the time.
I really hope that the Liberal members on this committee have the ear of their ministers and are able to express to them how important it is that they make the time. I know I can speak for myself. I am beyond flexible, and as long as I have notice in advance, I will be here to do the job that the residents of Battlefords—Lloydminster elected me to do.
Thank you.
Louise Chabot Bloc Thérèse-De Blainville, QC
At least the tone of the Conservative members is keeping us awake at the end of a long day. I appreciate that they are passionate about their viewpoint, and I will be too.
I understand all the reasons for inviting the ministers—including the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion and the Minister of Seniors—to appear before the committee. We all know just how busy those two parts of the department have been in response to the crisis, which started back in March.
I have a different take on the motion. I think that the committee should meet with Minister Qualtrough and Minister Hussen soon, meaning, November 4, and that they should appear for one hour each. That would give us an opportunity to ask them questions. I know that's not an end in itself. If other questions arise along the way, with the motions before the committee, we can always keep going. I think we should meet with the ministers sooner rather than later. Spending an hour with them would be a good start.
I agree with Mr. Housefather, so I will be supporting his motion.
Conservative
Brad Vis Conservative Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC
When I was speaking earlier, if my voice was too elevated for the translation, I apologize, because I want Madame Chabot especially to be able to hear what I'm saying.
Ms. Chabot, if I was too loud for you to hear what I was saying earlier, I apologize. I want you to hear everything I'm saying during the meeting. I'm sorry that was a problem. That was not my intention.
My intention, of course—and I'll express it one more time—was this. The PBO complained just recently, in this month, about a lack of transparency regarding $422 billion. This is a Canada problem, and it is something that we all need to be concerned about in all of our deliberations.
A lot of that $422 billion could be spent on aboriginal housing, on urban indigenous housing, on helping a lot of people, so let's get to the bottom of that work and let's help Canadians understand where money is going, because the children of all of us who are electronically sitting around this table today are going to be paying for what's going on right now. Fifty years from now or 100 years from now, they're going to be looking in textbooks and studying what we're doing here today. We have a responsibility to make sure that it's done in the best interests of future generations. What we're doing needs to be sustainable.
Thank you.
Liberal
Anthony Housefather Liberal Mount Royal, QC
To wrap up, Mr. Chair, I've listened carefully to what my colleagues have said. What I understand from what you've said and from what the clerk has said is that the House resources allow us one meeting a week until the break week. There's no guarantee that a meeting could be organized for the break week. There was no minister who refused to come. Both ministers have agreed to come, and neither minister has refused any request of the committee.
However, we as elected officials cannot dictate to the House of Commons resources what they can or cannot do. We can ask, and if there's a possibility, as I said, of another meeting during the break week being organized, I'm totally open to that. For the moment, in order to ensure that we can hear from both ministers properly for an hour before we go on break week, I think my amendment is a reasonable one and I wanted to clarify that once again.
Liberal
Conservative
Rosemarie Falk Conservative Battlefords—Lloydminster, SK
Thank you, Chair.
It's very frustrating, because I brought this up in the meeting that we had a couple of weeks ago when we talked about the agenda and the motions being brought forward. I know that I and my Conservative colleagues said there are ministers who need to be asked to appear, so let's take this into consideration. I know I also said that there are deadlines in the motion that brought all of these previous motions in.
It's super-frustrating that if we'd had a team Canada approach then, we wouldn't be wasting precious time debating this now. We could be working. It's super-frustrating that it looks like the precedent has been set that when somebody from the Conservative team brings up something in a genuine way, it's not looked at seriously, and then here we are.
I'll be voting against your motion.
Conservative
Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON
Mr. Chair, I've been informed that there is another slot on November 4 between 6:30 and 8:30 p.m. If it were possible to hold two meetings that day, I wonder whether the committee would consider that.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sean Casey
My understanding is that the ministers would consider that, but I'm unaware of what you just said....
Mr. Clerk, go ahead.
The Clerk
Thank you.
Mr. Chair, Mr. Kent is right. There are additional spaces available between 6:30 and 8:30. I could inquire about the availability on November 4.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sean Casey
Okay. That would be ideal. There's no indication from the ministers that they want their time limited to an hour. If there's more time available and the committee is willing to sit for four hours to hear from them both, then that could be the resolution.
Mr. Vis, go ahead.
Conservative
Brad Vis Conservative Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, BC
I'm in total favour of doing the extended meeting. Thank you.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sean Casey
Is there any other discussion?
We have a motion in front of us, but we have this development. If we can deal with it by consensus, great; if not, then we'll be forced to deal with the motion.
Mr. Dong, go ahead.
Liberal
Han Dong Liberal Don Valley North, ON
Thank you, Chair.
I wasn't at the meeting—not to my recollection—when this discussion was taking place, so this is for my own understanding.
My understanding is that Mr. Housefather's amendment is to bring in both ministers on November 4 for a discussion with the committee for about one hour. Now what Mr. Vis and Mr. Kent are saying is that we can extend that meeting to two hours and have the ministers stay for an additional hour.
Is that correct, Chair?
Liberal