Evidence of meeting #25 for Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities in the 45th Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was students.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Bobby Morrissey
You do not have unanimous consent. Madame Larouche, but you can bring it up the next time the committee meets.
With that, Mr. Genuis, did you...?
I have a couple of items that I want to get to.
Conservative
Garnett Genuis Conservative Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB
Chair, I'd like to move that the committee proceed to committee business for the purpose of considering the motion of Ms. Larouche. That's a dilatory motion.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Bobby Morrissey
I'm going to suspend for a moment. The committee is suspended for a couple of minutes.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Bobby Morrissey
Committee, we're back in session. I don't have a clear indication of resource time, but we do have a few moments.
When I suspended, I had a motion by Mr. Genuis that the committee move to committee business, which is in order at any time, so I must dispense with that motion.
I'll ask the clerk to call a recorded vote on the motion of Mr. Genuis for the committee to move into committee business.
(Motion agreed to: yeas 5; nays 4)
The motion has been carried.
Madame Larouche had her hand up.
Conservative
Liberal
Caroline Desrochers Liberal Trois-Rivières, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I would just like to point out that what's happening in this committee right now is political games that the opposition has perfected over time. It's meant to obstruct any progress the government wants to make on the agenda that it was elected to implement. It's basically delaying and delaying and delaying, so that the opposition can say after that we are not moving fast enough to address it.
Again today, the member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan has indicated that there is yet another motion coming the way of this committee. There was a motion that was, again, moved by our colleague from the Bloc. At our previous meeting, there was another motion. Every meeting we have, when we are meant to actually study the important business that's been put before us, we are wasting time in adding yet more things. There are currently 15 motions on notice. That's 15. The first motion we adopted in this committee was from the opposition. It included three important studies—youth unemployment, the labour code and, I believe, seasonal workers. We have not even completed any of those, yet we're adding something every week—again, in the spirit of delaying the business of the government.
We've been very collaborative on most of these motions. I would like to propose that we resume, so that we can do something constructive today with the time we have left. We propose resuming debate on the motion that was put forward by my colleague on the national school food program two meetings ago.
Let's resume debate on that motion. That is my proposal.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Bobby Morrissey
A dilatory motion has been moved that we resume the debate that was adjourned at the last meeting.
Conservative
Garnett Genuis Conservative Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB
I'm sorry, Chair. I have a point of order. When I moved my motion—
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Bobby Morrissey
It was a dilatory motion, Mr. Genuis, that was moved.
I'll call the vote on the motion of Ms. Desrochers to return to debate on Madam Koutrakis's motion, which was adjourned.
Clerk, record a vote on the motion of Ms. Desrochers to return to the adjourned debate of Madam Koutrakis.
(Motion negatived: nays 5; yeas 4)
I have a speaking order of Mr. Genuis and then Ms. Goodridge.
Mr. Genuis.
Conservative
Garnett Genuis Conservative Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB
Chair, I have a lot of respect for all members around this table. I think there are maybe some misunderstandings that could be clarified around some aspects of process.
The motion that the Bloc has moved and that we're supportive of is a simple request for information. It is not a new study motion. It does not take the committee's time. It is a request for information from the government that relates to an existing study that the committee has agreed—unanimously, I think—to undertake. I don't want to impute any motives here, but I think it does suggest a bit of a misunderstanding of process to suggest that a request for information as part of an existing approved study is somehow delaying the work of this committee. On committees I've been on in the past, these types of requests for information are very routine. My only suggestion would have been that it might not have even been necessary to move a motion. It might be the sort of thing that the committee just agrees to via consent.
In any event, I hope we can get this adopted quickly. Hopefully, you'll be able to go to Ms. Larouche, who can formally move this motion, and then we'll be able to get it adopted.
I'll end my comments there.
Liberal
Conservative
Laila Goodridge Conservative Fort McMurray—Cold Lake, AB
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I want to thank my colleague for clarifying those pieces, because I think it's a misunderstanding.
It's very interesting. When the Liberals table-drop a motion—it was on a subject we were studying, so it was well within their right to table-drop it, and I will recognize that as a fact—that's A-okay; that's fine; that's not obstruction in any capacity, as far as they're concerned. However, when we bring forward a very reasonable motion from the Bloc that's just about producing documents, somehow that is obstruction.
They are accusing and imputing false motives onto the opposition members because they don't like that we're just trying to figure this out. I think it's really incumbent on us to figure out exactly where these delays are. The minister has admitted that there are 85,000. If there are 85,000, are they mostly in Quebec? Are they spread out across the country?
Liberal
Liberal
Natilien Joseph Liberal Longueuil—Saint-Hubert, QC
I'll repeat what I said last time. I can see that my colleagues in the opposition are playing quite a dangerous game.
Conservative
Laila Goodridge Conservative Fort McMurray—Cold Lake, AB
Again, I appreciate that the members opposite perhaps need to learn a little about the green book and figure out some of these rules. What we're doing is completely in order. This is something that is totally reasonable. This is not a big ask. This is not something that is complicated or challenging. We are simply asking for documents.
Liberal
Liberal
Caroline Desrochers Liberal Trois-Rivières, QC
I just take offence at the implying that we are not doing our work and the implying that perhaps we should study the green book.