They are coming, and that will be for the second topic.
The first topic has to do with the draft report, which, if all goes well, I intend to present to the House on Thursday, having been authorized by the committee to do so.
The problem is that before I have presented the report to the House of Commons I have read about it in the newspapers. The report is confidential until it is presented to the House. As chair, I'm very upset and concerned about this, and I hope you will be as well.
I trust you have read the gist of the ninth report. I'm going to read it to you, because I think it's serious.
On Thursday, June 4, 2009, the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration met in camera to discuss its draft report of its study of ghost consultants and migrant workers.
On Friday, June 5, 2009, an article by Don Martin published in The National Post states that “a report [was] leaked to me Thursday”.
I might add that I read it in other papers. It might have been The Toronto Star. I'm not sure, but I know one of the papers had it.
Several points of information contained in the confidential draft report were mentioned in the article, as well as a direct quotation:
“The committee regrets that such situations may occur under the live-in caregiver program”. In light of this matter, the Committee has reason to believe that a potential breach of privilege has occurred, and on Tuesday, June 9, 2009, the Committee adopted the following motion:
That the Committee report to the House an apparent breach of privilege of members that has resulted from disclosure of the confidential draft report on the migrant workers and ghost consultants; that the report indicate that media reports from last week included a direct quotation from the confidential draft report; that a reporter has indicated that he has a copy of the confidential draft report; and that the Committee request that the House and the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs investigate this matter further.
Your Committee feels it is their duty to place these matters before the House at this time since a question of privilege may be involved and to give the House an opportunity to reflect on these matters. A copy of the relevant Minutes of Proceedings (Meetings Nos. 20 and 21) is tabled.
It's a little unusual that I read that, but I consider this most serious.
There is a draft resolution, which by now I trust you've had an opportunity to read. I would ask, if members are interested, that someone move that resolution and read it into the record.
Mr. Dykstra.