Indigenous and Northern Affairs Committee on May 3rd, 2006

[Marc Lemay, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

So, we could debate it on Monday.

[The Chair, Conservative, Maurice Vellacott]

In effect, I would judge that this is like a notice of motion at this point. It will have to be in French and English, available for committee members with the 48-hour advance notice we have agreed to.

There was also something I received. Again, I'm not sure if that's translated. So this one also then would be a notice of motion. No?

I'll refer it quickly to Mr. Bruinooge then. This letter has been disseminated to the committee in French and English from the World Wildlife Federation. Can you explain what your intent with that is, so we can dispense with that?

[Rod Bruinooge, Conservative, Winnipeg South, MB]

Yes, Mr. Chair.

I received this letter. I believe it was also sent to everyone else on the committee. It seems that the WWF is going to be in town for only a brief period of time and would like to meet with the committee. I felt that it might be an appropriate opportunity for us to hear what they have to say. I'm asking if the committee might be interested.

[The Chair, Conservative, Maurice Vellacott]

The date they're requesting and you're proposing is May 10, which is next Wednesday.

[Rod Bruinooge, Conservative, Winnipeg South, MB]

Correct.

[The Chair, Conservative, Maurice Vellacott]

Go ahead, please, Anita.

[Anita Neville, Liberal, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

Mr. Chair, I don't know what the past practice of this committee has been, and I have no objection whatsoever to hearing from this group, but I do know that in a previous committee I served on, many interested groups or groups that had relevance to the topic of the committee asked to come and make a presentation, and these often interfered with the agenda and the program of the committee.

I don't know whether this committee has a policy or practice on hearing or responding to requests from interested groups. The practice we established in that committee was that I, as chair of the committee, set up an informal meeting opportunity for members of the group. I can see us potentially being inundated with requests from individuals or groups who want to make a presentation to this committee on an issue of concern. I think the committee needs to deal with this as a policy matter before we agree to this.

[The Chair, Conservative, Maurice Vellacott]

Mr. Lemay, it's moved that we hear them as things stand, but we've got the 48-hour requirement. We could waive it if there's consent.

Madam Neville makes a very good point, and it's true, in particular once we have a work plan together and we are proceeding down a certain course of action, that we will get all kinds of requests—I'm beginning to get them already—and you will have to direct me as your committee chair as to what you want me to do with them. If Anita's practice as a past committee chair was to have these off-site or evening meetings and so on with these groups instead, then we could proceed in that manner. We don't have a work plan yet. I assume by Monday there will be Mr. Lemay's motion on the floor. This, I take it, is of that nature as well. So we will form our work plan, unless that is something we want to get at with great haste today. But for substantive motions we have the 48-hour advance notice requirement.

[Anita Neville, Liberal, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

This is for follow-up, Mr. Chair. I did receive this in my office, but I noticed that this is a matter that went to the clerk of the committee, not to the executive branch of the government. I am wondering why this is being brought forward by the parliamentary secretary rather than being put on the agenda by the clerk for discussion, or the chair, or you.

[The Chair, Conservative, Maurice Vellacott]

This was received as well, as you know, by all the members, and in this case the parliamentary secretary, Mr. Bruinooge, put forward a motion to have these people heard. That's the manner by which it comes before this committee. It was received by all of us, you're right. The clerk received it as well, and Mr. Bruinooge moves that we see these people, or hear them, next Wednesday.

[Anita Neville, Liberal, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

Mr. Chair, I would reiterate my previous comment that I have no difficulty in hearing them, but if we allow this group to come and make a presentation to the committee, we are setting a precedent for many other groups who are going to write asking to make a presentation to the committee. We have to understand that we may not be able to get the business of the committee done because of requests from various interest groups.

[The Chair, Conservative, Maurice Vellacott]

Monsieur Lemay.

[Marc Lemay, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

I think we are going off-topic. According to the agenda, we have finished examining motions. If there are others, such as mine, we will study them on Monday. We should now move on to the planning of future business, unless I cannot read properly. I think we should, all together choose the topics we want to debate in committee and then decide on the order in which those matters will be studied. Of course, as we proceed with our meetings, urgent situations may arise, and we will make room for them.

With all due respect to the parliamentary secretary, I do not think it is urgent that we hear my good friends from the WWF. They wrote to us, we examined their letter and they are very nice. However, I am not willing to give them an hour to have them come to tell us what those who have been following Indian and northern affairs have known for at least five years. According to me, there is nothing new here.

I would like us to come up with a work plan. For instance, I am speaking on behalf of the Bloc Québécois, and I just informed you that one of the priorities of my party is the Kelowna Accord. Housing is another of the Bloc Québécois' priorities. We are really getting down to serious business when we talk about priorities like those. Another one of the Bloc Québécois' priorities is health. We heard a lot about it in the debate on the Speech from the Throne, from all three sides of the House.

I expected us to discuss things like that this afternoon. I thought that when we got to the second point on the agenda, we would each present our list of topics and put those topics in order so that we could begin our work as early as next week. This would have allowed us to give direction to our clerk and our Research Branch and let them know that we need an overview of these topics and that we want to work on them during the coming weeks.

That is how I see things. I hope that others share my point of view.

[The Chair, Conservative, Maurice Vellacott]

Anita.

[Anita Neville, Liberal, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I also share the concerns of my colleague.

I would like to add that we are most interested in following up on the work of the committee last year on matrimonial property rights and Bill C-31, as well as land claims issues and many of those issues identified by my colleagues. I think it's important that we establish a work plan to know where we're going and what we're doing.

[Rod Bruinooge, Conservative, Winnipeg South, MB]

Mr. Chair, I think I may have misspoken. I intended to bring this forward as a motion for Monday, but I was only bringing it forward today to advise the committee of the intention to possibly have this group speak to us. It seems that there is maybe some dissent on having them speak before us, so I would like to clarify what I intended.

[The Chair, Conservative, Maurice Vellacott]

Okay. I appreciate it.

Mary is noting the BQ priority of the housing issue. It's valid to have brought this forward, but it's something that would not be given consideration at this meeting here today.

We'll let Jean speak, and then it may simply be the best suggestion, as Mr. Lemay says, that we come back on Monday with a list that is thought through, collaborating with our party colleagues or across party lines to get a sense of it. Then we'll come forward and hash that out in terms of what the priorities will be.

Some specific motions may also be the best way to undertake it, if you can get in a quick motion on something. That has already been done by Mr. Mayes. So we are obligated to deal with that on Monday, have a discussion in respect to that, and a vote. There may also be other things.

Anita, in a formal manner you're actually putting something forward, but I know that we have at least one thing that we're obligated to discuss and other work plans as that meeting proceeds.

Jean.

[Jean Crowder, NDP, Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC]

First of all, I want to support the comments on having groups request to make presentations at the committee. It needs to fit within our work plan.

Since everybody else is talking about their priorities, I want to throw out a few of my own. I want to support the others that have been put forward, but I also want to talk about indigenous children in care, certainly the land claims, and education, with specific reference to the Berger report on Nunavut that came out. I would also like to see some kind of timetable on the residential schools agreement, how it's going to unfold, the discussion on the interim payments, and so on.

[The Chair, Conservative, Maurice Vellacott]

Okay, we'll have an interesting time navigating and sorting out the parties on that.

Nancy.

[Nancy Karetak-Lindell, Liberal, Nunavut, NU]

I have a question for the parliamentary secretary. I'm wondering if he can let us know what pieces of legislation we can expect in this Parliament before we adjourn for the summer.

I understand there were some outstanding pieces that we did not finish before the election came, or that this present government might want to be introducing that would go to this committee. Our understanding always was that any legislation has precedence over any other study we happen to be doing, so I wonder if he can give us a heads-up as to what legislation to expect. As Jean said, I'm very interested in the Berger report on Nunavut.

[The Chair, Conservative, Maurice Vellacott]

So the question is, do we have some latitude to undertake some studies, or is legislation--

[Rod Bruinooge, Conservative, Winnipeg South, MB]

I intend to inform the committee as soon as possible, and I hope to come very soon to a future meeting with any information on legislation that may be coming.

[The Chair, Conservative, Maurice Vellacott]

So I take it we have a little leeway for some study of some possible topics or subjects, as may be suggested here already. We would have that latitude, it would seem?

[Rod Bruinooge, Conservative, Winnipeg South, MB]

I think that's fair.

[The Chair, Conservative, Maurice Vellacott]

Mr. Lemay.