Evidence of meeting #36 for International Trade in the 39th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was chair.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Conservative
NDP
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Leon Benoit
The motion is carried, as amended.
(Motion agreed to: yeas 10; nays 1)
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Leon Benoit
NDP-24, page 45, which is a proposed amendment to clause 34.
Mr. Julian.
Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC
Mr. Chair, the committee has entered new lows. Explain to Canadians out there that it's a couple of seconds to vote and 60 seconds to speak on each of these individual clauses. What a farcical approach to governance. This is absolutely the lowest period I've seen in my two and a half years on the Hill. Absolutely inappropriate. We have a bill now that we are ramming through. We know there are errors and mistakes, and yet we're continuing to do it, or at least some members of the committee are.
We have a situation here now, another one of these many punitive clauses we'll be talking about throughout the evening, on the issue of how interest is compounded. Now, in this draconian act, interest is compounded daily, which means increased costs for the softwood companies that are already paying the penalties. There is absolutely no flexibility because this committee has shut down any approach to allow certain bridge funding or a bridge period before people have to pay the bills as they come. They're artificial. This entire agreement is based on the Conservatives trying to save—
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Leon Benoit
Mr. Julian, your time is up.
Would anyone else like to speak to NDP-24?
Go to the vote.
NDP
Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC
Please let me know when the ten seconds is up, Mr. Clerk.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Leon Benoit
NDP-24 is defeated.
(Amendment negatived: nays 11; yeas 0) [See Minutes of Proceedings]
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Leon Benoit
Let's go to NDP-25, page 46 of the amendment booklet.
Mr. Julian.
NDP
Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC
I will withdraw NDP-25, Mr. Chair.
Now, as I recall, we still have that clause consideration, so I will speak to that now.
NDP
Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC
No, the amendment itself. When the amendment is withdrawn, we still have debate on it. You'll recall back to clause 15--
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Leon Benoit
No, actually, the procedure, Mr. Julian, is if you don't wish to move it, just don't move it. Otherwise, we'll go to a vote, if you want to move it. It's one or the other.
NDP
Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC
Chair, on clause 15, you'll recall the governmental amendment that was actually withdrawn, we still had debate on that clause and on that amendment.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Leon Benoit
No, Mr. Julian, that was attempted, and then the chair ruled that was inappropriate and we had a vote and defeated the clause. We're going the same route here, Mr. Julian.
NDP
Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC
Mr. Chair, we had debate and we had a vote on that amendment just the same, despite the government's willingness to withdraw it.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Leon Benoit
Your time is up, Mr. Julian.
Does anybody else want to speak on NDP...? Oh, he hasn't moved it, so it isn't moved.
What about NDP-26, Mr. Julian, would you like to move that?
NDP
Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC
Yes, I will, Mr. Chair. Thank you very much.
I will move NDP-26, again trying to address the most egregious aspects of this bill.
It important that parliamentarians are here to do a job, not to simply rubber stamp bad legislation. Here we have bad legislation and unprecedented rules of order to muzzle and to censor members who speak up about the various aspects of this bill that are punitive in nature and that are going to have very negative implications for the softwood community right across the country, the softwood communities and particularly softwood lumber companies.
Now, here, in Bill C-24, clause 34, we'd be amending line 34, which is on page 20: “period is not more than $25, the Minister may cancel the interest and penalty.” The amendment would be: “period is not more than $250, the Minister shall cancel the interest and penalty.” So for a period of not more than $250, the minister shall cancel the interest and the penalty. In other words, the minister is directed—doesn't have the option but is directed—to cancel that penalty in order to benefit the softwood communities and the softwood companies that are having to suffer under this egregiously bad bill. So it would be amending from $25 to not more than $250—
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Leon Benoit
Thank you, Mr. Julian. Your time is up.
Is there anybody else on amendment NDP-26?
Call the roll.
NDP
Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC
Please let me know when the ten seconds are over, Mr. Clerk.