International Trade Committee on Nov. 15th, 2007

[Ron Cannan, Conservative, Kelowna—Lake Country, BC]

Similar to Mr. Cardin's idea, of Liberal, Bloc, I was going to put the NDP and then the Conservatives; Liberal, Bloc, Conservatives; Liberal, Conservatives; Liberal, Conservatives; and then the Bloc and the NDP.

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

We have another amendment on the floor.

(Amendment agreed to) [See Minutes of Proceedings]

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

We have a new format. It will be this format as described and suggested.

We have a vote on the motion as amended. Is there any further debate on the motion as amended? Thank you.

(Motion as amended agreed to) [See Minutes of Proceedings]

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

That brings us to dissenting or complementary opinions, the final of the proposals suggested by the clerk for routine motions.

That any member of the committee have the right to attach, as an annex, a dissenting opinion on any report to be presented to the House of Commons by the committee within the conditions imposed by the committee and in accordance with the Standing Orders of the House of Commons.

First of all, Mr. Pallister, will you move that motion?

[Brian Pallister, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

I will, and I'd like to move an amendment to it.

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

We have a motion by Mr. Pallister, and we're prepared to have a discussion on this motion.

Mr. Pallister.

[Brian Pallister, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Thanks, Mr. Chairman.

We would probably categorize this as more of a housekeeping thing, but I've found it useful to put a timeframe on the dissenting reports, just to assist, I think, in the preparation of the documents for the chair and so on.

So I would just propose adding “72 hours” and some wording, I don't know how, but just to give time for parties who wish to dissent from any reports. And of course I'm not anticipating any disagreement whatsoever on anything here at committee, but should it occur--

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

Would you like to make the amendment before you have this discussion?

[Brian Pallister, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Yes, okay. Thank you, sir.

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

What is the amendment?

[Brian Pallister, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

“To be submitted to the clerk of the committee within 72 hours of the passing of the report by the committee”.

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

Then in fact I think it might be just as easy to take that as a motion, because you were moving the first motion anyway, so you don't have to amend your own motion. So let me read the complete motion as suggested by Mr. Pallister.

That every party shall have the right to attach, as an annex, a dissenting opinion on any report to be presented to the House of Commons by the committee, and that this dissenting opinion shall be submitted to the clerk of the committee within 72 hours of the passing of the report by the committee.

Is that clear to everyone? It's just that it does put a time limit on the submission of dissenting reports.

I would take it that this would be before the report is tabled in the House?

[Brian Pallister, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

That's right, Mr. Chair.

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

Yes, okay. It's unlikely that a report could get tabled—

[John Maloney, Liberal, Welland, ON]

Mr. Chair, could you read that again, please?

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

I'll give it to you, because it is a new motion.

That every party shall have the right to attach, as an annex, a dissenting opinion on any report to be presented to the House of Commons by the committee, and that this dissenting opinion shall be submitted to the clerk of the committee within 72 hours of the passing of the report by the committee.

[John Maloney, Liberal, Welland, ON]

Well, we've left out one of the most important standing orders of the House of Commons.

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

I'll just confer with the clerk.

Why don't you just give the committee the same information you're giving me?

[The Clerk]

Standing Order 108(1), which is the standing order that's referred to, essentially just explains that a committee has the power, if it so chooses, to append dissenting or complementary opinions to any report it chooses. So it's not binding. There's no standing order that governs this per se. It just tells the standing committee that it has the power to annex that if it chooses to do so. And what this motion does is gives that right without having to adopt a motion every time, if a certain party wants to append a complementary or dissenting opinion.

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

So that I'm clear, you're saying in response to Mr. Maloney's question that having added the phrase “the conditions imposed in accordance with the Standing Orders”, there aren't any standing orders to refer to it. So why did you do it in the first place?

[The Clerk]

That was the motion that was adopted in the last session. The standing order simply says that the committee

shall be...empowered...to report from time to time and to print a brief appendix to any report, after the signature of the chair, containing such opinions or recommendations, dissenting from the report or supplementary to it, as may be proposed by committee members

So it just gives the committee the right to do it if it wants to do it.

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

Well, you know what, I don't see any problem, and I think for clarity I'll ask Mr. Pallister if he would be able to accept as a friendly amendment just to add—

[Brian Pallister, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Sure, to give further authority to it, I'm fine with that.

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

—“in accordance with the Standing Orders of the House of Commons”.

I have another suggestion of the clerk, and that is to add “dissenting or supplementary opinions”. It just broadens it to allow members to add additional minority reports if they want to, as long as they're within 72 hours and as long as they're in accordance with the Standing Orders of the House of Commons.

I think it's basically the same as we have here. The only thing it does is it adds 72 hours.

[Brian Pallister, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

And as the clerk has suggested also, not just dissenting, but “or supplementary”.

You suggested adding “or supplementary”, didn't you?