Justice Committee on Nov. 3rd, 2020

[Rob Moore, Conservative, Fundy Royal, NB]

I have a point of order.

[The Chair, Liberal, Iqra Khalid]

Mr. Moore, please go ahead.

[Rob Moore, Conservative, Fundy Royal, NB]

Isn't it presumptuous to say the committee will meet next week? Next week is not a sitting week, and we've had no discussion on that.

[The Chair, Liberal, Iqra Khalid]

My understanding, Mr. Moore, was that we discussed this during our steering committee meeting, and we agreed that we would be able to sit during break week.

I'm not sure if that now is not agreeable to you. Can you please clarify that for me?

[Rob Moore, Conservative, Fundy Royal, NB]

Not with me, no. We spoke earlier that we would have our six meetings. At the last discussion we had on this as a whole committee, we didn't speak about meeting over the break week. It would be the two weeks following: two meetings this week and two each on the weeks following the break week. When we last discussed this as a whole committee, I don't recall about meeting on the break week. I'd have to talk to my colleagues about their availability.

[The Chair, Liberal, Iqra Khalid]

That's absolutely fair, Mr. Moore. Perhaps the most expedient way to move past this is to present a motion to see if we can meet during the break week.

Do I have any members who would like to do that?

Mr. Garrison, please go ahead.

[Randall Garrison, NDP, Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke, BC]

Thanks, Madam Chair.

I would like to move that we continue to sit at the proposed times during the non-sitting week.

[The Chair, Liberal, Iqra Khalid]

I don't see any hands raised to speak to this, so I'll ask the clerk to record the vote on the two upcoming meetings.

Thank you.

[The Clerk of the Committee, Mr. Marc-Olivier Girard]

Before I do so, Madam Chair, Ms. Findlay had her hand raised.

[The Chair, Liberal, Iqra Khalid]

Ms. Findlay, please go ahead. I'm sorry, I don't see the blue hand.

[Kerry-Lynne Findlay, Conservative, South Surrey—White Rock, BC]

I'm sorry; I don't know how to raise my hand when I'm in person.

This has taken me totally by surprise. I am away for a good part of the break week, and I had not heard any discussion whatsoever about us meeting during the break week. I think it's a lot to presume, quite frankly, when we have duties in our constituencies. I thought in whole committee we had come to a consensus decision on the number of meetings we would have and when they would happen. There was no discussion about break week. My availability to do that would be very limited.

[The Chair, Liberal, Iqra Khalid]

Thank you very much for your intervention, Ms. Findlay.

I see Mr. Lewis.

[Chris Lewis, Conservative, Essex, ON]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

It looks as though the goal posts just continue to be moved all the time. It seems like a lot of last minute on this committee. At the end of the day, we, as MPs, have very tight schedules. I'm spending a lot of time throughout my riding. To continue to throw lob balls out here to have meetings on break week when it's our only opportunity to be with our constituents—safely, of course—is, I think, disrespectful and absurd.

Yes, it's important legislation to be discussed, but I will not be voting in favour of this.

[The Chair, Liberal, Iqra Khalid]

Thank you, Mr. Lewis.

Go ahead, Mr. Moore.

[Rob Moore, Conservative, Fundy Royal, NB]

I think we have to schedule time to have discussion of this type of thing. This is the first I'm hearing about it that I can recall.

There's a reason it's called constituency week. We do our parliamentary work, our committee work, three weeks in the month, and then the following week is a designated constituency week, meaning that committees don't meet. We do not have any real reason to accelerate the study on this bill. We're well within the time frame that the government wanted to deal with it.

I'm certainly not available to meet next week. It's a constituency week, so, like most of you, I would think that we all have a busy schedule for Remembrance Week in our constituencies.

[The Chair, Liberal, Iqra Khalid]

Thanks for your intervention, Mr. Moore.

Mr. Garrison, you're up next.

[Randall Garrison, NDP, Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke, BC]

Thank you very much, Madam Chair.

I do believe that, in the steering committee, we did discuss meeting during the non-sitting week. In discussions among the whips, because of the limited resources available to the House of Commons, there was constant discussion that committee time would be made available during non-sitting weeks.

I, too, have a very busy schedule, but I think we have very important work before us—not just this bill and others—and that's why I've moved the motion. I'm sorry if the word didn't get from the steering committee to all members of the committee. It's easier for me to remind other New Democrats on the committee than it is, maybe, for others, but I believe we should go ahead and, if people cannot make it, their parties should provide substitutes.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Iqra Khalid]

Thanks for that, Mr. Garrison.

Are there any other hands raised at this time? Mr. Clerk, is there anybody from the floor who would like to...?

Mr. Maloney, did you just wave at the camera?

[James Maloney, Liberal, Etobicoke—Lakeshore, ON]

Thanks, Chair.

Everybody understands the importance of this bill. Everybody appreciates the significance of getting it done. It's not the government's timeline; it's the court's timeline, Mr. Moore. We've been talking about the time frame in which this needs to be done since we started meeting a few weeks ago, so this is no surprise to anybody.

I wasn't on the subcommittee, but it was my understanding that we would be sitting during the break week. We all have very precious time during the break week—and yes, it is Remembrance Week—but we're not talking about giving up the whole week; we're talking about giving up two hours on two separate days to do something that is critically important.

As tight as the time frame is, if we don't sit during the break week, there's a chance we could run up against the deadline, and we don't want to be put in a position where we have to rush this unnecessarily, which is the concern you have all expressed.

I think we should vote on this right now, Madam Chair, and move on.

[The Chair, Liberal, Iqra Khalid]

Thank you, Mr. Maloney.

Mr. Moore, is that your hand raised again?

[Rob Moore, Conservative, Fundy Royal, NB]

Yes, absolutely, because I don't accept any argument, especially from Liberal members, about any timeline whatsoever, when it was the Liberal government that prorogued the House.

I don't know if we need a refresher on what proroguing means, but proroguing means that all House business shuts down. Every bill starts over at zero. That's what it means to prorogue the House. This government did that, so we don't need to hear any arguments about the delay or any court-mandated timelines that are approaching.

When I look at our schedule, we're on track to meet that timeline. This isn't about anything other than the fact that next week is a constituency week, and I haven't heard one compelling reason we would all adjust our schedules, assuming people have a busy schedule next week, to have these meetings, when we're scheduled to meet the Tuesday and the Thursday when we return and then go into clause-by-clause.

No one has made any compelling argument why we would meet during a constituency week. I think we should adjourn this meeting and meet at our next scheduled time, which is the Tuesday of the next sitting week.

[The Chair, Liberal, Iqra Khalid]

Thank you, Mr. Moore.

I will clarify that we discussed at length in our steering committee the timelines, the deadlines and how we were going to meet, the technological challenges we have with respect to our meetings and the scheduling of our meetings over the next couple of weeks and months, to ensure that we are on track and that we are on schedule.

At this time, I believe we have Mr. Garrison's motion on the floor with respect to whether we should be meeting over the break week.

Mr. Clerk, if I can please call—

[Chris Lewis, Conservative, Essex, ON]

I have a point of order, Madam Chair.

Obviously, I wasn't on the subcommittee, but could we not go back through the minutes of the subcommittee to find out exactly what was said? Certainly the clerks can tell this committee what was discussed and talked about with regard to sitting during break week.

[The Chair, Liberal, Iqra Khalid]

I understand that, Mr. Lewis, and my understanding is also that you had a representative who was there at the subcommittee, who would have briefed your party, as well as all of you, on what was said and discussed during the steering committee.

I believe Mr. Cooper has his hand raised.

Would you like to speak to this, Mr. Cooper?

[Michael Cooper, Conservative, St. Albert—Edmonton, AB]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

I don't believe there was any clear consensus on sitting during a constituency week. I believe the clerk was to come back with a proposed schedule that was to be voted on by the committee as a whole, and that didn't happen.

Nonetheless, we have Mr. Garrison's motion before us, so in that sense we're doing that.