Evidence of meeting #7 for Justice and Human Rights in the 43rd Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was maid.
A recording is available from Parliament.
1:25 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Iqra Khalid
Thank you, Mr. Lewis.
Is there anybody else who would like to speak to this motion at this time? Not seeing any hands raised, Mr. Clerk, can we please administer a recorded vote?
1:25 p.m.
The Clerk
Yes, of course—
1:25 p.m.
Bloc
Luc Thériault Bloc Montcalm, QC
Madam Chair, could the clerk reread the motion so that we have the exact wording?
1:25 p.m.
The Clerk
Mr. Thériault, as I understand Mr. Lewis's motion, he is proposing that, notwithstanding the committee's previous decision to complete testimony on Bill C-7 today, an additional meeting be held to hear testimony.
1:25 p.m.
Bloc
Luc Thériault Bloc Montcalm, QC
I understood that the meeting is supposed to deal with one subject in particular.
Is that correct?
1:25 p.m.
The Clerk
Let us ask the chair to check that with Mr. Lewis. That could well have slipped by me.
1:25 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Iqra Khalid
Mr. Lewis, thank you for that.
Mr. Lewis, is your motion specific to certain witnesses or is this general to having one more meeting on this bill?
1:25 p.m.
Conservative
Chris Lewis Conservative Essex, ON
Thank you, Madam Chair.
Specifically for my motion, it's specifically to one more meeting. However, I did bring up the community of indigenous people with disabilities and women with disabilities. I brought them up as examples. I personally believe we would be doing our due diligence if we brought them forward. They were purely as examples.
1:25 p.m.
Liberal
1:25 p.m.
Liberal
Arif Virani Liberal Parkdale—High Park, ON
Madam Chair, I find it's becoming somewhat repetitive that at every meeting, we're entertaining motions to reverse decisions taken by the steering committee, which has representation from all parties, including the official opposition.
I propose we proceed to a vote on this matter.
1:25 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Iqra Khalid
Mr. Garrison, is that what you were going to raise as well? I see your hand.
1:25 p.m.
NDP
Randall Garrison NDP Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke, BC
I tried to raise my hand before we went to the vote.
I would say briefly that I believe the answer is the larger review that we are obligated to do statutorily.
1:25 p.m.
Bloc
Luc Thériault Bloc Montcalm, QC
Madam Chair, so that you do not end the meeting too quickly after the vote, I would like to say that I also have a proposal to make after that vote.
1:25 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Iqra Khalid
We will come to you after the vote, Monsieur Thériault. Thank you.
Go ahead, Mr. Clerk. Would you please record the vote?
(Motion negatived: nays 6; yeas 5 [See Minutes of Proceedings])
Monsieur Thériault, before I come to you, I will very quickly provide my ruling on the point of order raised by Mr. Virani at the meeting that was held on November 10.
Mr. Virani, at the time of our last meeting, was questioning in his point of order the appropriateness of an intervention made by Mr. Cooper, wherein he referred to a position that he would have taken during the in camera proceedings at our last subcommittee meeting.
House of Commons Procedure and Practice, third edition, pages 1089 to 1090, tells us that, “Divulging any part of the proceedings of an in camera committee meeting has been ruled by the Speaker to constitute a prima facie matter of privilege.”
I would like to remind members about that important principle and call for their caution, when they intervene at committee, not to directly, inadvertently or obliquely refer to the nature and content of deliberations that have occurred during these in camera meetings. Please note, however, that positive decisions emerging from such deliberations are considered to be public.
With this issue clarified, I now will consider this matter to be closed. Thank you.
Right before I go to Monsieur Thériault, I will remind members that the deadline for Bill C-7 amendments is no later than Friday, November 13, at 4:00 p.m. If you have any questions with respect to drafting, etc., please do get in touch with our legislative clerk. His email has been provided to you.
With that, we'll go to Monsieur Thériault.
1:30 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Iqra Khalid
I'm so sorry, Mr. Moore, I believe Monsieur Thériault has his before yours, so I'll go to Monsieur Thériault first.
Go ahead, Monsieur Thériault.
1:30 p.m.
Bloc
Luc Thériault Bloc Montcalm, QC
Thank you, Madam Chair.
I would like to raise the matter of submitting amendments, currently scheduled for 4 p.m. tomorrow. I feel that the session we had today was more substantial than usual and it might be wiser to have a little more time so that we can submit thoughtful amendments.
I therefore propose that amendments may be submitted up to 4 p.m. next Monday, instead of Friday, which is tomorrow.
1:30 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Iqra Khalid
Thank you for that, Monsieur Thériault.
I will go to Mr. Clerk. I regret that we had not allowed our legislative clerk to come to speak to this matter earlier.
Mr. Clerk, can you please clarify for us the reason these timelines have been set and tell us what restrictions a legislative clerk has with respect to providing the full blanket of amendments to all members?
1:30 p.m.
The Clerk
With pleasure, Madam Chair.
The people who will be analyzing the amendments to Bill C-7 that members submit will need about 48 hours in which to examine those amendments, to decide if they are procedurally in order and to put them together in a package to be distributed to members so that they can more easily examine each of the clauses of the bill.
If the committee decides to push back the deadline for submitting amendments to this bill to next Monday, it will have to push back the date when it begins to consider each clause of the bill.
If a majority of the committee members do not want such a delay, they will have to stick to the date the committee established, which is tomorrow at 4 p.m. However, additional amendments could be accepted on the morning of Monday, November 16. Those amendments could then be processed as quickly as possible in order to be added to the package going to members of the committee for the consideration that must start next Tuesday.
1:30 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Iqra Khalid
Thank you for that, Mr. Clerk.
I will remind Monsieur Thériault that we had committed to this deadline based on decisions made in our steering committee. If the member would like to propose a motion, notwithstanding decisions already made, we can do that, or we can do a show of thumbs, allowing for a yes or a no. It's really up to you, Monsieur Thériault, whether you'd like to put forward a motion.
1:30 p.m.
Bloc
Luc Thériault Bloc Montcalm, QC
I thought I had done so, Madam Chair.
I had introduced a motion that we postpone the deadline of Friday at 4 p.m. to Monday at 4 p.m. Now the clerk is opening the door to a kind of compromise as to when amendments can be received, but I will stick with my motion. If my colleagues are opposed, they can reject it and we can take careful note of the clerk's comment.
1:35 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Iqra Khalid
Thank you very much.
We'll call the vote, then, in that case.
Mr. Clerk, please record the vote.
