National Defence Committee on Feb. 4th, 2009

[The Chair, Conservative, Rick Casson]

So what you're doing there is getting all members at the table into the first two rounds.

[Laurie Hawn, Conservative, Edmonton Centre, AB]

As we did last time, we would give everybody a chance to question. If there's time left over, then at the discretion of the committee and the chair, it can be allocated to whomever.

[An hon. member]

That's great.

[The Chair, Conservative, Rick Casson]

Is there any change in the third round, or are you just changing up to the second?

[Laurie Hawn, Conservative, Edmonton Centre, AB]

I would just strike it all together, frankly, and just go beyond the second round, because everybody will have had a chance to speak at that point. I guess a third round....

[The Chair, Conservative, Rick Casson]

If the witnesses are kept to ten minutes, and there are two, and then you go into the seven-minute rounds, you can get through three rounds in two hours. Part of it wasn't just thrown wide open. There was an order.

[Laurie Hawn, Conservative, Edmonton Centre, AB]

Then I think we're probably back to the first round--Liberal, Bloc, NDP, Conservative.

[Steven Blaney, Conservative, Lévis—Bellechasse, QC]

Or at the will of the chair.

[The Chair, Conservative, Rick Casson]

But the way it was last time, if we're.... We have one amendment so far as to what it was last time, so if we discuss that amendment and it's either approved or not approved, then we'll be voting on it as the way it was, or as it is amended. The last time, there was a third round put in there--Liberal, Conservative, Bloc, Conservative, Liberal, Conservative, Liberal, NDP.

[Laurie Hawn, Conservative, Edmonton Centre, AB]

My suggestion would in fact advantage the NDP.

[Dawn Black, NDP, New Westminster—Coquitlam, BC]

Oh, come on; I never got on.

[Laurie Hawn, Conservative, Edmonton Centre, AB]

This way you'd be third in the third round instead of eighth in the third round.

[Dawn Black, NDP, New Westminster—Coquitlam, BC]

The one in front of you? It puts us down at the bottom.

[The Chair, Conservative, Rick Casson]

No, what he's suggesting is that after the second round, we go back and start over from the top.

[Laurie Hawn, Conservative, Edmonton Centre, AB]

After everyone has spoken, or after everyone has had a chance to speak.

[Dawn Black, NDP, New Westminster—Coquitlam, BC]

You were talking about the third round.

[Laurie Hawn, Conservative, Edmonton Centre, AB]

The third round, yes.

[Dawn Black, NDP, New Westminster—Coquitlam, BC]

We never get to the third round.

[Laurie Hawn, Conservative, Edmonton Centre, AB]

But if we did--

[Dawn Black, NDP, New Westminster—Coquitlam, BC]

Yes, if we did.

[Laurie Hawn, Conservative, Edmonton Centre, AB]

--instead of the third round as proposed here, you would get the third spot on the third round instead of the eighth spot on the third round. Now, whether we get there or not is, you know....

[Dawn Black, NDP, New Westminster—Coquitlam, BC]

Can I ask for some points of clarification?

[The Chair, Conservative, Rick Casson]

Absolutely.

[Dawn Black, NDP, New Westminster—Coquitlam, BC]

Okay.

So you're suggesting, from what I can understand--you've been talking only in that direction, and I don't mean it as a criticism, but it's been hard to figure out what you've been saying--instead of having a ten-minute first round, you're reducing the time?

[Laurie Hawn, Conservative, Edmonton Centre, AB]

No, no. The witnesses have ten, the first-round questioners have seven, and every other round after that is five. The first round would be in the order as it's shown there--Liberal, Bloc, NDP, Conservative. The second round would go Liberal, Conservative, Bloc, Conservative, Liberal, Conservative, Conservative.