Natural Resources Committee on Feb. 14th, 2007

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

We will begin the meeting. We don't need to go in camera immediately. We have a request from our friends in the Standing Committee on Finance. The document was distributed to the members, I believe, by our clerk.

It appears that the standing committee has passed a motion respecting the oil sands, and they wish to call several witnesses with regard to federal taxation or taxation policy with regard to the oil sands. It was suggested by finance committee members that it might be prudent to hold an informal meeting before the end of this week to ensure that the study by the finance committee would not infringe on the study undertaken by this committee.

I think you've seen the motion that was distributed. I'm not sure it's relevant or would infringe in any way. That would be my thought, but I'm open to comments. I have discussed it with members of the finance committee, and there doesn't seem to be any particular conflict. I think it's just another way of approaching it. With regard to the issues they're speaking of—capital cost allowance and things like that—it's probably more appropriate to the finance committee than to this committee, in fact.

I'd ask for comments.

Mr. Tonks.

[Alan Tonks, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Chairman, that is one component of the report that we're dealing with. In another life, you'll recall, at the environment committee, we had requests for joint sessions. I think when we had the species at risk, we had a joint committee meeting with natural resources. I would have no problem with having a joint meeting to discuss the intersecting set with respect to finance issues.

The one thing I would say, though, is that I have a problem with doing it this week, this Wednesday.

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

If I could just clarify, the question wasn't whether or not we would have a joint meeting with the committee on finance. It was simply that they wanted to have an informal meeting with perhaps one or two members of this committee to determine whether or not we felt there was some infringement on our study by their looking at a similar question.

Mark, if you weren't here when we began, this is simply all it is.

[Alan Tonks, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

I don't think they're infringing at all.

[The Chair, Conservative, Lee Richardson]

The finance committee is doing a study on taxation of the oil sands, or perhaps incentives to the oil sands, and wanted to know if that was something that would concern us. I can't imagine it would.

Are there any further comments?

I have spoken to the chair of the committee and to the parliamentary secretary on that committee, and I suggested that would be our thinking over here. So if there are no changes in that, I think we'll just say it's fine; it would not infringe upon our study in any way, and probably it would be more appropriate for them to look at taxation than for this committee.

Okay, then we'll move on.

Just for clarification, as we proceed with the next agenda item, which is continued review of the oil sands report, we are moving in camera.

[Proceedings continue in camera]