Official Languages Committee on Oct. 5th, 2010

[The Clerk]

I now invite Mr. Steven Blaney to take the chair.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you very much.

I will spend the extra emoluments wisely and my spouse will gladly share them with me on a sandy beach. Ah, ah!

Good morning everyone. I thank you very much for allowing me to chair this committee's work once again. There are a few new faces in the committee.

From the outset, I would like to clarify a point. I made this mistake myself this morning. Henceforth, committees will begin at 8:45 and they will consequently finish at 10:45. We also have a new clerk whom I now welcome. I think that for the main meeting, this should conclude our first gathering. Of course, the committee structures are still the same. We have a steering committee. Thus, we could adjourn the meeting.

I see that some people have things to say. I give the floor to Mr. Bélanger, and then to Mr. Godin.

[Mauril Bélanger, Liberal, Ottawa—Vanier, ON]

Mr. Chair, unless I am mistaken, the rules we adopted in this committee at the beginning of this Parliament are still valid.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Absolutely, all the rules that have been made by the committee must apply. We are continuing on in the same way. Of course, let us not forget that there was nonetheless some work to do and there were also a few motions.

[Mauril Bélanger, Liberal, Ottawa—Vanier, ON]

I have a second question, with your permission. Does this mean that the steering committee will remain as it is?

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

You are right. For the benefit of new members, the Standing Committee on Official Languages has a steering committee that is made up of a representative from the government and one representative from each of the three opposition parties, as well as myself. This committee remains as it is. The motion is very specific, it has to do with parties and not with individuals. By the way, Mr. Rickford is now a member of the steering committee. I think that he represents the government, but I will have to verify this. It is up to you.

Welcome, Mr. Parliamentary Secretary, to the Standing Committee on Official Languages. I also welcome my friend Guy Lauzon who is back, and Royal Galipeau who is also back with us, and Mr. Murphy who came previously from time to time and who is now permanently with us. He is an ardent defender of the promotion of linguistic duality, and it is good to know that.

[Mauril Bélanger, Liberal, Ottawa—Vanier, ON]

I have a final question, Mr. Chair. Do you intend to call a steering committee meeting before the next committee meeting so that we can begin to proceed with certain files?

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

I will first hear Mr. Godin and then I'll answer your question, Mr. Bélanger.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

I would like to say two things. First, I would like to discuss the small incident that occurred before you were elected. I would like to bring this back before the committee and to hear quotations from the Standing Orders, because I have things to say about this. I find that what the clerk said makes no sense. When someone says that they do not want to be a candidate, they cannot be forced to have their name included on a ballot. Imagine if we had said yes this morning, and if we had voted, just for fun, to elect Mr. Galipeau who did not want to be elected! He would have had to pass and to hand in his resignation. I have never seen anything like this in all my life. I have never seen anything like this in any meeting or in any election. If anyone ever has, I would like to know. Perhaps we should change the Standing Orders, introduce a motion in the House of Commons, but I would really like to see where this is written, unless we can see it right away.

Moreover, let us discuss the steering committee. Mr. Chair, I suggested—I do not know whether my colleagues will agree with me—that we should meet immediately after this meeting. We have some time, and we could set up a work plan. We have a great deal of work to get done, and I do not know why we should meet only tomorrow or even later, because we need time. The morning was reserved for official languages, and I think that we could use that time, or at the very least, begin our work on Thursday rather than on some other day.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you, Mr. Godin.

Regarding your first point, the clerk tells me that he is quite sure that he applied the Standing Orders properly. However, he will come back with detailed explanations. If this case deserves special treatment, the committee members are free to go ahead.

Of course, it is my prerogative to call together a steering committee. To do this, I will follow the recommendations from committee members.

I do not know whether anyone else would like to make some comments about this matter. I am not closed to the idea of having a steering committee meeting after this morning's meeting. In this way, we could free up our regular members. I would like to invite the steering committee members to stay for a steering committee meeting after this meeting.

[Guy Lauzon, Conservative, Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry, ON]

Could this be delayed for 24 hours?

I am a new committee member and I would like to suggest something to the steering committee. Would it be possible for this meeting to take place in 24 hours from now and not right away after this meeting? I think that the committee would like to discuss my topic. However, I am not sure that I can suggest it in just five minutes.

What period of time does your plan cover?

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

I'd simply like to remind you, Mr. Lauzon, that the committee made a full report on immigration. This report is ready to be studied and we could adopt some of its recommendations.

I would like to hear what the steering committee members have to say about this. Before we begin new work, I think I should consult the members of the steering committee.

[Guy Lauzon, Conservative, Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry, ON]

Will there be another opportunity to make suggestions during the coming weeks?

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Yes, there will be.

The steering committee will meet fairly promptly. It is clear that the members will be consulted before beginning any new work. Moreover, all the steering committee reports must be approved by the committee.

Let us adjourn this committee meeting. Steering committee members, are you available?

[Mauril Bélanger, Liberal, Ottawa—Vanier, ON]

With your permission, I have a suggestion to make. If we take 10 minutes between both meetings, Mr. Lauzon will have the opportunity to speak to representatives from the government or from the steering committee. And we could also make a concerted effort.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

We will resume the work of the steering committee in 10 minutes.

The meeting is adjourned.