Official Languages Committee on May 12th, 2015

[Graham Fraser]

Is it sufficient? We make decisions regarding legal action on a case-by-case basis. It has never occurred that we weren't able to pursue legal action because we didn't have enough resources.

There are other elements and other aspects about which we need to make difficult decisions, but so far, these are also strategic decisions, because we don't necessarily get involved at every stage.

As for CBC/Radio-Canada, we were managing the files in that regard. However, when a case has to go through all the stages before getting to the Supreme Court, we often get involved at the Supreme Court level, as was the case with the Rose-des-vents elementary school and the Commission scolaire francophone du Yukon. There was also a case in Northwest Territories. We went there to take part in the proceedings, but that was several years ago.

We are able to make strategic decisions to determine where, when and at what level we need to get involved, and to see how we can use our resources as efficiently as possible.

[Lise St-Denis, Liberal, Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC]

Okay.

[The Chair, Conservative, Michael Chong]

Thank you, Ms. St-Denis and Mr. Fraser.

We'll end our questioning of the Commissioner of Official Languages on the estimates.

We have a vote on the estimates, and the committee can either adopt, reject, or reduce the estimates. I'll call the question.

OFFICE OF THE COMMISSIONER OF OFFICIAL LANGUAGES

Vote 1—Program expenditures..........$18,556,100

(Vote 1 agreed to)

Shall the chair report the estimates and the vote back to the House?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Chair, Conservative, Michael Chong]

Thank you very much for your cooperation.

Thank you to the Commissioner and the public servants who appeared with him for their support.

We'll suspend for five minutes.

[The Chair, Conservative, Michael Chong]

We are now resuming the 46th meeting of the Standing Committee on Official Languages. We are on item 3 on our agenda, committee business. We will discuss the motion brought forward by Mr. Nicholls, who gave a notice of motion on April 28.

Before I turn it over to Mr. Nicholls, I would like to go to Mr. Gourde.

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Lotbinière—Chutes-de-la-Chaudière, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I would ask that we go in camera, please.

[The Chair, Conservative, Michael Chong]

Okay.

All those in favour of going in camera?

[Jamie Nicholls, NDP, Vaudreuil—Soulanges, QC]

Can we have a recorded vote?

[The Chair, Conservative, Michael Chong]

Mr. Nicholls has requested a recorded vote.

(Motion negatived: nays 6; yeas 3)

The motion is defeated. We remain in public.

Mr. Daniel, you have a point of order.

Go ahead.

[Joe Daniel, Conservative, Don Valley East, ON]

I wasn't sure what was being voted on.

[The Chair, Conservative, Michael Chong]

I appreciate that there was confusion, but the clerk took the vote and the decision is final.

The rules of procedure are as follows: once a vote is in process there can be no interruptions or points of order.

The clerk had the floor and conducted the vote. I'm sorry if people were confused about the vote that was in front of us, but those are the rules.

Mr. Daniel, go ahead.

[Joe Daniel, Conservative, Don Valley East, ON]

I move a motion to adjourn.

[The Chair, Conservative, Michael Chong]

We have a motion to adjourn. It being a dilatory motion, it shall be put immediately.

[Jamie Nicholls, NDP, Vaudreuil—Soulanges, QC]

Recorded vote.

[The Chair, Conservative, Michael Chong]

There's been a request for a recorded vote, and we will have that.

Before I give the clerk the floor, to be clear, the question being put is that this meeting do now adjourn.

(Motion agreed to: yeas 5; nays 4 )

Thank you very much.

This meeting is adjourned.