Official Languages Committee on March 31st, 2023

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

That is the date of the legislative drafting.

[Joël Godin, Conservative, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

All right.

Let me go back to the drafting date. Does that mean that once the amendment is drafted, it goes directly to the clerk?

[The Clerk]

The amendment is first sent to the member, who must then decide whether or not to submit it.

[Joël Godin, Conservative, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

What is the time you see at the bottom in small print?

[The Clerk]

This is the last time the text of the amendment was changed in the system.

[Joël Godin, Conservative, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

I see.

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

Thank you for that clarification. There are a lot of technical aspects, today.

Mr. Serré, you have the floor.

[Marc Serré, Liberal, Nickel Belt, ON]

Amendment LIB‑35 is fairly straightforward. It just adds clarification to the LIB‑14 amendment.

I move that Bill C‑13, in clause 38, be amended by replacing line 14 on page 31 with the following:

of the contravention or violation that resulted in the order being

This amendment merely adds some clarification.

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

Thank you.

Are there any comments?

(Amendment agreed to: yeas 11; nays 0)

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

Since LIB‑35 has passed, NDP‑14 cannot be moved.

(Clause 38 as amended agreed to)

(Clause 39 agreed to)

(Clause 40)

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

We will now move on to clause 40.

Mr. Godin, are you moving amendment CPC‑50?

[Joël Godin, Conservative, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

Yes, Mr. Chair. Do you have anything to say?

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

No.

[Joël Godin, Conservative, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

All right. I'm asking because it's long.

I move that Bill C‑13, in clause 40, be amended by adding after line 39 on page 31 the following:

(2.1) Subsection 77(2) of the Act is amended by adding the following after paragraph (a): (a.1) the complainant is informed of the actions taken to implement the recommendations that the Commissioner made under subsection 63(3), (2.2) Subsection 77(3) of the Act is replaced by the following: (3) Where a complaint is made to the Commissioner under this Act but the complainant is not informed of the results of the investigation of the complaint under subsection 64(1), of the actions taken to implement the recommendations that the Commissioner made under subsection 63(3), of the recommendations of the Commissioner under subsection 64(2) or of a decision under subsection 58(5) within six months after the complaint is made, the complainant may make an application under subsection (1) at any time thereafter.

I don't think I need to make a long argument. People around the table can make up their minds. Maybe their minds are already made up.

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

Are there any questions or comments?

(Amendment agreed to: yeas 11; nays 0)

(Clause 40 as amended agreed to)

(Clauses 41 and 42 agreed to)

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

We now move on to new clause 42.1. The Conservative Party has a history of proposing new clauses.

Mr. Godin, are you moving amendment CPC‑51?

[Joël Godin, Conservative, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

Mr. Chair, yes, it will be moved, but your comment was not appropriate. As chair, it is not your place to judge our work.

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

That was a positive comment.

[Joël Godin, Conservative, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

It was a joke, Mr. Chair. There was no animosity in my comment, far from it. I will now move amendment CPC‑51.

I move that Bill C‑13 be amended by adding after line 14 on page 35 the following new clause:

42.1 The Act is amended by adding the following after section 79: 79.1 For greater certainty, in proceedings under this Part, the Court may admit as evidence information relating to events that occurred after the complaint to the Commissioner was made, including information enabling an evaluation of whether the complaint is well-founded and whether the remedy to be granted, if any, is appropriate and just.

This clause is significant, because it would make the process much quicker and less complicated, and francophones would also waste much less time in court. I'm thinking, among other things, of a lawsuit by the Fédération des francophones de la Colombie‑Britannique, or FFCB, and of the work of volunteers. This amendment would speed up and eliminate some of the legal battles that are always funded by the public purse. In addition, francophones would stand to gain from this.

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

Thank you, Mr. Godin.

Any questions or comments?

I see no one wants to speak, so I will call the vote on amendment CPC‑51, which introduces the new clause 42.1.

(Amendment negatived: nays 6; yeas 5)

(On clause 43)

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

We will now move on to amendment BQ‑57, about clause 43.

Mr. Beaulieu, are you moving this amendment?

[Mario Beaulieu, Bloc, La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC]

I am, but I'm removing the second subsection from it, so that the amendment will be in order.

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

I don't believe that you can amend your own amendment, Mr. Beaulieu.

[Mario Beaulieu, Bloc, La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC]

No, I wish to introduce it with the second subsection removed. The amendment has yet to be introduced.

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

Okay, it hasn't been introduced yet.

One moment, I will consult the experts.