Evidence of meeting #30 for Public Safety and National Security in the 40th Parliament, 2nd session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was report.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Liberal
Andrew Kania Liberal Brampton West, ON
I'd love to go on the record, but as a matter of principle, as a lawyer, I'm not commenting on anything before I've read it.
Conservative
Liberal
Rob Oliphant Liberal Don Valley West, ON
I'm happy to go on the record as well. People tend to not call me and I try not to be upset about that.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Garry Breitkreuz
As chair, I would like to also go on the record. I have talked to no one in regard to this report, and in fact I have not had staff here while it was being discussed.
Okay. I will then report this to the House. I should be leaving here.
Yes, Mr. Rathgeber.
Conservative
Brent Rathgeber Conservative Edmonton—St. Albert, AB
Mr. Chair, I just need to emphasize--and this is a serious matter--that somebody on this committee leaked this report to somebody. Either directly or indirectly, it ended up in the hands of the media. There are staff members who are privy to these deliberations. There are indirect routes of doing it. Every member in this committee has made some representation, and some of them slightly qualified, I would suggest. Nonetheless, I'd ask that the chair report this breach of privilege to the Speaker, and that the Speaker thereafter take whatever actions he deems appropriate.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Garry Breitkreuz
He will have to investigate this. It doesn't seem like we're going to shed much light on how this occurred.
Is there anything else before I adjourn the meeting?
Liberal
Andrew Kania Liberal Brampton West, ON
I'd like to go on the record once I've read this, so I would ask you to give me two minutes.
Just so we're clear, Mr. Rathgeber, what is it that you're asking the chair to do specifically with respect to this June 17, 2009, article in the Toronto Star?
Conservative
Brent Rathgeber Conservative Edmonton—St. Albert, AB
As with all matters of privilege, when the alleged breach of privilege is in committee and not in the House, which in this case I'm suggesting it is, the role of the chair of the committee is to report the breach of privilege to the Speaker at the first available opportunity and to ask the Speaker to take whatever actions he sees as appropriate.
Liberal
Andrew Kania Liberal Brampton West, ON
I'm going to respond in two parts. First, at no time, I can clearly say, have I ever spoken to this reporter, and I have personally never divulged any information from this committee in camera, ever. So I am agreeing with that, without reservation.
But this is my major comment, now that I've read this. It says, “says a key source”, and then the last paragraph quotes Mr. Holland, but previously it says, “Mr. Holland said at the time it was “staggering...”, etc.
So to be fair, the most you can suggest is that you can make an allegation that you want the Speaker to look at some key source--said something--but there is no indication in this article that anybody from this committee said anything. And I want that to be clear. So who is “a key source”?
Conservative
Brent Rathgeber Conservative Edmonton—St. Albert, AB
Mr. Kania, we deliberated in camera for four hours on Tuesday. The recommendations of our in camera deliberations have been released to the media. Somebody in that meeting breached the privilege of this House. I don't know who the key source is. I'm not suggesting that it's a member. It may be a staff member. The leak may have been indirect.
All I'm asking--and let's be clear on this--is that the breach of privilege be reported. I am not making allegations.
Liberal
Andrew Kania Liberal Brampton West, ON
Okay, that's fine. I think we should do that, so I'm not disagreeing with you. I just want to be clear in terms of what this says.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Garry Breitkreuz
I think we have agreement all the way around that I report this to the House. It's an obvious breach.
Conservative
Brent Rathgeber Conservative Edmonton—St. Albert, AB
The article speaks for itself, as does my request, Chair.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Garry Breitkreuz
Okay, I will do that. It is my obligation, as chair of the committee, to do that.
This meeting stands adjourned.