Evidence of meeting #1 for Public Safety and National Security in the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was chair.
A recording is available from Parliament.
6 p.m.
Conservative
6 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Kevin Sorenson
He says, basically, to keep it at 48 and they'll be all right with it. So is it 48 hours?
6 p.m.
A voice
Yes, it's 48.
6 p.m.
NDP
Don Davies NDP Vancouver Kingsway, BC
Could I ask a question of the clerk? Does that mean if you're meeting on a Tuesday...? What time does this committee meet?
6 p.m.
NDP
Don Davies NDP Vancouver Kingsway, BC
So let's say you get a motion in by 4 o'clock that day. That's Tuesday. It would be in order to be dealt with on the Thursday.
6 p.m.
NDP
Don Davies NDP Vancouver Kingsway, BC
Now if you met from 3:30 to 5:30, could you get a motion in that night, that Tuesday night, because there are two intervening sleeps, that Tuesday night and Wednesday night, for the Thursday meeting, even though it's less than 48 hours? Is that what you were saying?
6:05 p.m.
The Clerk
Now the real trick becomes translation.
6:05 p.m.
NDP
Don Davies NDP Vancouver Kingsway, BC
Let's leave that aside. I mean just for timing. Okay, I understand.
6:05 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Kevin Sorenson
I'll tell you where the problem comes in. On Fridays our staff is not always here until 5:30. So if they're here until 4 o'clock on Friday and the motion comes in Friday afternoon at 5:30 and we have a Monday meeting, they say that we had 48 hours. We walk in. We get the notice of motion. And there's the motion hitting us. The two-sleep thing is good, but it doesn't include weekends. Well, I guess it would, as long as it's in by 4 o'clock. So good.
All in favour, then, of the way it is with the 48 hours in there?
6:05 p.m.
Conservative
6:05 p.m.
Conservative
6:05 p.m.
Conservative
6:05 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Kevin Sorenson
I didn't get that page. I only got one page on this to our staff here.
6:05 p.m.
Conservative
6:05 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Kevin Sorenson
I think there's one more page coming.
All right. The next section from the last is as follows: that at the discretion of the chair, the witnesses from any one organization shall be allowed ten minutes--this is not from the last Parliament--to make their opening statement. During the questioning of witnesses, there shall be allocated seven minutes for the first questioner of each party, starting with the opposition parties, and that thereafter five minutes be allocated to each subsequent questioner, continuing with the opposition...and alternating between government members and opposition members until every member has spoken once.
The other thing we had on this--and I don't know if it was just a submotion we put in--was that it was different last term when there was a cabinet minister here. The opposition asked for 10 minutes in the first round. Here it's seven. So be aware of that.
Ms. Hoeppner.
6:05 p.m.
Conservative
Candice Bergen Conservative Portage—Lisgar, MB
If we could, we have to deal with the rounds of questioning, so the time, as you just mentioned. I think we're all in agreement with the first one being seven minutes and then the second and subsequent rounds being five minutes. We're fine with that. We can decide if we want to do something different with ministers.
But as far as the order goes, we had some agreement that the very first round would start with the government side. And the order would be as follows: government, official opposition, government, third party. Then the second round would begin with the opposition, back to government, back to opposition, back to government, and then subsequent rounds. So we would start with the government, but the second round would start with the opposition.
6:05 p.m.
Liberal
Francis Scarpaleggia Liberal Lac-Saint-Louis, QC
For the second round, I heard the opposition mentioned, but I didn't hear the third party mentioned.
6:05 p.m.
Conservative
Candice Bergen Conservative Portage—Lisgar, MB
I'm not sure. I think the first round would be the third party, but on the second round, I think if you look at the percentages.... I think I actually have them.
6:05 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Kevin Sorenson
It depends on what you mean by “round“, I guess. If a round is.... That's what is up for debate, the three parties...does that mean every three questions, those third parties--
6:05 p.m.
Conservative