Status of Women Committee on April 17th, 2008

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Patricia Davidson]

That's carried unanimously. Good work, committee.

Before we adjourn, we have one more item of business. For Friday, which is tomorrow, we need to provide the clerk with the names of the witnesses for the action plan, if anyone has any witnesses they wish to put forth, and also questions for the finance department, if you wish to submit any. They need to be put to the clerk by Friday.

Ms. Deschamps.

[Johanne Deschamps, Bloc, Laurentides—Labelle, QC]

At the start of the week, I believe it was mentioned that, according to the schedule, we were going to work on a draft report. I don't remember the dates. However, in view of the many witnesses, experts and comments we've received thus far, if we continue on this track... I feel like a dog chasing its tail. I'm anxious for us to get down to business. The analysts and researchers have enough material for us to speed up the report process.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Patricia Davidson]

I will ask the analyst to address that issue and the dates.

[Clara Morgan, Committee Researcher]

We're going to have one report based on the gender budget study.

We'll have a report on May 27. There will also be another report on the action plan, which will be part of the same report.

[Sylvie Boucher, Conservative, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

So we'll have two different reports.

[Clara Morgan]

Yes.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Patricia Davidson]

Ms. Minna was next.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

You asked for questions to the Department of Finance. Could I request that the chair, unless we've already done so, send to the Department of Finance all of the questions that were submitted to us and given to us to help us with the questioning that day from Professor Lahey?

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Patricia Davidson]

Have those been sent to the Department of Finance?

You want them sent as—

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

As a package.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Patricia Davidson]

—as a package, asking them to please give answers.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Yes. They were detailed enough that we didn't get through them.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Patricia Davidson]

We will need them back by a specific date, so that they'll be part of the report. We'll leave it to the analyst to put the specified date in.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

I apologize. I was busy talking and I missed the report thing.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Patricia Davidson]

It's May 27.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

The draft report is coming on May 27?

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Patricia Davidson]

Yes, and then a separate report will be the action plan; that is what the comments were.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Do you mean April, not May?

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Patricia Davidson]

I believe the analyst said May, did you not?

Is there a draft budget before that?

The clerk would like to speak to this.

[The Clerk of the Committee, Ms. Danielle Bélisle]

We're still hearing witnesses when we come back after the break week in April—the official languages commissioner. The feeling of the committee was that what he had to say should be included in the report. So the report will be made after that.

It will be dealt with in committee on May 27, according to the work plan, and then tabled in the House shortly afterwards, once it's all been agreed.

Then the study for the action plan will start after that, and then there will be a separate report.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

If I may, Madam Chair, I think maybe some of us are saying that.... I know that the official languages commissioner will have some interesting things to say, but I think some of us are saying that we've heard so much now that we really think the staff should start writing the report. We'd like it a little sooner. May is a long time away.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Patricia Davidson]

If it is the will of the committee....

Does the committee wish that we start getting at least a draft report sooner than the end of May?

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Yes.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Patricia Davidson]

Is that possible?

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

I don't think we have to wait for the language commissioner. I think we can start.