Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order to seek the unanimous consent of the House for the following motion: “That notwithstanding any standing order or usual practice of the House, clauses 210 to 218 related to the Judges Act be removed from Bill C-45, A second Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on March 29, 2012 and other measures, and do compose Bill C-47; that Bill C-47 be entitled an Act to amend the Judges Act; that Bill C-47 be deemed read a first time and be printed; that the order for second reading of said bill provide for the referral to the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights; that Bill C-45 retain the status on the order paper that it had prior to the adoption of this order; that Bill C-45 be reprinted, as amended; and that the law clerk and parliamentary counsel be authorized to make any technical changes or corrections as may be necessary to give effect to this motion.”
This measure, which deals with the changes to the government's implementation of the Judicial Compensation and Benefits Commission's recommendations, among other things, deserves full consideration. The government proposed that parts of the bill be referred to committee but not be amended or voted upon separately. The motion solves this problem by creating a separate bill so that this important issue can be thoroughly examined and debated.
I am convinced that, in respect for the independence of our judiciary, I will not have any problem getting the unanimous consent of the House.