Procedure and House Affairs committee  I mentioned it solely to point out that the committee and the House have a number of options at their disposal to change the Standing Orders so as to establish a schedule that better accommodates the family needs of members. That's the only reason I brought it up. I have no prefe

Procedure and House Affairs committee  It would be up to the House to determine how to structure that second chamber.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Should the Backbench Business Committee be a standing committee of the House or an ad hoc committee of parliamentarians from all parties? That decision would be up to the House and the committee. As for the creation of a parallel or second chamber, again, I believe it would be n

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I wouldn't go that far. Previously, when the House wanted to try out a new or different procedure, it would do so by way of a motion authorizing a departure from the standard practice, even if the change was coming into effect permanently at a later time, say a year or two down

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I would just say, Mr. Chairman, that it should be obvious now that the kinds of changes the committee is examining carry with them quite a few consequences and implications. I want to reiterate my offer to make available to the committee whatever staff the committee may require t

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Having been to Canberra and having seen the room, I will say that it has a bit of a makeshift look even though it was purpose-built, because things were added after the fact. It's not a very large room. Now, the Australian House is smaller than ours, so that may account for that.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I don't know that there is. I'd have to check on that. In the case of Australia, I think it sits three times a week, on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. If I can put it this way, it's a safety valve for overflow House business. It's not a decision chamber per se. It's a deba

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I don't know the answer to that question. We can certainly check. Again, it would really be up to the House committee to decide how it would want to handle that if it went in that direction.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Again, I'd have to check. I don't know precisely the answer to that question. I'm not sure.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I hesitate to give personal opinions because that's all they are: personal opinions. What I will say is this. With regard to votes, as I said in my opening remarks, we're still in a situation where we're dealing with parliamentary reality. There will be times when, whether on t

Procedure and House Affairs committee  It's very hard for me to answer that question without knowing precisely what is being asked; I really can't. There may be technological implications that I'm not aware of. There may be requirements where we would have to build a system or devise other procedures internally to mak

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Yes, and if I may, it probably carries a fairly hefty price tag, in all likelihood.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Well, it just depends. Probably the informatics people and the Journals people are having kittens hearing me say this, but it really depends on how complicated the committee wants to make it and the House wants to make it. It could be as simple as setting up what is essentially a

Procedure and House Affairs committee  It can happen. The length of speeches over time has been on a downward trend. There used to be no limit on the time members could speak. Then it went to, I think, 40 minutes—no, even longer than that initially, and then down to 40 minutes, and then down to 20 minutes, and then it

Procedure and House Affairs committee  And as Mr. Lamoureux just said, that's a good thing because it gives more members an opportunity to take the floor, but if you're thinking it will reduce the time the House sits, I doubt it.