Procedure and House Affairs committee  What was I talking about? It was the math of the two. That's right, I was talking about the will of Canadians. It sounds like they did their due diligence in terms of consultation, at least from what we heard this morning. I just hope that the Canadian public was paid more respec

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I'm just saying I want to be part of the solution. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. I guess I'm just talking out the reasons for the necessity for the review, which are many, as I'm determining more and more. This $595 million is very concerning in terms of the independent media. I struggle to think, and I don't understand yet.... Maybe it

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. I, too, am in support of this motion. I think there are just too many unanswered questions in terms of how this commission and the position of the debates commissioner came to be, which I believe we outlined to some extent this morning when the mi

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Thank you, Minister.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Thank you, Minister. I'm very happy to hear you're comforted that we weren't provided the opportunity to consult. Do you have similar feelings with regard to the fact that the appointment was not brought through the House of Commons, which would have allowed for adequate debate

Procedure and House Affairs committee  We are calling this an independent commission, yet it's funded by the Liberal government, it was created by the Liberal government and it's the Liberal government that decides the criteria for political party leaders to participate within the debate. Given all of that, how can we

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Marie Vastel, of Le Devoir, Andrew Coyne of the National Post—one of my favourites—Chris Selley of the National Post, Chantal Hébert of the Toronto Star, and Colby Cosh of the National Post have all written articles indicating that this is a bad idea. How can your government pos

Procedure and House Affairs committee  And you don't think these top professionals know how to do that, given their experience?

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Is it true that one of the seven positions is held for a PCO member?

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Is that a yes or a no, please?

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Finally, do you think $595 million, as outlined in the federal fall economic update yesterday, contributes to a democratic media?

Procedure and House Affairs committee  It's funded by the government.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. Minister, it's always lovely to see you. My first question goes back to Mr. Christopherson's. In what way do you feel that the appointment of Mr. Johnston is democratic? I received a phone call from you the morning of the announcement, saying that this i

Procedure and House Affairs committee  It's unfortunate that PCO officials couldn't be here with us today. With regard to that, I'll ask you these questions about coordination and approvals, given your role with regard to the ministerial aspect of your position. What types of communications products need to be sent