Proceedings of the Standing Senate Committee on
Social Affairs,
Science and Technology
Issue 21 - Minutes of Proceedings
MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS
OTTAWA, Wednesday, February 12, 1997
(34)
[English]
The Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology met this day, in Room 505, Victoria Building, at 12:08 p.m., the Chair, the Honourable Senator Mabel M. DeWare, presiding.
Members of the committee present: The Honourable Senators Bosa, Cohen, Cools, DeWare, Graham, Haidasz, Jessiman, Losier-Cool, Lynch-Staunton, Milne. (10)
Other senators present: The Honourable Senators Maheu and Pearson. (2)
In attendance: Kate Dunkley, Research Officer, Research Branch of the Library of Parliament.
Also in attendance: The official reporters of the Senate.
Pursuant to the Order of Reference adopted by the Senate on Thursday, November 28, 1996, the committee continued its consideration of Bill C-41, An Act to amend the Divorce Act, the Family Orders and Agreements Enforcement Assistance Act, the Garnishment, Attachment and Pension Diversion Act and the Canada Shipping Act. (See Issue No. 15, Wednesday, December 4, 1996, for full text of Order of Reference.)
The Chair presented the following report:
WEDNESDAY, February 12, 1997
The Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure of the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology has the honour to present its
SECOND REPORT
Your Subcommittee notes that, since the meeting of the Committee on January 29, 1997, further discussions have taken place between members of the Committee and the Department of Justice.
Your Subcommittee therefore recommends that the clause-by-clause study of Bill C-41 be recommenced at clause 1.
Respectfully submitted,
Mabel M. DeWARE
Chair
It was moved by the Honourable Senator DeWare -- THAT the Second Report of the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure of the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology be adopted.
The question being put on the motion, it was agreed.
The Honourable Senator Cools made an observation on procedural tactics.
The Chair, in accordance with the adoption of the Second Report of the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure of the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology, proceeded to recommence clause-by-clause consideration of the Bill at Clause 1.
It was moved by the Honourable Senator Jessiman -- THAT Bill C-41 be amended in Clause 1, on page 2, by striking out lines 9 and 10 and substituting the following:
"of illness, disability or other cause, to with --"
The question being put on the motion, it was agreed.
The question being put to carry Clause 1, as amended, it was agreed.
It was moved by the Honourable Senator Cools -- THAT Bill C-41 be amended in Clause 2, on page 6, by striking out line 15 and substituting the following:
"marriage, unless the conduct is so unconscionable as to constitute an obvious and gross repudiation of the relationship.".
After debate,
The question being put on the motion, it was, by a show of hands, defeated: yeas: 4; nays: 4.
The question being put to carry Clause 2, unamended, it was agreed.
It was agreed -- THAT Clauses 3 to 10 be carried.
The question being put to carry Clause 11, the Honourable Senator Jessiman moved -- THAT Bill C-41 be amended in Clause 11, on page 13, by striking out line 40 and substituting the following:
"(2) The guidelines shall be based on the principle that spouses have a joint financial obligation to maintain the children of the marriage in accordance with their relative abilities to contribute to the performance of that obligation.
(3) In subsection (1), "order for child"
The question being put on the motion, it was agreed.
The question being put to carry Clause 11, as amended, it was agreed.
It was agreed -- THAT Clauses 12 to 21 be carried.
It was moved by the Honourable Senator Cools -- THAT Bill C-41 be amended in Clause 22,
(a) on page 17, by adding after line 38 the following:
"access order" means an order or judgment relating to a right of access to or visitation of a child that is enforceable under provincial law.
"access provision" means a provision in an agreement relating to a right of access to or visitation of a child that is enforceable under provincial law.";
(b) on page 18, by adding after line 2 the following:
"defaulter" means a debtor or a person who denies a right granted in an access order or an access provision.
"family provision" means a support order, a support provision, an access order or an access provision.";
(c) on page 19,
(i) by replacing lines 1 to 5 with the following:
"64. The purpose of this Part is to help provincial enforcement services enforce family provisions by providing for the denial of certain licences to debtors who are in persistent arrears, and to persons who deny a right granted in an access order or an access provision for at least three visits.",
(ii) by replacing lines 16 to 20 with the following:
"67.(1) Where a debtor is in persistent arrears under a support order or a support provision, or where a person has denied another a right granted in an access order or an access provision for at least three visits, a provincial enforcement service may apply to the Minister that the following actions be taken against the defaulter:
(a) that no new schedule licences be issued to the defaulter;
(b) that all schedule licences held by the defaulter be suspended; and
(c) that schedule licences held by the defaulter not be renewed.",
(iii) by replacing lines 30 and 31 with the following:
"(a) the identity of the defaulter; and
(b) the family provision.", and
(iv) by replacing line 38 with the following:
"is satisfied, in the case of a debtor, that the debtor is in persistent";
(d) on page 20,
(i) by replacing line 2 with the following:
"support provision and, in the case of a person who denies a right granted in an access order or an access provision, that the person has denied the right for at least three visits;",
(ii) by replacing line 5 with the following:
"family provision",
(iii) by replacing lines 9 and 10 with the following:
"has sent a notice to the defaulter, at the defaulter's last known address,",
(iv) by replacing line 13 with the following:
"believe, in the case of a debtor, that the debtor is in persistent",
(v) by replacing line 15 with the following:
"provision and, in the case of a person who denies a right granted in an access order or an access provision, that the person has denied the right for at least three visits,",
(vi) by replacing line 19 with the following:
"defaulter,",
(vii) by replacing line 20 and 21 with the following:
"(iii) informing the defaulter of the consequences to the defaulter of a licence denial",
(viii) by replacing lines 23 to 31 with the following:
"(iv) advising the defaulter that a licence denial application will not be made,
(A) in the case of a debtor, if the debtor enters into a payment plan that is acceptable to the provincial enforcement service or satisfies the provincial enforcement service that the debtor is unable to pay the amount in arrears and that the making of the application is not reasonable in the circumstances, and
(B) in the case of a person who denies a right granted in an access order or an access provision, if the person satisfies the provincial enforcement service that the person was unable to grant the right for the relevant period and that the making of the application is not reasonable in the circumstances.",
(ix) by replacing line 35 with the following:
"the defaulter.", and
(x) by replacing lines 37 and 38 with the following:
"deemed to have been received by a defaulter ten days after it is sent to the defaulter.";
(e) on page 21,
(i) by replacing line 1 with the following:
"determine whether the defaulter to whom the",
(ii) by replacing line 5 with the following:
"denial application in respect of a defaulter, an",
(iii) by replacing line 7 with the following:
"mine whether the defaulter is the holder of a",
(iv) by replacing line 11 with the following:
"that a defaulter is the holder of a schedule",
(v) by replacing lines 16 to 18 with the following:
"action under subsection (2) against a defaulter shall send the defaulter a notice in writing informing the defaulter that the action has been", and
(vi) by replacing lines 22 and 23 with the following:
"respect of a defaulter shall refuse to issue a schedule licence to the defaulter.";
(f) on page 22,
(i) by adding the following after line 13:
"(1.1) A provincial enforcement service shall immediately request that all actions taken under this Part in respect of a person who denies a right granted in an access order or an access provision be terminated where
(a) the provincial enforcement service is satisfied that the person
(i) is no longer denying any right that has been enforced by a licence denial application, or
(ii) is unable to grant the right and that the application of this Part against the person is not reasonable in the circumstances; or
(b) the provincial enforcement service ceases to enforce all access orders or access provisions that have been enforced by a licence denial application.", and
(ii) by replacing line 14 with the following:
"(2) A request under subsection (1) or (1.1) must be";
(g) by replacing line 27 with the following:
"of the defaulter solely on the basis of this Part;"; and
(h) by replacing line 30 with the following:
"to the defaulter solely on the basis of this Part.".
After debate,
The question being put on the motion, it was, by a show of hands, defeated: yeas: 4; nays: 4.
It was moved by the Honourable Senator Cools -- THAT Bill C-41 be amended in Clause 22:
(a) on page 18, by replacing lines 4 and 5 with the following:
"care or an authorization of any kind, but does not include a passport within the meaning of sec-".
(b) on page 19, by deleting lines 13 to 15.
(c) on page 22, by
(i) deleting the title immediately preceding line 36, and
(ii) deleting lines 36 to 46; and
(d) on pages 19 to 24, by renumbering sections 67 to 82 as 66 to 80, and any cross-references thereto accordingly.
After debate,
The question being put on the motion, it was, by a show of hands, defeated: yeas: 4; nays: 4.
The question being put to carry Clause 22, unamended, it was agreed.
It was agreed -- THAT clauses 23 to 42 carry.
It was agreed -- THAT the Schedule carry.
It was -- THAT the Title carry.
It was agreed -- THAT Bill C-41, as amended carry.
The Chair read into the record correspondence received from Mr. George Thomson, Deputy Minister of Justice; the Honourable Allan Rock, Minister of Justice; and the Honourable Joyce Fairbairn, Leader of the Government in the Senate.
It was agreed -- THAT the above-noted letters be attached to the Report as appendices.
It was moved by the Honourable Senator Cools -- THAT Bill C-41, as amended, with appendices, be reported to the Senate.
The question being put on the motion, it was agreed.
At 1:13 p.m., the committee adjourned to the call of the Chair.
ATTEST:
Blair Armitage
Acting Clerk of the Committee