COMMITTEE OF SELECTION OF THE SENATE
EVIDENCE
OTTAWA, Wednesday, October 13, 1999
The Committee of Selection of the Senate met this day at 9:30 a.m. to nominate, in accordance with Rule 88 and Rule 85 of the Senate, a senator to preside as Speaker as well as appoint senators to serve on several select committees for the duration of the session.
[Translation]
Mr. Gary O'Brien (Clerk of the Committee): Honourable Senators, we have a quorum. As Clerk of your Committee, it is my duty to preside over the election of a chairman. I am prepared to entertain motions to that effect. Would anyone care to nominate someone?
Senator Kinsella: I move that Senator Mercier be elected chairman of this committee.
Some Hon. Senators: Agreed.
Mr. O'Brien: The Honourable Senator Kinsella has moved that the Honourable Senator Mercier be elected chairman of this committee. Is it the pleasure of Honourable Senators to adopt the motion?
Some Hon. Senators: Agreed.
Mr. O'Brien: I declare the motion carried. I invite the Honourable Senator Mercier to take the chair.
Senator Léonce Mercier (Chairman) presiding.
The Chairman: Welcome everybody. Thank you for your show of confidence. The second item on our agenda is the appointment of senators to serve on the Senate Committee on Transport and Communications. I am prepared to entertain motions to that effect.
Senator Stollery: I move that Senators Adams, Bacon, Callbeck, Finestone, Kirby, Perrault and Poulin be appointed to the committee.
Senator Kinsella: I move that Senators Forrestall, Johnson, Roberge, LeBreton and Spivak be appointed to the committee.
The Chairman: Is it the pleasure of the committee to adopt the motion?
Some Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chairman: Motion carried. Our next item of business is the appointment of senators to serve on the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Senator Stollery: Mr. Chairman, I move that Liberal Senators Corbin, DeBané, Grafstein, Lewis, Losier-Cool, Stewart and yours truly, Senator Stollery, be appointed to this committee.
Senator Kinsella: I move that Senators Andreychuk, Atkins, Bolduc, Carney and Di Nino be appointed to the committee.
The Chairman: Is it the pleasure of the committee to adopt the motion.
Senator Prud'homme: Mr. Chairman, I think the logical thing to do would be to reappoint the same senators to the Foreign Affairs Committee, given the important task that has been assigned to them.
[English]
They had a strong mandate to finish a report under the chairmanship of Senator Stewart. I thought this committee would renew their membership automatically, subject to them being reappointed by the steering committee.
To be very clear, Senator Stewart has a report to complete. I am a reasonable person. I think he should finish his report because the Senate has invested close to $400,000 in it, and the same senators should be involved in that process. I do not wish this report to be known as the final report of the Standing Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs for the next two years.
This should be a reappointment process. If an honourable senator tells me that this is not in the rules, I would be more than happy to review the matter. Again, the previous members of the committee should be given the opportunity to finish their report. When it is completed and when Senator Stewart retires, then the steering committee can meet to appoint the full committee.
This committee has just appointed two senators who will be retiring in November, namely, Senator Lewis and Senator Stewart. I would prefer that the steering committee meet at that time. That would be very logical.
When Senator Whelan retired, he was replaced on the committee by Senator Lewis. The committee cannot continue for the next two years with the same membership because a new chairman must be appointed in November, assuming that Senator Stewart will be a member of the committee when it meets this week to finish its work.
Honourable senators may think my suggestion makes no sense, but it is all in the name of logic, and I will develop it further when the Senate sits later today.
Senator Stollery: Mr. Chairman, as a member of the steering committee of the Foreign Affairs Committee, I wish to point out to Senator Prud'homme that, according to the Rules of the Senate, whatever decision we take today is for this session. Senator Lewis will be retiring before too long, although I am not sure as to the date.
Senator Prud'homme: He retires on November 22 and Senator Stewart on November 14.
Senator Stollery: Two members of the committee are retiring. Obviously, then, the membership will change. I am not sure if that is done by the Selection Committee, but it seems that Senator Prud'homme's concerns take care of themselves in the normal functioning of the committee. The steering committee, including Senator Andreychuk and myself, are very aware of that.
Senator Hays: I look forward to this afternoon when we can discuss this issue more fully in the chamber. As the chairman intends to report the results of this meeting to the Senate today, honourable senators will have an opportunity to speak to the report.
To reinforce Senator Stollery's comment, we are bound by the rules in terms of the role of this committee and in terms of membership. The membership can change with the approval of the leader on each side and, undoubtedly, that change will occur when Senator Stewart retires. We hope that he will be elected chair in the meanwhile, but he will be retiring soon, as will Senator Lewis. Two spots will be open, and the membership of the committee can be revisited at that time, within the context of the rules.
Senator Prud'homme: I wish to place on the record that I am still not in agreement, but I will develop my argument further this afternoon.
The Chairman: Senator Kinsella has moved that the chairman report to the Senate on the appointments confirmed at today's meeting. I will make a report to the Senate this afternoon. Is it the pleasure of the committee to adopt the motion?
Some Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chairman: Are there any further questions?
Senator Prud'homme: Are we not going to appoint senators to serve on the other committees?
The Chairman: No. We are only deciding on the membership of two committees this morning. We will wait until the other senators are present before we appoint the members of the other committees. Would someone like to move that we adjourn?
Senator Kinsella: I so move.
The Chairman: Are we all agreed?
Some Hon. Senators: Agreed
The meeting is adjourned.