Proceedings of the Standing Senate Committee on
Agriculture and Forestry
Issue 1 - Evidence - Meeting of November 7, 2002
OTTAWA, Thursday, November 7, 2002
The Standing Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forestry met this day at 8:32 a.m. to consider a draft budget and future business of the committee.
Senator Donald H. Oliver (Chairman) in the Chair.
[English]
The Chairman: Honourable senators, the first item on the agenda is consideration of the draft budget. It was prepared using general directions from the previous budget approved by the committee. Committee members will see that in this budget the travel locations were chosen based on two criteria: current research on climate change and current effects of climate change.
A number of these items, like most items in a budget, are fixed. For example, per diems are preset for amounts that can be spent on meals and for the interpretation and reporting services.
Senator LaPierre: I have a concern about global warming. Does it not affect the forests of Quebec and other areas of Eastern Canada? Why are we concentrating only on Western Canada?
The Chairman: I will ask our clerk to give an explanation.
Mr. Daniel Charbonneau, Clerk of the Committee: Essentially, in the original budget that was proposed last year, we actually had amounts put aside for travel in the province of Quebec. We had set aside money to travel to Montreal, Sherbrooke and Quebec City, as possible locations.
When we drafted this budget, and because there are only a few months left in the current fiscal year, which ends March 31, we decided to limit travel to only one trip.
Senator LaPierre: The project will continue after that, I gather.
Mr. Charbonneau: Yes, it will.
The Chairman: This is a budget for the balance of this fiscal year.
Senator LaPierre: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
The Chairman: Are there any other questions or comments? If not, we need a motion to approve the budget.
Senator LaPierre: I so move.
The Chairman: All in favour? Motion carried.
The committee continued in camera.