Proceedings of the Standing Senate Committee on
Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources
Issue 1 - Evidence - March 11, 2010
OTTAWA, Thursday, March 11, 2010
The Standing Senate Committee on Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources met this day at 8:34 a.m. in camera for the consideration of a draft budget.
Senator W. David Angus (Chair) in the chair.
(The committee resumed in public.)
[English]
The Chair: This is a meeting of the Standing Senate Committee on Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources. It is a great pleasure to be now duly constituted as a committee.
I would particularly like to thank our wonderful staff members who have been working away in the absence of the senators. I want to thank Sam Banks and Marc LeBlanc from the Library of Parliament. Lynn Gordon, our clerk, is back. Thank you for helping us get up and running so promptly, ahead of most other committees.
I would like to welcome our new senators. Senator Linda Frum is from Toronto. The other night, I mentioned her eminent career in the fourth estate, and I am sure that she will be add substantially to our deliberations.
Senator Leo Housakos is from Montreal. He told me he remembers the first day he came into my office in 1982. We were political junkies. He is a tremendous guy in terms of his interests in public policy and how our system works. He said he thinks the Energy Committee is the hottest committee and asked to be on it.
Here you are, senator. Welcome. I know you will like it and we look forward to working with you.
Senator Pana Merchant, unfortunately, is taking her leave. She was here earlier. She has been very kind to me in terms of her fulsome thanks for the time she spent on the committee and the interest she displayed. She is sorry so leave.
By the same token, we welcome Senator Paul Massicotte, who is originally from Winnipeg and is now from Montreal. He is a seasoned businessman with great knowledge and interests over a broad spectrum of subjects. He will add substantially to our deliberations as well.
For the rest of you, it is welcome back. I think we have undertaken a great deal. I know I can count on all of you. We will need to divide up the work, although I have not figured out exactly how to do so. The steering committee has a few thoughts on how we might have individual portfolios.
Let us get down to what we need to do now. There is a big environment/energy conference coming up in Vancouver under the auspices of the British Columbia GLOBE Foundation. It is held every two years. This year, 10,000 people from 83 countries — experts from all over the world — will be converging there. Our committee members have always attended and have been active as learners at that conference. Before the break, as part of our work program, we had approached the Senate for authority to attend and to be given a budget to do it. Unfortunately, that has all become just air in the wake of the dissolution of the committee.
However, now that the committee has been reconstituted, our steering committee has recommended that we go forward with this venture and that as many senators as we can budget for should go. You have before you the budget. We are asking that two library analysts and nine senators travel to the conference. I hope you have had an opportunity to look at the budget. I require a motion along these lines:
That the special study budget application for our energy sector study, for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2010, be approved, conditional on Senate approval of the order of reference —
— that is my motion that will be heard today —
— and that the chair and deputy chair be empowered to make any revisions so that the application may be submitted to the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration.
There are all kinds of little conditions now that the committee is up and running.
Senator Lang: I so move.
The Chair: All in favour?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chair: Contrary minded?
The motion is carried unanimously.
Is there any other business to come before this open meeting?
Thank you all for your attention and consideration. We will pursue the budget with the powers that be and report back.
(The committee adjourned.)