Proceedings of the Standing Senate Committee on
Social Affairs, Science and Technology
Issue 1 - Evidence - March 11, 2010
OTTAWA, Thursday, March 11, 2010
The Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology met this day at 10:36 a.m., pursuant to rule 88 of the Rules of the Senate, to organize the activities of the committee.
[English]
Jessica Richardson, Clerk of the Committee: Honourable senators, I see a quorum. As clerk of your committee, it is my duty to preside over the election of the chair. I am ready to receive a motion to that effect.
Senator Ogilvie: It is my pleasure and privilege to nominate Senator Eggleton as chair of this committee.
Ms. Richardson: It is moved by the Honourable Senator Ogilvie that the Honourable Senator Eggleton do assume the role of chair of this committee. Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
Ms. Richardson: I declare the motion carried, and I invite the Honourable Senator Eggleton to take the chair.
Senator Art Eggleton (Chair) in the chair.
The Chair: Thank you to my nominator and to all of you. It was a long, hard campaign.
Senator Demers: You cannot bring that chair home with you now. That stays here.
The Chair: Right; first, let me welcome everyone.
[Translation]
Welcome to the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology.
[English]
Before I go on to Item 2 on the agenda, which is the election of the vice chair, I want to introduce our new people. We obviously have a new clerk, Jessica Richardson, as you have heard, who came to us from the Legal Committee where she was clerk. She has been with the Senate for a few years and with the academic community before that. She is originally from British Columbia. Welcome to Jessica. She has a new administrative assistant, who is new to the Senate, Maritza Jean-Pierre. Welcome.
We welcome back from the Library of Parliament, although they cannot take their seats yet, Havi Echenberg, who has worked with us on the Cities agenda, particularly the poverty, housing and homeless report and other reports, as well as Daniel Thompson — I am welcoming them prematurely — who works with us on post-secondary education access issues. Karen Schwinghamer is our person on the communications file.
That is who we are in terms of the staff side. I also extend a welcome to new members of the committee: Senator Seidman from Quebec, Senator Merchant from Saskatchewan and Senator Demers from Quebec. We have a return member, although she could not come today, Senator Champagne. Welcome to all new members and to all returning members.
Having welcomed everyone, now let us go to the organization meeting agenda. We have completed the first item, the election of the chair, so we go to Item 2, the election of the deputy chair.
I nominate Senator Ogilvie for deputy chair of this committee. Are there any other nominations? No? Another tough campaign. Then is it agreed that Senator Ogilvie be the deputy chair?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chair: Carried. Okay. Deputy chair.
Senator Ogilvie: Chair —
The Chair: You have a speech, too?
Senator Ogilvie: Yes. It is a pleasure to nominate Senator Martin as the third member of the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure.
The Chair: It is moved by Senator Ogilvie that Senator Martin be the third person on the subcommittee. Is there another nomination? Hearing none, is it agreed?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chair: Carried. Democracy has been served.
The remaining motions are fairly routine. To those who have participated in other committee organization meetings, they will look familiar, but I will call each item. I will need a senator to move each item and if there are questions, the clerk or I will explain.
Item 4 is a motion to print the committee's proceedings. May I have a mover?
Senator Merchant: I so move.
The Chair: Are there questions or comments? Is it agreed?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chair: Carried. Item 5 is authorization to hold meetings and to receive evidence when quorum is not present. This item is required in the event that for some reason we do not have quorum but we have witnesses from out of town prepared to testify. In such a case, we cannot make decisions but we can hear from the witnesses and put the testimony into the record.
Senator Ogilvie: Does quorum constitute four committee members?
The Chair: Yes.
Senator Ogilvie: I will not oppose the motion but the idea of three persons or fewer constituting a committee of this stature to hear important evidence is not the best idea. I appreciate that unique circumstances might arise when we want evidence read into the record but we do not have a full membership in attendance. I raise the issue only and I hope that we never have to apply it to a committee of this size.
The Chair: I have been chair of the committee for three or four years and have not experienced such an occasion. I did not realize that quorum was only four. With a 12-member committee, is quorum not half that number?
Ms. Richardson: Under the rules, quorum is four members.
The Chair: Senator, your point is well taken. We will try to ensure that this situation does not happen. The circumstance would have to extraordinary for it to occur.
Do I have a mover?
Senator Eaton: I so move.
The Chair: Is it agreed?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chair: Carried.
Item 6, financial report, which we do not have yet, is relevant to the last session in respect of committee expenses. We will defer this item to the next meeting.
Item 7 pertains to research staff assigned by the Library of Parliament to the committee.
Senator Cordy: I so move.
The Chair: Is there discussion or is further description requested? Hearing none, is it agreed?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chair: Carried.
Item 8 is a motion that authority to commit funds and certify accounts be conferred individually on the chair, the deputy chair and the clerk of the committee pursuant to section 7 and section 8 of the Senate Administrative Rules.
Senator Martin: I so move.
The Chair: Is it agreed?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chair: Carried.
Item 9 is a motion that the committee empower the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure to designate, as required, one or more members and staff to travel on behalf of the committee. Do I have a mover?
Senator Seidman: I so move.
The Chair: Is there discussion? Hearing none, is it agreed?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chair: Carried.
Item 10 applies to designation of members travelling on committee business and that the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure be authorized to make the determination of official business, and so on. Is further explanation needed? Hearing none, do I have a mover? It is moved by Senator Callbeck. Is it agreed?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chair: Carried.
Senator Cordy: I have a question on the last paragraph. If someone is travelling on behalf of the committee, is the whole committee aware of what they are doing?
The Chair: Yes.
Senator Cordy: Great.
The Chair: Item 11 applies to travelling and living expenses of witnesses. This item is another standard procedure. Do I have a mover?
Senator Dyck: I so move.
The Chair: Is there discussion? Hearing none, is it agreed?
Hon. Senators: Carried.
The Chair: Item 12 is a motion on communications. I introduced our communications person earlier and this motion is to authorize communications. Is there discussion? Do I have a mover?
Senator Demers: I so move.
The Chair: Is it agreed?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chair: Carried.
Item 13 addresses the time slots for regular meetings, which vary from the last session. On Wednesdays, we will meet at 4:15 p.m. This start time will give us time to travel from the Senate, which adjourns at 4 p.m., to the committee room and not keep witnesses waiting. We will meet for two hours from 4:15 p.m. to 6:15 p.m. On Thursdays we met at 10:45 a.m. but that has been changed and we will meet at 10:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m.
Senator Merchant: Will we always meet in this room?
The Chair: No, we will meet in this room for in camera meetings or if the meeting is not televised. We normally meet on the ground floor in committee room 2, which has televising facilities. Most of our sessions are fully televised.
Senator Merchant: Do we always meet in this building?
The Chair: Yes: Occasionally, we will meet in this room but more often we will meet on the ground floor in committee room 2.
Senator Merchant: Thank you.
The Chair: We usually have lunch during the Thursday meeting, which ends at 12:30 p.m.
Are there further questions? There is no motion required on this item because it is for information only.
Item 14 is other business.
Ms. Richardson: Chair, if I may interject. To clarify Item 3, we are not naming the third member according to the way it is written here? Otherwise, the motion needs to be worded slightly differently. You named the senator.
The Chair: Yes, you mentioned Senator Martin.
Ms. Richardson: In the motion as listed, it says "and one other member of the committee, to be designated after the usual consultation." If you wish to name the third member, I have a slightly different wording that we will need to use. I mention this for clarification. Does the committee want to keep this wording?
Senator Ogilvie: It is my understanding that the appropriate consultation has occurred. I would like to confirm that with the chair.
The Chair: The three of us consulted.
Senator Ogilvie: It is my understanding that the appropriate consultation has occurred.
The Chair: Yes, I understand. You are absolutely right.
Senator Ogilvie: I moved it in exactly that way: ". . . following the appropriate consultation." We did not have that wording here so I went with your words. Shall I —
Ms. Richardson: It is important procedurally. I wanted to be sure.
Senator Ogilvie: Will the chair accept that change?
The Chair: I am fine with that. Is everybody fine with that? Do all members feel consulted?
That clears up Item 3 and we move to other business under Item 14.
Senator Martin: Chair, I need to go back to Item 13. On every second Thursday, I am at another committee meeting until 10:30 a.m. I want colleagues to know that every second Thursday I will arrive later.
Senator Eaton: Is the meeting in this building?
Senator Martin: It is in Centre Block.
The Chair: I was told that we do not have an issue on it. It is not a standing committee, then, that you are talking about?
Senator Martin: It is the Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations.
Senator Ogilvie: I was on that committee in the earlier session. It would have been the same possibility, but it was virtually never a problem.
The Chair: We can always try to do something about it if it turns out to be a problem, Senator Martin.
Senator Martin: Thank you.
Senator Merchant: It may interfere with your quorum if you are short of members and somebody is arriving late. You cannot move the meeting —
The Chair: Except that our quorum is only four and we have twelve people. We have a lot to choose from, and we can always take substitutes as well.
Are we finished everything to Item 14? On Item 14, the usual context in which we would set a work plan is to go in camera so we could have a free-flowing discussion. We are not setting a work plan. At this time, I only want to have an informal discussion about where we might go.
We have the usual procedure to excuse any members of the public; I do not see any here.
Ms. Richardson: Yes there are.
The Chair: We have a motion — this motion is a normal one:
That each committee member be allowed to have one staff person present at in camera meetings, unless there is a decision for a particular meeting to exclude all staff."
I will wait until the clerk passes around the motion.
This motion also includes the Parliamentary Library people; otherwise we will be lost. Is it agreed that the staff will stay as per this motion?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chair: Carried.
Senator Merchant: I am sorry, chair. Is this a general rule for all our meetings?
The Chair: Yes, it is for all meetings.
The Chair: Is it agreed that we now go in camera and discuss future business?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
(The committee continued in camera.)