THE STANDING SENATE COMMITTEE ON BANKING, TRADE AND COMMERCE
EVIDENCE
OTTAWA, Wednesday, November 22, 2017
The Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce met this day at 4:15 p.m., pursuant to rule 12-13 of the Rules of the Senate, to organize the activities of the committee.
[English]
Lynn Gordon, Clerk of the Committee: Honourable senators, I see a quorum.
Pursuant to the order of the Senate of the November 7, 2017, there is a vacancy in the chair.
[Translation]
As clerk of the committee, it is my duty to oversee the election of the chair.
[English]
I’m ready to receive a motion to that effect. Are there any nominations?
Senator Wallin: I would like to nominate Senator Douglas Black.
Ms. Gordon: Are there other nominations?
It is moved by the Honourable Senator Wallin that the Honourable Senator Black do take the chair of this committee.
Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
Ms. Gordon: Senator Black, would you please take the chair.
Senator Douglas Black (Chair) in the chair.
The Chair: Thank you all very much for the opportunity to serve with you as the chair of this committee.
I am very mindful that this is the oldest committee in the Senate and that coming before me have been some extraordinarily distinguished senators, starting with my immediate predecessor, Senator Tkachuk, and then of course Senator Gerstein, with whom a number of us served. You can check the list, as I did this morning, for those before that. It is a distinguished group of Canadians, and I am privileged to be part of the chain.
We will work closely together. My style is to be collaborative. Anyone who has worked with me knows that. I respect people’s points of view, even if I violently disagree. You are here because you have a valuable contribution to make, and I respect your contributions, starting now. Thank you for the opportunity.
Now we have to get to business. We need a deputy chair here. Having said that, I suspect there is a process to follow, and I suspect the clerk has a process lined up.
Honourable senators, pursuant to the motion adopted by the Senate on November 7, 2017, I am ready to proceed to the election of a deputy chair.
I am ready to receive a nomination for a deputy chair.
Senator Tkachuk: I nominate Senator Carolyn Stewart Olsen.
The Chair: Thank you very much. Senator Stewart Olsen has been nominated.
Are there any other nominations?
Hearing none, it is moved by the Honourable Senator Tkachuk that the Honourable Senator Stewart Olsen be the deputy chair of the committee.
Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, do adopt the motion?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chair: Unanimously agreed. I declare the motion carried. Wonderful.
We will move now to the establishment of the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure. We need a motion that the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure be composed of the chair, the deputy chair and one other member of the committee, whom I understand we do not name, correct?
Senator Day: We don’t name them, but I would like to know.
The Chair: We name them but not in the motion, so I am told, to be designated after the usual consultation; and that the committee be empowered to make decisions on behalf of the committee with respect to its agenda, to invite witnesses and to schedule hearings.
Senator Tannas: I so move.
The Chair: Are all in favour?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
Senator Day: I would like to inform the committee that the usual consultation has taken place and that Senator Downe will be on the steering committee.
The Chair: And Senator Downe agrees?
Senator Downe: Yes.
The Chair: That was easy.
What I would like to propose is to have a short telephone meeting of the steering committee tomorrow, which the clerk will set up, I am suggesting, at 11:15 a.m. just so that we can review the order of business and what we need to know is pending.
Obviously, we have to look at the Budget Implementation Act. You will have heard that in the Senate today. That is pending, as is Bill C-25. Our ongoing cybersecurity study needs to be pursued as well, which we need to ensure is tightly focused because we have heard a fair bit of evidence on that already.
Senator Ringuette: Mr. Chair, I would also like to remind you that my private bill with regard to the criminal interest rate is also pending and will be, as I understand, coming forthwith.
The Chair: I didn’t know that. I know it now. Thank you very much.
The bottom line is that we have a fair bit of work to get done in a pretty short time frame, but so be it.
Madam Clerk, is there anything else we need to attend to? Is there any other business?
Ms. Gordon: No.
Senator Moncion: Is there a meeting tomorrow?
The Chair: There is no meeting tomorrow.
Senator Tkachuk: I move that the meeting adjourn.
The Chair: Thank you very much.
(The committee adjourned.)