Proceedings of the Standing Committee on
Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration
Minutes of Proceedings - December 14, 2017 (in public and in camera)
OTTAWA, Thursday, December 14, 2017
(49)
[English]
The Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration met this day at 8:30 a.m., in room 160- S, Centre Block, the chair, the Honourable Larry W. Campbell, presiding.
Members of the committee present: The Honourable Senators Batters, Campbell, Carignan, P.C., Dawson, Forest, Marshall, McCoy, Mitchell, Moncion, Munson, Plett, Saint-Germain, Tannas, Tkachuk, Verner, P.C. and Woo (16).
Other senators present: The Honourable Senators Dean, McPhedran and Pate (3).
Also in attendance: Pascale Legault, Chief Corporate Services Officer and Clerk of the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration; Nicole Proulx, Interim Clerk of the Senate; Jacqueline Kuehl, Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel; and other senior Senate officials.
Also present: The official reporters of the Senate.
Pursuant to rule 12-7(1) of the Rules of the Senate, the committee continued its consideration of financial and administrative matters concerning the Senate's internal administration.
WITNESSES:
KPMG:
Andrew Newman, Partner, Audit Leader, Public Sector Audit.
Senate of Canada:
The Honourable Senator Marilou McPhedran;
The Honourable Senator Kim Pate.
Public Services and Procurement Canada:
Robert Wright, Assistant Deputy Minister, Parliamentary Precinct Branch;
Nathalie Laliberté, Director General, Parliamentary Precinct Branch;
Ezio DiMillo, Director General, Parliamentary Precinct Branch.
CIBA/2017-12-14/379(P)|214| — Adoption of Minutes of Proceedings
The committee considered the Minutes of Proceedings of Thursday, December 7, 2017, in public portion.
The chair made a statement.
The Honourable Senator Plett moved:
That the Minutes of Proceedings of Thursday, December 7, 2017, public portion, be adopted.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
CIBA/2017-12-14/380(P)|230| — Seventh Report of the Audit Subcommittee
The Chair of the Audit Subcommittee, the Honourable Senator Moncion, tabled the seventh report of the subcommittee as follows:
Thursday, December 14, 2017
The Audit Subcommittee of the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration has the honour to present its
SEVENTH REPORT
Your subcommittee has approved the revised Financial Statements of the Senate of Canada for the year ended March 31, 2017. The audit was conducted in accordance with Canadian generally accepted auditing standards by the professional services firm of KPMG.
The audit resulted in an unqualified auditor's report indicating that the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Senate of Canada as at March 31, 2017 and the results of its operations and cash flows in accordance with Canadian public sector accounting standards.
Your subcommittee recommends that these financial statements be tabled in the Senate.
Respectfully submitted,
LUCIE MONCION
Chair
The Honourable Senator Moncion, Andrew Newman and Pascale Legault answered questions.
The Honourable Senator Forest moved:
That the report be adopted.
After debate, the question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
CIBA/2017-12-14/381(P)|194| — Senator McPhedran: Appeal of Decision from the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure — Iceland Travel Claim
The committee considered an appeal by the Honourable Senator McPhedran to overturn a decision from the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure to not authorize an exemption to section 7.6 of the Senators' Office Management Policy.
The chair made a statement.
It was agreed that the background material related to the appeal by the Honourable Senator McPhedran and distributed to the committee be filed as an exhibit with the clerk of the committee.
The Honourable Senators McPhedran and Pate made statements and answered questions.
A point of order was raised concerning the ability of members of the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure to participate in the debate in the appeal.
RULING BY THE CHAIR
On the point of order, senators are only asked to recuse themselves if they have a private interest or as a result of an ethics report.
The Honourable Senator Carignan, P.C., moved:
That Senator McPhedran's appeal to overturn the decision on of the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure be denied.
After debate, the question being put on the motion, it was adopted on the following vote:
YEAS
The Honourable Senators
Batters, Campbell, Carignan, P.C., Dawson, Forest, Marshall, Munson, Plett, Saint-Germain, Tannas, Tkachuk, Verner, P.C.— 12
NAYS
The Honourable Senators
McCoy — 1
ABSTENTIONS
The Honourable Senators
Moncion — 1
With leave, it was agreed that the votes of the Honourable Senators Mitchell and Woo be withdrawn.
CIBA/2017-12-14/382(P)|190| — Sixth Report from the Subcommittee on the Senate Estimates
The chair of the Subcommittee on the Senate Estimates, the Honourable Senator Lucie Moncion, presented the sixth report of the subcommittee as follows:
Thursday, December 14, 2017
The Subcommittee on the Senate Estimates of the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration has the honour to present its
SIXTH REPORT
Your subcommittee has the mandate to review the proposed estimates, keeping in mind the necessity for the Senate and its Administration to demonstrate responsible management of the public funds that are allocated to the institution. The subcommittee is composed of Senators Dawson, Marshall, McCoy, Moncion, and Tannas.
This year's review of the Senate's 2018-19 Main Estimates was interrupted by the re-organization of the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration which occurred with the adoption of the November 7, 2017 motion in the Senate. As a result, the subcommittee's membership was substantially changed mid-review. The subcommittee greatly appreciated the leadership of its former chair, the Honourable Senator Wells and its former deputy chair, the Honourable Senator Jaffer who are no longer members of the subcommittee. It also thanks the Honourable Senator Downe and the Honourable Senator Tkachuk for their contribution to the subcommittee as past members.
The subcommittee met four times to review the funding requirements for the Senate Main Estimates for 2018- 19. It heard from the Senate Administration's Executive Committee and each director. Any funding increases from the previous year requires detailed documentation and a presentation before the subcommittee to justify the new spending. All directorates were asked to identify any risks to its operations, and to address how any new funding would mitigate the identified risks. Your subcommittee is thankful to all the directors for their presentations and is satisfied that the requests fulfill the established review criteria.
Therefore, your subcommittee makes the following recommendations:
That the Senate's 2018-19 budget be $109,080,103, which is an increase of 5 per cent from the previous year; and
That the 2018-2019 budget adjustments listed in the Appendix be approved.
A complete list of all new proposed budget items is included in the Appendix to this report.
Respectfully submitted,
LUCIE MONCION
Chair
The Honourable Senator Moncion made a statement.
The Honourable Senator Woo moved:
That his letter to the chair of the Subcommittee on Senate Estimates, dated December 2017, on funding for the ISG, fiscal year 2018-19, be filed as an exhibit with the clerk of the committee.
After debate, the question being put on the motion, it was adopted, on division.
The Honourable Senator Moncion moved:
That the report be adopted.
After debate, the question being put on the motion, it was adopted, on division.
CIBA/2017-12-14/383(P)|195| — Fifteenth Report from the Subcommittee on Committee Budgets
The chair of the Subcommittee on Committee Budgets, the Honourable Senator Josée Verner, P.C., presented the fifteenth report of the subcommittee as follows:
Thursday, December 14, 2017
The Subcommittee on Committee Budgets of the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration has the honour to present its
FIFTEENTH REPORT
Your subcommittee recommends the release of the following amounts for fiscal year 2017-2018:
Official Languages (Special study on Canadians' views about modernizing the Official Languages Act)
Activity 1: Winnipeg, MB $68,000 Total $68,000 (includes funds for public hearings and a fact-finding mission; includes funds for 7 senators to travel and 1 deputy chair's staff)
Legal and Constitutional Affairs (Legislation)
General Expenses $6,000 Total $6,000 Respectfully submitted,
JOSÉE VERNER, P.C. , C.P.
Chair
The Honourable Senator Verner, P.C., made a statement.
The Honourable Senator Verner, P.C., moved:
That the report be adopted.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
CIBA/2017-12-14/384(P)|365| — Extension of Mandate of the Subcommittee on Diversity
The Honourable Senator Munson moved:
That the mandate of the Subcommittee on Diversity be extended from December 14, 2017 to March 29, 2018.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
CIBA/2017-12-14/385 (P)|370| — Extension of Mandate of the Advisory Working Group on Parliamentary Translation Services
The Honourable Senator Munson moved:
That the mandate of the Advisory Working Group on Parliamentary Translation Services be extended from January 31, 2018 to March 15, 2018.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
CIBA/2017-12-14/386(P)|313| — Update on Long Term Vision and Planning
The committee considered the upcoming move of the Senate to the Government Conference Centre.
Robert Wright made a statement and answered questions.
At 10:21 a.m., the committee adjourned to the call of the chair.
ATTEST:
Pascale Legault
Chief Corporate Services Officer and Clerk of the Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration
Daniel Charbonneau
Recording Secretary