Proceedings of the Standing Senate Committee on
Official Languages
Issue No. 18 - Evidence - Meeting of November 23, 2017
OTTAWA, Thursday, November 23, 2017
The Standing Senate Committee on Official Languages met this day, at 9:00 a.m., to hold an organization meeting, pursuant to rule 12-13 of the Rules of the Senate.
[Translation]
François Michaud, Clerk of the Committee: Honourable senators, I see a quorum. As you know, pursuant to the Order of the Senate of November 7, 2017, there is a vacancy in the chair. As clerk of your committee, it is therefore my duty to preside over the election of the chair of this committee. I am ready to receive motions to that effect.
Senator Gagné, if you please.
Senator Gagné: I nominate Senator René Cormier as chair of the Committee on Official Languages.
Senator Maltais: I move that nominations be closed.
Mr. Michaud: Thank you, Senator Maltais. Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
Mr. Michaud: I declare the motion carried.
Senator Cormier, I invite you to take the chair.
Senator René Cormier (Chair) in the chair.
The Chair: Dear colleagues, thank you for your trust. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Senator Tardif, our former chair, from the bottom of my heart, for her exceptional work as chair. Senator, your dedication, commitment, rigour and listening skills were a great source of inspiration to all of us, and will continue to be, in my case particularly. I want to congratulate you and thank you.
I also want to thank the previous subcommittee, its members, the deputy chair, Senator Poirier, as well as Senator Gagné, for the exceptional work they did guiding the Standing Senate Committee on Official Languages in all of its work. I want to thank you sincerely, and I am honoured to be here. I also want to thank Senator McIntyre.
Pursuant to the motion adopted by the Senate on November 7, 2017, I am ready to proceed to the election of a deputy chair. Are there any nominations?
Senator Maltais: I nominate Senator Poirier, and I ask that nominations be closed.
An Hon. Senator: You have the right to move both?
The Chair: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chair: I declare the motion carried.
I want to welcome you, Senator Poirier.
We are ready to proceed to the creation of the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure. We need a motion moving that the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure be composed of the chair, the deputy chair and one other member of the committee, to be designated after the usual consultations. I need a nomination for someone to occupy that position, and a motion that the subcommittee be empowered to make decisions on behalf of the committee with respect to its agenda, to invite witnesses, and to schedule hearings. Shall we begin with nominations for the third person?
Mr. Michaud: We don’t need that right away.
The Chair: Someone needs to move the creation of the subcommittee.
Senator Gagné: I move that the subcommittee be created.
The Chair: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?
Hon. Senators: Agreed.
The Chair: Thank you. We will continue in camera.
Senator Maltais: Could we know the name of the third person?
Mr. Michaud: With your permission, after the usual consultations, that person will be a member representing a party or a group that is not already represented within the steering committee.
The Chair: I am happy to announce that Senator Tardif has been nominated. If you are agreed, senators, we will continue in camera.
(The committee continued in camera.)