AGRI Committee Meeting

STANDING COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE AND AGRI-FOOD

COMITÉ PERMANENT DE L'AGRICULTURE ET DE L'AGROALIMENTAIRE

EVIDENCE

[Recorded by Electronic Apparatus]

Monday, February 19, 2001

• 1531

[Translation]

The Clerk of the Committee: Good day, members of the committee.

[English]

Good afternoon. I see a quorum.

[Translation]

Pursuant to Standing Orders 106(1) and 106(2), electing a chair is the first order of business.

[English]

I am ready to receive your motions to that effect.

Mr. Peter Stoffer (Sackville—Musquodoboit Valley—Eastern Shore, NDP): Are you accepting nominations?

The Clerk: Yes.

Mr. Peter Stoffer: I'd like to nominate Howard Hilstrom.

Mr. Brian Fitzpatrick (Prince Albert, Canadian Alliance): I'll second that.

The Clerk: Do we have other motions?

Mr. Rick Laliberte (Churchill River, Lib.): I'll nominate Charles Hubbard.

The Clerk: Do we have other motions?

Mr. Howard Hilstrom (Selkirk—Interlake, Canadian Alliance): Madam Clerk, I'd like to nominate Larry McCormick.

Mr. Larry McCormick (Hastings—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington, Lib.): Madam Chair, I appreciate the confidence from my colleague, but I guess I have a role to play. Thank you, but I'll have to turn it down.

The Clerk: Since we have two motions, I shall put the question on the first motion.

Mr. Brian Fitzpatrick: Can I raise a point at this stage?

Other than certain parts of the world, far off from Canada, when you get in groups and committees the normal thing is that the decision is by secret ballot. To me that's a pretty implicit part of democracy. I think it's better for good group dynamics, too, to have a secret ballot. It just seems to me it's something we should be looking at. Everybody's talking about making things more democratic in this place, and here's a chance to do it right today.

Mr. Larry McCormick: My comment on that, Madam Chair, is it certainly sounds like a good idea, and I'm glad to have Mr. Fitzpatrick here as a member on this committee, but for the last seven years the party opposite has asked for a recorded vote. That's in the minutes. I'm just not sure how we would have a recorded vote and a ballot of that type. I think we'll have to stay with a recorded vote.

Mr. Howard Hilstrom: Madam Clerk, the opposition never asked for a recorded vote this year. That's why we're going for a secret ballot.

Mr. Brian Fitzpatrick: We're learning. We're looking for new and better ways of doing things. This sounds like a better way of doing it.

Mr. Jerry Pickard (Chatham—Kent Essex, Lib.): If I may, the committee is the master of its own destiny. If he would like to make a motion, he could make a motion; otherwise, I guess the procedure would be as normal. If he'd like to make a motion to change the procedure, that's his choice.

Mr. Brian Fitzpatrick: I'd like to make a motion that we seek a consensus on that point. I would say that that motion should be by secret ballot as well.

Mr. Larry McCormick: I understand the clerk can accept nominations, but I don't see where the clerk can accept motions at this stage, because we do not have an executive.

Mr. Jerry Pickard: There's no consensus.

Mr. Brian Fitzpatrick: As a point of clarification, are we just following the pattern that we followed in the past, then, with no deviation from it, and we have no way of changing that procedure?

Mr. Larry McCormick: It's in the rules of the House, until they're changed.

Mr. Brian Fitzpatrick: Is this a rule of the House?

Mr. Larry McCormick: I understand that it is.

Mr. Brian Fitzpatrick: Which rule would that be? I'd be curious.

Mr. Larry McCormick: We can certainly get the answer for you in the future.

• 1535

The Clerk: As clerk, I am entitled to receive one type of motion only, and that is to elect a chair. If there is unanimous desire among the members of the committee to proceed to an election of the chair by means of a secret ballot, I'm in the hands of the committee. Do I see unanimous desire to proceed to the election by means of a secret ballot?

Some hon. members: No.

The Clerk: Since we have two motions, I shall put the question on the first motion. It has been moved by Mr. Peter Stoffer that Mr. Hilstrom do take the chair of this committee as chairperson.

(Motion negatived)

The Clerk: Now we will proceed with the second motion. It has been moved by Mr. Laliberte that Mr. Hubbard do take the chair of this committee as chairperson.

(Motion agreed to)

The Clerk: I declare Mr. Hubbard duly elected chair of this committee, and I would invite him to take the chair.

Mr. Larry McCormick: Is my name on the list? I'd like to nominate Murray Calder as vice-chair—

The Chair (Mr. Charles Hubbard (Miramichi, Lib.)): I should probably call for that before you—

Mr. Larry McCormick: I just saw it on the agenda. Sorry.

The Chair: I would like, as Mr. Speller says, to thank the committee for giving me this honour.

Peter, I think I had only one dissenting vote when I became chair of the fisheries committee a few years ago. I'm glad to see that you've changed your tune this time.

We certainly will try to do our best as chair to be fair to all members of the committee. I hope we can work together as a group to look at some of the very difficult issues facing our farmers and other agricultural people across the country. We'll need to work together as a group to look at those issues and to try to bring some of our concerns to the House and to the government.

According to the agenda, now we have the election of vice-chairs. Of course, it's one vice-chair from the government side and one from the opposition. I'll now entertain a nomination from Mr. McCormick.

Mr. Larry McCormick: Mr. Chair, congratulations. I'm glad you accepted this responsibility.

I'd like to nominate Murray Calder as vice-chair.

The Chair: Murray, will you accept that nomination?

Mr. Murray Calder (Dufferin—Peel—Wellington—Grey, Lib.): Yes.

(Motion agreed to)

The Chair: Now I'll ask for nominations for the second vice-chair.

Mr. Garry Breitkreuz (Yorkton—Melville, Canadian Alliance): Mr. Chairman, I'd like to propose the name of Mr. Howard Hilstrom.

(Motion agreed to)

The Chair: With that, we'll conclude our meeting this afternoon.

Before you go, Peter, we have a number of important issues the committee will have to look at in the near future. To assist the clerk and the executive of the committee, I would ask that members submit in writing to the clerk the topics you would like us to look into. We'll be announcing very soon when your first important regular meeting will be held to look at those issues and to decide on our agenda for the coming months.

Howard.

• 1540

Mr. Howard Hilstrom: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

In agriculture it's been the practice that we have kind of a steering committee set up where we get together and talk about what we should be doing in these meetings, as opposed to it being dictated from the minister's office—sorry, from the committee chairman. As a result, I would like to see us have a steering committee meeting first and we will submit those suggestions to you.

The Chair: Claude.

[Translation]

Mr. Claude Duplain (Portneuf, Lib.): Mr. Chair, I propose that we adjourn the work of the committee for today.

[English]

The Chair: There is a motion to adjourn, and that is not debatable, so we will take that under consideration. Thank you.

The meeting is adjourned.