The Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs has the honour to present its

 

FIFTY-THIRD REPORT

 

Pursuant to its mandate under Standing Order 108(3)(a)(iii), the Committee has reviewed the Standing Orders relating to delegated legislation.

 

Bill C-205, An Act to amend the Statutory Instruments Act (disallowance procedure for regulations), was given Royal Assent on June 19, 2003. It now provides for a disallowance procedure applying in both the House and the Senate to all regulations.

 

At the request of the Speaker, the Clerk of the House examined the provisions of Bill C-205 in order to determine whether any changes to the Standing Orders were required. While there are many similarities with the existing disallowance procedures found in Chapter XIV of the Standing Orders of the House of Commons, there are also some notable differences. The Clerk concluded that the Standing Orders should be amended to reflect the requirements of the bill in order for the Speaker to exercise the power conferred on the Speaker by the House to deal with questions of order relating to these proceedings. This would be fully in keeping with the past practice of the House.

 

The Committee agrees that the House should modify the Standing Orders to incorporate the provisions of Bill C-205.

 

Recommendation

 

The Committee therefore recommends that Standing Orders 123 through 128 be replaced with the following:

 

“123. (1)  In addition to the powers granted, so far as this House is concerned, to the Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations, pursuant to Standing Order 108(4), the said Committee shall be empowered to make a report to the House containing only a resolution that all or any portion of a regulation that stands permanently referred to the Committee be revoked.

 

(2)  No report pursuant to section (1) of this Standing Order may be made unless the authority authorized to make the regulation has been notified, at least 30 days before the Committee adopts the report, that the Committee intends to consider the report, and if the regulation is authorized to be made by the Governor in Council, the notice must be given to the Minister responsible for the provision under which the regulation may be made.

 

(3)  Not more than one report pursuant to section (1) of this Standing Order shall be received during any sitting.

 

(4)  When any report is made pursuant to section (1) of this Standing Order, the Member presenting it shall state that it contains a resolution pursuant to section (1) of this Standing Order, shall identify the regulation, or portion thereof, in relation to which the said report is made, shall indicate that the relevant text is included in the report, and shall state that notification has been given in accordance with section (2) of this Standing Order.

 

(5)  Immediately after the said report is received and laid upon the Table, the Clerk of the House shall cause to be placed on the Notice Paper, the resolution contained in the report, which shall stand in the name of the Member presenting the report. The resolution shall not be placed on the Notice Paper in the name of any other Member and no notice of motion for concurrence in the report shall be placed on the Notice Paper.

 

124.  Except as otherwise provided in any Standing or Special Order of the House, when a notice of a resolution given pursuant to Standing Order 123(5) is transferred to the Order Paper under “Motions”, it shall be deemed to have been moved and adopted by the House at the ordinary hour of daily adjournment on the fifteenth sitting day after the notice is transferred, unless a motion for which notice has been given pursuant to Standing Order 54, standing in the name of a Minister, to the effect that the resolution not be adopted, has been placed on the Order Paper.

 

125. (1)  When a motion for which notice has been given pursuant to Standing Order 124 has been adopted by the House, the corresponding resolution standing on the Order Paper pursuant to Standing Order 123(5) shall be deemed withdrawn.

 

(2)  When a motion for which notice has been given pursuant to Standing Order 124 has been negatived, the corresponding resolution standing on the Order Paper pursuant to Standing Order 123(5) shall be deemed to have been moved and adopted by the House.

 

126. (1)  A notice given pursuant to Standing Order 124 shall be taken up and considered for a period not exceeding one hour, provided that:

 

(a)  during the consideration of any such motion or motions, no Member shall speak more than once or for more than ten minutes;

 

(b)  for the purposes of this Standing Order and notwithstanding the usual practices of the House, no consideration of the procedural acceptability of any report made pursuant to Standing Order 123(1) shall be entertained until all of the motions of which notice of consideration had previously been given pursuant to Standing Order 124, have been put to the House for its consideration. If any report made pursuant to Standing Order 123(1) is found to be irreceivable, the resolution based on that report made pursuant to Standing Order 123(5) and the corresponding notice of motion given by the Minister pursuant to Standing Order 124 shall be deemed to have been withdrawn; and

 

(c)  unless the motion or motions be previously disposed of, not later than the end of the said hour of consideration, the Speaker shall interrupt any proceedings then before the House and put forthwith and successively, without further debate or amendment, every question necessary to dispose of the said motion or motions, provided that any division or divisions demanded in relation thereto shall stand deferred until no later than the ordinary hour of daily adjournment in that sitting, when the bells to call in the Members shall be sounded for not more than fifteen minutes. Any remaining questions necessary to dispose of proceedings in relation to such motion or motions, on which a decision has been deferred until after the taking of such a division, shall be put forthwith and successively, without further debate or amendment.

 

(2)  The provisions of Standing Order 45(5) shall be suspended in the case of any division demanded pursuant to paragraph (c) of section (1) of this Standing Order.

 

(3)  The Standing Orders relating to the ordinary hour of daily adjournment shall be suspended until all questions have been decided pursuant to paragraph (c) of section (1) of this Standing Order.

 

127.  The House shall undertake consideration of any motion or motions made pursuant to Standing Order 124 in the order in which they may be set down for consideration at the request of a Minister of the Crown, provided that all such motions shall be grouped together for debate.

 

128. (1)  When a notice or notices of motion given pursuant to Standing Order 124 has or have been set down for consideration on the Order Paper, the House shall meet at 1:00 p.m. on the Wednesday next, at which time the order of business shall be the consideration of the said notice or notices.

 

(2)  When the House meets at 1:00 p.m. on any Wednesday pursuant to section (1) of this Standing Order, the House shall not consider any other item but those provided pursuant to that section, provided that:

 

(a)  if such proceedings are concluded prior to 2:00 p.m. on any such day, the Speaker shall suspend the sitting until that hour; and

 

(b)  all such proceedings shall be concluded except as provided pursuant to Standing Order 126(1)(c) at 2:00 p.m. on the same day.”

 

Recommendation

 

The Committee further recommends that Standing Order 54(1) be replaced with the following:

 

“54. (1)  Forty-eight hours’ notice shall be given of a motion for leave to present a bill, resolution or address, for the appointment of any committee, for placing a question on the Order Paper or for the consideration of any notice of motion made pursuant to Standing Order 124; but this rule shall not apply to bills after their introduction, or to private bills, or to the times of meeting or adjournment of the House. Such notice shall be laid on the Table, or filed with the Clerk, before 6:00 p.m. (2:00 p.m. on a Friday) and be printed in the Notice Paper of that day, except as provided in section (2) of this Standing Order. Any notice filed with the Clerk pursuant to this Standing Order shall thereupon be deemed to have been laid on the Table in that sitting.”

 

 

A copy of the relevant Minutes of Proceedings (Meeting No. 64) is tabled.

 

 

Respectfully submitted,



Peter Adams
Chair