CIMM Committee Meeting

The Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration met at 2:01 a.m. this day, in Room 237-C, Centre Block, the Vice-Chair, Jinny Jogindera Sims, presiding.

At 2:03 a.m., the sitting was suspended until 8:30 a.m.

At 8:33 a.m., the sitting resumed.

On motion of John Weston, it was agreed, — That the Committee observe a minute of silence.

The Committee resumed consideration of the motion of Rick Dykstra, — That, pursuant to Standing Order 97.1 (1), the Committee request an extension of thirty (30) sitting days to consider Bill C-425, An Act to amend the Citizenship Act (honouring the Canadian Armed Forces), referred to the Committee on Wednesday, February 27, 2013.

On Tuesday, April 23, 2013, the Committee recommended to the House that it be granted the power during its consideration of Bill C-425 to expand the scope of the Bill. The Committee is awaiting for a decision of the House before further considering the Bill. Therefore, the Committee requests an extension of thirty (30) sitting days.

The debate continued.

It was agreed, — That the meeting be televised.

At 8:51 a.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 9:01 a.m., the sitting resumed in a televised session.

At 9:22 a.m., Kevin Lamoureux took the Chair.

At 10:08 a.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 10:15 a.m., the sitting resumed.

At 11:19 a.m., pursuant to Standing Order 115(5), the sitting was suspended.

At 12:11 p.m., the sitting resumed.

Sadia Groguhé moved, — That the sitting be suspended.

After debate, the question was put on the motion and it was negatived on the following recorded division: YEAS: Pierre-Luc Dusseault, Mylène Freeman, Sadia Groguhé — 3; NAYS: Dean Del Mastro, Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Costas Menegakis, John Weston — 5.

The Committee resumed consideration of the motion of Rick Dykstra.

At 2:10 p.m., Jinny Jogindera Sims took the Chair.

At 2:23 p.m., the sitting was suspended until 3:00 p.m.

At 3:03 p.m., the sitting resumed.

The debate continued on the motion of Rick Dykstra.

Michelle Rempel raised a point of order, stating that the observations of the member currently speaking were not relevant to the motion.

RULING BY THE CHAIR

The Chair ruled that the member had the right to refer to the content of the motion.

Whereupon, Michelle Rempel appealed the decision of the Chair.

The question: "Shall the decision of the Chair be sustained?" was put and the decision was overturned on the following recorded division: YEAS: David J. McGuinty, Dany Morin, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 3; NAYS: Rick Dykstra, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, Michelle Rempel, Devinder Shory — 6.

At 4:16 p.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 4:21 p.m., the sitting resumed.

The Committee resumed consideration of the motion of Rick Dykstra.

At 4:55 p.m., Kevin Lamoureux took the Chair.

At 5:00 p.m., Jinny Jogindera Sims took the Chair.

Rathika Sitsabaiesan moved, — That the Committee do now adjourn.

The question was put on the motion and it was negatived, by a show of hands: YEAS: 4; NAYS: 6.

The Committee resumed consideration of the motion of Rick Dykstra.

Rathika Sitsabaiesan moved, — That the Committee adjourn until Friday, June 21, 2013.

At 5:34 p.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 5:37 p.m., the sitting resumed.

RULING BY THE CHAIR

The Chair ruled the proposed motion inadmissible as the Committee was already seized with a substantive motion.

The debate continued on the motion of Rick Dykstra.

Rathika Sitsabaiesan moved, — That the motion be amended by adding after the words “Therefore, the Committee requests an extension of thirty (30) sitting days” the following: “and that this request take place in the House on June 21, 2013”.

Debate arose thereon.

At 6:20 p.m., Kevin Lamoureux took the Chair.

At 6:23 p.m., Jinny Jogindera Sims took the Chair.

At 6:42 p.m., the Chair suspended the meeting for two (2) hours.

At 8:42 p.m., the sitting resumed.

The debate continued on the amendment of Rathika Sitsabaiesan.

Costas Menegakis moved, — That the amendment be amended by replacing the words “take place in the House on” with the words “be tabled in the House not earlier than”.

At 11:48 p.m., the Chair suspended the meeting until 10:00 a.m., on Friday, June 14, 2013.

At 10:03 a.m., on Friday, June 14, 2013 the sitting resumed in Room 253-D, Centre Block.

At 10:04 a.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 10:28 a.m., the sitting resumed.

At 10:29 a.m., the Chair suspended the meeting until 9:45 a.m. on Monday, June 17, 2013.

At 9:45 a.m., on Monday, June 17, 2013, the sitting resumed in Room 237-C, Centre Block.

At 9:45 a.m., David Tilson took the Chair.

The Committee resumed consideration of the motion of Rick Dykstra;

And of the amendment of Rathika Sitsabaiesan;

And of the subamendment of Costas Menegakis.

After debate, by unanimous consent, the subamendment was withdrawn.

Accordingly, the Committee resumed consideration of the amendment of Rathika Sitsabaiesan.

Jinny Jogindera Sims raised a point of order, questioning the legitimacy of starting a new speaker's list for the debate on the amendment, as such a list was previously made.

RULING BY THE CHAIR

The Chair ruled that the Chair has complete discretion on the speaker's list.

Whereupon, Jinny Jogindera Sims appealed the decision of the Chair.

The question: "Shall the decision of the Chair be sustained?" was put and the decision was sustained, by a show of hands: YEAS: 5; NAYS: 4.

The Committee resumed consideration of the amendment of Rathika Sitsabaiesan.

John Weston moved, — That this question be now put.

RULING BY THE CHAIR

The Chair ruled the proposed motion inadmissible as the previous question is not admissible in any committee, as provided on page 1057 of House of Commons Procedure and Practice, Second Edition.

Whereupon, Rick Dykstra appealed the decision of the Chair.

The question: "Shall the decision of the Chair be sustained?" was put and the decision was overturned, by a show of hands: YEAS: 5; NAYS: 6.

Debate arose thereon.

Mylène Freeman moved, — That the previous question be amended by replacing the word “now” with the words “on June 21, 2013”.

RULING BY THE CHAIR

The Chair ruled the proposed amendment inadmissible.

Whereupon, Mylène Freeman appealed the decision of the Chair.

The question: "Shall the decision of the Chair be sustained?" was put and the decision was sustained on the following recorded division: YEAS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 6; NAYS: Mylène Freeman, Sadia Groguhé, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5.

The Committee resumed consideration of the motion of John Weston, — That this question be now put.

The debate continued.

The question was put on the motion and it was agreed to on the following recorded division: YEAS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 6; NAYS: Mylène Freeman, Alain Giguère, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5.

Pursuant to Standing Order 61(2), the question was put on the amendment of Rathika Sitsabaiesan and it was negatived on the following recorded division: YEAS: Mylène Freeman, Alain Giguère, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5; NAYS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 6.

Accordingly, the Committee resumed consideration of the motion of Rick Dykstra.

Alain Giguère raised a point of order, stating that, pursuant to Standing Order 97.1(1), the motion of Rick Dykstra should have been ruled out of order as it did not state the reasons for requesting a thirty sitting day extension.

At 2:22 p.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 3:16 p.m., the sitting resumed.

RULING BY THE CHAIR

The Chair ruled that the motion was admissible as the reasons for requesting an extension were clearly stated in the motion.

The debate continued on the motion of Rick Dykstra.

RULING BY THE CHAIR

The Chair ruled that debate on the scope and possible amendments to the bill was not relevant.

Whereupon, Rathika Sitsabaiesan appealed the decision of the Chair.

The question: "Shall the decision of the Chair be sustained?" was put and the decision was sustained on the following recorded division: YEAS: Rob Clarke, Rick Dykstra, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, Pierre Poilievre — 6; NAYS: Mylène Freeman, Alain Giguère, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5.

The Committee resumed consideration of the motion of Rick Dykstra.

At 4:00 p.m., pursuant to Standing Order 115(5), the sitting was suspended.

At 4:45 p.m., the sitting resumed.

The Committee resumed consideration of the motion of Rick Dykstra.

Kevin Lamoureux raised a point of order concerning the freedom of speech on the motion.

RULING BY THE CHAIR

The Chair ruled that this was not a point of order.

Whereupon, Jinny Jogindera Sims appealed the decision of the Chair.

The question: "Shall the decision of the Chair be sustained?" was put and the decision was sustained on the following recorded division: YEAS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 6; NAYS: Alain Giguère, Jack Harris, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5.

Jinny Jogindera Sims raised a question of privilege concerning the limitations imposed by the Chair to members debating the motion.

RULING BY THE CHAIR

The Chair ruled that this matter did not relate to a question of privilege as he had given significant latitude to all members who can talk on this topic as many times as they want, as long as they were relevant and not repetitive, as provided on page 1049 of the House of Commons Procedure and Practice, Second Edition.

Whereupon, Rathika Sitsabaiesan appealed the decision of the Chair.

The question: "Shall the decision of the Chair be sustained?" was put and the decision was sustained on the following recorded division: YEAS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 6; NAYS: Alain Giguère, Jack Harris, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5.

The Committee resumed consideration of the motion of Rick Dykstra.

Alain Giguère raised a point of order, stating that the Chair did not have the right to limit him from speaking when he had the floor.

RULING BY THE CHAIR

The Chair ruled that he was allowed to give the floor to another member should a member continue to be repetitive or not relevant after the Chair had warned the said member, as provided on page 1049 of House of Commons Procedure and Practice, Second Edition.

Whereupon, Alain Giguère appealed the decision of the Chair.

The question: "Shall the decision of the Chair be sustained?" was put and the decision was sustained on the following recorded division: YEAS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, David Wilks — 6; NAYS: Mylène Freeman, Alain Giguère, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims, Rathika Sitsabaiesan — 5.

The Committee resumed consideration of the motion of Rick Dykstra.

At 7:54 p.m., the Chair suspended the meeting until 9:45 a.m. on Tuesday, June 18, 2013.

At 9:48 a.m., on Tuesday, June 18, 2013, the sitting resumed.

The Committee resumed consideration of the motion of Rick Dykstra, — That, pursuant to Standing Order 97.1 (1), the Committee request an extension of thirty (30) sitting days to consider Bill C-425, An Act to amend the Citizenship Act (honouring the Canadian Armed Forces), referred to the Committee on Wednesday, February 27, 2013.

On Tuesday, April 23, 2013, the Committee recommended to the House that it be granted the power during its consideration of Bill C-425 to expand the scope of the Bill. The Committee is awaiting for a decision of the House before further considering the Bill. Therefore, the Committee requests an extension of thirty (30) sitting days.

The debate continued.

Rick Dykstra raised a point of order, stating that the member who had the floor was repetitive.

RULING BY THE CHAIR

The Chair ruled this as a valid point of order, made reference to his previous ruling regarding repetition and warned the members that he would move on to another speaker should a member continue to be repetitive.

Whereupon, Jinny Jogindera Sims appealed the decision of the Chair.

The question: "Shall the decision of the Chair be sustained?" was put and the decision was sustained on the following recorded division: YEAS: Rick Dykstra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Costas Menegakis, Ted Opitz, John Weston — 6; NAYS: David Christopherson, Mylène Freeman, Jack Harris, Kevin Lamoureux, Jinny Jogindera Sims — 5.

The Committee resumed consideration of the motion of Rick Dykstra.

At 11:47 a.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 12:04 p.m., the sitting resumed.

The debate continued on the motion of Rick Dykstra.

Jamie Nicholls raised a question of privilege, making reference to a newspaper article that cast the Chair and the work of the Committee in a negative light.

At 12:04 p.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 12:06 p.m., the sitting resumed.

Debate arose thereon.

RULING BY THE CHAIR

The Chair ruled that this matter did not relate to a question of privilege as there did not appear to be a contempt against the dignity of Parliament, as provided on page 145 of the House of Commons Procedure and Practice, Second Edition.

The Committee resumed consideration of the motion of Rick Dykstra.

It was agreed, — That the Committee suspend its proceeding at 2:30 p.m. to allow members to be present in the House for the vote.

David Christopherson moved, — That the Committee see the clock at 2:30 p.m.

The question was put on the motion and it was negatived on the following recorded division:YEAS: David Christopherson, Jack Harris, Kevin Lamoureux, Jamie Nicholls, Jinny Jogindera Sims — 5; NAYS: Paul Calandra, Roxanne James, Chungsen Leung, Ted Opitz, Devinder Shory, David Wilks — 6.

The Committee resumed consideration of the motion of Rick Dykstra.

At 2:30 p.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 8:04 p.m., the Committee adjourned for lack of quorum.