LIAI Committee Meeting

LIAISON COMMITTEE

COMITÉ DE LIAISON

EVIDENCE

[Recorded by Electronic Apparatus]

Tuesday, March 20, 2001

• 1330

[Translation]

The Clerk of the Committee: Members of the committee, we have a quorum. In accordance with Standing Order 107(2), our first item of business is the selection of a chairman. I am ready to receive motions to that effect.

[English]

Members of the committee, I see a quorum. Pursuant to Standing Order 107(2), your first item of business is to elect a chair. I'm ready to receive motions to that effect.

Mr. John Williams (St. Albert, CA): I would move that Bill Graham be the chair.

The Clerk: Mr. Williams moves that Bill Graham be elected chair of the committee.

[Translation]

Is it the pleasure of committee members to adopt the motion?

[English]

(Motion agreed to)

The Clerk: I declare Mr. Bill Graham duly elected chair of the committee, and I invite Mr. Graham to take the chair.

The Chair (Mr. Bill Graham (Toronto Centre—Rosedale, Lib.)): Thank you, colleagues, for this tremendous vote of confidence. I noticed everybody rushing for this job.

We need an election of a vice-chair. Do I hear any nominations?

Ms. Whelan was our vice-chair before.

Mr. John Williams: Is the vice-chair from the government side?

The Chair: That's the way it was last time.

Mr. Wayne Easter (Malpeque, Lib.): Was she a good vice-chair?

The Chair: She was wonderful.

Mr. John Williams: Is that the way it should be? Do the Standing Orders say both Liberals, or is it two vice-chairs? What's the scoop here?

The Chair: There is just one vice-chair.

Mr. Wayne Easter: You have a motion on the floor.

Mr. John Williams: I have a point of order first.

The Chair: What is the point of order?

Mr. Wayne Easter: Why didn't you say so?

Mr. John Williams: I did.

The Chair: We're electing a chairman and a vice-chairman of the liaison committee—a vice chairman, just one.

You're putting forward your candidacy, I take it.

Mr. John Williams: Well, I wasn't that brash, Mr. Chair.

The Chair: Well, in your own humble and nervous way, I got the impression you were suggesting that maybe the tradition should be changed.

I do hear Ms. Whelan's nomination. If it's defeated, obviously we could move on to others, but if it's passed, we will not.

Those in favour of Ms. Whelan being vice-chair?

Some hon. members: Agreed.

The Chair: Very well. Ms. Whelan is our vice-chair again.

Thank you for that vote, Mr. Williams. I noticed you raised your hand.

We have to now elect a budget subcommittee, colleagues, which requires six members. Traditionally it's myself. Mr. Williams is clearly a member.

Mr. Wayne Easter: I was just going to move that to keep him happy.

The Chair: Believe you me, if he's not there we won't get anything done, so we do like to have him there.

Mr. John Williams: You may not get much done if I am there.

The Chair: This may be true, but with or without you... We're hanged for a sheep as for a goat, so...

Ms. Brown, would you be willing to serve?

Mr. Wayne Easter: I would as well.

The Chair: Ms. Whelan has indicated her interest in serving. She was on it before and kind of served as what I might call our enforcer.

An hon. member: How often do we meet?

The Chair: We meet when we have to. Sometimes there's a bit of a crisis and a committee wants to travel or needs something immediately, in which case we just call a quick meeting almost in the lobby and we kind of get together. Other times, if we can, we try to have an organized meeting in the Centre Block. It never meets more than once a month as a rule.

Mr. Lincoln indicates his willingness.

Mr. David Pratt (Nepean—Carleton, Lib.): I'll volunteer as well.

The Chair: So there you are, we have six.

Charlie, thank you very much for coming. We required you for a quorum but then Ms. Brown came in and we got the quorum. If you want to go back to your meeting, you're welcome.

We have seven people at the moment. It's six members. I don't think we want to go for an election...would somebody around the table be willing to withdraw?

It could be seven. Let's leave it seven. It might be easier to get a quorum, frankly. Should we stick to seven?

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Some hon. members: Agreed.

The Chair: Thank you very much, colleagues. That's done.

So the budget subcommittee consists of myself, Mr. Williams, Madam Brown, Mr. Easter, Madam Whelan, Mr. Lincoln, and Mr. Pratt. Thank you very much.

The next item on the agenda is number 4. Who would be willing to serve on the subcommittee on committee rooms?

Mr. Clifford Lincoln (Lac-Saint-Louis, Lib.): Could I ask a question, please. I recall that this group, the architectural group or whatever it's called, has done an extensive study. We sat with them before. I think they gave us a long discourse on it. I remember in room 112-N they had slides and all kinds of things. Are we starting the whole thing over again? I thought it was all on its way.

The Chair: Could the clerk perhaps answer that question? Don't we always start everything over around here?

The Clerk: This is really a continuation of that process, Mr. Lincoln. The fact is that the Minister of Public Works has yet to make a final decision on this issue. The request has come that further consultation may be required with members of this committee. Therefore, we're setting this up so that that group is available should it be required.

The Chair: So it's not a question of reinventing the wheel. We looked at chairs and configuration and all that stuff. But it definitely could well be that Public Works will say, no, you can't do this, or you must do that. So somebody has to be there to...

Who would be willing to do that?

Mr. John Williams: Two things, Mr. Chair. First of all, how big is the committee? Would three or five be the maximum?

The Chair: I think three would be enough.

Mr. John Williams: I'll represent the opposition.

Mr. Wayne Easter: Who was on it last time, Bill? It makes sense to keep it the same, if possible.

The Chair: I think I was ex officio member, but I wasn't... Definitely, Mr. Williams. I went to some meetings. It sounds like you went to some meetings, Clifford.

Mr. Clifford Lincoln: I don't think I was on the committee, but I went to meetings.

The Chair: Since you went to a meeting before, how would you like to come back on it?

Did anybody else go to a meeting of that committee?

Is anybody interested? If somebody is genuinely interested in how the system works, let's get in there.

Welcome to Mr. Fontana. I thought you were in the Sudan or something.

Is there anybody who would be really interested? I'm not suggesting this is a barn-burner. I would assume that if there was some huge recommendation they were making for changes, we'd bring it to the main committee. This would just be an opportunity to be a little bit of a watchdog oversight... Let's just leave it as myself, Mr. Williams, and Mr. Lincoln. Is that all right, colleagues?

Some hon. members: Agreed.

The Chair: Associate members—may I suggest that we ask the whips to provide as our associate members the vice-chairs of our various committees so that we can be represented here by our vice-chairs? Sometimes you can't make it, and quite frankly one of the most complicated things about this committee is getting a quorum for it. It would be helpful if we could be seconded by our vice-chairs from our committees. Would that be all right?

Mr. Clifford Lincoln: There are two vice-chairs.

The Chair: I think for those...obviously for Mr. Williams it would have to be an Alliance person. For the rest of us it would be the Liberal vice-chair.

Then it would be Thursday of each month at 12:15 p.m., and lunch is provided. That is the normal way to go.

Ms. Brown.

Ms. Bonnie Brown (Oakville, Lib.): That's one of my regular committee times. I'll be right in the middle of a committee. Could we not do it at 1 p.m.?

The Chair: And still lunch?

Ms. Nancy Karetak-Lindell (Nunavut, Lib.): Same problem.

The Chair: So would one o'clock be all right for you? Does it matter to anybody whether it's 12:15 p.m. or 1 p.m.? It might mean they're a little shorter, because we'll all want to be in the House by 2 p.m. or 2:15 p.m. That's probably not a bad idea. So it's one o'clock.

We'll still provide lunch. Ms. Brown, you can come straight from your committee to lunch.

Colleagues, we're now going to move in camera.

[Editor's Note: Proceedings continue in camera]