The Legislative Process / Stages
Report stage: power of the Speaker to select amendments; amendments not presented in committee
Debates, p. 1982
Context
On December 10, 2013, the Speaker delivered his ruling on the selection of three report stage motions in amendment to Bill C-9, An Act respecting the election and term of office of chiefs and councillors of certain first nations and the composition of council of those first nations, standing in the name of Members from unrecognized parties, Elizabeth May (Saanich—Gulf Islands) and Louis Plamondon (Bas-Richelieu—Nicolet—Bécancour).
Resolution
The Speaker explained that though the two Members are not part of a recognized party caucus, they were invited to participate in the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development’s clause-by-clause consideration of the Bill. However, due to an administrative error, they were not informed of the deadline to submit amendments. Consequently, given the extenuating circumstances, the Speaker selected all three motions for debate.
Decision of the Chair
The Speaker: There are three motions in amendment standing on the Notice Paper for the report stage of Bill C-9, An Act respecting the election and term of office of chiefs and councillors of certain first nations and the composition of council of those first nations. While it is not usual for the Chair to provide reasons for the selection of report stage motions, in this case the Chair would like to provide a brief explanation.
As is the case with several standing committees considering bills, Members who are not members of a [recognized party] caucus represented on the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development were invited to participate in the Committee’s clause-by-clause consideration of Bill C-9. However, due to an administrative error, these Members were not informed of the deadline to submit amendments for the Committee’s clause-by-clause consideration of the Bill.
As Members know, consistent with the note to Standing Order 76.1(5),[1] the Chair would not normally select motions that could have been presented in committee; however, in light of the circumstances in this case, the Chair has decided to select these motions.
That being said, while the Chair certainly appreciates some of the challenges presented to Members who are not part of a recognized caucus to follow the work of numerous committees, the Chair would nevertheless strongly urge all Members to continue to ensure they are prepared to avail themselves of all opportunities presented to them with respect to committee proceedings on bills.
Accordingly, Motions Nos. 1 to 3 have been selected for debate at report stage. They will be grouped for debate and voted upon according to the voting pattern available at the Table.
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[1] See Appendix A, “Cited Provisions: Standing Orders of the House of Commons”, Standing Order 76.1(5).