Amendments to Motions on the Progress of Bills

Introduction

Four major kinds of amendment can be moved on the motions for second and third reading. These are the "hoist", the reasoned amendment, the amendment to discharge the order for second reading and refer the subject matter of the bill to committee (moved at second reading), and the amendment to recommit the bill with instructions (moved at third reading). Hoist and second-reading committal amendments follow established patterns and rarely present procedural difficulty. Reasoned amendments, however, are more problematic since they depend upon certain conditions adopted from British practice, one of which has become especially important in Canadian practice: the reasoned amendment should oppose the principle of the bill. An amendment to recommit a bill at third reading may also present problems if the instructions to the committee are out of order.

Amendments to motions on the progress of bills can be out of order for a number of other reasons as well. Such amendments, for example, must not relate to particular clauses of the bill, propose a change which would affect any Royal Recommendation accompanying the bill, or attach any condition to the motion.