Precedence and Sequence of Business

Introduction

The business of the House is conducted according to an agenda, the Order Paper. Rules and practices of the House explain how or when items from the Order Paper can be called and how motions of various kinds can be moved. Some items of business, for example, are called under certain headings or at a specified time; some motions are moved after notice or under particular circumstances. The Speaker, either on his or her own initiative or prompted by a Member, will usually intervene to check any irregularity in the precedence and sequence of business.

In December 1982, following recommendations of the Special Committee on Standing Orders and Procedure, the sequence of business of the House was significantly modified. As a result, the daily one-hour period reserved for private Members' business on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays was replaced by an all-day session on Wednesdays. Consequently, Government Orders could then be called on all days with the exception of Wednesdays. In addition, the hours of sitting were changed: the House met at 11:00 a.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, and at 2:00 p.m. on Wednesdays; and the evening sittings were discontinued. Finally, the sittings of the House took place according to a pre-determined parliamentary calendar, interrupted by three adjournment periods: one in the springtime, summer and winter.