The Daily Program / Routine Proceedings

Presenting Petitions: petition signed by non-residents of Canada

December 19, 1990

Debates, pp. 16963-4

On December 18, 1990, Mr. Nelson Riis (Kamloops) presented a petition and listed the place of residence of petitioners. The list contained the names of some persons not resident in Canada. Mr. Don Boudria (Glengarry—Prescott—Russell) rose on a point of order to argue that the petition was out of order since only those petitions signed by residents of Canada were admissible. Moreover, he asked how it was that under the circumstances, the petition had been duly certified. The Chair took the matter under advisement^[1] and on December 19, 1990, the Acting Speaker (Steven Paproski) made a ruling which is reproduced in its entirety below.

Decision of the Chair

The Acting Speaker (Hon. Steven Paproski): I have a statement. On Tuesday, December 18, 1990, the honourable Member for Glengarry—Prescott—Russell raised a point of order regarding the acceptability of a petition which the honourable Member for Kamloops had risen to present.

The petition in question contained, in addition to the signatures of Canadian residents, the signatures of several persons not resident in Canada. The Member for Glengarry—Prescott—Russell rightly pointed out that it is not the practice of this House to receive petitions from non-resident aliens. Citation 688(1) of Beauchesne Fifth Edition reads as follows:

Aliens, not resident in Canada, have no right to petition Parliament.

This citation is based on a ruling recorded in the Journals for March [30], 1880 at page 165. The Chair faces a dilemma however. If this petition cannot be presented because it contains several unacceptable signatures, then those Canadians who signed the petition in good faith will be denied this opportunity to petition Parliament.

When Speaker Bosley was faced with a similar situation in November 1984, he made the following statement:

On reviewing the Canadian and British precedents, I found no clear answer to the admissibility or non-admissibility of a petition which is signed by Canadian citizens and, at the same time, by non-Canadian citizens not resident in Canada. In October 1983, Madam Speaker Sauvé ruled that a petition signed by American citizens was not receivable. That petition was signed exclusively by American citizens. Our precedents on petitions related to private bills indicate that petitions from foreigners have been accepted, from time to time, when the subject matter related to legislation or an area of jurisdiction of the Canadian Parliament.

Accordingly, since I could find no clear direction in our practice and procedure, and so that those Canadian citizens who signed the said petition not be denied their ancient right to petition the House of Commons, and since this is the first time this issue has arisen in this Parliament, I ask the House that the petition presented by the honourable Member for Ottawa Centre be received by unanimous consent.^[2]

After having considered the problem, the Chair believes that the right of Canadians to petition their House of Commons would be better served if petitions, which are otherwise in order and have been so certified by the Clerk of Petitions, can be presented even if they contain the occasional signature of a non-Canadian not resident in Canada.

Such signatures would not, of course, be counted among the 25 signatures which a petition must contain in order to be certified. I therefore rule the petition which the honourable Member for Kamloops intended to present on Tuesday, December 18, duly certified and presented to the House. I must thank the honourable Member for Glengarry—Prescott—Russell for bringing this matter to the attention of the Chair.

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1990-12-19