The Decision-Making Process / Motions and Amendments

Subamendment: scope of the amendment

January 16, 1991

Debates, pp. 17124-5

On January 15, 1991, during Government Orders, Mr. Bill Blaikie (Winnipeg Transcona) moved a subamendment to the motion dealing with the Persian Gulf crisis (Government Business No. 27). The subamendment modified the amendment by introducing new ideas such as the promotion of democracy in the region, the establishment of a mechanism to reduce the arms trade, the elimination of weapons of mass destruction and the convening of an international peace conference. The Acting Speaker (Mr. Charles DeBlois) took the subamendment under advisement.^[1] The following day, the Speaker returned to the House to deliver his decision which is reproduced in extenso below.

Decision of the Chair

The Speaker: Last night, during the course of the debate on the motion of the honourable Secretary of State for External Affairs (Rt. Hon Joe Clark), and on the amendment of the honourable Leader of the Opposition (Hon. Jean Chrétien), the honourable Member for Winnipeg Transcona proposed to move an amendment to the amendment. The text of that amendment reads:

That the amendment be amended by deleting all the words after the word “sanctions” and substituting the following:

“such support to exclude the involvement by Canada in a military attack on Iraq or Iraqi forces in Kuwait and to encompass diplomatic initiatives including settlement of border and other disputes through UN mediation or the International Court of Justice, promotion of democratization throughout the region, establishment of a mechanism to reduce the arms trade and to eliminate weapons of mass destruction, and the convening of an international peace conference to discuss all outstanding Middle East issues.”

The Chair took the proposed subamendment under advisement, and I am now prepared to rule on the matter.

Beauchesne Fourth Edition, Citation 202, paragraph (3) states clearly:

Since the purpose of a subamendment is to alter the amendment, it should not enlarge upon the scope of the amendment…if it is intended to bring up matters foreign to the amendment, the Member should wait until the amendment is disposed of and move a new amendment.

Furthermore, Beauchesne Fifth Edition further clarifies the concept of a subamendment at Citation 438, paragraph (2), which states:

A subamendment must attempt to explain the substance of the amendment and may not substitute an entirely new proposal.

Another important criterion is explained at citation 441(2):

A subamendment must be relevant to the amendment it purports to amend and not to the main motion.

The amendment, now before the House, proposed by the honourable Leader of the Opposition reads as follows:

That the motion be amended by adding immediately after the word “Kuwait” the following :

“through the continued use of economic sanctions, such support to exclude offensive military action by Canada at this time.”

The amendment to that amendment which the honourable Member for Winnipeg Transcona proposed to move goes far beyond the terms of that motion. It introduces a variety of entirely new concepts, for example, the notion of democratization in the area, the elimination of weapons of mass destruction, and the idea of an international peace conference.

While these concepts are perhaps germane to the very complex issue being debated, nonetheless, from a procedural perspective, they stand well beyond the terms of what could be considered an acceptable amendment.

Accordingly, the Chair must find that the proposed subamendment is not in order and cannot be proposed.

F0407-e

34-2

1991-01-16