Precedence and Sequence of Business / Business of the House

Order of priority of Government business; filing of notice of motion

Debates pp. 28371-5

Background

At the beginning of the sitting, immediately prior to the call for the Order of the Day, Mr. Nielsen (Yukon) rose on a point of order to protest the fact that the business of supply, which had been announced the day before by Mr. Pinard (President of the Privy Council), had been changed in the course of the evening. The Member also protested the fact that the notice of a non-confidence motion regarding the business of supply, although filed with the Table after 6:00 p.m., does not appear under the heading of "Notice of business of supply" on the Order Paper and Notices, in accordance with Standing Order 62(4)(a). After hearing Members' comments, the Deputy Speaker ruled.

Issue

Must a notice of an opposition motion regarding the business of supply be deposited before 6:00 p.m. in order to be printed in the Order Paper and Notices?

Decision

Yes. Consequently, the motion could not be entered in the Order Paper.

Reasons given by the Deputy Speaker

The requirement that notice of motions be filed before 6:00 p.m. is a legitimate practice established since 1968. A notice of motion must, therefore, be filed before 6:00 p.m. in order for it to be printed in the Order Paper. Moreover, it is solely up to the Government House Leader to determine the order of priority of Government Business.

Sources cited

Standing Orders 22, 47 and 62(4).

References

Debates, October 27, 1983, pp. 28361-71.