House of Commons Procedure and Practice
Edited by Robert Marleau and Camille Montpetit
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[451] 
See, for example, Standing Committee on Justice and the Solicitor General, Minutes of Proceedings and Evidence, May 29, 1990, Issue No. 39, p. 3.
[452] 
See, for example, Standing Committee on Justice and the Solicitor General, Minutes of Proceedings and Evidence, December 4, 1990, Issue No. 56, p. 3.
[453] 
Following the refusal of the Solicitor General to provide two reports to the Standing Committee on Justice and the Solicitor General, citing privacy grounds, the Committee reported the matter to the House. Subsequently, a question of privilege was raised by Derek Lee (Scarborough–Rouge River) concerning the Minister’s failure to provide the reports sought by the Committee. No ruling was delivered as to whether the matter constituted a prima facie breach of privilege, but the issue was referred to the Standing Committee on Privileges and Elections. Parliament was prorogued before the Committee had completed its deliberations, but the reference was revived in the next session allowing the Committee to conclude its work. The Committee presented a report which concluded that the Standing Committee on Justice and the Solicitor General had been within its rights to insist on the production of the two reports and recommended that the House order the Solicitor General to comply with the order for production. The House subsequently adopted a motion to that effect, with the proviso that the reports be presented at an in camera meeting of the Standing Committee on Justice and the Solicitor General. See Standing Committee on Justice and the Solicitor General, Minutes of Proceedings and Evidence, May 29, 1990, Issue No. 39, p. 3; December 4, 1990, Issue No. 56, p. 3; December 18, 1990, Issue No. 57, pp. 4-6; Journals, December 19, 1990, p. 2508; February 28, 1991, p. 2638; Debates, February 28, 1991, pp. 17745-6; Journals, May 17, 1991, p. 42; May 29, 1991, pp. 92-9; June 18, 1991, pp. 216-7; and Standing Committee on Justice and the Solicitor General, Minutes of Proceedings and Evidence, June 19, 1991, Issue No. 4, pp. 5-6.
[454] 
Journals, May 29, 1991, p. 95. The House took note of the Committee’s report and referred it to the Standing Committee on House Management for further study. See Journals, June 18, 1991, pp. 216-7.
[455] 
See, for example, Standing Committee on Justice and the Solicitor General, Minutes of Proceedings and Evidence, November 26, 1992, Issue No. 71, p. 4.
[456] 
For agreement with National Archives, see Journals, April 13, 1994, pp. 339-40.
[457]
Committees usually deal with this question by adopting a motion concerning the general distribution of documents. See section above, “Routine Motions”.
[458] 
See, for example, Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, Minutes, November 19, 1998, Meeting No. 43.
[459] 
See, for example, Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights, Minutes, November 5, 1997, Meeting No. 4.
[460] 
Standing and legislative committees are empowered by the Standing Orders to print from day to day such papers and evidence as may be ordered by them. See Standing Orders 108(1) and 113(5). A similar provision is usually included in the order establishing a special committee. See, for example, Journals, November 18, 1997, pp. 224-5.
[461]
For a description of the documents produced by the House, see Chapter 24, “The Parliamentary Record”.
[462]
The Website address is « http://www.parl.gc.ca ».
[463] 
See, for example, Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food, Minutes, December 7, 1998, Meeting No. 69.
[464] 
Meetings are numbered consecutively from the beginning of each session. A committee may meet several times in a single day or have a meeting which extends over more than one day. See, for example, Standing Committee on Finance, Minutes, June 11, 1998, Meeting Nos. 97-100, and Standing Committee on Human Resources Development, Minutes of Proceedings and Evidence, April 25, 1996, Issue No. 4, pp. 22-4.
[465] 
See, for example, Standing Committee on Finance, Minutes, November 23, 1998, Meeting No. 162.
[466] 
It is up to each committee to decide whether to meet in public or not. Committees have sometimes decided to make public those deliberations which were originally conducted in camera.See, for example, Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations, Minutes, November 5, 1998, Meeting No. 15.
[467] 
As witnesses appearing before committee are protected by parliamentary privilege, it is the responsibility of the committee to see that witnesses do not take advantage of that protection to utter defamatory remarks which might give rise to legal proceedings were they made elsewhere. See Speaker Fraser’s ruling, Debates, March 16, 1993, pp. 17071-2.
[468] 
See, for example, Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, Minutes, November 19, 1998, Meeting No. 43. See section above, “Briefs and Other Papers”.
[469]
For more information on reports, see section below, “Reports to the House”.
[470] 
Standing Order 108(1)(a).
[471] 
Standing Order 119.1.
[472]
At the present time, one committee meeting room is permanently equipped for broadcasting purposes. Portable equipment can be set up by House broadcasting services to permit broadcasting from another room, if required.
[473] 
See Journals, April 11, 1991, pp. 2905-32, in particular p. 2929; Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, Minutes of Proceedings and Evidence, June 6, 1994, Issue No. 16, p. 7; Journals, June 8, 1994, p. 545; June 10, 1994, p. 563.
[474] 
This includes both broadcasting on Parliament Hill and while sitting outside the parliamentary precinct. See, for example, Journals, November 28, 1995, p. 2167; November 21, 1996, p. 880. In addition to being given supplementary broadcasting powers by the House, a committee may need to obtain additional budgetary authorization from the Liaison Committee. Funds for broadcasting purposes are not included in the ordinary budgets of committees.
[475] 
Provisional broadcasting guidelines for committees were tabled as part of the Twenty-Third Report of the Standing Committee on House Management and were approved by the House. The guidelines were made permanent as a result of concurrence by the House in the Eighty-Third Report of the House Management Committee. See Standing Committee on House Management, Minutes of Proceedings and Evidence, February 11, 1992, Issue No. 24, pp. 6-13; Journals, February 14, 1992, p. 1024; March 27, 1992, p. 1230; Standing Committee on House Management, Minutes of Proceedings and Evidence, April 2, 1993, Issue No. 53, pp. 145-7; Journals, April 2, 1993, p. 2784; April 28, 1993, p. 2873. In 1998, the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs presented a report which recommended allowing members of the Press Gallery, rather than House Broadcasting Services, to film committee meetings. See Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, Minutes, December 3, 1998, Meeting No. 45, and Journals, December 8, 1998, p. 1424; April 26, 1999, pp. 1766-7.
[476] 
See, for example, Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Minutes, October 23, 1997, Meeting No. 4.
[477] 
See Standing Orders 81(4) and 110.
[478] 
The House has occasionally ordered that a particular study be carried out by a sub-committee. See, for example, Journals, June 29, 1983, p. 6116.
[479]
For information on the overall Estimates process, see Chapter 18, “Financial Procedures”.
[480] 
Standing Order 81.
[481] 
Standing Order 81(4). Since 1968, all Estimates have been referred to standing committees for detailed scrutiny before being considered by the House.
[482] 
Standing Order 81(4). See, for example, Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-food, Minutes, April 23, 1998, Meeting No. 34, and April 28, 1998, Meeting No. 36. The Committee held no further meetings on the Main Estimates for that year and did not present a report.
[483] 
Standing Order 81(4)(a).
[484] 
Standing Order 81(4)(b).
[485] 
Standing Order 81(7).
[486] 
Standing Order 81(8).
[487] 
Standing Order 81(5). As Supplementary Estimates deal only with costs in excess of the amounts provided for in the Main Estimates, they relate only to the particular departments or programs having new or additional expenditures. Supplementary Estimates are, therefore, referred only to the standing committees concerned with the Votes they contain. See, for example, Journals, May 15, 1998, pp. 835-6.
[488] 
Standing Order 81(5).
[489] 
See, for example, Standing Committee on Human Resources Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities, Minutes, May 5, 1998, Meeting No. 34.
[490] 
See, for example, Standing Committee on Human Resources Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities, Minutes, May 14, 1998, Meeting No. 37.
[491] 
When proposing the reduction of a Vote, it is necessary to take into account the fact that a part of the total amount may already have been approved by the House in granting interim Supply. See, for example, Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration, Minutes of Proceedings and Evidence, May 18, 1995, Issue No. 47, p. 9. Where a proposal is made to reduce an amount, it must not be for an insignificant amount.
[492] 
See, for example, Standing Committee on National Resources and Public Works, Minutes of Proceedings and Evidence, November 27, 1979, Issue No. 6, p. 3. See also Bourinot, 4thed., p. 427.
[493] 
See Speaker Lamoureux’s ruling, Journals, March 24, 1970, pp. 636-7.
[494] 
See, for example, Standing Committee on Regional Industrial Expansion, Minutes of Proceedings and Evidence, May 7, 1986, Issue No. 1, p. 8.
[495] 
See Speaker Lamoureux’s rulings, Journals, March 24, 1970, pp. 636-7, and June 18, 1973, pp. 419-20; Speaker Jerome’s ruling, Debates, December 10, 1979, p. 2189. Where a committee does wish to make substantive recommendations concerning the Estimates, it may do so using the mandate provided by Standing Order 108(2).
[496] 
Standing Order 73(1) and (2).
[497] 
Standing Order 73(3).
[498] 
All bills based on Supply motions are dealt with in a Committee of the Whole (Standing Order 73 (4)). See Chapter 19, “Committees of the Whole House”.
[499] 
See Journals, November 16, 1964, p. 876; June 22, 1965, pp. 290-1; May 31, 1966, p. 594; July 15, 1975, p. 711; March 30, 1993, pp. 2742-3.
[500] 
Standing Order 68(4)(a) and (b).

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