The Legislative Process / Stages
Report stage: power of the Speaker to select amendments; not presented in committee
Debates, pp. 4068-9
Context
John McKay (Scarborough–Guildwood), in a written submission to the Speaker, described the efforts he had made to overcome the inability of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade to consider Bill C-300, Corporate Accountability of Mining, Oil and Gas Corporations in Developing Countries Act, within the prescribed timelines. These efforts included the moving of a motion that the Committee begin clause-by-clause study of the Bill. Mr. McKay advised the Speaker that he had not been successful and that, although he had submitted his amendments to the Committee, he had not had an opportunity to propose them.
Resolution
On September 20, 2010, the Speaker delivered his ruling with respect to the selection and grouping for debate of motions in amendment at report stage for Bill C-300. He specified that he was departing from the Chair’s usual practice of not providing the reasons for the selection because of the exceptional circumstances. The Speaker declared that he was satisfied that Mr. McKay’s motions could not have been presented during the Committee’s consideration of the Bill and, accordingly, he had selected them for debate at report stage.
Decision of the Chair
The Speaker: There are 16 motions and amendments standing on the Notice Paper for the report stage of Bill C-300.
Motions Nos. 1 to 16 will be grouped for debate and voted upon according to the voting patterns available at the Table.
The Chair does not ordinarily provide reasons for its selection of report stage motions. However, having been made aware of the exceptional circumstances surrounding the Committee study of this Bill, I would like to convey to the House the reasoning involved in considering these motions.
The note accompanying Standing Order 76(5) reads, in part:
The Speaker… will normally only select motions which were not or could not be presented [in committee].
The Chair takes note that the hon. Member for Scarborough–Guildwood sits on the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade, which was mandated to study Bill C-300. Although I believe that the majority of the amendments in his name could have been proposed during the Committee consideration of the Bill, they were not.
In a written submission to the Chair, the Member outlined his efforts to overcome the Committee’s inability to deal with the Bill in the prescribed timelines, even going so far as to move a motion that the Committee begin clause-by-clause study of the Bill. These efforts proved fruitless, and although the Member had submitted his amendments to the Committee, he was not afforded the opportunity to propose them.
Having carefully reviewed the sequence of events and the submission made by the hon. Member for Scarborough–Guildwood, I am satisfied that these motions could not be presented during the Committee consideration of the Bill and, accordingly, I have selected them for debate at report stage.
I shall now propose Motions Nos. 1 to 16 to the House.