On motion of Ramez Ayoub, it was agreed, — That Bill Casey be elected Chair of the Committee.

Bill Casey took the Chair.

On motion of Colin Carrie, it was agreed, — That Len Webber be elected First Vice-Chair of the Committee.

On motion of K. Kellie Leitch, it was agreed, — That Don Davies be elected Second Vice-Chair of the Committee.

It was agreed, — That the Committee retain, as needed and at the discretion of the Chair, the services of one or more analysts from the Library of Parliament to assist it in its work.

It was agreed, — That the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure be established and composed of five (5) members including the Chair, the two (2) Vice-Chairs, and two (2) members of the governing party; that quorum for the Subcommittee consists of at least three (3) members, at least one (1) of whom is a member of the Official Opposition; and that each member of the Subcommittee be permitted to have one (1) staff member present at any meetings of the Subcommittee.

It was agreed, — That the Chair be authorized to hold meetings to receive and publish evidence when a quorum is not present, provided that at least four (4) members are present, including one (1) member from the opposition and one (1) member from the government; and that in the case of previously scheduled meetings taking place outside of the Parliamentary Precinct, the Committee members in attendance be required to wait for 15 minutes following the designated start of the meeting before they may proceed to hear witnesses and receive evidence, regardless of whether opposition or government members are present.

It was agreed, — That only the Clerk of the Committee be authorized to distribute all documents, including motions, to all members of the Committee; that, except in cases where there is unanimous consent to proceed otherwise, all documents distributed amongst the Committee members by the Clerk be in both official languages; and that the Clerk advise all witnesses appearing before the Committee of this requirement.

It was agreed, — That the Clerk of the Committee, in consultation with the Chair, be authorized to make the necessary arrangements to provide for working meals and that the cost of these meals be charged to the Committee budget; and that, subject to availability, the working meals of the Committee be balanced and nutritious.

It was agreed, — That each witness should be offered the opportunity to testify by videoconference; that, if requested, reasonable travel, accommodation and living expenses be reimbursed to witnesses not exceeding two (2) representatives per organization, and that, in exceptional circumstances, payment for more representatives be made at the discretion of the Chair.

It was agreed, — That, unless otherwise ordered, each Committee member in attendance be permitted to have one (1) staff member present at in camera meetings, and that each party be permitted to have one (1) staff member from the Whip’s or House Leader’s Office present at in camera meetings.

It was agreed, — That one (1) copy of the transcript of each in camera meeting be kept in the Committee Clerk’s office for consultation by members of the Committee and by a member of their staff.

It was agreed, — That 48 hours’ notice be required for any substantive motion to be considered by the Committee, unless the substantive motion relates directly to business then under consideration; that the notice of motion be filed with the Clerk of the Committee and distributed to members in both official languages; and that motions received by 4:00 p.m. from Monday to Thursday and 2:00 p.m. on Friday be distributed to members on the same day.

It was agreed, — That during the questioning of witnesses the time allocated each questioner be as follows: for the first round of questioning, seven (7) minutes to a representative of each party in the following order: Liberal, Conservative, NDP, Liberal; for the second round, five (5) minutes be allocated in the following order: Conservative, Liberal, Conservative, Liberal; followed by NDP, three (3) minutes.

It was agreed, — That all requests to appear before the Committee be distributed to the Committee members.

It was agreed, — That whenever the Minister appears before the Committee, every effort be made to ensure that the meeting is televised.

It was agreed, — That pursuant to the motion adopted by the Committee earlier today, Doug Eyolfson and John Oliver be members of the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure.

It was agreed, — That the Committee meet on Wednesday February 17, 2016, for the consideration of matters related to Committee business.