CIIT Committee Meeting
Notices of Meeting include information about the subject matter to be examined by the committee and date, time and place of the meeting, as well as a list of any witnesses scheduled to appear. The Evidence is the edited and revised transcript of what is said before a committee. The Minutes of Proceedings are the official record of the business conducted by the committee at a sitting.
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Minutes of Proceedings
Liberal
- Richard Hébert, Parliamentary Secretary — Non-Voting Member
Conservative
The Minister made a statement and answered questions.
Tracey Ramsey moved, — That, with regard to the Committee’s study of Bill C-85, the Committee invite witnesses to appear to discuss the state of human rights in Israel and the occupied territories of Israel.
The question was put on the motion and it was negatived on the following recorded division:
YEAS: Tracey Ramsey — 1;
NAYS: Dean Allison, Colin Carrie, Peter Fonseca, Karen Ludwig, Kyle Peterson, Terry Sheehan, Cathay Wagantall — 7.
Questioning of the witnesses resumed.
At 11:57 a.m., the sitting was suspended.
At 12:05 p.m., the sitting resumed.
Colin Carrie gave notice of the following motion:
Pursuant to Standing Order 108(2), that the Committee immediately undertake a study concerning the Automotive Industry in Canada and details of all options of the Federal Government’s plan to defend the Canadian Automotive industry and the ability to defend Canada’s competitiveness globally; that the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development appear; and that the Committee report its findings to the House.
Questioning of the witnesses resumed.
The Committee commenced its clause-by-clause study of the Bill.
The Chair called Clause 1.
Clause 1 carried on division.
Clause 2 carried on division.
On Clause 3,
Tracey Ramsey moved, — That Bill C-85, in Clause 3, be amended(a) by adding after line 23 on page 1 the following:
“(a.1) substantially increase investment opportunities in Canada and the State of Israel while preserving the right of each of the parties to the Agreement to regulate and to achieve legitimate policy goals;”
(b) by replacing line 7 on page 2 with the following:
“ments that meet Canada's obligations under the Paris Agreement reached on December 12, 2015;”
(c) by replacing lines 8 and 9 on page 2 with the following:
“(d) protect, enhance and enforce workers’ rights through mandatory mechanisms recognized by the International Labour Organization’s eight core conventions and adherence to its Decent Work Agenda, through the creation of an independent labour secretariat with the power to oversee a dispute-settlement process for violations of labour rights and to enforce penalties for any such violations and through strengthening cooperation between Canada and the State of Israel on labour matters;”
(d) by adding after line 10 on page 2 the following:
“(d.1) to facilitate due diligence measures and ensure they are available for Canadian companies and funding agencies, and to create a framework for transnational bargaining to allow unions to represent workers in Canada and the State of Israel; and”
(e) by replacing lines 12 to 16 on page 2 with the following:
“economic empowerment and immediately undertake an annual gender-based analysis and gender impact assessment to be applied to the entire agreement, as well as to ensure the use of enforceable corporate social responsibility standards and principles as set out in the United Nations document entitled Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights published in 2011.”
Debate arose thereon.
The Chair ruled the proposed amendment inadmissible because it infringed on the financial initiative of the Crown, as provided on page 772 of House of Commons Procedure and Practice, Third Edition.
“4.1 (1) The provisions of this Act and the Agreement must comply with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
(2) Relations between the Government of Canada and the State of Israel, as well as the implementation of the provisions of the Agreement itself, shall be based on respect for human rights and international law.”
The Chair ruled the proposed amendment inadmissible because it was beyond the scope of the Bill, as provided on page 770 of House of Commons Procedure and Practice, Third Edition.
“4.1 In the interests of transparency, product labelling must accurately reflect the precise place of origin of any product that originates in an area that is occupied by the State of Israel but that is outside the territory of the State of Israel as it existed on June 4, 1967. In particular, labelling must indicate whether the product was made in an illegal settlement, and whether it was made in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, Golan Heights or Gaza.”
The Chair ruled the proposed amendment inadmissible because it was beyond the scope of the Bill, as provided on page 770 of House of Commons Procedure and Practice, Third Edition.
Clause 3 carried.
On Clause 4,
Pursuant to the order adopted by the Committee on Tuesday, May 3, 2016, the following amendment, submitted by Gabriel Ste-Marie for the consideration of the Committee, was deemed moved:
That Bill C-85, in Clause 4, be amended by adding after line 18 on page 2 the following:
“6.1 For greater certainty, despite paragraph (b) of the definition territory in Article 1.7 of the Agreement, this Act and the Agreement apply to the territory of the State of Israel except for any territory administered by that State since June 4, 1967.”
The Chair ruled the proposed amendment inadmissible because it was beyond the scope of the Bill, as provided on page 770 of House of Commons Procedure and Practice, Third Edition.
“gaseous or solid state, and nothing may authorize the bulk export of water or the treatment of water, by labelling or otherwise, as a commodity.”
After debate, the question was put on the amendment of Tracey Ramsey and it was negatived on the following recorded division:
YEAS: Tracey Ramsey — 1;
NAYS: Dean Allison, Sukh Dhaliwal, Peter Fonseca, Karen Ludwig, Alexander Nuttall, Kyle Peterson, Terry Sheehan — 7.
Clause 4 carried.
On Clause 5,
Tracey Ramsey moved, — That Bill C-85, in Clause 5, be amended by adding after line 8 on page 3 the following:“12.1 For consultation purposes, the name of each individual whom the Minister proposes to appoint under section 12 must be published in the Canada Gazette, Part 1, for at least 90 days.”
After debate, the question was put on the amendment of Tracey Ramsey and it was negatived on the following recorded division:
YEAS: Tracey Ramsey — 1;
NAYS: Dean Allison, Colin Carrie, Sukh Dhaliwal, Peter Fonseca, Karen Ludwig, Alexander Nuttall, Kyle Peterson, Terry Sheehan — 8.
“14 The Government of Canada is to pay its appropriate share of the costs of
(a) the remuneration and expenses payable to its mem-”
After debate, the question was put on the amendment of Tracey Ramsey and it was negatived on the following recorded division:
YEAS: Tracey Ramsey — 1;
NAYS: Dean Allison, Colin Carrie, Sukh Dhaliwal, Peter Fonseca, Karen Ludwig, Alexander Nuttall, Kyle Peterson, Terry Sheehan — 8.
“14.1 The Government of Canada shall, as soon as possible after the end of each fiscal year, prepare a report that
(a) identifies the members, members' assistants and independent experts and indicates the costs incurred by each member — and their assistants — of the panels, committees, subcommittees, working groups, expert groups and other bodies, as well as the costs incurred by independent experts;
(b) includes a gender impact assessment of the Agreement;
(c) includes an economic impact analysis with a detailed jobs analysis of the potential benefits and cost of the Agreement; and
(d) includes an analysis of the impact of the Act on human rights in Canada, in the State of Israel as it existed on June 4, 1967, and in the territories occupied by the State of Israel, including Palestinian territories.
(2) The Minister of Labour shall cause the report to be tabled in each House of Parliament on any of the first 15 days on which that House is sitting after the day on which the Minister receives it.”
After debate, the question was put on the amendment of Tracey Ramsey and it was negatived on the following recorded division:
YEAS: Tracey Ramsey — 1;
NAYS: Dean Allison, Colin Carrie, Sukh Dhaliwal, Peter Fonseca, Karen Ludwig, Alexander Nuttall, Kyle Peterson, Terry Sheehan — 8.
“15.1 (1) This Act ceases to have effect on the day that is two years after the day on which this section comes into force unless, before the end of that day, the operation of the Act is extended by resolution — whose text is established under subsection (2) — passed by both Houses of Parliament.
(2) The Governor in Council may, by order, establish the text of a resolution that provides for the extension of the operation of this Act and that specifies the period of the extension, which may not exceed two years from the first day on which the resolution has been passed by both Houses of Parliament.”
After debate, the question was put on the amendment of Tracey Ramsey and it was negatived on the following recorded division:
YEAS: Tracey Ramsey — 1;
NAYS: Dean Allison, Colin Carrie, Sukh Dhaliwal, Peter Fonseca, Karen Ludwig, Alexander Nuttall, Kyle Peterson, Terry Sheehan — 8.
Clause 5 carried.
Clause 6 carried.
Clause 7 carried.
Clause 8 carried.
Clause 9 carried.
Clause 10 carried.
Clause 11 carried.
Clause 12 carried.
The Schedule carried.
The Title carried.
The Bill carried.
ORDERED, — That the Chair report the Bill to the House.
At 12:50 p.m., the Committee adjourned to the call of the Chair.