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Board of Internal Economy meeting

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Meeting Minutes

Thursday, March 12, 2026

A meeting of the Board of Internal Economy (Board) of the House of Commons was held on Thursday, March 12, 2026, at 11:32 a.m., in room 225 A, West Block.

In the Chair: The Honourable Francis Scarpaleggia, Speaker of the House of Commons

Present: The Honourables Steven MacKinnon, Arielle Kayabaga and Andrew Scheer; Mr. Chris Warkentin and Mr. Yves Perron

Secretary to the Board: Eric Janse, Clerk of the House of Commons

Also Present:

House of Commons: Tom Kmiec, Chair, Working Group on the Long Term Vision and Plan (LTVP) and the Centre Block Rehabilitation; Benoit Dicaire, Chief Information Officer; Patrick McDonell, Sergeant-at-Arms; Michel Bédard, Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel; Stéphan Aubé, Chief Executive Administrator; Jeffrey Leblanc, Deputy Clerk, Procedure; Natacha Flanagan, Secretariat

Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC): The Honourable Joël Lightbound, Minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement and Quebec Lieutenant; Alex Benay, Associate Deputy Minister, Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement; Jean-François Lymburner, Chief Executive Officer, Translation Bureau; Jennifer Garrett, Assistant Deputy Minister, PSPC

MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING

The minutes of the meeting of February 12, 2026 were approved for tabling.


BUSINESS ARISING FROM PREVIOUS MEETINGS

The Board took note of correspondence distributed since its last meeting.

The Board agreed to invite representatives of the Cable Public Affairs Channel (CPAC) to appear at the next Board meeting.


INTERPRETATION SERVICES

The Hon. Joël Lightbound, Minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement and Quebec Lieutenant, appeared before the Board and answered questions with Alex Benay, Associate Deputy Minister, Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement, and Jean-François Lymburner, Chief Executive Officer, Translation Bureau.


LTVP WORKING GROUP UPDATE

Tom Kmiec, Chair, Working Group on the LTVP and the Centre Block Rehabilitation, provided an update on the Working Group’s recent activities on the LTVP and answered questions with Jennifer Garrett, Assistant Deputy Minister, PSPC, and Benoit Dicaire, Chief Information Officer.


The Board approved the Working Group’s recommendation for the following items:

• Centre Block Integrated Design for Heritage Rooms

• Parliamentary Campus Tunnels Project Update

• Queen Elizabeth II Equestrian and Indian Residential School National Monuments


The Board also approved the Working Group’s recommendation for the following items, subject to the conditions noted below:

• Centre Block and Parliament Welcome Centre final design, with the exception of the collapsible stair system at the ceremonial Peace Tower entrance for universal accessibility, which will return to the Board for consideration following the completion of a pilot project at East Block and confirmation of associated costs; and

• Block 2 functional program and conceptual floor plan layouts, excluding the exterior design concept, which will return to the Board for consideration at a later date.


At 12:55 p.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 12:55 p.m., the sitting resumed in camera.


PAYMENT OF LEGAL FEES OF A MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT

The Board approved the payment of the legal fees of a Member, up to $40,000, at the rates of outside counsel and subject to the invoices being reviewed by the Office of the Law Clerk and Parliamentary Counsel.


SECURITY MATTERS

The Board reviewed a proposal to support enhancements to current and emerging security programs.


Accordingly, the Board approved the following:

• the proposed amendments to the Personnel Security Screening Program, including the associated policy, procedures, documentation and funding;

• the establishment of the Regional Liaison Program and associated funding;

• the additional resources for the Constituency Office and Residential Security Program;

• an amendment to the Members’ Allowances and Services Manual, to be implemented throughout 2026–2027, to allow costs for security alarm monitoring of constituency offices to be charged to the central budgets;

• the additional resources for the Technical Security Countermeasures Program; and

• the additional funding for the Public Visitor Registration Program.


The Board also approved the associated multi‑year funding, as presented, totalling $5,198,306 in 2026–2027, $5,469,295 in 2027–2028, and $5,771,428 in 2028–2029 and subsequent years, excluding employee benefit plan costs.

It was agreed that the House Administration will make every effort to manage the 2026–2027 costs within existing budgets and seek any additional required funding through the 2026–2027 Supplementary Estimates as needed, and that funding for future fiscal years will be sought through the Main Estimates.

Should there be significant changes to the estimated costs, the House Administration will return to the Board to adjust the funding requested.



The meeting was adjourned at 1:02 p.m.

Eric Janse
Secretary to the Board of Internal Economy