Appointed by the Sovereign under the
advice of the Prime Minister, the Governor General usually holds office for
five years. However, the term can
continue beyond five years and is brought to an end by the installation or the
swearing-in of a successor. The Constitution Act, 1867, confers upon the Governor General certain basic powers
of government: a recommendation from the Governor General must accompany all
spending measures introduced in the House; it is the Governor General who gives
royal assent to legislation; and it is the Governor General who summons,
prorogues and dissolves Parliament.However, in administering the executive authority of the Government, the
Governor General acts solely upon the advice of the ministry. In addition to
these basic powers of government, the Governor General also has a number of
ceremonial responsibilities. The list
of Governors General of Canada since Confederation and the information on their
appointment and term of office was kindly provided by Rideau Hall.
The Speaker of the House of Commons assumes the position
of highest authority in the House, and represents the Commons in all its
powers, proceedings and dignity. The
duties of the Speaker fall into three categories: 1) acting as the spokesperson
of the House; 2) presiding over sittings of the House and maintaining order and
decorum; and 3) assuming important administrative responsibilities. Provisions for the Speakership are defined
in the Constitution Act, 1867, in the Parliament of Canada Act, R.S.C. 1985,
and in the Standing Orders of the House of Commons. The election of the Speaker by the House is a constitutional
requirement. At the beginning of every
Parliament, the House must elect a Speaker from amongst its Members. From Confederation until 1985, Speakers were
elected by way of motion usually initiated by the Prime Minister. Provisional rules adopted in June 1985, and
made permanent in June 1987, have since provided for the election of the
Speaker by secret ballot.
The
position of Deputy Speaker and Chair of Committees of the Whole was created
through amendments to the Standing Orders adopted on February 10, 1885, and
through the adoption of legislation which was assented to on May 1, 1885. The Statute was entitled
“An Act to provide for the appointment of a Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons”
(S.C. 1885, c.1). The Standing Orders require
the House to elect, from among its Members, a Deputy Speaker and Chair of
Committees of the Whole at the commencement of every Parliament. The same person performs the duties of both
offices and must have full and practical knowledge of the official language
which is not that of the current Speaker. The Deputy Speaker is vested with all the powers of the Speaker when the
latter is absent from the House, presides over the proceedings of the House,
and is responsible for chairing Committees of the Whole House.
On February 11, 1938,
the Standing Orders of the House were amended to provide for the appointment of
a Deputy Chair of Committees of the Whole. The tenure of this office, however, is for a single session rather than
for a Parliament. Whenever the Chair
of Committees of the Whole is absent, the Deputy Chair is entitled to
exercise all the powers vested in the Chair of Committees of the Whole, including
the powers as Deputy Speaker. After the
first appointment, the position was left vacant for nine years and then from
1947 until 1953, only being filled when necessary. In 1953 and subsequent years, the practice of appointing a Deputy
Chair for a session was firmly established.
On April 26, 1967, the
Standing Orders of the House were amended to provide for the appointment of an
Assistant Deputy Chairman of Committees of the Whole. The tenure of this office, however, is for a single session
rather than for a Parliament. Whenever
the Chairman of Committees of the Whole or the Deputy Chairman are absent, the
Assistant Deputy Chairman is entitled to exercise all the powers vested in the
Chairman of Committees of the Whole, including the powers as Deputy
Speaker. Mr. Paul Tardif was the first
such appointee. No Assistant Deputy
Chairman of Committees of the Whole was appointed during the First and Second
Sessions of the Twenty-eighth Parliament.
An Order in Council appointee by Letters
Patent under the Great Seal, the Clerk has traditionally held office at
pleasure. While many of the Clerk’s
functions are defined in the Standing Orders and the Parliament of Canada
Act, most of the duties have developed as the House itself has evolved.
As a commissioner of oaths, the Clerk is one of the officers who administer the
oath of allegiance to newly elected Members. The Clerk is the chief adviser to the Speaker and Members of the House
of Commons on procedural matters, and oversees the general administration of
the House. The Clerk has the status of
deputy minister and is Secretary to the Board of Internal Economy.
Appointed by Letter Patent
under the Great Seal, the Sergeant-at-Arms performs many ceremonial and
administrative duties and, as a commissioner of oaths, is one of the officers
who may administer the oath of allegiance to newly elected Members. Bearing the Mace, the Sergeant-at-Arms
precedes the Speaker as he or she enters and leaves the Chamber each day. The Sergeant-at-Arms occupies a desk at the
Bar of the House when the House is sitting.In accordance with the Standing Orders, the Sergeant-at-Arms preserves
order in the galleries, lobbies, and corridors and is responsible for taking
into custody strangers who misbehave in the galleries. Traditionally, the position has been held by
military officers.
The
selection of a Ministry is the Prime Minister’s responsibility, and the
Governor General follows the Prime Minister’s advice in formalizing the
appointments. The formal initiative in
selecting a new Prime Minister rests with the Governor General. The duration of
a Ministry is measured by the tenure of its Prime Minister. It is calculated from the day the Prime
Minister takes the oath of office to the day the Prime Minister resigns. The resignation of a Prime Minister brings
about the resignation of the Ministry as a whole. A Prime Minister who resigns but later returns to form another
Ministry is said to be forming a new Ministry. Since Confederation, there have
been 28 Ministries.
The Member who is the leader of the largest
party sitting in opposition to the Government in the House of Commons becomes
the “Leader of Her Majesty’s Opposition”. Provisions governing the position are defined in the
Parliament of
Canada Act, in the Standing Orders and in various practices of the House. To become the Leader of the Official
Opposition, a person must hold a seat in the House of Commons. Consequently, in instances where the
national leader of a party was not a Member of the House of Commons, another
Member of Parliament of that party served as Leader of the Official
Opposition. Those instances are
indicated with an asterisk.
By tradition, leaders of political parties are
expected to have a seat or to seek a seat in the House of Commons as soon as
possible. In those instances where a
party leader is not a Member of the House, the party usually choses one of its
elected Members to act as the Leader of the party in the House. Parties and
party leaders play a significant role in the proceedings of the House. Some statutes require that the government
consult with the Leader of the Official Opposition, as well as with other party
leaders, when certain actions are contemplated or prior to making certain
appointments. The Standing Orders of
the House provide an opportunity for opposition parties to respond to
Ministers’ statements, to propose motions on allotted or opposition days and to
participate in the leadership of the standing committees. The leader of a recognized party usually
sits in the front row of the Chamber. The party leaders listed below are those who, since Confederation, have
officially represented the parties in the House.
Since the early days of Confederation,
most Members of the House of Commons have been members of political
parties. The nature of these political
parties has varied with time, and several different parties have had representation
in the House. While a majority government is formed by the political party or
the coalition of parties holding the majority of the seats in the House, a
minority government is formed by one or more parties, but without the majority
of seats. Most governments since
Confederation have been majority governments formed by a single party having
gathered a majority of the seats in a general election. However, the general elections
of 1921, 1925, 1957, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1972, 1979, 2004 and 2006 all resulted in no single party
obtaining a majority of seats.
The length of a Parliament
is calculated from the date set for the return of the writs following a general
election to its dissolution by the Governor General by speech or
proclamation. The Constitution Act, 1867, s. 50, and the Constitution Act,
1982, ss. 4(1) and 5, provide for a
maximum five-year lifespan for the House of Commons from the date fixed for the
return of the writs. A Parliament is
divided into sessions. A session begins
with a Speech from the Throne when Parliament is summoned by proclamation of
the Governor General; it ends with a prorogation or dissolution of
Parliament. A session is divided into sittings and adjournments. A sitting is a meeting of the House within a
session. The Standing Orders provide
times and days for the sittings of the House.A sitting is not necessarily synonymous with a “day”. Some days may contain more than one sitting;
some sittings may extend over more than one day.
Whenever the House adjourns for a period of time during a
session, either pursuant to the Standing Orders or by a special order, the
Speaker of the House is empowered to recall the House before the date specified
in the motion or order, if satisfied by the Government that it is in the public
interest to do so. On the day the House
resumes sitting, the usual practice is for the Speaker to inform the Members of
the reason for recalling the House, the various steps taken for its recall, and
the publication of a Special Order Paper (if one has been requested by the
Government). The following instances
occurred when the House was recalled for matters relating to public interest
Modern practice in matters of privilege first took root following the
publication of the fourth edition of Arthur Beauchesne’s Parliamentary Rules and Forms
of the House of Commons of Canada in 1958. Beauchesne included a new
section, taken from Erskine May’s 14th edition published in 1946, on
the manner of raising questions of privilege. This description of the British procedure soon became a handy reference
seized upon by successive Speakers, beginning with Speaker Michener, as a way
to curtail spurious interventions by Members on non-privilege matters. It introduced two guiding conditions:
whether on the first impression (prima facie) the matter raised appeared to be
a matter of privilege, and whether the matter was raised as soon as it could
have been. Both were to be determined by the Speaker before a debate could proceed. The motions were debatable and
amendable and were sometimes negatived. On occasion, the House adopted motions on matters of privilege without a
ruling of the Speaker. While not all questions of privilege were referred to a committee, on those occasions when they were, the
committee generally reported back that they had studied the matter and that no
further action was necessary. In rare circumstances, the House concurred in the Committee report.
The following chart includes all cases of privilege since 1958 that were ruled prima facie by the Speaker.
The Standing Orders constitute the permanent written rules under which
the House of Commons regulates its proceedings. There are more than 150 Standing Orders, each of which is a
continuing order of the House for the governance and regulation of its
proceedings. The continuing or “standing” nature of the Standing Orders means that they do not
lapse at the end of a session or parliament. Rather, they remain in effect until the House itself decides to suspend,
change or repeal them. The following are the Standing Orders in force on September 1st, 1999.
Unproved Cases
Procedure in unprovided cases.
- 1.
-
In all cases not provided for hereinafter, or by other Order of the House, procedural questions shall be decided by the Speaker
or Chairman, whose decisions shall be based on the usages, forms, customs and precedents of the House of Commons of Canada and
on parliamentary tradition in Canada and other jurisdictions, so far as they may be applicable to the House.
Chapter I
Presiding Officers
Elections and Appointments
First order of business.
- 2.
-
- (1)
-
At the
opening of the first session of a Parliament, and at any other time as
determined pursuant to section (2) of this Standing Order, the election of a
Speaker shall be the first order of business and shall not be interrupted by
any other proceeding.
Vacancy in Office of Speaker.
-
-
- (2)
-
When there is, or is to be,
a vacancy in the Office of the Speaker, whether at the opening of a
Parliament, or because the incumbent of that Office has indicated his or her
intention to resign the Office of Speaker, or for any other reason, the
Members, when they are ready, shall proceed to the election of a Speaker.
Precedence over all other business. Adjournment of the House.
-
-
- (3)
-
The election of a Speaker
shall take precedence over all other business and no motion for adjournment
nor any other motion shall be accepted while it is proceeding and the House
shall continue to sit, if necessary, beyond its ordinary hour of daily
adjournment, notwithstanding any other Standing or Special Order, until a
Speaker is declared elected, and is installed in the Chair in the usual
manner, provided that if the House has continued to sit beyond its ordinary
hour of daily adjournment, the Speaker shall thereupon adjourn the House
until the next sitting day.
Member presiding during election.
- 3.
-
- (1)
-
During an election of a Speaker the Chair shall be taken by:
- (a)
-
at the opening of a Parliament, the Member who has had the longest period of
unbroken service as determined by reference to his or her position on the
list published in the Canada Gazette, and who is neither a Minister of the Crown, nor holds any office within the
House including that of leader of a party; or,
- (b)
-
in the case of the Speaker having indicated his or her intention to resign that office, the Speaker; and
- (c)
-
at other times, in the absence of the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker and Chairman of Committees of the Whole
as provided by Statute.
Powers and vote of Member presiding during election.
-
-
- (2)
-
The Member presiding during the election of a Speaker shall be vested with all the powers of the Chair provided that he
or she:
- (a)
-
shall be entitled to vote in the election of a Speaker; and
- (b)
-
shall have no casting vote in the event of there being an equality of votes cast for two candidates.
Balloting procedure.
- 4.
-
The election of a Speaker shall be conducted by secret ballot as follows:
Notification to Clerk when Member does not wish to be considered for election. List of names to be provided to Member presiding
during election.
-
-
- (1)
-
Any Member who does not wish
to be considered for election to the Office of Speaker shall, not later than
6:00 p. m. on the day preceding the day on which the election of a Speaker is
expected to take place, in writing, so inform the Clerk of the House who
shall prepare a list of such Members’ names together with a list of the names
of all Ministers of the Crown and party leaders, and shall provide the same
to the Member presiding prior to the taking of the first ballot.
Ballot papers.
-
-
- (2)
-
Members present in the Chamber shall be provided with ballot papers by the Clerk of the House.
Announcement of availability of list.
-
-
- (3)
-
The Member presiding shall announce from the Chair that the list provided pursuant to section (1) of this Standing Order
is available for consultation at the Table.
Choice indicated on ballot paper.
-
-
- (4)
-
Members wishing to indicate their choice for the Office of Speaker shall print the first and last name of a Member on
the ballot paper.
Ballot paper deposited in box.
-
-
- (5)
-
Members shall deposit their completed ballot papers in a box provided for that purpose on the Table.
Counting and destruction of ballot papers.
-
-
- (6)
-
The Clerk of the House
shall, once all Members wishing to do so have deposited their ballot papers,
empty the box and count the ballots and being satisfied as to the accuracy of
the count, shall destroy the ballots together with all records of the number
of ballots cast for each candidate and the Clerk of the House shall in no way
divulge the number of ballots cast for any candidate.
Announcement of successful candidate.
-
-
- (7)
-
In the event of one Member
having received a majority of the votes cast, the Clerk of the House shall
provide the Member presiding with the name of that Member, whereupon the
Member presiding shall announce the name of the new Speaker.
When no majority of votes.
-
-
- (8)
-
In the event of no Member having received a majority of the votes cast the procedure shall be as follows:
Clerk to provide Member presiding during election with alphabetical list of candidates.
- (a)
-
the Clerk of the House shall provide the Member presiding the names of the candidates for
the next ballot, in alphabetical order, provided that the Clerk of the House
shall first determine the number representing the least total number of votes
cast and the Clerk shall exclude the names of all Members having received
that total number of votes, together with the names of all Members having
received five percent or less of the total votes cast, from the list of
candidates so provided, and provided that in the event of every candidate
receiving the same number of votes no names shall be excluded from the list so provided; and
Announcement of candidates. Reasons for not accepting further consideration to be stated.
- (b)
-
whereupon the Member presiding shall announce the names of the candidates, which shall be
the only names thereafter accepted, in alphabetical order, provided that
prior to the taking of the second ballot, he or she shall ask that any
Member, whose name has been so announced and who does not wish to be further
considered for election to the Office of Speaker, state his or her reason therefor.
Subsequent ballots.
-
-
- (9)
-
Subsequent ballots shall be
conducted in the manner prescribed in sections (4) through (8) of this
Standing Order except that following the second and all subsequent ballots
the Member presiding shall not ask the candidates to state their reasons for
not wishing to be further considered for election to the Office of Speaker
but shall forthwith proceed to the taking of that subsequent ballot and the
balloting shall continue, in like manner, until such time as a new Speaker is
elected.
No debate or questions of privilege allowed.
-
-
- (10)
-
During the election of a Speaker there shall be no debate and the Member presiding shall not be permitted to entertain
any question of privilege.
Ministers of the Crown and party leaders not eligible.
- 5.
-
No Minister of the Crown, nor party leader, shall be eligible for election to the Office of Speaker.
Not a question of confidence.
- 6.
-
The election of a Speaker shall not be considered to be a question of confidence in the government.
Chairman of Committees of the Whole.
- 7.
-
- (1)
-
A Chairman of
Committees of the Whole who shall also be Deputy Speaker of the House shall
be elected at the commencement of every Parliament; and the Member so elected
shall, if in his or her place in the House, take the Chair of all Committees
of the Whole.
Language knowledge.
-
-
- (2)
-
The Member elected to serve
as Deputy Speaker and Chairman of Committees of the Whole shall be required
to possess the full and practical knowledge of the official language which is
not that of the Speaker for the time being.
Term of office. Vacancy.
-
-
- (3)
-
The Member so elected as
Deputy Speaker and Chairman of Committees of the Whole shall continue to act
in that capacity until the end of the Parliament for which he or she is
elected, and in the case of a vacancy by death, resignation or otherwise, the
House shall proceed forthwith to elect a successor.
Ad hoc appointment.
-
-
- (4)
-
In the absence of the Deputy
Speaker and Chairman of Committees of the Whole, the Speaker may, in forming
a Committee of the Whole, before leaving the Chair, appoint any Member
Chairman of the Committee.
Deputy Chairman and Assistant Deputy Chairman of Committees of the Whole.
- 8.
-
At the commencement of
every session, or from time to time as necessity may arise, the House may
appoint a Deputy Chairman of Committees of the Whole and also an Assistant
Deputy Chairman of Committees of the Whole, either of whom shall, whenever
the Chairman of Committees of the Whole is absent, be entitled to exercise
all the powers vested in the Chairman of Committees of the Whole including
his or her powers as Deputy Speaker during the Speaker’s unavoidable absence.
Order and Decorum
Speaker mute in debate. Casting vote.
- 9.
-
The Speaker shall not take part in any debate before the House. In case of an equality of voices, the Speaker gives a casting vote, and
any reasons stated are entered in the Journals.
Order and decorum. No appeal.
- 10.
-
The Speaker shall
preserve order and decorum, and shall decide questions of order. In deciding a point of order or practice,
the Speaker shall state the Standing Order or other authority applicable to
the case. No debate shall be permitted on any such decision, and no such decision shall be subject to an
appeal to the House.
Naming of a Member.
- 11.
-
- (1)
-
- (a)
-
The Speaker shall be vested with the authority to
maintain order by naming individual Members for disregarding the authority of
the Chair and, without resort to motion, ordering their withdrawal for the
remainder of that sitting, notwithstanding Standing Order 15.
Removal of Member disregarding Chair’s authority.
- (b)
-
In the event of a Member disregarding an order of the Chair made pursuant to paragraph (a) of
this section, the Speaker shall order the Sergeant-at-Arms to remove the Member.
Irrelevance or repetition.
-
-
- (2)
-
The Speaker or the Chairman,
after having called the attention of the House, or of the Committee, to the
conduct of a Member who persists in irrelevance, or repetition, may direct
the Member to discontinue his or her speech, and if then the Member still
continues to speak, the Speaker shall name the Member or, if in Committee,
the Chairman shall report the Member to the House.
Decorum in Committee of the Whole.
- 12.
-
The Chairman shall
maintain order in Committees of the Whole; deciding all questions of order
subject to an appeal to the Speaker; but disorder in a Committee of the Whole
can only be censured by the House, on receiving a report thereof. No debate shall be permitted on any
decision.
When motion is contrary to rules and privileges of Parliament.
- 13.
-
Whenever the Speaker
is of the opinion that a motion offered to the House is contrary to the rules
and privileges of Parliament, the Speaker shall apprise the House thereof
immediately, before putting the question thereon, and quote the Standing
Order or authority applicable to the case.
Notice of strangers. Question that strangers withdraw. Speaker or Chairman decides.
- 14.
-
If any Member takes
notice that strangers are present, the Speaker or the Chairman (as the case
may be) may put the question “That strangers be ordered to
withdraw”, without permitting any debate or amendment; provided that the
Speaker or the Chairman may order the withdrawal of strangers.
Chapter II
Members
Attendance required.
- 15.
-
Every Member, being cognizant of the provisions of the Parliament
of Canada Act, is bound to attend the sittings of the House, unless
otherwise occupied with parliamentary activities and functions or on public or official business.
Decorum.
- 16.
-
- (1)
-
When the Speaker is putting a question, no Member shall enter, walk out of or across the House, or make any noise
or disturbance.
-
-
- (2)
-
When a Member is speaking, no Member shall pass between that Member and the Chair, nor interrupt him or her,
except to raise a point of order.
-
-
- (3)
-
No Member may pass between the Chair and the Table, nor between the Chair and the Mace when the Mace has been taken off
the Table by the Sergeant-at-Arms.
-
-
- (4)
-
When the House adjourns, Members shall keep their seats until the Speaker has left the Chair.
Rising to be recognized.
- 17.
-
Every Member desiring to speak is to rise in his or her place and address the Speaker.
Disrespectful or offensive language. Reflection on a vote.
- 18.
-
No Member shall speak disrespectfully of the Sovereign, nor of any of the Royal Family, nor of the
Governor General or the person administering the Government of Canada; nor
use offensive words against either House, or against any Member thereof. No Member may reflect upon any vote of the
House, except for the purpose of moving that such vote be rescinded.
Point of order. Speaker may allow a debate.
- 19.
-
Any Member addressing
the House, if called to order either by the Speaker or on a point raised by
another Member, shall sit down while the point is being stated, after which
he or she may explain. The Speaker may permit debate on the point of order before giving a decision, but such
debate must be strictly relevant to the point of order taken.
When a Member shall withdraw.
- 20.
-
If anything shall come in question touching the conduct, election or right of any Member to hold a
seat, that Member may make a statement and shall withdraw during the time the matter is in debate.
Pecuniary interest.
- 21.
-
No Member is entitled to vote upon any question in which he or she has a direct pecuniary interest, and the vote of any Member so
interested will be disallowed.
Public registry of Members’ foreign travel.
- 22.
-
The Clerk of the House shall maintain a public registry of foreign travel by Members of Parliament
in which Members shall register all visits they make outside Canada, arising
from or relating to their membership in the House of Commons where the cost
of any such travel is not wholly borne by the Consolidated Revenue Fund, the
Member personally, any inter-parliamentary association or friendship group
recognized by the House of Commons and any recognized party, together with
the name of the sponsoring person or organization which paid for travel to
and/or from Canada.
Offer of money to Members.
- 23.
-
- (1)
-
The offer of any money or other advantage to any Member of this House, for the promoting
of any matter whatsoever depending or to be transacted in Parliament, is a
high crime and misdemeanour, and tends to the subversion of the Constitution.
Bribery in elections.
-
-
- (2)
-
If it shall appear that any person has been elected and returned a Member of this House, or has
endeavoured so to be, by bribery or any other corrupt practices, this House
will proceed with the utmost severity against all such persons as shall have
been wilfully concerned in such bribery or other corrupt practices.
Chapter III
Sittings of the House
Times and days of sittings.
- 24.
-
- (1)
-
The House shall meet on Mondays at 11:00 a. m. , on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays at
10:00 a. m. and on Wednesdays at 2:00 p. m. unless otherwise provided by Standing or Special Order of this House.
Daily adjournment.
-
-
- (2)
-
At 6:30 p. m. on any sitting day except Friday and at 2:30 p. m. on Fridays, the Speaker shall adjourn the House until
the next sitting day.
When motion to adjourn required.
- 25.
-
When it is provided in any Standing or Special Order of this House that any business specified by
such Order shall be continued, forthwith disposed of, or concluded in any
sitting, the House shall not be adjourned before such proceedings have been
completed except pursuant to a motion to adjourn proposed by a Minister of the Crown.
Motion to continue or extend sitting.
- 26.
-
- (1)
-
Except during Private Members’ Business, when the Speaker is in the Chair, a Member may
propose a motion, without notice, to continue a sitting through a dinner hour
or beyond the ordinary hour of daily adjournment for the purpose of
considering a specified item of business or a stage or stages thereof subject to the following conditions:
Motion to relate to business.
- (a)
-
the motion must relate to the business then being considered provided that proceedings
in any Committee of the Whole may be temporarily interrupted for the purpose
of proposing a motion under the provisions of this Standing Order;
When motion to be made.
- (b)
-
the motion must be proposed in the hour preceding the time at which the business under
consideration should be interrupted by a dinner hour, Private Members’ Hour or the ordinary hour of daily adjournment; and
No debate.
- (c)
-
the motion shall not be subject to debate or amendment.
When objection taken.
-
-
- (2)
-
In putting the question on such motion, the Speaker shall ask those Members who object to rise in their
places. If fifteen or more Members then rise, the motion shall be deemed to have been withdrawn; otherwise, the
motion shall have been adopted.
Extension of sitting hours in June.
- 27.
-
- (1)
-
On the tenth sitting day preceding June 23 a motion to extend the hours of sitting to a
specific hour during the last ten sitting days may be proposed, without
notice, by any Minister during routine proceedings.
When question put.
-
-
- (2)
-
Not more than two hours after the commencement of proceedings thereon, the Speaker shall put every
question necessary to dispose of the said motion.
House not to sit.
- 28.
-
- (1)
-
The House shall not meet on New Year’s Day, Good Friday, the day fixed for the
celebration of the birthday of the Sovereign, St. John the Baptist Day,
Dominion Day, Labour Day, Thanksgiving Day, Remembrance Day and Christmas
Day. When St. John the Baptist Day and Dominion Day fall on a Tuesday, the House shall not meet the preceding
day; when those days fall on a Thursday, the House shall not meet the following day.
House calendar.
-
-
- (2)
-
When the House meets on a day, or sits after the normal meeting hour on a day, set out in column A, and
then adjourns, it shall stand adjourned to the day set out in column B.
| A: |
B: |
| The Friday preceding Thanksgiving Day. |
The second Monday following that Friday. |
| The Friday preceding Remembrance Day. |
The second Monday following that Friday. |
| The second Friday preceding Christmas Day. |
The first Monday in February. |
| The Friday preceding the week marking the mid-way point between the
first Monday in February and the Friday preceding Good Friday. |
The second Monday following that Friday. |
| The Friday preceding Good Friday. |
The Monday following Easter Monday. |
| The Friday preceding the week marking the mid-way point between the
Monday following Easter Monday and June 23. |
The second Monday following that Friday or, if that Monday is the day
fixed for the celebration of the birthday of the Sovereign, on the Tuesday following that Monday. |
| June 23 or the Friday preceding if June 23 falls on a Saturday, a Sunday or a Monday. |
The second Monday following Labour Day. |
Recall of House.
-
-
- (3)
-
Whenever the House stands adjourned, if the Speaker is satisfied, after consultation with the
Government, that the public interest requires that the House should meet at
an earlier time, the Speaker may give notice that being so satisfied the
House shall meet, and thereupon the House shall meet to transact its business
as if it had been duly adjourned to that time. In the event of the Speaker being unable to act owing to illness
or other cause, the Deputy Speaker, the Deputy Chairman of Committees or the
Assistant Deputy Chairman of Committees shall act in the Speaker’s stead for
all the purposes of this section.
Royal Assent during adjournments.
-
-
- (4)
-
During adjournments of the House pursuant to section (2) of this Standing Order, if a bill or bills are
awaiting Royal Assent, the Speaker may, at the request of the Government,
give notice that the House shall meet at an earlier time for the purposes of
Royal Assent. The House shall meet at the specified time for those purposes only; and immediately thereafter the
Speaker shall adjourn the House to the time to which it had formerly been
adjourned. In the event of the Speaker being unable to act owing to illness or other cause, the Deputy
Speaker, the Deputy Chairman of Committees or the Assistant Deputy Chairman
of Committees shall act in the Speaker’s stead for all the purposes of this section.
Quorum of twenty.
- 29.
-
- (1)
-
The presence of at least twenty Members of the House, including the Speaker, shall be
necessary to constitute a meeting of the House for the exercise of its powers.
Lack of quorum.
-
-
- (2)
-
If at the time of meeting there be not a quorum, the Speaker may take the Chair and adjourn the House until the next
sitting day.
Ringing of bells for quorum.
-
-
- (3)
-
If, during a sitting of the House, the attention of the Speaker is drawn to the lack of a quorum, the
Speaker shall, upon determining that a quorum is lacking, order the bells to
ring for no longer than fifteen minutes; thereupon a count of the Members present
shall be taken, and if a quorum is still lacking, the Speaker shall adjourn the House until the next sitting day.
Recorded in Journals.
-
-
- (4)
-
Whenever the Speaker adjourns the House for want of a quorum, the time of the adjournment, and
the names of the Members then present, shall be inserted in the Journals.
Speaker to receive Black Rod.
-
-
- (5)
-
When the Sergeant-at-Arms announces that the Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod is at the door, the
Speaker shall take the Chair, whether there be a quorum present or not.
Chapter IV
Daily Program
Prayers.
- 30.
-
- (1)
-
The Speaker shall read prayers every day at the meeting of the House before any business is entered upon.
Commencement of business.
-
-
- (2)
-
Not more than two minutes after the reading of prayers, the business of the House shall commence.
Routine Proceedings.
-
-
- (3)
-
At 3:00 p. m. on Mondays and Wednesdays, at 10:00 a. m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and at 12:00 noon on
Fridays, the House shall proceed to the ordinary daily routine of business, which shall be as follows:
Tabling of Documents (pursuant to Standing Orders 32 or 109)
Statements by Ministers (pursuant to Standing Order 33)
Presenting Reports from Inter-parliamentary Delegations (pursuant to Standing Order 34)
Presenting Reports from Committees (pursuant to Standing Order 35)
Introduction of Government Bills
Introduction of Private Members’ Bills
First Reading of Senate Public Bills
Motions
Presenting Petitions (pursuant to Standing Order 36(6))
Questions on Order Paper.
When introduction of Government Bills not completed before statements by Members.
-
-
- (4)
-
- (a)
-
When proceedings under “Introduction of Government Bills” are not
completed on a Tuesday or Thursday prior to statements by Members, the
ordinary daily routine of business shall continue immediately after oral
questions are taken up, notwithstanding section (5) of this Standing Order,
until the completion of all items under “Introduction of Government
Bills”, suspending as much of Private Members’ Business as necessary.
Before ordinary hour of daily adjournment.
- (b)
-
When proceedings under “Introduction of Government Bills” are not
completed before the ordinary hour of daily adjournment, the House shall
continue to sit to complete the ordinary daily routine of business up to and
including “Introduction of Government Bills”, whereupon the Speaker
shall adjourn the House.
Time for statements by Members, Oral Question period and Orders of the Day.
-
-
- (5)
-
At 2:00 p. m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, and at 11:00 a. m. on Fridays, Members,
other than Ministers of the Crown, may make statements pursuant to Standing
Order 31. Not later than 2:15 p. m. or 11:15 a. m. , as the case may be, oral questions shall be taken up. At 3:00 p. m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays,
and after the ordinary daily routine of business has been disposed of on
Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, the Orders of the Day shall be considered in
the order established pursuant to section (6) of this Standing Order.
Day by day order of business.
-
-
- (6)
-
Except as otherwise provided in these Standing Orders, the order of business shall be as follows:
-
(Monday)
(Before the daily routine of business)
-
Private Members’ Business — from 11:00 a. m. to 12:00 noon:
Public Bills, Private Bills, Notices of Motions and Notices of Motions (Papers).
Government Orders.
-
(After the daily routine of business)
-
Government Orders.
-
(Tuesday and Thursday)
(After the daily routine of business)
-
Government Orders.
Private Members’ Business — from 5:30 to 6:30 p. m. :
Public Bills, Private Bills, Notices of Motions and Notices of Motions (Papers).
-
(Wednesday)
(After the daily routine of business)
-
Notices of Motions for the Production of Papers.
Government Orders.
Private Members’ Business — from 5:30 to 6:30 p. m. :
Public Bills, Private Bills, Notices of Motions and Notices of Motions (Papers).
-
(Friday)
(Before the daily routine of business)
-
Government Orders.
-
(After the daily routine of business)
-
Government Orders.
Private Members’ Business — from 1:30 to 2:30 p. m. :
Public Bills, Private Bills, Notices of Motions and Notices of Motions (Papers).
Delay or interruption of Private Members’ Hour.
-
-
- (7)
-
If the beginning of Private
Members’ Hour is delayed for any reason, or if the Hour is interrupted for
any reason, a period of time corresponding to the time of the delay or
interruption shall be added to the end of the Hour suspending as much of the
business set out in section (6) of this Standing Order as necessary. If the beginning of Private Members’ Hour
is delayed or the interruption continues past thirty minutes after the time
at which the Hour would have ordinarily ended, Private Members’ Hour for that
day and the business scheduled for consideration at that time, or any
remaining portion thereof, shall be added to the business of the House on a
day to be fixed, after consultation, by the Speaker, who shall attempt to
designate that day within the next ten sitting days, but who, in any case,
shall not permit the intervention of more than one adjournment period
provided for in Standing Order 28(2). In cases where the Speaker adjourns the House pursuant to Standing
Orders 2(3), 30(4)(b) or 83(2), this section shall not apply.
Statements by Members.
- 31.
-
A Member may be recognized, under the provisions of Standing Order 30(5), to make a statement
for not more than one minute. The Speaker may order a Member to resume his or her seat if, in the opinion of
the Speaker, improper use is made of this Standing Order.
Documents deposited pursuant to statutory or other authority.
- 32.
-
- (1)
-
Any return, report or other paper
required to be laid before the House in accordance with any Act of Parliament
or in pursuance of any resolution or Standing Order of this House may be deposited
with the Clerk of the House on any sitting day or, when the House stands
adjourned, on the Wednesday following the fifteenth day of the month. Such return, report or other paper shall
be deemed for all purposes to have been presented to or laid before the House.
Tabling of documents in the House.
-
-
- (2)
-
A Minister of the Crown, or
a Parliamentary Secretary acting on behalf of a Minister, may, in his or her
place in the House, state that he or she proposes to lay upon the Table of
the House, any report or other paper dealing with a matter coming within the
administrative responsibilities of the government, and, thereupon, the same
shall be deemed for all purposes to have been laid before the House.
Recorded in Journals.
-
-
- (3)
-
In either case, a record of any such paper shall be entered in the Journals.
In both official languages.
-
-
- (4)
-
Any document distributed in the House or laid before the House pursuant to sections (1) or (2) of this
Standing Order shall be in both official languages.
Permanent referral to committee.
-
-
- (5)
-
Reports, returns or other papers laid before the House in accordance with an Act of Parliament shall
thereupon be deemed to have been permanently referred to the appropriate standing committee.
Referral to committee in other cases.
-
-
- (6)
-
Papers required to be laid upon the Table pursuant to Standing Order 110 shall be deemed referred to the
appropriate standing committee during the period specified in laying the same upon the Table.
Statements by Ministers.
- 33.
-
- (1)
-
On Statements by Ministers, as listed in Standing Order 30(3), a Minister of the Crown may
make a short factual announcement or statement of government policy. A Member from each of the parties in
opposition to the government may comment briefly thereon. The time for such proceedings shall be limited as the Speaker deems fit.
Extension of sitting.
-
-
- (2)
-
A period of time corresponding to the time taken for the proceedings pursuant to section (1)
of this Standing Order shall be added to the time provided for government
business in the afternoon of the day on which the said proceedings took
place. Private Members’ Business, where applicable, and the ordinary time of
daily adjournment shall be delayed accordingly, notwithstanding Standing
Orders 24, 30 and 38 or any Order made pursuant to Standing Order 27.
Reports of Inter-parliamentary delegations.
- 34.
-
- (1)
-
Within twenty sitting days of the return to Canada of an officially recognized
inter-parliamentary delegation composed, in any part, of Members of the House,
the head of the delegation, or a Member acting on behalf of him or her, shall
present a report to the House on the activities of the delegation.
Succinct explanation allowed.
-
-
- (2)
-
A Member presenting a report, pursuant to section (1) of this Standing Order, shall be permitted
to make a succinct oral presentation of its subject-matter.
Reports from committees. Succinct explanation allowed.
- 35.
-
- (1)
-
Reports to the House from committees may be made by Members standing in their places, at
the time provided pursuant to Standing Order 30(3) or 81(4)(c), provided that the Member may be
permitted to give a succinct explanation of the subject-matter of the report.
Further succinct explanation.
-
-
- (2)
-
Upon presentation of a report accompanied by supplementary or dissenting opinions or recommendations
pursuant to Standing Order 108(1)(a), a committee member of the Official Opposition representing those who
supported the opinion or opinions expressed in the appended material may also rise to give a succinct explanation thereof.
Petitions to be examined by Clerk of Petitions.
- 36.
-
- (1)
-
Prior to presentation, the Clerk of Petitions shall examine all petitions, and in
order to be presented, they must be certified correct as to form and content by the said Clerk.
Form of petitions.
-
-
- (2)
-
In order to be certified, pursuant to section (1) of this Standing Order, every petition shall:
- (a)
-
be addressed to the House of Commons or to the House of Commons in Parliament assembled;
- (b)
-
contain a clear, proper and respectful prayer requesting that Parliament see fit to take some action
within its authority;
- (c)
-
be written, typewritten or printed on paper of usual size;
- (d)
-
be free of erasures and interlineations in its text;
- (e)
-
have its subject-matter indicated on every sheet if it consists of more than one sheet of signatures
and addresses;
- (f)
-
contain only original signatures and addresses written directly onto the petition and not pasted thereon
or otherwise transferred to it; and
- (g)
-
contain at least twenty-five signatures together with the addresses of the signatories, from persons other
than Members of Parliament.
Members answerable.
-
-
- (3)
-
Members presenting petitions shall be answerable that they do not contain impertinent or improper matter.
Member’s endorsement.
-
-
- (4)
-
Every Member presenting a petition shall endorse his or her name thereon.
Filing with Clerk of the House.
-
-
- (5)
-
A petition to the House may be presented by a Member at any time during the sitting of the House by filing the same
with the Clerk of the House.
Presentation in the House.
-
-
- (6)
-
Any Member desiring to present a petition, in his or her place in the House, may do so on
“Presenting Petitions”, a period not to exceed fifteen minutes, during the ordinary daily routine of business.
No debate.
-
-
- (7)
-
On the presentation of a petition no debate on or in relation to the same shall be allowed.
Ministry’s response.
-
-
- (8)
-
Every petition presented pursuant to this Standing Order shall forthwith be transmitted to the
Ministry, which shall, within forty-five days, respond to every petition
referred to it; provided that the said response may be tabled pursuant to Standing Order 32(1).
Chapter V
Questions
Oral Questions
Daily question period. Speaker decides urgency.
- 37.
-
- (1)
-
Questions on matters of urgency may, at the time specified in Standing Order 30(5), be
addressed orally to Ministers of the Crown, provided however that, if in the
opinion of the Speaker a question is not urgent, he or she may direct that it
be placed on the Order Paper.
Questions to member of Board of Internal Economy.
-
-
- (2)
-
Questions may also be addressed orally at the time specified in Standing Order 30(5), to a member
of the Board of Internal Economy so designated by the Board.
Notice of question for adjournment proceedings.
-
-
- (3)
-
A Member who is not satisfied with the response to a question asked on any day at this stage, or
a Member who has been told by the Speaker that the question is not urgent,
may give notice that he or she intends to raise the subject-matter of the
question on the adjournment of the House. The notice referred to herein, whether or not it is given orally
during the oral question period provided pursuant to Standing Order 30(5),
must be given in writing to the Speaker not later than one hour following
that period the same day. Unless previously disposed of, the said notice shall be deemed withdrawn after the
forty-fifth sitting day from the day of notice.
Adjournment proceedings.
- 38.
-
- (1)
-
Except as otherwise provided in these Standing Orders, at the time of adjournment on
Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, the Speaker may, notwithstanding
the provisions of Standing Orders 24(2) and 67(2), deem that a motion to
adjourn the House has been made and seconded, whereupon such motion shall be debatable for not more than thirty minutes.
Notice required and time limit.
-
-
- (2)
-
No matter shall be debated during the thirty minutes herein provided, unless notice thereof has been
given by a Member as provided in Standing Order 37(3) or 39(5)(b). No debate on any one matter raised during this period shall last for
more than six minutes.
Selection of matters to be raised.
-
-
- (3)
-
When several Members have given notices of intention to raise matters on the adjournment of the House,
the Speaker shall decide the order in which such matters are to be
raised. In doing so, the Speaker shall have regard to the order in which notices were given, to the urgency of
the matters raised, and to the apportioning of the opportunities to debate
such matters among the Members of the various parties in the House. The Speaker may, at his or her discretion,
consult with representatives of the parties concerning such order and be guided by their advice.
Questions to be announced.
-
-
- (4)
-
By not later than 5:00 p. m. on any Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, the Speaker shall indicate to
the House the matter or matters to be raised at the time of adjournment that day.
Question time: four minutes. Answer time: two minutes.
-
-
- (5)
-
The Member raising the matter may speak for not more than four minutes. A Minister of the Crown,
or a Parliamentary Secretary speaking on behalf of a Minister, if he or she
wishes to do so, may speak for not more than two minutes. When debate has lasted for a total of
thirty minutes, or when the debate on the matter or matters raised has ended,
whichever comes first, the Speaker shall deem the motion to adjourn to have
been carried and shall adjourn the House until the next sitting day.
Time in announcing future business not to count.
-
-
- (6)
-
The time required for any questions and answers concerning the future business of the House, whether
this item takes place before or after the thirty minute period herein
provided, shall not be counted as part of the said thirty minutes.
Written Questions
Questions on Order Paper.
- 39.
-
- (1)
-
Questions may be placed on the Order Paper
seeking information from Ministers of the Crown relating to public affairs;
and from other Members, relating to any bill, motion or other public matter
connected with the business of the House, in which such Members may be
concerned; but in putting any such question or in replying to the same no
argument or opinion is to be offered, nor any facts stated, except so far as
may be necessary to explain the same; and in answering any such question the
matter to which the same refers shall not be debated.
Responsibilities of the Clerk.
-
-
- (2)
-
The Clerk of the House, acting for the Speaker, shall have full authority to ensure that coherent and
concise questions are placed on the Notice Paper in accordance with the practices of the House, and may, on behalf
of the Speaker, order certain questions to be posed separately.
Starred questions. Limit of three.
-
-
- (3)
-
- (a)
-
Any Member who requires an oral answer to his or her question may distinguish it
by an asterisk, but no Member shall have more than three such questions at a time on the daily Order Paper.
Reply printed in Hansard.
- (b)
-
If a Member does not distinguish his or her question by an asterisk, the Minister to whom
the question is addressed hands the answer to the Clerk of the House who
causes it to be printed in the official report of the Debates.
Limit of four questions on Order Paper.
-
-
- (4)
-
No Member shall have more than four questions on the Order Paper at any one time.
Request for ministerial response.
-
-
- (5)
-
- (a)
-
A Member may request that the Ministry respond to a specific question within forty-five days by so
indicating when filing his or her question.
After forty-five days.
- (b)
-
If such a question remains unanswered at the expiration of the said period of forty-five days,
the Member who put the question may rise in the House under “Questions
on Order Paper” and give notice that he or she intends to transfer the question and raise the
subject-matter thereof on the adjournment of the House.
Transfer of question to Notices of Motions.
-
-
- (6)
-
If, in the opinion of the
Speaker, a question on the Order Paper put to a Minister of the Crown is of such a nature as to require a lengthy
reply, the Speaker may, upon the request of the government, direct the same
to stand as a notice of motion, and to be transferred to its proper place as
such upon the Order Paper, the Clerk of the House being authorized to amend the same as to matters of form.
Question made order for return.
-
-
- (7)
-
If a question is of such a nature that, in the opinion of the Minister who is to furnish the reply, such
reply should be in the form of a return, and the Minister states that he or
she has no objection to laying such return upon the Table of the House, the
Minister’s statement shall, unless otherwise ordered by the House, be deemed
an order of the House to that effect and the same shall be entered in the Journals as such.
Chapter VI
Process of Debate
Precedence of items on Order Paper.
- 40.
-
- (1)
-
All items standing on the Orders of the Day, except Government Orders, shall be taken
up according to the precedence assigned to each on the Order Paper.
Calling of government business.
-
-
- (2)
-
Government Orders shall be called and considered in such sequence as the government determines.
Business interrupted.
- 41.
-
- (1)
-
Whenever the business before the House is interrupted pursuant to Standing Order or
Special Order, unless otherwise provided, the proceedings then under
consideration shall stand over until the next sitting day or later the same
sitting day after the period provided pursuant to Standing Order 30(5), as
the case may be, when it will be taken up at the same stage where its progress was interrupted.
Order of the Day interrupted by adjournment of the House.
-
-
- (2)
-
If debate on any Order of the Day be interrupted by the House being adjourned by motion or for want of
a quorum, such motion or Order shall be allowed to stand and retain its
precedence on the Order Paper for the next sitting, provided that if debate on any item of Private Members’
Business not selected pursuant to Standing Order 92 is so interrupted, it
shall thereupon be dropped from the Order Paper.
Questions and notices of motions not taken up.
- 42.
-
- (1)
-
Questions put by Members and notices of motions not taken up when called may (upon the
request of the government) be allowed to stand and retain their precedence;
otherwise they will disappear from the Order Paper. They may, however, be renewed.
When orders may be stood or dropped.
-
-
- (2)
-
Orders not proceeded with when called, upon the like request, may be allowed to stand retaining their
precedence; otherwise they shall be dropped and be placed on the Order Paper for the next sitting after
those of the same class at a similar stage.
Orders postponed.
-
-
- (3)
-
All orders not disposed of at the adjournment of the House shall be postponed until the next sitting
day, without a motion to that effect.
Time limit and comments on speeches when Speaker in Chair.
- 43.
-
- (1)
-
Unless otherwise provided in these Standing Orders, when the Speaker is in the
Chair, no Member, except the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition,
or a Minister moving a government order and the Member speaking in reply
immediately after such Minister, shall speak for more than twenty minutes at
a time in any debate. Following each twenty-minute speech, a period not exceeding ten minutes shall be made
available, if required, to allow Members to ask questions and comment briefly
on matters relevant to the speech and to allow responses thereto.
Period of debate divided in two.
-
-
- (2)
-
The Whip of a party may indicate
to the Speaker at any time during a debate governed by this Standing Order
that one or more of the periods of debate limited pursuant to section (1) of this
Standing Order and allotted to Members of his or her party are to be divided in two.
No Member to speak twice. Exception.
- 44.
-
- (1)
-
No member, unless otherwise provided by Standing or Special Order, may speak twice to a
question except in explanation of a material part of his or her speech which
may have been misquoted or misunderstood, and the Member is not to introduce
any new matter, but then no debate shall be allowed upon such explanation.
Right of reply.
-
-
- (2)
-
A reply shall be allowed to a Member who has moved a substantive motion, but not to the mover of an
amendment, the previous question or an instruction to a committee.
Reply closes debate.
-
-
- (3)
-
In all cases the Speaker shall inform the House that the reply of the mover of the original motion closes the debate.
Register of paired Members.
- 44.1.
-
- (1)
-
The Clerk of the House shall cause to be kept at the Table a Register of Paired Members,
in which any Member of the government party and any Member of an Opposition
party may have their names entered together by their respective Whips, to
indicate that they will not take part in any recorded division held on the
date inscribed on that page of the Register; provided that independent
Members of Parliament may sign the Register in their own right.
Names to be printed.
-
-
- (2)
-
On any day on which one or more recorded divisions have taken place, the names of the Members so entered
shall be printed in the Debates and the Journals, immediately following the entry for each of the said divisions.
When vote recorded.
- 45.
-
- (1)
-
Upon a division, the “yeas” and “nays” shall not be entered in
the Journals, unless demanded by five members.
No debate preparatory to a division.
-
-
- (2)
-
When Members have been called in, preparatory to a division, no further debate is to be permitted.
15-minute division bell when Speaker has interrupted any proceeding.
-
-
- (3)
-
When, under the provisions of any Standing Order or other Order of this House, the Speaker has
interrupted any proceeding for the purpose of putting forthwith the question
on any business then before the House, the bells to call in the Members shall be sounded for not more than fifteen minutes.
30-minute division bell on non-debatable motion.
-
-
- (4)
-
When the Speaker has put the question on any non-debatable motion, the bells to call in the Members shall
be sounded for not more than thirty minutes.
30-minute division bell on debatable motion. Deferring division upon request of a Whip.
-
-
- (5)
-
- (a)
-
- (i)
-
Except as provided in sections (3) and (6) of this Standing Order, when the Speaker
has put the question on a debatable motion and a recorded division has been demanded on the question, the bells to call in the Members are sounded for
not more than thirty minutes.
-
-
- (ii)
-
During the sounding of the bells, either the Chief
Government Whip or the Chief Opposition Whip may ask the Speaker to defer the
division. The Speaker then defers it to an appointed time, which must be no later than the ordinary hour of daily
adjournment on the next sitting day that is not a Friday. At that time, the
bells sound for not more than fifteen minutes. Exceptions to this method of deferring recorded divisions are
found in paragraph (b) of this section, in section (6) of this Standing Order and in Standing Order 126(2).
-
-
- (iii)
-
In the case of a votable opposition motion proposed
by a Member of a party other than the Official Opposition, the Whip of that party also may ask the Speaker to defer the division.
Deferring division on an allotted day.
- (b)
-
When the Speaker has put the question on a votable opposition motion on an allotted
day and a recorded division has been demanded on the question, a deferral of
the division may be requested under the terms of paragraph (a) of this section, except on the last allotted day of a supply period.
House continues with business.
- (c)
-
A recorded division can be deferred, under
the terms of paragraph (a) of this section or section (6) of this Standing Order, only once. When a recorded division has been
deferred, the House continues with the business before it, as set out in Standing Order 30(6).
Business to be concluded after deferred division is taken.
- (d)
-
If the Speaker has interrupted debate on any item of business that an Order of the House provides must be disposed of in a
particular sitting, and one of the divisions involved has been deferred, no
further debate can take place on the item once the deferred division has been
taken, but everything necessary to dispose of the item must then be done immediately.
Division on debatable motion demanded on a Friday. Division deferred on a Thursday. Exception: division on the last allotted
day of a supply period.
-
-
- (6)
-
- (a)
-
If, on a Friday, a division is demanded on any debatable motion, the division is
deferred until the ordinary hour of daily adjournment on the next sitting
day. A division deferred on Thursday is not held on Friday, but is instead
deferred to the next sitting day, at the ordinary hour of daily adjournment.
The bells for all such deferred divisions sound for not more than fifteen
minutes. An exception to this rule is the division on a votable opposition
motion on the last allotted day of a supply period, which cannot be deferred,
except as provided in Standing Order 81(18)(b). Except as provided in section (7) of this Standing Order, in case
of conflict this section will prevail over any other provision of the Standing Orders.
Recorded division on report stage to be deferred on a Friday.
- (b)
-
A recorded division on a non-debatable motion to concur in a bill at the report stage
under Standing Order 76(9), 76. 1(9) or 76. 1(12) may be deferred.
Deferring division upon the agreement of Whips.
-
-
- (7)
-
Notwithstanding any other provision of the Standing Orders, at any time after a recorded division has
been demanded, the Chief Government Whip, with the agreement of the Whips of
all other recognized parties (and, in the case of an item of Private Members’
Business, also with the agreement of the Member sponsoring that item), may
ask the Speaker to defer or further defer, as the case may be, the division
to an appointed date and time. The Speaker then defers the division to that time. The bells for all such divisions sound for not more than fifteen minutes.
Division bells sounded only once.
-
-
- (8)
-
If, pursuant to any Standing or Special Order of the House, two or more recorded divisions are to be held
successively without intervening debate, the division bells shall be sounded to call in the Members only once.
Reading the question where not printed.
- 46.
-
When the question under discussion does not appear on the Order
Paper or has not been printed and distributed, any Member may require it
to be read at any time of the debate, but not so as to interrupt a Member while speaking.
When points of order to be raised.
- 47.
-
Where points of order do not arise during debate or during the times provided for statements
pursuant to Standing Order 31 and oral questions pursuant to Standing Order
30(5), such matters may be presented to the Speaker immediately following the
ordinary daily routine of business. Points of order which arise during the said periods may be presented
to the Speaker immediately after the said period provided pursuant to Standing Order 30(5).
Question of privilege.
- 48.
-
- (1)
-
Whenever any matter of privilege arises, it shall be taken into consideration immediately.
Notice required.
-
-
- (2)
-
Unless notice of motion has been given under Standing Orders 54 or 86(2), any Member proposing to raise a
question of privilege, other than one arising out of proceedings in the Chamber
during the course of a sitting, shall give to the Speaker a written statement
of the question at least one hour prior to raising the question in the House.
Prorogation not to nullify order or address for returns.
- 49.
-
A prorogation of the House shall not have the effect of nullifying an Order or Address of the
House for returns or papers, but all papers and returns ordered at one
session of the House, if not complied with during the session, shall be
brought down during the following session, without renewal of the Order.
Chapter VII
Special Debates
Address in Reply to the Speech from the Throne
Six days of debate.
- 50.
-
- (1)
-
The proceedings on the Order of the Day for resuming debate on the motion for an
Address in Reply to the Speech from the Throne and on any amendments proposed thereto shall not exceed six sitting days.
Time limit and comments on speeches.
-
-
- (2)
-
No Member, except the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition, shall speak for more than twenty
minutes at a time in the said debate. Following the speech of each Member a period not exceeding ten
minutes shall be made available, if required, to allow Members to ask
questions and comment briefly on matters relevant to the speech and to allow responses thereto.
Appointed days to be announced. Precedence.
-
-
- (3)
-
Any day or days to be appointed for the consideration of the said Order shall be announced from
time to time by a Minister of the Crown and on any such day or days this
Order shall have precedence of all other business except the ordinary daily routine of business.
Private Members’ Business suspended.
-
-
- (4)
-
On any day designated for resuming the Address debate, the consideration of Private Members’ Business,
if provided for in such sitting, shall be suspended.
Sub-amendment disposed of on second day.
-
-
- (5)
-
On the second of the said days, if a sub-amendment be under consideration at fifteen minutes before the
ordinary hour of daily adjournment, the Speaker shall interrupt the proceedings
and forthwith put the question on the said sub-amendment.
Amendments disposed of on fourth day.
-
-
- (6)
-
On the fourth of the said days, if any amendment be under consideration at thirty minutes before the
ordinary hour of daily adjournment, the Speaker shall interrupt the
proceedings and forthwith put the question on any amendment or amendments then before the House.
No amendment on or after fifth day.
-
-
- (7)
-
The motion for an Address in Reply shall not be subject to amendment on or after the fifth day of the said debate.
Main motion disposed of on sixth day.
-
-
- (8)
-
On the sixth of the said days, at fifteen minutes before the ordinary hour of daily adjournment,
unless the said debate be previously concluded, the Speaker shall interrupt
the proceedings and forthwith put every question necessary to dispose of the main motion.
Standing Orders and Procedure
Motion to consider the Standing Orders and procedure.
- 51.
-
- (1)
-
Between the sixtieth and ninetieth sitting days of the first session of a Parliament on a
day designated by a Minister of the Crown or on the ninetieth sitting day if
no day has been designated, an Order of the Day for the consideration of a
motion “That this House takes note of the Standing Orders and procedure
of the House and its Committees” shall be deemed to be proposed and have precedence over all other business.
Expiration of proceedings.
-
-
- (2)
-
Proceedings on the motion shall expire when debate thereon has been concluded or at the ordinary hour
of daily adjournment on that day, as the case may be.
Time limit on speeches.
-
-
- (3)
-
No Member shall speak more than once or longer than ten minutes.
Emergency Debates
Leave must be requested.
- 52.
-
- (1)
-
Leave to make a motion for the adjournment of the House for the purpose of discussing a
specific and important matter requiring urgent consideration must be asked
for after the ordinary daily routine of business as set out in sections (3) and (4) of Standing Order 30 is concluded.
Written statement to Speaker.
-
-
- (2)
-
A Member wishing to move, “That this House do now adjourn”, under the provisions of this
Standing Order shall give to the Speaker, at least one hour prior to raising
it in the House, a written statement of the matter proposed to be discussed.
Making statement.
-
-
- (3)
-
When requesting leave to propose such a motion, the Member shall rise in his or her place and present
without argument the statement referred to in section (2) of this Standing Order.
Speaker’s prerogative.
-
-
- (4)
-
The Speaker shall decide, without any debate, whether or not the matter is proper to be discussed.
Speaker to take into account.
-
-
- (5)
-
In determining whether a matter should have urgent consideration, the Speaker shall have regard to the
extent to which it concerns the administrative responsibilities of the
government or could come within the scope of ministerial action and the
Speaker also shall have regard to the probability of the matter being brought
before the House within reasonable time by other means.
Conditions.
-
-
- (6)
-
The right to move the adjournment of the House for the above purposes is subject to the following conditions:
- (a)
-
the matter proposed for discussion must relate to a genuine emergency, calling for
immediate and urgent consideration;
- (b)
-
not more than one matter can be discussed on the same motion;
- (c)
-
not more than one such motion can be made at the same sitting;
- (d)
-
the motion must not revive discussion on a matter which has been discussed in the same
session pursuant to the provisions of this Standing Order;
- (e)
-
the motion must not raise a question of privilege; and
- (f)
-
the discussion under the motion must not raise any question which, according to
the Standing Orders of the House, can only be debated on a distinct motion under notice.
Speaker not bound to give reasons.
-
-
- (7)
-
In stating whether or not the Speaker is satisfied that the matter is proper to be discussed, the
Speaker is not bound to give reasons for the decision.
Reserving decision.
-
-
- (8)
-
If the Speaker so desires, he or she may defer the decision upon whether the matter is proper to be
discussed until later in the sitting, when the proceedings of the House may
be interrupted for the purpose of announcing his or her decision.
Motion to stand over.
-
-
- (9)
-
If the Speaker is satisfied that the matter is proper to be discussed, the motion shall stand over until
8:00 p. m. on that day, provided that the Speaker, at his or her discretion,
may direct that the motion shall be set down for consideration on the
following sitting day at an hour specified by the Speaker.
Evening interruption.
-
-
- (10)
-
When a request to make such a motion has been made on any day, except Friday, and the Speaker directs
that it be considered the same day, the House shall rise at the ordinary hour
of daily adjournment and resume at 8:00 p. m.
When moved on Friday.
-
-
- (11)
-
When a request to make such a motion has been made on any Friday, and the Speaker directs that it be
considered the same day, it shall be considered forthwith.
Time limit on debate.
-
-
- (12)
-
The proceedings on any motion being considered, pursuant to sections (9) or (11) of this Standing
Order, may continue beyond the ordinary hour of daily adjournment but, when
debate thereon is concluded prior to that hour in any sitting, it shall be
deemed withdrawn. Subject to any motion adopted pursuant to Standing Order 26(2), at 12:00 midnight on any
sitting day except Friday, and at 4:00 p. m. on Friday, the Speaker shall
declare the motion carried and forthwith adjourn the House until the next
sitting day. In any other case, the Speaker, when satisfied that the debate has been concluded, shall declare the
motion carried and forthwith adjourn the House until the next sitting day.
Time limit on speeches.
-
-
- (13)
-
No Member shall speak longer than twenty minutes during debate on any such motion.
Debate not to be interrupted by Private Members’ Business.
-
-
- (14)
-
Debate on any such motion shall not be interrupted by “Private Members’ Business”.
Debate to take precedence. Exception.
-
-
- (15)
-
The provisions of this Standing Order shall not be suspended by the operation of any other Standing
Order relating to the hours of sitting or in respect of the consideration of
any other business; provided that, in cases of conflict, the Speaker shall
determine when such other business shall be considered or disposed of and the
Speaker shall make any consequential interpretation of any Standing Order that may be necessary in relation thereto.
Suspension of Certain Standing Orders — Matter of Urgent Nature
Motion by Minister.
- 53.
-
- (1)
-
In relation to any matter that the government considers to be of an urgent nature, a
Minister of the Crown may, at any time when the Speaker is in the Chair,
propose a motion to suspend any Standing or other Order of this House
relating to the need for notice and to the hours and days of sitting.
Question proposed to the House.
-
-
- (2)
-
After the Minister has stated reasons for the urgency of such a motion, the Speaker shall propose
the question to the House.
Proceedings subject to conditions.
-
-
- (3)
-
Proceedings on any such motion shall be subject to the following conditions:
- (a)
-
the Speaker may permit debate thereon for a period not exceeding one hour;
- (b)
-
the motion shall not be subject to amendment except by a Minister of the Crown;
- (c)
-
no Member may speak more than once nor longer than ten minutes; and
- (d)
-
proceedings on any such motion shall not be interrupted or adjourned by any other proceeding
or by the operation of any other Order of this House.
Objection by ten or more Members.
-
-
- (4)
-
When the Speaker puts the question on any such motion, he or she shall ask those who object to rise in
their places. If ten or more Members then rise, the motion shall be deemed to have been withdrawn; otherwise, the
motion shall have been adopted.
Restricted application.
-
-
- (5)
-
The operation of any Order made under the provisions of this Standing Order shall not extend to any
proceeding not therein specified.
Chapter VIII
Motions
When notice required.
- 54.
-
- (1)
-
Forty-eight hours’ notice shall be given of a motion for leave to present a bill,
resolution or address, for the appointment of any committee, for placing a
question on the Order Paper or for the consideration of any notice of motion made pursuant to Standing Order
123(4); but this rule shall not apply to bills after their introduction, or
to private bills, or to the times of meeting or adjournment of the
House. Such notice shall be laid on the Table, or filed with the Clerk, before 6:00 p. m. (2:00 p. m. on a Friday)
and be printed in the Notice Paper of that day, except as provided in section (2) of this Standing Order. Any notice filed with the Clerk pursuant
to this Standing Order shall thereupon be deemed to have been laid on the Table in that sitting.
Notice during adjournment periods.
-
-
- (2)
-
On any sitting day on which the House adjourns pursuant to Standing Order 28(2), the time specified
pursuant to section (1) of this Standing Order for the filing with the Clerk
of any notice shall not apply. Any such notice may be filed with the Clerk no later than 6. 00 p. m. on the
Thursday before the next sitting of the House and shall be printed in the Notice Paper to be published for that sitting.
Notice of business during prorogation or adjournment. Special Order Paper.
- 55.
-
- (1)
-
In the period prior to the first session of a Parliament, during a prorogation or when the
House stands adjourned, and the government has represented to the Speaker
that any government measure or measures should have immediate consideration
by the House, the Speaker shall cause a notice of any such measure or
measures to be published on a special Order Paper and the same shall be circulated prior to the opening or the
resumption of such session. The publication and circulation of such notice shall meet the requirements of Standing Order 54.
When Speaker unable to act.
-
-
- (2)
-
In the event of the Speaker being unable to act owing to illness or other cause, the Deputy Speaker shall
act in his or her stead for the purposes of this order. In the unavoidable absence of the Speaker
and the Deputy Speaker or when the Office of Speaker is vacant, the Clerk of
the House shall have the authority to act for the purposes of this Standing Order.
Government notices of motions.
- 56.
-
- (1)
-
After notice pursuant to Standing Order 54, a government notice of motion shall be put on
the Order Paper as an order of the day under Government Orders.
Motion to go into Committee of the Whole decided without debate.
-
-
- (2)
-
Proposed motions under Government Orders for the House to go into a Committee of the Whole at the
next sitting of the House when put from the Chair shall be decided without debate or amendment.
When unanimous consent denied, routine motion by Minister.
- 56.1.
-
- (1)
-
- (a)
-
In relation to any routine motion for the
presentation of which unanimous consent is required and has been denied, a Minister of the Crown may request during Routine Proceedings that the Speaker
propose the said question to the House.
- (b)
-
For the purposes of this Standing Order, “routine motion” shall be
understood to mean any motion, made upon Routine Proceedings, which may be
required for the observance of the proprieties of the House, the maintenance
of its authority, the management of its business, the arrangement of its
proceedings, the establishing of the powers of its committees, the
correctness of its records or the fixing of its sitting days or the times of its meeting or adjournment.
Question put forthwith.
-
-
- (2)
-
The question on any such motion shall be put forthwith, without debate or amendment.
Objection by twenty-five or more Members.
-
-
- (3)
-
When the Speaker puts the question on such a motion, he or she shall ask those who object to rise in
their places. If twenty-five or more Members then rise, the motion shall be deemed to have been withdrawn;
otherwise, the motion shall have been adopted.
Closure. Notice required. Time limit on speeches. All questions put at 11 p. m.
- 57.
-
Immediately before the Order of the Day for resuming an adjourned debate is called, or if the House
be in Committee of the Whole, any Minister of the Crown who, standing in his
or her place, shall have given notice at a previous sitting of his or her
intention so to do, may move that the debate shall not be further adjourned,
or that the further consideration of any resolution or resolutions, clause or
clauses, section or sections, preamble or preambles, title or titles, shall
be the first business of the Committee, and shall not further be postponed;
and in either case such question shall be decided without debate or
amendment; and if the same shall be resolved in the affirmative, no Member
shall thereafter speak more than once, or longer than twenty minutes in any
such adjourned debate; or, if in Committee, on any such resolution, clause,
section, preamble or title; and if such adjourned debate or postponed
consideration shall not have been resumed or concluded before 11:00 p. m. , no
Member shall rise to speak after that hour, but all such questions as must
be decided in order to conclude such adjourned debate or postponed consideration, shall be decided forthwith.
Privileged motions.
- 58.
-
When a question is under debate, no motion is received unless to amend it; to postpone it to a
day certain; for the previous question; for reading the Orders of the Day;
for proceeding to another order; to adjourn the debate; to continue or extend
a sitting of the House; or for the adjournment of the House.
Motion to read Orders of the Day.
- 59.
-
A motion for reading the Orders of the Day shall have preference to any motion before the House.
Motion to adjourn.
- 60.
-
A motion to adjourn, unless otherwise prohibited in these Standing Orders, shall always be in
order, but no second motion to the same effect shall be made until some intermediate proceeding has taken place.
The previous question.
- 61.
-
- (1)
-
The previous question, until it is decided, shall preclude all amendment of the main
question, and shall be in the following words, “That this question be now put”.
Original question to be put.
-
-
- (2)
-
If the previous question be resolved in the affirmative, the original question is to be put forthwith
without any amendment or debate.
Motion that Member “be now heard”.
- 62.
-
When two or more Members rise to speak, the Speaker calls upon the Member who first rose in
his or her place; but a motion may be made that any Member who has risen
“be now heard”, or “do now speak”, which motion shall be forthwith put without debate.
Motion to refer a question to committee.
- 63.
-
A motion to refer a bill, resolution or any question to any standing, special or legislative
committee or to a Committee of the Whole, shall preclude all amendment of the main question.
Unanimous consent required to withdraw motion.
- 64.
-
A Member who has made a motion may withdraw the same only by the unanimous consent of the House.
Motions to be in writing and seconded. Read in both languages.
- 65.
-
All motions shall be in writing, and seconded, before being debated or put from the Chair. When a motion is seconded, it shall be
read in English and in French by the Speaker, if he or she be familiar with
both languages; if not, the Speaker shall read the motion in one language and
direct the Clerk of the Table to read it in the other, before debate.
When transferred to Government Orders.
- 66.
-
When a debate on any motion made after the start of the sitting (after 2:00 p. m. on Mondays and
after 11:00 a. m. on Fridays) and prior to the reading of an Order of the Day
is adjourned or interrupted, the order for resumption of the debate shall be
transferred to and considered under Government Orders.
Debatable motions.
- 67.
-
- (1)
-
The following motions are debatable:
Every motion:
- (a)
-
standing on the order of proceedings for the day, except as otherwise provided in these
Standing Orders;
- (b)
-
for the concurrence in a report of a standing or special committee;
- (c)
-
for the previous question;
- (d)
-
for the second reading and reference of a bill to a standing, special or legislative
committee or to a Committee of the Whole House;
- (e)
-
for the consideration of any amendment to be proposed at the report stage of any bill
reported from any standing, special or legislative committee;
- (f)
-
for the third reading and passage of a bill;
- (g)
-
for the consideration of Senate amendments to House of Commons bills;
- (h)
-
for a conference with the Senate;
- (i)
-
for the adjournment of the House when made for the purpose of discussing a specific
and important matter requiring urgent consideration;
- (j)
-
for the consideration of a Ways and Means Order (Budget);
- (k)
-
for the consideration of any motion under the order for the consideration of the business of supply;
- (l)
-
for the adoption in Committee of the Whole of the motion, clause, section, preamble or title
under consideration;
- (m)
-
for the appointment of a committee;
- (n)
-
for reference to a committee of any report or return laid on the Table of the House;
- (o)
-
for the suspension of any Standing Order unless otherwise provided; and
- (p)
-
such other motion, made upon Routine Proceedings, as may be required for the observance
of the proprieties of the House, the maintenance of its authority, the appointment or conduct of its officers, the management of its business, the
arrangement of its proceedings, the correctness of its records, the fixing of its sitting days or the times of its meeting or adjournment.
Motions not debatable.
-
-
- (2)
-
All other motions, unless otherwise provided in these Standing Orders, shall be decided without debate or amendment.
Chapter IX
Public Bills
Introduction and Readings
Motion for introduction of bills.
- 68.
-
- (1)
-
Every bill is introduced upon motion for leave, specifying the title of the bill;
or upon motion to appoint a committee to prepare and bring it in.
Brief explanation permitted.
-
-
- (2)
-
A motion for leave to introduce a bill shall be deemed carried, without debate, amendment or
question put, provided that any Member moving for such leave may be permitted
to give a succinct explanation of the provisions of the said bill.
Imperfect or blank bills.
-
-
- (3)
-
No bill may be introduced either in blank or in an imperfect shape.
Motion by a Minister to prepare and bring in a bill.
-
-
- (4)
-
- (a)
-
A motion by a Minister of the Crown to appoint or instruct a standing, special
or legislative committee to prepare and bring in a bill, pursuant to section
(1) of this Standing Order, shall be considered under Government Orders.
During debate on any such motion no Member shall be permitted to speak more
than once or for more than ten minutes. After not more than ninety minutes debate on any such motion, the
Speaker shall interrupt debate and put all questions necessary to dispose of
the motion without further debate or amendment. A motion by a Minister of the
Crown to concur in the report of a committee pursuant to this section or to
section (4)(b) of this Standing Order shall also be taken up under Government Orders and shall, for the purposes
of Standing Order 78, be considered to be a stage of a public bill.
Motion by a Member to prepare and bring in a bill.
- (b)
-
A motion by a Private Member to appoint or instruct a standing, special or legislative
committee to prepare and bring in a bill, pursuant to section (1) of this
Standing Order, shall be considered as a motion under Private Members’ Business and shall be subject to the
procedures in that regard set down in Standing Orders 86 to 99, inclusive. A motion by a Member other than a Minister
of the Crown to concur in the report of a committee pursuant to this section
or to section (4)(a) of this Standing Order shall also be taken up as a motion under Private Members’
Business pursuant to the aforementioned Standing Orders in that regard.
Committee’s report.
-
-
- (5)
-
A committee appointed or instructed to prepare and bring in a bill shall, in its report, recommend the
principles, scope and general provisions of the said bill and may, if it
deems it appropriate, but not necessarily, include recommendations regarding legislative wording.
Order to bring in a bill.
-
-
- (6)
-
The adoption of a motion to concur in a report made pursuant to section (5) of this Standing Order shall
be an order to bring in a bill based thereon.
Second reading stage of the Bill. Minister’s motion.
-
-
- (7)
-
- (a)
-
When a Minister of the Crown, in proposing a motion for first reading of a bill,
has stated that the bill is in response to an order made pursuant to section
(6) of this Standing Order, notwithstanding any Standing Order, the bill
shall not be set down for consideration at the second reading stage before
the third sitting day after having been read a first time. The second reading and any subsequent
stages of such a bill shall be considered under Government Orders. When a motion for second reading of such a
bill is proposed, notwithstanding any Standing Order, the Speaker shall immediately put all questions necessary to dispose of the second reading
stage of the bill without debate or amendment.
Second reading stage of the Bill. Member’s motion.
- (b)
-
When a Member other than a Minister of the Crown, in proposing a motion for first reading
of a bill, has stated that the bill is in response to an order made pursuant
to section (6) of this Standing Order, and if the bill is subsequently
selected pursuant to Standing Order 92, when a motion for second reading of
such a bill has been proposed, notwithstanding any Standing Order, the
Speaker shall immediately put all questions necessary to dispose of the
second reading stage of the bill without debate or amendment.
Bill considered under Government Orders.
-
-
- (8)
-
A Minister of the Crown may propose a motion for first reading of a bill based on an order made pursuant
to section (6) of this Standing Order, whether that order was the result of a
motion by a Minister or of a private Member, and notwithstanding the
provisions of section (4)(b) of this Standing Order, any such bill shall thereafter be considered under Government Orders.
Motion for first reading and printing.
- 69.
-
- (1)
-
When any bill is presented by a Member, in pursuance of an Order of the House, the
question “That this bill be read a first time and be printed” shall
be deemed carried, without debate, amendment or question put.
First reading of Senate public bills.
-
-
- (2)
-
When any bill is brought from the Senate, the question “That this bill be read a first time&rdquo
Printed in English and French before second reading.
- 70.
-
All bills shall be printed before the second reading in the English and French languages.
Three separate readings. Urgent cases.
- 71.
-
Every bill shall receive three several readings, on different days, previously to
being passed. On urgent or extraordinary occasions, a bill may be read twice or thrice, or advanced two
or more stages in one day.
Clerk certifies readings.
- 72.
-
When a bill is read in the House, the Clerk shall certify upon it the readings and
the time thereof. After it has passed, the Clerk shall certify the same, with the date, at the foot of the bill.
Motion to refer a government bill to a committee before second reading.
- 73.
-
- (1)
-
Immediately after the reading of the Order of the Day for the second reading of any
government bill, a Minister of the Crown may, after notifying representatives
of the opposition parties, propose a motion that the said bill be forthwith
referred to a standing, special or legislative committee. The Speaker shall immediately propose the
question to the House and proceedings thereon shall be subject to the following conditions:
- (a)
-
the Speaker shall recognize for debate a Member from the party forming the Government,
followed by a Member from the party forming the Official Opposition, followed
by a Member from each officially recognized party in the House, in order of
the number of Members in that party, provided that, if no Member from the
party whose turn has been reached rises, a Member of the next party in the
rotation or a Member who is not a Member of an officially recognized party may be recognized;
- (b)
-
the motion shall not be subject to any amendment;
- (c)
-
no Member may speak more than once nor longer than ten minutes.
- (d)
-
after not more than 180 minutes of debate, the Speaker shall interrupt the debate and
the question shall be put and decided without further debate.
Referral before amendment.
-
-
- (2)
-
Every public bill, except for bills referred to a committee before being read a second time pursuant to
section (1) of this Standing Order, shall be read twice and referred to a
committee before any amendment may be made thereto.
Referral to a committee.
-
-
- (3)
-
Unless otherwise ordered and except for bills referred to a committee before being read a second time
pursuant to section (1) of this Standing Order, in giving a bill second
reading, the same shall be referred to a standing, special or legislative committee.
Supply bills.
-
-
- (4)
-
Any bill based on a Supply motion shall, after second reading, stand referred to a Committee of the Whole.
Second reading of borrowing authority bills: two days’ consideration.
-
-
- (5)
-
When an Order of the Day is read for the consideration of any bill respecting borrowing authority, a
maximum of two sitting days shall be set aside for the consideration of the
bill at second reading. On the second of the said days, at fifteen minutes before the expiry of the time provided
for Government Orders, the Speaker shall interrupt the proceedings then in
progress and shall put forthwith and successively, without further debate or
amendment, every question necessary for the passage of the second reading stage of the bill.
Time limit and comments on speeches during second or third reading of government bill.
- 74.
-
- (1)
-
Unless otherwise provided by Standing Order or Special Order, when second reading or
third reading of a government bill is being considered, no Member except the
Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition shall speak for more than:
- (a)
-
forty minutes if that Member is the first, second or third speaker;
- (b)
-
twenty minutes following the first three speakers, if that Member begins to speak
within the next five hours of consideration; and following the speech of each
Member a period not exceeding ten minutes shall be made available, if
required, to allow Members to ask questions and comment briefly on matters
relevant to the speech and to allow responses thereto; and
- (c)
-
ten minutes if a Member speaks thereafter.
Period of debate divided in two.
-
-
- (2)
-
The Whip of a party may indicate to the Speaker at any time during a debate governed by this Standing
Order that one or more of the periods of debate limited pursuant to
paragraphs (1)(b) and (c) of this Standing Order, and
allotted to Members of his or her party, are to be divided in two.
Consideration by Committee
Proceedings on bills in any committee.
- 75.
-
- (1)
-
In proceedings in any committee of the House upon bills, the preamble is first
postponed, and if the first clause contains only a short title it is also
postponed; then every other clause is considered by the committee in its
proper order; the first clause (if it contains only a short title), the preamble and the title are to be last considered.
Proceedings reported.
-
-
- (2)
-
All amendments made in any committee shall be reported to the House. Every bill reported from any committee,
whether amended or not, shall be received by the House on report thereof.
Report Stage at Second Reading
Not before third sitting day.
- 76.
-
- (1)
-
The report stage of any bill reported by any standing, special or legislative
committee before the bill has been read a second time shall not be taken into
consideration prior to the third sitting day following the presentation of
the said report, unless otherwise ordered by the House.
Notice to amend.
-
-
- (2)
-
If, not later than the second sitting day prior to the consideration of the report stage of a bill
that has not yet been read a second time, written notice is given of any
motion to amend, delete, insert or restore any clause in a bill, it shall be
printed on the Notice Paper. When the same amendment is put on notice
by more than one Member, that notice shall be printed once, under the name of
each Member who has submitted it. If the Speaker decides that an amendment is out of order, it shall be returned
to the Member without having appeared on the Notice Paper.
Recommendation of Governor General.
-
-
- (3)
-
When a recommendation of the Governor General is required in relation to any amendment of which notice has
been given pursuant to section (2) of this Standing Order, notice shall be
given of the said Recommendation no later than the sitting day before the day
on which the report stage is to commence and such notice shall be printed on
the Notice Paper along with the amendment to which it pertains.
Amendment as to form only.
-
-
- (4)
-
An amendment, in relation to form only in a government bill, may be proposed by a Minister of the Crown
without notice, but debate thereon may not be extended to the provisions of the clause or clauses to be amended.
NOTE: The purpose of this section is to facilitate the incorporation into a bill of amendments of a strictly
consequential nature flowing from the acceptance of other amendments. No waiver of notice would be permitted in
relation to any amendment which would change the intent of the bill, no matter how slightly, beyond the effect of the initial amendment.
Speaker’s power to select amendments.
-
-
- (5)
-
The Speaker shall have the power to select or combine amendments or clauses to be proposed at the
report stage and may, if he or she thinks fit, call upon any Member who has
given notice of an amendment to give such explanation of the subject of the
amendment as may enable the Speaker to form a judgement upon it. If an
amendment has been selected that has been submitted by more than one Member,
the Speaker, after consultation, shall designate which Member shall propose it.
NOTE: The Speaker will not normally select for consideration any motion previously ruled out of order in
committee, unless the reason for its being ruled out of order was that it
required a recommendation of the Governor General, in which case the
amendment may be selected only if such Recommendation has been placed on
notice pursuant to this Standing Order. The Speaker will normally only select
motions that were not or could not be presented in committee. A motion, previously defeated in
committee, will only be selected if the Speaker judges it to be of such
exceptional significance as to warrant a further consideration at the report
stage. The Speaker will not normally select for separate debate a repetitive series of motions which are
interrelated and, in making the selection, shall consider whether individual
Members will be able to express their concerns during the debate on another motion.
For greater certainty, the purpose of this Standing Order is, primarily, to provide Members who were not members of the
committee with an opportunity to have the House consider specific amendments
they wish to propose. It is not meant to be a reconsideration of the committee stage.
Debate on the amendments.
-
-
- (6)
-
When the Order of the Day for the consideration of a report stage is called, any amendment proposed
pursuant to this Standing Order shall be open to debate and amendment.
Limits on speeches.
-
-
- (7)
-
When debate is permitted, no Member shall speak more than once or longer than ten minutes during
proceedings on any amendment at that stage.
Division deferred.
-
-
- (8)
-
When a recorded division has been demanded on any amendment proposed during the report stage of a bill,
the Speaker may defer the calling in of the Members for the purpose of
recording the “yeas” and “nays” until more or all
subsequent amendments to the bill have been considered. A recorded division or divisions may be so deferred from sitting to sitting.
NOTE: In cases when there are an unusually great number of amendments for consideration at the report stage,
the Speaker may, after consultation with the representatives of the parties,
direct that deferred divisions be held before all amendments have been taken into consideration.
Motion when report stage concluded.
-
-
- (9)
-
When proceedings at the report stage on any bill that has not been read a second time have been
concluded, a motion “That the bill, as amended, be concurred in and be
read a second time” or “That the bill be concurred in and read a
second time” shall be put and forthwith disposed of, without amendment or debate.
Third reading.
-
-
- (10)
-
The report stage of a bill pursuant to this Standing Order shall be deemed to be an integral part of the
second reading stage of the bill. When a bill has been concurred in and read
a second time in accordance with the procedures set forth in this Standing
Order, it shall be set down for a third reading and passage at the next sitting of the House.
Report Stage After Second Reading
Not before second sitting day.
- 76.1.
-
- (1)
-
The report stage of any bill reported by any standing, special or legislative
committee after the bill has been read a second time shall not be taken into
consideration prior to the second sitting day following the presentation of
the said report, unless otherwise ordered by the House.
Notice to amend.
-
-
- (2)
-
If, not later than the sitting day prior to the consideration of the report stage of a bill that has
been read a second time, written notice is given of any motion to amend,
delete, insert or restore any clause in a bill, it shall be printed on the Notice Paper. When the same
amendment is put on notice by more than one Member, that notice shall be
printed once, under the name of each Member who has submitted it. If the Speaker decides that an amendment
is out of order, it shall be returned to the Member without having appeared on the Notice Paper.
Recommendation of Governor General.
-
-
- (3)
-
When a recommendation of the Governor General is required in relation to any amendment to be proposed at
the report stage of a bill that has been read a second time, at least
twenty-four hours’ written notice shall be given of the said Recommendation and proposed amendment.
Amendment as to form only.
-
-
- (4)
-
An amendment, in relation to form only in a government bill, may be proposed by a Minister of the Crown
without notice, but debate thereon may not be extended to the provisions of the clause or clauses to be amended.
NOTE: The purpose of the section is to facilitate the incorporation into a bill of amendments of a strictly
consequential nature flowing from the acceptance of other amendments. No waiver of notice would be permitted in
relation to any amendment which would change the intent of the bill, no
matter how slightly, beyond the effect of the initial amendment.
Speaker’s power to select amendments.
-
-
- (5)
-
The Speaker shall have power to select or combine amendments or clauses to be proposed at the report stage
and may, if he or she thinks fit, call upon any Member who has given notice
of an amendment to give such explanation of the subject of the amendment as
may enable the Speaker to form a judgement upon it. If an amendment has been selected that has been submitted by
more than one Member, the Speaker, after consultation, shall designate which Member shall propose it.
NOTE: The Speaker will not normally select for consideration by the House any motion previously ruled
out of order in committee and will normally only select motions which were
not or could not be presented in committee. A motion, previously defeated in committee, will only be selected if
the Speaker judges it to be of such exceptional significance as to warrant a
further consideration at the report stage. The Speaker will not normally select for separate debate a repetitive
series of motions which are interrelated and, in making the selection, shall
consider whether individual Members will be able to express their concerns during the debate on another motion.
For greater certainty, the purpose of this Standing Order is, primarily, to provide Members who were not members of the
committee, with an opportunity to have the House consider specific amendments
they wish to propose. It is not meant to be a reconsideration of the committee stage of a bill.
Debate on the amendments.
-
-
- (6)
-
When the Order of the Day for the consideration of a report stage is called, any amendment of which
notice has been given in accordance with this Standing Order shall be open to debate and amendment.
Limits on speeches.
-
-
- (7)
-
When debate is permitted, no Member shall speak more than once or longer than ten minutes during proceedings
on any amendment at that stage.
Division deferred.
-
-
- (8)
-
When a recorded division has been demanded on any amendment proposed during the report stage of a bill,
the Speaker may defer the calling in of the Members for the purpose of
recording the “yeas” and “nays” until more or all
subsequent amendments to the bill have been considered. A recorded division or divisions may be so deferred from sitting to sitting.
NOTE: In cases when there are an unusually great number of amendments for consideration at the report stage, the Speaker
may, after consultation with the representatives of the parties, direct that
deferred divisions be held before all amendments have been taken into consideration.
Motion when report stage concluded.
-
-
- (9)
-
When proceedings at the report stage on any bill that has been read a second time have been
concluded, a motion “That the bill, as amended, be concurred in” or
“That the bill be concurred in” shall be put and forthwith disposed of, without amendment or debate.
Third reading after debate or amendment.
-
-
- (10)
-
When a bill that has been read a second time has been amended or debate has taken place thereon at the
report stage, the same shall be set down for a third reading and passage at the next sitting of the House.
Third reading when no amendment or after Committee of the Whole.
-
-
- (11)
-
When a bill that has been read a second time has been reported from a standing, special or legislative
committee, and no amendment has been proposed thereto at the report stage,
and in the case of a bill reported from a Committee of the Whole, with or
without amendment, a motion, “That the bill be now read a third time and passed”, may be made in the same sitting.
Report stage of bill from a Committee of the Whole.
-
-
- (12)
-
The consideration of the report stage of a bill from a Committee of the Whole shall be received and
forthwith disposed of, without amendment or debate.
Senate Amendments
Written notice of motion.
- 77.
-
- (1)
-
Twenty-four hours’ written notice shall be given by a Member proposing any motion
respecting Senate amendments to a bill.
When Senate and House disagree.
-
-
- (2)
-
In cases in which the Senate disagrees to any amendments made by the House of Commons, or insists upon
any amendments to which the House has disagreed, the House is willing to
receive the reasons of the Senate for their disagreeing or insisting (as the
case may be) by message, without a conference, unless at any time the Senate
should desire to communicate the same at a conference.
Conference.
-
-
- (3)
-
Any conference between the two Houses may be a free conference.
Reasons for conference.
-
-
- (4)
-
When the House requests a conference with the Senate, the reasons to be given by this House at the same
shall be prepared and agreed to by the House before a message be sent therewith.
Time Allocation
Agreement to allot time.
- 78.
-
- (1)
-
When a Minister of the Crown, from his or her place in the House, states that
there is agreement among the representatives of all parties to allot a
specified number of days or hours to the proceedings at one or more stages of
any public bill, the Minister may propose a motion, without notice, setting
forth the terms of such agreed allocation; and every such motion shall be decided forthwith, without debate or amendment.
Qualified agreement to allot time.
-
-
- (2)
-
- (a)
-
When a Minister of the Crown, from his or her place in the House, states that a
majority of the representatives of the several parties have come to an
agreement in respect of a proposed allotment of days or hours for the
proceedings at any stage of the passing of a public bill, the Minister may
propose a motion, without notice, during proceedings under Government Orders,
setting forth the terms of the said proposed allocation; provided that for
the purposes of this section of this Standing Order an allocation may be
proposed in one motion to cover the proceedings at both the report and the
third reading stages of a bill if that motion is consistent with the provisions
of Standing Order 76. 1(10). The motion shall not be subject to debate or amendment, and the Speaker shall put
the question on the said motion forthwith. Any proceeding interrupted pursuant to this section of this Standing
Order shall be deemed adjourned.
- (b)
-
If a motion pursuant to this section regarding any bill is moved and carried at the beginning
of Government Orders on any day and if the order for the said bill is then
called and debated for the remainder of the sitting day, the length of that
debate shall be deemed to be one sitting day for the purposes of paragraph (a) of this section.
Procedure in other cases to allot time.
-
-
- (3)
-
- (a)
-
A Minister of the Crown who from his or her place in the House, at a previous
sitting, has stated that an agreement could not be reached under the
provisions of sections (1) or (2) of this Standing Order in respect of
proceedings at the stage at which a public bill was then under consideration
either in the House or in any committee, and has given notice of his or her
intention so to do, may propose a motion during proceedings under Government
Orders, for the purpose of allotting a specified number of days or hours for
the consideration and disposal of proceedings at that stage; provided that
the time allotted for any stage is not to be less than one sitting day and
provided that for the purposes of this paragraph an allocation may be
proposed in one motion to cover the proceedings at both the report and the
third reading stages on a bill if that motion is consistent with the
provisions of Standing Order 76. 1(10). The motion shall not be subject to debate or amendment, and the
Speaker shall put the question on the said motion forthwith. Any proceedings interrupted pursuant to
this section of this Standing Order shall be deemed adjourned.
- (b)
-
If a motion pursuant to this section regarding any bill is moved and carried at the beginning
of Government Orders on any day and if the order for the said bill is then
called and debated for the remainder of the sitting day, the length of that
debate shall be deemed to be one sitting day for the purposes of paragraph (a) of this section.
Chapter X
Financial Procedures
Recommendation
Recommendation of Governor General.
- 79.
-
- (1)
-
This House shall not adopt or pass any vote, resolution, address or bill for the
appropriation of any part of the public revenue, or of any tax or impost, to
any purpose that has not been first recommended to the House by a message from
the Governor General in the session in which such vote, resolution, address or bill is proposed.
Recommendation to be printed.
-
-
- (2)
-
The message and recommendation of the Governor General in relation to any bill for the
appropriation of any part of the public revenue or of any tax or impost shall
be printed on the Notice Paper, printed in or annexed to the bill and recorded in the Journals.
Message on Estimates.
-
-
- (3)
-
When estimates are brought in, the message from the Governor General shall be presented to
and read by the Speaker in the House.
Right of the House
Commons alone grant aids and supplies.
- 80.
-
- (1)
-
All aids and supplies granted to the Sovereign by the Parliament of Canada are the sole
gift of the House of Commons, and all bills for granting such aids and
supplies ought to begin with the House, as it is the undoubted right of the
House to direct, limit, and appoint in all such bills, the ends, purposes,
considerations, conditions, limitations and qualifications of such grants,
which are not alterable by the Senate.
Pecuniary penalties in Senate bills.
-
-
- (2)
-
In order to expedite the business of Parliament, the House will not insist on the privilege claimed
and exercised by them of laying aside bills sent from the Senate because they
impose pecuniary penalties nor of laying aside amendments made by the Senate
because they introduce into or alter pecuniary penalties in bills sent to
them by this House; provided that all such penalties thereby imposed are
only to punish or prevent crimes and offences, and do not tend to lay a
burden on the subject, either as aid or supply to the Sovereign, or for any
general or special purposes, by rates, tolls, assessments or otherwise.
Supply
Order for Supply.
- 81.
-
- (1)
-
At the commencement of each session, the House shall designate, by motion, a continuing
Order of the Day for the consideration of the business of supply.
Business of supply takes precedence over government business.
-
-
- (2)
-
On any day or days appointed for the consideration of any business under the provisions of this Standing
Order, that order of business shall have precedence over all other government business in such sitting or sittings.
Business of supply defined.
-
-
- (3)
-
For the purposes of this Order, the business of supply shall consist of motions to concur in interim
supply, main estimates and supplementary or final estimates; motions to
restore or reinstate any item in the estimates; motions to introduce or pass
at all stages any bill or bills based thereon; and opposition motions that
under this order may be considered on allotted days.
Main estimates referred to and reported by standing committees.
-
-
- (4)
-
In every session the main estimates to cover the incoming fiscal year for every department of
government shall be referred to standing committees on or before March 1 of
the then expiring fiscal year. Each such committee shall consider and shall report, or shall be deemed to have reported,
the same back to the House not later than May 31 in the then current fiscal year, provided that:
Extension of consideration by a committee.
- (a)
-
not later than the third sitting day prior to May 31, the Leader of the Opposition may
give notice during the time specified in Standing Order 54 of a motion to
extend consideration of the main estimates of a named department or agency
and the said motion shall be deemed adopted when called on
“Motions” on the last sitting day prior to May 31;
Report by the committee.
- (b)
-
on the sitting day immediately preceding the final allotted day, but in any case not
later than ten sitting days following the day on which any motion made
pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section is adopted, at not later than the ordinary hour of daily adjournment,
the said committee shall report, or shall be deemed to have reported, the
main estimates for the said department or agency; and
Reverting to “Presenting Reports from Committees”.
- (c)
-
if the committee shall make a report, the Chairman or a member of the committee
acting for the Chairman may so indicate, on a point of order, prior to the
hours indicated in paragraph (b) of this section, and the House shall immediately revert to “Presenting
Reports from Committees” for the purpose of receiving the said report.
Supplementary estimates referred to and reported by standing committees.
-
-
- (5)
-
Supplementary estimates shall be referred to a standing committee or committees immediately they are
presented in the House. Each such committee shall consider and shall report, or shall be deemed to have
reported, the same back to the House not later than three sitting days before
the final sitting or the last allotted day in the current period.
Motion to refer estimates to standing committees.
-
-
- (6)
-
A motion, to be decided without debate or amendment, may be moved during Routine Proceedings by a
Minister of the Crown to refer any item or items in the main estimates or in
supplementary estimates to any standing committee or committees and, upon
report from any such committees, the same shall lie upon the Table of the House.
Future expenditure plans and priorities.
-
-
- (7)
-
When main estimates are referred to a standing committee, the committee shall also be empowered to
consider and report upon the expenditure plans and priorities in future
fiscal years of the departments and agencies whose main estimates are before it.
Presentation of report.
-
-
- (8)
-
Any report made in accordance with section (7) of this Standing Order may be made up to and
including the last normal sitting day in June, as set forth in Standing Order
28(2), and shall be deemed to be subject to the provisions of section (9) of this Standing Order.
Motion to concur in a report.
-
-
- (9)
-
There shall be no debate on any motion to concur in the report of any standing committee on estimates
which have been referred to it except on an allotted day.
Supply periods. Allotted days.
-
-
- (10)
-
- (a)
-
In any calendar year, seven sitting days shall be allotted to the business of
supply for the period ending not later than December 10; seven additional
days shall be allotted to the business of supply in the period ending not
later than March 26; and seven additional days shall be allotted to the
business of supply in the period ending not later than June 23; provided that
the number of sitting days so allotted may be altered pursuant to paragraph (b) or (c) of this section. These twenty-one days are to be designated as
allotted days. In any calendar year, no more than one fifth of all the
allotted days shall fall on a Wednesday and no more than one fifth thereof shall fall on a Friday.
- (b)
-
Notwithstanding paragraph (a), if the House does
not sit on days designated as sitting days pursuant to Standing Order 28(2),
the total number of allotted days in that supply period shall be reduced by a
number of days proportionate to the number of sitting days on which the House
stood adjourned, provided that the number of days of the said reduction shall
be determined by the Speaker and announced from the Chair.
- (c)
-
Notwithstanding paragraph (a), if the House sits,
for purposes other than those set out in Standing Order 28(4), on days
designated as days on which the House shall stand adjourned pursuant to
Standing Order 28(2), the total number of allotted days in that supply period
shall be increased by one day for every five such days during which the House sits.
Unused days added to allotted days.
-
-
- (11)
-
When any day or days allotted to the Address Debate or to the Budget Debate are not used for those debates, such day or
days may be added to the number of allotted days in the period in which they occur.
Final supplementary estimates after close of fiscal year.
-
-
- (12)
-
When concurrence in any final supplementary estimates relating to the fiscal year that ended on March
31 is sought in the period ending not later than June 23, three days for the
consideration of the motion that the House concur in those estimates and for
the passage at all stages of any bill to be based thereon shall be added to
the days for the business of supply in that period.
Opposition motions.
-
-
- (13)
-
Opposition motions on allotted days may be moved only by Members in opposition to the government
and may relate to any matter within the jurisdiction of the Parliament of
Canada and also may be used for the purpose of considering reports from
standing committees relating to the consideration of estimates therein.
Notice for government motion. Notice for opposition motion.
-
-
- (14)
-
- (a)
-
Forty-eight hours’ written notice shall be given of motions to concur in interim supply,
main estimates, supplementary or final estimates, to restore or reinstate any
item in the estimates. Twenty-four hours’ written notice shall be given of an
opposition motion on an allotted day or of a notice to oppose any item in the
estimates, provided that for the supply period ending not later than June 23,
forty-eight hours’ written notice shall be given of a notice to oppose any item in the estimates.
Speaker’s power of selection.
- (b)
-
When notice has been given of two or more motions by Members in opposition to the
government for consideration on an allotted day, the Speaker shall have power
to select which of the proposed motions shall have precedence in that sitting.
Opposition motions have precedence on allotted days.
-
-
- (15)
-
Opposition motions shall have precedence over all government supply motions on allotted days and shall
be disposed of as provided in sections (16), (17), (18) and (19) of this Standing Order.
Number of votable motions allowed. Duration of proceedings.
-
-
- (16)
-
Not more than fourteen opposition motions in total shall be motions that shall come to a vote during
the three supply periods provided pursuant to section (10) of this Standing
Order. The duration of proceedings on any such motion shall be stated in the
notice relating to the appointing of an allotted day or days for those
proceedigs. Except as provided for in section (18) of this Standing Order,
on the last day appointed for proceedings on a motion that shall come to a
vote, at fifteen minutes before the expiry of the time provided for
Government Orders, the Speaker shall interrupt the proceedings and forthwith
put, without further debate or amendment, every question necessary to dispose of the said proceedings.
When question put in December and March periods.
-
-
- (17)
-
On the last allotted day in the supply periods ending December 10 and March 26, but, in any case, not
later than the last sitting day in each of the said periods, at fifteen
minutes before the expiry of the time provided for Government Orders, the
Speaker shall interrupt the proceedings then in progress and,
Non-votable motions. Putting of questions seriatim.
- (a)
-
if those proceedings are not in relation to a motion that shall come to a vote, the
Speaker shall put forthwith and successively, without debate or amendment,
every question necessary to dispose of any item of business relating to
interim supply and supplementary estimates, the restoration or reinstatement
of any item in the estimates or any opposed item in the estimates and,
notwithstanding Standing Order 71, for the passage at all stages of any bill or bills based thereon; or
Votable motions. Putting of questions seriatim.
- (b)
-
if those proceedings are in relation to a motion that shall come to a vote, the
Speaker shall first put forthwith, without further debate or amendment, every
question necessary to dispose of that proceeding, and forthwith thereafter
put successively, without debate or amendment, every question necessary to
dispose of any item of business relating to interim supply and supplementary
estimates, the restoration or reinstatement of any item in the estimates, or
of any opposed item in the estimates and, notwithstanding the provisions of
Standing Order 71, for the passage at all stages of any bill or bills based thereon.
Ordinary hour of adjournment suspended if necessary.
-
-
-
-
The Standing Orders relating to the ordinary hour of daily adjournment shall remain
suspended until all such questions have been decided.
Opposition Motion and Main Estimates to be considered on last day of June period.
-
-
- (18)
-
On the last allotted day in the period ending June 23, the House shall consider an opposition motion and
any motion or motions to concur in the Main Estimates, provided that:
Non-votable Motion. Expiration of proceedings.
- (a)
-
if the opposition motion is not a motion that shall come to a vote, proceedings on
the motion shall expire when debate thereon has been concluded or at 6:30
p. m. , as the case may be, notwithstanding Standing Order 33(2) and the House
shall proceed to consider a motion or motions relating to the Main Estimates; or
Votable Motions. Deferral of divisions.
- (b)
-
if the opposition motion is a motion that shall come to a vote, unless previously
disposed of, at 6:30 p. m. the Speaker shall interrupt the proceedings and put
forthwith, without further debate or amendment, every question necessary to
dispose of the proceedings and any recorded division requested shall be
deferred to the conclusion of consideration of a motion or motions relating
to the Main Estimates as set out in section (18)(c); and
When question put in June period.
- (c)
-
when proceedings on the opposition motion have been concluded, but in any case not later than 6:30 p. m. , the
House shall proceed to the consideration of a motion or motions to concur in
the Main Estimates, provided that, unless previously disposed of, at not
later than 10:00 p. m. , the Speaker shall interrupt any proceedings then
before the House, and the House shallproceed to the taking of any division or divisions necessary to
dispose of the opposition motion deferred pursuant to paragraph (b) of this
Standing Order, and the Speaker shall then put forthwith and successively,
without further debate or amendment, every question necessary to dispose of
the motion or motions to concur in the Main Estimates, and forthwith
thereafter put successively, without debate or amendment, every question
necessary to dispose of any business relating to the final estimates for the
preceding fiscal year or for any supplementary estimates, the restoration or
reinstatement of any item in the final or supplementary estimates or any
opposed item in the final or supplementary estimates and, notwithstanding
Standing Order 71, for the passage at all stages of any bill or bills based
on the final, main or supplementary estimates; and
Ordinary hour of adjournment suspended.
- (d)
-
the Standing Orders relating to the ordinary hour of daily adjournment shall remain suspended until all
such questions pursuant to paragraph (c) have been decided.
Expiration of proceedings.
-
-
- (19)
-
Proceedings on an opposition motion, which is not a motion that shall come to a vote, shall expire when
debate thereon has been concluded or at the expiry of the time provided for
Government Orders, as the case may be, provided that the expiry of the said
time may be delayed pursuant to Standing Order 33(2).
Unopposed items.
-
-
- (20)
-
The adoption of all unopposed items in any set of estimates may be proposed in one or more motions.
Order to bring in a bill.
-
-
- (21)
-
The adoption of any motion to concur in any estimate or estimates or interim supply shall be an Order of
the House to bring in a bill or bills based thereon.
Time limit and comments on speeches.
-
-
- (22)
-
During proceedings on any item of business under the provisions of this Standing Order, no Member may speak more than
once or longer than twenty minutes. Following the speech of each Member, a
period not exceeding ten minutes shall be made available, if required, to
allow Members to ask questions and comment briefly on matters relevant to the
speech and to allow responses thereto.
Where urgency arises.
- 82.
-
In the event of urgency in relation to any estimate or estimates, the proceedings of the House on a
motion to concur therein and on the subsequent bill are to be taken under
Government Orders and not on days allotted pursuant to Standing Order 81.
Ways and Means
Notice of Ways and Means.
- 83.
-
- (1)
-
A notice of a Ways and Means motion may be laid upon the Table of the House at any time
during a sitting by a Minister of the Crown, but such a motion may not be proposed in the same sitting.
Order of the Day designated. Order of the Day for a Budget presentation.
-
-
- (2)
-
An Order of the Day for the consideration of a Ways and Means motion or motions shall be designated at
the request of a Minister rising in his or her place in the House. When such an Order is designated for a
Budget presentation, the Minister shall specify the date and time thereof and
the Order shall be deemed to be an Order of the House to sit beyond the
ordinary hour of daily adjournment, if required. At the specified time, the Speaker shall interrupt any proceedings
then before the House and such proceedings shall be deemed adjourned; and the
House shall proceed forthwith to the consideration of the Ways and Means
motion for the Budget presentation. When a motion for the adjournment of the debate on the Ways and Means
motion has been made by a Member of the Official Opposition, it shall be
deemed adopted without question put; whereupon the Speaker shall adjourn the House to the next sitting day.
Motion to concur in Ways and Means motion other than Budget.
-
-
- (3)
-
When an Order of the Day is read for the consideration of any motion of which notice has been given in
accordance with section (1) of this Standing Order, a motion to concur in the
same shall be forthwith decided without debate or amendment, but no such
motion may be proposed during the Budget Debate.
Effect of motion being adopted.
-
-
- (4)
-
The adoption of any Ways and Means motion shall be an order to bring in a bill or bills based on the
provisions of any such motion or to propose an amendment or amendments to a
bill then before the House, provided that such amendment or amendments are otherwise admissible.
Budget Debate
Standing Committee on Finance to consider budgetary policy.
- 83.1.
-
Commencing on the first sitting day in September of each year, the Standing Committee on
Finance shall be authorized to consider and make reports upon proposals
regarding the budgetary policy of the government. Any report or reports thereon may be made no later than the
tenth sitting day before the last normal sitting day in December, as set forth in Standing Order 28(2).
Form of motion Budget.
- 84.
-
- (1)
-
When an Order of the Day is designated pursuant to Standing Order 83(2) for the purpose of
enabling a Minister of the Crown to make a Budget presentation, a motion
“That this House approves in general the budgetary policy of the
Government” shall be proposed.
Budget debate: four days.
-
-
- (2)
-
The proceedings on the Order of the Day for resuming debate on such Budget motion and on any amendments
proposed thereto shall not exceed four sitting days.
Precedence.
-
-
- (3)
-
When the Order of the Day for resuming the said Budget Debate is called, it must stand as the first
Order of the Day and, unless it be disposed of, no other Government Order
shall be considered in the same sitting.
When question put on sub-amendment.
-
-
- (4)
-
On the second of the said days, if a sub-amendment be under consideration at fifteen minutes before the
expiry of the time provided for government business in such sitting, the
Speaker shall interrupt the proceedings and forthwith put the question on the said sub-amendment.
When question put on amendment.
-
-
- (5)
-
On the third of the said days, if an amendment be under consideration at fifteen minutes before the
expiry of the time provided for government business in such sitting, the
Speaker shall interrupt the proceedings and forthwith put the question on the said amendment.
When question put on main motion.
-
-
- (6)
-
On the fourth of the said days, at fifteen minutes before the expiry of the time provided for
government business in such sitting, unless the debate be previously
concluded, the Speaker shall interrupt the proceedings and forthwith put the question on the main motion.
Time limit and comments on speeches.
-
-
- (7)
-
No Member, except the Minister of Finance, the Member speaking first on behalf of the Opposition,
the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition, shall speak for more
than twenty minutes at a time in the Budget Debate. Following the speech of each Member a period not exceeding ten
minutes shall be made available, if required, to allow Members to ask
questions and comment briefly on matters relevant to the speech and to allow responses thereto.
Amendments
Amendments: Budget Debate and Supply on allotted days.
- 85.
-
Only one amendment and one sub-amendment may be made to a motion proposed in the Budget Debate or to
a motion proposed under an Order of the Day for the consideration of the
business of supply on an allotted day.
Chapter XI
Private Members’ Business
Notice
Notice of item by one Member.
- 86.
-
- (1)
-
Any one Member may give notice of an item of Private Member’ Business.
Two weeks’ notice required.
-
-
- (2)
-
In the case of Private Members’ Notices of Motions, at least two weeks’ notice shall be given.
More than one seconder.
-
-
- (3)
-
Notwithstanding the usual practices of the House, not more than twenty Members may jointly second an
item under Private Members’ Business and may indicate their desire to second
any motion in conjunction with the Member in whose name it first appeared on
the Notice Paper, by so indicating, in writing to the Clerk of the House, at any time prior to the item being proposed.
Appending seconders’ names.
-
-
- (4)
-
Any names received, pursuant to section (3) of this Standing Order, shall be appended to the notice or
order as the case may be. Once proposed to the House, Members’ names shall not be added to the list of those
seconding the said motion or order.
Similar items. Speaker to decide.
-
-
- (5)
-
The Speaker shall be responsible for determining whether two or more items are so similar as to be
substantially the same, in which case he or she shall so inform the Member or
Members whose items were received last and the same shall be returned to the
Member or Members without having appeared on the Notice Paper.
Reinstatement of bills after prorogation.
- 86.1.
-
During the first thirty sitting days of the second
or subsequent Session of a Parliament, whenever a private Member, when
proposing a motion for first reading of a public bill, states that the said
bill is in the same form as a private Member’s bill that he or she introduced
in the previous Session, if the Speaker is satisfied that the said bill is in
the same form as at prorogation, notwithstanding Standing Order 71, the said
bill shall be deemed to have been considered and approved at all stages
completed at the time of prorogation and shall stand, if necessary, on the Order Paper pursuant to Standing Order
87 after those of the same class, at the same stage at which it stood at the
time of prorogation or, as the case may be, referred to committee, and with
the designation accorded to it pursuant to Standing Order 92(1) during the previous Session.
Order of Precedence
Establishing order of precedence at beginning of Session.
- 87.
-
- (1)
-
- (a)
-
At the beginning of a Session, the Clerk of the
House, acting on behalf of the Speaker, shall, within two sitting days of the
placing on the Order Paper of separate items of Private Members’ Business from at least thirty Members,
notify the Members involved, of the time, date and place of a random draw of
thirty Members’ names to establish the order of precedence for thirty separate items.
- (b)
-
To the extent that there is a sufficient number of eligible motions and bills, the draw
shall be conducted so that there shall be in the order of precedence an equal
number of motions and public bills originating in the House of Commons.
- (c)
-
The names of Members with bills and those of Members with motions shall be drawn separately
to produce the appropriate number of bills and motions. The names first drawn separately shall
then be combined and drawn out again to determine the order of precedence for those items.
- (d)
-
Not later than the ordinary hour of daily adjournment on the second sitting day after
the day on which the draw is conducted, each Member whose name has been
drawn, and who has given notice of more than one motion, shall file with the
Clerk an indication as to which motion is to be placed in the order of
precedence. If a Member does not file such an indication within the time specified, the first motion standing on
the Order Paper in the name of that Member under Private Members’ Business will be included in the order of
precedence. This requirement applies equally to each Member whose name has been drawn for a public bill.
During a Session.
-
-
- (2)
-
The Clerk of the House, acting on behalf of the Speaker, shall, when necessary during a Session,
conduct a random draw to establish an order of precedence for not more than
fifteen additional items of Private Members’ Business, in the manner set down
in section (1) of this Standing Order. No Member having an item listed in the order of precedence at the time
of the draw shall be eligible to have his or her name chosen. Not later than two sitting days prior to the
conduct of the draw the Clerk shall inform the Members involved of the time, date and place of the said draw.
Limited number of items.
-
-
- (3)
-
Notwithstanding sections (1) and (2) of this Standing Order, the order of precedence shall not contain, at
any time, more than thirty motions and public bills originating in the House
of Commons at second reading placed there as a result of a draw or
draws, nor fewer than fifteen items, when there are sufficient items contained in the list which
have not been given a position on the order of precedence.
Notice of other items.
-
-
- (4)
-
The establishment of an order of precedence for Private Members’ Business shall not be construed so
as to prevent Members from giving notice of items of Private Members’ Business.
Order of precedence items only to be considered.
-
-
- (5)
-
The House shall not consider any order for the second reading and reference to a standing, special or
legislative committee or for reference to a Committee of the Whole House of
any bill, nor any Notices of Motions or Notices of Motions (Papers) unless
the said item has been placed in the order of precedence.
List of 100 Members supporting an item.
-
-
- (6)
-
- (a)
-
At any time after the holding of the first draw in a Session, a Member may file with the Clerk a list
containing the signatures of one hundred Members, including at least ten
Members each from a majority of the recognized parties in the House, who
support a specific item, sponsored by the Member, eligible to be placed in the order of precedence.
Item to be placed at bottom of order of precedence.
- (b)
-
Notwithstanding section (3) of this Standing Order, the item for which the list referred to
in paragraph (a) of this section has been filed shall be added to the bottom of the order of precedence,
provided that the Member filing the list does not have an item in the order
of precedence and that there shall be only one such item in the order of precedence at any one time.
Two week period.
- 88.
-
Subject to Standing Order 71, at least two weeks shall elapse between first and second reading of
Private Members’ Public Bills.
Order of bills on precedence list.
- 89.
-
The order for the first consideration of any subsequent stages of a bill already considered
during Private Members’ Business, of second reading of a private bill and of
second reading of a private Member’s public bill originating in the Senate
shall be placed at the bottom of the order of precedence.
On adjournment or interruption.
- 90.
-
Except as provided pursuant to Standing Order 96, after any bill or other order standing in the
name of a private Member has been considered in the House or in any Committee
of the Whole and any proceeding thereon has been adjourned or interrupted,
the said bill or order shall be placed on the Order Paper for the next sitting at the bottom of the order of
precedence under the respective heading for such bills or orders.
Suspension of Private Members’ Business until order of precedence established.
- 91.
-
Notwithstanding Standing Order 30(6), the consideration of Private Members’ Business shall be
suspended and the House shall continue to consider any business before it at
the time otherwise provided for the consideration of Private Members’
Business until an order of precedence is established pursuant to sections (1)
and (2) of Standing Order 87 and the Standing Committee on Procedure and
House Affairs has made a report on its selection of votable items, pursuant to Standing Order 92(1).
When Committee to meet for the selection of items as votable items. Report to House.
- 92.
-
- (1)
-
The Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs shall meet as soon as practicable
after the order of precedence being established pursuant to sections (1) and
(2) of Standing Order 87, but in any case not later than ten sitting days after
that day, and from time to time thereafter, and may select after
consultation with, among others, the Members proposing the items, not more
than ten items from among the items in the order of precedence,
excluding those items added to it pursuant to Standing Order 86. 1, and an appropriate number from
among any subsequent items for which the order of precedence is
established and such selecteditems shall be designated as
“votable items”. In making its selection, the Committee shall not take into account the number of
Members jointly seconding an item, but shall allow the merits of the items
alone to determine the selection and shall report thereon, from time to
time. At no time shall there be more than ten selected items on the order of precedence placed there as a result of a draw or draws.
Reports to be deemed adopted.
-
-
- (2)
-
Reports of the Committee made pursuant to section (1) of this Standing Order shall be deemed adopted
when laid upon the Table.
Private bills.
-
-
- (3)
-
Notwithstanding section (1) of this Standing Order, every private bill which has been placed on the order
of precedence shall be deemed to have been selected and designated a “votable item”.
Time limit on selected items. Dropping of item to bottom of precedence list.
- 93.
-
Unless previously disposed of, selected bills at the second reading stage or selected motions
shall receive not more than three hours of consideration and, unless
previously disposed of, an item having been once considered, shall be dropped
to the bottom of the order of precedence and again considered only when it reaches the top of the said order.
-
Provided that, unless otherwise disposed of, at not later than fifteen minutes before the
end of the time provided for the consideration of the said item, any proceedings
then before the House shall be interrupted and every question necessary to
dispose of the selected motion or of the selected bill at the second reading
stage, shall be put forthwith and successively without further debate or amendment.
Speaker’s responsibility.
- 94.
-
- (1)
-
- (a)
-
The Speaker shall make all arrangements necessary
to ensure the orderly conduct of Private Members’ Business including:
Notice of items to be considered.
-
-
- (i)
-
ensuring that all Members have not less than
twenty-four hours’ notice of items to be considered during “Private Members’ Hour”; and
Publication of notice.
-
-
- (ii)
-
ensuring that the notice required by sub-paragraph (i)
of this paragraph is published in the Notice Paper.
Private Members’ Hour suspended when notice not published.
- (b)
-
In the event of it not being possible to provide the twenty-four hours’ notice required by
subparagraph (i) of this section, “Private Members’ Hour” shall be
suspended for that day and the House shall continue with or revert to the
business before it prior to “Private Members’ Hour” until the ordinary hour of daily adjournment.
Forty-eight hours’ notice required when Member unable to move his or her item. Speaker to arrange an exchange.
-
-
- (2)
-
- (a)
-
When a Member has given at least forty-eight hours’ written notice that he or she
is unable to be present to move his or her motion under Private Members’
Business on the date required by the order of precedence, the Speaker, with
permission of the Members involved, may arrange for an exchange of positions
in the order of precedence with a Member whose motion or bill has been placed in the order of precedence.
When no arrangement can be made, business before House to continue.
- (b)
-
In the event that the Speaker has been unable to arrange an exchange, the House shall
continue with the business before it prior to “Private Members’ Hour”.
Time limit on speeches. Votable item.
- 95.
-
- (1)
-
When an item of Private Members’ Business that is votable is under consideration, no
Member shall speak for more than ten minutes, provided that the Member moving
the item may speak for not more than twenty minutes.
Time limit on speeches. Non-votable item.
-
-
- (2)
-
When an item of Private Members’ Business that is not
votable is proposed, the Member moving the item shall speak for not more than
fifteen minutes. Thereafter, no Member shall speak for more than ten minutes
for a period not exceeding forty minutes. After forty minutes, or earlier if
no other Member rises in debate, the Member moving the said item shall, if he
or she chooses, speak again for not more than five minutes and thereby conclude the debate.
Dropped orders.
- 96.
-
- (1)
-
The proceedings on any item of Private Members’ Business which is not a votable item selected
pursuant to Standing Order 92 shall expire when debate thereon has been
concluded or at the end of the time provided for the consideration of such
business and that item shall be dropped from the Order Paper.
Not to be considered as a decision of the House.
-
-
- (2)
-
The dropping of an item pursuant to section (1) of this Standing Order shall not be considered a decision of the House.
Not to apply in certain cases.
-
-
- (3)
-
This Standing Order shall not apply to the consideration of Notices of Motions for the Production of
Papers or of Notices of Motions (Papers).
Production of papers. When debate desired.
- 97.
-
- (1)
-
Notices of motions for the production of papers shall be placed on the Order Paper under the heading
“Notices of Motions for the Production of Papers”. All such notices, when called, shall be
forthwith disposed of; but if on any such motion a debate be desired by the
Member proposing it or by a Minister of the Crown, the motion will be
transferred by the Clerk to the order of “Notices of Motions (Papers)”.
Time limits on speeches and debate.
-
-
- (2)
-
When debate on a motion for the production of papers, under the order “Notices of Motions
(Papers)”, has taken place for a total time of one hour and thirty
minutes, the Speaker shall at that point interrupt the debate, whereupon a
Minister of the Crown, whether or not such Minister has already spoken, may
speak for not more than five minutes, following which the mover of the motion
may close the debate by speaking for not more than five minutes. Unless the motion is withdrawn, as
provided by Standing Order 64, the Speaker shall forthwith put the question.
Committee Report.
- 97.1.
-
A standing, special or legislative committee to which a Private Member’s public
bill has been referred shall in every case, within sixty sitting days from
the date of the bill’s reference to the committee, either report the bill to
the House with or without amendment or present to the House a report
containing a recommendation not to proceed further with the bill and giving
the reasons therefor or requesting a single extension of thirty sitting days
to consider the bill, and giving the reasons therefor. If no bill or report
is presented by the end of the sixty sitting days, or the thirty sitting day
extension if approved by the House, the bill shall be deemed to have been reported without amendment.
Bill to be placed at bottom of precedence list after committee stage.
- 98.
-
- (1)
-
When a Private Member’s bill is reported from a standing, special or legislative
committee or a Committee of the Whole House, or is deemed to have
been reported pursuant to Standing Orders 86. 1 and 97. 1, the order for consideration of the report
stage shall be placed at the bottom of the order of precedence notwithstanding Standing Order 87(3).
Two-day debate at certain stages of a bill.
-
-
- (2)
-
The report and third reading stages of a Private Member’s bill shall be taken up on two sitting days,
unless previously disposed of, provided that once consideration has been
interrupted on the first such day the order for the remaining stage or stages
shall be placed at the bottom of the order of precedence, notwithstanding
Standing Orders 87(3) and 96 and shall be again considered when the said bill reaches the top of the said order.
Extension of sitting hours. Limited to five hours.
-
-
- (3)
-
When the report or third reading stages of the said bill are before the House on the first of the
sitting days provided pursuant to section (2) of this Standing Order, and if
the said bill has not been disposed of prior to the end of the first thirty
minutes of consideration, during any time then remaining, any one Member may
propose a motion to extend the time for the consideration of any remaining
stages on the second of the said sitting days during a period not exceeding
five consecutive hours, which shall begin at the end of the time provided for
Private Members’ Business, except on a Monday when the period shall begin at
the ordinary hour of daily adjournment, on the second sitting day, provided that:
Support of twenty Members.
- (a)
-
the motion shall be put forthwith without debate or amendment and shall be deemed
withdrawn if fewer than twenty members rise in support thereof; and
No subsequent motion unless intervening proceeding.
- (b)
-
a subsequent such motion shall not be put unless there has been an intervening proceeding.
When question put.
-
-
- (4)
-
On the second sitting day provided pursuant to section (2) of this Standing Order, unless previously
disposed of, at not later than fifteen minutes before the end of the time
provided for the consideration thereof, any proceedings then before the House
shall be interrupted and every question necessary to dispose of the then
remaining stage or stages of the said bill shall be put forthwith and successively without further debate or amendment.
Suspension of adjournment hour in certain cases.
-
-
- (5)
-
If consideration has been extended pursuant to section (3) of this Standing Order, the Standing Orders
relating to the ordinary hour of daily adjournment shall be suspended until
all questions necessary to dispose of the said bill have been put.
Suspension
Suspension of Private Members’ Business in provided cases.
- 99.
-
- (1)
-
The proceedings on Private Members’ Business shall not be suspended except as provided
for in Standing Orders 2(3), 30(4), 50(4), 52(14), 83(2), 91 and 94(1)(b) or as otherwise specified by
Special Order of this House. No Private Members’ Business shall be taken up on days appointed for the
consideration of business pursuant to Standing Orders 53 and 84(2) nor on
days, other than Mondays, appointed for the consideration of business pursuant to Standing Order 81(18).
Suspension on a Monday.
-
-
- (2)
-
Whenever Private Members’ Business is suspended or not taken up on a Monday, the House shall meet from
11:00 a. m. to 12:00 noon for the consideration of Government Orders.
Chapter XII
Committees of the Whole
Order for House in Committee of the Whole.
- 100.
-
When an Order of the Day is read for the House to go into a Committee of the Whole or when it is
ordered that a bill be considered in a Committee of the Whole, the Speaker shall leave the Chair without question put.
Application of Standing Orders.
- 101.
-
- (1)
-
The Standing Orders of the House shall be observed in Committees of the Whole so far as
may be applicable, except the Standing Orders as to the seconding of motions,
limiting the number of times of speaking and the length of speeches.
Relevancy.
-
-
- (2)
-
Speeches in Committees of the Whole must be strictly relevant to the item or clause under consideration.
Time limit on speeches.
-
-
- (3)
-
No Member, except the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition, shall speak for more than twenty
minutes at a time in any Committee of the Whole.
Motion to leave the Chair.
- 102.
-
- (1)
-
A motion that the Chairman leave the Chair is always in order, shall take precedence of any
other motion, and shall not be debatable.
Intermediate proceeding.
-
-
- (2)
-
Such motion, if rejected, cannot be renewed unless some intermediate proceeding has taken place.
Resolutions concurred in forthwith.
- 103.
-
Whenever a resolution is reported from any Committee of the Whole, a motion to concur in the same
shall be forthwith put and decided without debate or amendment.
Chapter XIII
Committees
Striking of Committees
Duty of Procedure and House Affairs Committee. Report. No second report during specific period.
- 104.
-
- (1)
-
At the commencement of the first session of each Parliament, the Standing
Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, which, notwithstanding section (2)
of this Standing Order, shall consist of sixteen Members, and the membership
of which shall continue from session to session, shall be appointed to act,
among its other duties, as a striking committee. The said Committee shall prepare and report to the House within
the first ten sitting days after its appointment, and thereafter, within the
first ten sitting days after the commencement of each session and within the
first ten sitting days after the second Monday following Labour Day, lists of
Members to compose the standing committees of the House pursuant to Standing
Order 104(2), and to act for the House on standing joint committees; provided
that the Committee shall not present a second report pursuant to this
Standing Order between the second Monday following Labour Day and the end of that calendar year.
Membership of standing committees.
-
-
- (2)
-
The standing committees, which shall consist of the number of Members stipulated below, and for which
the lists of members are to be prepared, except as provided in section (1) of
this Standing Order, shall be on:
- (a)
-
Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development (sixteen Members);
- (b)
-
Agriculture and Agri-Food (sixteen Members);
- (c)
-
Canadian Heritage (sixteen Members);
- (d)
-
Citizenship and Immigration (sixteen Members);
- (e)
-
Environment and Sustainable Development (sixteen Members);
- (f)
-
Finance (sixteen Members);
- (g)
-
Fisheries and Oceans (sixteen Members);
- (h)
-
Foreign Affairs and International Trade (eighteen Members);
- (i)
-
Health (sixteen Members);
- (j)
-
Human Resources Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities (eighteen Members);
- (k)
-
Industry (sixteen Members);
- (l)
-
Justice and Human Rights (sixteen Members);
- (m)
-
National Defence and Veterans Affairs (sixteen Members);
- (n)
-
Natural Resources and Government Operations (sixteen Members);
- (o)
-
Procedure and House Affairs (sixteen Members);
- (p)
-
Public Accounts (seventeen Members); and
- (q)
-
Transport (sixteen Members).
Membership of standing joint committees.
-
-
- (3)
-
The Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs shall also prepare and report lists of Members to
act for the House on the Standing Joint Committees on:
- (a)
-
the Library of Parliament;
- (b)
-
Official Languages; and
- (c)
-
Scrutiny of Regulations;
-
-
-
-
Provided that a sufficient number of Members shall be appointed so as to keep the same
proportion therein as between the memberships of both Houses.
Associate Members.
-
-
- (4)
-
The Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs shall also prepare lists of associate members for
each Standing Committee and Standing Joint Committee referred to in this
Standing Order, who shall be deemed to be members of that committee for the
purposes of Standing Orders 108(1)(b) and 114(2)(a) and who shall be
eligible to act as substitutes on that committee pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order 114(2)(b).
Membership of a special committee.
- 105.
-
A special committee shall consist of not more than fifteen members.
Clerk of the House to convene meetings.
- 106.
-
- (1)
-
Within ten sitting days following the adoption by the House of a report of the
Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs pursuant to Standing Order
104(1), the Clerk of the House shall convene a meeting of each standing
committee whose membership is contained in that report for the purpose of
electing a Chairman, provided that forty-eight hours’ notice is given of any such meeting.
Election of Chairman and Vice-Chairmen.
-
-
- (2)
-
Each standing or special committee shall elect a Chairman and two Vice-Chairmen, of whom two shall be
Members of the government party and the third a Member in opposition to the
government, in accordance with the provisions of Standing Order 116, at the
commencement of every session and, if necessary, during the course of a session.
Chairman to convene meeting upon written request. Reasons to be stated in request. Forty-eight hours’ notice required.
-
-
- (3)
-
Within ten sitting days of the receipt, by the clerk of a standing committee, of a request signed by any
four members of the said committee, the Chairman of the said committee shall
convene such a meeting provided that forty-eight hours’ notice is given of
the meeting. For the purposes of this section, the reasons for convening such a meeting shall be stated in the request.
Liaison Committee
Membership.
- 107.
-
- (1)
-
The Chairman of each standing committee, together with the Member of the House
from each standing joint committee who is the Chairman of the said joint
committee, shall form a Liaison Committee, which is charged with making
apportionments of funds from the block of funds authorized by the Board of
Internal Economy to meet the expenses of committee activities, subject to ratification by the Board.
Election of Chairman and Vice-Chairman of Liaison Committee. Clerk of the House to convene meeting.
-
-
- (2)
-
Within five sitting days of the meeting of the last standing committee to elect its Chairman pursuant to
Standing Order 106(2), but in any event no later than the twentieth sitting
day after the adoption of the report of the Standing Committee on Procedure
and House Affairs presented pursuant to Standing Order 104(1), the Clerk of
the House shall convene a meeting of the Chairmen, together with any Members
of the House elected as Chairman of any joint committees for which such
elections have then been held, for the purpose of electing a Chairman and a Vice-Chairman of the Liaison Committee.
Reports.
-
-
- (3)
-
The Liaison Committee shall be empowered to report from time to time to the House.
Quorum.
-
-
- (4)
-
Seven members of the Liaison Committee shall constitute a quorum.
Associate Members.
-
-
- (5)
-
The Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs shall, at the request of the Chairman of the
Liaison Committee, prepare and report to the House a list of associate
members of that Committee, who shall be deemed to be members thereof for the purposes of section (6) of this Standing Order.
Power to create sub-committees.
-
-
- (6)
-
The Liaison Committee shall be empowered to create sub-committees of which the membership may be drawn
from among both the list of members of the Committee and the list of
associate members provided for in section (5) of this Standing Order.
Mandate
Powers of standing committees.
- 108.
-
- (1)
-
- (a)
-
Standing committees shall be severally empowered to examine and enquire into all such matters as
may be referred to them by the House, to report from time to time and to
print a brief appendix to any report, after the signature of the Chairman,
containing such opinions or recommendations, dissenting from the report or
supplementary to it, as may be proposed by committee members, and except when
the House otherwise orders, to send for persons, papers and records, to sit
while the House is sitting, to sit during periods when the House stands
adjourned, to sit jointly with other standing committees, to print from day to
day such papers and evidence as may be ordered by them, and to delegate to
sub-committees all or any of their powers except the power to report directly to the House.
Power to create sub-committees.
- (b)
-
Standing Committees shall be empowered to create sub-committees of which the membership
may be drawn from among both the list of members and the list of associate
members provided for in Standing Order 104, who shall be deemed to be
members of that committee for the purposes of this Standing Order.
Additional powers of standing committees.
-
-
- (2)
-
The standing committees, except those set out in sections (3)(a),
(3)(e) and (4) of this Standing Order, shall, in addition to the powers granted to them pursuant to section
(1) of this Standing Order and pursuant to Standing Order 81, be empowered to
study and report on all matters relating to the mandate, management and
operation of the department or departments of government which are assigned
to them from time to time by the House. In general, the committees shall be severally empowered to review and report on:
- (a)
-
the statute law relating to the department assigned to them;
- (b)
-
the program and policy objectives of the department and its effectiveness in the implementation of same;
- (c)
-
the immediate, medium and long-term expenditure plans and the effectiveness of implementation
of same by the department;
- (d)
-
an analysis of the relative success of the department, as measured by the results
obtained as compared with its stated objectives; and
- (e)
-
other matters, relating to the mandate, management, organization or operation of
the department, as the committee deems fit.
Mandates of certain standing committees.
-
-
- (3)
-
The mandate of the Standing Committee on:
Procedure and House Affairs.
- (a)
-
Procedure and House Affairs shall include, in addition to the duties set forth in Standing
Order 104, and among other matters:
- (i)
-
the review of and report on, to the Speaker as well as the Board of Internal Economy, the administration of the House and the
provision of services and facilities to Members provided that all matters
related thereto shall be deemed to have been permanently referred to the
Committee upon its membership having been established;
- (ii)
-
the review of and report on the effectiveness, management and operation, together with the operational and expenditure plans
of all operations which are under the joint administration and control of
the two Houses except with regard to the Library of Parliament and other
related matters as the Committee deems fit;
- (iii)
-
the review of and report on the Standing Orders, procedure and practice in the House and its committees;
- (iv)
-
the selection of items of Private Members’ Business pursuant to Standing Order 92, and the
consideration of business related to Private Bills;
- (v)
-
the review of and report on the radio and television broadcasting of the proceedings of the
House and its committees; and
- (vi)
-
the review of and report on all matters relating to the election of Members to the House of Commons;
Canadian Heritage.
- (b)
-
Standing Committees shall be empowered to create sub-committees of which the membership
may be drawn from among both the list of members and the list of associate
members provided for in Standing Order 104, who shall be deemed to be
members of that committee for the purposes of this Standing Order.
- —
-
to encourage the departments and agencies of the federal government to reflect the
multicultural diversity of the nation; and
- —
-
to examine existing and new programs and policies of federal departments and agencies to encourage sensitivity to multicultural
concerns and to preserve and enhance the multicultural reality of Canada;
Human Resources Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities.
- (c)
-
Human Resources Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities shall include, among other matters, the proposing, promoting,
monitoring and assessing of initiatives aimed at the integration and equality
of disabled persons in all sectors of Canadian society;
Justice and Human Rights.
- (d)
-
Justice and Human Rights shall include, among other matters, the review and report on reports of the
Canadian Human Rights Commission, which shall be deemed permanently referred
to the Committee immediately after they are laid upon the Table;
Public Accounts.
- (e)
-
Public Accounts shall include, among other matters, review of and report on the
Public Accounts of Canada and all reports of the Auditor General of Canada,
which shall be severally deemed permanently referred to the Committee immediately after they are laid upon the Table;
-
-
-
-
and any other matter which the House shall, from time to time, refer to the Standing Committee.
Mandate of Standing Joint Committees.
-
-
- (4)
-
So far as this House is concerned, the mandates of the Standing Joint Committee on
Library of Parliament.
- (a)
-
the Library of Parliament shall include the review of the effectiveness, management and
operation of the Library of Parliament;
Official Languages.
- (b)
-
Official Languages shall include, among other matters, the review of and report on
official languages policies and programs including Reports of the Commissioner
of Official Languages, which shall be deemed permanently referred to the
Committee immediately after they are laid upon the Table;
Scrutiny of Regulations.
- (c)
-
Scrutiny of Regulations shall include, among other matters, the review and scrutiny of
statutory instruments which are permanently referred to the Committee
pursuant to section 19 of the Statutory Instruments Act;
-
-
-
-
Provided that both Houses may, from time to time, refer any other matter to any of the
aforementioned Standing Joint Committees.
Government response to committee reports.
- 109.
-
-
-
Within 150 days of the presentation of a report from a standing or special
committee, the government shall, upon the request of the committee, table a comprehensive response thereto.
Tabling of Order in Council appointments. Deemed referred to committee.
- 110.
-
- (1)
-
A Minister of the Crown shall lay upon the Table a certified copy of an Order
in Council, stating that a certain individual has been appointed to a certain
non-judicial post, not later than five sitting days after the Order in
Council is published in the Canada Gazette. The same shall be deemed
to have been referred to a standing committee specified at the time of
tabling, pursuant to Standing Order 32(6), for its consideration during a period not exceeding thirty sitting days.
Tabling of certificate of nomination for appointment. Deemed referred to committee.
-
-
- (2)
-
A Minister of the Crown may, from time to time, lay upon the Table a certificate stating that a specified
individual has been nominated for appointment to a specified non-judicial
post. The same shall be deemed to have been referred to a standing committee specified at the time of tabling,
pursuant to Standing Order 32(6), for its consideration during a period not exceeding thirty sitting days.
Appearance of appointee or nominee.
- 111.
-
- (1)
-
The committee specified pursuant to Standing Orders 32(6) and 110, during the
period of thirty sitting days provided pursuant to Standing Order 110, shall
if it deems it appropriate, call the so named appointee or nominee to appear
before it during a period not exceeding ten sitting days.
Qualification study of appointee or nominee.
-
-
- (2)
-
The committee, if it should call an appointee or nominee to appear pursuant to section (1) of this Standing
Order, shall examine the qualifications and competence of the appointee or
nominee to perform the duties of the post to which he or she has been appointed or nominated.
Time limit for study.
-
-
- (3)
-
The committee shall complete its examination of the appointee or nominee not later than the end of the ten
sitting day period indicated in section (1) of this Standing Order.
Appointee’s curriculum vitae to be provided.
-
-
- (4)
-
The office of the Minister who recommended the appointment shall provide the
curriculum vitae of such an appointee or nominee to the committee upon written
application from the clerk of the committee.
Legislative Committees
Chairmen of legislative committees. Panel of Chairmen.
- 112.
-
At the commencement of each session, the Speaker shall appoint as many as twelve
Members, and from time to time additional Members as required, to act as
Chairmen of legislative committees, provided that a proportionate number of
Members from both the government party and the opposition parties shall be so
appointed. The Members appointed under the provisions of this Standing Order, together with the Deputy Speaker
and Chairman of Committees of the Whole, the Deputy Chairman of Committees of
the Whole and the Assistant Deputy Chairman of Committees of the Whole, shall
constitute the Panel of Chairmen for the legislative committees.
Striking of legislative committees.
- 113.
-
- (1)
-
Without anticipating the decision of the House, within five sitting days after the
commencement of debate on a motion to appoint a legislative committee or to
refer a bill thereto, the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs
shall meet to prepare, and shall report not later than the following
Thursday, a list of members of such a legislative committee, which shall consist
of not more than fifteen Members. Such a committee shall be organized only in the event that the House
adopts the motion for appointment or referral. Upon presentation of such a report of the Standing Committee on
Procedure and House Affairs, the same shall be deemed adopted.
Appointment of Chairman.
-
-
- (2)
-
Once the said report is adopted, the Speaker shall forthwith appoint the Chairman of the said
committee from the Panel of Chairmen established pursuant to Standing Order 112.
When a legislative committee to meet.
-
-
- (3)
-
A legislative committee constituted pursuant to sections (1) and (2) of this Standing Order shall
meet within two sitting days of the naming of the Chairman and the adoption
of the motion appointing or referring the bill to the committee of which the membership has been reported.
Acting Chairman of legislative committee.
-
-
- (4)
-
When the Chairman appointed pursuant to section (2) of this Standing Order is unable to act in that
capacity at or during a meeting of the legislative committee, the Chairman
shall designate a member of the committee to act as Chairman at or during
the said meeting and such an acting Chairman shall be vested with all the
powers of the Chairman at or during the said meeting.
Powers of a legislative committee.
-
-
- (5)
-
Any legislative committee shall be empowered to examine and enquire into the bills referred to it by
the House and to report the same with or without amendments, to prepare a
bill pursuant to Standing Order 68 and to report thereon and, except when the
House otherwise orders, to send for officials from government departments and
agencies and crown corporations and for other persons whom the committee
deems to be competent to appear as witnesses on technical matters, to send
for papers and records, to sit when the House is sitting, to sit when the
House stands adjourned, and to print from day to day such papers and evidence as may be ordered by it.
Sub-committee on agenda and procedure of a legislative committee.
-
-
- (6)
-
Any legislative committee may delegate to a sub-committee on agenda and procedure, its power to
schedule meetings of the committee and to call for officials from government
departments and agencies and crown corporations and for other persons whom
the committee deems competent to appear before it as witnesses on technical
matters, or to send for papers and records to be presented to the committee
in relation to the bill before the committee, provided that the committee shall retain the power to approve such arrangements.
Membership
Membership of standing and standing joint committees.
- 114.
-
- (1)
-
The membership of standing and standing joint committees shall be set out in the
report of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, which shall
prepare lists of members in accordance with Standing Order 104. Once the report of the Committee is
concurred in, the membership shall continue from session to session within a
Parliament, subject to such changes as may be effected from time to time.
List of replacements may be filed with the clerk of the committee.
-
-
- (2)
-
- (a)
-
Within five sitting days of the organization of any standing or standing joint
committee, and from time to time thereafter, any member of every such
committee may file with the clerk of the committee a list of not more than
fourteen Members selected from Members of his or her own party, who may
substitute for him or her during a meeting of the said committee, according to the procedure set out in
paragraph (b) of this section, provided that they shall not become permanent members of the committee.
Substitutions in membership of standing and standing joint committees.
- (b)
-
Substitutions in the membership of any standing committee or, so far as the House is
represented, on any standing joint committee shall be effective the day after
notification thereof is forwarded, by a permanent member of the committee who
has filed a list pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section, to the Chief Whip of his or her party (or, in the case of
independent Members, the Chief Whip of the Official Opposition) for
signature who, in turn, will forward the substitution to the clerk of the committee.
Substitutions by Chief Whip when no list filed or no notice received.
- (c)
-
At any time when no list has been filed with the clerk of the committee pursuant to
paragraph (a) of this section or when no notice has been received by the clerk of the committee pursuant to
paragraph (b) of this section, the Chief Whip of any recognized party may effect substitutions by filing notice
thereof with the clerk of the committee, having selected the substitutes
from among all the Members of his or her party and/or the independent members
listed as associate members of the committee pursuant to Standing Order
104(4); and such substitutions shall be effective immediately they are received by the clerk of the committee.
Member’s resignation from committee, when effective.
- (d)
-
When a permanent member of a standing or standing joint committee gives notice in
writing to the Chairman of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House
Affairs of his or her intention to give up his or her membership, that
Member’s resignation shall be effective when a report of the Standing
Committee on Procedure and House Affairs naming a replacement for him or her has been concurred in by the House.
Changes in membership of legislative committees.
-
-
- (3)
-
Changes in the membership of any legislative committee shall be effective immediately after notification
thereof, signed by the Chief Whip of any recognized party, has been filed with the clerk of the committee.
Changes in membership of standing committees.
-
-
- (4)
-
Changes in the membership of standing committees shall be effective when a report of the Standing
Committee on Procedure and House Affairs to that effect is concurred in by the House.
Meetings
Sittings of committees.
- 115.
-
- (1)
-
Notwithstanding Standing Order 108(1)(a), no
standing or standing joint committee shall sit at the same time as a
legislative committee on a bill emanating from or principally affecting the same department or agency.
Priority during sittings of the House.
-
-
- (2)
-
During periods coinciding with the hours of sittings of the House, priority shall be given to the
meetings of committees considering legislation or Estimates over meetings of committees considering other matters.
Priority during adjournments. Chief Government Whip to set schedules.
-
-
- (3)
-
During periods when the House stands adjourned, priority shall be given to meetings of standing,
special and joint committees, according to the schedule established from time
to time by the Chief Government Whip, in consultation with representatives of the other parties.
Priority of use in committee rooms.
-
-
- (4)
-
Priority of use in committee rooms shall be established from time to time by the Standing Committee on
Procedure and House Affairs.
Standing Orders apply generally.
- 116.
-
In a standing, special or legislative committee, the Standing Orders shall apply
so far as may be applicable, except the Standing Orders as to the election of
a Speaker, seconding of motions, limiting the number of times of speaking and the length of speeches.
Decorum in committee.
- 117.
-
The Chairman of a standing, special or legislative committee shall maintain order
in the committee, deciding all questions of order subject to an appeal to the
committee; but disorder in a committee can only be censured by the House, on receiving a report thereof.
Quorum.
- 118.
-
- (1)
-
A majority of the members of a standing, special or legislative committee shall
constitute a quorum; provided that, in the case of a legislative committee,
the Chairman is not included in the number of members constituting a
quorum. In the case of a joint committee, the number of members constituting a quorum shall be such as the House
of Commons acting in consultation with the Senate may determine.
Meetings without quorum.
-
-
- (2)
-
The presence of a quorum shall be required whenever a vote, resolution or other decision is taken by a
standing, special or legislative committee, provided that any such committee,
by resolution thereof, may authorize the Chairman to hold meetings in order
to receive evidence and may authorize its printing when a quorum is not present.
Only members may vote or move motion.
- 119.
-
Any Member of the House who is not a member of a standing, special or legislative
committee, may, unless the House or the committee concerned otherwise
orders, take part in the public proceedings of the committee, but may not vote or move any motion, nor be part of any quorum.
Broadcasting of committee meetings.
- 119.1.
-
- (1)
-
Any committee wishing to have its proceedings televised, other than by means of
those facilities provided for that purpose by the House of Commons, shall first obtain the consent of the House thereto.
Report on experimental guidelines. Electronic media.
-
-
- (2)
-
The Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs shall establish, by report to the House of
Commons, experimental guidelines governing the broadcasting of committee
meetings. After concurrence by the House in such a report, any committee may permit the presence of the
electronic media at its meetings, subject to the said guidelines.
Staff and Budgets
Staff of committees.
- 120.
-
Standing, special or legislative committees shall be severally empowered to retain the
services of expert, professional, technical and clerical staff as may be deemed necessary.
Interim spending authority. Budgets submitted to Board of Internal Economy.
- 121.
-
- (1)
-
The Board of Internal Economy may give interim spending authority to standing,
special and legislative committees. The committees shall be empowered to expend any amount up to the full
spending authority so granted but shall not incur any further expenses until
the Chairman of that committee, or a member of the committee acting for the
Chairman, has presented to the Board a budget setting forth, in reasonable
detail, estimates of its proposed expenditures for a specific period of time
together with an account of its expenditures to that date, and until the said budget has been approved by the Board.
Budget and statement of expenditures to be presented as soon as practicable.
-
-
- (2)
-
Notwithstanding any spending authority granted by the Board of Internal Economy pursuant to section (1)
of this Standing Order, the Chairman of each such committee, or a member of
the committee acting for the Chairman shall, as soon as practicable, present
the budget and statement of expenditures of the committee pursuant to
section (1) of this Standing Order for the consideration by the Board.
Supplementary budgets.
-
-
- (3)
-
When the expenditures of any such committee have reached the limits set forth in any such budget, the
committee shall not incur any further expenses until a supplementary budget
or budgets has or have been presented to the Board of Internal Economy pursuant
to section (1) of this Standing Order, and until the said budgets have been approved in whole or in part by the Board.
Annual financial report on committees.
-
-
- (4)
-
The Board of Internal Economy shall cause to be tabled in the House an annual comprehensive
financial report, outlining the individual expenditures of every standing,
special and legislative committee, provided that the Board may cause such
reports to be so tabled at any time with respect to a specific committee.
Witnesses
Certificate to obtain evidence.
- 122.
-
If any Member files a certificate with the Chairman of a committee of the House,
stating that the evidence to be obtained from a particular person is, in his
or her opinion, material and important, the Chairman shall apprise the committee thereof.
Chapter XIV
Delegated Legislation
Report may contain a resolution. Order of the House upon adoption.
- 123.
-
- (1)
-
In addition to the powers granted, so far as this House is concerned, to the Standing
Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations, pursuant to Standing Order
108(4), the said Committee shall be empowered to make a report to the House
containing only a resolution which, if the report is concurred in, would be
an Order of this House to the Ministry to revoke a statutory instrument, or a
portion thereof, which the Governor in Council or a Minister of the Crown has the authority to revoke.
Only one report to be presented in the same sitting.
-
-
- (2)
-
Not more than one report pursuant to section (1) of this Standing Order shall be received during any sitting.
Member presenting report to state that it contains a resolution and shall identify the statutory instrument.
-
-
- (3)
-
When any report is made pursuant to section (1) of this Standing Order, the Member presenting it shall
state that it contains a resolution pursuant to section (1) of this Standing
Order, shall identify the statutory instrument, or portion thereof, in
relation to which the said report is made, and shall indicate that the relevant text is included in the report.
Motion for concurrence placed on Notice Paper in name of Member presenting report. Only one such motion allowed.
-
-
- (4)
-
Immediately after the said
report is received and laid upon the Table, the Clerk of the House shall
cause to be placed on the Notice Paper,
a notice of motion for concurrence in the report, which shall stand in the
name of the Member presenting the report. No other notice of motion for concurrence in the report shall be
placed on the Notice Paper.
Motion for concurrence considered at request of Minister. Any Member may move motion.
- 124.
-
When a notice given pursuant to Standing Order 123(4) is transferred to the Order Paper under “Motions”, it shall be set down for
consideration only pursuant to Standing Order 128(1) and shall be considered
only at the request of a Minister of the Crown, provided that any other
Member shall be permitted to propose the motion on behalf of the Member in
whose name it stands, notwithstanding the usual practices of the House.
Motion deemed adopted.
- 125.
-
Except as otherwise provided in any Standing or Special Order of the House, and unless otherwise
disposed of, at not later than the ordinary hour of daily adjournment on the
fifteenth sitting day following the date on which a notice of motion made pursuant
to Standing Order 123(4) appeared on the Order Paper, the same shall be deemed to have been moved and adopted by the House.
Time limit on debate.
- 126.
-
- (1)
-
A notice given pursuant to Standing Order 123(4) shall be taken up and considered for
a period not exceeding one hour, provided that:
Time limit on speeches.
- (a)
-
during the consideration of any such motion or motions, no Member shall speak more than
once or for more than ten minutes;
Procedural acceptability of a report. Motion deemed withdrawn.
- (b)
-
for the purposes of this Standing Order and notwithstanding the usual practices of
the House, no consideration of the procedural acceptability of any report,
for which a notice of motion for concurrence has been given pursuant to
Standing Order 123(4), shall be entertained until all such notices of motions
of which notice of consideration had previously been given pursuant to
Standing Order 54, have been put to the House for its consideration. If any report is thereafter found to be
irreceivable, the motion for concurrence in the report shall be deemed to have been withdrawn; and
Putting of questions. Deferring divisions. Length of bells.
- (c)
-
unless the motion or motions be previously disposed of, not later than the end of the
said hour of consideration, the Speaker shall interrupt any proceedings then
before the House and put forthwith and successively, without further debate
or amendment, every question necessary to dispose of the said motion or
motions, provided that any division or divisions demanded in relation thereto
shall stand deferred until no later than the ordinary hour of daily
adjournment in that sitting, when the bells to call in the Members shall be
sounded for not more than fifteen minutes. Any remaining questions necessary to dispose of proceedings in
relation to such motion or motions, on which a decision has been deferred
until after the taking of such a division, shall be put forthwith and successively, without further debate or amendment.
Division not to be further deferred.
-
-
- (2)
-
The provisions of Standing Order 45(5) shall be suspended in the case of any division demanded pursuant
to paragraph (c) of section (1) of this Standing Order.
Adjournment hour suspended.
-
-
- (3)
-
The Standing Orders relating to the ordinary hour of daily adjournment shall be suspended until all
questions have been decided pursuant to paragraph (c) of section (1) of this Standing Order.
Order in which motions are set down for consideration. Grouping of motions.
- 127.
-
The House shall undertake consideration of any motion or motions made pursuant to Standing
Order 123(4) in the order in which they may be set down for consideration at
the request of a Minister of the Crown, provided that all such motions shall be grouped together for debate.
Motions for concurrence to be taken up on a Wednesday.
- 128.
-
- (1)
-
When a notice or notices of motion for concurrence given pursuant to Standing Order 123(4)
has or have been set down for consideration pursuant to Standing Order 124,
the House shall meet at 1:00 p. m. on the Wednesday next, at which time the
order of business shall be the consideration of the said notice or notices.
Consideration.
-
-
- (2)
-
When the House meets at 1:00 p. m. on any Wednesday pursuant to section (1) of this Standing Order, the
House shall not consider any other item but those provided pursuant to that section, provided that:
- (a)
-
if such proceedings are concluded prior to 2:00 p. m. on any such day, the Speaker
shall suspend the sitting until that hour; and
- (b)
-
all such proceedings shall be concluded except as provided pursuant to Standing Order
126(1)(c) at 2:00 p. m. on the same day.
Chapter XV
Private Bills
Notices
Publication of Standing Order.
- 129.
-
At the beginning of a session, the Clerk of the House shall publish in the Canada Gazette
the Standing Order respecting notices of intended applications for private bills. Thereafter, the Clerk of the House
shall publish weekly in the Canada Gazette a notice referring to
the previous publication of the aforementioned Standing Order.
Publication of notices.
- 130.
-
- (1)
-
All applications to Parliament for private bills, of any nature whatsoever, shall
be advertised by a notice published in the Canada Gazette; such notice shall clearly and distinctly state
the nature and objects of the application, and shall be signed by or on
behalf of the applicants, with the address of the party signing the same; and
when the application is for an Act of incorporation, the name of the
proposed company shall be stated in the notice. If the works of any company (incorporated, or to be
incorporated) are to be declared to be for the general advantage of Canada,
such intention shall be specifically mentioned in the notice; and the
applicants shall cause a copy of such notice to be sent by registered letter
to the clerk of each county or municipality which may be specially affected
by the construction or operation of such works, and also to the secretary of
the province in which such works are, or may be located. Every such notice sent by registered
letter shall be mailed in time to reach its destination not later than two
weeks before the consideration of the proposed bill by the committee to which
it may be referred; and proof of compliance with this requirement by the applicants shall be established by statutory declaration.
Additional notice.
-
-
- (2)
-
In addition to the notice in
the Canada Gazette aforesaid, a similar notice shall also be published in some leading newspaper as follows:
In case of incorporation.
- (a)
-
when the application is for an Act to incorporate:
Railway or canal company.
-
-
- (i)
-
a railway or canal company: in the principal city, town
or village in each county or district, through which the proposed railway or canal is to be constructed;
Telegraph or telephone company.
-
-
- (ii)
-
a telegraph or telephone company: in the principal
city or town in each province or territory in which the company proposes to operate;
Construction of works. Exclusive rights.
-
-
- (iii)
-
a company for the construction of any works which in their construction or operation might specially affect the particular
locality; or obtaining any exclusive rights or privileges; or for doing any
matter or thing which in its operation would affect the rights or property of
others: in the particular locality or localities in which the business,
rights or property of other persons or corporations may be affected by the proposed Act; and
Banking, insurance, trust, loan company or industrial company.
-
-
- (iv)
-
a banking company; an insurance company; a trust
company; a loan company; or an industrial company without any exclusive powers: in the Canada Gazette only.
In case of amending Act.
- (b)
-
when the application is for the purpose of amending an existing Act:
Extension of railway.
-
-
- (i)
-
for an extension of any line of railway, or of any canal; or for the construction of branches thereto: in the place where the
head office of the company is situated, and in the principal city, town or
village in each county or district through which such extension or branch is to be constructed;
Extension of time.
-
-
- (ii)
-
for an extension of time for the construction or completion of any line of railway or of any branch or extension thereof, or
of any canal, or of any telegraph or telephone line, or of any other works
already authorized: at the place where the head office of the company is
situated and in the principal city or town of the districts affected; and
Continuation of charter.
-
-
- (iii)
-
for the continuation of a charter or for an extension of the powers of the company (when not involving the granting of any
exclusive rights) or for the increase or reduction of the capital stock of
any company; or for increasing or altering its bonding or other borrowing
powers; or for any amendment which would in any way affect the rights or
interests of the shareholders or bondholders or creditors of the company: in
the place where the head office of the company is situated or authorized to be.
Exclusive rights.
- (c)
-
when the application is for the purpose of obtaining for any person or existing
corporation any exclusive rights or privileges or the power to do any matter
or thing which in its operation would affect the rights or property of
others: in the particular locality or localities in which the business,
rights or property of others may be specially affected by the proposed Act.
Duration of notice.
-
-
- (3)
-
All such notices, whether inserted in the Canada Gazette or
in a newspaper, shall be published at least once a week for a period of four
consecutive weeks; and when originating in the Province of Quebec or in the
Province of Manitoba shall be published in English in an English newspaper
and in French in a French newspaper, and in both languages in the Canada Gazette, and if there is no
newspaper in a locality where a notice is required to be given, such notice
shall be given in the next nearest locality wherein a newspaper is published;
and proof of the due publication of notice shall be established in each case
by statutory declaration; and all such declarations shall be sent to the
Clerk of the House endorsed “Private Bill Notice”.
Petition
Petition filed with Clerk of the House.
- 131.
-
- (1)
-
A petition for a private bill may be presented by a Member at any time during the
sitting of the House by filing the same with the Clerk of the House.
Members answerable.
-
-
- (2)
-
Members presenting petitions for private bills shall be answerable that such petitions do not contain
impertinent or improper matter.
Member’s signature.
-
-
- (3)
-
Every Member presenting a petition for a private bill shall sign his or her name on the back thereof.
Signatures of petitioners.
-
-
- (4)
-
Petitions for private bills may be either written or printed; provided always that when there are three
or more petitioners the signatures of at least three petitioners shall be
subscribed on the sheet containing the prayer of the petition.
Report of Clerk of Petitions.
-
-
- (5)
-
On the next day following the presentation of a petition for a private bill, the Clerk of the House
shall lay upon the Table the report of the Clerk of Petitions thereon and such
report shall be printed in the Journals. Every petition so reported upon, not
containing matter in breach of the privileges of this House and which,
according to the Standing Orders or practice of this House, can be received, shall then be deemed to be read and received.
No debate on report. Petition may be read.
-
-
- (6)
-
No debate shall be permitted on the report but a petition referred to therein may be read by the Clerk of
the House at the Table, if required.
- 132.
-
Deleted (June 10, 1994).
Examiner of petitions for private bills.
- 133.
-
- (1)
-
The Chief Clerk of Private Bills shall be the Examiner of Petitions for Private Bills.
Report to the House.
-
-
- (2)
-
Petitions for private bills, when received by the House, are to be taken into consideration by the
Examiner who shall report to the House in each case the extent to which the
requirements of the Standing Orders regarding notice have been complied with;
and in every case where the notice is reported by the Examiner to have been
insufficient or otherwise defective, or if the Examiner reports that there is
any doubt as to the sufficiency of the notice as published, the petition,
together with the report of the Examiner thereon, shall be taken into
consideration, without special reference, by the Standing Committee on
Procedure and House Affairs, which shall report to the House as to the
sufficiency or insufficiency of the notice, and where the notice is deemed
insufficient or otherwise defective, shall recommend to the House the course to be taken in consequence of such deficiency or other defect.
Private bills from Senate.
-
-
- (3)
-
All private bills from the Senate (not being based on a petition which has already been so reported on)
shall be first taken into consideration and reported on by the Examiner of
Petitions, and when necessary by the Standing Committee on Procedure and
House Affairs in like manner, after the first reading of such bills, and
before their consideration by any other legislative committee.
Map or plan with petition.
-
-
- (4)
-
No petition praying for the incorporation of a railway company, or of a canal company, or for an
extension of the line of any existing or authorized railway or canal, or for
the construction of branches thereto, shall be considered by the Examiner, or
by the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, until there has
been filed with the said Examiner a map or plan, showing the proposed
location of the works, and each county, township, municipality or district
through which the proposed railway or canal, or any branch or extension thereof, is to be constructed.
Fees and Charges
Time limited for depositing bill. Printing and translation cost.
- 134.
-
- (1)
-
Any person desiring to obtain any private bill shall deposit with the Clerk of the House
not later than the first day of each session, a copy of such bill in the
English or French language, with a sum sufficient to pay for translating and
printing the same; the translation to be done by the officers of the House,
and the printing by the Department of Public Printing.
Cost of printing the Act.
-
-
- (2)
-
After the second reading of a bill, and before its consideration by the committee to which it is
referred, the applicant shall in every case pay the cost of printing the Act in the Statutes, and a fee of $500.
Other charges.
-
-
- (3)
-
The following charges shall also be levied and paid in addition to the foregoing:
- (a)
-
when any Standing Order of the House is suspended
in reference to a bill or the petition therefor, for each such suspension . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $100
- (b)
-
when a bill is presented in the House after the eighth week of the session and not
later than the twelfth week . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $100
- (c)
-
when a bill is presented in the House after the twelfth week of the session
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $200
- (d)
-
when the proposed capital stock of a company does not exceed $250,000
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $100
- (e)
-
when the proposed capital stock of a company is over $250,000 and does not exceed
$500,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $200
- (f)
-
when the proposed capital stock of a company is over $500,000 and does not exceed
$750,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $300
- (g)
-
when the proposed capital stock of a company is over $750,000 and does not exceed
$1,000,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $400
- (h)
-
when the proposed capital stock of a company is over $1,000,000 and does not
exceed $1,500,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $600
- (i)
-
when the proposed capital stock of a company is over $1,500,000 and does not
exceed $2,000,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $800
- (j)
-
for every additional million dollars or fractional part thereof
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $200
Capital increased.
-
-
- (4)
-
When a bill increases the capital stock of an existing company, the additional charge shall be
according to the foregoing tariff, upon the amount of the increase only.
Borrowing powers increased.
-
-
- (5)
-
- (a)
-
When a bill increases or involves an increase in the borrowing powers of a company
without any increase in the capital stock, the additional charge shall be $300.
Increase of capital and borrowing powers.
- (b)
-
When a bill increases both the capital stock and the borrowing powers of a company, the
additional charge shall be made upon both.
Bill stands until charges are paid.
-
-
- (6)
-
If any increase in the amount of the proposed capital stock or borrowing powers of a company be made
at any stage of a bill, such bill shall not be advanced to the next stage
until the charges consequent upon such change have been paid.
Interpretation.
-
-
- (7)
-
In this Standing Order the term “proposed capital stock” includes any increase thereto provided
for in the bill; and where power is taken in a bill to increase at any time
the amount of the proposed capital stock, the additional charge shall be
levied on the maximum amount of such proposed increase which shall be stated in the bill.
Additional charges apply to Senate bills.
-
-
- (8)
-
The additional charges provided for in this Standing Order shall also apply to private bills
originating in the Senate; provided, however, that if a petition for any such
bill has been filed with this House, the additional charges made under
paragraphs (b) or (c) of section (3) shall not be levied thereon.
Collection of fees.
-
-
- (9)
-
The Chief Clerk of Private Bills shall prepare and send to the promoter or parliamentary agent in charge
of every private bill a statement of fees and charges payable under this
Standing Order, and shall collect all such fees and charges and deposit the
same with the accountant of the House and shall send a copy of each such deposit slip to the Clerk of the House.
Introduction and Readings
Private bills introduced on petition.
- 135.
-
- (1)
-
All private bills are introduced on petition, and after such petition has been favourably
reported upon by the Examiner of Petitions or by the Standing Committee on
Procedure and House Affairs, such bills shall be laid upon the Table of the
House by the Clerk, and shall be deemed to have been read a first time and
ordered to be printed, and to have been ordered for a second reading when so
laid upon the Table, and so recorded in the Journals.
Senate bills deemed read a first time.
-
-
- (2)
-
When the Speaker informs the House that any private bill has been brought from the Senate, the bill shall
be deemed to have been read a first time and ordered for a second reading and
reference to a legislative committee at the next sitting of the House and so recorded in the Journals.
Examiner of private bills.
- 136.
-
- (1)
-
The Chief Clerk of Private Bills shall be the Examiner of Private Bills, and, as such,
shall examine and revise all private bills before they are printed, for the
purpose of insuring uniformity where possible and of seeing that they are
drawn in accordance with the Standing Orders of the House respecting private bills.
Model bill.
-
-
- (2)
-
Every bill for an Act of incorporation, where a form of model bill has been adopted, shall be drawn in
accordance with a model bill (copies of model bills may be obtained from the
Clerk of the House). Any provisions contained in any such bill which are not in accord with the model bill shall
be inserted between brackets or underlined, and shall be so printed.
Amending bill.
-
-
- (3)
-
Where a private bill amends any section, subsection or paragraph of an existing Act, such section,
subsection or paragraph shall be repealed in the text of the bill and
re-enacted as proposed to be amended, the new matter being indicated by
underlining; and the section, subsection or paragraph which is to be so
repealed, or so much thereof as is essential, shall be printed in the
right-hand page opposite such section, subsection or paragraph.
When a repeal is involved.
-
-
- (4)
-
When a private bill repeals an existing section, subsection, or other minor division of a section, that
section, subsection or division, or so much thereof as is essential, shall be printed opposite the clause.
Explanatory note where necessary.
-
-
- (5)
-
A brief explanatory note giving the reasons for any clause of an unusual nature or which differs from
the model bill clauses or standard clauses shall be printed opposite the clause in the bill.
Map or plan with bill.
- 137.
-
No bill for the incorporation of a railway or canal company, or for authorizing the construction
of branch lines or extensions of existing lines of railways or of canals, or
for changing the route of the railway or of the canal of any company already
incorporated, shall be considered by a legislative committee, until there has
been filed with the committee, at least one week before the consideration of
the bill, a map or plan drawn upon a scale of not less than half an inch to
the mile, showing the location upon which it is intended to construct the
proposed work, and showing also the lines of existing or authorized works of
a similar character within, or in any way affecting the district, or any part
thereof, which the proposed work is intended to serve; and such map or plan
shall be signed by the engineer or other person making same.
Bills confirming agreements.
- 138.
-
When any bill for confirming any agreement is presented to the House, a true copy of such
agreement must be attached to it.
Instruction to committees in certain cases.
- 139.
-
That it be an instruction to all committees on private bills, in the event of promoters not
being ready to proceed with their measures when the same have been twice called
on two separate occasions for consideration by the committee, that such
measures shall be reported back to the House forthwith, together with a
statement of the facts and with the recommendation that such bills be withdrawn.
Suspension of rules.
- 140.
-
No motion for the suspension or modification of any provision of the Standing Orders applying
to private bills or to petitions for private bills shall be entertained by
the House until after reference is made to the Standing Committee on Procedure
and House Affairs, and a report made thereon by the Committee and, in its
report, the Committee shall state the grounds for recommending such suspension or modification.
Bills and petitions referred to committee.
- 141.
-
- (1)
-
Every private bill, when read a second time stands referred to a legislative committee, and
all petitions for or against the bills are considered as referred to the same committee.
Notice of sitting of committee.
-
-
- (2)
-
- (a)
-
No committee on any private bill originating in this House is to consider the
same until after one week’s notice of the sitting of such committee has been
first affixed in the lobby; nor, in the case of any such bill originating in
the Senate, until after twenty-four hours’ like notice.
Notice to be appended to Journals.
- (b)
-
On the day of the posting of any bill under this section, the Clerk of the House shall
cause a notice of such posting to be appended to the Journals.
Voting in committee. Chairman votes.
-
-
- (3)
-
All questions before committees on private bills are decided by a majority of voices including the
voice of the Chairman; and whenever the voices are equal, the Chairman has a second or casting vote.
Provision not covered by notice.
-
-
- (4)
-
It is the duty of the committee to which any private bill may be referred by the House, to call the
attention of the House specially to any provisions inserted in such bill that
do not appear to have been contemplated in the notice or petition for the
same, as reported upon by the Examiner of Petitions or by the Standing Committee
on Procedure and House Affairs; and any private bill so reported shall not be
placed on the Order Paper for consideration until a report has been made by the Examiner as to the
sufficiency or otherwise of the notice to cover such provisions.
All bills to be reported.
-
-
- (5)
-
The committee to which a private bill may have been referred shall report the same to the House in
every case.
When preamble not proven.
-
-
- (6)
-
When the committee on any private bill reports to the House that they have made any material change in
the preamble of a bill, the reasons for making such change shall be stated in
their report; and if they report that the preamble of a bill has not been
proved to their satisfaction, they must also state the grounds upon which
they have arrived at such a decision; and no bill, the preamble of which has
been reported as not proven shall be placed upon the Orders of the Day unless by special Order of the House.
Chairman to sign bills and to initial amendments.
-
-
- (7)
-
The Chairman of the committee shall sign with his or her name at length a printed copy of the bill, and
shall also sign with the initials of his or her name, the preamble and the
various sections of the bill and also any amendments which may be made or
clauses added in committee; and another copy of the bill with the amendments,
if any, written thereon shall be prepared by the clerk of the committee, who
shall sign the bill with his or her name at length and shall also sign with
the initials of his or her name the preamble and the various sections adopted
by the committee, and any amendments which may have been made thereto, and
shall file the same with the Clerk of the House or attach it to the report of the committee.
Reprinting of bills when amended.
-
-
- (8)
-
Private bills amended by any committee may be reprinted by order of such committee; or after being
reported, and before consideration in the House, may be reprinted in whole or
in part as the Clerk of the House may direct; and the cost of such reprinting
shall, in either case, be added to the cost of the first printing of the bill and be payable by the promoter of the same.
Notice of amendments.
- 142.
-
No important amendment may be proposed to any private bill in the House unless one day’s notice of
the same has been given.
Amendments by the Senate.
- 143.
-
When any private bill is returned from the Senate with amendments, the same not being merely verbal
or unimportant, such amendments are, previous to the second reading, referred
to the committee to which such bill was originally referred.
Record and Lists
Record of private bills.
- 144.
-
A record shall be kept in the private bills office of the name, description, and place of residence
of the parties applying for a private bill or of their agent, the amount of
fees paid, and all the proceedings thereon, from the time of the deposit of
the bill with the Clerk of the House to the passage of the bill; such record
to specify briefly each proceeding in the House or in any committee to which
the bill or the petition may be referred, and the day on which the committee
is appointed to sit; such record shall be open to public inspection during office hours.
List of bills posted in lobbies.
- 145.
-
- (1)
-
Lists of all private bills which have been referred to any committee shall be prepared
daily by the Chief Clerk of Private Bills, specifying the committee to which
each bill has been referred and the date on or after which the bill may be
considered by such committee, and shall cause the same to be hung up in the lobby.
Publication of committee meetings.
-
-
- (2)
-
A list of committee meetings shall be prepared from time to time as arranged, by the Chief Clerk of
Private Bills, stating the day and hour of each such meeting, and the room in
which it is to be held, which list shall be hung up in the lobby on the day previous to that on which the meeting is to be held.
Parliamentary Agent
Authority conferred by the Speaker.
- 146.
-
- (1)
-
No person shall act as parliamentary agent conducting proceedings before the House of
Commons or its committees without the express sanction and authority of the
Speaker, and all such agents shall be personally responsible to the House and
to the Speaker, for the observance of the rules, orders and practice of
Parliament and rules prescribed by the Speaker, and also for the payment of all fees and charges.
List of agents.
-
-
- (2)
-
A list of such persons shall be kept by the Chief Clerk of Private Bills and a copy filed with the Clerk
of the House.
Fee per session.
-
-
- (3)
-
No person shall be allowed to be registered as a parliamentary agent during any session unless he or
she has paid a fee of twenty-five dollars for such session and is actually
employed in promoting or opposing some private bill or petition pending in Parliament during that session.
Liability of agents.
-
-
- (4)
-
Any parliamentary agent who wilfully acts in violation of the Standing Orders and practice of Parliament,
or of any rules to be prescribed by the Speaker, or who wilfully misconducts
himself or herself in prosecuting any proceedings before Parliament, shall be
liable to an absolute or temporary prohibition to practice as a parliamentary
agent, at the pleasure of the Speaker; provided, that upon the application of
such agent, the Speaker shall state in writing the ground for such prohibition.
Application of Standing Orders
Standing Orders apply to private bills.
- 147.
-
Except as herein otherwise provided, the Standing Orders relating to public bills shall apply
to private bills.
Chapter XVI
House Administration
Report of the proceedings of Board of Internal Economy.
- 148.
-
- (1)
-
The Speaker shall, within ten days after the opening of each session, lay upon the Table
of the House a report of the proceedings for the preceding session of the Board of Internal Economy.
Report on committee budgets.
-
-
- (2)
-
The Speaker shall, as soon as the Board of Internal Economy has reached a decision concerning any
budget or supplementary budget presented to it pursuant to sections (1) and
(2) of Standing Order 121, lay upon the Table the record of the Board’s decision.
- 149.
-
Deleted (June 10, 1994).
- 150.
-
Deleted (June 10, 1994).
Safe-keeping of records. Control of officers and staff.
- 151.
-
The Clerk of the House is responsible for the safe-keeping of all the papers and records of the
House, and has the direction and control over all the officers and clerks
employed in the offices, subject to such orders as the Clerk may, from time
to time, receive from the Speaker or the House.
Order Paper for Speaker.
- 152.
-
The Clerk of the House shall place on the Speaker’s table, every morning, previous to the meeting of
the House, the order of the proceedings for the day.
List of documents to be tabled.
- 153.
-
It is the duty of the Clerk of the House to make and cause to be printed and delivered to each Member,
at the commencement of every session of Parliament, a list of the reports or
other periodical statements which it is the duty of any officer or department
of the government, or any bank or other corporate body to make to the House, referring to the Act or
resolution, and page of the volume of the laws or Journals wherein the same may be ordered; and placing under the
name of each officer or corporation a list of reports or returns required to
be made, and the time when the report or periodical statement may be expected.
Messages to and from the Senate.
- 154.
-
A Clerk of this House may be the bearer of messages from this House to the Senate. Messages from the Senate may be received
at the bar by a Clerk of this House, as soon as announced by the Sergeant-at-Arms,
at any time while the House is sitting, or in committee, without interrupting the business then proceeding.
- 155.
-
Deleted (June 10, 1994).
- 156.
-
Deleted (June 10, 1994).
Safe-keeping of the Mace.
- 157.
-
- (1)
-
The Sergeant-at-Arms is responsible for the safe-keeping of the Mace.
Other responsibilities of Sergeant-at-Arms.
-
-
- (2)
-
The Sergeant-at-Arms serves all Orders of the House upon those whom they may
concern and is entrusted with the execution of warrants issued by the
Speaker. The Sergeant-at-Arms issues cards of admission to, and preserves order in, the galleries, corridors,
lobbies and other parts of the House of Commons.
Conduct of strangers.
- 158.
-
- (1)
-
Any stranger admitted into any part of the House or gallery who misconducts himself or herself, or does not
withdraw when strangers are directed to withdraw, while the House or any
Committee of the Whole House is sitting, shall be taken into custody by the
Sergeant-at-Arms; and no person so taken into custody shall be discharged without the special Order of the House.
Strangers in custody of Sergeant-at-Arms.
-
-
- (2)
-
No stranger who has been committed, by Order of the House, to the custody of the
Sergeant-at-Arms, shall be released from such custody until he or she has
paid a fee of four dollars to the Sergeant-at-Arms.
Completion of work at close of session.
- 159.
-
It is the duty of the officers of this House to complete and finish the work remaining at the close of the session.