Chapter 19: Committees of the Whole Chapter Summary

• A committee of the whole is a committee whose membership is comprised of all members of the House. It meets in the House of Commons chamber.
• Committees of the whole are created to consider a specific matter and cease to exist once they have fulfilled their mandate.
• Any presiding officer may chair the committee.
• Appropriation or supply bills (bills authorizing the withdrawal of funds from the Consolidated Revenue Fund for government expenditures) are automatically referred to a committee of the whole for consideration. Other bills may also be referred to a committee of the whole, pursuant to either a standing or special order.
• Other items of business that take place in a committee of the whole include take-note debates, the consideration of estimates (departmental expenditure plans consisting of main estimates, tabled annually), and the clause-by-clause study of supply bills.
• As in standing committees, motions do not need to be seconded in committees of the whole.
• Members are not limited in the number of times they may speak to a question.
• Rules respecting the length of speeches vary depending on the item of business being considered.
• Proceedings may be interrupted by scheduled items of daily business, by a scheduled recorded division in the House or if the committee is unable to complete its business at the conclusion of the time allotted for Government Orders.
• The process for voting in a committee of the whole is identical to that of the House, except there is no record of how an individual member voted.
• Disorder may only be addressed by the House.
• Rulings by the Chair of a committee of the whole may be appealed to the Speaker.
• The process for raising and dealing with a question of privilege in a committee of the whole is identical to that for any standing, legislative or special committee.
• The Chair of a committee of the whole has no authority to rule that a breach of privilege has occurred but rather decides if the matter should be reported to the House. The Speaker hears the question of privilege and delivers a ruling on the matter.