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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 281

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
February 13, 2024 10:00AM
  • Feb/13/24 12:47:09 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I will start by saying how much I enjoyed working with the hon. member on the special joint committee, not just on this occasion but last year as well. He is well aware of this looming deadline. We need to focus on the issue at hand and get this bill passed. Any additional layers of discussion that we add to that could potentially impact our ability to get this bill through the House and through the Senate. It is important that we get this done before the March deadline, and I think we agree on that. I think he will agree with me, and in fact I know he agrees with me, that the process at the committee has been very positive and constructive.
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  • Feb/13/24 3:29:16 p.m.
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  • Re: Bill C-62 
Mr. Speaker, following up on the question from the member for Fredericton, I was a member of that special joint committee, and I agree with her that its work was quite important. I think that every member, both from the House and the Senate, approached the subject matter with the responsibility and gravitas it demanded. However, I will put an asterisk beside that because the committee, in its last iteration, was afforded only three meetings of three hours each with witnesses. Unfortunately, there were a lot of witnesses we could have heard from. We did not even have time to go over the briefs that were submitted because there were so many of them and there simply was not time to translate them into both official languages. This is mainly a comment for the parliamentary secretary to respond to: I am glad to see that we actually have a legislative requirement built into Bill C-62 that the special joint committee would be reconvened. I hope it would be done with plenty of runway to give this particular subject the time it deserves, which I frankly would say most Canadians expect.
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