Hon. Diane Bellemare moved the adoption of the report.

(On motion of Senator Martin, debate adjourned.)

[English]

On the Order:

Resuming debate on the motion of the Honourable Senator Galvez, seconded by the Honourable Senator Forest:

That the Senate of Canada recognize that:

(a)climate change is an urgent crisis that requires an immediate and ambitious response;

(b)human activity is unequivocally warming the atmosphere, ocean and land at an unprecedented pace, and is provoking weather and climate extremes in every region across the globe, including in the Arctic, which is warming at more than twice the global rate;

(c)failure to address climate change is resulting in catastrophic consequences especially for Canadian youth, Indigenous Peoples and future generations; and

(d)climate change is negatively impacting the health and safety of Canadians, and the financial stability of Canada;

That the Senate declare that Canada is in a national climate emergency which requires that Canada uphold its international commitments with respect to climate change and increase its climate action in line with the Paris Agreement’s objective of holding global warming well below two degrees Celsius and pursuing efforts to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius; and

That the Senate commit to action on mitigation and adaptation in response to the climate emergency and that it consider this urgency for action while undertaking its parliamentary business.

Hon. Sabi Marwah, pursuant to notice of March 24, 2022, moved:

That section 2 of Chapter 4:03 of the Senate Administrative Rules (SARs) be amended by adding the following after subsection (2):

“(3) During periods of prorogation and dissolution, the senators who were members of the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure of the Committee of Selection on the day on which Parliament was prorogued or dissolved may exercise collectively the powers of the Committee of Selection under subsection (2).

(4) If a senator referred to in subsection (3) retires, resigns or otherwise ceases to be a member of a particular recognized party or recognized parliamentary group for any reason during a period of prorogation or dissolution, he or she simultaneously ceases to be a member of the Committee of Selection for the purposes of subsection (3), with the resulting vacancy to be filled by the leader or facilitator of the party or group to which the senator had belonged.”

He said: I think this is a very simple motion, Senator Martin. As you know, right now if the Senate is prorogued, there can be a position, whereby if senators are appointed during the dissolution period, there is no office that can be given to them. We normally need to have workarounds to give them an office, because the Selection Committee is not sitting. All this motion really does is it allows the Selection Committee and the steering members of the Selection Committee to sit during the dissolution period for the sole purpose of providing an office to the senator who has been appointed during that period. That is the essence of the motion. If a member of the Selection Committee is replaced, then they can only be replaced by the leaders of that particular group.

I would be glad to take any questions.

(On motion of Senator Martin, debate adjourned.)

(At 8:26 p.m., the Senate was continued until tomorrow at 2 p.m.)

Appendix—Senators List