The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, I have the honour to inform the Senate that a message has been received from the House of Commons which reads as follows:

Wednesday, March 30, 2022

EXTRACT, —

That,

(a)pursuant to subsection 5(1) of An Act to amend the Criminal Code (medical assistance in dying), a special joint committee of the Senate and the House of Commons be appointed to review the provisions of the Criminal Code relating to medical assistance in dying and their application, including but not limited to issues relating to mature minors, advance requests, mental illness, the state of palliative care in Canada and the protection of Canadians with disabilities;

(b)pursuant to subsection 5(2) of the act, five members of the Senate and 10 members of the House of Commons be members of the committee, including five members of the House of Commons from the governing party, three members of the House of Commons from the official opposition, and two members of the House of Commons from the opposition who are not members of the official opposition, with two Chairs of which the House Co‑Chair shall be from the governing party and the Senate Co-Chair shall be determined by the Senate;

(c)in addition to the Co-Chairs, the committee shall elect three vice-chairs from the House, of whom the first vice-chair shall be from the Conservative Party of Canada, the second vice-chair shall be from the Bloc Québécois and the third vice-chair shall be from the New Democratic Party;

(d)pursuant to subsection 5(3) of the act, the quorum of the committee be eight members whenever a vote, resolution or other decision is taken, so long as both Houses and one member of the governing party in the House, one from the opposition in the House and one member of the Senate are represented, and that the Joint Chairs be authorized to hold meetings, to receive evidence and authorize the printing thereof, whenever six members are present, so long as both Houses and one member of the governing party in the House, one member from the opposition in the House and one member of the Senate are represented;

(e)the House of Commons members be named by their respective whip by depositing with the Clerk of the House the list of their members to serve on the committee no later than five sitting days after the adoption of this motion;

(f)changes to the membership of the committee, on the part of the House of Commons, be effective immediately after notification by the relevant whip has been filed with the Clerk of the House;

(g)membership substitutions, on the part of the House of Commons, be permitted, if required, in the manner provided for in Standing Order 114(2) and that they may be filed with the clerk of the committee by email;

(h)until Thursday, June 23, 2022, where applicable to a special joint committee, the provisions contained in paragraph (r) of the order adopted by the House on Thursday, November 25, 2021, shall also apply to the committee;

(i)the committee have the power to:

(i)sit during sittings and adjournments of the House,

(ii)report from time to time, to send for persons, papers and records, and to print such papers and evidence as may be ordered by the committee,

(iii)retain the services of expert, professional, technical and clerical staff, including legal counsel,

(iv)appoint, from among its members such subcommittees as may be deemed appropriate and to delegate to such subcommittees, all or any of its powers, except the power to report to the Senate and House of Commons,

(v)authorize video and audio broadcasting of any or all of its proceedings and that public proceedings be made available to the public via the Parliament of Canada’s websites;

(j)pursuant to subsection 5(5) of the act, the committee submit a final report of its review, including a statement of any recommended changes, to Parliament no later than Thursday, June 23, 2022; and

(k)pursuant to subsection 5(6) of the act, following the tabling of the final report in both Houses, the committee shall expire; and

that a message be sent to the Senate requesting that House to unite with this House for the above purpose and to select, if the Senate deems advisable, members to act on the proposed special joint committee.

ATTEST

Charles Robert

The Clerk of the House of Commons

Honourable senators, when shall this message be taken into consideration?

Senator Housakos: Yes.

Senator Carignan: Do you remember the oath you took in the Senate, in which you pledged to attend Parliament whenever Parliament was called to sit?

Senator Carignan: Senator Housakos, would you take a question?

The Hon. the Speaker pro tempore informed the Senate that the following communication had been received:

RIDEAU HALL

March 31, 2022

Mr. Speaker,

I have the honour to inform you that the Right Honourable Richard Wagner, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada, in his capacity as Deputy of the Governor General, signified royal assent by written declaration to the bills listed in the Schedule to this letter on the 31^st day of March, 2022, at 6:22 p.m.

Yours sincerely,

Ryan McAdam

Chief of Staff of the Secretary to the Governor General

The Honourable

The Speaker of the Senate

Ottawa

Bills Assented to Thursday, March 31, 2022:

An Act for granting to Her Majesty certain sums of money for the federal public administration for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2022 (Bill C-15, Chapter 3, 2022)

An Act for granting to Her Majesty certain sums of money for the federal public administration for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2023 (Bill C-16, Chapter 4, 2022)

[English]

The Senate proceeded to consideration of the message from the House of Commons:

Wednesday, March 30, 2022

EXTRACT, —

That,

(a)pursuant to subsection 5(1) of An Act to amend the Criminal Code (medical assistance in dying), a special joint committee of the Senate and the House of Commons be appointed to review the provisions of the Criminal Code relating to medical assistance in dying and their application, including but not limited to issues relating to mature minors, advance requests, mental illness, the state of palliative care in Canada and the protection of Canadians with disabilities;

(b)pursuant to subsection 5(2) of the act, five members of the Senate and 10 members of the House of Commons be members of the committee, including five members of the House of Commons from the governing party, three members of the House of Commons from the official opposition, and two members of the House of Commons from the opposition who are not members of the official opposition, with two Chairs of which the House Co‑Chair shall be from the governing party and the Senate Co-Chair shall be determined by the Senate;

(c)in addition to the Co-Chairs, the committee shall elect three vice-chairs from the House, of whom the first vice-chair shall be from the Conservative Party of Canada, the second vice-chair shall be from the Bloc Québécois and the third vice-chair shall be from the New Democratic Party;

(d)pursuant to subsection 5(3) of the act, the quorum of the committee be eight members whenever a vote, resolution or other decision is taken, so long as both Houses and one member of the governing party in the House, one from the opposition in the House and one member of the Senate are represented, and that the Joint Chairs be authorized to hold meetings, to receive evidence and authorize the printing thereof, whenever six members are present, so long as both Houses and one member of the governing party in the House, one member from the opposition in the House and one member of the Senate are represented;

(e)the House of Commons members be named by their respective whip by depositing with the Clerk of the House the list of their members to serve on the committee no later than five sitting days after the adoption of this motion;

(f)changes to the membership of the committee, on the part of the House of Commons, be effective immediately after notification by the relevant whip has been filed with the Clerk of the House;

(g)membership substitutions, on the part of the House of Commons, be permitted, if required, in the manner provided for in Standing Order 114(2) and that they may be filed with the clerk of the committee by email;

(h)until Thursday, June 23, 2022, where applicable to a special joint committee, the provisions contained in paragraph (r) of the order adopted by the House on Thursday, November 25, 2021, shall also apply to the committee;

(i)the committee have the power to:

(i)sit during sittings and adjournments of the House,

(ii)report from time to time, to send for persons, papers and records, and to print such papers and evidence as may be ordered by the committee,

(iii)retain the services of expert, professional, technical and clerical staff, including legal counsel,

(iv)appoint, from among its members such subcommittees as may be deemed appropriate and to delegate to such subcommittees, all or any of its powers, except the power to report to the Senate and House of Commons,

(v)authorize video and audio broadcasting of any or all of its proceedings and that public proceedings be made available to the public via the Parliament of Canada’s websites;

(j)pursuant to subsection 5(5) of the act, the committee submit a final report of its review, including a statement of any recommended changes, to Parliament no later than Thursday, June 23, 2022; and

(k)pursuant to subsection 5(6) of the act, following the tabling of the final report in both Houses, the committee shall expire; and

that a message be sent to the Senate requesting that House to unite with this House for the above purpose and to select, if the Senate deems advisable, members to act on the proposed special joint committee.

ATTEST

Charles Robert

The Clerk of the House of Commons

The Hon. the Speaker: Senator Marshall, you have some time left. There is a senator who wishes to ask a question. Will you take a question?

The Hon. the Speaker: Do we have an agreement on a bell?

Senator Carignan: Will the Minister of Justice commit to releasing all the essential facts used to justify this phantom trial? Will he commit to disclosing, at the very least, the name of the presiding judge?

The Hon. the Speaker: It was moved by the Honourable Senator Gagné, seconded by the Honourable Senator Gold, that the bill be read a third time. If you are opposed to the motion, please say “no.”

The Hon. the Speaker: Are honourable senators ready for the question?

The Hon. the Speaker: In my opinion, the “yeas” have it.

And two honourable senators having risen:

The Hon. the Speaker: I hear a “no.” Those in favour of the motion who are in the Senate Chamber will please say “yea.”

An Hon. Senator: Now.

The Hon. the Speaker: Do we have an agreement on a bell between the government liaison and the Opposition Whip?

Senator Carignan: Is it also possible to know who in the ranks of the office of the Attorney General of Canada would be able to authorize a phantom trial in Canada?

The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?

The Hon. the Speaker: Honourable senators, when shall this report be taken into consideration?

(On motion of Senator Jaffer, report placed on the Orders of the Day for consideration at the next sitting of the Senate.)

[English]

Hon. Mobina S. B. Jaffer, Chair of the Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs, presented the following report:

Thursday, March 31, 2022

The Standing Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs has the honour to present its

FOURTH REPORT

Your committee, to which was referred motion No. 14 under Government Business, which proposes “that an amendment to the Constitution of Canada be authorized to be made by proclamation issued by Her Excellency the Governor General under the Great Seal of Canada in accordance with the annexe schedule” to repeal section 24 of the Saskatchewan Act, has, in obedience to the order of reference of Tuesday, March 1, 2022, examined the said motion and herewith presents its report.

Your committee recommends that the Senate adopt the said motion.

Your committee notes that the adoption of this report by the Senate would constitute the Senate’s agreement with the proposed resolution to amend the Constitution.

Your committee notes that this report was adopted on division. Your committee held two meetings over four hours and heard from the following witnesses:

•The Honourable Gordon S. Wyant, MLA, Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Government of Saskatchewan

•Michelle Lang, Chief of Staff for the Honourable Gordon S. Wyant, Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Government of Saskatchewan

•Louise Baird, Assistant Deputy Minister, Intergovernmental Affairs, Privy Council Office

•Daniel Bourgeois, Senior General Counsel, Tax Law, Department of Justice Canada

•Warren J. Newman, Senior General Counsel, Public Law, Department of Justice Canada

•Nancy Othmer, Assistant Deputy Minister, Public Law and Legislative Services, Department of Justice Canada

•Merrilee Rasmussen, Lawyer, Rasmussen & Co, Barristers and Solicitor

•Michael Vandergrift, Deputy Minister, Intergovernmental Affairs, Privy Council Office

•James Clements, Senior Vice-President, Strategic Planning and Technology Transformation, Canadian Pacific

•Dwight Newman, Professor of Law and Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Rights in Constitutional and International Law, University of Saskatchewan

•Benoît Pelletier, Professor, University of Ottawa

•Patrick Taillon, Professor and co-director, Centre for Constitutional and Administrative Law

Respectfully submitted,

MOBINA S. B. JAFFER

Chair

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for the question. As senators and colleagues would rightly understand, the internet is a space that knows few borders, notwithstanding our sovereign right to regulate as best we can. Therefore it’s an all-of-government issue to make sure that Canada remains protected against all forms of threats emanating from cyberspace, whether it’s information online or information coming from foreign sources. In that regard, we have agencies like the Communications Security Establishment, CSIS, the RCMP and others working with government and partners to ensure that we remain safe, both from cyberattacks and from the other equally pernicious forms of misinformation that come our way through the cyberspace.