Senator Gold: I thank Senator Dalphond for that clarification and for his support for this motion.

[English]

Honourable senators, I rise briefly to speak to the motion in response to the message from the other place concerning the reappointment of the Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying.

The objective of reconstituting the committee and the need for adopting this motion in a timely fashion is to fulfill the terms of Recommendation 13 of its second report, which states:

That, five months prior to the coming into force of eligibility for MAID where a mental disorder is the sole underlying medical condition, a Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying be re-established by the House of Commons and the Senate in order to verify the degree of preparedness attained for a safe and adequate application of MAID (in MD-SUMC situations). Following this assessment, the Special Joint Committee will make its final recommendation to the House of Commons and the Senate.

In short, the motion that I have moved in response would simply revive the joint committee under the terms that have prevailed for the duration of this Parliament, an approach that enjoys the support of the Senate’s leadership. I would also note that the message we received from the other place was adopted unanimously.

The committee requires continuity, honourable senators, and the subject matter, as we all know, is a highly sensitive one.

The issue under discussion is a narrow one, that of mental illness as the sole medical condition when requesting an assessment for medical assistance in dying. As we know, colleagues, the implementation of this specific provision was delayed for one year, until March 2024.

I mention the time frame specifically because it is imperative that the committee begin convening as soon as possible. The reporting date for the committee, as I mentioned in reading the motion, is January 31, 2024.

If the chamber, in its wisdom, adopted this motion today, the Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying could begin meeting as expeditiously as possible. Therefore, I would urge you to support this motion so that the joint committee can begin undertaking its important and serious work. Thank you, colleagues.

Hon. Pierre J. Dalphond: Honourable senators, I support this motion. I just want to clarify something. Paragraph (b) of the motion states, and I quote:

 . . . the Senate co-chair shall be from the Opposition and the House co-chair shall be from the governing party;

I’d like to remind senators that this motion is about reconstituting the committee. Under the original motion, the Senate co-chair was chosen by senators on the committee. Following a meeting that Senator Gold had the pleasure of chairing, we agreed to designate Senator Martin as co-chair of the committee. She did an excellent job, and I commend her for that. I support this motion because it refers to the fact that the Senate co-chair must be a member of the opposition, in this case Senator Martin. I also support the motion because it reconstitutes the committee in the way that we had set it up originally, not because I support the principle that a joint committee of the Senate and the House of Commons that is co-chaired by a member of the government party in the House should automatically be co-chaired by a member of the Conservative Party in the Senate. Thank you.