Committees

• Author: Rob Walsh
• Pages: 85-91

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cHaPter eIGHt

Committees

he House does its detailed work in its committees. Most of these are regular or standing committees but a few are joint committees (composed of both Members of Parliament and senators). here are usually around twenty-ive standing committees and two permanent joint committees.¹ he composition of the standing committees relects the composition of the House, which means that in a majority Parliament the majority of a committee’s members will be from the governing party. Of course, the reverse is the case in a minority Parliament, such as the 39th Parliament, where the Government members were in the minority. he chair of the committee is elected by the committee and must come from the governing party except for certain designated committees where the chair must come from the Oicial Opposition party.²

Committee Mandates

he Standing Orders set out the mandate of each committee, that is, the category of matters that the committee is charged by the House to study as and when the committee might choose to do so. In the not-so-distant past a House committee could only do what the House expressly instructed it to do. Since 1987, House committees

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THE HOUSE OF COMMONS OF CANADA

can initiate studies without express authorization from the House provided the matter comes within the ambit of the committee’s mandate.

Government Bills Studied by Committees

In addition, when legislation proposed by the Government, in what is called a Government bill, is approved in the House at second reading stage it is then referred to a standing committee for detailed study. he standing committee might hear witnesses on the bill and, whether or not they do so, the committee considers each clause of the bill, might amend or delete some clauses, and reports back to the House on the bill.
he political dynamics on a bill at committee stage can be afected by whether we are in a majority Parliament or a minority Parliament. A majority of the committee members are from the parties in opposition in a minority Parliament. When the Government has the majority and the bill is a major item on the Government’s legislative agenda, it is not likely that many amendments from the opposition committee members will be adopted by the committee. Nonetheless the opposition members often propose amendments, if only to stir a debate on an issue and, at the end, to get their political adversaries, whether on the Government side or from the other opposition parties, on record on the issue when they vote. his may be useful in a debate in the House or in the next election. he Government may want to amend its bill and the committee will likely adopt these amendments when it’s a majority Parliament.

Committee proceedings, whether on a non-legislative study or with respect to a bill, are usually quite partisan proceedings, that is, the political parties...