Quebec.

• Author: Bolduc, Nicole
• Position: Legislative Reports - Report

The National Assembly adjourned on June 12, 2010, for its summer recess. According to the 2010-2011 calendar tabled by President Yvon Vallieres, it will resume on September 21. By the close of proceedings, the Members had passed 20 public bills and 10 private bills. Also, since the parliamentary reform adopted in April 2009, 23 electronic petitions signed by over 117,000 Quebecers have been presented to the National Assembly

On May 11, at the request of two independent Members, the Assembly met as a committee of the whole to consider the Assembly's budget estimates for the 2010-2011 fiscal year. The last similar occurrence dated back to 1996. Since then, the practice had been for the Assembly to depart from Standing Order 286 and dispense the committee of the whole from meeting given that, by law, the Assembly's budget estimates are adopted by the Office of the National Assembly.

The end of the regular sitting period was followed by an extraordinary sitting, held on June 11, during which the MNAs completed consideration of and passed Bill 100, An Act to implement certain provisions of the Budget Speech of March 31, 2010, reduce the debt and return to a balanced budget in 2013-2014. The Government used an exceptional procedure which specifies the number of hours allotted for each stage remaining in the consideration of a bill. The bill had been undergoing the committee stage.

At the April 20, 2010 sitting, the President handed down a directive on the distribution of questions at Question Period. It sought to clarify prior directives issued on November 10 and 11, 2009--which spelled out the particulars relating to questions by independent Members and Members of the Second Opposition Group--in order to facilitate the Members' exercise of their right to ask questions.

The independent Members for La Peltrie and les Chutes-de-la-Chaudiere are each entitled to one question per seven sittings, but may not ask their question at the same sitting as the Second Opposition Group, which is entitled to five questions per seven sittings. When the Second Opposition Group decides not to ask a question at a sitting., it must notify the Chair and the independent Members in advance. The independent Member for Mercier is entitled to one question per seven sittings and may ask his question at any sitting he chooses but he must let the Chair and the other independent Members know at which sitting he intends to do so.

Premier Jean Charest made minor changes to the...