Parliament’s Plate – Thursday, November 17

In the chamber:

It’s Liberal Opposition Day, so, the House will discuss a motion to see that First Nations’ communities have access to clean, running water in their homes.

This evening, Conservative MP Blake Richards will present his private members bill, which aims to make it an offence for someone to wear a mask or otherwise disguise their face while at a riot or unlawful assembly. The penalties for doing so would already be outlined in the sections 65 and 66 of the Criminal Code.

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty’s pooled registered pension plans legislation has made it onto the Order Paper.

Bill C-18, which will abolish the Canadian Wheat Board has been placed on the notice paper at the report stage — with eight suggested amendments, all from NDP MP Pat Martin.

In committees:

The justice committee will hunker down once again on the omnibus crime bill this morning. The members will hear from Public Safety and Justice departmental officials, then give the legislation clause-by-clause consideration.

Statistics Canada’s chief statistician and Canada’s former chief electoral officer are going to be at the procedure and house affairs committee this morning, to discuss to legislation that will add 30 federal ridings.

In two hours today, the public safety committee will hear from 14 witnesses about the Conservative’s bid to dismantle the long-gun registry. After testifying, the Coalition for Gun Control will stay on the Hill to hold a press conference and speak out against abolishing the long-gun registry.

Veterans affairs is still looking at commemorative events in the 21st century, while heritage continues its look at Canada’s 150th birthday celebrations in 2017.

Official languages is continuing its study into improving service and program delivery.

The Commander of the Canadian Operational Support Command is scheduled to testify before the national defence committee this morning, as it looks at maintaining the readiness of the Canadian Forces.

Aboriginal Affairs, meanwhile, is hearing from three departmental officials as it conducts an overview of land tenure and land registry.

International trade is bringing members from Grain Growers of Canada, Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and SNC-Lavalin International Inc. to testify about the trade agreement with the European Union.

The citizenship and immigration committee is hearing from two assistant deputy ministers while it continues mulling the immigration application backlogs.

The subcommittee on human rights has invited two representatives from Amnesty International to speak about the human rights situation in Sri Lanka.

Government operations and estimates is going to spend some time this afternoon reviewing its draft report on the effectiveness of the Office of Small and Medium-Sized Businesses and of the Canadian Innovation Commercialization Program.

Fisheries and oceans, meanwhile, continues its look at closed containment salmon aquaculture.

Over in The Other Place, the Senate committee on energy, the environment and natural resources looks at the current state and future of Canada’s energy sector.

Official languages continues its multi-pronged study into the application of the Official Languages Act, Air Canada’s obligations under the act and how the Internet and other new media work with respect to Canadians’ language rights.

Social affairs marches on in its examination of the progress in implementing the 2004 10-year plan to strengthen health care.

Legal and constitutional affairs, meanwhile, continues studying the act to amend the Criminal Code in regards to producing records in sexual offence proceedings. 

The rest:

Prime Minister Stephen Harper is scheduled to meet with Alberta Premier Alison Redford in his office this afternoon.

Sheila Copps, the former deputy prime minister who is running for president of the Liberal party, will be in Montreal today. She’s scheduled to attend a public administration course at Concordia University this morning, then meet the Young Liberals at McGill University.

Minister of State for Science and Technology Gary Goodyear will address the Canadian Science Policy Conference in Ottawa this afternoon.
Industry Minister Christian Paradis and Minister of State for Finance Ted Menzies are holding a joint/separate press conference to announce measures for improving retirement savings for families. Paradis will be in Montreal, while Menzies will be in Toronto.

Liberal MP Irwin Cotler and and NDP MP Wayne Marston are also holding a joint press conference. They’ll be in Ottawa calling on Egyptian authorities to release the 26-year-old Egyptian blogger who was one of the leaders in the Tahrir Square revolution. He was convicted in March and sentenced to three years in prison.

Conservative MP Harold Albrecht, NDP MP Joe Comartin and Liberal MP Frank Valeriote will stand together to present a cross-parliamentary committee report on palliative and compassionate care.

Environment Minister Peter Kent will be in Washington, D.C. to attend the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate today and tomorrow, along with 16 of the world’s other major economies.

Parliamentary secretary to the minister of transport Pierre Poilievre is scheduled to hold a teleconference on ballast water requirements on the St. Lawrence Seaway.

Conservative MP Terence Young is expected to make an announcement in Oakville, Ont. about the government’s commitment to strengthening innovation and business competitiveness in southern Ontario.

The privacy commissioner is going to be releasing her annual report on public-sector privacy issues this morning after tabling it in the House. The report will also include summaries of two audits — one that looked at how airport security under federal jurisdiction handled personal information, and another that examined the RCMP’s control and management of selected law enforcement databases.

The National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy, meanwhile, is releasing its report to advise governments on sustainability of water and the natural resource sectors.

The Bank of Canada is releasing its autumn issue of the Bank of Canada Review, while the bank’s deputy governor, Jean Boivin, is set to make a presentation to the Thompson Chamber of Commerce today in Thompson, Man.