Finance

The committee debated a Bloc Québécois motion requesting that the Minister of Finance appear no later than September 24 to clarify the budget cycle. Liberal members argued that two days’ notice was unreasonable, noting the minister’s recent travel to Europe and other commitments. They proposed an amendment to remove the specific date, allowing the minister to appear at the earliest opportunity. Bloc and Conservative members countered that the minister had already been given nearly 10 days’ notice, and that a firm date was needed to plan the committee’s work.

After extended discussion, the committee reached a consensus. The Liberal amendment to delete the September 24 deadline was set aside, and the committee instead adopted a Conservative subamendment changing the deadline to October 6. This change was accepted by all parties.

The committee then turned to a new Conservative motion proposing a study of Bill C-4, the making life more affordable for Canadians act, followed by a study on offshore tax havens. Members agreed to a further amendment allowing the tax haven study to proceed concurrently with the Bill C-4 study, rather than sequentially. Two minor deletions proposed by the Liberals—removing the phrases “weak rules on” and “inviting white-collar crime into Canada”—were also accepted by unanimous consent. The motion as amended was adopted without further debate.