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Government Business No. 9—Changes to the Standing Orders

A motion to change parliamentary rules to give the Liberals a majority on committees after they gained a plurality of seats in a by-election. The Liberals argued this aligns with parliamentary tradition for the majority party to control committees. The Conservatives accused the Liberals of an undemocratic power grab and raised concerns about the Liberals recruiting MP Han Dong who endorsed Avi Lewis, a critic of Israel, in the NDP leadership race. Debate was ended by the Liberals using a closure motion.

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Elizabeth May

Green
“I want to look serious so I'm saying some parliamentary jargon about chairs and debate. But my real goal is to get the Liberal House leader to say, plainly and on the record, why he feels this committee change has to be rushed through so urgently.”
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