Liberals Say Committees Need ‘Order and Balance’ as Opposition Decries Debate Shutdown

Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon defended his party taking several House of Commons committee deliberations private as the Conservatives denounced the move as an “abuse of power.”

Since the Liberals passed a motion in the House on April 27 to amend the standing orders and take control of committees, they have voted to move discussions during four committee meetings “in camera,” shielding discussions from the public.

The move comes after the Liberals obtained a majority government through recent floor crossings and byelection wins, and it has been criticized by opposition MPs, who call the move “undemocratic.”

MacKinnon was asked by reporters on May 1 whether making committee deliberations private is a democratic use of the government’s new majority, and whether the Liberals will continue this trend. MacKinnon responded that the opposition has a role to play in the government’s decision.

“When opposition MPs seek only to impede and obstruct the work of committees, then obviously there has to be some order and balance brought to that situation,” he said. “But I accept that the burden of the government is to ensure that this work remains virtually entirely done in public.”

He noted that the fundamental role of parliamentary committees is to hold the government accountable and probe government spending, adding that the government is “determined” to work with opposition parties to keep “committees transparent, open, and doing their work in public.”

The Liberals moved to take ethics, health, science, and transport committee meetings in camera this week—where the cameras and transcription are turned off and there is no public record of what was discussed.

The Conservatives have called the move “undemocratic,” saying it shuts down “investigations into their [the Liberals’] own scandals.”

“This was not the power that the Canadian people gave this government at the ballot box,” Conservative House Leader Andrew Scheer told reporters on May 1.

“This is not what Canadians voted for. This is an abuse of power that flows out of backroom deals and secret negotiations, rather than power that was granted at the ballot box.”

Scheer said the Liberals have not used the in-camera tool legitimately, noting they have blocked discussions that are “normal” for committees to have. “That is not a way to run a government, by hiding facts and information from the Canadian people,” he added.

Scheer noted that the Conservatives are “going to have to get innovative in the way we raise the alarm” and that they will need the media to “shine a light” on the situation.

MacKinnon said the government is “going through a period of adjustment” after obtaining a majority government and that adjustments will need to be made on both sides.

“I think the Conservatives in particular might have some thinking to do with respect to how they approach committees and this situation,” he said. “And I think, in fairness, the government needs to consider how it may always, or virtually always, work transparently and in public.”

Committees Restructured

The motion to restructure parliamentary committees gave the Liberal Party the upper hand, with most committees now consisting of 12 members instead of 10, including seven Liberals, four Conservatives, and one Bloc Québécois member.

The three key accountability committees of ethics, government operations, and public accounts now have 10 members instead of 9, with the Liberals and the opposition each holding five seats. However, Conservative MPs chair those committees and can only vote to break a tie, so the Liberals have a five-to-four majority.

Prior to the change, the governing party and opposition parties had an equal share of seats in committees, including five Liberal seats, four Conservative seats, and one Bloc seat. The NDP has no committee seats as it lost official party status after the election last year.

The Conservatives had proposed an amendment to maintain the current structure for the ethics, government operations, and public accounts committees of nine members, but the Liberals voted down the amendment on April 27.