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The Pamphlet Collection of Sir Robert Stout: Volume 25

I.—General Conduct of Business

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I.—General Conduct of Business.

1. On the first day of the meeting of a new

Election of Speaker; first meeting of new Council

Council, the Clerk of Council shall read the names of members returned to serve in such Council, and the Council shall immediately thereafter proceed to the choice of some proper person to be their Speaker.
2. The House then proceeds to the election of

Standing Orders of House of Representatives to apply

a Speaker, in manner provided by Standing Orders of the House of Representatives, so far as the same can be made applicable to this Council.
3. Should the office of Speaker become vacant

Vacancy in office of Speaker

dining the existence of any Council, the same mode of procedure shall be adopted in the election of a successor as in the case of first election.
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Speaker to decide in cases for which no rules are made

4. In all eases not hereinafter provided for, Mr. Speaker shall decide, taking for his guide the rules, forms, and usages of the House of Commons, as far as the same can be applied to the proceedings of the Provincial Council.

Chairman of Committees may preside in the absence of Mr Speaker

5. Whenever the Council shall be informed of the unavoidable absence of Mr. Speaker, the Chairman of Committees is to take the chair for that day only; and, in the event of Mr. Speaker's absence continuing for more than one day, the Chairman of Committees shall, if the Council think fit and shall order it, take the chair in like manner on any subsequent day during such absence. Should the Chairman of Committees be also absent, the Council shall forthwith proceed to the election of a Deputy Speaker to act during the remainder of the sitting.

Election of Speaker and Acting Speaker

6. In the event of a division being called for upon motion for appointment of Speaker, or Acting-Speaker, and the Tellers reporting that the "numbers are equal," then the Clerk presiding shall be empowered to order the doors to be unlocked, and to take a second division in manner provided by Standing Orders; and, if necessary, to repeat the process till the Division Lists show a majority either in favor of "Aye" or "No."

Each sitting to be opened with prayer

7. At the first sitting each day the Council shall be opened with prayer.

Sittings

8. The Council shall sit from day to day, except Saturdays and Sundays, during Session, subject to alteration by resolution; and on Wednesdays and Fridays Government business shall have precedence, as provided by Order No. 49.
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9. Mr. Speaker shall take the chair at two

Hours of meeting and rising each day

o'clock in the afternoon, unless otherwise appointed on motion without notice; and if after prayers there be not present a quorum (one-third of the members) Mr. Speaker shall adjourn the Council until the following sitting day at the usual hour; and if at any time after prayers notice be taken, or, on the report of a division by the Tellers, it appear that one-third of the members are not present, Mr. Speaker shall adjourn the Council without a question first put; and the Council shall rise daily at half-past five p.m., and resume its sittings at seven p.m.
10. When the Council is in Committee, at

Council to resume at 6.25 pm

twenty-five minutes past five p.m. Mr. Speaker shall resume the chair, and the Chairman of the Committee shall report progress, and ask leave to sit again.
11. If all motions shall not have been disposed

Motions not disposed of before half-past five p m

of at half-past five o'clock, the debate thereon shall be adjourned, and the Orders of the Day taken in rotation; but if there should be no Order of the Day, the debates on motions may be continued. The debates on motions may be resumed after the Orders of the Day are disposed of, on motion to that effect being put and carried.
12. Whenever Mr. Speaker is obliged to adjourn

Adjournments

the Council for want of a quorum, the hour at which such adjournment is made, and the names of the members then present, shall be be inserted in the journals of the Council.
13. Immediately after a call for a division, the

Division Bell, &c

bell shall be rung, and at the expiration of three minutes the doors shall be locked.
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Division List

14. On division, an entry of the division list shall be made by the Clerk in the journals.

Addresses to Superintendent, by whom to be presented

15. All Addresses to the Superintendent shall be presented by or forwarded through Mr. Speaker, unless otherwise ordered by the Council.

A member may request that any question under discussion be read

16. Any member may of right require the question or matter in discussion to be read for his information at any time during the debate, but not so as to interrupt a member speaking.

Member not to speak twice on the same question. Exceptions

17. No member shall speak twice (except in Committees of the whole Council) on the same question, unless in explanation on some material point of his speech on which he had been misrepresented or misunderstood, and without introducing any new matter; but the mover of any question, not being an amendment, shall be allowed the liberty of reply; and after such reply, it shall not be competent to any member to speak to the subject in debate. And it shall be competent to a member, when he seconds the motion or amendment without speaking to it, to address the Council on the subject of such motion or amendment at any subsequent period of the debate.

To address the Chair

18. Every member shall address the Chair when speaking.

Questions of privilege

19. Whenever any matter of privilege arises, it shall immediately be taken into consideration.

Motions to be seconded

20. All motions shall be duly seconded before being put from the Chair.

Questions of order or privilege to supersede original motion

21. After a motion has been moved and seconded, and the question thereupon put from the Chair, any question of order, or any matter of privilege, which may arise, shall supersede the consideration of the original question, and must be first disposed of.
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22. In course of a debate upon a question, any

Motion—"That the debate be now adjourned "

member who has not spoken on the original question may move (except when a member is in possession of the Chair) "that the Council do now adjourn but no discussion shall take place on the original question; and if this second question is resolved in the affirmative, the original question shall he held to be entirely superseded; and the Council shall immediately adjourn till the next usual hour of commencing a sitting; and if the motion for adjournment be negatived, it shall not be competent to propose it again without some intermediate proceeding.
23. In like manner, in course of a debate, any

Motion — "That the Council do now adjourn"

member who has not spoken on the original question, may move (except when a member is in possession of the Chair) "that the debate be now adjourned till—(Here insert the day when the debate is to be resumed)—but Mr. Speaker shall confine the discussion as nearly as may be to the question of adjournment, and if such motion be carried, its effect will be merely to defer the decision of the Council on the original question; and if the motion for adjournment be negatived, it shall not be competent to propose it again without some intermediate proceeding.
24. The member upon whose motion any debate

Mover of such motion entitled to pre-audience

shall be adjourned, shall be entitled to pre-audience on the resumption of the debate.
25. A member called to order by Mr. Speaker

Call to order

shall sit down, unless permitted to explain.
26. If, in consequence of highly disorderly conduct,

Member called upon by name after explanation to withdraw

Mr. Speaker shall call upon any member by name, such member shall withdraw as soon as he page 14 has been heard in explanation; and after such member's withdrawal, the Council shall at once take the case into consideration.

Breach of order by a member: procedure

27. In the case of a charge against a member for any breach of the Orders of the Council, or on account of any matter that has arisen in debate, the charge shall be stated, and the question moved before the member accused shall withdraw; he shall then be allowed the opportunity of explaining to the Council the motives of his conduct in the matter alleged against him, and, after having so done, he shall withdraw.

Interruptions

28. While Mr. Speaker is putting a question, no member shall walk out of, or across the House; nor while a member is speaking, shall any member hold discourse to interrupt him, nor pass between him and the Chair.

When Mr Speaker rises, Council to be silent

29. Whenever Mr. Speaker rises during a debate, any member then speaking, or offering to speak, is to sit down, and the Council is to be silent, so that Mr. Speaker may be heard without interruption.

While Council counted members to retain their seats

30. During the counting of the Council (or Committee of the whole) each member present shall resume his seat, and keep the same till the result of the counting is announced.

Call of the Council

31. On a motion made and passed "that the Council be called over" on any day therein named, Mr. Speaker shall cause circular letters to be addressed to all the members, requiring their attendance on that day.

Order for the same

32. No order for a call of the Council shall be made for any day earlier than fifteen days from the date of such order.
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33. All papers and documents laid upon the

Papers, &c, laid on the table to: be considered public

table of the Council shall be considered public (unless otherwise ordered), and may be printed.

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