The 45th Canadian Parliament opened on May 27th with His Majesty King Charles III delivering the Speech from the Throne. By convention, this speech is written by the Prime Minister and Cabinet, and outlines the government's priorities for the upcoming parliamentary session.
Although not subject to the same level of fanfare or scrutiny, the organization of House of Commons committees will soon commence. In recent years, House committees have been active, and sometimes aggressive, in summoning business leaders and other individuals to appear before them. Individuals, companies and organizations should prepare now for the resumption of committee business.
Committees will begin to be re-established within ten sitting days of the Throne Speech. The over two dozen Standing Committees of the House of Commons include the Committees on Finance, Justice and Human Rights, National Defence, Foreign Affairs, and International Trade.
These committees play an essential role in Parliament, not only in studying bills but also engaging in other studies relevant to their mandates. Committees routinely exercise their powers to summon witnesses and to order the production of documents.
In this minority Parliament, no party will have a majority of seats on any House of Commons committee. Among other implications, this means that the opposition parties have sufficient votes to direct the use of a Committee's investigative powers.
Selection Process for Committee Members
The number of members on each committee is negotiated among the parties to ensure proportional representation based on the number of seats in the House, though limited to parties with recognized status.1
This means that, in a minority Parliament, no party, not even the governing party, holds a majority of seats on any committee.2 During the previous Parliament, committees generally had 12 members – a Liberal committee chair, in addition to five voting Liberal members (including, typically, the relevant portfolio Minister's Parliamentary Secretary), four Conservative members, one member from the Bloc Québécois, and one member from the NDP. Meanwhile, in the 42ndParliament, led by a Liberal majority, committees typically consisted of a Liberal Chair and five voting Liberals, three Conservatives, and one member from the NDP.
Each party's Whip's office typically begins considering committee assignments shortly after the election. Within the governing party's caucus, plans typically formally crystalize following the Cabinet shuffle given that MPs appointed to Cabinet will not sit on parliamentary committees. MPs may be asked to rank their committee preferences, but considerations for committee structuring may also include linguistic and/or geographic diversity.
Early Days, Agenda Setting and Reputational Risk
Committees control their own agendas and studies within their mandates when not focused on studying legislation, which does take precedence over all other work. Notably, once committees present their reports to the House of Commons, they are empowered to request a response from the government, and the government must respond through a substantive report within 120 days.
Given this, and in the vacuum of the early days of a new Parliament, there may be an opportunity for individuals, companies and organizations to engage with parliamentarians as they consider topics to study and pay attention to at committees.
However, individuals, companies and organizations need to also pay heed to potential reputational risk flowing from the resumption of committee work. Committees are an attractive tool for parliamentarians to obtain information in a politically expedient manner for high-profile matters that attract significant public and media attention. Committees have broad powers to investigate subjects of their choosing, to compel testimony and document production, and do so while following their own special processes, which cannot be reviewed by the courts.
This is especially the case in a minority Parliament. Typically in majority Parliaments, the governing parties have traditionally used their committee-membership majorities to moderate the scope of committee inquiries. However, in a minority Parliament, the opposition parties can unite in common cause, over the objections of the governing party, to pursue, should they wish to do so, politically-motivated investigative pursuits.
In previous minority Parliaments, Committees have launched investigations, compelled individuals, companies and organizations to testify, and required the production of sensitive documents that have gained considerable public scrutiny, while causing deleterious reputational impacts.
Parliamentary Law and Investigations Team
We have advised individuals, organizations and corporations appearing before parliamentary and legislative committees across Canada, including in some of the most high-profile matters that have recently been investigated by parliamentary committees.
We are able to balance the various considerations at issue in parliamentary committee matters, including reputational risk and public relations, as well as the risk that exists in parallel civil, criminal and administrative proceedings, despite the fact that committee testimony is privileged and cannot be directly used in another forum.
Our team is comprised of lawyers who formerly held senior positions in government, including a former Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister of Canada. They possess the legal and communication skills, as well as the understanding of the parliamentary and political environment needed to navigate proceedings that differ considerably from traditional litigation or administrative hearings.
Whether it is establishing a multi-pronged strategic plan, responding to committee summonses and production orders, preparing for testimony, monitoring parliamentary proceedings, advising on procedure, drafting written submissions or managing large-scale document productions, we are able to guide you and help protect your reputational and business interests.
Footnotes
1. In the current Parliament, the Liberal Party, the Conservative Party, and the Bloc Québécois are all recognized parties, as they have 12 or more seats in the House of Commons. With seven seats and one seat respectively, the NDP and the Green Party of Canada are not recognized parties for the purposes of striking House Committees. However, with respect to the NDP, their interim leader, Don Davies, suggested on May 26, 2025, that the party is having "fruitful discussions" with other parties in an attempt to find a way to be granted seats on committees. READ MORE
2. The Board of Internal Economy operates distinctively than other committees. It is composed of the Speaker of the House of Commons (who acts as Chair), two members of the Privy Council (appointed by the Government), the Leader of the Opposition or their representative, and additional Members appointed in numbers so that there are an equal number of Government and opposition representatives (apart from the Speaker).
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
