You may find the following information useful in regard to the 2023 Fall Sitting.
Government Bills
Pursuant to Standing Order 74 all government bills to be dealt with during the 2023 Fall Sitting will have to be introduced and given first reading by the fifth sitting day – Thursday, October 12, 2023. The introduction of a government bill after that date will require the unanimous consent of the House. At each subsequent stage, the bill would require unanimous consent to proceed, if the government wishes to proceed with the bill during the 2023 Fall Sitting
Length of the Sitting
Pursuant to Standing Order 75, once all government bills have been introduced the House Leaders shall meet for the purpose of achieving agreement upon the number of sitting days for the 2023 Fall Sitting. The Government House Leader will report to the House by the seventh sitting day - Tuesday October 17, 2023 - on the deliberations of the House Leaders regarding the length of the 2023 Fall Sitting. Standing Order 75(1) states that there shall be a maximum of 60 sitting days per calendar year. The 2023 Spring Sitting lasted 32 days. The one-day Sitting in Dawson City is not included in the calculation for this purpose as it was a Special Sitting called in addition to the Spring and Fall Sittings. For your information:
- A 20-day Sitting, the shortest permitted under Standing Order 75(2), would see the House rise on Wednesday, November 8, 2023.
- A 28-day Sitting, either agreed upon by the House Leaders or pursuant to Standing Order 75(3) (where there is no agreement between the Government House Leader and at least one other House Leader), would see the House rise on Thursday, November 23, 2023.
Note: The Legislative Assembly will not sit on Thanksgiving Monday, October 9, 2023. In addition, the Legislative Assembly will not sit on Monday November 13, 2023 due to the statutory holiday for Remembrance Day. Also, the House may, by adopting a motion, decide to not sit on a day when it would otherwise normally meet. Adopting such a motion would alter the date on which the 20th or 28th sitting day would fall.
Private Members' Business
Standing Order 14(1) says, “After the Daily Routine, on the first Wednesday of a Session that private members’ business is to be considered, and every second Wednesday thereafter, the order of business shall be as follows:
Opposition private members’ business:
(a) Motions for the Production of Papers
(b) Motions other than Government Motions
(c) Bills other than Government Bills
Motions Respecting Committee Reports
Government Designated Business
Government private members' business:
(a) Motions for the Production of Papers
(b) Motions other than Government Motions
(c) Bills other than Government Bills”
Pursuant to Standing Order 14(2), “After the Daily Routine, on the second Wednesday of a Session that private members’ business is to be considered, and every second Wednesday thereafter, the order of business shall be as follows:
Government private members’ business:
(a) Motions for the Production of Papers
(b) Motions other than Government Motions
(c) Bills other than Government Bills
Government Designated Business
Motions Respecting Committee Reports
Opposition private members’ business:
(a) Motions for the Production of Papers
(b) Motions other than Government Motions
(c) Bills other than Government Bills”
There are currently no Government private members in the Legislative Assembly. If there are no Government private members then the Orders of the Day, pursuant to Standing Order 14(2), revert to the next item, which is Government Designated Business.
Therefore, during the 2023 Fall Sitting which commences on Wednesday October 4, 2023, the schedule of private members’ business for the Sitting will be:
October 4 Government Business
October 11 Opposition Private Members’ Business
October 18 Government Business
October 25 Opposition Private Members’ Business
November 1 Government Business
November 8 Opposition Private Members’ Business
November 15 Government Business (Should the Sitting last 23 or more days)
November 22 Opposition Private Members’ Business (Should the Sitting last 27 or more days)
Given that the House will not sit on Thanksgiving Monday (October 9, 2023), any motion to be debated on Wednesday, October 11, 2023 will have to be on the Notice Paper on Tuesday, October 10, 2023, which means that notice of the motion will have to be given to the House, either orally (during the Daily Routine) or in writing (to the Clerk’s Table before 5:00 p.m.), by Thursday, October 5, 2023.
Opposition Private Members' Business
Standing Order 14.2(2) says, “At the beginning of each Session a roster shall be established for the purpose of determining the order of business on Wednesdays when Opposition private members’ business has precedence. The roster shall be set in the following manner:
(a) the Official Opposition shall have the first, second and fifth positions on the roster;
(b) a party or group in opposition to the government, other than the Official Opposition, shall have the third, fourth and sixth positions on the roster…”
The last opposition private member’s motion debated during the 2023 Spring Sitting was Motion No. 720 (standing in the name of Lane Tredger, Member for Whitehorse Centre), on which debate adjourned at 5:30 p.m. Motion No. 720 was at Position 4 in the roster. As debate on that motion began before 5:00 p.m, the roster now moves to Position 5. Therefore, the roster for Opposition Private Members’ Business for the 2023 Fall Sitting will be:
- Position 5: Official Opposition (Yukon Party)
- Position 6: Third Party (NDP)
- Position 1: Official Opposition (Yukon Party)
- Position 2: Official Opposition (Yukon Party)
- Position 3: Third Party (NDP)
- Position 4: Third Party (NDP)
COVID-19 Procedures
For the 2023 Fall Sitting, members may choose to opt out of the water service provided by pages and continue to bring their own bottles into the Chamber (for water only).