Mr. John R. MacNicol (Davenpori):

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a question of privilege, though I am happy to say I seldom have to do so. In last evening's Toronto Star I read an article headed, "Say M.P. in hospital but don't tell him". It refers to a rumour that apparently was circulated both here and in Toronto to the effect that I was ill. I have not been ill in forty to fifty years, though I did have a cold about ten days ago. I am not criticizing the Star for referring to a rumour, but the last part of this article reads:

Today there was a new report: Mr. MacNicol had been rushed to the hospital.

If the House of Commons is looked upon as a hospital-for I rush here daily-that statement is true; but I am happy to say I have never felt better.

Right Hon. L. S. Si. Laurent (Prime Minister):

Mr. Speaker, I should like to table returns to orders passed on February 24 and March 7 on questions asked by the hon. member for Lake Centre (Mr. Diefenbaker) in respect to orders in council. The question of February 24 was:

How many orders in council passed since July 1, 1948, as at the 18th of February, 1949, were not (a) tabled; (b) published in the Canada Gazette?

The answer is: There were 7,005 orders in council passed between July 1, 1948, and February 18, 1949-including 4,215 minutes of treasury board-of which 6,777 were not tabled and 6,728 were not published in the Canada Gazette.

The second order passed on March 7 read:

1. How many orders in council were passed between (a) September 1, 1939, and September 1, 1945; (b) September 1, 1945, and date hereof?

2. Of these orders in council, how many were passed under the provisions of the (a) War Measures

Vet; (b) the several emergency powers acts?

The answer is:

1. Between September 1, 1939, and September 1, 1945, there were 55,559 orders in council; treasury boards (464) containing minutes totaling 34,988, making a grand total of 90,547.

Between September 1, 1945, and March 4, 1949, there were 19,098 orders in council; treasury boards (245) containing minutes totaling 35,737, or a grand total of 54,835.

2. Orders in council referred to in 1 (a) and (b) passed under (a) the War Measures Act, 3,332; (b) (i) the National Emergency Transitional Powers Act, 1945, 397; (ii) the Continuation of Transitional Measures Act, 1947, 21.

As promised in the house I am also tabling a descriptive list of the first hundred orders in council and minutes of treasury board passed since the beginning of the period mentioned in the hon. member's question. This list will indicate whether or not these orders in council and treasury board minutes have been tabled or gazetted or both. I am also tabling a summary of the first hundred orders in council and treasury board minutes passed since January 1, 1949. Taken together I think those two lists constitute a good cross-section of the various questions dealt with by order in council and treasury board minutes during the course of a year.

I think perhaps for the better information of hon. members it might be convenient to have these lists published as an appendix to Hansard of today, and if I have the consent of the house I would ask that this be done.

Agreed.

(For summary referred to, see Appendix, page 1317).

In order, however, that the answers given in the past, and particularly the returns I have just tabled, may not prove to be misleading, I should like to avail myself of this opportunity to review briefly the procedure followed in the tabling and gazetting of orders in council, so that if this procedure is not satisfactory to the house it may be criticized and that criticism taken into consideration. In this matter, as in many others related to the business of government, the practice followed in Canada has been patterned very largely on United Kingdom constitutional procedures.

Mr. J. G. Diefenbaker (Lake Centre):

In

view of the lengthy and complete statement by the Prime Minister, may I, sir, with your leave and the leave of the house, direct his attention to one thing. As I understand it, in Great Britain a committee of the House of Commons has been given the responsibility of reviewing all orders in council as they are passed, for the purpose of bringing before the house any cases of invasion of rights or suspension of statutes by order in council. I was wondering whether the Prime Minister would consider the tabling of orders in council that are passed while parliament is in session. The members are in a very difficult position because legislative acts are performed under certain orders in council the tabling of which is not considered necessary. In view of the

attitude the Prime Minister has shown, and his desire to be of assistance to the house, would he agree to have these orders in council laid on the table of the house, having regard to the fact there is such a large number of them? It would be neither expensive nor difficult to do it. Hon. members would then know, as they advised their constituents, what the law or the practice is in respect to the various matters dealt with by order in council.

Mr. St. Laurent:

If the hon. member will look at the two lists I have produced, he will perhaps come to the conclusion that it would be quite as convenient to have tabled monthly a full list of the orders in council of the preceding month, with the same kind of indications as are given in these lists. Then if in that list there was anything in which any hon. member was interested, he could ask to have the order in council tabled. But as about ninety per cent of the orders in council or minutes of the treasury board are merely administrative acts, I think it would be useless to table all of them and thus increase the store of parliamentary documents that the clerks of the house are obliged to take care of and keep for a long time after they have been tabled. Perhaps the matter could be referred to again. We want to make as full disclosure as will be of any use to anybody; but perhaps the hon. member will find that if he gets that kind of a list monthly he will have in it sufficient information to ask for any orders that were not already tabled and that might be of interest.

Hon. Robert W. Mayhew (Minister of Fisheries):

I wish to make an announcement to the house about a serious situation which has developed in the inland fisheries of the prairie provinces, particularly Manitoba, and the action the government has authorized the fisheries prices support board to take to alleviate the problem.

Members will be aware that winter fishing operations in these northern lakes are carried on by fishermen taking the fish through the ice. The fish is frozen and stored at the lake under natural conditions until it is moved to market. Normally this movement to market takes care of all the fish before the spring breakup. This winter, largely because of the abnormal weather conditions and some softening of the export market, the Winnipeg trade has not been prepared to handle all the fish, and substantial quantities remain on the Ash-

Fisheries

ing grounds and at the railheads. This Ash must be moved immediately into refrigerated storage in Winnipeg to avoid spoilage.

Of the 2,800 Ashermen in Manitoba, many have suffered a serious decline in their incomes from this operation. This potential loss of food and the plight of the Ashermen was brought to the attention of the government through the Asheries prices support board by representatives of the Ashermen and the Ashing industry in Manitoba and the government of Manitoba which administers the Asheries of that province. The government has investigated and considered the problem and has authorized the board to stand ready to purchase such quantities of Ash as remain in Ashermen's hands or which are held on consignment by the Ash trade on behalf of the Ashermen.

The board has been authorized to offer to purchase the following species of Ash at speci-Aed prices, these being the species reported in Ashermen's hands and in danger of spoilage. The prices are on Winnipeg basis including freight and other handling charges, and are approximately eighty per cent of those which have been paid to date this year: whiteAsh, round, 13 cents per pound; saugers, round, 10 cents per pound; pike, (jacks), round, 6J cents per pound; pike (jacks), headless, 8| cents per pound; pickerel (yellows), round, 14 cents per pound; trout, round, 14 cents per pound; tullibee, round, 43,- cents per pound. The prices which the Ashermen may expect under this arrangement will be these prices less appropriate deductions for freight.

The board is immediately taking steps to set up the necessary machinery for handling this Ash, and will be making further announcements in this regard within the next day or two.

Mr. Coldwell:

If the conditions are the same, will the same policy apply to Alberta and Saskatchewan?

Mr. Mayhew:

We know that some Saskatchewan Ash are in long supply, and they are included in this measure.

Mr. Cruickshank:

The hon. member for Lake Centre having made an excellent political speech, may I now ask a question?

Oh, oh.

Mr. Graydon:

The hon. member did not hear the Prime Minister.

Mr. Speaker:

Order.