Canada
Specialized body - Gender equality
House of Commons Standing Committee on the Status of Women
(January 2004)About
Nature
Permanent
Members
| All Members | Below 45 years of age | |
|---|---|---|
| Total | 11 | 0 |
| Men | 1 | 0 |
| Women | 10 | 0 |
Political affiliation of members
Majority parties
Opposition parties
Chairperson(s)
Chair 1
Karen
Vecchio
Chairperson: Sex
Female
Political affiliation
Majority
Chairperson
Chairperson: Sex
Female
Age: Chairperson is below 45 years of age
Click for historical data
See historical data for this field.
Political affiliation
Opposition
Committee functions
Committee functions
Mainstream gender equality into the work of (other) parliamentary committees and of Parliament as a whole
No
Scrutinise all Bills from a gender perspective
No
Scrutinise the Executive’s policy from a gender perspective
Yes
Obtain information from the Executive about the justification for actions or inaction which affect gender equality and women’s rights
Yes
Scrutinise State compliance with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)
No
Initiate inquiries of its own choosing
Yes
Scrutinise proposed treaties on gender equality, and other international treaties with implications for gender equality and women’s rights, and report to Parliament thereon, prior to ratification
No
Ascertain and review the Executive’s reasons for not acceding to or ratifying existing international human rights treaties on gender equality and women’s rights
No
Scrutinise the Executive’s response to human rights judgments - of national, regional and international courts – that have gender considerations
No
Monitor the adequacy of the existing national system for the promotion of gender equality
No
Review the allocation and expenditure of funds in the State budget to support measures to promote gender equality and protect women’s rights
Yes
Committee involvement in international human rights reporting mechanisms
Committee involvement in international human rights reporting mechanisms
Consulted in the preparation of the most recent national report to the CEDAW Committee
No
Included in the official delegation which orally presented the most recent national report to the CEDAW Committee
No
Discussed the conclusions and recommendations which the CEDAW Committee adopted as a result
No
Conducted hearings with the Executive about its plans to implement these conclusions and recommendations
No
Involved in the preparation of national reports to other international or regional mechanisms (Resolution 1325 of the United Nations Security Council on Women, peace and security, the Beijing Platform for action…)
No
Committee powers
The Committee has the power to:
Propose amendments to legislation
Yes
Introduce bills into Parliament
No
Initiate parliamentary debates on its reports or on subjects of its choosing
Yes
Carry out inquiries
Yes
Hold oral evidence hearings
Yes
Compel witnesses to attend
Yes
Compel the production of documents and papers
Yes
Make recommendations to the Executive
Yes
Conduct visits, including visits abroad
Yes
Access places of detention without notice
No
Committee working methods
The Committee:
Adopts an annual or longer-term work plan
Yes
Publishes reports on its work on the parliamentary website
Yes
Systematically follows up its reports and recommendations
Yes
Reports regularly to Parliament on its activities
Yes
Number of specialised staff to service committee
4