Members of Parliament have set the stage for a lobbying frenzy, scheduling four days of prebudget meetings that will hear from 89 witnesses.

The marathon meetings of the House of Commons finance committee will take place from Feb. 16-19 and are aimed at giving committee staff enough time to summarize the advice into a report before the Liberal government releases its budget.

Finance Minister Bill Morneau has not yet announced a budget date, but it is expected to be released some time in March. Mr. Morneau will be among the witnesses invited to appear.

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The Liberals had previously tried to set up the finance committee in December so that hearings could take place throughout January, but that plan was scuttled due to a procedural dispute with the Bloc Québécois.

The finance committee only got around to electing a chair on Thursday. The committee selected Liberal MP and former cabinet minister Wayne Easter as chair in a public vote. He was unopposed.

All parties will now submit ranked lists of witnesses to the committee and the witnesses will be slotted into the speaking times in proportion to party rankings in the House of Commons.

The committee normally hears from interest groups, economists and academics as part of its prebudget hearings. Officials from the Parliamentary Budget Office are also expected to be invited.

Liberal MP Steven MacKinnon said witnesses and the public should be aware that this process will be far less comprehensive than the committee's normal prebudget work, which usually takes several months.

Conservative MPs said that in spite of the tight time frame, it is important to at least allow witnesses the opportunity to get their suggestions on the record before the budget is released.

"We need to giddy-up," said Conservative MP Phil McColeman.