Sen. Patrick Brazeau says he was offered a "backroom deal" where he would receive a lighter punishment if he apologized to Canadians for allegedly filing improper expense claims.

Speaking in the Senate Friday afternoon, Brazeau said he was offered the deal during a conversation with Conservative Sen. Claude Carignan, the government leader in the Senate.

"At approximately 10:20 a.m. this morning, I was outside this chamber in the back and the leader of the Senate, the leader of the government in the Senate, took me aside. And I'll be very careful about my words here, but I was essentially offered a backroom deal," Brazeau said.

"And the backroom deal was that if I stood in this chamber, apologized to Canadians and took responsibility for my actions, that my punishment would be lesser than what is being proposed."

Brazeau said he rejected the offer, and maintained that he's done nothing wrong.

Speaking in the Senate immediately after, Carignan confirmed he spoke with Brazeau and appeared to confirm that he had made the offer. However, he seemed to back-track from that when he spoke to reporters later in the afternoon.

Right after Brazeau spoke, Carignan said he did speak with Brazeau but he did so out of "friendship."

"I spoke to him out of friendship, saying 'Senator Brazeau, please suggest something, apologize, perhaps a lighter sanction – something that we can come up with to try and find the right balance,'" Carignon said. "I did that in confidence and frankly, I did so in an attempt to help him. And I regret that he perceived that as an attack."

Carignan later told reporters outside the Senate chamber that Brazeau had misunderstood him, and it wasn't a "backroom deal." Carignan said he was instead suggesting that Brazeau propose to do something himself.

“It’s stupid,” Carignan said when asked by reporters what he thought of Brazeau’s allegation.

“It’s totally ridiculous. I repeat: I told Sen. Brazeau he propose something in the chamber,” such as an apology. “But he misinterpreted it.”

When asked by CTV if his suggestion to Brazeau could not be interpreted as a backroom deal, Carignan said he only proposed that Brazeau put forward “some amendments.”

“If I tell you that you can or are able to propose changes to a motion, etc., is that a backroom deal? No,” Carignan said.

Sen. Marjory LeBreton, former government leader in the upper chamber, told CTV’s Power Play Friday that although she “wasn’t privy to the conversation” between Carignan and Brazeau, “I would be inclined not to necessarily accept Patrick Brazeau’s version.”

She would not comment on whether, if an offer had been made, it should have been put to all three senators facing suspension.

Limiting debate

Earlier Friday, the Conservatives announced their intention to push for a vote on the motions to suspend Senators Pamela Wallin, Mike Duffy and Brazeau as early as the middle of next week. Tory Sen. Yonah Martin presented a motion that would see the current motions on the proposed suspensions converted into government business, which would limit how long the debate can continue.

The move came during a rare Friday session for the upper chamber, as it continued to debate the motions to suspend the three senators without pay or benefits over alleged "gross negligence" regarding their expense claims.

Martin’s motion begins by stating that "notwithstanding any provisions of the rules," the vote on the proposed suspensions should proceed at the earliest possible date. It would set a timetable for the vote on the proposed suspensions, as well as on all proposed amendments and sub-amendments.

A vote on Martin’s motion could happen on Monday or Tuesday, while votes on the suspension motions could happen as early as Wednesday -- just before the annual Conservative convention that is scheduled to start in Calgary on Oct. 31.

The Senate adjourned at 4 p.m. ET Friday and will reconvene at 2 p.m. ET Monday.

Speaking in the Senate Friday, Liberal Sen. James Cowan questioned the rush to vote on the suspension of the three senators, and urged other senators to respect the rule of law and due process.

He reiterated his stance that the suspension motions need to be referred to a special committee, where the three senators will be able to present their cases with legal counsel during public hearings.

“First of all, to make sure that anything we do doesn’t interfere with the police investigation we’ve asked for, or any charges that might result from that, we don’t want to mess with that,” Cowan told Power Play of his call for special committee hearings.

“Then we need to say ‘is now the right time…or should we wait after the police investigations are complete?’”

Cowan said if senators vote to proceed with sanctions now, his proposed special committee would consider “a whole range,” including fines, short-term suspensions or even expulsion, and then make a recommendation to colleagues for a final vote.

“That’s the proper way to deal with this. But this kind of ad hoc, backroom, corridor talk about ‘might be this, might be that, maybe we’d be open to this,’ that’s no way to do the nation’s business,” Cowan said.

But LeBreton said the Senate is allowed to “discipline from within.”

“This has nothing to do with the system of justice, this has nothing to do with how the police may handle this, it has nothing to did with the fact that there may or may not be criminal charges,” LeBreton told Power Play.

“This is simply using an instrument of Parliament to discipline from within, to send a signal that we are not going to tolerate the abuse of public trust.”

'Mistakes were made'

For the second time this week, Wallin spoke in the Senate, maintaining that due process was "being denied."

She admitted that "mistakes were made," but said that the rules outlining expense claims are unclear and, depending on who you ask, you will get different answers.

"Please do not try and convict us here and now," Wallin said Friday, questioning why the Senate would move to vote on the suspensions before the RCMP investigations into the expense claims are complete.

Wallin, Duffy and Brazeau were forced to repay thousands of dollars earlier this year after outside audits by Deloitte found ineligible claims.

Wallin repaid more than $120,000 in travel expenses, while Duffy repaid $90,000 in housing and other expenses. Brazeau was ordered to repay about $48,000 but missed his repayment deadline and his Senate pay is being garnished.

The RCMP is investigating the expenses of all three senators, along with those of retired senator Mac Harb. No charges have been laid.

Wallin said she wants the opportunity to present her case with legal counsel. "I renew my call today for due process," she said.

But in a radio interview, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Canadians and the majority of Conservative senators are “clear” about what they feel should happen.

“I think everybody knows that the facts here have been looked into for over a year by the Senate, by audits and studies. There is absolutely no doubt what these three senators did," Harper told Newstalk 1010.

He rejected the notion that disciplinary action only be taken if the senators are charged or found guilty of criminal wrongdoing.

“To be sitting on the public payroll and just say you’ll repay the money, I think we’re way past that stage in these cases,” Harper said.

"I think that's what Canadians expect, that when people abuse a position of trust at this level and over this time period and this clearly, that there will be appropriate action taken that frankly removes them from the public payroll."

The Senate, which does not usually sit on Fridays, resumed after a marathon session on Thursday that revealed dissension in the Conservative caucus. A number of Conservative senators have indicated they don’t feel comfortable supporting the motions to suspend the three senators without pay or benefits.

Conservative Senators Hugh Segal and Don Plett have voiced concerns that they felt Wallin, Duffy and Brazeau were not receiving due process. Carignan had earlier indicated that Conservative senators would be free to vote their consciences.

With files from The Canadian Press