Procedure and House Affairs committee  I think you know that you can never lure a law professor into saying absolutely certain, so I'm not going to fall for that.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I'm about as confident as one can possibly be at this point in time in the evolution of the law. I take your point that it may well be that the law will evolve in that direction, but it would have to require legislation that shocked our consciences in a much more profound way.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Well, we like to think you still are.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Absolutely.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Even if there's not a constitutional issue.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Yes.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Of course, I think that is a risk. That is a disadvantage of that approach. But when one considers the alternatives and the long traditions of Parliament having autonomy through parliamentary privilege to decide the appropriate forms of discipline for members in a particular context, it seems to me that at the end of the day, notwithstanding the risk of partisanship, members of the House or Senate truly are in the best position to understand what kinds of conduct are inconsistent with the integrity of Parliament, with the capacity for Parliament to perform its functions and maintain the confidence of the Canadian people, and to do that with flexibility and responsiveness to the particular circumstances.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I'm not aware of any. Of course, the bill was just passed last year by the Nova Scotia legislature. I don't believe there's been an opportunity to enforce it. I believe the answer to that question, sir, is no. I haven't heard of constitutional objections being raised to it. I think the same is true of the existing provisions in sections 19 and 39 of the act.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Regarding the provisions of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms that I referred to in section 11, there are two that deal with retroactivity, but it's clear that they're focused on the criminal context—the imposition of criminal liability retroactively, the alteration of a sentence for conducts retroactively.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. It's a great pleasure to be here, and I'm grateful to have my visit rescheduled so quickly after the tragic events of last week. I hope I can share some useful thoughts about Bill C-518. I've prepared some speaking notes that I hope you have before you.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I'll do my best.