Thank you, Madam Chair.
Thank you, gentlemen, for having given us your expertise and for having travelled here to do so. Thank you also, Mr. Simeon, for making yourself available.
I have several questions, all of equal weight. Parliament should sit in your class for a week to get a clear idea of the factors involved in passing the bill as it is presented.
Among other things, the House of Commons is being compared to the upper house, or the Senate. The Senate is called the upper house precisely because, I believe, in the spirit of the conventions and the law...
Might the Supreme Court be tempted to consider the spirit of the conventions if it were to decide on the legitimacy of a bill like this?
If we compare Bill C-20 to Bill C-19, which has also been brought forward, do we not automatically have to open the Constitution? But there is one major change. To my knowledge, no negotiations have taken place with the provinces. We are moving towards an upper house with powers not greater than but equal to the powers of the House of Commons. At the same time, we are exposing senators to the pressures of civil society, the same pressures that members of Parliament are under today. In that context, the quality of decision-making in the Senate... Doubts start to creep in. Mr. Simeon and Mr. Heard spoke about that too.
I would like to hear your comments.