I am trying to be fair and objective about this. I think it was a rash promise to suggest that this could happen before 2019. The government was slow to get going with this committee, and it was slow to make a compromise to ensure that all parties—not just official parties in terms of the House of Commons—were on the committee. They gave up their majority and that was a good gesture on their part toward compromise.
I just don't think it is feasible. You would have to hold a referendum by June 2017. It would have to be done under the current Elections Act. That means corporations could spend during the referendum. I just think it would be better to take the time and get it right. Then, I would say, have an action-forcing mechanism that four or five years from the adoption of this committee, or something like that, this committee be reconstituted so another parliamentary committee can do a review of what has gone on.
The New Zealanders went through it from 1993 and have been talking about electoral reform for more than two decades. It takes time to get public awareness and understanding of the issues.