So it's not just that check on the power—we know what power, particularly if it's in large doses, does to people over time—but also on the policies. We had Mr. Broadbent testify earlier at this committee about a sequence he had with the senior Mr. Trudeau, who'd won a majority but virtually no seats from the west. Mr. Trudeau was looking to bring in an energy policy, yet with no significant input from western Canada, and tried to bring Mr. Broadbent and some others into that cabinet to balance out the enactment of the policy that became the national energy program, which, and I don't want to exaggerate, didn't land very well. It was not received well both in substance and in politics at the time.
Mr. Dewar, we've heard testimony from countries that use proportional systems. We asked questions about the two types of MPs and about voter dissatisfaction. We heard very strong evidence from Irish, German and New Zealand officials that this was not the case, and that under the system Mr. Bickerton and others have advocated, for about three-quarters of Parliament there remains a direct geographical link. You suggested that there are worries about that. Our system right now does a great job on geography but not much else. It really emphasizes geography, solely almost.
Would a mixed system alleviate some of those concerns, as has been the experience in countries that have chosen a hybrid type of voting system to increase proportionality but not lose the local links?