Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
First of all, I must say that I am shocked by the motion on the table. Although the motion has been made by the New Democratic Party, it seems totally undemocratic and totally irresponsible to me, removing as it does the right of members of this committee to speak.
As a Quebecker, I can provide a very specific example. You will remember that, in his testimony at one of the first sessions, William Amos, from the University of Ottawa, raised some major problems with two clauses of Bill C-469. First, he mentioned clause 23, which could expose Hydro-Québec to lawsuits. The same witness also said that clause 16 of the proposed federal bill would allow injunctions to be brought against Hydro-Québec's activities.
Mr. Chair, do you think it makes sense to have no more than a minute to speak to amendments that are so significant and so fundamental that they are shaking the foundations of Canadian environmental law? I see that as quite irresponsible and, frankly, I have to say that members would appear completely ridiculous.
Clearly, I support Mr. Warawa's proposed amendment, not only because it is important for all members to have their say, but also because it is important to study this motion in the context of the time that members will be allowed to give their opinion on other motions to come.
I have some other comments. Some remarks have suggested that members on this side do not trust industry. I have to tell you that nothing could be further from the truth. We have a good deal of trust in industry. We are studying this bill with an open mind.
For example, we could mention the Conseil patronal de l'environnement du Québec, CPEQ. It was founded in 1992 by representatives of the major industrial and business sectors in Quebec. CPEQ's mission is to represent its members' interests on environmental and sustainable development matters…