Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
I don't propose to challenge your ruling, but I do wish to point out the implication of this amendment.
I can't quite put my finger on it, but I'm sure that elsewhere in this bill we have amended the.... Actually, I think it was section 28 of the Canadian Bill of Rights, to include a right to a healthy and ecologically balanced environment.
I think elsewhere we have made reference to section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. We're going to try to take a look at that section in the preamble—Ms. Murray is on top of it. There we are. We are saying that compromising the life, liberty, and security of the person would be contrary to section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Now, those of you who have ever dealt with refugee law will know that the Supreme Court of Canada has extended the protection of the charter to persons who are not permanent residents. In other words, if you come to Canada as a refugee and you are subject to judicial or governmental decisions, the Supreme Court of Canada, about ten and a half years ago--I don't remember the name of the case—indicated that such persons should be granted the protection of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
What we are doing with this amendment now is to say that those persons, in relation to the bill, will in effect receive second-class status. They will not be able to benefit from the protections of this so-called environmental bill of rights. This is somewhat anomalous, in my opinion. It certainly adds another layer of complexity to Canadian law regarding rights. A refugee claimant who has not yet received permanent resident status will be entitled to protection under the Canadian Charter of Rights but not to protection under the Canadian environmental bill of rights.
I'm not sure what will happen in relation to the amendment we've made to the Canadian Bill of Rights. I have to assume those persons will not be able to take advantage of that amendment to the Canadian Bill of Rights, which we've made under this act, since we are now redefining the scope of this act to apply to a limited class of residents and not all residents.
Once more we're into an area, in my view, of highly dubious legislation writing.
Thank you.