As far as we are concerned, the issue of pay equity transcends the collective bargaining process. This is something that cannot be negotiated. We are talking here about a long-standing practice of employment discrimination that goes back decades. Women were declared persons under the law 80 years ago. In the labour market, some jobs continue to be viewed as either male or female bastions. There are structural causes of discrimination in the workplace that cannot be addressed within the context of bargaining. Some jobs are unique to a specific working environment. Therefore, comparisons must be drawn with other jobs and analyses must be done.
For us, it's like mixing apples and oranges. Again, I want to take this opportunity to urge the government to separate these issues. If it refuses to do that, then I beg the Liberals to put their principles before their political interests and vote against this budget, because principles and fundamental rights are at issue. We can't understand why they don't see that. As we see it, this issue is not something that can be negotiated. We can always debate whether or not some program or another merits more funding, but this is a very serious issue, to our way of thinking.
Earlier, your colleague threw me a line. Had you asked me if Quebec came out on the losing end of this budget, I would have answered yes, absolutely, because of equalization, first of all. We cannot comprehend in the least how the Canadian government, which is spending the equivalent of $18 billion by cutting taxes, cannot afford to pay the $2 billion already committed under a five-year agreement, at a time when all provinces that are under performing are facing very significant fiscal pressure. As far as we are concerned, this is a fundamental problem.
Moving away from the budget, I would like to draw your attention to the proposal to establish a national securities commission. As the old saying goes, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. The system in place right now works. If the objective is to shift activities to Toronto, fine then, but if the goal is to have a system that works, then we really have no need of a national securities commission.