I will not repeat Mr. Cullen's arguments because I support them completely. I must point out, however, that the government had every opportunity to invite witnesses to support its vision of the amendments and of their impact. That was not done. No witness came forward to state that the government was correctly interpreting the changes proposed in this measure.
I would like to add that the proposal is for amendments to national standards in one of the largest programs of federal-provincial transfer payments. That is not a matter to be taken lightly. In that context, I believe that the government has already been warned that there could be challenges and constitutional problems because of this measure. As it did, for example, with the amendments to the process for appointing Quebec judges to the Supreme Court, the government is once more pushing ahead with a measure that will certainly be challenged and will probably be overturned.
Why does the government insist on pushing ahead, without even a shred of evidence, to pass a measure that the provinces have not asked for? It was not even asked for by any particular organization. It is being done simply on the basis of an interpretation by the government that no other organization has confirmed. It is completely beyond me.
Once again, I propose that the government withdraw these amendments in order to avoid the humiliation of being at the wrong end of another decision. Eventually, if it wants to demonstrate that its interpretation is reasonable, it can bring that interpretation back in a subsequent bill for more attentive study, rather than burying it in a budget bill.