Thank you, Mr. Chair.
We can play those little games. I personally waited for the end of the meeting to move this motion, and I used my speaking time to do so. Okay, perhaps I used three or four minutes of Mr. Housefather's time. I just want to remind the committee of the premise of that agreement with the NDP.
When this was announced, on March 22, the Prime Minister said there was a problem, that Parliament was operating poorly and that committee is were not working. Yet, as far as I remember, once we returned after the election, the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates started by coming up with a work plan. There was no fighting, we cooperated, and everything was going very well.
The political decision is the agreement concluded between the Prime Minister and the NDP leader. That is what is currently causing our committee problems. Before that, everything was going well. We had the same will to advance defence procurement in Canada, among other considerations.
Don't blame us for making this request today because, ultimately, the political game occurred between the Liberal Party leader and the NDP leader. We have not taken part in any political games. I would even say that, in general, we the Conservatives have been pretty cooperative in all House committees. We have been working on advancing Canada's interests.
I think our motion is normal, given the circumstances. As I said, I waited until the end of the meeting to move my motion, so that we would not spend two hours discussing it and miss the opportunity to hear from important witnesses who were here today.
Once again, let's remember the premise of that agreement. The Prime Minister was saying there was a problem with the operations of the House and of the committees, whereas I think we have done our best to work in a spirit of collegiality with everyone.
Thank you.