I'll keep it brief.
I also cannot support this amendment. I believe changing the word “must” is a mistake. I had my staff go through it, and 13 of the briefs specifically asked for the bill to be passed without amendment. The remaining 21 urged swift passage. They had no amendments to offer, only suggestions for the implementation stage. In regular correspondence from people with lived experience, none of them expressed a desire to change the bill. They only expressed support.
I do believe that if you look at the content of the strategy, there's still a lot of flexibility on how the government implements those points. We've asked legislative drafters to look at other private members' bills. The use of the word “must” is a very common phrase. I did take a week to consider this amendment. I just wanted the Liberals to know that, but I'm not prepared to support it.