Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I think it is clear from our comments and the questions asked of the various witnesses that the choice of the third Monday in October is a problem for the Bloc québécois. I don’t intend to go on very long. I would simply like to reiterate that in October, there is a holiday that comes around on the same cycle. Since the beginning of time — unless we decide to change it — Quebec and Canada have celebrated Thanksgiving on the second Monday of October. If elections are held on the third Monday of October, advance polling will always be held during Thanksgiving weekend.
We believe that such a situation would not support the exercise of voting rights, neither in terms of a general vote nor of advance polling, even if there is no longer a legal requirement to reveal why we are unable to vote on Election Day and why we vote in advance. Over the years, we have abandoned that idea and people may now vote in advance. In any case, if the vote is cast by mail, they can send it in to the returning officer at any time. Our objective is to support the exercise of voting rights. We believe that that weekend is not a convenient period for advance voting. Consequently, we believe that the timing is not right. The objective of our amendment is to change that. We therefore suggest the fourth Monday in April. From a seasonal point of view, the end of April is as favourable as October. In fact, in October, winter has already arrived in some Western Canada provinces. We believe that the fourth Monday in April is more convenient from a seasonal point of view.
Some opponents to this date could raise a question concerning students. We have done some checks in this regard. Normally, universities end classes in the last days of April. The preceding week, students could vote in their campus constituency or, if required because their classes have already ended, they could choose to vote in their home district. On the fourth Monday of April, students have not massively deserted campuses. We have checked. Contrary to Thanksgiving, Easter is not a fixed-date holiday. It varies; I’ve never understood how that date is set. It may be due to a link to the Roman calendar or it is perhaps part of the Judeo-Christian tradition. Easter sometimes lands in March, sometimes in April. It’s been too long since I served at Easter mass for me to remember the logic that dictates when Easter is in March and when it is in April. We’ve looked forward fifteen years. In that time, advance polling falling on Easter weekend will take place only once, which I admit would present a certain disadvantage.
That happens only once in the next 15 years. That is in 2011, if I recall correctly. An election will be required that year since we must now have fixed-date elections. For all these reasons, I ask the Committee to adopt the amendment that was respectfully submitted.