Thanks for that, Jay; it wasn't as long as for you.
In every province it may be different, but in Ontario, where I went to school, here's what happened: exams started at the beginning of April--April is exam month--and end at some point in April. Exactly when they end is very much dependent on the individual set of courses the student is taking, and to some degree it's a lottery whether you have your exams nicely and evenly spread out or all bunched together at the front or the end of the exam period. What many students do, particularly those who come from away, is that as soon as their last exam is over, they're out of town. They're heading back to wherever they're from.
I would argue that unfortunately the last week of April is arguably the worst week you could pick from the point of view of actually having some idea of where students are. There's a very good chance they would be at one riding during the advance polls and a different one during the final polls. Based on the many years I spent as a student, I really think this choice of dates is unfortunate, precisely from a student point of view, .
That's one concern. A second and I think lesser concern is that some snowbirds are not back yet from the south. I'm not sure that's as major a concern. Most snowbirds would be back by the end of April.
My third concern, which I think is very important, is this. Under the proposed date at the end of April, the writ period would overlap with the end of the fiscal year, and this means there'd be a problem. It would not occur if you chose any other time of year for the election to take place. It's taking place in a period when it would be necessary to pay for the government's bills by means of Governor General's warrants, as opposed to the normal budget process, and for that reason I think this date is an unfortunate choice as well.
As a final note, Mr. Chairman, I simply mention that the Chief Electoral Officer, Mr. Kingsley, when asked about the concern with the July 1 moving date--not the student concern--did indicate that he felt he'd be able to take care of updating his list in time for the recommended October election date. On this basis, I'm encouraging colleagues to vote against this amendment, again notwithstanding the fact that I recognize it was offered in the very best sense of collegiality.