With respect to Ms. Dion, we would all like to have a 52% female representation in the House of Commons, since women make up 52% of the country's population. I think that is only logical.
I am in charge of my party's nominating committee for the next election. This responsibility was given to me by my leader. It involves a fair number of meetings and discussions to try to interest more women in running for office.
I have two questions for you. First, are you saying that money is the only thing that is preventing women from entering politics? I know that Bill C-54 is intended to eliminate financial obstacles. Would more women run for political office if these obstacles were eliminated?
Second, I had a look at the membership of your advisory board. Apart from Senator Lucie Pépin, the former President of the Advisory Council on the Status of Women, who is very credible, do you have any statistics to show how many women are involved in politics at the individual provincial level, or do you only have federal statistics?