I can reassure the member that if the number of professors had increased to the extent that the number of students has increased, we would be many many more than we are at present. When I started teaching in 1992, for example, there were approximately 20 students in every undergraduate classroom. There are now over 100 in first year terms. So we have been able to deal with this, sir, and we have, I think, done it quite satisfactorily.
Is it because the population increases that the number of members is bound to increase indefinitely? I'm not so sure. Our neighbours to the south seem to have found it to be different. The size of the House of Representatives used to increase at every census and, at some point, exactly one century ago, in 1910, they decided to cap it at 435 and it is still at that level today.
Of course, the level of services provided by them has not fallen to small levels, as far as I know. It's simply that they were granted the necessary staff. They have the capacity to delegate work to other people, giving instructions, as we professors have to do. There are things that we used to do ourselves and now, because we have larger resources, we instruct people to do a few of the things that we used to do ourselves. I don't know, as I'm not in your position, but I understand that this would possibly mean capping the number of members at 308. It will, indeed, cause some inconvenience to members.
May I point out in finishing that there is nothing arbitrary about 308. It happens to be the exact size of the House at present.