Again, I appreciate that, Mr. Reid, but that's exactly the response, isn't it? Every time they get nailed or are being called on something for being undemocratic, they find some little technicality to stand on and say, “Well, that's not right because we have this one little thing.”
The fact of the matter is that the issue of contempt of Parliament was worn by this government. I would have thought this would be a perfect time, with a Speech from the Throne and a new session, for the government to try to do things differently so they would have a different image going into the election. Yet the first thing they do, at one of the most important committees of Parliament, is get ham-fisted and try to ram through a major change to how we make laws without any respect or due regard for other members of Parliament or proper, fair process.
If the government has any doubt about why we're where we are today, they need to look in the mirror. It would seem that this isn't over, that there is more to this than meets the eye, given what's happening at other committees.
If the government thinks that somehow we were just going to agree and roll over on the rights of other members even thought it doesn't affect us directly, they're sadly mistaken, and they should have known ahead of time that they'd be sadly mistaken.
We are not going to sit here and allow any member of Parliament's rights to be snuffed out by this government, particularly through an unfair process that does not give due respect to everybody in this place and the right to have a fair process around it. That's the foundation of our concerns about where we are.
With that, Chair, I will relinquish the floor and ask to be put back on the list.