I am getting there, Madam Chair.
It is the same thing when people here talk about the concept of a nation. Jacques Parizeau described it as a trinket. When we presented the motion on the concept of the Quebec nation to the House, people said it would easily pass. The motion was indeed passed by a strong majority. People wanted to make sure it would be a trinket, a little toy that Quebeckers would enjoy playing with. We then found ourselves in the situation of having to reiterate that, if we accept that Quebec is a nation, certain actions are required to support that idea.
My colleague from Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon said he cannot understand why Quebeckers should have more powers when he pays the same taxes as they do. Why does he not speak out about Prince Edward Island having four times the representation? That province should really have just one MP, but it has four. He does not make a fuss about that because it is not in his interests to do so.
The history of Quebec has shown us repeatedly that Quebec had to be treated as a minority and that this approach should not be blocked. The Constitution Act, 1867, institutionalized our minority status and, what this member said continues in that vein.
I would like to know what the witness thinks about the historical debate on the process to establish both Quebec and all Francophones in Canada as minorities.