Good day, everyone.
We are accountable to the public, among others. In fact, that's one of the reasons why I'm here. I cancelled a number of meetings because I was told that it was important for me to be here.
We're concerned. We need transparency. We're convinced that this committee will get to the bottom of this situation or, at least, that's our hope. That way, in the future, we'll have the necessary means to prevent an attack on our democracy.
Public confidence has been eroding for years. I started in politics in 2019; it's now 2023.
Until proven otherwise, we can rely on various experts and professionals. Other countries, including Australia, have also followed suit. My colleagues will know why I named that country.
We've been told that there are numerous solutions. I won't repeat all the comments or everything we've all read, but, today, it's important for us to come to an agreement. We can't stop now. We heard the answers from senior officials and from the various ministers who've appeared before this committee. The media also sent us information that we weren't even able to understand. We need to go further and to find solutions.
Today, we're discussing an important motion proposing many things, namely, to search for evidence that could help us. The goal isn't necessarily to identify who's at fault.
If anyone here is non-partisan, except when it comes to defending the interests of Quebeckers, it's me; that's my trademark.
The government and the official opposition are only doubling down on each other's comments. It's not a contest.
We're not looking for power, but rather for solutions. Ultimately, power means being independent. Now, we can talk about sovereignty, but, personally, I consider this to be democratic sovereignty.
Are we able to tell the public that we can guarantee the integrity of our democracy? I can't answer that question right now. I have my doubts. Obviously, it's my duty to agree to examine this situation and dig a little deeper.
I believe that this motion may constitute a strategy to find someone to blame. Obviously, when it's my turn to ask questions, the main focus is on finding solutions. We heard from experts who touched on those solutions, but we ran out of time. Perhaps they're already preparing documents for us on what is out there and their recommendations. I even think that some countries will call us to tell us what to do or not do.
I see this happening in the near future. In fact, since this is a minority government, we can't take our time, because things can change quickly. That's why this was urgent.
I came across an interesting motion. I thought of it because I'm hearing some people say that the Conservatives aren't focusing enough on the issue of interference. Others are saying that they're transparent and that they really want to move forward.
I'm going to read the motion, and then I'm going to stop so that you can judge for yourselves. This motion was adopted not too long ago, on November 18, 2020, two and a half years ago.
That, given that (i) the People's Republic of China, under the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party, is threatening Canada's national interest and its values, including Canadians of Chinese origin within Canada's borders, (ii) it is essential that Canada have a strong and principled foreign policy backed by action in concert with its allies, the House call upon the government to: (a) make a decision on Huawei's involvement in Canada's 5G network within 30 days of the adoption of this motion; and (b) develop a robust plan, as Australia has done, to combat China's growing foreign operations here in Canada and its increasing intimidation of Canadians living in Canada, and table it within 30 days of the adoption of this motion.
This motion passed by a vote of 178 to 146. I checked; I did my homework.
That's why I think that, perhaps, we may reach agreement today in the spirit of doing better, because even our colleague Ms. O'Connell voted in favour of that motion.
I'm eager to hear what my colleague opposite will say about the desire for few subamendments, because I think that we're all prepared to stay here late tonight. We need to remember that the goal, other than the pursuit of power—because it's nice to have power—is to think about our democracy. Let us think about the people we represent, let us think about our constituents.