—because at the end of the day, whether you're sitting on this side or on the other side, the bottom line for us is how to improve the quality of life for people who want to come to Canada and who are in Canada. That's what drives us; that's why we're in public life.
So when things like this happen, I personally feel cheated, in the sense that we were not given the opportunity to contribute as much as we could have. I know the hard work the bureaucracy does on these files, but I just think there would have been a better way to deal with this issue, had the form and the process been a little bit more open, more transparent, and more accountable, and had we, as parliamentarians, been included more.
Quite frankly, we are now left with very little choice, Mr. Chairman, but to say that the vast majority of people who appeared in front of us didn't agree with the bill.
I think we could have done a much better job for the minister had she given us the opportunity to study the issue in depth and to make proposals.
I'd like you to comment on that.