Thank you, Mr. Chair.
To respond a little bit to what Mr. Battiste has been talking about, the non-derogation clause works for individual and government rights, to an extent, but I would say that the major concern is around land, and land isn't necessarily a right. Sometimes it is; sometimes it isn't. The crux of the issue everybody is concerned about is that there are a lot of land claims going on in this country, all across the country, and the concern is that there will be another interest in those land claims. We've been assured that is not the case, but it does appear, particularly with the Ontario Métis nation, that they are definitely pursuing land, despite the assurances of Mr. Battiste, so we need to ensure that we have clarity on that.
The other piece is that, just because there's no amendment on a particular clause, that doesn't mean we can't discuss it. We pass these clauses on an up or down vote. I want to know what we are voting on before I vote on it. Hence, we ask questions and we get clarification. We ask many of the witnesses who come before us if they have amendments, and they generally speak in broad terms about the bill. This is our only chance to get clarification on particular points of the particular bill.
I have been working on an amendment. I hope I'll be able to move that shortly, but I have to get some of the wording, and then I have to get it to the clerk.
Mr. Chair, I don't know if we can suspend for a few minutes so I can work on that amendment or if we want to come back to it. I'm hesitant to say that we should come back to it, because it could change in real time here, and I would rather not be distracted with what's going on in the committee while trying to negotiate an amendment.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.