Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I will be brief, because I presented all my arguments last Tuesday. I would simply like to add one thing with respect to the NDP's first proposed amendment to Bill C-309. We used only one hour to express our views, after hearing from witnesses. I was therefore surprised to hear government members claiming that we were being obstructionist, as that is not at all the case.
It is important for me to address this question in the context of the committee's work. I can assure you that the only time you will see us filibustering is when you impose time restrictions on us. Otherwise, people will simply be expressing their opinion about what they heard and, as far as I know, that is what democracy is all about.
My colleague, Brian Jean, may disagree with me. We can disagree with one another without being rude. This amendment is not frivolous. It is not completely out of touch with reality. On the contrary, it is supported by a number of witnesses. It seems the people of Canada don't have a clear understanding of this bill's impact. Some people believe—and we see this in polling results or in what some media have been saying—that, once this bill has been passed, it will no longer be possible for anyone to take part in a peaceful and lawful demonstration while wearing a mask or disguise.
That being the case, we will end up with some problems, whether we're talking about Bill C-309, as currently worded, or Bill C-309, as it could be amended to make it more consistent with the Criminal Code and existing charter legislation in Canada.
I am going to stop there, because I simply wanted to point out that we are not filibustering. We are expressing our views with respect to the amendment in a democratic manner.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.