Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Chair, I'm inclined to support this amendment, not because I see this as any major shift in the constitutional practices or the constitutional history of our country, but simply as a reflection of reality.
We heard--and I think most of us knew this already--that in these circumstances, when we're dealing with these types of emergencies, the first responders come from the municipal level. I think all this amendment does is recognize that practical reality.
We're not proposing to change the Constitution with this amendment; it doesn't do that. It simply says we're going to coordinate emergency response activities at all levels of government. I don't think that takes any authority away from the provinces. They will still have their constitutional framework in which the municipalities are offshoots of provinces and have their direct responsibility to the provincial level of government, not to the federal level of government.
I hear Mr. Ménard's argument, but I think it really misses the main point. I think the mover of this motion has no intention of changing the power relationships in this country but is simply addressing the question of how do we best coordinate the response. It seems to me that unless we recognize the very crucial role, the absolutely crucial role, that the municipal or regional levels of government play, we're not really doing our job. As a result, I will support the motion.