Mr. Chair, I'm not going to filibuster, but I do want to make a few points.
This piece of legislation originated from the Liberal Party. The Liberal Party believes--and I'm sure the Conservatives agree and everybody agrees--that our number one responsibility is to protect Canadians. That's why we brought it forward in the first place.
The issue is whether it's still necessary. There was a sunset provision. It expired. We have not had it since 2007. When we were questioning the witnesses, the tenor of my questions related to whether or not it was still necessary. Mr. Davies is incorrect in saying that there was no evidence that it should be supported. Some witnesses were vehemently opposed to it. Other witnesses said that even though it hasn't really been used, it could be helpful and maybe it's something that needs to be there just to be careful.
It is a very delicate balancing act to determine what is in the best interests of Canadians. Mr. Norlock is correct that the Supreme Court of Canada has not said it's unconstitutional. We have a balance in Canada. Although we have a Charter of Rights and Freedoms, people seem to forget that those rights are constrained by section 1 of the charter, which allows for reasonable constraints on rights in Canada under certain circumstances.
Although it's certainly true that this does impinge on civil liberties, the issue is to what extent and whether or not it is reasonable to protect our society. Mr. Davies said that the Liberal Party has flip-flopped, but we're the ones that brought in the bill. To say that we are in favour or not in favour...we brought it in. All we're saying is that after the benefit of experience over a number of years, is this something that should be put in at this point in time, and if so, for what period before the sunset provision kicks in?
By abstaining today, we're simply saying that our balancing act is not yet done. We are still considering the proper course of action. We will make that position known at third reading. There's nothing to be read into that, other than the fact that we're treating this very seriously and not having a knee-jerk reaction. Our position will be known at third reading.