Ms. Minna addressed much of which I was going to reiterate. I guess what I'm struck by is when we began this committee--and not everybody was here, but some of us were--we began a broad-based consultation with women across this country from coast to coast to coast to try to determine what their primary issues were, what were the issues that they felt needed addressing by the Parliament of Canada. It was the first time that there had been a full Standing Committee on the Status of Women to address the issues that were particular to women in this country. And overwhelmingly we heard about the issues of poverty, single parenthood, providing supports for families and children, the struggles to get into the workforce, and the struggles of violence in the street. Perhaps the issue of trafficking came up, but if it did it was certainly not memorable in its quantity and urgency. And suddenly, out of right field, we have a proposal for a study on trafficking of humans. I don't want to diminish the importance of it; it is important. But what is really important are the issues of women in this country, women who are struggling to get an education, women who are struggling to make a better life for themselves and their families, and women who are struggling in their senior years to live with some dignity and some hope and optimism.
I had one of my colleagues ask me, when we were talking about this, are you forgetting the women of the inner city, who we know are struggling to make a life for themselves, in order to deal with the international issue of trafficking of women as a priority? And I just urge colleagues to look at why we're here--the opportunities that we provide for women in this country--and to address the issues that are front and centre in the minds of most women in Canada.
I'm just astounded that at this time and place, with the opportunities we have, that we will not put first and foremost the needs and hopes that women in Canada have put in the activities of this committee.