Mr. Speaker, I was very interested in the comments made by the hon. member for Mégantic-Compton-Stanstead, but I was surprised by his attack on the Senate.
I remember in the last Parliament that the House was not full but had a great number of Conservative MPs from the province of Quebec sitting on the other side who were staunch supporters of the Senate. My recollection is that members of his party who used to be Conservatives-apparently they either saw some light or went blind, I am not sure which; either way they fell off the path and landed on another-or supporters of Mr. Mulroney and his government supported the Senate. They supported it so much they stuffed it full of good Tories.
We know this happened during the last Parliament. We know it was supported by Conservative members of Parliament, many of whom were from the province of Quebec and never said a word in the House about their electors wanting to get rid of the Senate. Now we hear this is the popular rage in his province. I do not recall hearing raised during the last election campaign anywhere in Canada that the Senate was the subject of extensive discussion, either in Quebec or elsewhere.
I am very surprised to hear the hon. member telling us today that everyone in his province is in favour of abolition of the Senate when this patently was not the case until at least October 25, 1993. Has something happened that has changed the minds of Quebecers? I am interested to know what it is that in his view has resulted in this-
-about-face, as we say, which changed the opinion of all his constituents.