Mr. Speaker, I looked at the transcript of President Chirac's remarks yesterday.
At the outset I want to say it was far from the endorsement the hon. member for Verchères was pretending at the beginning of question period.
President Chirac said: "If the referendum is positive the government will recognize the fact". In other words, the French authorities will arrive at the same conclusion as everybody else, that they obtained the majority. That is all.
President Chirac's policy on Canada and Quebec is one of non-indifference and of non-interference, as has always been the case with him and with the French authorities.