Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for Bonaventure-Îles-de-la-Madeleine for his comments more than for his questions, since there were few questions in his comments.
I would say that we, of course, recognized the decision made by Quebecers on October 30, as evidenced by the fact that we are still sitting as members of this House and taking part in proceedings. We as Quebecers are still paying our taxes to this government and complying with federal laws and regulations. We therefore respect the decision made by the people of Quebec.
I would remind my esteemed colleague from Bonaventure-Îles-de-la-Madeleine that Quebecers simply rejected a proposal from the Quebec government. Their no vote does not mean that they are willing to accept just anything. Despite the claims made by our friends across the way, the no vote is no indication of Quebecers' attachment to Canada.
They simply rejected a proposal. That is all. One thing is for certain: by voting no, Quebecers did not indicate that they would be happy with any symbolic trifle like what the government is now trying to sell us. Accepting this kind of trifle does not imply a recognition of the decision made by Quebecers. Rather, it is the government that does not abide by their decision by trying to pull the wool over their eyes.
As for that famous right of veto, the government continues to try to fool us, to have Quebecers believe that at one time they had such a veto, that they could have used it but that the then premier of Quebec gave it up. The fact is that the Quebec premier of the time did not give up anything. The Supreme Court, that august assembly of Canadian judges, ruled that Quebec never had any veto. Therefore, we could not give up something we never had.
The government wants us to believe that this bill will re-introduce this vague notion of veto power that never really existed, as confirmed by the Supreme Court. In order to be valid, that power would have to be enshrined in the Constitution. However, this is not what is proposed in the bill, quite the contrary. The bill ensures that neither the concept of distinct society, nor Quebec's veto power will ever be entrenched in the Constitution since the other Canadian provinces, or regions as they are now called by the federal government, could use their own veto to oppose the entrenchment of these two basic concepts.
The member opposite should know that, traditionally, constitutional negotiations have always carried high expectations but invariably produced very little. Now, the government would have us believe that, for the first time in history, in spite of the current political situation, these meagre and minimalist proposals will ultimately turn into big and beautiful things for Quebec and the rest of Canada. It goes without saying that no one believes that except, of course, the hon. member for Bonaventure-Îles-de-la-Madeleine.
As for the concept of distinct society, the hon. member should know that Quebecers have reached the point where they will definitely not settle for anything less than their recognition as a nation. Quebec is a nation and wants to be recognized as such, and not merely by a vague and meaningless motion in this House.
As for accepting the results of the October 30 referendum, the hon. member should know that we could never-as indicated by the current leader of the opposition and future Quebec premier-accept less than Meech, which was rejected, and Charlottetown, which Quebecers rejected. What is being proposed now is not even close to Meech, and not even remotely close to Charlottetown.