Members opposite have no need to worry about my wish to speak to this motion, Mr. Speaker. I have no intention of beating, or even getting close to, the recent parliamentary record for the longest speech on a motion, which was set by the current Minister of Fisheries and Oceans in the last Parliament when he spoke for three hours on a fisheries bill. Despite the Deputy Prime Minister's invitation, I have no intention of beating this time record, far from it.
Some matters must be clarified before we agree to adjourn.
Last Monday, when the government and the opposition faced off on the rail transportation problem, we had no idea that we would sit until today, Sunday, before solving this serious problem. We were prepared from the first and sincerely believed that it was possible to settle this matter very quickly with a minimum of co-operation.
This past week was certainly not democracy week in Canada's Parliament. In fact, the government set parliamentary rules aside four times in order to pass this bill. This week, they set aside the rights of CN workers as well as the very rule of free collective bargaining in Canada. This was certainly not the most glorious week for the government and the new Minister of Labour.