Mr. Speaker, we cannot refer to the absence of hon. members in this House, but you are right to point out that, since there are no Liberal members to ask me questions, a question was put to me by our own critic. This is a little unusual, since we are having a debate today. To have a debate, it usually takes two opposing sides to present the pros and cons of a bill. This is the way it has always been since Greek Antiquity, since the beginning of democracy. True democracy began with debates.
Today, I was able to speak to this bill a little earlier than expected because no member of the Liberal Party wished to speak. And now, after my speech, I have one hon. member from our own side of the House asking me questions. This is a bit surprising.
I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the hon. member for Berthier-Montcalm for the really remarkable job he has done on this issue.