Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to speak in this debate, which is taking place in principle because of certain events. The issue was raised almost ten years ago when the Government of Newfoundland wanted to change the denominational school system for reasons of efficiency. This debate led to a referendum in which 29 per cent of Newfoundlanders voted in favour of a change.
While I accept the many debates that took place in the province of Newfoundland with respect to the concerns about the direction and the need for efficiency in its system, there is in that argument a sense of need as far as the fiscal element is concerned. The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador is certainly to be commended for taking this approach.
In the few days that this House has been given, many members did not have the opportunity for debate because of the speed with which this bill was passed. We had an opportunity to have the bill reviewed by members of the other place and many senators took the time to reflect and review it.
As the hon. member for Broadview-Greenwood indicated a little earlier, we should not simply dismiss their views. I think of Senator Doody, Senator Carstairs and Senator Michael Kirby who took the time to really reflect on the issue and its long term implications. These individuals had a lot to do with creating the Constitution in 1981-82.
These individuals took the time to consider the issue, because it is one that does not just stop with the interests of the province of Newfoundland. It goes well beyond that to every other province because it will no doubt have an impact on minority legislation and the question as so eloquently described by the member for Lachine-Lac-Saint-Louis, when he talked about what this is really doing in terms of the definition of enshrinement.
I believe it is important for the House to also give sober second thought, if I can use that term, to this proposal before us today.
Newfoundland has a population of some 650,000 people. I should point out that the riding of Ontario has 235,000 constituents, and there is not a single member in the House who would believe that riding should be able to imperil or subvert or overcome a question of enshrined or entrenched rights. I feel compelled to say that certain rights are indefeasible. Certain rights cannot be traded off like poker chips at a game when a poor hand is dealt.
What Newfoundland seeks and hopes to achieve with the 52 per cent of the favourable vote has far more implications than simply the concerns of Newfoundland. It has implications for the minority rights of every individual across the country. I want to talk about the historical.
In 1912, the Whitney government in Ontario, took away the minority educational rights of francophones. In 1890, the Manitoba government did away with the laws and constitutional rights protecting minority rights.
I believe the architects of our Constitution of 1982 had the idea of possibly protecting rights, here in the House of Commons, in case a province, for one reason or another, had a different interest.
Therefore the architects of the 1982 Constitution respected not only the House of Commons but the other House.
I need no lesson about whether or not there is legitimacy in that House because it happened to come back with a few proposals. I will discuss that in a moment. It is fair to say that whether we agree or disagree with what was done by the Senate, the reality is it is nevertheless a part of our Constitution, a part of this House.
We must respect that Parliament has been constructed that way until this Parliament decides to do otherwise. I need no lesson from any members on this side.
I recall what the member for Kamouraska-Rivière-du-Loup said a little earlier with respect to the fact that so many members on this side of the House had not supported the amendment to abolish the Senate. I happen to be one of those few dissenting members who did. However, that does not take away the indefeasibility and strength of the argument that has brought forth the amendment that we see here today. This proposed amendment, which is a carbon
copy of what the Senate had proposed, is a question of describing where numbers warrant.
I am a francophone Ontarian. I know a little about the dilemma of trying to protect certain rights and to provide services where those numbers are warranted. There are certainly many places in my province and in my community of Durham where the French community has been able to receive certain services in the language of its choice simply because the numbers warrant it.
I believe that what the Senate has done is provided us with a second chance at a good compromise which should not be simply eliminated because of some political sense of expediency that exists now in 1996 but opens the door to possible constitutional chaos down the road.
I do not believe that is the intention of the Government of Newfoundland. It is certainly not the intention of the good senators. It ought not to be the intention of this House to commit that kind of error.
This solemn like decision has taken the opportunity to weigh both sides of the coin, the first side being of course recognizing the fiscal constraints that exist in Newfoundland and then the flip side, the reality of recognizing at least certain denominational educational rights.
The history of this whole question I find troubling. In 1990 the Government of Newfoundland appointed the Williams commission. In 1992 that commission found that of the denominational educational groups in the province of Newfoundland almost 90 per cent of what was recommended was adopted and acceptable by all players. What are we trying to achieve in getting that extra 10 per cent that presses us to bring our country possibly to the brink of constitutional chaos?