Mr. Speaker, it is quite obvious that the purpose of prorogation of the government was strictly to introduce a new throne speech.
Between now and Christmas there probably will not be any new substantive pieces of legislation introduced by the government. That is why it wants to reintroduce through Motion M-1 all of the previous bills without any notification to the opposition members. We will not know what bills it wants to bring back. It will be able to put them back at whatever stage it wants. This is a contravention of the democratic process in the House.
The current Minister of Health, the member for Cape Breton-East Richmond, had this to say about this type of action taken by the previous government: "I contend that the motion is in principle unacceptable and that it seeks to circumvent, indeed to subvert, the normal legislative process of this House. In the past this kind of thing has only been done by unanimous consent. Now the government is seeking to establish an ominous precedent by attempting to force this procedure on the House. This is an offensive and dangerous departure from the practices of all parliamentary bodies".
The current premier of Newfoundland, the former minister of fisheries in the government, had this to say about this type of activity which the government is now doing: "We see the decision by the government today to put this motion before the House as a confirmation of the destruction-and that is what it is-of our parliamentary system of government".
Another Liberal member of the House from Halifax had this to say about the Conservative government on this same issue: "I can only say that the government should hang its head in shame. One wonders today why the government prorogued the House of Commons last time".
I agree wholeheartedly with the words of the member for Kingston and the Islands. When in opposition he had this to say about this very action taken now by his government which he criticized. I could not say it better. I will have to use his words and I express my support for his conviction, his integrity, his intelligence on this issue: "If the royal prerogative is to mean anything, the prorogation ended those bills. They have to be reinstated in the usual course but they ought to have been introduced and dealt with as new bills in this session. That is the proper procedure in the absence of unanimous consent, not this fiasco that we are wasting taxpayers' money on and doing now. What the government is doing by this, and let us make it perfectly clear what is happening here, is short circuiting the legislative process".