Mr. Speaker, I am both happy and sad to rise this afternoon to contribute to the debate on Bill C-12, an act respecting employment insurance in Canada. I am taking this opportunity, at report stage, to join in the discussion on the work by the standing committee.
The day when, after third reading of Bill C-12, the government will ring the bell to call us to the House to vote, will be a day of national mourning. All Quebecers and Canadians should fly their flag at half mast. The government is so ashamed of its reform that it has used very special measures at each stage, when democracy was calling us to debate this bill here in this Parliament.
After first reading-a misnomer, at this stage, one looks, rises, and sits down, first reading is over-the government did away with second reading. Usually, at this stage, the official opposition has the opportunity to present, discuss, and debate all its objections to a bill. It has the opportunity to do so in the House since second reading takes place in the House.
What did the government do this time? It decided to do away with second reading, following instead a rather odd procedure called preliminary study; the opposition was allowed to make six ten-minute speeches, for a total of one hour, to explain and voice all its objections against a bill containing 190 clauses. It was then referred to committee. In committee, the bill was again under a gag order. Not one of the groups wishing to appear was unable to do so for lack of time.
Usually, committees travel across Canada when the game is worth the candle. However, this time, for an in-depth reform of the unemployment insurance program, the government deemed it unnecessary for the committee to travel and hear people's views on this reform. The government preferred to stay on the hill, completely disconnected from reality, and to go ahead with a bill that nobody wants. Perhaps the government got a little scared, given the strong and unanimous opposition to this legislation across the country.
I dare the Prime Minister to let members of his party vote freely on this bill, as he did in the case of Bill C-33, which sought to recognize a basic right. Should the Prime Minister do that, I think his party would bring the government down.
The committee only had 10 hours to do a clause by clause review. This is a big joke, given that there are 190 clauses in the bill. The government, with its arrogant majority, could not care less about democracy and Canadians.
Now, the minister on call wants to gag the official opposition. When the government wants to gag us it asks the labour minister to table a notice of motion; or at least he is the one who always did it for this bill. The minister responsible for the reform does not even have the courage to rise to gag us. He prefers to ask a Quebecois to do the job for him. Barely 10 minutes before I took the floor, we were told by the government that, on Monday, it would table a motion to gag us once again, to keep us from speaking in this House about a reform that does not make any sense and that Canadians do not want.
There are 190 clauses in this bill. Since it could not stop the train, the official opposition tried to propose amendments. Would you believe that a total of 221 amendments, more than the number of clauses, were proposed? A Liberal member decided to propose one. His party will probably support it, to reward him for having dared to say something. Eleven amendments were made by the Reform Party, 13 by the minister, including 6 that are insignificant and of a purely technical nature, and 196 by the Bloc Quebecois, including several which have the support of the New Democratic Party.
These 221 amendments were put in 15 different groups to facilitate their discussion in the House. The first group included Motion 9A, proposed by the Bloc Quebecois. That motion referred to the Quebec consensus concerning Quebec's reclaiming all manpower training programs and job creation programs, along with financial compensation.
Unfortunately, we shall not be able to debate this matter, because the Chair has refused to admit it, seemingly because it involves a royal recommendation, or so I was told. I myself must admit I do not know what that means. What are we doing here if we are refused the right to table an amendment because it needs a royal recommendation? Can anyone be more alienated than a people that requires a recommendation from someone else? Why are we not capable of dealing with the necessary amendments on our own? As a citizen, and even less as a member of Parliament, I have no idea what the expression "royal recommendation" means.
The government, however, in my understanding of the situation, is caught in a trap. Once again, it is speaking out of both sides of its mouth. When responding to questions in the House, or when speaking to the public, it claims to want to get along with Quebec, and that it is Quebec that does not want to get along with Ottawa. This is what we have been hearing for nearly 10 years, as this government is reforming this and that, since Meech anyway, that Quebec is supposedly never satisfied. Yet, when the government is invited to put its money where its mouth is, when there are meetings with the Quebec minister, meetings cancelled with no reason given, the minister not turning up, not submitting what he was meant to, not responding to the Quebec consensus, when we want to repatriate manpower training and employability enhancement programs in Quebec, hypocritically the government digs its heels in every time. What a farce. Mark my words, though, the farce is nearly over. This morning's survey, as reported by l'Actualité , was very clear. Every step this government has taken since the last referendum has added to the popularity of sovereignty. This morning we reached 56 per cent, the highest since Meech Lake. You better not forget it. This is only the beginning, the ascent to secession, as you call it, or to sovereignty, as we see it.
The people of Canada and Quebec will recall as well at the next elections that the old traditional parties have nothing more to offer. They are all cast in the same mould. Whether it is the Liberals or the Conservatives, there is no difference. In official opposition, they criticize. On the campaign trail, they promise the world. In government, once elected, they do nothing. They take the issues of their predecessors and do what they had previously criticized.
For the benefit of those listening, I would just like to quote something I find quite admirable: "The point I am trying to make, which many of us will have to look at seriously, is the whole notion of trust and credibility. Canadians are prepared to share the burden, if they think it is being done fairly. Unemployment insurance, family allowance and old age pensions are a sacred trust. We must not allow the trust of Canadians to deteriorate to a point where they become cynical. I have listened to people talk about New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and about other countries and how they do it. There are basic standards, basic programs, universal programs, and programs that allow people to deal with their future with some degree of security". Who said this? None other than the hon. member for Gloucester, the father of the reform we reject.