Mr. Speaker, unfortunately I forget the member's riding, but I would like to congratulate him on his excellent French. If I understood his question, he wanted to know whether I would accept the results if there were a referendum outside of Quebec on the rights of francophones that was not organized by the National Assembly and concerned the rights of francophones and therefore, necessarily, the rights of francophones outside Quebec.
I would say yes right off, but I would ask him to remember two things. The first is that no member of the Bloc Quebecois would say in this debate that francophones outside Quebec had sufficient rights. We are very aware, from what we read in reports on official languages, that the situation of francophones outside Quebec in all provinces, from British Columbia to the maritimes, is of great concern.
We are well aware of that and have urged this government to expend additional resources and to ensure that the provinces accord francophones the same rights as those enjoyed by the anglophone minority in Quebec. I hope the member is aware that no province in this country treats its minority with as much regard, generosity and resources as Quebec treats its anglophone minority.
Second, I am beginning to know the member, one of the brightest in his party-the member for Outremont is, of course, but I am talking about the Reform member. We must never forget that what is sacred about the future of Quebec is its right to self-determination. The member has his own ideas on the matter. We have had debates and we will have more. A referendum is the right process for the people of Quebec to decide their future. When I speak of the people of Quebec, I mean all the component parts, including the first nations and the anglophone community along with the several hundred other ethnic communities in Quebec.
I say to him, however, that the only legitimate and acceptable way for Quebec to acknowledge the results of some future exercise of the right to self-determination is for Quebec itself to decide under the law of the National Assembly and the conditions set out in the Quebec Referendum Act.