Madam Speaker, there are two issues I would like to touch on. Obviously we could take a lot of time to talk about the details of the bill itself and the history behind it, or some of the drivel we have been hearing from the other side. Rather than doing that, I will talk about two things: one, democracy denied; and two, the equality issue and what Bill C-33 will really do in that regard.
Concerning democracy, I made a promise to my constituents that never again will they have to hear that Ottawa knows best. Instead of telling them what is good for them, we will discuss the issues and vote the way our constituents tell us. I will talk later about some of the results of consultations with my constituents in the last four days.
The key issue is that time is short. Last Monday the bill was introduced, Tuesday it was debated, Wednesday closure was invoked. The bill was sent to committee and today it is back. Closure will be used again. At the latest on Thursday we will be voting at third reading. Somebody tell me how members are to consult with their constituents with that sort of time line.
My constituents want town hall meetings. They want to review both sides of the issue. I had an excellent meeting with a group from the gay community in my riding. I told them I would have liked to have had the opportunity to talk about the issue of gay rights and all the other issues in public and to intelligently and scientifically discuss Bill C-33 in its entirety. Instead it is being rammed down our throats with the use of closure, closure, closure, just like the Progressive Conservatives did. There is no opportunity to really get involved. I certainly have had no opportunity to communicate with my constituents, as I promised. We have tried our best.
One argument we have heard from across the floor is that the voters are really not that bright to understand these things. That is what the PCs thought and what the people orchestrating the Charlottetown accord thought. They did not think anyone would be informed enough to understand and vote on it. In 1993 the people took control and threw out the PCs for that same reason.
I am saying that democracy has been denied in this place. Because of closure and the ramming through of this piece of legislation the people of Canada have not had the opportunity to communicate with their members of Parliament as they should. This sort of legislation has been around for 30 years. Why all the rush now? We only have one week in which to ram it through. I apologize to the people of Canada for being part of this. It is disgusting that we have to do business this way. Everybody should hang their heads.
With regard to Bill C-33 and the whole concept of special status and referring to Charlottetown, any group that has ever tried to put forward this special status concept has found that it just does not work. If anything, it further divides Canadians. It divides families and neighbours who have known each other for years.
When we say everyone is equal or that we are opposed to any kind of discrimination, everybody understands that. It is clear: I oppose discrimination because of sexual orientation, colour, religion or anything else. That is clear. Everyone is equal and everyone should protect that equality, not set out special status and categories within the law. That is another disgrace which has been brought on us by the government.
Let us talk about what sorts of things we should be considering. We are saying let us talk to the people and get their views. In my riding I asked the question: How do you want your MP to vote on Bill C-33 which if approved will amend the Canadian Human Rights Act to include sexual orientation as a prohibited ground for discrimination? I tried to take that right from the bill, to make it as fair as I could. I said that there are two sides to all issues and they must look at both sides.
To members across the way, the results to this point have been: opposed to the bill, in phone calls, petition signatures and letters, 1,152 as of last night; in favour, we have received 18 names. A couple of weeks ago in response to the Senate bill, I mentioned I had met with the homosexual community in my area. They have collected 402 names in favour of a much broader petition which I will be presenting in the House as soon as it is approved. Even if we add those names to the list, if it was on the same bill, it would still be 1,152 to 420.
The calls are coming in. Yesterday there were 80 calls to my office. Those 80 calls all said that I should vote against this
legislation. Many of the people in my riding, about 68 per cent, are in urban areas. Because we have a large petrochemical industry, because many of them are university graduates, I suppose they are better off than a lot of Canadians, but they are thinking intellectually about these issues. The fact that in less than a week we have received 1,500 responses concerning a piece of legislation tells me that those people are on top of the issue. It tells me that not like my colleagues across the way who think the voters are stupid, the voters are right on top of it. They know what is happening and they are watching very carefully.
I remind all members that Canadians are watching. They are watching the taking away of democracy. They are watching the jamming of this material down their throats without an opportunity to get involved. They are saying enough is enough.
Discussing the issue of homosexuality is not what this bill is about. This bill is about giving special status to a group. Every single Canadian should be treated equally, equally, equally. What does the government not understand about the word equality?