Mr. Speaker, I have made clear what our position is on this issue. The statements to which the member refers are partial quotes from newspaper accounts and do not fully represent what we think.
What I am waiting for the leaders of the government to deal with is the problem of prejudice within their own ranks. We have heard Liberal member after Liberal member in this House, from the Prime Minister on down, proclaim self-righteously how repugnant they find prejudice, the prejudging of others, the condemnation of whole groups of people because of the words or actions of the few. However, we see some of those same members practising in a different way exactly the same thing.
Why is it that the member for Central Nova can make inflammatory statements which, if made by a member of my caucus, would be denounced as prejudice and homophobic by the very same member who raised this question?
The Liberal member for Mississauga South said it best in this debate. He said: "Why is there so much acrimony in this place? Why are people in this place, who were my friends and colleagues"-he is talking about Liberal friends and colleagues-"no longer speaking to me? It is because I have a different position. Why have so many people"-and he is talking about Liberal friends and colleagues-"demonstrated intolerance toward my position?" He is talking about prejudice, not in the Reform caucus but in the Liberal caucus. He is not talking about racial prejudice or gender prejudice, he is talking about political prejudice, but prejudice nonetheless.
Reformers ask the same question. If governments want to stone bigots, let the party which is wholly without prejudice cast the first stone. If the government is so desperately interested in rooting out prejudice of all types, not just the categories defined by political correctness, it must begin with the political prejudices in its own caucus.