Mr. Speaker, today we read of the sad and unfortunate conclusions of a one-time prominent Conservative senator who, having spent a lifetime trying to change the federation from within, is now reduced to bitter mumblings about B.C.'s separation from Canada. What went wrong?
Perhaps it started with the Liberals and the national energy program, an arrogant, me first initiative that gouged the west and catered to the east. Perhaps the fault lies with the Conservative leader, the leader of her own party who, bereft of ideas for Canada, clings desperately to the distinct society clause as a solution to national unity.
First it was a report from the B.C. adviser on national unity warning of the potential of western separation. Now a prominent senator has turned her back on her own party, its leader and the centrist ideas for which it stands.
It is time to listen up, Mr. Prime Minister. If he continues to ignore the concerns of western Canada, if he refuses to recognize Canada as a federation of equal provinces and citizens, if he continues to ignore the pleadings for parliamentary and Senate reform, he will have sown the wind only to reap the whirlwind.