Mr. Speaker, I am surprised to hear government members describing Bill C-43 as a change of very little consequence overall. We are told that it merely involves transferring certain applications to collection and certain functions from a department to an agency, with no real impact on individual members of the public, on workers and public servants.
In late August, I was fortunate to be able to meet with tax collection employees in Shawinigan, Quebec, to talk about a completely different area in which the government has outdone itself with its incompetence, namely pay equity. The public servants described the position in which they found themselves. Some employees came to see me and reminded me of the upcoming Bill C-43 and how they were counting on the Bloc Quebecois to intervene.
I would like to know if the member opposite is aware that 20% of public servants will no longer be covered by the Public Service Employment Act, meaning that, in two years, the agency will have carte blanche to raise or lower salaries, to hire or fire employees.
I would like to know if this is not the real reason that the government created the agency. Does the government prefer strong-arm tactics that will ultimately crush employees' collective demands? That is my question.