Mr. Speaker, the member for Burnaby—Douglas was challenging Liberal members to vote for this motion, to show some independence.
I remind the House this is not a confidence motion. The Prime Minister to my knowledge has not said it is a matter of confidence. If he did he would be even more ridiculous than he was yesterday.
The language of confidence has been taken out of the standing orders with respect to opposition day motions in 1985. For a long time we have strived toward a political culture in this place where members on both sides would feel free to vote as they wished on opposition day motions without regard to the matter of confidence.
Regrettably, we have lost a lot of ground in that respect in the last little while in the way this government has decided to treat opposition day motions.
It is not just a question of justice and fairness for the student demonstrators at APEC who made their complaint before the RCMP public complaints commission.
It is also a matter of parliamentary integrity that they stop acting like a bunch of trained seals when it comes to these opposition day motions. When we put motions before this government that call on it to do things it knows are right this government should take that opportunity and do so. Perhaps the member would like to comment on that.
Perhaps the member would like to comment on whether there are ways in which the Canadian public, in the absence of help from the government, can give aid and comfort to the students who are seeking justice in Vancouver as we speak.