Mr. Speaker, I rise to ask a question of the hon. member for Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough. For the most part I concur with his comments.
Another member asked whether it was only with the presence of lawyers that we could have some kind of justice, at which point my response was to have the government pull its own lawyers from the commission. Then, with the RCMP lawyers gone as well, we would have a level playing field.
I direct a question to the hon. member for Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough who is a lawyer, as I am, as was my hon. colleague from the Bloc Quebecois who spoke earlier. Would he agree that my experience reflects his in the courtroom, that people who are not represented, whether it is in court or before a quasi-judicial body, are often at a great disadvantage? They do not understand the rules of evidence. They do not understand the maxims that often apply to administrative tribunals.
Most members in the House have dealt with constituents who were trying to get Canada pension plan disability payments and have had to deal with social assistance boards. Would he indicate that his experience is like mine and reflects the inability of people to understand the process without legal counsel?