Mr. Speaker, I thank the Reform member for his very relevant question which we take seriously.
Yes, we are concerned, because we fear that these consultations will be a sham. Under clause 9, the minister can consult whoever she wants whenever she wants. She transfers these duties to her staff without consulting, informing or bothering to get input from the public in general or even its elected representatives.
We are democratically elected to this House to represent our constituents and we have to inform them. As legislators, we should also be able to represent them well.
We are shown this bill and then told: “The minister will carry out some consultations.”
We are very concerned about this type of consultation, because, as we know, by and large these consultations always turn out in favour of the government or of the minister introducing the bill. This is why we think these consultations are a sham.
This is truly a tragic situation, because the government is trying to hoodwink us and would have us believe that the people have been consulted, when it is not so. It is also tragic because, once again, it is trying to impinge upon provincial areas of jurisdiction.