Madam Speaker, I do appreciate the question and the opportunity to answer it.
I know the hon. member himself a former police officer has been very involved in the law enforcement community. I suspect he would be very reticent to suggest that anyone in this House is against gun control or the safe use of firearms.
Bill C-17 as I said in my remarks is the most substantive piece of legislation aimed at the safe handling of firearms and the safe storage of firearms. That is completely different, completely outside the parameters of what Bill C-68 does.
I do want to correct an inaccuracy. The Conservative senators did work in a very substantive way to see that Bill C-68 was not passed. It has never been a derivation from our platform that we did not feel that the registry of long guns was a complete waste of money and it was something that was not necessary. In terms of priorities in the area of justice, it certainly should not be a high priority and it certainly should not be a legislative initiative that is going to cost hundreds of millions of dollars which is what is coming to light. Perhaps it could be a billion dollars before this is over.