moved:
That during its consideration of matters pursuant to Standing Order 83.1, the Standing Committee on Finance be authorized to adjourn from place to place within Canada and to permit the television broadcasting of its proceedings thereon; and that the said Committee be permitted in 1999 to make its report pursuant to the said Standing Order on or before December 10, 1999.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to share my time with the deputy government House leader and Minister of Public Works and Government Services.
For years the House has travelled across the country to listen to Canadians on the very important budget issue. This year, as in previous years, the government and most parties in the House have wanted to repeat this exercise.
We have wanted to consult Canadians. We have wanted, and we still want, them to contribute toward the budgetary process. I for one happen to think that what Canadians have to say about our budget is meaningful. We want to consult them. We want them to participate in the exercise.
However, the official opposition has decided, because it could not get its way in stalling Nisga'a, that it would not allow the finance committee to travel. It wants to punish Canadians. It wants to prevent Canadians from contributing to the budgetary process because it cannot get its way on another bill, namely Nisga'a.
Next Tuesday the committee is scheduled to be in London, Ontario. Unless the motion to have the committee travel can pass the House, it will cost over $200,000 to cancel the previously organized meeting in London, Ontario, let alone the cost of cancelling the other meeting.
The committee has asked the House to go to London, Ontario, on November 2, as I said previously; to visit Toronto on November 8 and 9; and to go to Halifax, Quebec City, Calgary, Vancouver, Regina and perhaps elsewhere to consult Canadians on the budget. I agree that Canadians have something to say about the budget.
Our government promised in the red book in 1993 that we would consult Canadians on the budget. Later Canadians told us that they appreciated this process. The House has voted time and time again to allow the committee to consult Canadians on the budget. The House has voted unanimously on several occasions to consult Canadians on the budget.
This year, should this motion not pass, Canadians will be punished not by the House, not by the government, but by one party which is choosing for its own narrow interest to punish not us as MPs but to punish Canadians by stopping them from contributing to the budgetary process, a process instituted years ago by the House. That is not right.
I urge all hon. members to allow Canadians to contribute to the budgetary process, to allow the committee to travel to British Columbia, to Vancouver and elsewhere, so that Canadians can say what they think of budgetary policy and can contribute in a meaningful way. I do not think Canadians will tolerate being dictated to by the narrow interests of the Reform Party.
I believe all others in the House want this process to proceed. What Reformers are doing is wrong again. What they are doing in Nisga'a is equally wrong, but at least on Nisga'a they have the right to vote against what they want to vote against. They have a right to be wrong, but they do not have a right to punish Canadians the way they are doing now. That is taking this institution as a hostage. I for one do not want our parliament, this Chamber, which is representative of all Canadians, to be taken as a hostage by the Reform Party.
Let us vote on this motion. Let us vote in favour of it. Let us allow Canadians to contribute toward the budgetary process as they have in the past.
This is what must happen, because it is the right thing to do, because Canadians have said so, and because the House has said so on more than one occasion in the past. We are now at the moment of truth.
We will see in a few minutes whether the Reform Party wants to make hostages not just of members of all political parties in this House, who want to consult Canadians about the budget, but of Canadians themselves.
We will find out whether the Reform Party will take the Canadian people hostage and punish them because the motion it introduced to stop the work of the House was not approved.
No. I am sure that, this weekend, Canadians will tell members of the Reform Party that they have no right to do what they are doing, because they are in the wrong, and that they are punishing Canadians and causing taxpayers unnecessary expense. That is what Canadians will tell Reformers.
There is still time. There is still time for the members of the party opposite to say “Yes, we are entitled to our views regarding the Nisga'a treaty; we are entitled to our views on any subject at all, but we will not take this parliament and Canadians hostage”.
We will find out in a few minutes whether this is indeed what they intend to do or whether once again they will show the true face of the Reform Party to all Canadians.