Mr. Speaker, I have a comment and a question. In his statement the minister said that we could not have a referendum because it would constitute changing the rules after a long process.
In the Quebec case this is precisely what the government is arguing, to change the rules in the middle of the game. I wonder how the minister squares his position that it is not proper to change the rules here to give people a greater say, yet it is possible to change the rules in the other case. That is my comment.
My question is on the agreement. Even the process described by the minister is essentially an agreement among governments. It has been negotiated between the Nisga'a government, the provincial government and the federal government. People from rank and file Nisga'a to other aboriginals in B.C. and to rank and file other British Columbians have not been involved in this process.
If this treaty is so good, if this agreement produced at the top by governments talking to each other is so good and has so many benefits for all these people who were not involved in the negotiations, if this is so good that it will carry their judgment, why is the minister afraid of putting it before the British Columbian people in a referendum?