Mr. Speaker, I thank the NDP member for his question. Indeed, this is more or less what we mean when we say that the government did not demonstrate the validity of its position.
Arbitrariness seems to be the rule and it is being supported through legislative means. This is very annoying.
I should also tell you that the union's arguments in this respect were good ones. If the salaries paid to members of parliament were based, as is proposed for union workers, on the differences that exist between regions of Canada, people here would be very upset.
Perhaps the government's position is defensible, but we would greatly appreciate it if the government showed more conviction than it has so far.