Mr. Speaker, I would like to begin by saying that it is good to have you in the Chair to continue where we left off. Before putting a question to my delightful and charming colleague from Jonquière, I also want to welcome the pages, who come from all over, and tell them that they are assured of the co-operation of the Bloc Quebecois.
My colleague, as always, has made an eloquent speech, because her roots run deep in the community of Jonquière. With considerable interest, I would say, she got the members of this House to understand that Bill C-38 should, to all intents and purposes, be withdrawn. It is too unfair that the people involved in the MacKay working group were mobilized. This group made very specific proposals for consumers.
Do they really think the MacKay task force got a positive response from the government side? Absolutely not. Could my colleague tell us just how justified we are in feeling disappointed on this side of the House and how all those who believe in the higher interest of consumers are justified in feeling disappointed because there are no specific measures for consumers?
I know that my colleague is someone who is very much in touch with the Mouvement Desjardins in her region, who attends cocktail parties there and other similar events and who, I believe, has long supported the values of the co-operative movement.
My colleague truly believes that it is important, in a region, to have the Mouvement Desjardins. What is the basic rule of the Mouvement Desjardins? One vote per person and everyone has equal status as a member. Is this logic not interesting?
Earlier, we referred to the specificity of Quebec's financial system. What is the first distinctive feature of that specificity? It is indeed the Mouvement Desjardins. My colleague, the hon. member for Chambly, will correct me if I am wrong, but I believe the Mouvement Desjardins is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. I am sure that between now and the month of December we will have the opportunity to remind everyone that it all began very modestly in the basement of a church. There was this notion that it was important to save money. Why? Not to squirrel money away, not to become rich, but to truly control our destiny and have greater control over our economy.
Does my colleague not believe that the Minister of Finance could have taken a cue from modern Quebec's views in this regard and shown greater co-operative or community vision in this bill? Does the hon. member share my outrage at the fact that the minister is, to all intents and purposes, a heartless individual who did not listen to the MacKay commission, and does she agree that there is nothing concrete for consumers, who have an urgent need for additional protection?
I will conclude here because my time is running out, but in a few moments I will have the opportunity to talk about what is going on in the riding of Hochelaga—Maisonneuve, about pawnbrokers, shylocks and other bad things that happen in a community when we do not assume our responsibilities regarding financial institutions. I would appreciate hearing my colleague's point of view on this.