Mr. Speaker, one of the most important premises of a missed opportunity is that we lose the opportunity. It is gone. We have seen this during the tragic events which have touched all of us in the last few weeks. We must be leaders. We must be up front and ready to make changes as we need to. That is where the missed opportunities are in Bill C-31. Its critics, even those within the crown corporation, are calling for more accountability and transparency while its proponents say they need secrecy for business practices.
I remind these people that they are asking for large sums of taxpayer dollars. Taxpayers have a right to know. . We could change the legislation. We could find a balance which protects business interests but gives taxpayers the knowledge they need to ensure accountability. We could ensure that taxpayers get value for their dollars and that their dollars are spent wisely.
The government has once again missed a huge opportunity to effect positive changes to the legislation. That is why we in the Progressive Conservative/Democratic Representative caucus will be opposing it.