Madam Speaker, I have not had an opportunity to congratulate you on your appointment. I wish you all the best.
I enjoyed the hon. member's wide ranging speech. I was at times hard pressed to know what it had to do with the subject of the debate, but I heard him talk about fiscal policy, monetary policy and the apparent demise of certain political parties. I was a bit hard pressed to understand the relevance of the bill to those subjects. Then the hon. member opposite brought up national energy policy and firearms legislation. I suppose there are a few things left to debate, but I just do not know what else they are.
I would like to ask the hon. member whether he believes that the passage of the bill will in fact lead to a more rational and sensible process with which the Government of Canada can deal with the demands of the marketplace and the demands of consumers with respect to the whole process of bank mergers and “rationalization” in the fiscal marketplace, and whether he thinks that this bill does bring some sense and some relevance to what is presently a somewhat chaotic process.