Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague across the way for his comments on the introduction of the bill. We will not be supporting the bill. The Canadian Alliance has some serious concerns about the bill, despite the fact that as the members said it has been some years, at least six years, in the making. It may well be a case of better never than late.
There are several unfortunate aspects of the bill itself, but one of the more unfortunate aspects of it is something the member alluded to. It has taken years to present this piece of legislation in the House. The member alluded to the incredible degree to which members of the public in Yukon were consulted. Yet that stands in stark contrast to the first nations governance proposals which the minister has brought forward.
Those proposals were ostensibly developed as a result of similar consultative processes, but nonetheless that process did not result in any degree of support at all from the first nations leaders of this country. One can only hope that these proposals will meet with not a similar fate when the dialogue begins and continues in the House, as it will continue among the people in leadership positions in Yukon itself.
One of the realities today, and I do not need to tell the member opposite because he knows this, is that the economy in Yukon is not in a good state at the present time. There are many people who are vitally concerned about their future and about their ability to continue to support themselves and their families.
The reality in Yukon is one that causes a grave degree of concern among many about the economic well-being, the economic sustainability of their area and of themselves. Literally as we speak there are many people who are looking for work or have given up looking for work in Yukon. We want to ensure on this side of the House that any legislation that we come up with has as its first order of concern the economic well-being of the people of this country.
At the same time we recognize as a party that has a long standing support for sustainable development that a balance has to exist between environmental sustainability and economic development. We want our ideas to reflect that and our amendments in committee when the bill proceeds will certainly reflect that balanced position that this party has taken for a long time.
There is a third component that we must consider in developing legislation of any kind. It is a kind of triple E thing. Triple E debates have been held in the House on a number of topics.