Madam Speaker, first, I think the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec is truly a model for eastern Canada.
We are not afraid to extend the principles of the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, unlike the Canadian Alliance who argues that it would be terrible to base the Canada Pension Plan on the same principles as the caisse. We, in the NDP, say bravo to the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec.
I want to make a brief comment and then ask a question of my colleague. I strongly support his call, and the call that has been made for some time, for improvements to the pension scheme for firefighters. Certainly we have been working for some time on this. The firefighters have an effective lobby. They come to Parliament Hill once a year. They get lots of support from members on all sides of the House and yet nothing changes.
I take this opportunity to underscore the importance of showing some respect for these people who put their lives on the line to save the people of this country and to heed that plea, as my colleague from Sackville—Musquodoboit Valley—Eastern Shore said so eloquently.
I am one of those members who had the great privilege and honour of serving in the House with Stanley Knowles. One of the real pillars of Stanley's approach to politics was his profound concern for pensioners. He pointed out there were really three pillars to pensions: first, the old age pension; second, the Canada Pension Plan; and third, of course for those who had it, private pensions.
Members of the Canadian Alliance have suggested that somehow we should turn over the Canada pension plan to the market. We should get rid of the public component of it and the requirements that there be investment in Canada and turn it over to the great casino of the market. We know all too well what has happened with Enron, WorldCom and Nortel Networks, and so on.
I know my colleague from Kings—Hants is a great supporter of that casino market system. I wait with interest for his comments and his proposals for the pension system.
Could my colleague respond to the suggestion by the Alliance that we throw the Canada pension plan into the great free market system and see what happens to those who have invested in stocks like Enron, WorldCom and Nortel Networks?