Mr. Speaker, I want to join the discussion briefly to support the position put forward by the Leader of the Opposition and the member for Red Deer.
There is no question that the practice is well established that treaties that are to be approved by this Parliament are presented to Parliament before approval is sought. There is a reason for that and it is well worth our considering the consequences of departing from that practice.
Will the real treaty come back to this House? We know that what is being discussed now is a concept; a notion ill-defined. No one knows its impact, but presumably if a protocol were to be signed with agreement of provinces and appropriate cost estimates, there would then be a requirement for the government to bring that back to the House.
Will it be the same treaty as we are dealing with now? If it is different, then we are being asked to agree today to what becomes a nullity. We are being asked to vote in favour of something that we know will change and disappear. That shows a profound disregard for the House of Commons. It is a waste of time of the Parliament of Canada and it creates false expectations among the people of the country.
The Leader of the Opposition has raised a point that is solid on two grounds. It is solid in procedural terms, a fact which is clear. The treaty has been made available before we have been asked to vote for it and it is solid on the grounds of simple common sense. We do not want to be dealing with a nullity, with something that will change and disappear. There is every reason to believe that whatever is on the mind of the Minister of the Environment, and no one knows, will change. The minister suggests that his simple speaking will inform us. We all know better than that. We have heard the minister speak before, but whatever is on his mind will undoubtedly be different from the ultimate protocol that is approved and signed by Canada.