Mr. Speaker, this is not a government-sponsored lock-up. It is one that is organized by the commission. We have intervened everywhere that we could and I was given assurance today that a staff person could accompany a member to the lock-up, and pursuant to those traditions, staff people could use technical equipment such as recording devices, computers and so on. It is not a tradition to remove those from the room because it is the same as carrying documents out of the room. Those of course will have to remain behind.
If anyone were to suggest that an MP could not leave a lock-up inside a Parliament Building, I would suspect, although I have not heard that, that if anyone were to prevent an MP from leaving a lock-up within the building, it would probably result in another question being raised in the House. I believe the issue then would be similar to the one that was brought to the attention of the U.K. House of Commons in relation to one of the guards at Westminster. That incident has often been quoted in this place and I would not want that very badly.
I think everyone is aware of the rule that one cannot stop an MP from leaving a lock-up, particularly one who wants to attend to other parliamentary duties.