Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the member for Halifax West's intervention. The riding of South Shore is absolutely one of the most beautiful ridings in Canada. It is not just the coastal scenery in the South Shore, it is also inland as well. We certainly have a number of lakes, rivers and woodlands that are comparable to any anywhere in the country.
Directly to the question of whether the law could be applied to the leadership race that is underway now in the Conservative Party. I have no difficulty with that. If we are to have a set of rules, let us have a set of rules. The question of why we are doing this at this late date is legitimate. Why, at the twilight of the Prime Minister's leaving this place and after having been elected since 1993, do we suddenly have this interest in having some type of a more fair and equitable system for everyone? In politics that is a legitimate question.
I was not aware of how the system worked in New Brunswick prior to the member for Fredericton's comment, but certainly in Quebec and Manitoba it seems to be work fairly well. At least that is my understanding of it.
There is disconnect in how we finance political parties and how we finance individual members. Most of us as individual members of Parliament would look at our fundraising less. Those donations of $100, $150 and $200 are extremely important. Whereas political parties have depended in the past upon corporate donations and individual membership sales. It has caused a fair amount of disconnect between the voter and probably, and I am trying to think of a word that is parliamentary, a lack of trust in the party system because of the interlinking of the big unions and corporations and what is perceived as big government.