Madam Speaker, I enjoyed the member's speech. I do not get a chance to hear everybody speak, but it is important to get to know people and see where they are coming from. I think his strong representation of his own constituency is laudable, but we are still members of the federal Parliament and it is important that we look at the national picture as well.
I do not share his views with regard to Kyoto simply because the issue of Kyoto is not just one of greenhouse gases. It is not just what the impact is on individual consumption of various things like the use of automobiles or large emitters, those being hydro or petroleum.
It is also very much linked to the health of Canadians. The major emitters, those being the hydro, the coal fired power plants and the petroleum producing facilities, create more than half of the greenhouse gas emissions as well as the most substantial component of particulate matter in the air of Canada, which is directly related to the health of Canadians.
Thus, we have to temper these things with a plan that is spread over a period of time. The member will know that today the Kyoto plan was tabled. The member also knows that there was a voluntary agreement reached with the auto sector to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of automobiles by 5.3 megatonnes by the year 2010. That is very important. That was the target.
Would the member not concede that we have to look a little beyond our own ridings and make sure that the national interest is also properly balanced?