Mr. Speaker, the member indicated that he was quite satisfied with the basic principles of the bill. He gave it approval in principle and said let us get it to committee to make these changes, but he also said that the bill needs a major overhaul. That may be a little bit of a contradiction in terms. Perhaps the example he has given may provide some questions for consideration, which I think is the purpose of getting bills to committee.
The issue about disenfranchising people from almost anything to do with services that are available to people has come up often. Quite frankly, it surprises me, whether it is the federal government or the provincial governments, that government cannot come up with an arrangement for those who have no other access to photo ID, whether it be a driver's licence or some security card. It just seems to make so much sense in today's world where security issues are so important.
I would also remind the member, though, that I believe the bill also says that in lieu of the photo ID and someone vouching for the person, the Chief Electoral Officer also can designate that two other authorized pieces of non-photo ID would be required. I suspect that anyone, except maybe those living in a shelter, may have ready access to that.
Does the member agree that we should try to address the global situation of how many people out there really cannot have reasonable access to photo ID that can be updated on an as needed basis? How many people are we talking about? Are the alternatives provided within the bill in fact sufficient?