Mr. Speaker, the parliamentary secretary and I have a very different notion of what would constitute a victory for sovereignty. It seems to me a victory for Canadian sovereignty and a victory for democracy would be for us to accept the challenge put forward by the NDP defence critic on behalf of the New Democratic Party that we should do as has been done many times before. We should extend the current agreement without making these changes until there is a full airing through our parliamentary committees. We should invite informed researchers, policy experts who have done tremendous work on these issues to come before parliamentary committees and open up the debate.
It is a real worry to people that we are on a path to deeper integration. It is not a partisan comment to say that we are slowly but surely becoming more tightly integrated militarily, in foreign policy terms, in environmental terms, in trade terms with our American neighbour to the south. It is not a hostile thing to say that. It is a statement of fact.
No one can seriously deny that some of the changes are not major changes, but they are further steps in the direction of deeper integration about which many Canadians have had a great deal to say in the context of the international policy statement review process. Overwhelmingly they have expressed real concerns about how Canadian values and vision for a more secure world in which true human security is at the centre of our concerns is really going to be what is going to guide us in carrying out our work on behalf of Canadians.
Who are we here on behalf of if not Canadians to whom we are answerable? How does this in any way respond to the desire of Canadians to be sure that they have some say in what kind of future we chart for them and future generations?