Mr. Speaker, I listened carefully to the presentation by my colleague from Timmins—James Bay. I especially noted his comments regarding the position taken by my party, the Bloc Québécois. I am concerned and at the same time disappointed by his lack of understanding of the political situation in Canada. Canada is not a unitary state; it is a confederation comprised of ten provincial and two territorial governments, if my memory serves me well.
With regard to jurisdiction in matters of justice, the Government of Quebec already has a law that established an office of consumer protection, the OPC. This law is more than sufficient to meet the requirements of the bill, requirements that will be applied throughout Canada.
Consequently, the present Quebec government, a government that believes in Confederation, also supports the position that its jurisdiction be fully respected with regard to the OPC and that it sees no point in a central government imposing a similar law, one that is less rigorous than its own. At present the ceiling for interest rates in Quebec is 35%, whereas with the current bill they could jump to 60%.
I would like to know what the member thinks of this position on respecting each jurisdiction. The Bloc Québécois is only defending respect for jurisdictions and is quite favourable to all comments and clarifications made by the bill. However, it must vote against the bill since this sector is already regulated by the Government of Quebec.