Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind the House that an Ipsos Reid survey from February 18, 2013, showed that a minority of Canadians, 22%, were in favour of the status quo. The vast majority of Canadians, 78%, spoke out in favour of abolishing or reforming the Senate.
It is obvious that Canadians want something to happen with the Senate. Since Senate reform is going nowhere, it is high time we consider abolishing the Senate, in collaboration with the provinces and territories.
As I said in my speech, every province has abolished its senate. The last one was abolished in 1968. Since then, has any province discussed the idea of reinstating their senate? Absolutely not. They function perfectly well without an upper chamber. We could do the same.
Given how much money is wasted in the Senate, I believe it is really the only option available to Canadians. We need to enter into discussions with the provinces and territories about abolishing the Senate.