Mr. Speaker, I rise to add to the debate on the point of privilege of my colleague, the member for Langley.
Before I begin, I would like to say that I worked with the member for Langley when he was the chair of the environment committee, and I respect his work as a member of Parliament in the House.
Saying that, I categorically oppose the content of the motion he wishes to bring forward. The NDP has been very clear about its support for a woman's right to choose and when it comes to women's reproductive health. With that foundation, I would like to speak on the substance of the member's point of privilege and add to that debate with the perspective of an NDP member of the House.
The NDP does not vet its members' statements. Our statements are allotted and organized by our whip. It is done in a fair and equitable manner so that all MPs have the opportunity to highlight the important issues going on across the country as well as in their ridings. We have a roster system when it comes to our daily statements. We have had it for the last decade.
Previously, when we were a smaller party, we had one statement a day. We have always held some of those statements for different reasons. For example, on Wednesdays, we hold a statement to make a statement on women's issues. We hold back some other statements for specific days, such as for days of mourning for injured workers or Remembrance Day. We also hold back the occasional statement so that we can respond to issues arising that day that are time-specific or to correct serious and deceitful accusations made by the government. We have that kind of system.
What we are seeing right now, what is happening within the Conservative caucus on this issue, is that a number of Conservatives have risen to speak and are speaking out against their own internal process. This speaks directly to the Prime Minister's misunderstanding of and disrespect for how Parliament needs to work for MPs and for Canadians.
First of all, the Conservatives ignore the voices of the opposition and their own MPs. Second, they stifle attempts by our officers of Parliament to hold them to account. Third, they shut down the ability of MPs to speak by shutting down debate. That is disrespectful of Parliament.
I do not believe that this is a question of left versus right. I believe that it is a question of right versus wrong.
The NDP respects Parliament and respects freedom of speech, and I think that can be seen even at our very roots when one looks at our party conventions, for example. This past weekend, we had a party convention, and we debated requiring a two-thirds majority of Parliament vote to consent to prorogation. We also debated and discussed having a two-thirds majority to move parliamentary committees in camera. These motions have not yet been adopted, and they are not yet our official policy, but it shows that there is a strong culture of respect for Parliament in our party and within our caucus.
We respect the right of members of Parliament to use their S. O. 31s, or their statements, to express views on the topics of their choosing. This is their right. We oppose the abuse of using normal parliamentary tools and procedures. We oppose the Conservatives writing the book on the lack of judgment and the disrespect toward this institution.
The NDP has long been a champion of the right to free speech in the House and fair debate on legislation. It is against, for example, the government's limiting of time for debate on important issues in the House, whether it is through time allocation or closure. New Democrats put forward an opposition day motion in November 2011 that would have required the government to justify its use of time allocation or closure--