Mr. Speaker, I want to make an observation. The member asks why the government would not do this. The Liberal party was in government when it authorized the collection and analysis of metadata through a ministerial directive. It was the Liberals who did that. The member for Malpeque, who moved this motion, is a former solicitor general. The member for Mount Royal is a former minister of justice.
The Liberals were in power for 13 years. If they thought this was such a great idea, why did they not do it then?