Mr. Speaker, I hope that in the minister's supplemental she will actually answer the question I posed a moment ago.
Here is the problem. In its Senate reference ruling, the Supreme Court says that any appointment process that limits the independence of senators is unconstitutional. The fact that it is impossible for an individual to submit an application without working closely with a nominating organization, coupled with the 14-day deadline for phase I applications, which ends right after Valentine's Day, gives nominating organizations enormous control over those whom they sponsor. Therefore, is the phase I nomination process not an unconstitutional violation of the principle that senators must be independent?