Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate and thank my colleague from the Conservative Party for her speech and her motion.
This is a motion we can really sink our teeth into. It covers quite a bit, but I am going to focus on one aspect on which we can all agree. Canada's airports are a public asset. They belong to us all. There are troubling rumours swirling around that the Liberal government wants to have a fire sale and pay the rent by selling the furniture, the airports, to private interests. Let us consider who will pay the price. Passengers, people who travel, are the ones who will pay the price. Our airports are currently being managed by not-for-profit organizations that have to self-finance. They already charge fees to passengers, but they are not required to make a profit or a get a return on investment. If the government sells these public assets that belong to us all and puts them in the hands of private companies, these companies will obviously want to make a profit. That is the point of buying the assets. What will those companies do? There are two ways to make a profit. They will either cut back on the quality of service and perhaps our level of our security, the health, safety, and working conditions of workers, or they will charge additional fees. One way or another, either airport workers, clients, or passengers will pay the price.
I would like the leader of the Conservative Party to share her thoughts. Did the Liberals get a mandate from voters to privatize our airports?