Mr. Speaker, I believe that the motion compelled you to interrupt the proceedings, which you did.
The government representative chose not to speak. However, her decision not to speak must not violate the right and parliamentary privilege of members of the opposition parties to make statements, followed by a question period. I do not believe that unanimous consent is needed to proceed in this way. I believe that you, as the Speaker of the House, have the power to decide. It is up to you to decide the length of the speeches, whether 10 minutes or 20 minutes, but there must be speeches. I would remind members that, outside the House, journalists are commenting on the contents of the economic update, while we, parliamentarians, have no such privilege. That is totally unacceptable. Ask anyone and they could answer that question in 30 seconds or less.
I invite you to seriously consider that you have the right to force this debate. If you need to, I suggest that you suspend the House for a few minutes to consult the clerks and the House staff to determine precisely how to move forward. I believe that you have a duty to preserve a semblance of democracy in a country that, need I remind you, is part of the G7. I have extremely bright colleagues who are perfectly able to intervene on the economic update.
If people in the government are unable to do so, that is on them. However, you have a duty and the power to give us the floor.