Procedure and House Affairs committee  How many more tests do we need, though? This is my point. Regardless of how we feel about the issue—set the politics of the issue aside—the question before us as an appellant body is, should this bill be allowed to have a vote? The only way that it should not be is that if it's so in violation of the Constitution that it just makes a mockery should we allow that vote.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Thank you. I thought I heard you do that. At least you said, “On the one hand,” and then you said, “On the other hand”. To me, when we're saying something's not votable, it should be so strong that there is no “other hand”, but I heard—as a layperson—what seemed like, at least prima facie, good arguments on both sides.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  That's subjective. The point was that there are at least two arguments that a good lawyer could make.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  I hope colleagues will agree that, if nothing else, when you bring in the parliamentary law clerk, it's always fascinating. Just help me make sure I have the horse in front of the cart. The matter before us right now is not specifically the constitutionality of the bill. That is the second step.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Thank you, Ruby. Thank you, Chair. I'll be very brief because this is not a filibuster. There was no intent to try to do that. I hope colleagues will appreciate that my remarks are made far more in sorrow than in anger. I'm just so heartbroken that something so important has, as Mr.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Well....

Procedure and House Affairs committee  In doing this it would help provide at least some modicum of legitimacy to the creation of this commission as opposed to where we are right now.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Yes, and I don't want to filibuster my own motion.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Thank you, Mr. Nater. Chair, I move: That the Committee immediately begin reviewing the government's announced leaders debate commission and make any necessary recommendations in a timely report to Parliament.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Not by the Liberals....

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Minister, those are your talking points. You didn't answer my question. How do the Liberals believe they have the right to unilaterally make decisions that we at this table, collectively, felt shouldn't be made unilaterally and ought to be put into a democratic process? That was my question.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  Maybe you hoped it would cover up your anti-democratic process.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  They handed off their lead to me. If anybody ever needed to know where the expression “politics makes for strange bedfellows” came from, this would be exactly that scenario. I thank my colleagues in the Conservative caucus for an opportunity to jump ahead in the order of precedence.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  What you didn't explain is that it would normally go to the Conservatives.

Procedure and House Affairs committee  [Inaudible—Editor] and save us time.