Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, the opposition has reacted with predictable hyperbole to the fair elections bill, yet the bill is full of the common-sense measures that are required for the improvement of our democratic system. To start with, let us deal with the issue of vouching. The opposition has made a controversy over that question, so let us zero in on the issue at stake.

Democratic Reform  Mr. Speaker, I just listed a whole host of different forms of identification that are specifically available to seniors. In addition to the ones I have already listed, there is also one of the following, issued by the responsible authority of a shelter, a soup kitchen, a student or seniors residence, a long-term care facility: an attestation of residence, a letter of stay, an admission form, a statement of benefits.

Democratic Reform  Mr. Speaker, the Chief Electoral Officer will be able to continue speaking to the media after the fair elections act is passed. That is not an issue. But the NDP wants to ignore the hard facts around the irregularities related to vouching. The reality is, regardless of what push poll they will send out in the next couple of days, Canadians believe there should be a form of identification so that we know who is voting and that they live in the riding in which they are casting a ballot.

Democratic Reform  Mr. Speaker, I have not stopped quoting Mr. Neufeld. In fact, right here, on page 64, it says that there were 50,000 irregularities related to vouching in the last election alone. Now, the NDP members are losing this debate, so they are playing partisan procedural tricks in committee.

Democratic Reform  Yes, unfortunately, I did hear his comments. I will cite it. He said the Supreme Court found that these irregularities could not even compromise an election. In fact, the Supreme Court said precisely the opposite of what Mr. Mayrand reported. I will quote right out of Mr. Neufeld's report: “The courts refer to such serious errors as 'irregularities' which can result in votes being declared invalid”.

Democratic Reform  Mr. Speaker, seniors will have plenty of ways to identify themselves at the polling stations. There are 39 forms of identification allowed, including the health card. There are the hospital bracelets worn by residents in long-term care facilities, Veterans Affairs health care cards, old age security cards, public transportation cards, library cards, and I could go on.

Democratic Reform  Mr. Speaker, I cannot imagine why he would not be called to committee. I have already said that three or four times. We are going to keep quoting Mr. Neufeld's report, because it contains the facts that obviously support our position that people should have ID when they show up to vote.

Democratic Reform  Mr. Speaker, I hope that Mr. Neufeld will testify. I disagree with his opinion, and I will continue to talk about the facts. The facts indicate that when voters voted without identification, there were over 50,000 irregularities, serious mistakes that could contribute to a court overturning an election or declaring a person's vote invalid.

Democratic Reform  Mr. Speaker, I have quotes from the Neufeld report in which he says, on page 14, in reference to procedures like vouching: Too frequently, the errors are so serious that the courts would judge them to be “irregularities” that violate the legal provisions that establish an elector’s entitlement to vote.

Democratic Reform  Mr. Speaker, of course we will. I disagree with Mr. Neufeld's conclusions, but I do not disagree with his facts. His facts remain the same, and I will cite them in exactly the same way as I have. They are the following, in his own report: Errors that involve a failure to properly administer these procedures are serious.

Democratic Reform  Mr. Speaker, the hon. member perhaps accidentally stated a falsehood. He said that the commissioner will “no longer have it”. He does not have it now. In fact, police officers do not have that power. The power to compel does not exist for police forces across the country. The commissioner has the same powers that police officers have.

Democratic Reform  Mr. Speaker, the commissioner already has the same investigative powers as a police officer. Furthermore, the fair elections act will increase the commissioner's powers by making him independent and allowing him to impose harsher penalties for offences committed, while Canadians who participate in elections will have to abide by more laws.

Democratic Reform  Mr. Speaker, the Commissioner of Canada Elections already has the same investigative powers as a police force. He can use those powers right now. In fact, those powers are increased by the fair elections act, which gives him sharper teeth and a longer reach, including making it an offence for anyone to obstruct his investigation or give him false information.

Democratic Reform  Mr. Speaker, I will simply read Elections Canada's own report, which says of irregularities related to vouching and procedures like it that, “The courts refer to such serious errors as ‘irregularities’ which can result in votes being declared invalid”. There were 50,000 such irregularities in the last election related to vouching, according to Elections Canada's own report.

Democratic Reform  Mr. Speaker, the Commissioner of Canada Elections already has all of the investigative powers of a police force, which could investigate violent crime, for example. We will ensure that he keeps all of those powers. In fact, the fair elections act gives him sharper teeth and a longer reach.