Electoral Reform committee  I think seniors would participate in a referendum as long as the question was clear. It’s important in Quebec that the referendum question be very clear. In any case, seniors are very committed people, and they would certainly take part in the referendum. The Réseau FADOQ would also strongly encourage its members to exercise their right to vote.

Electoral Reform committee  I think the first thing would be to organize meetings, like this one, to fully explain to seniors the changes to the voting system. You also need to ensure you are there for them, more than every four years, and hold meetings in every region so that they fully understand the changes.

Electoral Reform committee  No. Not all the residences have a mobile polling station. It depends on the size and location of the residences. So that's not the case everywhere. This really prevents people from exercising their right to vote. If it were possible to set up a mobile station in each of the residences, and I'm not talking about residences with six people, but those with hundreds of seniors, that would truly make the voting process easier.

Electoral Reform committee  You are doing very well.

Electoral Reform committee  For the next consultations, I will perhaps invite Mr. Mireault to invite the Réseau FADOQ, so that we can discuss the issue together. That could be really interesting.

Electoral Reform committee  People still have to bring that voter card to confirm that their name is on the list at their designated polling station. However, in terms of the identification that you now have to provide, if you have no driver's licence and if there is no longer a photo on the health insurance card — which is no longer required after the age of 75 — it becomes very complicated.

Electoral Reform committee  I'm not sure whether the request has been made to residences. These days, residences are big, like micro-societies. All sorts of people live there. So there could be people at the residences who would be certainly interested in becoming scrutineers. I am pretty sure. Often, thousands of people live in those places.

Electoral Reform committee  I can't answer that question because our organization did not really discuss the matter. However, access is an important issue for us, certainly. Perhaps if you phrase your question differently, I could give you a better answer.

Electoral Reform committee  What puts seniors off the most is the lack of transparency. We get particularly frustrated when politicians do or say the opposite of the understanding they have given. I include myself in that generation that was, to an extent, used to things being done and said in a certain way.

Electoral Reform committee  As for online voting, at the moment, we know very well that the generation of elderly people is not really comfortable with the Internet and technological tools. In addition, in some regions, such as my own, Internet access is not available everywhere. So you could not take that option and offer it to everyone.

Electoral Reform committee  You are right. It’s disappointing for anyone casting a ballot to see that the candidate they voted for wasn’t elected, even though he or she got a good percentage of the vote. However, it’s always fairly difficult to find a mechanism that would please everyone. I don’t know how a balanced representation of Conservatives, New Democrats, Liberals and the Green Party could be achieved.

Electoral Reform committee  Exactly.

Electoral Reform committee  At the FADOQ network, we consider that the way in which we function currently, with certain improvements, is acceptable. As I was saying earlier, certain changes need to be made, because there are discrepancies among the regions. Access is our first preoccupation, because we know it is not always easy for seniors to get around.

Electoral Reform committee  Yes. In 2014, when we tabled our brief, one of the recommendations was that we be consulted on the reform. That is why we are very pleased with what is going on currently. You have to go further, naturally. There has to be a broader consultation of citizens, given the very different territorial realities from one end of Canada to the other.

Electoral Reform committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. On behalf of the Réseau FADOQ, I thank you for inviting me to appear before you. I'm very happy that seniors can have a voice in today's consultation. In 2014, the Réseau FADOQ submitted a brief on the electoral reform, a reform that the former government had already begun.