Electoral Reform committee  I'm not sure that it should necessarily be for high-school students. Rather, I think it should be aimed at groups interested in civic education. Many such groups can't afford to educate their members or provide training. Not everyone has a master's degree from the École nationale d'administration publique, like Ms.

Electoral Reform committee  In Quebec, when the government amended the legislation respecting health and social services, it decided that an individual could consent to or refuse any form of treatment at the age of 14. I can't see why the same wouldn't apply when it comes to setting the voting age at 16. I would be in favour of that.

Electoral Reform committee  I think so, as long as the purpose was made clear. I don't want to generalize, but, in many cases, House of Commons members are elected with 30% or 35% of the votes. The same is true of the National Assembly in Quebec. If the public was told that the reason for the system was to ensure that the votes received by members elected to the House of Commons reflected a representation of 50% plus one of the population, I can't see why they wouldn't be willing to accept that dimension.

Electoral Reform committee  To some degree, you've answered the question. When there is a second round, the outcome necessarily represents 50% plus one of the voting population. Conversely, in a system based on the plurality of votes, it's possible for members representing 25% or 30% of the population to be elected.

Electoral Reform committee  That's certainly something to consider. When you reduce the number of seats and elected members per riding, or the number of ridings, the accountability of an individual chosen from a party list really comes into play. Saying that it's totally one side or the other doesn't address the issue.

Electoral Reform committee  Yes. The reason I proposed it is that, when representativeness is at issue, people will consider whether a member represents the majority of people in his or her riding. The simplest and most effective way to correct that is the two-round voting system, as can be seen in a number of countries where it's in place.

Electoral Reform committee  Yes.

Electoral Reform committee  The experience of many countries—France being the most commonly cited—shows that's not a problem. Quite the contrary, voters turn out at the same rate, if not higher, for the second round because the choices are so clear at that point. For that reason, it's the system I prefer.

Electoral Reform committee  It bears repeating that the geographic area and the community area are extremely important to voters. We are in an environment in which the electoral boundaries were drawn on the basis of as many factors as possible and we belong to the same community. If we reduced the number of seats representing a geographic area, for example, that would of course produce some surprising results.

Electoral Reform committee  I would like to add something. As we just discussed, proportional representation is not the only way to correct the situation. I think we need a process that could lead to proportional representation. First we need to create institutions that give people the opportunity to express their opinions and to be considered, which is referred to as mandatory opinions.

Electoral Reform committee  That is what Quebec did by eliminating the financing of political parties by individuals and instead establishing public funding, based on vote share, support, and other indicators. Democracy does not exist in a vacuum. As a rule, the less fortunate groups are also the ones that have fewest resources to share their opinions, to convey them, especially considering a few elements that cannot be controlled.

Electoral Reform committee  We must revise party financing in order to support different political views in our society.

Electoral Reform committee  Clearly, it would take a constitutional amendment. Let us first explore the idea of using the upper house, which has a fully-fledged role in state decision-making, to represent the diverse trends in Canadian society, including men and women, minority groups, ideological leanings, and so forth.

Electoral Reform committee  I am more in favour of geographical representation, that is, attaching voters to their MP in a familiar space, a community space. You say you have 40 municipalities in your riding. I represented a riding with 43 municipalities, with a radius of at least 285 km. People identify with their MP.

Electoral Reform committee  Yes, in my opinion, Canadians have to be consulted because any change would be significant. It would mean turning the page on a system that has been in place for over 200 years. Our democratic institutions will be affected by the change. The population must be consulted, but I really think that a referendum is an outstanding tool for public education.