Mr. Speaker, before I get to my question, I want to congratulate the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons. We have been here for almost a full day, and he has not used once one of his favourite standing orders, Standing Order 78(3), the motion to invoke closure on a debate, so hope springs eternal that time allocation may be a thing of the past.

I have three simple questions for the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons.

When will we see the long-awaited bill regarding the Canada Elections Act? This legislation promises to tighten regulations to keep other Conservatives from cheating to win a seat in the House of Commons. There is already a long list of Conservatives who are facing or have faced charges from Elections Canada. Are they just ragging the puck so they can do whatever they want during the next election? That is an important question for the opposition.

We heard yesterday in the throne speech that “The Senate must be reformed or, as with its provincial counterparts, vanish”.

Reform has been an abject failure for the current government so far. It could have done better with a “do no harm” policy when it comes to the Senate. We, along with most Canadians, are ready for that vanishing act. Is there a cut-off for the government's patience when it comes to the Senate, or will there be more rhetoric from the government? When will we see the legislation to actually make this thing a reality?

Finally, on government Motion No. 2, on which there has been some debate in this House, the government leader asked for some suggestions at the end of his intervention. This is the motion in which we are seeking to divide it into its coherent parts. I am prepared to move all of the necessary motions to pass the component parts of the government's motion to allow the MPs in this place to vote with a free and fair conscience, if my colleague across the way believes what he says and was looking for actual recommendations.

Those are my three questions for him today. To all members, welcome back from the extended summer recess.

Nathan Cullen

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