Mr. Mongrain:

Mr. Speaker, my hon. friend for whom I have a great deal of esteem and whom I know to be very

November 12, 1970

Employment Programs

honest, has just said that all those who sit on this side used to sit on his side. I have never sat on that side.

Mr. Mongrain;

Mr. Speaker, on a question of privilege.

Mr. Mongrain:

Mr. Chairman, at the outset I intended to second some of the remarks of the hon. member for Skeena. However, the debate became so provocative that I will try to imitate our philosopher from Prince Edward Island; I will try to be very quiet in my presentation to the committee.

Mr. Chairman, unfortunately I cannot support the amendment of the member for Ontario (Mr. Cafik) for reasons that seem obvious. In view of my experience in my own province, I feel that several candidates, in rural ridings, on the very last night before the elections, and at times in the morning, when mass comes out, have to convene people

from five or six neighbouring municipalities to give them a last message. There is no other way of reaching them.

The citizens in rural areas are pleased to be invited because it often happens that they are free on Saturday afternoon, or Sunday afternoon or Sunday evening and they enjoy attending local or regional political meetings to hear the arguments of the candidates. In any event, almost all the candidates in the province of Quebec hold similar meetings.

In Quebec, in almost all rural areas and even in small cities such as mine, there is an old custom whereby the night before elections a last meeting is held where loudspeakers are used because in most cases there are more people outside the hall than inside.

As for me, I am very sorry I cannot support the amendment of the member for Ontario.

On the other hand, I should like to move another amendment, because I feel the member for Ontario is totally inconsistent if he intends to forbid propaganda over the radio and television, on the eve of election day and, on that day, when it is allowed in the newspapers.

I cannot admit that a well-to-do candidate could buy a whole page of advertisement in the Sunday newspapers or in papers published on election day while another of lesser means could not do so. It is unfair for all candidates and in my opinion, clause 99 which prohibits publicity the day before or on election day is inconsistent.

Mr. Chairman, I would like to move an amendment. I apologize for having scribbled it down in such haste. I thought other hon. members would have moved it. I therefore move the following words be added in clause 99, after the words "any entertainment or advertising program":

[DOT]-or publishes, distributes or causes to be distributed an advertisement in the newspapers, or circulates printed during that same period-*

In my opinion, it would be only fair to standardize advertising in this respect.

Mr. Mongrain:

Mr. Chairman, I am thinking, of course, of paid advertisements and announcements. I do not think we can prevent the press from commenting or making sketches and caricatures. I had in mind paid announcements by a candidate or his agent.

Amendment (Mr. Mongrain) negatived: Yeas, 19; nays, 26.

Mr. Mongrain:

That is exactly the purport of my amendment, and I would ask that the question be put now.