I wasn't expecting my fellow member to be this generous.
Bloc Québécois amendment 1 goes to the heart of the bill and basically proposes to define what political interference means. The idea is to ensure that the act includes a clear definition of political interference, one that is consistent with those used by other countries, the U.S. in particular.
A couple of options are on the table. The first is the one advocated by all the witnesses who appeared before the committee, including experts and lawyers from the Government Accountability Project. In other words, their recommendation was to include a definition in the act.
The second, which is captured in the Conservatives' amendments, is to let the government define political interference later on, through regulation. Both we and the experts feel this approach would weaken the bill.
I'm being told that one of the Liberals' amendments seeks to remove the definition—but I would have to check. Our position is that the act should set out a definition, one that is clear and in line with the standard in other countries. Basically, that's the purpose of the amendment.