Mr. Speaker, last year the member for Richmond, when he was multiculturalism secretary, said, “My reason for not apologizing is because of the legal position that was given to me by my department”. That was the excuse. We have since discovered, according to access to information, that he received exactly the opposite advice. The legal advice was that it would appear, from a legal point of view, that none of the outstanding claims would meet such a burden.
The government is doing what is right for Chinese Canadians, under the leadership of the Prime Minister and the Minister of Canadian Heritage. It will offer a formal apology.
I think the member for Richmond should apologize to Chinese Canadians for not telling--