Hec Clouthier

[Supply, October 26th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I would like the member opposite to understand this, and I will make it very clear and very plain to you. We have reduced—

[Supply, October 26th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I am very surprised and astonished at the comments of the member opposite.

Does he think that government members are not serious minded? We are indeed, but you are not, because the former Bloc Quebecois leader said that Canada was not a real country.

It is not real. Your leader said that, so what are you talking about over there?

[Supply, October 26th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, it is indeed a pleasure for me to speak to this motion brought forward by the hon. member for Madawaska—Restigouche.

It will please members to no end to know that I will be sharing my time with the hardworking vivacious member for Guelph—Wellington.

I have a speech which took me hours to prepare, but basically I am going to touch on a few nuances brought forward by some of the members opposite, in particular members of the Reform Party.

It is interesting to note that in the weekend's paper it was clearly evinced that one of the members of the Reform Party, I believe the member for Medicine Hat, practises some of his dialogue before speaking in the House of Commons. Other members of the Reform Party perhaps better take a look in the mirror before they start making disparaging remarks about this piece of legislation and condemn it in its entirety for the simple reason that they say it is isolationist and it targets one part of the country, which is absolutely and unequivocally a falsehood.

They are indulging in nothing more than verbal turpitude. They are the people who want at the end of the day to speak for all Canadians, whereas this piece of legislation basically does address all Canadians. One member said it does not reach into his riding because he has 17% unemployment in his riding. If he has 17% unemployment in his riding and he wants to rail against the government, he better look inward and say perhaps there is something he personally should do to alleviate those concerns.

In this piece of legislation when we talk about the big weeks and the small weeks, we are actually looking for a formula to address unemployment.

We on the government side do not look upon unemployment favourably. We are trying to do everything we possibly can to ameliorate the situation and address the concerns.

When we look at the big weeks I think of the word big and my hon. colleague from Pontiac—Gatineau—Labelle. He is big in heart and big in empathy for those who are dispossessed and those who are out of work. When we look at the small weeks I think of the word small and the member for Frontenac—Mégantic.

He has a small vision of the country. He is from the Bloc Quebecois Party which does not really care about the rest of the country. Everyone knows that it is an isolationist party. Dare I say that the opposition party, the Reform Party, in some instances also delves into the realm of being isolationist because it does not want to address the entire situation.

I know my hon. colleague opposite is a business person. He knows that the best way to alleviate unemployment is to have a strong, vibrant economy. I know the hon. member, the little fellow from Medicine Hat who has certain Thespian qualities about him, has said that they would create in the blue book about one million jobs by the year 2000. I believe that is their mandate.

All of Canada knows that we on this side of the House have already reached that point. We have created about 1.3 million jobs and growing, less than two years faster than the Reform Party suggested. Talk is cheap. It is easy to say what one is going to do. We have actually done it. We have the lowest unemployment rate now in about eight years.

Another thing that is great for business and will help the employment picture is that we have the lowest interest rates in over 30 years.

I am a business person besides. When I had a real job I was in business, until I got elected as a member of parliament. I see what goes on here on occasion. It is dreadful. Let us face reality. If there are low interest rates which we currently have, the lowest in over 30 years, it is very propitious for the job sector. That is one of the reasons we have the lowest unemployment. It is now down to about 8.4%. When we took over in 1993 I believe it was something around 12.4%. That in itself propagates that the unemployment picture will look better.

To get back to this piece of legislation, I agree a lot with what the hon. member for Madawaska—Restigouche has been saying, but I cannot say to him at this stage, today, here and now, that I am in complete agreement with him on this issue because it is a pilot project.

We will take a look at it on November 15. The hon. member should hold his horses, or perhaps I should say to him sharpen his blades. He has already told me that he is a hockey player. I believe he is skating on thin ice on this one. He should get his skates sharpened because we on this side have sharpened our pencils. That is why the employment picture is at the best it has been for years and years and years.

I know the fourth party, the NDP, is very concerned about the unemployment picture. Its members are very eloquent spokespersons in that regard. However I disagree with them. I do not believe that we should have generations and generations of people on unemployment. I would like to see these people get job retraining and upgrading. I believe they agree with me in that regard, but that is where they viscerally disagree with the Reform Party because the Reform Party's agenda is to cut them off. Anybody who has come back year in and year out to the employment insurance fund would be arbitrarily cut off. The NDP agrees with the Liberal Party in the area of job retraining.

We look after our students. We have the youth employment centre programs which are generated with the money from employment insurance premiums. Everyone would like to see a reduction, but at what expense? The finance minister has clearly indicated that we are a caring, compassionate country. We will reach out to all sectors of the population to try to help them.

Some people think employment insurance is a fund but it is not. It goes into the general revenue fund. That was passed in 1986. I was not here in 1986. I do not know who was here then but I believe that is when it was passed.

We have managed that fund remarkably well. I remember back in the early 1980s when the unemployment insurance fund was running at a deficit of about $500 million a year. Now, because we have a surplus and because we are managing it extremely well, we are to be penalized and we are to be looked upon in a pejorative manner. I emphatically state we will not apologize for managing that fund extremely well, better than it has been managed in years.

I know the member for Medicine Hat likes to get involved in Shakespeare. Alfred Lord Tennyson said:

Come, my friends. `T is not too late to seek a newer world. Push off, and sitting well in order smite The sounding furrows; for my purpose holds To sail beyond the sunset, and the baths Of all the western stars, until I die. It may be that the gulfs will wash us down; It may be we shall touch the Happy Isles, And see the great Achilles, whom we knew. Tho' much is taken, much abides; and tho' We are not now that strength which in old days Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are,— One equal temper of heroic hearts, Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.

That is what the Liberal Party of Canada will do. We will strive to find resolutions to the unemployment issue. We will seek the solutions in good Liberal policies. We will find a way to help all people throughout the country because that is the Liberal tradition.

[Kids From The Valley, October 26th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, it is with pride and pleasure that I announce a group of young step dancers from the great riding of Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke became world champions in Los Angeles on Saturday. Kids from the Valley won the gold medal at the World Championships of Performing Arts as well as the prestigious overall world championship trophy in the dance category.

Kids from the Valley are no strangers to the House. Last month they performed for all members of parliament at Kingsmere. Mr. Speaker, as you well recall, you hosted the parliamentary barbeque and even danced with Kids from the Valley. Members from all parties were united in emotion as they clapped or jigged with the kids. The member for Saint John showed she is really fast on her feet.

The Kids from the Valley are Amy and Sarah Chapman, Krista and Steven Rosein, Katie Moyles and Kristin Carr. They are true ambassadors of Canadian culture.

They are truly Canada's ambassadors.

[Hockey, October 9th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, hockey is the tie that binds this country together from coast to coast. It is the game that Canadians love the most.

As a new NHL season begins tonight we must not forget the athletes who play on our country's most important hockey team, Team Canada.

I am very proud to announce that one of my constituents in the great riding of Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke has just been named to our national team.

Last season Shawn Heins was the top rookie defenceman in the International Hockey League. He set an IHL record with a 99.5 mile an hour slapshot. He is now under contract to the San Jose Sharks. Shawn Heins is from Eganville.

Two years ago another Eganville lad, Dale McTavish, played for Canada's national team. He went on to play for the Calgary Flames before becoming the top scorer for Saipa in the Finnish Elite League.

It is indeed a remarkable achievement for any small village of 1,300 people to produce such high calibre hockey players. It is the contribution to Team Canada which we enjoy the most.

The people of Eganville and the entire valley salute and are proud of both Shawn and Dale.

[Bernadette McCann, October 7th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, there is in every true woman's heart a spark of heavenly fire, which lies dormant in the broad daylight of prosperity, but which kindles up and beams and blazes in the dark hour of adversity.

The name Bernadette McCann has been a shining symbol of hope for abused women and children in Renfrew county who have sought the comfort and solace of the institution which bears her name.

Bernadette McCann raised 11 children in Pembroke, Ontario, including the colourful former mayor Terry McCann. Bernadette was a humble and unassuming woman who went to church every day. When she died, over 30 priests attended her funeral. She was a tireless worker with a strong commitment to her family, to her friends, to her God, to her church and to her community. She left behind a legacy of caring and compassion that remains to sustain us in this altered world of ours.

It is with great pride that I say thank you to a great Canadian and great woman, Bernadette McCann.

[Montreal Expos, October 2nd, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, as a student at Loyola College in Montreal, I remember going to see Les Expos when they introduced Canadians to a major league baseball team they could call their own. I remember the announcer at Jarry Park calling “The catcher, John Bock-a-bella.”

I remember Rusty Staub—“Le Grand Orange”—Rhéal Cormier and Larry Walker, the first Canadian this century to win a major league batting title.

Let us never forget that the Montreal Expos brought together not only citizens of Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, but all Canadians. They unified a country; they aroused a passion for the game of baseball.

If the Expos strike out for the last time, Canada's field of dreams will be forever diminished.

And that is sad.

[Autumn In Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, September 25th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, after so much inflammatory language during the first week of this new session I invite my colleagues to enjoy a wonderful spectacle from the great Upper Ottawa Valley.

The Flaming Leaf tour in my riding is a tremendous display of autumn colours that will simply take one's breath away. Travel along the Opeongo Line where pioneers worked tirelessly to build a caring community and where lumber barons made their fortunes floating logs down the Ottawa River.

The people who live in the great riding of Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke come from all cultural backgrounds. We come together and live in harmony, a lesson that could be learned by the people of this House.

Our Canadian maple leaf is a symbol that has earned worldwide respect and admiration. The changing colours provide a portrait of panoramic pride in this celebrated country called Canada.

Come to the valley and enjoy the vista.

[National Defence, June 9th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of National Defence.

In many cases CF members, their spouses and DND employees are scared to talk to somebody in their unit because of perceived problems that could result from the truth.

Could the estimable Minister of National Defence tell the House what he plans to do to help those who are unfairly treated?

[Peacekeeping, June 4th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to our peacekeepers in Bosnia-Hercegovina. These men and women, the majority of whom are stationed in CFB Petawawa in my great riding of Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, are doing a remarkable job under very adverse condition. The 1,285 Canadians who stand watch in this region represent Canada's largest peacekeeping commitment.

I had the distinct privilege and pleasure of meeting a number of these soldiers on a recent trip to the area as a member of the Standing Committee on National Defence and Veterans Affair.

Canada's peacekeeping efforts are recognized and respected throughout the world. These brave men and women who are now serving in this troubled sector are representing us in an exemplary fashion.

I want to say thanks on behalf of my riding and on behalf of all Canadians to the members of the Canadian military who leave their families and friends to serve their country. They serve it well.