Mr. Speaker, it is a great privilege to speak today in reply to the Speech from the Throne delivered by the Governor General. I want to thank the Prime Minister for giving me this opportunity.
Before talking about my constituency and the actions of my government, I would be remiss if I did not say a word about the truly exceptional performance of our athletes at the Olympic Games in Vancouver and Whistler that ended on Sunday.
I would like to acknowledge in particular the performance, courage and determination of figure skater Joannie Rochette, who, despite the sudden passing of her mother, delivered a brilliant performance that won her a well deserved bronze medal. Congratulations to Joannie.
Congratulations to skier Alexandre Bilodeau, who was the first to win a gold medal on Canadian soil. Congratulations to Jasey-Jay Anderson for his fine gold medal in snowboarding.
Congratulations as well to our short track and long track speed skaters, more specifically to Guillaume Bastille from my riding, who thrilled the crowds with his lightning-fast performance.
And of course, congratulations to the men's and women's hockey teams who, once again, proved that Canada is a hockey superpower.
Unfortunately, I cannot mention all the athletes who distinguished themselves at these games because there are too many. However, I would like to congratulate and thank the entire Canadian Olympic team for giving us some unforgettable moments. Fourteen gold medals—that is a record we can be proud of.
When the Paralympic Games open, I am certain that the paralympic athletes will sustain the momentum and, once again, make us proud to be Canadians.
I would now like to talk about my riding and the people who live in my part of the country.
I was elected on November 9 by the voters in my riding of Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, which was held for 16 long years by other parties. I can say that the voters in my riding are as pleased as I am to have chosen a party and a Prime Minister that are taking action to grow our country, particularly our province and our riding.
I would like to take a few moments to describe my beloved corner of the country. There is no hiding the joy and pleasure it brings me to represent my riding.
I come from Kamouraska—the centre of my riding—where the people, like me, are proud and hard-working and love life. The scenery all along the magnificent St. Lawrence River, the paths that wind through the woods in their autumn splendour, all are part of the reason we are happy to live there.
The Rivière-du-Loup region is famous for the most beautiful sunsets in the world, according to the renowned magazine National Geographic.
There is no lack of inspiration for charting our future in an even better living space. Our quality of life is decidedly one of the best in the world and those who live in the region are proud Canadians contributing to the emancipation of our beautiful country.
The many islands across from the Montmagny and L'Islet RCMs are extraordinarily beautiful. One of them, Grosse-Île, an historic site that is a tourist destination, was the gateway to Canada for the Irish and other immigrants. Just like snow geese, these overseas refugees broke their journey on this island. These immigrants helped shape our country and we are very proud of them.
Many small and medium-sized businesses have been set up on the south shore, alongside world-class companies like Bombardier.
Our workers are well trained and aware of their impact on our quality of life. They do an outstanding job of creating, producing and processing products.
Our educational institutions, technology transfer centres and research establishments are among the best in the country. We are proud, once again, to contribute to Canada's quality of life. This is a good country to live in, and we help make it so every day.
My constituents talk to me. In addition to meeting with them regularly, I obviously consulted them about the upcoming budget. The people in my riding were able to express their opinions by answering a survey I sent them, and a great many of them did.
What my constituents and probably my colleagues' constituents want most is for us to strike a balance between continuing to spend in order to emerge completely from the recession and finding solutions to wipe out the deficit.
We must find that balance in order to make life easier for many Canadians hit hard by the recession. That is what came out of our survey.
Moreover, the people in my riding were happy that their member of Parliament took an interest in what they had to say. It was the first time in a very long time that a member from the region had asked them for their opinion on the next federal budget. It is very interesting to see that our constituents are much more interested in politics than we might think. These are the people who elect us, and they deserve our respect. It is important to consult them. That is what I did, and that is what I will continue to do.
The main role of every member of Parliament is to give his or her constituents a voice. I will keep on defending my constituents' interests in the House of Commons. One of my most important tasks is to improve the quality of life of the people around me by creating high-quality permanent jobs. Canada's economic action plan is so effective that, despite Canada's economic difficulties, the regional unemployment rate has remained relatively low and roughly 135,000 jobs have been created across the country since last July.
For the great benefit of our constituents, the effects of the economic action plan in terms of job creation will continue to be felt in 2010, as the government will stay the course and pursue the implementation of the economic stimulus measures. Much remains to be done. We on this side intend to work twice as hard to ensure that Canada comes out of the current recession stronger than ever. I sincerely believe that the role of elected representatives is to represent their constituents well. That is why I am always anxious to hear from, listen to, read or meet with all those who talk to me, write to me or come to see me. I tell them about my commitment to our great country of which I am so proud. I also tell them about my colleagues who are working so hard to ensure that Canada becomes stronger and more vibrant.
I would like to take the last few minutes I have left to talk about our economic action plan, which was tabled in this House in January 2009, just over one year ago. This plan was developed by our government in response to the deepest global recession since World War II. Our plan is working very well. All in all, almost 16,000 projects are currently putting people to work across the country. Thanks to that plan, I was able to secure funding for the construction of a bio-methanization plant in my riding, allowing me to help businesses that were experiencing difficulties. Together with our provincial and municipal partners, I was able to announce improvements to our local infrastructure. With the home renovation tax credit, families in my riding have been able to make improvements to their homes at a lower cost. EI benefits have also been enhanced to help laid-off workers. In addition, we are investing in training. In a word, our economic action plan is working as intended.
It is important to stay the course and to complete the second year of this plan. The time has come to ensure that the recovery has indeed started. We must concentrate on job creation and economic growth. During the coming months, our government will continue to put in place measures that will create jobs for Canadians. Job creation is our priority. We will do that through various means, including by developing new markets for Canadian products, by creating a greener economy and by maintaining our tax reduction measures for businesses.
We must also think about the challenges that we will be facing in the next few years. That is why we must also plan to return to a balanced budget to ensure the long term prosperity of our country. We will also continue to support Canadian families. Since we came into office, we have given $100 a month to Canadian families to help them pay for child care. We reduced taxes, thereby allowing the average family of four to save thousands of dollars. We also created the tax-free savings account, and the list goes on.
Each time the opposition asked us to raise taxes, we refused, and we will continue to do so because Canadian families deserve to keep their hard earned money. They can count on us to defend their interests. Our government will pursue its efforts to strengthen the food safety system. We will also work in partnership with non-governmental organizations to launch a national strategy on childhood injury prevention. Other measures will also be implemented to support Canadian families who helped build our country.
I would like to draw my colleagues' attention to other important measures in the throne speech: measures related to justice. Our government will introduce legislation to increase the penalties for sexual offences against children. Our government will also crack down on white-collar criminals who destroy the lives of honest investors. We will also give families of murder victims access to special benefits under employment insurance. In short, Canadians can count on us to tackle crime, which is still taking far too great a toll on our society.
In closing, I want to say how proud I am to be part of a team that is making the right decisions for Canadians. A year ago, Canada was dealing with a serious recession. One year later, we are on the right track toward economic recovery. Our economy weathered the global recession much better than that of other developed countries.
Just a few weeks ago, our brothers and sisters in Haiti needed our help. We did not waste any time answering the call. Within hours of the earthquake, our troops landed on the island to help the people there deal with the massive natural disaster that struck the country.
Later this year, Canada will once again play a key role in international affairs when it hosts the North American Leaders’ Summit and the G8 and G20 summits.
I predict that 2010 will be Canada's year. We will build on the momentum of the Olympic Games by focusing on job creation and growth, and Canada will own the podium yet again.
To that end, it is my honour to move the following motion, seconded by the hon. member for Cumberland—Colchester—Musquodoboit Valley. I move:
That the following Address be presented to Her Excellency the Governor General of Canada:
To Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, Chancellor and Principal Companion of the Order of Canada, Chancellor and Commander of the Order of Military Merit, Chancellor and Commander of the Order of Merit of the Police Forces, Governor General and Commander-in-Chief of Canada.
MAY IT PLEASE YOUR EXCELLENCY:
We, Her Majesty's most loyal and dutiful subjects, the House of Commons of Canada in Parliament assembled, beg leave to offer our humble thanks to Your Excellency for the gracious Speech which Your Excellency has addressed to both Houses of Parliament.