Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the hon. member for Thunder Bay—Rainy River.
Mr. Speaker, I congratulate you on your re-election to the chair. I am sure you will do what you can to maintain a dignified level of debate in this Parliament. I will also strive to live up to the expectations of the people of my riding, Sudbury and all Canadians, as they expect this from the House.
I would also like to join with my fellow New Democrats in offering up my congratulations to the Prime Minister and to the leader of the official opposition.
I am also offering them to the leader of the Bloc Québécois.
I also want to recognize my fellow new MPs who are taking up their duties for the first time. I am honoured to have been elected alongside them and I look forward to working with them on behalf of Canadians.
I also want to thank the people of Canada for electing the second largest New Democrat caucus in our history.
I would be remiss if I did not thank my family. I want to thank my wife, Yolanda, my two young daughters, Trinity and Thea, my parents, Eddie and Georgie, along with my large extended family for their faith and never wavering support.
Most of all, I would like to give a big thanks to the people of Sudbury for allowing me to represent them to the rest of the country. I understand the enormous responsibility with which this role comes and I am humbled that they believe in me to carry it out on your behalf. I will not let them down.
It is in the spirit of responsibility, however, that I must join with my fellow New Democrats in opposing the Speech from the Throne. The Canadian economy is facing an unprecedented downturn. Millions of Canadian families are worried about their jobs, their pensions and their savings. They are counting on the federal government to take bold and strategic steps.
The words in yesterday's throne speech do not match the urgency or the depth of what is required to protect working families in this economy. Canadians were hoping for more. New Democrats were expecting more.
In Sudbury, we are already seeing signs of the slowing economy. Six months ago, as commodity prices were riding high on the exchange markets and economies around the world were expanding, so was Sudbury. Not only were Vale Inco and Xstrata hiring massive numbers of new miners and other workers, but new junior companies were staking claims and planning new mines.
Sudbury had not seen this level of expansion in decades. Some predicted that this boom would last another decade or so. With the price of nickel and other metals plunging, so has expansion. Planned new mines are being mothballed and the first of the layoffs have already started. Families that were once so hopeful for what this future could bring are now worried about what this global crisis will bring.
Sudbury has endured recessions before and knows the costs to a community. In talking to people in my riding, they see nothing in yesterday's throne speech that will help them or their community in this downturn.
I had the opportunity to speak to an elderly widowed woman in Sudbury just last week. The conversation was difficult as she explained to me that she had just recently lost her husband and that she was alone trying to pay the taxes on her home, put food on the table and pay the bills, all the while her savings and her pensions are vanishing in this economic downturn.
She is not alone. She is one of literally thousands of seniors in my riding of Sudbury and millions of seniors who built our great country who were virtually ignored in the throne speech.
Organizations like the Older Adult Centres Association and our local YMCA continue to offer programs to help seniors through difficult times, so too should this government.
I commend the work of the many organizations in Sudbury working hard for our seniors and one day I hope to commend the government on the work that it should be doing on behalf of our seniors.
That is why I decided to run for office. People like the elderly woman in Sudbury need more, not more of the same. We need bold action and a fresh direction. We need to start putting families first rather than big corporations. In all the talk of restraint there was no mention of suspending the $7.3 billion in corporate tax breaks set to kick in in 2009.
We were elected just as this economic turmoil began. The people who voted for us, no matter what party we belong to, voted for real action to help alleviate the impacts of this global crisis. Sadly, most of what I heard in yesterday's throne speech was a steady as it goes approach with little direction to actually deal with problems facing Canadian families.
Besides the lack of real action and a real action plan for dealing with the economy, there were a number of gaping holes that should not have been ignored.
There was little mention of how the government will deal with the growing doctor deficit. Five million Canadians still do not have access to a family doctor. Family doctors are the front door into our medical system. Without an adequate amount it starts to fall apart and other areas, such as emergency departments, must take up the slack. It also has an adverse effect on people's health as they wait longer to see a doctor and medical problems end up getting worse.
There was no mention of trying to stop outrageous fees being charged on credit cards, bank accounts and cellphones. This price gouging has been going on far too long as the government has turned a blind eye to these predatory tactics. By capping and scrapping these hidden and outrageous fees, the government would actually be making life a little easier in these uncertain times.
Child care is virtually ignored in the throne speech. Families across Canada have been demanding a truly national system of child care. I just received an email from a mother in Sudbury who has been waiting over a year and a half for a day care spot. This is forcing her to choose child care options with which she is not entirely comfortable. This is a horrible situation for any parent to go through. The throne speech does little to help parents dealing with the lack of affordable child care spaces across my riding and across the country.
However, despite my objection over the majority of the content of the throne speech, there were some positive and encouraging aspects to it. First, the overall tone of the speech was more conciliatory and less combative than previous statements. While we believe that this should have been backed up with real change, it does indicate that the government might be willing to set aside with the brinkmanship of the past and start working closer together with the opposition to achieve real results for Canadians. That is a good sign.
Second, New Democrats welcome the invitation to work with the government on an energy retrofit program, something that we have been calling for and we believe could have a very positive effect on our economy. Also, the mention of the establishment of a continental cap and trade system sounds promising and we look forward to seeing further details.
Third, the new language around the new world-class research facilities is promising. However, if the government is serious about investing in cutting edge research for the industry, I would suggest that it reconsider its objection to funding the Centre for Excellence in Mining Innovation in Sudbury. Sudbury is a world leader in this field and it is time that the federal government recognizes it as such.
Yet, while these and other items were welcomed, they are still too vague and not enough to counter all that the throne speech does not do.
I will be voting against the throne speech, not out of malice or partisanship. The Speech from the Throne is the government's agenda in broad strokes. While there might not be much detail, it does give an overview of the government's direction and some scope of how it plans to implement its mandate.
To support the throne speech is to support a flawed agenda, one that I do not believe would help Canadian families at this time. Hopefully, our opposition to the throne speech will signal to the government that Canadians need more than vague language; that bold action is needed to help protect the people and communities from this economic downturn.
Canadians are looking to us to work toward protecting their jobs, their savings and their futures. We need to be brave and lay a new foundation for Canada in the 21st century, a foundation not only to get us through this current crisis, but one that will position Canada to be stronger coming out of this troubled time. Some say that cannot be accomplished. However, in the words of the late great Tommy Douglas, “Courage my friends, It is not too late to build a better world”.
The people of Sudbury elected me to work hard and tirelessly to ensure that their concerns were met in this Parliament. They can count on me. In these uncertain times, working and middle-class families can count on our team of New Democrat MPs to ensure that their interests come first. That is why Sudbury voted for change. I will not let my constituents down.
