House of Commons photo

Crucial Fact

  • His favourite word was economy.

Last in Parliament October 2015, as NDP MP for Vaudreuil—Soulanges (Québec)

Lost his last election, in 2015, with 22% of the vote.

Statements in the House

Common Sense Firearms Licensing Act May 29th, 2015

Mr. Speaker, I would like to salute the member for his involvement with the sport shooting community. I have sport shooters in my family, and we know that the safe use of firearms is possible.

However, the member's speech did not do justice to the issue, with the semi-paranoid discourse he undertook. I would like to talk about real problems that other members have mentioned, such as cuts to the CBSA that have hampered our ability to counter the predominant threat to Canadians, which is organized crime.

The member talked about the bad guys. The integrated border enforcement teams, in the 2010 report on threat assessment, said that the threat from non-urban regions of the border is low. However, with increased enforcement in urban regions, the border points in rural regions, places like Sault Ste. Marie could have smuggling moved there. Firearms smuggling could move to these regions. The ATTs have been changed, in this case with border points.

Could the member tell us how the Conservative government is going to address this problem of criminal activity by organized crime moving to rural border points for gun smuggling? What is the government going to do to counter this threat?

Petitions May 29th, 2015

Mr. Speaker, the fifth petition I am presenting, like others presented by some members, has to do with the elimination of the tax on feminine hygiene products. We would like to have a vote soon, but unfortunately the Liberals refused to give unanimous consent today.

Petitions May 29th, 2015

Mr. Speaker, the fourth petition I am presenting today has to do with the abolition of the Senate.

Petitions May 29th, 2015

Mr. Speaker, the second and third petitions have to do with creating a legislative ombudsman mechanism for responsible mining. My constituents want to see Canada take responsible action in the mining sector around the world.

Petitions May 29th, 2015

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present five petitions from my constituents.

The first has to do with the future of CBC/Radio-Canada. My constituents would like CBC/Radio-Canada to receive stable funding.

Twenty-third Annual Celebration of New France May 29th, 2015

Mr. Speaker, next week, from Friday, June 5 to Sunday, June 7, Vaudreuil-Dorion will celebrate the 23rd edition of Les Seigneuriales, a history-themed festival that celebrates New France. There will be activities for the whole family, including traditional music performances, workshops, period games for children and interactive re-enactments.

This year also marks the 350th anniversary of the arrival of the Carignan-Salières regiment. For me, this event is not just a historical fact; it is also the anniversary of my family's arrival in New France. My ancestor, Jean Desforges, known as Saint-Maurice, was part of that regiment. I am proud of my family heritage.

Vaudreuil-Soulanges was a meeting place for our three founding peoples, a place where people could trade, learn about each other's cultures and dream of a country that would become Canada.

I invite all of my constituents to come to this event to celebrate our heritage in the best region of the country, Vaudreuil-Soulanges.

Common Sense Firearms Licensing Act May 29th, 2015

Mr. Speaker, I listened with great intent to the member's speech and his comments about the interests of hunters and farmers.

Given that there are large rural areas in the north that do not have locations where people can take the Canadian firearms safety course, does the government have a contingency plan to provide this course to those people so they can actually use their firearms legally?

Safe and Accountable Rail Act May 27th, 2015

Mr. Speaker, a few members in the House today have mentioned SMS systems.

Do the Liberals believe that the current SMS systems are working? Do they realize that 15 years after the Liberal government brought in these SMS systems, in 1999, we are still trying to fix the glitches in the system? What would the member have to say to that?

Economic Action Plan 2015 Act, No. 1 May 15th, 2015

Mr. Speaker, I would like to share some of the comments of one of this member's constituents, Phil Harrison, a senior in Chilliwack, from a letter he put in the Chilliwack Progress. He said:

Both the federal Conservatives and B.C. Liberals have reduced my income taxes for me. Why would I disagree with their policies? We are the privileged generation—you may enjoy the same privileges, in retirement, while they last.

Why the concern? Only because we have grandchildren who will be paying for the privileges and lifestyle that the B.C. Liberals and Conservatives think we deserve (for votes), with borrowed government money. It's called debt, and the B.C. Liberals have doubled it in the last decade or so.

We are also at record levels of household debt.

What would this member say to his own constituent, Mr. Phil Harrison, a senior living in Chilliwack?

Economic Action Plan 2015 Act, No. 1 May 15th, 2015

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for his service to the Canadian Armed Forces. He said that he would like to pass this before Parliament rose and yet he had an opportunity to do so just last week when the member for Sackville—Eastern Shore asked for unanimous consent to pass Bill C-58 several times, which roughly covers the same ground.

It is hard to listen to the member talk about us putting obstacles in the way of veterans' benefits when the member was not willing to pass it right away. Our veterans need real support. Veterans Affairs runs just one hospital close to my riding, which is known as Ste. Anne's Hospital. Sean Bruyea, a veterans advocate, says that it is essential to have such hospitals because they understand that the needs of veterans are unique.

Supporting our troops needs to be more than just a bumper sticker slogan. We need true support for our troops and support for the families of veterans. Will the member undertake to take Bill C-58 out of the omnibus budget bill and pass it right away, right here, right now?