Jean Chrétien

[Government Contracts, September 16th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, the financing of a political party is the same for everybody. Every contribution that is given to the Liberal Party above $100 is public information that can be found on the Internet any day of the week. This is the only way that we have raised money for the Liberal Party over the last 10 years.

[Softwood Lumber, September 15th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, what he is doing at this moment is the best recipe to ensure that we make no progress at all.

At the moment we have won many cases in front of the international courts on these subjects. We are making progress. The level of export to the United States is still very high. However just to blackmail our partners on that I do not think is a very practical instrument.

[The Economy, September 15th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, in the spring the hon. member was running for the leadership. We did not complain because he was not in the House of Commons. The leadership this summer we were not in the House of Commons. He cannot use that. The number of ministers running in the leadership is not great.

The reality is that while the Americans lost millions of jobs last year, the Government of Canada created 565,000 new jobs in the previous months. We had two bad months--

[Agriculture, September 15th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, if the hon. member did a bit of reading, he would understand that there has been only one country that has had cases of mad cow that has managed to sell into the American market. Take the British for example. They have not been able after a year to sell one pound of beef to the American market. We have managed to reopen the market within weeks.

[Agriculture, September 15th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, I have done it. I have talked with the President and with other officials of the administration. The Minister of Agriculture did such a good job on this file that even the provincial government of a different colour, the Conservative Premier of Alberta, has congratulated the Minister of Agriculture because he has done a very good job on behalf of farmers of Canada.

[Government Contracts, September 15th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, again, the charges are unfounded. The police are doing their job. At present, charges have been laid against individuals who are not linked in any way with the government.

I cannot conclude that the government is involved. The police are doing their job. The Office of the Auditor General is doing its job. These are independent organizations. The fact that action is being taken in the courts clearly proves they are doing a good job.

[Government Contracts, September 15th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that the member concedes that the ministers probably did nothing wrong. That confirms what we have been saying all along in this House.

The fact that this is before the courts as we speak proves that we were right to ask the Auditor General and the RCMP to step in. Anyone who has cheated will have to suffer the consequences, which is what is happening in the case the leader of the Bloc Quebecois and the member are referring to.

[Government Contracts, September 15th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, in the case mentioned by the hon. member of the Bloc Quebecois, the investigation phase has been completed. We are now at the point where charges have been laid. What does this mean? This means that the Office of the Auditor General and the RCMP, completely independent bodies, have fulfilled the mandate they received from Parliament.

[Government Contracts, September 15th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, I just said that, several months ago, we asked the RCMP and the Auditor General to do their work. In the case cited by the hon. member, they did do their work. The individual in question is presumed to have defrauded the government. If so, and if that individual is found guilty by the courts, he will have to suffer the consequences, which will in all likelihood be quite serious.

[Government Contracts, September 15th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, I just gave the answer to the member.

The RCMP is doing very independent work and the Auditor General, who is an officer of the House, is a very important independent officer of the House, and both of them are doing their jobs as they have to do. I have nothing else to add.