John Baird

[Correctional Officers, May 17th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I will say directly to my colleague from Quebec that this government is currently working very hard with these public servants. They worked for four years on getting a contract with the previous government. I have already met with their union representatives twice and spoke to them on the phone twice. My assistant deputy minister is working very hard with this group. I hope we will have a solution as soon as possible.

[David Dingwall, May 16th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I say to my friend from Hamilton Centre that we will not defend the lack of transparency in the previous government.

The Conservative government is the government that put forward the truth on the issue surrounding Mr. Dingwall and his departure on the eve of an election. It was the Conservative government that committed to and has delivered on releasing every single aspect of this issue that can be legally made public and will continue to do so.

[David Dingwall, May 16th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, the government is more than prepared to table any and all information that it is legally entitled to table.

We know two things. First, the House was misled when it was told of the status of Mr. Dingwall's employment and how it came to an end.

It was this government that sought to release the information in the first place. It is this government that will continue to do that, to provide open and transparent government to the people of this country.

[Ethics, May 15th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I find it rather odd to get lessons on ethics from a member of the Liberal Party. I do find it strange.

The member opposite should perhaps do some research. The parliamentary secretary paid for his ticket before he attended and paid for all of his beverages and everything he consumed there.

[Budget Implementation Act, 2006, May 15th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I can certainly confirm to the House that the hon. member has been fighting for many of the things she has talked about. I have some of the scars to prove it from over the years.

She did talk about seniors. Seniors are very important to me in my riding of Ottawa West--Nepean. She said that this budget contains nothing for seniors, but does she know about the important tax cut for seniors in doubling from $1,000 to $2,000 the basic tax credit on their pensionable earnings? Is she aware of that and would she not want to promote that to the good constituents of Trinity--Spadina? That of course would be in addition to the GST tax cut.

[The Environment, May 12th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance and the government have been very clear that we are strongly supportive of the Government of Ontario. The accord reached last May in the dying days of the Liberal government, when the gun was put to its head, will be fully respected by the government.

However, what is odd is for this member to talk about the provincial Liberal government closing coal-fired plants. It made a commitment in the last election campaign to close them by 2007, a commitment it has totally abandoned.

[Government Accountability, May 11th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, we are going to do two things. First, we respect the important work of the Auditor General. She is a national hero in our country for the work she does on behalf of taxpayers. Second, the Prime Minister committed to introduce the federal accountability act as the first piece of legislation of his government. Once again, we have delivered.

The good news is that this morning the legislative committee voted unanimously to sit this summer if necessary to get this important work done. Congratulations, we will have an accountable government in short order.

[Homelessness, May 9th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, providing support and services to the most vulnerable in our country is certainly a priority, not just for this government but for all Canadians.

The member opposite would be pleased to know that the important services that are provided to Canadians, that meet the priority of Canadians and that are run effectively will certainly be something this government will protect.

[Justice, May 9th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister clarified yesterday who was speaking on behalf of the government and who was not. What the member of the official opposition has not done is explain the actions and the comments of the member for Scarborough—Guildwood or the member from Mississauga East. Why have they not stood in this place and offered a full apology, and can people with these views continue to sit as a member of his party's shadow cabinet?

[Access to Information, May 8th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, not only did the government include 16 agencies which had never been included in our legislation in Canadian history but we also put forward both the access to information commissioner's report and a white paper that goes much farther than even the access to information commissioner suggested.

In fact, he has called some of our proposals radical and said they go farther than anything he has even asked for. We think it is important to get the views of parliamentarians on all sides of the issue. We are very committed to coming back with additional legislation on this important issue.