House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2015, with 62% of the vote.
Quebec Election October 26th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, what is a good option is certainly the improvement of the federation.
The federation has been improved by this government, especially during the last years, as never in the past. I have cited federal spending powers. There has also been quite an improvement in many files like mining, forest development, tourism, social housing, job training agreements, the national child benefit system, environmental and health programs, the constitutional amendment for Quebec—
Quebec Election October 26th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister never said that reform of the federation is not an option.
We are improving the federation again and again, and we are still waiting for constructive solutions from the Reform Party.
Quebec Election October 26th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, the list of changes in the last years is quite impressive and it is certainly the will of the Prime Minister and the government to go ahead and improve this federation for the good of the federation of Canadians, including Quebeckers.
Look at the list. I will indicate some changes that have been made during the last years. For instance, the use of federal spending powers, and the reduced conditions of the main federal transfers to the provinces with the creation of the CHST. The list is long.
The Senate October 19th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, it is incredible that the Reform Party is comparing the debate about the secession of Canada and the debate about how to improve an important institution, the Senate of Canada.
The reform of the Senate of Canada must be a comprehensive one, not a piecemeal one that would be bad for all Canadians, including Albertans.
The Constitution September 22nd, 1998
Mr. Speaker, the clear majority that would be required to break apart a country will be the subject of a debate.
We could ask the Reform Party what majority is required to amend its own constitution. If I am to believe clause 7, it reads as follows:
<“That would include a majority vote of the delegates of two-thirds of the majority of votes cast”.
Calgary Declaration June 11th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, with the exception of one Bloc Quebecois-commissioned survey in which it directed the questions, all opinion polls held and compiled in Quebec, and all consultations and votes held in the nine provinces and two territories, show a very strong support for the principles of the Calgary declaration.
Behind that very firm support lies a profound desire to live together, eyes resolutely fixed on the future, and Quebeckers and other Canadians are reaching out their hands to each other and saying no to division, no to separation.
Alliance Quebec June 1st, 1998
Mr. Speaker, in that case, the majority of Quebeckers would be wrong, because a poll of Quebeckers indicates that a majority feel that regions wanting to remain within Canada should be allowed to do so.
No one in this country would even be thinking about carving up Quebec's territory if certain people had not begun actively promoting the breakup of the country.
Alliance Quebec June 1st, 1998
Mr. Speaker, just as the Government of Quebec does not cancel a grant to a sovereignist group that implies that the right to vote could be dependent on the French language, so the mere fact of electing a president does not mean the cancellation of a grant.
If this were the approach, all organizations in Canada, whether in the field of language or not, would rise up and ask what kind of world they were living in.
Alliance Quebec June 1st, 1998
Mr. Speaker, there are two sources of funding involved. First, there is the community component of the official languages support program, which benefits 90% of francophones outside Quebec. In this case, the Government of Canada could withdraw its grant should the mandate not be fulfilled. This remedy has never been used so far, but we have never ruled it out.
There is also a court challenges program, but it is only for challenges concerning the Charter. It apparently does not apply to the president of Alliance Quebec, as he does not seem to understand that, on the contrary, the Charter safeguards the possibility of limiting access to English-speaking schools for as long as necessary to protect the French language in North America.
Alliance Quebec June 1st, 1998
Mr. Speaker, the new president of Alliance Quebec is contemplating court challenges which seem pointless to us and are probably doomed to fail anyway because, for one thing, under section 59 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the National Assembly or the Government of Quebec may limit access to English-speaking schools to preserve French.
Also, in a 1988 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that a policy of making the French language predominant on commercial signs was justified. The president of Alliance Quebec would be much better off working together with all Quebeckers, both French- and English-speaking.