Evidence of meeting #10 for Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics in the 39th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was mulroney.
A recording is available from Parliament.
P.C., As an Individual
Mr. Martin suggested that I somehow suggested, either myself or through someone else, that this had something to do with the pasta machines and that I was out promoting world peace. I would hope that something would have resulted, but that wasn't my objective.
Here was the objective as quoted by the gentleman who gave me the mandate, Mr. Schreiber, in the case of R. v. MBB Helicopter in 2004. Here's the mandate--
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Paul Szabo
No, no, that's okay. I'm stopping the clock on your question, but let him proceed, please.
Conservative
David Tilson Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
Point of order.
Mr. Chairman, I don't understand this stopping-the-clock business. I mean, Mr. Martin asks a question. The witness is entitled to answer the question. This stopping-the-clock business is nutty.
So if Mr. Martin asks a question, the Prime Minister is entitled to answer the question. It has nothing to do with stopping the clock. That's the way the place works.
Liberal
Brian Murphy Liberal Moncton—Riverview—Dieppe, NB
Very briefly, Mr. Chairman, I agree wholeheartedly with Mr. Tilson. You're very magnanimous with other members' time, with all due respect. Maybe other members want to pursue other lines of questioning, and Mr. Mulroney should make his brief and succinct comments within the timeframes of the questioner.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Paul Szabo
Thank you, colleagues.
I want to be equitable to all members. When there's a disagreement or clarification to be made, I have been stopping the clock because it's not.... All members should get a reasonable portion of their time to pose questions. So I'm not going to do this any more, provided everyone just....
Ten minutes is supposed to be for the question and answer, but in the event that the answer is exceptionally long, I want to provide additional time for the members, because it's--
Conservative
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Paul Szabo
Thank you.
So I'm going to go back for questioning from Mr. Martin, and I'm going to tell you that you have seven minutes left, sir.
P.C., As an Individual
Mr. Chairman, I was asked a question about the mandate. This goes to the core of the entire issue, and I am telling you that the mandate was given under oath by Mr. Schreiber in 2004 in the Eurocopter case. Here is what he said:
I had many things in mind, and I told you, I wanted to hire Mr. Mulroney for Thyssen, to do the same thing that he's doing now, and it would have been a nice thing to have a previous Canadian Prime Minister on a peacekeeping track for Thyssen products, again, as this government wanted the German companies to do. I was also involved in the pasta business, enriched durum semolina products, and this is the moment I spoke to him about Archer Daniels Midland, and he provided me with material.
I was a senior director of Archer Daniels Midland. This is where the mandate came from. It's not some snarky comment about pasta machines saving the peace of the world. It's an entirely legitimate business proposal, which he proposed, and I accepted. And I think Mr. Ménard is right--the only dubious part about it, which I've acknowledged, was that I ought not to have accepted the payment in cash.
NDP
Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
I'll go back to my question then. You said that you put the money you took in New York City into a safety deposit box. Do you have a safety deposit box in Switzerland? Do you have access, or have you ever had access, to a safety deposit box in Switzerland?
NDP
Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
You sued the Government of Canada for $50 million for saying that you took money from Karlheinz Schreiber and you received a $2.1 million settlement. I believe you did in fact take money from Karlheinz Schreiber, and I believe that if the Government of Canada knew you had taken money from Schreiber you would not have received that settlement. They probably would have fought that court battle to its logical end. Are you willing to give that $2.1 million back to the people of Canada, now that we know that you did take money from Schreiber?
P.C., As an Individual
No, I took compensation from Schreiber for serious work done on his behalf around the world. I was paid to execute this mandate that he articulated in court. I have also indicated---
NDP
Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
By omission you led us to believe you had virtually no dealings with the man under a sworn testimony.
P.C., As an Individual
I did not omit anything. I explained to you that in the province of Quebec, the manner in which---
NDP
Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
You're splitting hairs, sir, and the country isn't buying it.
I'm not calling you a liar, Mr. Mulroney, but I don't want anybody here to think I believe you. Let's put it that way.
One of the most disturbing allegations is that Karlheinz Schreiber and Franz Josef Strauss interfered with Canadian politics with foreign money to unseat, in 1983 in Winnipeg, Joe Clark, who may in fact have been the next Prime Minister of Canada had foreign money not intervened from this neo-conservative government, which, by Mr. Schreiber's testimony, was going around the world trying to promote neo-conservative governments and interfering with their money.
Were you aware at that time that Walter Wolf, Franz Josef Strauss, Karlheinz Schreiber, and Frank Moores were parachuting delegates in by charter plane to unseat Joe Clark's leadership and to place you as the next leader and the next Prime Minister of Canada?