Well, thanks.
I did appear before the heritage committee on this issue last week, Chair. I can reinforce that in 1990 former Prime Minister Mulroney made what he characterized as a full and unqualified apology on behalf of the people and the Government of Canada to Canadians of Italian origin for the injustices that occurred at the time of the internment of Canadians—the 632 Canadians of Italian origin—between 1940 and 1943. In addition, our government has provided $5 million of specified funding under the community historic recognition program for projects involving education and commemoration of the Italian internment experience. Those funds will be dispersed based on the advice of a panel of eminent Canadians of Italian origin.
I find some of the politics on this a little unfortunate, because previous governments had many opportunities to act on this and other issues of wartime internment or immigration restriction measures. They chose not to do so. Fine, that was their choice. To then turn around and criticize the Mulroney government for making the apology and our government for providing real funds—$5 million—for commemorative projects is unfortunate.