Mr. Speaker, it is certainly my pleasure to rise today to speak on Bill C-46, an act to establish the Department of Industry.
This all started with the election one year ago when Canadians felt it was important to set in place a team of people with certain ideas as presented in the red book, that would reorganize and transform the government and the way business is done in Canada.
It is not a coincidence that we have the team of players which is heading the departments today. We are the original reformers. Our friends on the opposite side call themselves the Reform Party, but the Liberal Party is the party of reform. It is our party that looks at all the resources; people, mineral, and other resources and asks: How can we do the best for our people? How can we reorganize things in a way that Canadians will enjoy the lifestyles they have had in the past and will continue to have in the future?
We started with general projects. We brought in the infrastructure program. Why did we bring in the infrastructure program? Because all the G-7 countries, those countries that are doing well put infrastructure in. I know because I was a mayor and I travelled the world. I travelled to Germany and the United States to beef up my riding of Bruce-Grey, having been the mayor of the city of Owen Sound for four terms.
My friends opposite can check my record. They can go to the library and see that I had a strategic plan and I executed it. I called it building blocks, putting in a hospital, a regional mall, a sewer treatment plant, an arena, or what have you. These are building blocks.
This government has reorganized itself in a way to give better government by streamlining the departments. Starting on this exercise is so important for us as a government because we are into an era not unlike what happened during the industrial revolution.
During that time there was a lot of confrontation. I remember quite vividly watching a movie in which a gentleman brought in a steam jenny to replace jobs. His place was stoned. They called him a sorcerer. People started breaking his windows and all that because he had brought in a piece of steam equipment that would replace their jobs.
We have now moved into the technology era. The Secretary of State for Science, Research and Development and the Minister of Industry in integration programs with the Minister of Finance are reorganizing the debt. We are even working with the Department of Health. We realize that health and the economy are interchangeable.
We cannot do much without involving young people. We know the birth rate is high if mothers have good nutrition. Young people born into the world need the correct tools, the proper nutrition and fostering. People are the main resource. It starts with a person being able to dream or a person being able to think. It spins off to small businesses. I taught some young people in school who have done quite well. One young man just went to Japan. I have a lot of faith in them, but as adults we have to give them opportunity.
Within the next couple of days we will be giving opportunities to youth. Young people will be allowed to get out there and experiment with various jobs so they can be focused. We are not crowding them out as happened in the past. I have been with these young people and I understand what happens.
As adults we have learned a lot of things over the last number of years. One thing we have not found out is that we have to transfer some authority to young people. We have to give them hope. We have to let them know that they can replace us and that given the correct climate they will.
In my riding of Bruce-Grey tourism is extremely important. It is a sector that brings in foreign revenues. It allows communities to achieve a higher standard of living than they would have without tourism. The roads and infrastructure we have put in place will allow people to come to my riding. It will allow them to stay in a hotel serviced by good sewers and water. A lot of these things have to be sustainable.
In addition a lot of members in our community such as the sportsman's association who work at restocking the lakes for the fishery. Everybody is trying to help. In that climate the fishery is enhanced. There is the natural beauty that the Lord has given Canada. We have a great fishery, clean air, pure water, and a sustainable environment. People can enjoy our beautiful sunsets and the cottage climate. Then on Labour Day they can go home, after they have deposited their dollars in our community. There is a spinoff effect of probably $4, $5, or $6 for every dollar spent in the community. It provides the communities with an elevated level of life; they have a theatre and other facilities that normally would not be available.
They are also helping our country because in some cases people bring in foreign exchanges. Foreigners know that in Canada there are many things available that they do not have at home. They can come here and enjoy them, be it bird watching, sunsets, skiing or snowmobiling in the Collingwood or Bruce-Grey area. All these activities are rather unique to our area. They will all foster opportunities. The industry department will provide small businesses with a climate in which to grow and prosper.
Quite recently we struck a committee. I say to the House and to small businesses that we are serious. The banks must respect them. The banks must afford to small business persons the same kinds of opportunities they have been giving to larger businesses.
I know in my heart and my soul, because I have studied the problem, that those small business people and the one to four people they employ are the people who will get us out of this recession. They will get people dreaming again. They will get people using their ideas and their ideals. Most of us have God given talents in certain areas that could help the country. As a government we have to prepare the climate for them to do those things.
We are now moving to a knowledge based new economy. It is going to radically change the way we compete in the open market. We have announced in our educational policies that as we reorganize the way we use UI or funding to universities we will make sure all our young people have a chance to go to school.
I have been told, because of the position we find ourselves in, that if young people want to enter the teaching profession their marks have to be in excess of 90 per cent. Lots of people who would be good teachers or would be good in whatever endeavour they wish to pursue are not getting those marks. If we empower them by putting money in their hands they are able to go to any university and have an opportunity like anybody else. Kids who are very resourceful, clever kids, come from an environment where there is a lot of money. There would not be a problem there, but I personally think it would be a much more imaginative way to approach funding for universities. Our young people are very important. We have to foster a climate where they have a chance, notwithstanding that they mature at different levels. In some cases their scores do not reflect their abilities. Some of us are late bloomers.
We are working on all these fronts in an integrated approach to make sure that we are coming up from the boot straps. We are going to give people hope again. We are going to make sure that they have the dignity of work. We are going to look at the climate of child care from the time a person is born. That is actually a second front in comparison to what has to happen now.
We have to kickstart the economy now with the infrastructure program. We have to get small businesses working, creating a climate of competitiveness, cutting our trade deficits between countries we are trading with and trying to export more. That is important for us. We have to bring our agriculture into a competitive position. By nature Canadians are very good at agriculture. That is our niche. That is what we do best. By putting money into research and development we can improve our wheat and the amount of milk our cattle produce. We can produce better strains of beef and products that are resistant to pests and various climatic conditions.
As we work in those areas that is the way we will get ourselves out of this recession, get Canadians working again and get our country working again.
The government is doing the right thing by reorganizing the department. The government is taking an integrated approach to the way we work with the economy. That includes looking after the debt because the debt is very important. We are not taking anybody else's policies. We are taking a balanced approach. We are not going to take $44 billion out of the economy because it will cause a recession; there is no question about that. We will work on a balanced approach of 3 per cent of GDP. In this integrated approach we will start to move one step at a time. That slow walk will pick up to a jog and then we will be up to speed.
I am pleased to be on this side of the House and I am glad we are reorganizing this department.