Mr. Speaker, the first responsibility of any member of this House is always the same: to be honest and tell the truth.
This is a principle which I have been applying for a long time. I have so much respect for the hon. member that I know she believes the comments attributed to me are truly what I said.
The hon. member should read the report published by the Canadian Press in the paper L'Acadie nouvelle . The comments reported in that article are absolutely accurate. The comments that I made yesterday to the media and that were reported in L'Acadie nouvelle truly reflect my opinion.
And my opinion is this: the professional agitators who organize protests-and I named the two gentlemen in question, Yvon Godin and Mr. Basque-have been known for a long time. These people should find better things to do on a Sunday afternoon than going from protest to protest and raising the emotions and concerns of people who are being exploited by union leaders. I am also deeply concerned that the hon. member wants to do the same.
Because the quote was read in English, I want to be absolutely accurate. I have said that I understand the problems faced by people who have concerns about the reform to the unemployment insurance legislation.
The report in the Canadian Press, the report in the Telegraph Journal , the report in L'Acadie Nouvelle were accurate. I know the hon. member would want to check the facts before she attributes statements to me where I would allege that anybody on unemployment who was walking in those demonstrations was lazy or not doing their job properly. What I said was that well-paid people like Bob White, Basque and Godin who work the year round agitating the poor and the unemployed should stop exploiting vulnerable people in our society.