House of Commons Hansard #136 of the 36th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was extradition.

Topics

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:20 a.m.

The Speaker

The hon. member for Rimouski—Mitis.

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:20 a.m.

Bloc

Suzanne Tremblay Bloc Rimouski—Mitis, QC

Mr. Speaker, something very serious has just happened in the House.

The Solicitor General is rising in his place and refusing to swear an oath. He is taking cover behind a completely insignificant alibi. He would therefore be unable to swear an oath outside the House if called upon to do so, as the member for Palliser has promised to do if asked.

What is the Solicitor General waiting for to resign?

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:20 a.m.

Fredericton New Brunswick

Liberal

Andy Scott LiberalSolicitor General of Canada

Mr. Speaker, the exercise we have been engaged in during the last week in the House after my statement in response to the original allegations has been political theatre, and I am not prepared to play.

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:20 a.m.

Bloc

Stéphane Bergeron Bloc Verchères, QC

Mr. Speaker, I too have a question for the Solicitor General.

The minister's entire defence is based on the letter from his Liberal friend, Frederick D. Toole. We know that this individual has contributed to the Liberal Party coffers, as has his law firm, which has received several government contracts. The very least that can be said is that, when he signed his letter to the minister, Mr. Toole found himself in an extremely awkward situation.

Since his alibi is so unbelievable, what is the minister waiting for to resign?

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:25 a.m.

Fredericton New Brunswick

Liberal

Andy Scott LiberalSolicitor General of Canada

Mr. Speaker, I think the most important thing to consider in terms of the credibility of the person sitting beside me was the fact that he was sitting beside me and not an aisle and a half away.

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:25 a.m.

Bloc

Stéphane Bergeron Bloc Verchères, QC

Mr. Speaker, on the one hand, we have a valueless letter, which does not say what the minister would like it to and, on the other, we have the honour of a member who rises in his place and swears he told the truth.

Will the minister agree that, if his only defence is that the letter proves him right, then he does not have a leg to stand on and should resign?

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:25 a.m.

Fredericton New Brunswick

Liberal

Andy Scott LiberalSolicitor General of Canada

Quite the contrary, Mr. Speaker. The questions all week have been based on the notes that were taken by an eavesdropper in a noisy aircraft a seat and a half away.

I think this is a tactic unfamiliar to Canadians and one that Canadians will reject.

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:25 a.m.

NDP

Bill Blaikie NDP Winnipeg—Transcona, MB

Mr. Speaker, the revelation about the relationship between Karlheinz Schreiber and Elmer MacKay is something that could not have been known by anybody else and was not known by anybody else.

It not only points out the impropriety of the solicitor general's actions but the fact that the notes taken by the member for Palliser are accurate. No one has accused him of being psychic. He could not have pulled this out of thin air.

The fact is that this points to the fact that the solicitor general was talking in the way that the member for Palliser said he was. He committed another indiscretion and he should resign.

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:25 a.m.

Fredericton New Brunswick

Liberal

Andy Scott LiberalSolicitor General of Canada

Mr. Speaker, as I have said, I would not be involved in an operational activity in the RCMP. I would not be aware of that information. I was not aware of that information as it relates to any particular investigation. That is the fact.

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:25 a.m.

NDP

Bill Blaikie NDP Winnipeg—Transcona, MB

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Deputy Prime Minister. Does he not see that this latest revelation points to the complete veracity of what the member for Palliser has said and that this is cause for the government to ask for the resignation of the solicitor general?

While he is at it, will he tell us why the Prime Minister is unteachable and keeps making jokes about Canadian students getting pepper sprayed when he should know better? He should not have done that in the first place the first time, never mind the second time.

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:25 a.m.

Windsor West Ontario

Liberal

Herb Gray LiberalDeputy Prime Minister

Mr. Speaker, why do the hon. member's party and the other parties in opposition keep making allegations that in effect amount to prejudging the outcome of the inquiry? Why do they not answer that?

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:25 a.m.

Progressive Conservative

Peter MacKay Progressive Conservative Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough, NS

Mr. Speaker, last night on CBC radio the executive director of the New Brunswick Liberal Party said that the solicitor general told him that PM referred to in the RCMP officer's notes was the Prime Minister and that PMO referred to the Prime Minister's Office.

This is further proof that the solicitor general discussed a sensitive matter with political pals. His reference to Hughie can be no other person but Hughie Stewart, the APEC fall guy.

My question is for the Deputy Prime Minister. When will the government show some respect for this institution and demand the solicitor general's resignation? The verdict is in.

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:25 a.m.

Windsor West Ontario

Liberal

Herb Gray LiberalDeputy Prime Minister

Mr. Speaker, I could say I rest my case. The hon. member is prejudging the whole matter. He says that the verdict is in.

Where is the fairness? Where is the justice? Where is the equity? He is completely lacking in those qualities and he should recognize it. On that the verdict is in.

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:25 a.m.

Progressive Conservative

Peter MacKay Progressive Conservative Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough, NS

Mr. Speaker, that is quite a statement from a man so intricately involved in the Airbus investigation.

Another day, another detail is confirmed from the notes of the member for Palliser. The member for Palliser has pledged to swear an oath on his version of events on Thursday's Air Canada flight.

Yesterday I moved a motion in the justice committee to summons the member for Palliser, the solicitor general and Fred Toole to testify under oath on what was said.

Will the solicitor general show the same courage and integrity as the member for Palliser and testify under oath at the justice committee? Or, will he submit to a lie detector test?

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:25 a.m.

The Speaker

I would like the hon. member to withdraw the last statement about a lie detector test.

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:25 a.m.

Progressive Conservative

Peter MacKay Progressive Conservative Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough, NS

I withdraw that statement, Mr. Speaker.

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:25 a.m.

Fredericton New Brunswick

Liberal

Andy Scott LiberalSolicitor General of Canada

Mr. Speaker, as I said earlier, this whole exercise beyond the first day's allegations and my response is pure political theatre.

I think the hon. members do a discredit to this House and I will not participate.

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:30 a.m.

Reform

John Reynolds Reform West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast, BC

Mr. Speaker, what a difference a few years makes. Let me quote a former Prime Minister who was Leader of the Opposition at the time. Turner said “The government's vigorous defence of the embattled minister made a mockery of public ethics. A minister has a duty and a burden of proof to show that what he is doing is beyond reproach”. The Liberal leader also said “This is a question of ethics, a question of honesty and is a question of deportment in public affairs”.

Let me ask the Deputy Prime Minister, has his government changed its standards from when it was in opposition? Why have the Liberals changed their standards? Why will—

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:30 a.m.

The Speaker

The hon. Deputy Prime Minister.

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:30 a.m.

Windsor West Ontario

Liberal

Herb Gray LiberalDeputy Prime Minister

Mr. Speaker, why has the hon. member changed his standards from when he was a Conservative member? At that time he supported strongly the public complaints commission. Now he is raising questions about its use, veracity and value. Why has he changed his standards?

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:30 a.m.

Reform

John Reynolds Reform West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast, BC

Mr. Speaker, this has nothing to do with the former Conservative government which this minister keeps saying I was part of. This deals with the ethics of this government.

Let me quote the member for Hamilton West when he was in opposition and told a news conference that Charest should resign regardless of whether he intended to interfere with the court process. It is a matter of public ethics. It is a matter of parliamentary ethics. The minister has damaged the parliamentary system. He should resign until this case is settled. The Deputy Prime Minister knows this.

Canadians want to know why the government is still defending him. Will he phone the Prime Minister in Winnipeg, get him away from his pepper steak dinner and get the resignation right now?

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:30 a.m.

Windsor West Ontario

Liberal

Herb Gray LiberalDeputy Prime Minister

Mr. Speaker, I reject the unwarranted assertions and the premise of the hon. member's question. I think he ought to give a phone call to his leader to see how he should be carrying out his duties. That is his first task.

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:30 a.m.

Bloc

Richard Marceau Bloc Charlesbourg, QC

Mr. Speaker, the Solicitor General has talked about bad political theatre in this House. The problem is that his performance is a dismal comedy. One thing is sure: the Solicitor General is an unrepentant chatterbox and his chattering is incompatible with his duties.

The little credibility left to the RCMP commission of inquiry is lost because of the actions of the Solicitor General. If he wants the commission to regain its credibility, why does he not resign?

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:30 a.m.

Windsor West Ontario

Liberal

Herb Gray LiberalDeputy Prime Minister

Mr. Speaker, the erroneous allegations of the member and the other members of the opposition are what is undermining the commission's credibility, if in fact it is being undermined. I think they are totally wrong to ask such questions. Are they trying to undermine the commission's credibility? I hope not.

Solicitor General Of CanadaOral Question Period

11:30 a.m.

Bloc

Richard Marceau Bloc Charlesbourg, QC

Mr. Speaker, the Deputy Prime Minister has to answer for the Solicitor General because he knows that the Solicitor General's credibility is undermined.

The Solicitor General is also responsible for the RCMP. Now, because of his chattiness, the relationship of trust between the Solicitor General and the RCMP is broken. In any case, since the RCMP no longer trusts the minister, why, once again, does he not resign?