Mr. Speaker, I feel obliged to speak on Bill C-28 for a number of reasons, the main one being that its sponsor, the Minister of Finance, is placing himself in a position to benefit from it. His interests in civilian live, outside politics, can benefit from this bill.
There are more than 400 clauses in Bill C-28. It is complex, and multi-facetted. The clause on shipping companies with foreign holdings takes up a half-page, and could easily have gone unnoticed as the pace of the House speeds up.
This clause puts the finance minister, the sponsor of the bill, in an apparent conflict of interest. It is sad and incomprehensible that the finance minister himself, or the Prime Minister, did not try to put people's minds at rest.
Politicians have questions. All opposition parties unanimously requested that the government shed light on the matter. Through their MPs, citizens also are involved. They need to know that their finance minister is in no way, shape or form in an apparent conflict of interest.
Let us not forget how proud the finance minister is to have eliminated the deficit. One of the main ways he was able to reduce the deficit was to cut not federal spending but transfers to the provinces, the Canada social transfer, which replaced the former grants for heath, education and social assistance.
Payments were drastically cut back. The cuts are not over yet, they are ongoing. They are cruelly evident in the health care problems experienced by every province. They are just as cruelly felt in education and social assistance.
It is this same minister who was at the origin of the first major reform of employment insurance, reducing the duration of benefits, benefit levels and accessibility in a major way. In fact it is this first reform which is at the origin of the spring gap which affects many families, especially those who depend on seasonal work. They do not have enough insurable weeks to bridge the gap until they can work again in the spring; it is not for lack of wanting to work, but there simply is no work to be found where they live.
If they own a house or have some savings, they have to spend the money they saved, and depending on the value of their house, they may not be entitled to any help at all. They are not eligible for social assistance. Several families have nothing to live on until work starts again. This spring gap has its origin in the 1994 reform.
The finance minister needs to be above all suspicion. It is difficult for opposition parties to understand why the Minister of Finance would not meet this basic requirement, which is to demonstrate that he is not in a conflict of interest, not even in an apparent conflict of interest.
Given the minister's reputation, why does he not agree to have a special committee struck to shed light on the whole issue? Why does he not find another solution of his choice to protect himself, once and for all, from such suspicions? It is hard to understand.
It is hard to understand why the Prime Minister, whose interest should be to defend the integrity of his finance minister, only does so by repeating statements that have not convinced any member of the opposition.
Anyone taking a look at the issue can only conclude “but he is in an apparent conflict of interest”.
When the person looking after the minister's company says he does not intend to avail himself of the opportunity, it implies that he could actually do so. If this is not the case, then we should be told about it, because so far we have not received such confirmation. Again, the opportunity was provided by the same minister, whose reputation had not been tarnished.
The Minister of Finance has been hard on ordinary Canadians regarding health, education and social assistance. He has been hard on the unemployed. Now, he must shed light on this issue. It is not too late. As far as I know, the bill will not be passed before April 21. The Minister of Finance must, for his own sake, for the sake of all politicians and for the sake of the public, shed light on this issue.
Bill C-28 will remain a sad episode. There are other clauses in this legislation that remind us of policies against which we fought hard in the past. It is one thing to have dissenting opinions on economic and social policies, but it is another thing to see the Minister of Finance in an apparent conflict of interest and refusing to shed light on the issue.
As a member of parliament, I would have much preferred not to have to say these things but, given the facts, I have no choice. I would not be carrying out my responsibilities if I did not speak out. The Minister of Finance has a duty, which is to shed light on the whole issue, for his own sake, but also for the sake of the public and for the sake of politics.