Mr. Speaker, I think we have already heard that a number of Canadian families have been completely ignored by the government. Let me speak about the complete lack of leadership by the government with respect to those who do not have a family with whom they can find a home, with whom they are able to live, the homeless.
We have watched the government completely abandon any responsibility to put in place a national housing strategy, the only industrial nation in the world which does not have a national housing strategy. When did the government decide that the homeless did not count?
The government pretends that it cares about aboriginal families. Yet we have seen the government virtually turn its back on many of the most important recommendations of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal People.
One of the most important principles of the recommendations in that commission's report was that treaty rights should be negotiated, not litigated. Yet it is the lack of leadership by the government which has driven many aboriginal people into the courts to seek justice and to seek their rights. The result is that many tensions have been created by a government absolutely not prepared to provide any leadership in dealing with the inevitability of finally addressing treaty rights long overdue and disregarded.
Later this evening we are to have a take note debate on some of the tensions created in the fishery industry. Again it is important to note that the Union of Nova Scotia Indians began to provide leadership six months ago on April 29 around the failure of the federal government to address what kinds of tensions would be created by a favourable decision on the Marshall case when it came before the supreme court. We now have to repair the damage done by that lack of leadership.
There are many other areas in which the government has disregarded its responsibility to provide leadership. The government says that it cares about the environment all of a sudden, and thank goodness it is back on the agenda. However, let me say that it is very difficult for Canadians to be confident that the government will deliver on any new commitments to the environment when it has done nothing to put an end to the export of our most precious resource, our water.
It has done nothing to address the concerns of communities in Ontario in speaking out against the importation of MOx plutonium, MOx fuel, with all the implications both short term and long term that holds for damage to our environment.
Having gutted the most important provisions and improvements to the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, Canadians are wondering how they can trust the government to make a priority of the environment.
Before I wrap up I want to make one further brief mention of the complete absence in the Speech from the Throne of any commitment to meaningful electoral reform or parliamentary reform. The government knows and understands how serious it is in a democracy to have more and more cynicism toward politics, more and more people feeling that their vote does not count and they cannot hear their voice in parliament. It is a privilege to live in a democracy. We understand that politics is the lifeblood of a free and democratic society.
The New Democratic Party absolutely believes in the importance of modernizing our electoral processes and our democratic institutions to ensure that they remain responsive, effective and accountable. The federal Liberal government has delivered many promises in its Speech from the Throne, but Canadians can be forgiven for not trusting the Liberals to deliver on those promises because of their dismal record of not doing so.
My colleagues and I will use every opportunity available to us inside and outside of parliament to act on the concerns of ordinary Canadians to push the government to address the concerns of working people because we believe in a responsive, positive and proactive role for government.
We believe in a vision for 21st century Canada which includes the notion of political leadership not just by the federal government but by all levels of government working in effective partnerships with the private sector, the non-profit and co-operative sector, labour representatives, and primary producers for something that is bigger than ourselves. That is the legacy of my party's contribution to Canada. That is what inspired each and every one of my colleagues to seek public office and to represent our constituents and our communities as New Democrats.
In conclusion, that is what will inspire our every move as we go about our work on behalf of our constituents. As Tommy Douglas once said, it is never too late to build a better world. Let us get on with the task of working together on behalf of all constituents to build a better Canada and a better world as we go into the 21st century.