Mr. Speaker, I commend the hon. member for Souris—Moose Mountain for his motion and his remarks.
There has been much talk of ethics in politics of late, particularly in the United States, and I think it is something that bears discussion. We know that when it comes to transparency and openness, these are just empty words to this government, and particularly to the Prime Minister. They are about as worthless as red books No. 1 and No. 2.
The arrogance of this government truly knows no bounds. The Liberals cried foul toward the previous Conservative government for years. The howls rained out from the Liberals, when they were in opposition, about patronage, conflict of interest and unethical behaviour. Now that they are in government they continue to act in a completely irresponsible manner. They continually distract the public's mind from their own public record by further perpetrating previously unoriginal untruths. They also continually make concerted efforts to soil the good names of their former political adversaries.
I only need make reference as truth to this of the continuing national and international embarrassment known only as the Airbus affair. This ill-conceived and maliciously politically motivated witch hunt continues and costs Canadians millions of dollars. We know that the acts of omission or commission perpetrated by members of the government will eventually be exposed. That is the only solace we have.
Given the actions of the Prime Minister and his minister, it is absolutely hilarious that we are in the House today debating a code of ethics that would apply to them. However, if we consider it ethical to maliciously attack a former prime minister with unsubstantiated legal accusations, or if we consider it ethical to shut down a democratically elected House when it is trying to have a debate to decide whether to upgrade or continue our country's participation in a foreign conflict, that perhaps might be ethical.
Please pardon my sarcasm, but it seems to me that it is an oxymoron when we even try to mention the word “ethics” in respect to the Prime Minister and this government.
The fact is the code of ethics that does exist, if it does exist, is not made public. I will repeat that. A public code of ethics does not exist when it comes to the Prime Minister. What are some examples of strict ethical guidelines that would govern the conduct of our esteemed ministers? Nobody knows. I suppose Canadians could simply listen and watch the government and decide if their ministers and the Prime Minister are acting ethically.
Upon looking at the action of the ministers, I guess one could say once again that for the Liberals an incident such as their decision on the Kosovo debate, or inaction on the Kosovo debate, might be deemed ethical, or perhaps we could look at the Prime Minister's own actions. I think a leader should lead by example and allow his party members to follow in his footsteps.
I wonder if, for example, Liberals would follow in the footsteps of their leader when it came to purchasing a money losing hotel in the Shawinigan area and then unloading it to convicted criminals who then receive hundreds of thousands of dollars from taxpayers? I wonder if that would be an example.
Perhaps there would be a chapter in this code of ethics that says it is morally and ethically acceptable to skip the funeral of a beloved and respected world leader. Perhaps the Liberal supporters could tell us about Pierre Corbeil. Maybe he could come in and lecture the cabinet about business ethics when it came to fundraising in the Quebec area.
Last, but not least, the Prime Minister could give an ethics class on the proper and ethical manner to use the national police force when it comes to furthering personal political vendettas. These moral and ethical standards that are not reached by the Prime Minister and the government are truly to the country's detriment.
All sarcasm aside, it is obvious that a code of ethics for ministers should exist and it should be open and transparent to public scrutiny. I humbly submit that if, in fact, the Liberal code of ethics does exist, then why would it not want to make it public? As the previous speaker mentioned, why would it not want to benefit from the support the public would find in knowing this document does in fact exist?
Why would the Liberals not want to try to increase the level of public confidence? Why would they not want to bolster somehow the public confidence, or try to do away with some of the cynicism that in fact exists? That is truly the situation in the country right now when it comes, unfortunately, to most politicians.
Canadians might then begin to have faith in their government and they could hold governments accountable for their actions by weighing in against the government on their own ethical conduct that they hold out as an example.
I commend the hon. member again for bringing this motion forward. It is high time that we started discussing things like this when it seems apparent that the public has lost so much faith in its elected representatives. Once again, I support the hon. member in his efforts thus far.