Madam Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to speak in the House on the motion presented by the official opposition which holds in question the department of human resources and the minister.
The Liberals prior to the elections of 1993 and 1997 supposedly took the high road when they approached Canadian voters. I quote the Prime Minister as reported in Hansard in 1991:
I would like to tell the people of Canada that when we form the government, every minister in the cabinet that I will be presiding over will have to take full responsibility for what is going on his department. If there is any bungling in the department, nobody will be singled out. The minister will have to take the responsibility.
I also quote the Prime Minister as reported in Hansard in 1994:
There can be no substitute for responsibility at the top. I vow to you, to this House, to Canadians, that I will never abdicate that responsibility. I will never pass the buck.
I guess that leads us into the motion today and what has happened. Canadians have an expectation. Canadians are those hard working taxpayers who work long hours. They are the men, women and young adults who are starting their careers as workers. They give part of their money to the Government of Canada to spend on their behalf to provide programs for other Canadians and for themselves. They expect the government to manage the spending of their money with due diligence and to make sure that it is not wasted. Lord knows that Canadians pay enough taxes. They certainly are not looking to the government to waste it on their behalf.
The question is: What did Canadians actually get? The auditor's report is quite clear as to what they got. They got a government which takes very lightly the responsibility of managing taxpayers' money. They got a government which does not seem to understand that the money comes from the taxpayer and not some location like a tree. Canadians got a government which refuses to assume responsibility for the management of that money.
The auditor's report revealed that money had been given out but there were files which did not even have applications for the money. It revealed that there was a lack of supervision, a lack of concern as to where the money was supposed to go. There was no plan as to where the money was supposed to go. There was a real lack of management and administration. There was a lack of supervision, a lack of documentation, but, more importantly, a lack of understanding by the minister in charge of the department. She is responsible to make sure that the department manages the spending of taxpayers' money properly.
What Canadians are getting is a message from the Prime Minister and from his government that we do not have to take responsibility for our actions. That is the message the Prime Minister is sending, not only to us, but to other ministers; that they will not be held accountable for things in their departments that would represent poor decision making, bad management or lack of accountability. The Prime Minister is sending the message to his ministers that they will not ever be held accountable for the misuse or mismanagement of taxpayer money.
The message he is sending to Canadians in general is that they do not have to take responsibility for the way they report to government through government programs. They do not have to take responsibility for fudging figures or accounts, or losing documentation which may be required by Revenue Canada. How can it be all right for the department to access money or submit a report without all of the documentation but not be all right for the ordinary Canadian? Canadians are getting the message from the Prime Minister and his government that they do not have to take responsibility.
When I speak about Canadians I want to single out young Canadians who are just entering adulthood and the workforce. What kind of message are they receiving by the government's actions? What message are they entering adulthood with? That it is okay to walk away from problems? That it is okay to cover up reality, the truth? That it is okay to give out questionable information? What message are we giving to the young people who will one day sit in the House of Commons in leadership positions?