House of Commons Hansard #190 of the 37th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was corruption.

Topics

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:20 p.m.

The Deputy Speaker

The Minister of Public Works and Government Services.

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:20 p.m.

Glengarry—Prescott—Russell Ontario

Liberal

Don Boudria LiberalMinister of Public Works and Government Services

Mr. Speaker, that is hardly better than the previous questioner. First, there was no untendered contract. Second, perhaps the hon. member would like to seize the occasion so that all Canadians will know if he really meant it yesterday when he accused the priest and the church of money laundering.

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:20 p.m.

Canadian Alliance

Gerry Ritz Canadian Alliance Battlefords—Lloydminster, SK

Mr. Speaker, what I said was the minister used the church to hide the cheque. It is clear the minister got caught. He is now desperately trying to cover up the inappropriate favour from a major beneficiary of his department. He is now covering it up in a most audacious and self-serving manner.

Either the minister knowingly signed off on $760,000 worth of new, untendered contracts just days after accepting the favour of the chalet or he is not in control of his department. Either way it is clear that he promised all kinds of new rules, five new rules, but he is playing the same old games.

Will the Prime Minister stay true to form and ship him off to an unsuspecting country?

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:20 p.m.

Saint-Maurice Québec

Liberal

Jean Chrétien LiberalPrime Minister

Mr. Speaker, we are dealing with the business of the nation all the time. For the last 14 days they are not asking any questions; they are just throwing mud. It is the level of where they are. I have never seen such harassment in a situation like this when the people of Canada expect members of parliament to be serious and stop making fun like they try to do.

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:20 p.m.

Bloc

Gilles Duceppe Bloc Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC

Mr. Speaker, the links between the minister of public works and Groupe Everest were established even before he was appointed to clean up the mess. When he was responsible for the Games of la Francophonie, his political staff negotiated with Everest, without looking any further, a $56,000 advertising contract drafted by Everest, which public works awarded unchanged six months later.

Will the Prime Minister admit that, once again, there has been political intervention to sidestep the rules for awarding contracts, that problems are mounting, and that a public inquiry is more necessary than ever to get to the bottom of the government's sponsorship program?

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:25 p.m.

Glengarry—Prescott—Russell Ontario

Liberal

Don Boudria LiberalMinister of Public Works and Government Services

Mr. Speaker, once again, the member is mixing apples and oranges. On that occasion, what was involved was not a sponsorship but an advertising or rather a communications contract. Furthermore, the member is mistaken when he says that my office awarded the contract. In fact, it was the department of public works. I was certainly not the minister of public works three years ago. I was a minister of state and the government House leader.

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:25 p.m.

An hon. member

The lies are the same.

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:25 p.m.

Bloc

Gilles Duceppe Bloc Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC

Mr. Speaker, I in fact said “before he became minister”, but it was his staff who did the negotiating and public works then awarded it. He has confirmed exactly what I just said.

The Liberal web is not limited to the Games of la Francophonie, to the Department of Canadian Heritage, and to public works; it even extends as far as the Department of Justice. In fact, the present chief of staff of the Minister of Justice, Luce Asselin, was responsible for the negotiations for the Games of la Francophonie advertising contract when she was with Groupe Everest.

Will the Prime Minister finally admit that the entire political network behind the sponsorship program—

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:25 p.m.

The Deputy Speaker

The right hon. Prime Minister.

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:25 p.m.

Saint-Maurice Québec

Liberal

Jean Chrétien LiberalPrime Minister

Mr. Speaker, this contract was awarded by the department of public works following well-established guidelines. There is a process for obtaining these contracts. People must qualify to receive them.

When people qualify, the contracts are awarded. In this case, the company qualified and the contract was awarded in accordance with all the existing standards for contracts of this type.

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:25 p.m.

Bloc

Michel Gauthier Bloc Roberval, QC

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister will not be able to deny that his minister of public works has put himself in a totally unacceptable position by being in the company of his son, who is a political advisor to the minister of heritage, and his daughter, who is at justice, at the chalet of the head of Everest, one of the officers of which has become the executive assistant to the Minister of Justice.

Will the Prime Minister not admit that this constitutes a whole network of people working on behalf of Everest which would make many companies wishing to do business with the government green with envy?

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:25 p.m.

Glengarry—Prescott—Russell Ontario

Liberal

Don Boudria LiberalMinister of Public Works and Government Services

Mr. Speaker, these are totally false accusations, and the hon. member is well aware of this. Moreover the contracts were awarded through competitive bidding, as the hon. member must also know, only in this way and in no other.

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:25 p.m.

Bloc

Michel Gauthier Bloc Roberval, QC

Mr. Speaker, at the beginning of this affair, the Prime Minister told the press that if the chalet had not been paid for, this would have been serious, but it was paid for. Now we realize that the cheque had never been cashed and that neither the minister nor his family had, in fact, paid for the chalet.

Does the Prime Minister not consider that his minister and, unfortunately, his family members who are policy advisors to ministers, placed themselves in what he himself has termed a very serious situation?

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:25 p.m.

Saint-Maurice Québec

Liberal

Jean Chrétien LiberalPrime Minister

Mr. Speaker, it is very clear that, when they used the chalet, they immediately gave a cheque to the owner. The cheque was then endorsed and handed over to the priest. There was nothing else that needed to be done. They paid, and the owner of the chalet endorsed the cheque, or in other words accepted payment.

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:25 p.m.

NDP

Alexa McDonough NDP Halifax, NS

Mr. Speaker, maybe we can test the memory of the member for Glengarry--Prescott--Russell.

When the rat packers sat in opposition, a Tory scandal seized parliament. Here is what the rat packers said then:

The minister...has been caught with a snout in the trough in the latest incident of pork barreling.... The Prime Minister ought to relieve the minister...of his responsibilities until this whole mess can be cleared up and corrected.

That demand should surely apply today. I ask the public works minister, consistent with his own stated principles, will he step down?

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:25 p.m.

Glengarry—Prescott—Russell Ontario

Liberal

Don Boudria LiberalMinister of Public Works and Government Services

Mr. Speaker, I have answered a number of questions to this effect already.

I believe that no rules were broken. Notwithstanding that, I have said that were I to do the same thing over again, and I am not someone who will say anything else, but clearly I would not. I have said that before all members of the House and would repeat it for anyone today, all Canadians, members of the press and anyone else.

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:30 p.m.

NDP

Alexa McDonough NDP Halifax, NS

Mr. Speaker, in opposition the minister was mister tough guy. Boy, was he tough on corruption, on Tory corruption, that is. Does he think that Liberal corruption does not count? It is time for the rat packer to pack it in and resign.

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:30 p.m.

Glengarry—Prescott—Russell Ontario

Liberal

Don Boudria LiberalMinister of Public Works and Government Services

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member has used the word corruption. What possibly did I or any member of my family gain by renting and paying $800 for a weekend at a chalet? Who in their right mind would think there was a benefit to anyone from that? Surely if there was by anyone, it was not me, it was not my son, it was not my daughter, it was not my grandchildren and it was not anyone else.

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:30 p.m.

Progressive Conservative

Joe Clark Progressive Conservative Calgary Centre, AB

Mr. Speaker, it is beyond contempt for the government and the minister to hide behind the church. The facts are clear. The minister awarded contracts to his friends. He broke the rules. He made a deal and accepted a gift from a client. He broke the rules. He broke the conflict of interest guidelines.

Does the minister not have enough respect for the House to know that it is time for him now to step aside, to do the honourable thing, to resign from his office and to stop being a disgrace--

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:30 p.m.

The Deputy Speaker

Order. The right hon. Prime Minister.

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:30 p.m.

Saint-Maurice Québec

Liberal

Jean Chrétien LiberalPrime Minister

Mr. Speaker, the family of the minister paid $800 for two nights to sleep in a house while they were skiing. The facts are known. The payment was made. The payment was accepted by the owner of the house. What happened to the cheque after it was given to the owner was not the responsibility of those who paid. All the facts are absolutely known. The minister did not accept any gain in that. It is just something that the family paid for. The minister has the confidence of this party and of this Prime Minister.

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:30 p.m.

Progressive Conservative

Joe Clark Progressive Conservative Calgary Centre, AB

Mr. Speaker, my supplementary is for the Shawinigate prime minister.

Today we know of one minister's holiday at the Boulay mansion on the lake in violation of conflict of interest guidelines. However Groupe Everest has business with more than one government department and it contributes to the war chests of many Liberal ministers.

I am sure the Prime Minister has now asked whether other members of his government have stayed at the Boulay mansion. Has he asked whether other ministers accepted the hospitality of Groupe Everest?

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:30 p.m.

Saint-Maurice Québec

Liberal

Jean Chrétien LiberalPrime Minister

Mr. Speaker, what a fishing expedition.

In nine years all the ministers of the government have been extremely careful with everything they have done. I do not have to ask them every day if they are behaving well or not. They have done very well in the last nine years.

In this case all the facts are known. The minister of public works did not accept any benefit. He paid for the eight hours or more that he had to sleep in the bed before going skiing.

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:30 p.m.

Canadian Alliance

James Rajotte Canadian Alliance Edmonton Southwest, AB

Mr. Speaker, the owner of Groupe Everest, Mr. Boulay, affirmed to the press that he does not normally rent his chalet but that he made an exception for the minister's family.

Will the minister of public works admit that he received an exceptional personal favour from a company which receives millions in contracts from his own department?

Government ContractsOral Question Period

2:30 p.m.

Glengarry—Prescott—Russell Ontario

Liberal

Don Boudria LiberalMinister of Public Works and Government Services

Mr. Speaker, most people in their right mind would not think that paying $800 for a chalet for a weekend is a benefit.