Madam Speaker, I really want to take part in today's debate on the Speech from the Throne for several reasons. I particularly want to comment on the amendment to the amendment put forward by the Bloc Quebecois, which amends the amendment to the Speech from the Throne put forward by the Conservative Party of Canada.
During the few minutes I have, I would especially like to focus on what has already been accomplished by our government and why this is not really necessary.
I have to say that I listened very carefully to the remarks the leader of the Bloc Quebecois made yesterday. I wonder if the hon. members noticed what the leader of the Bloc Quebecois said at the beginning of his remarks. He said:
The Bloc Quebecois believes that only sovereignty will allow Quebec to freely make all the collective choices that are appropriate for it.
He went on to assure the House of his party's openness, rigour, realism and constant focus on its ultimate goal. He said:
—at all times, the interests of Quebec will guide the Bloc Quebecois.
I find what the Bloc leader's remarks and ensuing amendment to the amendment are not saying much more meaningful and instructive than what they do say. Let me explain.
Throughout the election campaign in Quebec, the Bloc's strategy has been to hide its real agenda: Quebec's separation. It definitely did not want to talk about it. This reflects exactly the perpetual paradox and the dilemma the Bloc is unavoidably confronted with, as a party which claims to be defending the interests of Quebec in this House while at the same time promoting sovereignty for Quebec.
Looking at the outcome of the last election, one cannot conclude that the Liberal platform was rejected by the people of Quebec and Canada, on the contrary. When we look at the Speech from the Throne, which is a reflection of this platform, we can see how Quebeckers and other Canadians can benefit.
Like other Canadians, a majority of Quebeckers want their various levels of government to work together. The Bloc Quebecois has been confusing the interests of Quebec and the goals of Quebec's sovereignists for a while now. There is a distinction between the two, which really needs to be made.
I must admit that, while I am not surprised by the actions of the Bloc, their choice of words does surprise me somewhat. One may well wonder whether their leader is aware of what has been accomplished in this country in the past few months as far as intergovernmental relations are concerned.
In the Speech from the Throne, our government has set out its vision of the challenges that await all citizens and the policy it plans to put into place to successfully meet those challenges. This means achieving tangible results for the entire population, Quebeckers included, and exercising in a very concrete way a positive impact on the living conditions of our fellow citizens.
Will the Bloc at least acknowledge that the commitments made in the throne speech respond to the needs of Quebeckers? That at least needs to be acknowledged. Think, for instance, of our approach to health care. Children, seniors, natural caregivers, everything to do with the environment. We are going to address all these initiatives concurrently
How are we going to do so? In a cooperative effort with our partners in the federation. Here I am referring to a flexible federalism in which there is serious discussion of the issues confronting us. I am referring to flexible federalism focussed on cooperation and not confrontation; a flexible federalism that is conducive to achieving the best possible results for all of the people of this country, including Quebeckers; in short a flexible federalism with the goal of improving the quality of life of its citizens.
Taking health as an example, I think that everyone in the country— with the exception of the Bloc of course—celebrated the health agreement, that ten-year plan that sets out the responsibilities and objectives all of us in Canada are pursuing. This plan fully respects provincial areas of jurisdiction and has received the support of all premiers in the country, including the Premier of Quebec, who described it as a great victory for Quebec.
All Canadians of good faith were pleased, but not the Bloc. The leader of the Bloc talks instead about a minimal minimum. He thinks it is good when Quebec makes a gain, because then it is better prepared to become a country. In other words, from a Bloc perspective, Quebec cannot move forward within Canada. A gain in Quebec can only be made at the expense of Canada, and the opposite is also true. So, it is impossible to advance anything without everyone winning.
This government thinks differently. When we all decide together, all governments, to truly reach common goals for Canadians, then everyone wins. Canadians are at the heart of our concerns. The health accord proved it.
It will be the same thing with our other promises in the Speech from the Throne. It is the same thing with learning and child care. We plan to lay the foundation of this system in cooperation with provincial and territorial partners. We anticipate that the provinces will be flexible enough to address specific needs based on their own situation. We already know that although Quebec is not officially part of the agreement on the multilateral framework on early learning and child care, it receives its share of federal funding in proportion to its population.
I could give the House many more examples to show how flexible Canadian federalism and our intergovernmental cooperation policy are. I could mention for instance the National Child Benefit, the public pension plan, the immigration agreements, the labour market agreement, the Canada-Quebec agreement in principle reached on May 21, 2004 setting out a Quebec parental insurance system, and so on.
Can you see what our government's achievements in these areas are leading to? It is truly remarkable. With a flexible approach that allows for innovation, takes into consideration the priorities of the provinces and relies on the very principles of asymmetrical federalism, the various orders of government in our country are entering into a new era of intergovernmental relations.
Both as a Canadian and as a Quebecker, I am proud of the results we are achieving by working together. I am proud of our government program which was introduced earlier this week and which meets the needs of the people of Quebec.
We know that no government in this country shares the vision of the Bloc simply because, despite the positive image it tries to project, the Bloc is pursuing a political goal and defending an option that a majority of Quebeckers have never supported.
I urge the members to vote against the amendment to the amendment put forward by the Bloc, because the Prime Minister himself said in his speech yesterday that he would respect the areas of provincial jurisdiction. Also, this Parliament should never abdicate its responsibility for the public finances of Canada.