Mr. Speaker, with regard to the unsolicited proposals and this issue, of course we believe in public tendering and having an open competition on bids. That is the natural and default position of any government that truly believes in getting value for taxpayer dollars
The member for Wascana, who is a former public works minister himself, understands that to eliminate the opportunity for people to come to the federal government with an unsolicited proposal for an asset that is unique and may suit the needs of the government in whatever capacity, is not an option that should be taken away from the government.
The Liberals did this, as I said, with regard to the Food Inspection Agency, the Department of Foreign Affairs and dozens of other buildings and it received value for taxpayer dollars. It would be a mistake to take that opportunity off the table. With regard to the member from Timmins, that is precisely what I am talking about. I am talking about having more options on the table and allowing the professionals at the Department of Public Works, through the minister, to do their jobs and to get value for taxpayer dollars.
We cannot do that if we eliminate their options. We need to expand the options, leave them on the table and at the end of the day everything is transparent and people can decide where we are going.
With regard to Minister Fortier, the Prime Minister made the determination after the election campaign that the city of Montreal, the second largest city in Canada, should have representation at the cabinet table. If the member opposite does not agree that Montreal should have representation, he should say so, but I do not think he will.
Once the determination was made, the Prime Minister felt that Mr. Fortier should be available for questions in the Senate. If the member does not think that the 70-plus Liberals sitting in the Senate can hold the Minister of Public Works accountable, then he should have said that this morning in their caucus meeting and told them all to resign.
The Minister of Public Works is available every day for question period over at the Senate and is available for accountability. He is also available to the public. He has done more in his Department of Public Works in the four months that he has been there than the Liberals did in the past 13 years.