Mr. Speaker, happy new year of the ox. Just like Canadians, the ox is strong, determined and hard-working.
The lunar new year deserves a new beginning, a fresh start. Hard-working Canadians need a new political direction and a new government that believes in a green economic recovery for men and women, a new government that will change direction and cast aside the old mantra that corporate and general tax cuts are solutions to all problems and instead invest in women and children.
Will we see a national child care program and a real reduction in child poverty in the year of the ox? I doubt it. That is why members of Parliament should celebrate the new year with strong, determined action and boldly bring about a stable and hopeful new Liberal-NDP government.