House of Commons Hansard #6 of the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was jobs.
Megan Leslie NDP Halifax, NS
Mr. Speaker, in exchange for Mike Duffy going along with the PMO clan, did the Prime Minister ever undertake to “publicly confirm you are entitled to sit as a Senator from PEI”?
Stephen Harper ConservativePrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, when we name senators, we ensure that they fit the eligibility criteria for the Senate. Those criteria are laid out in the Constitution.
Once again, none of that permits, however, in our judgment, if someone acts with integrity, someone claiming an expense he or she did not incur. When someone is living at a long-time residence, he or she cannot claim to be in travel status legitimately, in our view. I think Canadians widely share that view, and I am surprised that the NDP now seems very uncertain on that matter.
Megan Leslie NDP Halifax, NS
Mr. Speaker, the RCMP, the media, Nigel Wright and Mike Duffy have all reported the same version of the facts.
Their version of the facts contradicts the Prime Minister's. The Prime Minister's parliamentary secretary does not know the details of the scandal, but the Prime Minister does.
Did the Prime Minister keep quiet yesterday because he could no longer think of a way to get around the truth and because there was no way out?
Stephen Harper ConservativePrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, my answers on this matter from day one have been exactly the same as they are today.
The facts are clear. Mr. Duffy was told. Mr. Duffy now says he is a victim because I told him he should repay his expenses. Darn right I told him.
Nathan Cullen NDP Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister seems to have a well-developed sense of victimhood that he is embellishing every day.
The Canadian public is watching with shock and disgust as the Conservative web of lies completely unravels. We have seen a senator willing to tell his story and a lawyer reading from damning PMO emails; yet the Prime Minister refuses to answer any questions truthfully, refuses to produce any evidence whatsoever and stubbornly refuses to be honest with Canadians. Instead, he sits in his seat and sends out his latest spokespeople to evade and mislead Canadians. This goes to the heart of the Prime Minister's Office, to his very character.
When is the Prime Minister going to stand and finally tell—
Stephen Harper ConservativePrime Minister
That is a lot of rhetoric, Mr. Speaker.
The fact of the matter is this. The victims here are the Canadian people who expect from all parliamentarians that they will treat public money with the appropriate respect and integrity it deserves. It is not appropriate for someone to claim an expense that he really did not incur even though he thinks he can technically argue it is somehow within the rules. That is not proper.
One expects that the Senate will take the appropriate action, as it is doing, to deal with this.
Ralph Goodale Liberal Wascana, SK
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister acknowledges a February 13 meeting in which he ordered the Duffy payback scheme, but according to PMO security logs there was another encounter two days earlier. Mr. Duffy attended a meeting in the Prime Minister's private boardroom on the second floor of the Langevin building on Monday, February 11, 2013. Was the Prime Minister in his office in the Langevin building on that day?
Stephen Harper ConservativePrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I have been clear. I spoke to Mr. Duffy on one occasion about that on February 13.
The inference of what the hon. gentleman said is that somehow I approved Mr. Wright paying Mr. Duffy's expenses. I did no such thing. I made it very clear to everybody on my staff and in my caucus that I expected the senator in question to repay his own inappropriate expenses.
When Mr. Duffy went on national television to say that he had repaid his own expenses by taking out a loan against his assets, that is exactly what he should have done. Unfortunately, he did not do it, and he does not face up to the fact that he was wrong not to do it.
Ralph Goodale Liberal Wascana, SK
Mr. Speaker, to be clear, the answer to my question is yes.
Until just a few days ago the Prime Minister's website proudly displayed a photograph of the Prime Minister at his desk in the Langevin building on February 11, just a few feet from where Mr. Duffy would have been.
Was there any conversation between the two of them? If not, was the Prime Minister—
Ralph Goodale Liberal Wascana, SK
They seem a titch nervous, Mr. Speaker.
Was there any conversation between the two of them on that day? If not, was the Prime Minister debriefed on his office's meeting with Mr. Duffy? What was the purpose of Mr. Duffy's meeting in the Prime Minister's Office on February 11?
Stephen Harper ConservativePrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, the answer to the direct question is no. I think the allegation here is that Mr. Duffy and I were in Ottawa on the same day.
I made it very clear to Mr. Duffy, and I said long before, on February 13, that he should repay his inappropriate expenses. I learned only later, on May 15, that he had not done so, and that Mr. Wright had done that on his behalf.
Because of that, Mr. Duffy is no longer a member of the Conservative caucus and Mr. Wright no longer works in the PMO.
Ralph Goodale Liberal Wascana, SK
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister did not know, but 13 people in his office did.
By the Prime Minister's admission, he gave the orders that covered up the Mike Duffy situation. What followed was a pattern of hush money, spin, and disinformation, and the deliberate obstruction of a forensic audit.
Now we have the shovelling of all the key actors out of sight: Wright, LeBreton, Tkachuk, Perrin, Woodcock, and Stewart-Olsen have all conveniently been moved aside.
Without any further deflection or delay, will the Prime Minister assume his responsibility for all the people in this fiasco that he appointed, and for the orders he gave?
Stephen Harper ConservativePrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, once again the entire premise of that question is false. Mr. Wright has said very clearly that the payment he made was his own decision. He has admitted that it was made with his funds and that it was an inappropriate and incorrect decision. He has taken full responsibility, as he should, and he is suffering the investigations and consequences.
Jean Crowder NDP Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC
Mr. Speaker, late last night the government quietly posted online a draft of the new first nations education act.
Conservatives are proposing a complex and costly new bureaucracy for a first nations education system that is already grossly underfunded compared to other schools in Canada.
If the government is ready to work with first nations communities in a spirit of reconciliation, will the minister stand up right now and agree to stop underfunding on-reserve schools?
Bernard Valcourt ConservativeMinister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development
Mr. Speaker, the government is consulting on a draft proposal for first nation education on which it has not taken any kind of decision.
With first nations stakeholders, provinces, and people who care, we look forward to participating in this consultation process and receiving their comments and feedback so that collectively as a country we can live up to our responsibility to ensure that first nations students get a good education system in place.
Jonathan Genest-Jourdain NDP Manicouagan, QC
Mr. Speaker, the minister continues to spout nonsense.
The minister wants to link funding for schools with performance. However, as everyone knows, the problem is that the schools on reserve are currently underfunded. Given that situation, we cannot expect very high performance levels. The problem with the performance of aboriginal schools is underfunding.
When will the minister address the root of the problem and provide adequate funding for schools rather than continue to decrease—
The Speaker Conservative Andrew Scheer
The hon. Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development.
Bernard Valcourt ConservativeMinister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development
Mr. Speaker, the member would do well to prepare his own questions. Then he would not have trouble reading the text that someone else prepared for him.
First, what he is saying is completely false. In the proposal that was issued yesterday, funding is in no way related to performance. Once again, this is a proposal. A final decision has not yet been made. We are in the process of consulting with first nations, the provinces and people who are interested in developing an education system for first nations students in Canada.
Charlie Angus NDP Timmins—James Bay, ON
Mr. Speaker, the privacy of Canadians is again under attack. This time it is Bell, which will start gathering a massive amount of information on their customers: every website they visit, every search they do, every time they click the mouse, Bell will snoop on them whether they give their consent or not.
When Canadians pay their Internet bills, they expect good service, not to have Ma Bell keeping tabs on them.
Will the Conservatives act now to protect the privacy rights of Canadians and bring our privacy laws into the digital age?
James Moore ConservativeMinister of Industry
Mr. Speaker, we have taken many actions to protect the privacy of Canadians.
Specifically with regard to this matter, indeed Bell has raised a number of new policies that are of concern to consumers. The good news for my colleague opposite and for those Canadians who are concerned is that the Privacy Commissioner, whom I met with yesterday, is looking at this matter. Those Canadians who are concerned about the new policies that Bell is putting forward have an avenue to register their concerns and be involved in a process to allay those concerns effectively through the regulator.
Charmaine Borg NDP Terrebonne—Blainville, QC
Mr. Speaker, he completely failed to address the issue raised by my colleague. Bell is going to keep tabs on its customers and the government is going to just sit back and watch. This is a major failure for a party that just gave a so-called pro-consumer throne speech.
This type of spying must stop. There are simple and practical solutions to this problem, solutions that are found in the NDP's Bill C-475.
Will the Conservatives support Bell keeping tabs on its customers or will they support my bill?
James Moore ConservativeMinister of Industry
Mr. Speaker, we will not support either. What I just said is that we are not in favour of a process that is not in the interests of consumers. That is why a commissioner is now involved in this process. If people across Canada are concerned about the policies in question, they can now get involved in the process and register their concerns.
With regard to the member's bill, we simply do not support it. It goes too far. We explained why when we debated the bill in the House of Commons.