Debates of June 7th, 2013

Radio-Canada

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Lotbinière—Chutes-de-la-Chaudière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I contend that our crown corporation has shown a lack of respect for us and that it has eroded our trust and our sense of belonging.

Radio-Canada is a crown corporation and also a cultural and heritage institution. It engages French-speaking Quebeckers and Canadians of all ages.

It is completely inconceivable and unacceptable to spend taxpayers' money to change what belongs to all of us as a community and linguistic minority. The more than $400,000 could have been spent on a cultural or educational program for our young people. That is why our government funds CBC/Radio-Canada across the country.

Malvern

[Rathika Sitsabaiesan, NDP, Scarborough—Rouge River, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today I would like to extend my sincere congratulations to the S.P.O.T, a tremendous organization in the community of Malvern, in my riding of Scarborough—Rouge River. Success, power, opportunity and teamwork are the tenets of this community organization, which had its grand opening in front of the Malvern Public Library this week.

As a safe, youth-led space, this creative and dynamic organization hosts a media lab, dance studio, and recording studio and offers free programming for young people. I have had the privilege of participating in the R.I.S.E. poetry sessions hosted there. This is a Scarborough-bred movement that promotes positive ideas and opportunities for youth to express themselves through the spoken word throughout the community.

In addition, Onelove Malvern is a local youth-led campaign effort that provides a platform to represent the Malvern community in a positive light and showcase our pride in our neighbourhood. This movement highlights the positive contributions Malvern residents have provided to the city of Toronto. It showcases many of the positive attributes and inclusivity of our neighbourhood.

These are just some of the local initiatives in my community, where our youth and others are empowering themselves to celebrate our neighbourhood, promote safety in our community and show the city of Toronto that Malvern is a great place to live.

Conservative Party of Canada

[Joe Daniel, Conservative, Don Valley East, ON]

Mr. Speaker, last night, the CBC ran a false story by reporter Greg Weston. The CBC claimed that there is a secret Conservative Party fund, run by the PMO. This is false. The CBC claimed party funds are hidden from Elections Canada. Once again, this is false.

All Conservative Party expenses are paid by one account, controlled by the Conservative Party. All funds are properly reported to Elections Canada and audited annually. The Conservative Party ensures that non-governmental activities undertaken by our Prime Minister are never billed to the taxpayers. CBC failed to mention that this is standard practice for all political parties. The NDP and Liberal Party have both confirmed that they also maintain funds to cover expenses that should not be charged to the taxpayer.

The CBC's Peter Mansbridge and Greg Weston misled Canadians. They should retract this piece of shoddy journalism. We will be taking this matter to the CBC's ombudsman.

Gaston Isabelle

[Mauril Bélanger, Liberal, Ottawa—Vanier, ON]

Mr. Speaker, we were saddened to learn of the death of a man of vision from the national capital region, Dr. Gaston Isabelle. He was a Liberal member from 1965 to 1988, successively representing the ridings of Gatineau, Hull and Hull-Aylmer. Dr. Isabelle passed away on Monday.

During his long career, he played a key role in the project to transform downtown Hull through the construction of federal buildings, which resulted in a better distribution of federal jobs on both sides of the Ottawa River.

He also campaigned vigorously for a monorail linking Ottawa and Gatineau. If such a monorail is ever built, it should certainly be dubbed “the Doc”. Dr. Isabelle never stopped practising medicine throughout his life. Even while serving as a member of Parliament and parliamentary secretary, “Doc” Isabelle was a fixture in the region.

He was a generous, intelligent man who loved life and was attuned to the world around him. In short, he was a fine member of Parliament who made a lasting impact on his community. Rest in peace, Dr. Isabelle.

Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada

[Maurice Vellacott, Conservative, Saskatoon—Wanuskewin, SK]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal leader is constantly playing divisive politics. The Liberal leader is constantly trying to divide the country by pitting one region against another. The Liberal leader said, "I'd think of wanting to make Quebec a country". The Liberal leader said, “We have 24 Senators in Quebec and there are only 6 for Alberta and British Columbia. That benefits us. To want to abolish it, that’s just demagoguery…” He also said that, "Quebecers are better than the rest of Canada".

The Liberal leader takes potshots at the west and then he comes to the House and pretends to be defending its interests. However, western Canadians know better.

While the Liberal leader is playing divisive politics, our Conservative government is focused on what matters to Canadians: jobs and economic growth. I am pleased to inform the House today that thanks to our strong economic measures, we have created 95,000 net new jobs in the month of May alone. Canada has now created over one million net new jobs since the depth of the global recession in July 2009.

That is commendable, even by opposition standards.

Conservative Party of Canada

[Peter Julian, NDP, Burnaby—New Westminster, BC]

Mr. Speaker, in the words of the newly independent member for Edmonton—St. Albert, the Conservative Party of Canada has “morphed into what we once mocked”.

First, we learned of a secret $90,000 payout orchestrated by the PMO. Now, we hear troubling allegations of a secret slush fund controlled by the Prime Minister's chief of staff. They have improper Senate expense claims, a cover-up orchestrated by the PMO, fraudulent election calls, Elections Canada trying to remove two Conservative MPs and now allegations of a secret fund controlled by the PM's former chief of staff, Nigel Wright.

While our leader has repeatedly asked direct questions, the Prime Minister refuses to give straight answers. No wonder the MP for Edmonton—St. Albert resigned; the Conservatives have a “lack of commitment to transparency and open government”.

The Prime Minister can take the "air force run” to Europe, but he cannot hide. The NDP will keep asking tough questions because Canadians deserve to have answers.

Leader of the New Democratic Party of Canada

[Scott Armstrong, Conservative, Cumberland—Colchester—Musquodoboit Valley, NS]

Mr. Speaker, our government is focused on jobs, growth and long-term prosperity for all Canadians. With last month's almost record job growth, we have now achieved a million net new jobs since the depths of the recession in 2009. Ninety per cent of these jobs are full-time and 80% are in the private sector, a great record of growth.

While we continue to focus on economic growth, the NDP leader continues to protect the tax offenders who lie within his caucus.

One of these tax offenders' tax issues was a matter of public court records, so how could that member possibly be selected to run as a candidate? Why was he named as a critic, and how can he possibly still sit in the NDP caucus? Obviously, the NDP leader thinks there is a higher priority in defending the tax evaders within his caucus than in standing up for Canadian taxpayers.

Ethics

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians want answers about the secret million-dollar fund being run out of the Prime Minister's Office. Canadians deserve answers.

Where is the Prime Minister?

Where is the Prime Minister? Canadians deserve answers from their Prime Minister.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, if the Leader of the Opposition wants answers, he should not ask factually inaccurate questions.

The story upon which he bases his question is false. There is no such fund. In fact, all Conservative partisan expenses come out of a single bank account that is controlled by the Conservative Party of Canada. When the Prime Minister incurs partisan expenses, instead of going to the taxpayer to pay for them, he goes to the Conservative Party, and that is exactly the way it should be.

[Libby Davies, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, only the Conservatives have a secret fund controlled by their chief of staff and only the Conservatives have a—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

Order. The hon. member for Vancouver East.

[Libby Davies, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, there is no evidence to the contrary and simply nothing that they say in the House is believed because they have not disclosed anything.

Only the Conservatives have $90,000 payouts orchestrated out of the Prime Minister's Office.

Could the Prime Minister tell us if any other staff in the Prime Minister's Office have access to this fund? Does Ray Novak have access to this slush fund?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, on the question of a fund, let me tell the House a bit about it, and I quote: “There is a fund which is used for party-related leader travel and expenses.”

Who said that? It was Nathan Rotman, the NDP national director. He was speaking about a fund to cover that party's leader's partisan expenses.

If he thinks there is something so nefarious about this practice, why does he engage in it?

[Libby Davies, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I repeat: it is only the Conservatives who have a secret fund that is controlled by—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

Order. The hon. member for Vancouver East has the floor.

[Libby Davies, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, they do not want to hear what is going on, but let us be very clear. Only the Conservatives have a secret fund that is controlled out of the Prime Minister's Office. We will continue to hammer away at getting answers to these questions.

I have another question. If the government is so certain that Mike Duffy was paid by a personal cheque, why can it not produce it? When will the government provide us with documents to support the claims that it is making?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Wright has said clearly that he paid the expenses of Mr. Duffy with his own personal funds, and he will not be reimbursed either by the government or the Conservative Party of Canada.

The reason the Conservative Party has no such cheque is that the Conservative Party wrote no such cheque. The story on CBC yesterday was false. We gave CBC the information to show that it was false. There is no separate fund. There is the Conservative Fund of Canada, which covers all partisan expenses, including those of the Prime Minister, because he just happens to be the Conservative leader.

[Sadia Groguhé, NDP, Saint-Lambert, QC]

Mr. Speaker, those kinds of answers led to the resignation of a member of their caucus.

Does the government understand that donations to political parties generate a special tax credit, and that its secret fund, managed by the Prime Minister's chief of staff, is therefore funded in part by taxpayers?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, the premise of the question is false. The CBC's report is also false.

There is the Conservative Fund of Canada, which covers all Conservative Party-related partisan expenses. When the Prime Minister of Canada, who happens to lead the Conservative Party, incurs partisan expenses, the party pays for them. There would be a scandal if we did otherwise. If we tried to put those costs on the backs of taxpayers, that would be wrong, but instead we engage in the accountable practice of having the party pay for partisan expenses.

[Sadia Groguhé, NDP, Saint-Lambert, QC]

Mr. Speaker, there is no doubt: only the Conservatives use public employees to manage a secret partisan fund.

Was it the Prime Minister who asked that a secret fund be established? If so, when?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, the NDP can talk about the CBC report, which is false, but that will not change the fact that it is false.

The reality is, there is no such separate fund. There is one Conservative Party fund that covers all partisan expenses, including those incurred by the Prime Minister. That is exactly the way it should be. It turns out it is exactly the way it works in the New Democratic Party. Let me quote Nathan Rotman, NDP national director: “There is a fund which is used for party-related leader travel and expenses”.

The NDP practises the exact same approach that we do.

[Massimo Pacetti, Liberal, Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, QC]

Mr. Speaker, let me get this straight. There is a hidden fund to pay for private matters and to give out for secret missions or payouts. What is going on here?

Conservative ministers claim that the $90,000 that was paid by Nigel Wright was his own personal money, but how do they know? Have they seen the cheque? When will the government release it and all the information it has on hand so that Canadians can actually see the proof?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, allow me to quote Postmedia on June 6, 2013:

Liberal Party spokesperson Kate Monfette said the party pays for expenses for its leader that are “strictly partisan in nature” and unrelated to parliamentary duties “so as to ensure the separation between parliamentary activities and political activities.”

That is precisely what the Conservative Party of Canada does. When the Prime Minister has exclusively partisan expenses, they are paid by the Conservative Party of Canada fund, which is controlled by the Conservative Party itself.