Mr. Speaker, it is always a privilege and a pleasure to rise and address issues in this wonderful chamber.
I find it interesting that the official opposition has chosen to bring forward an opposition motion that attempts to do two things: confuse members and put a bit of a wedge issue between different communities. I would like to expand on that.
I have had the opportunity to listen to a number of the Conservative members of Parliament speak on the motion, which reinforces what I am about to say.
Let us recognize what the motion is really talking about. It speaks to the importance of Bombardier, and we all agree on how important that corporation is. Then it is calling upon the government to agree to the expansion of the Billy Bishop airport.
What took place on November 12 was that the government stated that it would not be opening up the tripartite agreement with respect to the Billy Bishop airport. What a novel idea for the Conservatives. Can members imagine a government being transparent and saying, in a public fashion, that it would not see that tripartite agreement opened up? That has assisted a great number of stakeholders with their own planning and so forth in terms of where to go from that point.
Let me be clear. The port authority at one point wanted to see some sort of an expansion take place. In fact, when it was discovered that it was giving that idea some consideration, the City of Toronto said that for that to happen, there would be a number of conditions. I believe my colleague, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister, said that it was somewhere in the neighbourhood of about 25 conditions. Therefore, if there was to be any sort of expansion, from its perspective those 25 conditions had to be met. The port authority made it clear that it did not feel obligated by those conditions, nor was it prepared to meet them. It continued on with a number of different studies, and after having had the opportunity to study the project, although the city was not prepared to support it, it ultimately came to the conclusion that it was not going to be moving forward on it.
Then the City of Toronto, which on at least five different occasions could have voted in favour of seeing the expansion take place, chose not to do so.
Therefore, we have two out of the three who were fairly clear that they believed that the runway expansion of the Billy Bishop airport would be unnecessary.
Then, on November 12, the federal government made its decision based on what it had witnessed. There are very strong personalities within the Liberal caucus, and many outside associations and groups no doubt participated in the decision that ultimately led to the Government of Canada proclaiming that it was not prepared to open up the tripartite agreement, so it should not be any great surprise.
I am surprised that the Conservatives believe that today it is an issue and that this is the reason they brought the motion forward. They sat in government for 10 years. They had the ability to move that project forward and influence it, and they chose not to. Now they stand in their place and proclaim that the federal Liberal government must see that extension take place, to the degree that they are being critical of us for what we have done by being transparent, working with others, and ultimately making a decision.
Why, then, are they pushing it today?
This is where we start to get a better sense of it. The Conservatives are trying to pitch the issue of Bombardier and the importance of that particular company. I have listened to a number of them stand and speak, and they are saying that, if that does not happen, if the expansion does not take place, the Bombardier C Series aircraft is dead. They are saying it will not go anywhere, and imagine all the jobs that will be lost.
I can tell the Conservative members that Bombardier is an international company that employs thousands of people. It goes far beyond the borders of Quebec. It has a proven track record. It has an aircraft on the market that is, in fact, going to have a significant imprint into the future.
This whole running around and saying that the sky is falling, that Bombardier will be doomed if we do not expand Billy Bishop airport, is total garbage. It makes no sense whatsoever. The Conservative policy wonks in their leader's office have made the decision to try to use it as an issue to divide. I believe that the government's approach in dealing with this issue has been very clear, virtually from the beginning.
I want to talk about the aerospace industry, because when we talk about the aerospace industry, what we are really talking about not only is that first-class world product that many manufacturers in virtually all regions of our country contribute to, but it is an industry that provides good, quality jobs.
If one were to talk to my colleagues in the Liberal caucus, each and every one would boast about the importance of the aerospace industry. There is a great deal of support for our aerospace industry in the Liberal caucus, from ministers to members. We recognize the valuable contributions it makes to Canadian society. We recognize it as an industry that, if properly supported, could continue to grow into the future, creating more jobs for Canadians.
We are a party that believes in technology, in advancing it where we can. We have a budget coming up in a few more days. I am sure we will see good signs of just how valuable our manufacturing industry is. In particular, from my perspective, today we are talking about the aerospace industry.
We recognize the value of the thousands of people who work for Bombardier. We want to do what we can to ensure, as much as possible, that jobs will be protected. There is a role for government to play. Negotiations are taking place.
The Canadian government is not turning its back on the aerospace industry, unlike the Conservatives when they were in government. In fact, when I was first elected, I saw many jobs lost and devastated because the government of the day chose to turn its back on the industry.
The industry does not have to fear that with the Liberal government. We recognize the importance of those valuable jobs and the livelihoods of those who fill those jobs. It is an industry we truly care about. Negotiations are under way. I am an optimist. I believe not only that we, under this Prime Minister, will in fact continue to have a healthy aerospace industry but that it will grow. It will grow because the Government of Canada truly cares about that industry, unlike the former government.
I see that my time has virtually expired. Suffice it to say that I believe it is important that we do not support this motion put forward by the Conservative opposition party; it is not in Canada's best interests.