House of Commons Hansard #40 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was jobs.

Topics

Air Canada Public Participation ActGovernment Orders

10:40 a.m.

Liberal

Anthony Housefather Liberal Mount Royal, QC

Mr. Speaker, I had always been of the belief that the Conservative Party stood for free enterprise and stood for Canadian companies, private companies like Air Canada, that needed to be able to compete with our international competitors, including U.S. companies that have recently been restructured.

These jobs are not jobs making widgets. They are technical jobs. They are jobs that Canadian innovation should be able to ensure that we remain competitive in Canada so Air Canada will not move those jobs. That is common business sense.

Does my hon. colleague not believe that Canadian ingenuity and Canadian workers are capable of being competitive enough to have Air Canada keep these jobs in Canada, even if it has more flexibility?

Air Canada Public Participation ActGovernment Orders

10:40 a.m.

Conservative

Kelly Block Conservative Carlton Trail—Eagle Creek, SK

Mr. Speaker, of course I believe that our aerospace industry is innovative and continues to make improvements that benefit all Canadians.

Let us remember that Air Canada has benefited as a legacy carrier. Air Canada inherited a fleet of 109 aircraft upon being privatized in 1988. Air Canada is the largest tenant in nearly every major airport in Canada, with the exception of Calgary and Billy Bishop Toronto city airport, which gives it significant influence over each airport's operations.

It also has intangible assets, such as landing slots at some of the most slot-controlled airports in the world, and Air Canada also benefited from back-to-work legislation in 2012, which was enacted because of Air Canada's importance to this country's economy. Air Canada also benefited from a deferred pension payment plan in 2013.

Therefore, we have to take into consideration the benefits that it has received as a legacy carrier, which were often borne by the taxpayers, and the need to honour the obligations that were put in this act to begin with.

Air Canada Public Participation ActGovernment Orders

10:40 a.m.

Conservative

David Sweet Conservative Flamborough—Glanbrook, ON

Mr. Speaker, in one point of principle I agree with my colleague from Montreal in regard to Canadian workers absolutely having the capability to be competitive, but this legislation, based on the decision the Liberal Party made before, imposes an unfair playing field on other airlines, such as Porter Airlines, which does not have the capability of buying the Bombardier airplanes because it cannot have its runway lengthened in order to be able to land those planes there.

I would ask my colleague about the aspect of this legislation that puts other Canadian companies on an unfair playing field as well.

Air Canada Public Participation ActGovernment Orders

10:40 a.m.

Conservative

Kelly Block Conservative Carlton Trail—Eagle Creek, SK

Mr. Speaker, as many members know, we debated that very issue not so long ago when it came to the government's decision to interfere with the process of consultation on allowing Porter Airlines to lengthen its runway so that it could purchase the Bombardier C Series.

Again, the bill will affect jobs in Canada. It will affect up to 3,000 Canadian maintenance workers. There are, as I said, a number of options available to the government that would make Air Canada and other carriers more competitive without contributing to job losses or costing taxpayers.

Air Canada Public Participation ActGovernment Orders

10:45 a.m.

NDP

Alistair MacGregor NDP Cowichan—Malahat—Langford, BC

Mr. Speaker, I will start by making a few comments.

Air Canada is a private corporation. Everyone in this House acknowledges that, but it is a unique company in that it was privatized in 1989, and it is in the unique position of having inherited many assets that were paid for by the taxpayer. Part of the deal was that the government would give Air Canada the assets that had been funded by the taxpayer, but Air Canada had to keep maintenance jobs in Canada.

Sometimes governments have made deals with corporations based on a handshake, saying “We will give you a tax break here and we will change the laws, but the deal is that you keep jobs in Canada.” Those agreements have not always been honoured, and the difference with Air Canada is that we have a law to make sure Air Canada follows the agreement.

Right now we are hearing that the Liberals will change that law. I have heard Liberal members saying this is a Canadian bill for Canadian jobs, and do we not trust in the ingenuity of workers? Yes, we trust in the ingenuity of workers, but I do not trust Air Canada's word on this matter.

My question to the hon. member is this: is the Liberal government placing too much trust in Air Canada's word?

Air Canada Public Participation ActGovernment Orders

10:45 a.m.

Conservative

Kelly Block Conservative Carlton Trail—Eagle Creek, SK

Mr. Speaker, I would not presume to know what the government is thinking or what it may be doing with this piece of legislation. We are questioning the intent of it and also the timing, but we do know, as the hon. member pointed out, that the original intent of the Air Canada Public Participation Act when it was introduced in 1988 was to put in place clear conditions to ensure that all of the support Air Canada has received over the years from the Government of Canada and the taxpayers to turn it into a profitable crown corporation would not be lost.

Air Canada Public Participation ActGovernment Orders

10:45 a.m.

Conservative

The Deputy Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

Before I give the member for Beloeil—Chambly the floor, I must inform him that we have about 12 minutes left before member statements.

The hon. member for Beloeil—Chambly.

Air Canada Public Participation ActGovernment Orders

10:45 a.m.

NDP

Matthew Dubé NDP Beloeil—Chambly, QC

Before I begin, I would like to thank some of my colleagues who worked on this file. This was a team effort, after all.

I would like to thank, of course, my colleague the member for Edmonton Strathcona, who is our transport critic, and my colleague the member for Windsor West, who is our innovation, science, and economic development critic. Both those colleagues have worked very hard on this issue as well.

I also want to thank my colleague from Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie. As an MP from Montreal, he represents a good number of the workers who will be affected by this change. I want to thank my colleague from Elmwood—Transcona as well. Since he represents a riding in the Winnipeg area, he is also seeing first-hand the impact of the decisions made here.

This issue also affects me. I say that with a bit of a smile, since my colleague from Louis-Saint-Laurent and I have often talked about the importance of Quebec's aerospace industry, specifically. I am from a suburb in the greater Montreal area, where there are workers and machinists in various industries who work hard, particularly at Air Canada. This bill will therefore have a major impact in my region. That is why I am very pleased to share the NDP's position on this with the House.

First of all, we must condemn the government's lack of rigour on any issues related to the aerospace industry. This government has been improvising ever since it was sworn in back in November. Since the Liberals say they recognize the importance of the aerospace industry in Canada, and particularly in Quebec, I think that they should have a plan. That goes without saying. During the election campaign, the Liberals kept saying over and over again that they had a plan, but they do not seem to have one for that industry, as we can see from the many problems that have arisen.

First of all, regarding Bombardier, we asked the minister on the day that he was sworn in what he planned to do about this file. Of course, I did not expect an answer the day that he was sworn in. However, it has been several months now, and the Liberals just keep saying that the situation is being evaluated and that they presented a budget. We have yet to hear anything about this, and they tell us to simply trust them. Instead of saying “just watch me” like his father, the Prime Minister keeps saying “just trust me”. The problem is that we do not find him trustworthy so far.

The Air Canada Public Participation Act that we are discussing today is very much intertwined with the Bombardier situation. The Minister of Transport is using the Bombardier case and Air Canada's promise to buy Bombardier aircraft as an excuse to change the legislation, saying that it is a good agreement and giving them carte blanche to decide how they are going to protect jobs here in Canada.

As my colleague put it so well, the problem is that the bill changes the current legislation and asks us to trust Air Canada to meet its obligations. For now, those are legal obligations, but if the bill is passed, that will no longer be the case.

We seriously wonder whether we are seeing a favour being returned. The Minister of Transport seems to want to thank Air Canada for buying Bombardier aircraft, thereby helping the government to off-load this hot potato. This gives the minister some good news to announce during question period, when he is asked about Aveos or Bombardier. He can go on about how nice it was to sit in one of those planes and he also gets to avoid having to defend his colleague, the Minister of Innovation, who remains unable to tell us when a decision will be made in the Bombardier case.

I do not pretend to know what the government members are thinking, but the facts are not reassuring, neither about the government, nor about the future of Air Canada maintenance jobs, which are supposed to be protected by law.

Before I go on, it is important for me to put things into context to better understand how we got to this point.

My colleagues will remember that Aveos announced that it was filing for bankruptcy in 2012. Naturally, the unions representing the machinists and the Government of Quebec sued Air Canada, accusing it of failing to meets its legal obligations. In fact, almost 3,000 jobs were lost after the news broke.

At the time, we asked the Conservative government a number of questions. Unfortunately, we never got an answer. We wanted to know what the Conservatives were going to do to enforce the law. As usual, we were given all kinds of excuses about market realities, even though there was a law. There were legal obligations. The government was not able to give us an explanation.

We now have a new government. What is important and what we are interested in today are the questions posed by the Liberals at the time. They were so indignant that the current Prime Minister, who is an MP from Montreal, protested alongside the workers in Montreal. As my colleague from Elmwood—Transcona said so well yesterday, he wasn't embarrassed to sing Kumbaya, to chant “So-so-so-solidarity” and shout out all kinds of slogans along with the protesters.

After all, people often said that the Conservatives came to change Ottawa and Ottawa changed them. Now, the same thing is happening with the Liberals. They came to change Ottawa and Ottawa changed them. In fact, I would even go so far as to say that the Liberals have not changed. These are the same Liberals that we knew before. When they were in the opposition, they tried to tell us one thing, they were going to protest with workers, but now they are flouting the law by changing it to legalize things that are illegal today, that will be illegal tomorrow, and that will be illegal until the bill is passed. It is completely shameful. It is disgraceful and unbecoming. It is particularly unbecoming because they promised to do things differently. Unfortunately, that is not what we are seeing today.

I would like to continue providing more context. After 2012, the situation changed. With the purchase of the Bombardier C Series, or at least the promise to buy since it is not yet a done deal, the Government of Quebec put an end to the dispute. It was only natural to do so until an agreement could be reached. Meanwhile, the government once again took advantage of the circumstances to make changes.

At the time, the Minister of Transport provided a justification. I said “at the time”, as though it were a long time ago, because time flies when promises are being broken. A few months ago, the Minister of Transport explained that this was to allow for more flexibility. This sounds as though Air Canada is being given an opportunity to flout the law, but no one is actually saying so. Air Canada is simply being given an opportunity to legally flout the law. It is being given permission to do things it is not allowed to do now.

I want to raise an important point here. I heard a number of Liberal colleagues say the same thing. I even heard a Liberal member question our trust in Canadian workers and Canada's industrial capacity. I would like to give him some figures that are relevant here. The first figure has to do with the export of supply chains to the Asia-Pacific region. From 2003 to 2013, exports of supply chains grew rapidly by 190%. We lost jobs here in Canada. These jobs are going elsewhere. Supply chain exports to the Asia-Pacific region account for nearly 20% of the overall growth in value of exports.

We can see that more and more aerospace companies are outsourcing to Asia and other countries. Jobs here in Canada in these industries have become unstable. That is why we need a law to protect those jobs. We are not questioning the workers' skills or the quality of our industry. We are questioning whether the current market will protect those jobs. After all, they are high-quality jobs with good working conditions, pensions, and guaranteed income. It is so easy for large corporations to outsource jobs like that to places where labour costs less. That is being done to the detriment of the people we represent. That is exactly why the law was passed at the time, because, to put it bluntly, Air Canada benefited from the money of these same taxpayers who are now going to lose their jobs.

Once again, as one of my colleagues put it so well in one of his questions, over the past few years, in cases where the tax rate was lowered for large corporations, for example, companies often promised to return the favour and keep jobs here in Canada. Unfortunately, that did not happen.

I have some other things to say, but it is almost time for question period, so I will pick this up again later.

Air Canada Public Participation ActGovernment Orders

10:55 a.m.

Conservative

The Deputy Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

The hon. member for Beloeil—Chambly will have 10 minutes left to finish his speech when the House resumes debate.

Official LanguagesStatements By Members

10:55 a.m.

Bloc

Mario Beaulieu Bloc La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC

Mr. Speaker, this week, the only unilingual francophone minister was chastised for refusing to grant the CBC an interview in English.

Apparently it is fine to have unilingual anglophone ministers and Supreme Court justices, but a unilingual francophone minister causes an uproar. That is unacceptable.

The Minister of National Revenue said that unilingual francophones are perhaps judged a little more harshly than unilingual anglophones. That is an understatement.

I congratulate the minister on standing up for herself. I call on all Canadian MPs who believe in collective social justice to support us.

Enough with the denial. It is high time all Quebec MPs, not just those from the Bloc Québécois, showed some pride and held their heads high.

I will conclude with an old Franco-American saying: We must rise above indifference if we do not want to sink into insignificance.

Oral Health MonthStatements By Members

11 a.m.

Liberal

Kamal Khera Liberal Brampton West, ON

Mr. Speaker, today, I am pleased to have the opportunity to stand in the House and acknowledge April as being Oral Health Month.

Oral Health Month gives us the opportunity to recognize Canada's dedicated oral health professionals, as our dentists and dental hygienists work tirelessly to keep our mouths and teeth healthy. In fact, this week is also National Dental Hygienists Week.

Recently, I had the privilege of meeting with members of the Canadian Dental Hygienists Association, and learning about the numerous innovative ways they were providing front-line services to Canadians in my riding of Brampton West and all across our country.

For everyone involved with providing oral health care to Canadians, please accept my warmest thanks for the countless contributions. I wish them all continued success during oral health month.

National Volunteer WeekStatements By Members

11 a.m.

Conservative

John Brassard Conservative Barrie—Innisfil, ON

Mr. Speaker, in recognition of National Volunteer Week, tomorrow the town of lnnisfil is hosting their annual community volunteer appreciation BBQ. I have the honour of attending this wonderful event with Mayor Gord Wauchope, Deputy Mayor Lynn Dollin and members of lnnisfil Council.

This is the first year lnnisfil will be awarding a community volunteer award, and the recipient will be Pastor Howard Courtney on behalf of lnnisfil Community Church. Pastor Courtney's leadership on numerous programs, including the food bank, the clothing depot, seniors programming, youth mentoring, and adult life groups has been simply amazing.

Volunteers in Canada devote approximately two billion hours annually, which is equivalent to about one million full-time jobs. Volunteering has a direct impact on the lives of Canadians, whether it is mentoring children, providing health care, or supporting and giving companionship.

Pastor Courtney is well deserving of this tribute, and lnnisfil is incredibly lucky to have him in the community.

Jacob KnockwoodStatements By Members

11 a.m.

Liberal

Sean Casey Liberal Charlottetown, PE

Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to rise in the House to recognize the life of great individual from Charlottetown, Jacob Knockwood, who passed away earlier this week.

Jake was known for hanging out on his bench in downtown Charlottetown. There, he loved to listen to his Walkman, usually decked out in some Montreal Canadiens paraphernalia. He always appreciated any mention of his beloved Habs from passersby.

Jake was an avid sportsman, bringing home countless medals in the Special Olympics as the goalie for the floor hockey team. Jake was born with a cleft lip and palate. He became a champion for the rights of people with disabilities out of necessity when he was placed in a psychiatric institution against his will.

My heart was warmed to learn that Jake had his last eight months out of hospital, living with his advocate and friend, Pat Sobey.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for letting me stand to recognize Jake and his downtown family in Charlottetown.

Sarah BeckettStatements By Members

11 a.m.

NDP

Alistair MacGregor NDP Cowichan—Malahat—Langford, BC

Mr. Speaker, this is the first opportunity I have had to rise in the House since the terrible car accident that took the life of Constable Sarah Beckett of the West Shore RCMP detachment in the early morning hours of April 5.

I want to thank the hon. member for Vancouver Quadra for her kind words earlier this week. I also wanted to pay tribute as the member of Parliament who represents the city of Langford.

Constable Beckett was laid to rest with full RCMP regimental honours on Tuesday, in a service that was attended by thousands. She is survived by her husband Brad and two sons, Lucas and Emmett. A community fund raising effort has already surpassed $90,000 for the family and is still ongoing.

Our policewomen and men put themselves in harm's way every day on the job for our safety and security. I join with all MPs in offering my heartfelt condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of Constable Beckett.

Battle of Vimy RidgeStatements By Members

11 a.m.

Liberal

Eva Nassif Liberal Vimy, QC

Mr. Speaker, the annual commemoration of the Battle of Vimy Ridge took place last Saturday, April 9.

Near the village of Vimy, in 1917, regiments from all across Canada fought together and triumphed as Canadians, thereby contributing to the birth of our Canadian identity. We commemorate the bravery and courage of the 3,600 soldiers who died that day, and we will continue to build the free and peaceful society they gave their lives for.

As my constituents are residents of the newly formed riding of Vimy in Laval, we carry with us a constant reminder of this great Canadian victory and its everlasting impression on our heritage and place in the world. We are forever grateful and in debt to the veterans who served.

Communities with BroomsStatements By Members

11 a.m.

Conservative

Colin Carrie Conservative Oshawa, ON

Mr. Speaker, several years ago, my office joined a group of community stakeholders known then as the Safe City Oshawa Partnership. One of the projects we decided to try was called Communities With Brooms, an initiative that would bring together Oshawa's downtown community for an annual clean-up in the spring of each year.

I am proud to say that next Friday, April 22, Oshawa will come together once again to participate in our eighth annual Communities with Brooms event. Every year, this initiative sees a diverse group of community members from local schools, churches, and businesses along with individuals who band together to make our streets safer and cleaner. Following the clean-up, volunteers drop by my office for an appreciation barbecue.

I want to thank the numerous volunteers who make both the clean-up and the barbecue happen year after year. I also want to encourage my colleagues to take Oshawa's success story back to their communities because when we all work together, great things can happen.

National Volunteer WeekStatements By Members

11:05 a.m.

Liberal

Yvonne Jones Liberal Labrador, NL

Mr. Speaker, as members know, this is National Volunteer Week, and I am pleased to recognize the many volunteers across my riding and in our country. I stand today to congratulate and recognize the well-over 1,000 volunteers who made two events possible in my riding recently.

The Labrador Winter Games, known as the Olympics of the north, has brought together 23 communities in the spirit of sport and sharing of culture in what is dubbed as the friendship games.

The second event, known as Cain's Quest, is the world's longest and toughest snowmobile endurance race throughout all regions of Labrador. It has gained national and international attention and participation from racers.

I want to congratulate the winners and the competitors for their cultural and innovative spirit to their teams, and all participants who help showcase Labrador to the world and to ourselves. We may have a small population, but we have a large geographic land mass, and we are people of large hearts as well.

National Wildlife WeekStatements By Members

11:05 a.m.

Liberal

William Amos Liberal Pontiac, QC

Mr. Speaker, this is National Wildlife Week, and this year we are celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Migratory Birds Convention concluded between Canada and the United States. We are celebrating 100 years of conservation of migratory birds and their habitat and 100 years of protecting a critical part of our biodiversity.

Every year, these birds take extraordinary migratory journeys in North America. However, more than 70 species are at risk. The 54 national wildlife reserves and the 92 migratory bird sanctuaries in Canada help protect the birds within our borders, but international co-operation is required throughout the birds' migration.

Canada is committed to working with our continental partners to make a difference in bird conservation and protection. In Washington, the Prime Minister and President Obama committed to developing a vision for the next century of migratory bird conservation. Together, we can give wings to wildlife conservation.

Salute to AgricultureStatements By Members

11:05 a.m.

Conservative

Jim Eglinski Conservative Yellowhead, AB

Mr. Speaker, last Saturday in Leslieville Community Centre in central Alberta, I had the privilege of attending the Rocky Mountain House Agricultural Society's annual “Salute to Agriculture” banquet. This event celebrated the achievements of local farmers in the area.

During the event, post-secondary education bursaries were given out. Miss Jadey Van der Vlis from Alhambra, Alberta, in her first year of education at Red Deer College, was one of the recipients. Later on, I was speaking with Jadey about her wishes to become a teacher and her future. During the conversation, she excitedly mentioned that she had been selected as a finalist in the Miss Ponoka Rodeo Queen competition. I have just learned that she was selected.

I congratulate Jadey for becoming the 2016 Ponoka Rodeo Queen and for winning a post-secondary education bursary. Well done, young lady.

TerrorismStatements By Members

11:05 a.m.

Liberal

Iqra Khalid Liberal Mississauga—Erin Mills, ON

Mr. Speaker, on the snowy day of April 2, residents of Mississauga—Erin Mills gathered to stand united against terrorism. They voiced their sympathy for victims of terror attacks in Lahore, Peshawar, Paris, Brussels, Ankara, Baghdad, Jakarta, and the list, sadly, goes on. Together we condemned acts of terror and vowed to always speak out against these horrendous crimes.

Allow me to thank Reverend B and Imam Salimi for their prayers and some of my amazing constituents who made this vigil happen. Thanks to Dar, Faisal, Farina, Irfan, Yasir, Saima, Brittany, Hifza, Abdullatif, and the hon. member for Mississauga—Lakeshore.

Terrorism has no religion, knows no faith, and understands no conviction. When innocent children are slaughtered, they are not Muslim, Christian, or Jewish. They are not black or white. They are children of humanity. Terrorism does not know that either. I vow today to stand and do my part in eradicating terrorism.

Today is cruel; tomorrow may be even more cruel; but the day after tomorrow will be beautiful.

Mental HealthStatements By Members

11:10 a.m.

Liberal

Ginette Petitpas Taylor Liberal Moncton—Riverview—Dieppe, NB

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in the House to recognize that Mental Health Week is fast approaching; it is actually in early May. Also, in light of events that happened in Attawapiskat and in other communities, I would like to raise awareness about the importance of mental health. One in five people in Canada live with a mental illness. This year's theme is #GetLoud: speak up against the stigma and discrimination surrounding mental illness, and use our own voices to raise awareness.

We all know someone who is suffering from mental illness, and by talking openly about it, we can keep reducing the stigma that still surrounds mental illness in Canada.

I ask everyone to reach out to a local organization and to check out the web page weareallpeers.wordpress.com for a personal story that sheds some light on these issues. Please support our families, friends, and communities.

National Volunteer WeekStatements By Members

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

Karen Vecchio Conservative Elgin—Middlesex—London, ON

Mr. Speaker, this is National Volunteer Week, a time to celebrate and thank Canada's nearly 13 million volunteers for the selfless work they do to help those around them.

Volunteers are the roots of our strong communities, which happens to be this year's theme. Volunteers do not always have the time, but they always have the heart.

Nothing is more incredible than to thank all of our incredible citizens who take time out of their day to do something for someone else. There are so many wonderful ways to help each other, and I thank each and every one of them for doing what they do. I am proud to be a volunteer, as should everyone.

In my own community, thousands of volunteers take part in activities for our hospital, food banks, teen centres, and many other charitable organizations and churches.

As we wrap up National Volunteer Week, I would like to thank volunteers for all they do:

If you want to touch the past, touch a rock. If you want to touch the present, touch a flower. If you want to touch the future, touch a life.

Attack in LahoreStatements By Members

11:10 a.m.

Liberal

Salma Zahid Liberal Scarborough Centre, ON

Mr. Speaker, on March 27, as families gathered to celebrate Easter in a park in Lahore, Pakistan, 75 people were killed and more than 340 wounded in a barbaric act of terror.

As a mother and as an immigrant from Pakistan, my heart goes out to the families of the victims. Wherever we live, we should be free to worship how we choose and gather where we choose. No religion teaches hate and violence.

Terrorists cannot justify their barbarity by their distorted view of religion. Terrorists are criminals, nothing more.

As we mourn the victims, I find myself wishing there were easy solutions, but there are not. What we can do is ensure we do not allow these cowards to drive wedges of faith, ethnicity, or culture between us. Let us stand together to reject terror and the fear, division, and mistrust it seeks to create.

As we honour the victims of Lahore, may that be their legacy.

Abandoned VesselsStatements By Members

11:10 a.m.

NDP

Sheila Malcolmson NDP Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC

Mr. Speaker, over 400 abandoned vessels pollute Canada's coasts, and Ladysmith has more than anywhere.

To make things even worse, the vessel Silver King from my neighbour's riding was towed this week into Ladysmith harbour in my riding.

The last time the government towed an abandoned vessel into Ladysmith, it sat there for four years. It never left. The vessel Viki Lyne II has been rusting in the harbour ever since, and 13,000 litres of oil onboard risks jobs in shellfish and tourism.

A Coast Guard report says it is sure to sink, yet there it sits.

The NDP has proposed a comprehensive coast-wide solution to this longstanding problem, and I urge the government to immediately remove the Viki Lyne II. Do not wait for it to sink to take action.

Loretteville Knights of ColumbusStatements By Members

11:15 a.m.

Conservative

Gérard Deltell Conservative Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC

Mr. Speaker, I would like to pay tribute to a service group in the riding of Louis-Saint-Laurent, the Loretteville Knights of Columbus.

In December, this organization was awarded the prestigious international service award for community activity for its project to raise the local flea market up from the ashes. Two years ago a fire destroyed the warehouse a few days before the traditional flea market. However, thanks to the hard work of 150 volunteers and the generosity of people in the Quebec City area, the Knights went ahead with their activity, which was a great success.

Knights of Columbus councils across the country are outstanding charitable groups that provide assistance to the most vulnerable through their support and generosity. I invite everyone to visit the flea market at the Loretteville arena, which is being held today through Sunday. One interesting item for sale will be the desk used by my predecessors, which I donated to the Knights of Columbus.

I congratulate the Knights of Columbus in Loretteville and across the country and wish them every success.