Mr. Speaker, before I begin my remarks today, I would like to pay tribute to a special person in my riding, Sherrisa Celis, who recently lost her husband, Nick. During my by-election, both Sherrisa and Nick were dedicated volunteers, bringing a smile and a helping hand each and every day. I thank Sherrisa for everything she does. My heart is with her and her family. We will all remember Nick for his kindness, big heart, huge personality and extraordinary generosity. May he rest in peace.
I would also like to pay tribute to Michelle Mather, who serves on my board. In these difficult times, I want Michelle to know that we love her and her family. I thank her for everything she does.
I rise today to discuss the ruling of the Speaker with regard to the production of documents ordered by the House on the scandal involving Sustainable Development Technology Canada, also known as the Liberals' green slush fund. For those watching at home, I will give the facts.
The Auditor General found that the Prime Minister has turned SDTC into a slush fund for Liberal insiders, finding that SDTC gave $58 million to 10 ineligible projects that could not show an environmental benefit or development of green technology. There was $334 million, over 186 cases, that was given to projects in which board members held a conflict of interest, and $58 million was given to projects without ensuring contribution terms were met. Can we imagine? The very people who were trusted with safeguarding taxpayer dollars were funnelling money into projects they themselves were connected to. This is corruption, pure and simple.
This is not a fluke or some isolated incident. This scandal is symptomatic of a Liberal culture that puts political survival and self-enrichment ahead of the interests of the Canadian people. They shovel the working man's pay into the pockets of elitists who provide no value to the country. They have created a culture of enrichment for their well-connected friends, lining their pockets on the backs of the working class. This is the kind of governance that erodes trust. The Prime Minister claims to be a champion of the environment while handing out public dollars to his friends. We have seen this before. It is the same culture that brought us SNC-Lavalin, the WE Charity scandal and countless others.
Now, the House has ordered the production of the documents around the scandal to the law clerk and the transfer of the documents to the RCMP for unredacted investigation. The only problem is that the government refuses to hand them over. What is the Liberals' excuse? They hide behind the Charter of Rights, stating that the order forcing them to produce these documents is a potential violation of Canadians' charter rights. I say to the folks at home that, after burning taxpayers' dollars, the NDP-Liberals are now attempting to bypass the House of Commons to hide the information that Canadians need in order to truly understand how much of their money the government has actually wasted. Here is a wake-up call to the NDP-Liberals: The charter is there to protect the people from the government, not corrupt politicians from prison.
It seems that the government has forgotten its primary duty—