Madam Speaker, as always, it is an honour to stand here representing the good people of Battle River—Crowfoot and talk about issues that are so important to them, especially when it comes to the appropriate use of tax dollars, which is at the crux of what the House has been seized with for, I believe, 14 days.
As I referenced yesterday, just prior to the House adjourning for the day, it is not just about some documents or a stack of paper. Rather, the privilege debate taking place in the House is about the fundamental basis of our democratic system: the ability of Parliament and those elected by the people of this country to fulfill their constitutional duty in ensuring that, in this case, there is accountability. Ultimately, it is about ensuring that this place, the people's House of Commons, is, remains and continues to be the supreme law-making authority of the land, and that Parliament has what is often referred to by the technical term “unfettered access” to any document in the country. That includes documents in relation to government spending.
Now, the government has kind of flip-flopped. Each day the Liberals seem to have a different tack on how they want to attack Conservatives for simply asking for accountability. What is very interesting is this whole debate could be avoided. It is quite simple. It could easily be avoided by the government simply releasing the documents. This debate could come to a close if the government was willing to take the step of being transparent.
Thus far, the government is unwilling to do so. Does that mean there is incriminating information in the documents? Well, it could. We do not know because we do not have the documents. Could that mean criminality would be exposed in those documents? Well, it could, but we do not know. It certainly raises the question.
I have heard from so many Canadians, and not just constituents. What is interesting is, as this debate has raged on, I have increasingly heard from folks from across the country, including some who live in Liberal ridings. At least, they are Liberal ridings today; we are not sure that will be the case after the next election. They are asking why the government would waste so much energy in a cover-up. The Liberals claim they have nothing to hide. If that is in fact the case, and this is what people are sharing with me, then they should be more forthcoming.
I would invite members of the governing party, Liberal backbenchers who have the constitutional obligation to represent the people who sent them here, to end the cover-up and release the documents. It is truly simple and straightforward, yet the Liberals refuse at every turn.
What is distressing to so many Canadians is that over the last nine years, there has been an erosion of trust in the very foundation of our democratic infrastructure in this country. We have seen it time and time again. I talked yesterday about the normalization of constitutional crises, and how one would outline, nine years ago, what the Liberal government would perpetuate in terms of normalcy in how they treat the institutions of Parliament and of government, and how they would treat Canadians.
The fact is that the Liberals, under the modern Emergencies Act, are the first government since the Prime Minister's father invoked it in the 1970s to suspend charter rights. Can members believe the current Prime Minister suspended the charter rights of Canadians? It is astounding that the Liberal government, with such disregard, is so quick to trample on the rights and freedoms of Canadians. Time and time again, we saw it.
I mentioned briefly yesterday, as my time was coming to a close before the House adjourned, that it was the current government that dismissed 800 years of parliamentary tradition by asking for unfettered taxation and spending authority. It wanted to bypass this place. It wanted to bypass democracy.
It is unbelievable, and it has certainly contributed to this culture of corruption the Liberals preside over. It is essential that we right the ship. The good news is that it is possible, because we have seen difficult times in this country before.
I have heard stories, although I was not born yet when the Prime Minister's father was leading this country, that it was a disastrous time for the west. There were national unity crises, constitutional crises. Flipping the bird to the west is what the Prime Minister's father was doing, and certainly that seems to be the Prime Minister's attitude toward the west as well. There was the national energy program stealing the wealth that could have benefited our country, but instead he targeted his own political self-interest above the national good. We have seen difficult times before, and we have seen the ability and the resilience of Canadians showcased in the innovation, ingenuity and potential that exists in this country. I believe we will see that unleashing of potential again.
However, we have to get back to the point that the House of Commons is in order and can do its job. The foundational element of that is that the government needs to understand it is Parliament that makes the rules. It is Parliament that can call for documents. Ultimately, for the Prime Minister, the government and the members of the governing party, it is Parliament that is the final law-making authority of the land.
My hope is that we can see, through the mechanisms that exist in this place, a level of accountability take place today, in the 44th Parliament, to ensure the government does the right thing and releases the documents. I must be honest; I have my doubts. I saw how the Prime Minister prorogued Parliament when the WE Charity scandal was under way in the midst of COVID. After saying he would not for so many years, he prorogued Parliament the day the documents were sent to the clerk of a committee.
For Canadians watching, proroguing Parliament puts a stop to committee activities. The Prime Minister prorogued Parliament to cover up his family's involvement with an organization that would have gotten hundreds of millions of dollars in sole-source contracts across this country. The lengths to which he goes to cover up the corruption is astounding. So, forgive me when I say I have my doubts that the Liberal government will do the right thing. However, that is where Parliament steps in. Parliament has the ability.
I understand from media reports that there is some dissension in the Liberal ranks. Some MPs are figuring out that it is MPs who are elected to the House of Commons, not governments. It is MPs who make up a party that then forms a government. It is almost hard to believe that I have to explain these basic principles to my colleagues across the way. I am glad, in a sense, that they are waking up and realizing they have the ability to stand up for their constituents. However, I would urge them as well, when it comes to the debate before the House, to take a stand, to allow Parliament to get the documents and the evidence that is required.
An SDTC whistle-blower had this to say:
I think the Auditor General's investigation was more of a cursory review. I don't think the goal and mandate of the Auditor General's office is to actually look into criminality, so I'm not surprised by the fact that they haven't found anything criminal. They're not looking at intent. If their investigation was focused on intent, of course they would find the criminality.
That was from a whistle-blower who put their career on the line to tell the story of what the Liberals have been up to.
As my speech comes to a close, this is a plea to all members in this place, but in particular, to members of the Liberal Party. It is an honour and a privilege to be able to stand and represent the people we do, but along with that comes great responsibility.
As for the fact that we have a Prime Minister and members of the government who are so quick to dismiss the need for integrity and accountability in the structures of governing our country, I would urge them all, and this is a plea, to stand up for what is right, stand up for accountability, and stand up and demand that these documents be released. If there is nothing to hide, then we will see that.
Madam Speaker, forgive me for suggesting that if someone has nothing to hide, they do not go to the extremes to hide that the government has been doing. The question before the House and before so many Canadians is simple. The government must release the documents so the investigation can be done, to take that small step to bring integrity and accountability back to the institutions that are so dear and so important and that, I would hope, we all love so much.
I had the honour of celebrating with a number of others from the class of 2019. I would like to thank, once again, the people of Battle River—Crowfoot for the honour and the opportunity to serve them, now for five years, in Canada's Parliament.
