Michel Gauthier

[Human Resources Development, May 9th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, instead of justifying the use of $700,000 like it should, the government is accusing us of not wanting jobs. This is ridiculous.

What does the government have to say to justify the $700,000?

The same letter says “Each employee and supervisor will have the same job at the new location. Your paycheck will be under the name of the new partnership and will be paid as usual with the indication Paris Star. You will remain under the authority of the joint board. Your seniority at Paris Star will be transferred to the new partnership”.

And we are told—

[Human Resources Development, May 9th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, the government spokesperson for human resources development just told us that the action was justified, since Paris Star had gone bankrupt.

Three minutes ago, Paris Star was still in business. We phoned Economic Development Canada. Everyone is assuring us that Paris Star never went bankrupt.

I have a question for the parliamentary secretary. What does she have to say to justify the $700,000 in grants? I have here with me a document entitled “Letter to Reassure Employees”. That letter, which is dated March 25, 1997, and signed by the president of Paris Star, confirms what we are saying.

[Canada National Parks Act, May 8th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, the members of the Bloc Quebecois are voting in favour of this motion.

[Budget Implementation Act, 2000, May 8th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, the members of the Bloc Quebecois oppose the motion.

[Crimes Against Humanity Act, May 8th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, the members of the Bloc Quebecois vote in favour of this motion.

[Human Resources Development, May 8th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, the minister got off to a better start earlier, was a bit more cautious, saying “I will look into the details”. I would not want her to answer today because she would put her foot in it again.

I would ask her simply is she could not at the same time check in her department whether the person serving as intermediary between her department and Modes Conili was not the same person serving as intermediary in the file in which a business was transferred from the riding of Rosemont to the riding of the Prime Minister, a man working for a business called Golf and Grants, in French, Golf et—

[Human Resources Development, May 8th, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, in the Modes Conili file, Human Resources Development Canada continues to collapse under its poor administration.

We are a long way from the few files and the $500 the Prime Minister referred to in summarizing the scandal at Human Resources Development Canada.

I ask the minister: since she is carrying out audits in her department on the Modes Conili file, would she not like to tell us at the same time why her department paid out two grants, one in 1997 and one in 1998, knowing full well that jobs were being transferred from one company to another and not created?

[Human Resources Development, May 2nd, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, in the case of the Placeteco invoices, either the Minister of Human Resources Development did not understand or she did not want to understand.

The opposition has used every means at its disposal, including access to information: no invoice was to be found in the general file of Placeteco.

Since she is basing her defence on these documents in the Placeteco matter, will the minister agree here in this House to make these invoices available? They are public documents, and we want to see them. Will she agree to this?

[Human Resources Development, May 2nd, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, to make sure the minister understands clearly, I repeat that we submitted our request under the Access to Information Act. We contacted her department. We used every possible avenue. We did not see anything that looked remotely like an invoice.

My question to the minister is: Are these not public documents, documents on which she relies to approve grants, and do we not have the right to see these invoices? We want to see them.

[Human Resources Development, May 2nd, 2000]

Mr. Speaker, following a request submitted to the Department of Human Resources Development to obtain the invoices justifying the grants to Placeteco, we were told that we had to go the access to information route. We did that and there are no invoices on file.

The minister justified these grants by referring to the existence of invoices. Why is she hiding these invoices?