Jean Lapierre

[Supply, October 28th, 2004]

People who voted for the Bloc Québécois knew their members would not control anything here. People who voted for them knew full well they would never be in power. That was very clear.

They can blow all the hot air they want. They can make all the speeches they want, they will never have to follow through on anything. Every time we make a statement here, the very next day we must act on it, and that is what we do. We are responsible. We provide good government to Canadians and we will go before Quebeckers without any shame because we will have delivered the goods.

[Supply, October 28th, 2004]

Madam Speaker, we certainly can agree on one thing. Why is this party talking about financial pressures? Why is this party talking about responsible government? Because we are the only truly national party that really cares about the country as a whole and that intends to still be in power after the next election.

Bloc Québécois members can promise anything they want. They can espouse any cause they want, they will never be in power, and that is why they are totally irresponsible. In his lifetime, the member for Joliette might have a chance to be elected to the National Assembly and govern. Currently, he has nothing to govern. He says yes to any request. He will never have to sign a budget. The only thing he can do is make speeches. He only commits to things he never will have to do. That is why he looks like Santa Claus. People know full well that every time the member for Joliette stands in this place, his speech is not worth the paper it is written on. He will never form the government.

On this side, we act responsibly. We govern responsibly because we have a responsibility to the electorate. Moreover, we are the only true national party. As such we recognize we have a responsibility. We must look out for the country as a whole.

As a result, when we make a statement, we commit ourselves. As for the member for Joliette, his statements are of no consequence whatsoever. This is why, when we look at what we do here, I am convinced...

[Supply, October 28th, 2004]

My colleague, the Minister for the Environment, is under huge pressure. All across the country, people would like him to spend more on parks. Once again, he says no, because we have to honour our current priorities, to which we are committed.

We made a commitment to health care. We also made a commitment to day care. We committed to equalization. We committed to municipalities, and we deliver on our promises.

However, it goes without saying that each time we deliver in those areas and commit to substantial amounts, we have less leeway in our own departments. We are so disciplined that we are presently revising our expenditures in view of reducing them by 5% in our own departments to better accommodate the provinces. Just think, everyday, I have to look at my department's expenditures and wonder if I could cut this or that. We really want to help Quebec, Ontario, the Maritime provinces, western Canada. We have to do that everyday. This is what fiscal discipline is all about.

If at the end of the year, after having managed irreproachably, we have surpluses, then our children and grandchildren will be better off! We will make no apologies for having surpluses, on the contrary. We will make no apologies for good management. We will make no apologies for paying off the debt. I will never be ashamed to say to my children and grandchildren that, under this administration, more that $60 billion has already been applied to the debt. Paying off your debts is not a sin, it is a quality.

When we look at the current state of our relationship with the provinces, if we put the rhetoric aside, when we look at the facts objectively, we must say that, in general, we are doing a darn good job. We must say that no government has ever been as mindful of the needs of the provinces, and as generous. This government is currently creating a trademark for itself. It is an attentive government, but above all a government that fulfils its promises, and that is what is annoying the opposition.

Indeed, we know that people are aware of the tenor of our promises, and of what we will deliver. We are currently delivering. It is true. This being said, I know that the opposition will have little to attack the government on. Indeed, the opposition will look at the electoral platform, the accomplishments, and then Canadians and Quebeckers will say: “What a good government in Ottawa!” When they have a chance, in the next few months, in the next few years or perhaps in the next few weeks, people will be able to look at our promises and our accomplishments, and we will have nothing to be ashamed of. We will not be ashamed to go back to the people at any time, because we are building an extraordinary record of accomplishments.

I know that this bothers the opposition. Even as a minority government, in an even more difficult context, we still deliver. When they look at what is happening, when they look at upcoming agreements, not in the distant future but in the coming months, provincial governments will realize that they have an ally here in the person of the Prime Minister. Provincial governments will realize that every commitment made during the election campaign is going to be fulfilled.

Incidentally, I can quote a more neutral and objective source than myself. This morning, André Pratte wrote the following in the daily La Presse :

However, the substantial improvements to the amounts and operations relating to federal transfers are making the theory of a tax imbalance much more questionable.

He added, in reference to various agreements signed by our government:

For the Quebec government, this represents an increase of about $3 billion per year.

This is from a credible source, namely Mr. Pratte, who took a close look at the whole issue. He is making these comments very objectively. He also added:

More importantly, the federal government has undertaken to correct the most serious flaw in the equalization system, namely the fluctuations in the payments, which was driving provincial finance ministers crazy. From now on, the program will simply be indexed, to the tune of 3.5%.

It is obvious that outside observers are pleased by what they are seeing. The only ones who have not congratulated the Prime Minister on the health accord, the only ones who are not pleased about our agreement with municipalities, the only ones who are not happy to see that we will have a national daycare program with the necessary flexibility, while respecting the Constitution, are opposition members, because they know that the well-being of the public and the success of this government are closely intertwined, and that they will eventually look like real fools.

[Supply, October 28th, 2004]

I am saying it with a straight face, because the Quebec minister of health, a very respected specialist, was quite happy: he applauded this agreement. Indeed, he applauded this agreement because he will now have leeway to modernize some facilities, to purchase new equipment and to hire the required staff. In this respect, I am surprised not to have heard the Bloc Québécois members congratulate the government, applaud the government for having succeeded in signing this historic agreement. Just consider how sensitive this government is to the needs of the provinces!

A few weeks later, upon request from the provinces, we had a meeting on equalization with a set agreement. When the conference on health took place, the provinces had reached a consensus. They had requested $10.9 billion in equalization. The Prime Minister, who is mindful of the requests of the provinces, said: “Excellent, the matter has been settled!” The provinces said: “Would it be possible to hold a meeting, since we have to discuss the distribution of this money. So, could we meet a little later?” Once again, the Prime Minister, who is sensitive and mindful, said: “Excellent, we will have a meeting in October.”

That meeting happened. The $10.9 billion were on the table. The Prime Minister had held his promise once again. Of course, the provinces thought that, perhaps, if they had another meeting, they could try to receive a little more. That is human nature. We know that between the health accord and the equalization deal, it was announced that we had a major surplus, but not a surplus to allow us to waste money. No. This is a surplus that we used responsibly to reduce the debt. We did not decide to spend that money thinking that we had a surplus and that the economy was going very well. No, not at all. It is when things go well that we must pay off our debts, not when things go bad.

Because of our economic successes, the Canadian economy finally led to more revenues for the Canadian government, which we couple with good management. Every day, when I hear that we have a surplus, I am very pleased, because I tell myself that this government manages things well and is not a big spender. We know what it means for the taxpayer, on Thursdays, to have money taken from his pay. We tell ourselves that, when the economy is good, for the future of our children and grandchildren, let us try to reduce the debt. Let us give them a decent legacy.

That is exactly what happened. An amount of $9.1 billion was used to reduce the debt. However, we certainly cannot say mission accomplished. When we are being asked to spend to our heart content, we must keep in mind that we still owe $500 billion. This is a lot of money. We have no right to leave this as a legacy to our children and grandchildren. At this time, because interest rates are low, we can create an optical illusion, but we do not know what awaits us or what the future has in store for us. We have been responsible. We have used that amount to reduce the debt.

There is this equalization agreement. Once again, our colleagues will no doubt say that it is not enough. Still, an additional $33 billion will go to the provinces over the next ten years. That is not peanuts. When we think about it, and I know that my colleagues from the Bloc Québécois are not crazy about it, Quebec will receive $477 million more in equalization payments this year. This means that Ottawa must have done its homework in recognizing the financial pressures. And that is to say nothing of the additional $1.121 billion that will be paid next year. That too helps reduce a province's financial pressures.

The Government of Quebec, beginning with Minister Séguin, asked for a degree of stability, to prevent large fluctuations in equalization. Mission accomplished on that count as well. We have delivered; in the future, we will guarantee a floor level, as well as 3.5% in growth. How can an income be any more stable and secure? The Prime Minister has responded very responsibly to this legitimate demand of the provinces, which were looking for greater predictability. We recognized the flaw, and that is why we renewed the system to make it more reliable and more predictable.

On a percentage basis, Quebec is coming out of this conference with 43% of the budget. That is not a small amount. Naturally, we all hope—at least I do, as a Quebecker—that the day will come when Quebec will no longer need to rely on equalization because its economy will have reached a level that will allow us to do without it. I hope so.That is what we are working on. That is why we are developing an aerospace policy to ensure that a vital sector of our economy does even better.

For the time being, the equalization program is extremely generous. We can never expect the moon, but one thing is sure: the amounts involved are substantial, and that is nothing compared to what is coming.

We have delivered on health, and met our equalization commitments. Now, watch how we do on our agreement with the municipalities and provinces. During the election campaign, the Prime Minister said that we would refund up to 5¢ per litre of gasoline over a five year period.

It will be the greatest infrastructure program Canada has ever had. Year after year, up to $2 billion will be invested to help the municipalities. Add to that the GST transfer.

Look at the spirit in which our colleagues—among others, my hon. colleague responsible for infrastructure—met with the provincial representatives to ensure the necessary flexibility under the Constitution, acknowledging of course that the municipalities are provincial responsibilities. Once again, we will be able to deliver the goods in harmony and agreement. This promise, made before the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, will be kept.

We are talking about reducing the financial pressure on the Government of Quebec. I know they are waiting impatiently for this agreement to be signed. We hope this will happen in the coming months so we may, once again, deliver substantial funding in the finance minister's next budget.

Mayors and municipal councils across the country can say that the Prime Minister, once again, is going to keep his word. Health, equalization and cities are the three formal promises and for which it will be “mission accomplished” in a few months.

There is another promise that will further reduce the financial pressure on the Government of Quebec. The Government of Quebec has an exemplary child care program, which is very expensive, much more expensive than the government had anticipated at the time. One thing is certain, this program should serve as a model to benefit children throughout the country.

We made a promise to give up to $5 billion over five years for this program. The Government of Quebec has already done its homework. This will translate into a financial transfer, which, again, will reduce financial pressure.

Every program, every agreement that is signed, negotiated and delivered is good news for Quebec's finance minister. Every agreement will make finances less tight. We cannot be responsible for Quebec's finances—the minister has his constitutional responsibilities—but we can make an effort. We made a promise and we are going to keep it. However, we also have needs at our level of jurisdiction.

Some think that we can simply spend our time sending money, but there have to be legitimate reasons. For instance, in our areas of jurisdiction, I can tell you that, everyday, I resist pressures in the field of transportation. I have colleagues here who would like me to help small airports. Others call for improvements to the rail transport system. Others have needs in the area of ports. Everyday, we must be strictly disciplined. I have colleagues who would like us to spend for all kinds of studies in the area of transportation. It happens every day. I have to restrain myself, because we are fiscally responsible.

When we look at it, my colleague, the Minister of National Defence, receives requests every day for his area of responsibility. My colleague in Canadian Heritage also receives daily requests, particularly for special events. All big events would like to find financial support. We resist.

[Supply, October 28th, 2004]

Madam Speaker, I am very happy to be able to participate in today's opposition day debate. Indeed, that provides us with the opportunity to evaluate the measures taken by this government since its recent election. In the few months since the election, this government has delivered the goods in terms of major commitments.

As we know, the main theme of the election was health care. We knows this is the major concern of Canadians. Our Prime Minister, in collaboration with provincial premiers, succeeded in negotiating a historic agreement. It was a historic agreement because of its scope and because of its flexibility. The Prime Minister had promised, during the electoral campaign, to deliver additional amounts in order to reduce waiting lists and to enable provinces to inject more money in health care operating costs.

It's such a pleasure to rise today and to say: mission accomplished! Over the next few years, the provinces will receive an additional $41.3 billion. That's a lot of money! It has enabled all the provinces to sign the accord. This is an important aspect, because a lot of agreements were concluded in the past, and somebody always hesitated or left early. In this case, all the provinces, including the Quebec, signed an accord and came out of there with an agreement where everybody was a winner.

However, the real winners of this agreement on health care are the weakest members of our society, those affected by disease and who, today, can hope to receive quality health care, and in a timely fashion. Indeed, we know that in the area of health care, it is not only about getting access eventually. Often, it is about receiving care as quickly as possible. Thus, the problem posed by the disease is reduced and, often, prevention is also helpful.

The provinces now have enough money and predictability to be able to set up an effective and well-funded health care system.

[Transportation, October 26th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, I have no intention of wasting $150,000 on a study as long as the funding for the high-speed train is not in place. We are talking about billions of dollars.

I do not have that kind of money. We are not going to waste money on conducting studies just for the sake of conducting studies. They may benefit consultants and chambers of commerce, but I will not waste taxpayers money.

[Transportation, October 26th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for her question. Quebec officials did indeed request funding for a study. Their request was considered among all the other projects, and it did not make the cut.

I can tell the hon. member, however, that the future of VIA Rail transportationis not dependent on additional studies. We have enough studies to fill all the libraries. What we need now are proposals, something that VIA Rail's board of directors will eventually come up with.

We are talking about a very substantial investment. There will have to be discussions with my finance colleague, at some more or less distant point in the future.

[VIA Rail, October 20th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, on Sunday, I will be meeting with members of VIA Rail's board of directors. Together, we will discuss future projects. They will submit an action plan, which I will be pleased to present to the government.

[Air Canada, October 19th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, I imagine that the hon. member realizes that Air Canada is a private company. I have no intention of taking over the administration of the company and saying that x number of jobs, a minimum level of jobs, have to be guaranteed. No minimum level or increment was ever guaranteed.

It could be 3,000 workers. But we really have to trust the management of a private company. We can impose certain legal obligations, but we cannot run the company in their place. It is, after all, a private company.

[Air Canada, October 19th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, I think that the hon. member is right to be concerned about a new structure that could change the situation. That is why we are currently reviewing every detail of this new structure, to ensure that vested rights are respected and that the effective headquarters remain in Montreal.