Pauline Picard

[Sponsorship Program, May 6th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, with such an attitude, it is clear the Liberals will lose the confidence vote on May 18.

That is not all. We learn from Michel Béliveau's testimony that another $63,500 was received in 1998 from Alain Renaud's private company, in addition to $8,000 received in cash.

Does the government not think it is high time to deposit all this dirty money into a trust fund?

[Sponsorship Program, May 6th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, Michel Béliveau added that Jacques Corriveau was not the only source of secret funding from the Liberal Party of Canada. In 1997, Alain Renaud also transferred $50,000 through Groupaction to the Liberal Party. As we can see, the meter is still ticking.

Does the government not think that it should pay particular attention to these admissions from its own ranks and that it is time to put all this dirty, illegal Liberal money into a trust fund?

[Sponsorship Program, April 21st, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, Claude Boulay, who campaigned for the Prime Minister on numerous occasions, revealed this morning that he pocketed a generous 17% commission on that contract, simply for having passed on a contract to Pinnacle.

Why did the Prime Minister turn a blind eye to all the rules, so his dear Claude could pocket many tens of thousands of dollars along the way?

[Sponsorship Program, April 21st, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, Claude Boulay claims that the Department of Finance forced him to hire a subcontractor and that this contract for over half a million dollars was awarded untendered. A document addressed to his policy adviser, Karl Littler, mentions that this contract was discussed with the former finance minister at a meeting on December 21, 1995.

How can the Prime Minister say that he did not know anything, when his political staff was informed and departmental staff claim to have discussed this contract with him?

[Prime Minister, April 19th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister, who presents himself as the voice of democracy, has just shown his true face, that of a Prime Minister who has lost all moral authority to govern.

Stopping at nothing in order to avoid being judged publicly, the Prime Minister has decided to postpone the sitting days reserved for the opposition parties. His goal is clear: to prevent the introduction of a motion of non-confidence in his government, which would result in an immediate election.

Yesterday, he was accused by Warren Kinsella, a dyed-in-the-wool Liberal, for not complying with the rules governing the awarding of public opinion research contracts when he was finance minister in the 1990s. So it is no surprise that he is panicking.

This says a lot about the Prime Minister. It says a lot about the Liberals.

[Normand Léveillé, April 18th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, through the pen of Thérèse Desjardins, former Chicoutimi Saguenéens and Boston Bruins player Normand Léveillé tells the story of his great rise in the world of hockey, and the hard times he went through after being struck down by an aneurysm at the age of 19.

Over the past 20 years, Normand Léveillé has learned to live differently. Through the highs and the lows, he has found his purpose and reason for living.

He got the idea of opening a vacation camp for persons with disabilities in 1994 while talking with his friend Lucie Légaré at the rehabilitation institute.

Now, the Centre Normand Léveillé is established on the Saint-François River, in Drummondville. It welcomes individuals of all ages with a light to moderate disability, be it physical or intellectual.

I encourage you to discover this man who is alive and well and who, despite having been brought down in full flight, always maintains that, despite everything, life is worth living.

[Points of Order, April 15th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I believe there is likely a misunderstanding in the assessment you may have made of the questions we asked. In fact, we were referring to the new election financing legislation. It may be a matter of interpretation on your part, why you did not allow our questions.

Now, regarding the remarks the deputy government House leader attributed to our colleague from Roberval—Lac-Saint-Jean, the member in question is not here right now to explain himself. I suggest that, at some later time, he be asked to comment on the remarks attributed to him.

[Privilege, April 15th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, the Bloc member referred to in this question of privilege is not here today. We will pass on to him the comments made by the member for Gatineau and he will be able to explain himself next week.

[Sponsorship Program, April 15th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, on December 31, 2003, the government used the political party funding legislation to organize the blind transfer of sums of money from trust accounts.

Will the government admit that part of the dirty money is with the riding associations, because millions of dollars were transferred to them on December 31, 2003, without any control by the chief electoral officer?

[Sponsorship Program, April 15th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, we are hearing about cash payments, phony invoices, salaries paid by agencies, and now about the laundering of trust money on December 31, 2003.

Will the government admit that the audit done by Deloitte & Touche involved only the books of the Liberal Party, and did not in any way include the books of the riding associations, on which there were millions of dollars, some of it transferred from MPs' and ministers' personal trust funds?