André Harvey

[Corrections and Conditional Release Act, February 20th, 2004]

—which is creating much hubbub among my Bloc Quebecois colleagues.

They are happy, but their happiness is very short-lived. Hon. members know that they were pretty much on artificial life support until a few days ago. Then, this event came along, in the shape of the Auditor General's report, and their popularity in the polls has gone up a bit.

In life, though, reality always catches up with us in the end. I do not want to be a prophet of doom for my Bloc friends. I know them well, after all, as we rub elbows every day in my beautiful region.

Reality will catch up with them, and they will get the message in the next election that Quebeckers want to encourage people who come here to run the country and manage government. In 1993, they got elected on the platform, “We are going to exercise the real power”.

All in all, I am pleased today to be working—

[Corrections and Conditional Release Act, February 20th, 2004]

Madam Speaker, thank you for this opportunity to speak for the second time today on an important matter.

This morning, during members' statements, I spoke about a plant to be built in Varennes, and about the whole ethanol issue. The future is in the hands of governments who believe it is important to put forward solutions and initiatives with significant environmental impact.

We are proving this, despite the little ups and downs we are experiencing at present in connection with the sponsorship issue—

[Ethanol Industry, February 20th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, I want to say a few words about an announcement we made last week that is extremely positive for Quebec and the rest of Canada with regard to the ethanol expansion program.

Last Friday, February 13, it was a pleasure to announce the recipients and contributions in the first round of the ethanol expansion program, which has a total allocation of $78 million.

Seven projects, including one in Quebec, will receive funding. Commercial Alcohols, Inc. received $18 million in funding for the construction of a fuel ethanol facility in Varennes. Discussions about this facility have been ongoing for many years, and many partners, including Commercial Alcohols, Inc. and the Canadian government, are associated with it.

This commitment by the federal government will enable the company to move forward with its project financing commitments and, it says, begin construction this fall. The Varennes project will involve a total investment of some $105 million and will generate almost 1,000 jobs during construction. The facility will create about 50 permanent jobs at the plant.

Finally—

[Supply, February 19th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, we can all appreciate that for the Bloc, exaggeration is a means of political survival.

In our close and privileged relations for over 50 years with the Americans, both commercially and militarily, with the agreement on NORAD, the minister clearly specified that it would be in our best interests to enter into negotiations in order to get to know the antimissile program better.

If we really want to defend the interests of the Canadians, it would seem perfectly logical to me to attend meetings to get to know precisely what this program entails.

I would like to ask my colleague if he does not think that it would be reasonable to participate in negotiations to maximize our information, and maybe one day be able to participate in the development of a system that would include land and marine facilities. This seems perfectly logical to me. We have to collect information before we can make a decision. We do not need to snub our neighbours.

In the event of problems in our commercial relations with the Americans, they are still the first to protest and to resort to exaggeration and demagogy, be it about softwood lumber on in other sectors. I think that while maintaining close relationships with the Americans, it would be in our best interests to study the project with them, and perhaps to participate in the development of a system to ensure our safety. Let us at least obtain the information. This is a minimum requirement before we can make a decision. What does my colleague think about that?

[Supply, February 17th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, I am sure you have noticed that my colleagues from the Bloc have been very happy for the past few days. They have been on life support in Quebec for the past few months. What is interesting is that the current crisis is isolated. There was the sponsorship problem and the Bloc MPs spend their time telling us they are asking questions. Canadians and Quebeckers want people to do more than just ask questions, they want people to take action.

I would like to ask my colleague if he thinks the futility of their role is going to catch up with them soon. For 10 years, they have been elected on promises to Quebeckers that they would ask questions. Over the past few months, Quebeckers have realized they want people who take action, like the Prime Minister has done in this exceptional case, as we have just seen. The tools are in place. There is a standing committee, a public inquiry and an investigation into the RCMP.

I would like to reiterate my question to the hon. member. Does he not believe that the reality of the futility of the Bloc Quebecois, which is a party that only asks questions and does not have power, will catch up with it very soon? They were elected in 1993 and said they would exercise real power. I would like them to show us what real power is.

They are extremely happy here in this great Parliament, which is called the Parliament of Canada. They are very happy and certainly do not want to lose their jobs. They ask questions, two or three small questions a week, then go off and are content.

The Prime Minister honoured his commitment to bring order to this program. There are thousands of programs within the Canadian government. Clearly we must learn from this experience.

[Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply, February 5th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, first, I want to commend my hon. colleague who, despite the heckling by our colleagues from the Bloc, was able to remain dignified and explain in some detail the key issues raised in the throne speech.

He told the House about the initiatives for our communities. God knows how pressing the need was to help improve the financial situation of our municipalities. He talked about research and development. He mentioned the review of our foreign policy, especially through CIDA and its initiatives.

He expanded on the new initiative, called Canada Corps, to help young Canadians participate in an international program that would make them better citizens of the world, thanks to the hands-on experience gained in the field.

I would also like to put a question to my hon. colleague. I want to come back to an element of the throne speech which is crucial to the future of our country and which was barely covered by the media, that is the new approach to the social economy. I know for a fact that this reflects the reality people face in each of our ridings. It did not always get significant support from the various levels of government.

People involved in the social economy sector will now have access to the wide scope of programs available from our various departments. However, the throne speech does point out that, during the upcoming year, the government will be focussing on developing new initiatives to support the work of these people. I would like the hon. member to tell us what he foresees in terms of support for to all those in the social economy sector.

[Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply, February 5th, 2004]

The Bloc is not included in that. The Bloc will be taken care of in the election.

[Nursing, November 5th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, CIDA and the Canadian Nurses Association recently signed a contribution agreement for the joint initiative of Canadian and South African nurses in the fight against AIDS, which aims to support, over the next five years, the development and implementation of a national nursing strategy to fight this scourge. Nurses are the first to care for AIDS patients at all levels.

CIDA is also funding another five year program to support nurses and strengthen their associations so that they can meet their numerous challenges.

Further to the partnership on international health, we have with us today members of this esteemed profession hailing from Latin America, Asia and Africa. It is my pleasure to bid them a warm welcome.

[The Environment, October 31st, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, as usual, the Bloc Quebecois is quick to exaggerate.

CIDA is viewed as one of the most credible international agencies in terms of funding management and international standards.

[International Aid, October 29th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, the government has indeed committed $300 million for the reconstruction of Iraq and for humanitarian aid. Of that amount, $200 million will go directly to construction, in collaboration of course with all the other donor countries, with a view to ensuring the people of Iraq of a brighter future.