There you go. I was always ready. I was ready in the past and now they do not want to do anything. They support the agreement, but they oppose the action required. This is what I find somewhat difficult.
House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2004, with 35% of the vote.
Kyoto Protocol February 21st, 2002
There you go. I was always ready. I was ready in the past and now they do not want to do anything. They support the agreement, but they oppose the action required. This is what I find somewhat difficult.
Kyoto Protocol February 21st, 2002
Mr. Speaker, I was enthusiastic about the Bloc Quebecois' wish to ratify the Kyoto agreement. The only problem is that two days later, they said that they did not want to do anything in the province of Quebec to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Kyoto Protocol February 21st, 2002
Mr. Speaker, I am just as happy to have the representation of the hon. member as I am to have representation from members in any corner of the House.
Kyoto Protocol February 21st, 2002
Mr. Speaker, we are working with the provinces, territories and with industry to make sure we get the best appreciation of the costs of differing approaches to meeting minus six per cent of 1990 levels, which is our Kyoto commitment.
I am sure the hon. member would agree that it is better to work together with them, as we will be doing at the joint ministerial meeting in Victoria on Monday and Tuesday, rather than simply exchanging comments and criticisms of differing points of view of differing jurisdictions.
Species at Risk Act February 20th, 2002
Mr. Speaker, let me repeat again that lobbyists, whether they are environmentalists or they are from industry, are not the people who run this country, nor should they be. It should be people elected by the people of Canada, namely the people in this Chamber. That is the critical factor which the hon. member does not understand.
He should also understand that committees of the House are enormously valuable to us but ultimate decision making is made by the members. If a committee for any reason does not reflect the views of the House, it is appropriate that the House take measures to make sure that the decisions are brought in accord with the House.
Species at Risk Act February 20th, 2002
Mr. Speaker, not too long ago we had an election in the country, another example of the democratic process. This party went on record to put forward a species at risk act and told the public what would be there.
We are fulfilling our duty as a government from our red book promises to our throne speech promises. That is what we are doing. It is this government's policy that we are bringing forward and that is why his suggestion is ridiculous.
Species at Risk Act February 20th, 2002
Mr. Speaker, I had always understood, given my knowledge of constitutional law, that it was the House and the Senate that were the deciding body for democracy in Canada. It was not committees, not 60,000 people who signed a petition and not pressure groups. It is the House and the Senate, of course with Her Majesty's or her representative's signature. That is how we make laws. I suggest that the hon. member goes back and looks at the books.
Species at Risk Act February 20th, 2002
Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for giving me yet again the opportunity of pointing out how much I value co-operation with people who work on the land, trappers, farmers, ranchers, and with people who work in the woods or fishermen. These are the people who are at the forefront of the battle to protect endangered species and they are the people we want co-operating with the governments, federal and provincial.
With respect to the mining association, I am sure that it would like to have unlimited compensation for many things that we think it should not do. We do not think that when it operates on crown land that it has given the right to eliminate endangered species. We think that is something that should not be in--
Species at Risk Act February 20th, 2002
Mr. Speaker, before the committee examining the bill, of which the hon. member is a member, we went into some detail on the $45 million a year which the Minister of Finance generously made available for species at risk activity. This was done two years ago. It is ramping up. We are getting there now.
I will give a full breakdown to the hon. member in due course, if he wishes, as we see how this legislation works when it comes into being.
On his preamble, I can assure him that the very basis of our bill is to ensure we have the most rural Canada friendly bill that we can possibly put forth.
The Environment February 20th, 2002
Mr. Speaker, I can assure the hon. member that both at the international level and at the domestic level we spend a lot of time discussing credit for early action, which is exactly what he has put forward here. I can assure him that there will be appropriate credit given for early action both domestically and on the international plain.