Grant Hill

[National Defence, April 10th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, while our military gets second best, the cabinet wants to fly higher, farther and faster. I would like to know how the minister faces the military personnel and explains to them that cabinet comfort and security is more important than military safety and mobility. How does he explain that?

[National Defence, April 10th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, the equipment crisis in our military is so bad that the auditor general said “Hard choices may have to be made. Force reductions and reduced military readiness are possibilities”.

Is this how the cabinet interprets hard choices: buying more brand new luxury jets for itself?

[National Defence, April 9th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, here is the problem with the logic behind that question: The four executive jets that the Prime Minister has today are Bombardier jets made in Canada. Explain this to me: Why then is he replacing good executive jets that have no problem with $101 million brand new ones from the same Canadian company?

[National Defence, April 9th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I am not sure I will be so popular in a second.

The Liberals have a double standard. For the military we have 40 year old helicopters with replacements only planned. For the Prime Minister it took a weekend to get him brand new VIP executive helicopters. For the military there is a process, public tendering. For our Prime Minister no public tendering.

I want to know, how do they explain this double standard for our military?

[Public Works and Government Services, April 8th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, it took the Prime Minister about three microseconds to cancel the EH-101 helicopter contract back in 1993.

I have a question for the government. How long will it take it to cancel this foolish VIP executive jet contract so that our military does not come up second best?

[Public Works and Government Services, April 8th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister just found $101 million for executive jets so that his fat cat cabinet and he can fly around in luxury. At the same time our Sea King helicopters are over 40 years old.

I would like to ask a question. How can the priorities of the government be so far off that our military comes up second best?

[Literary Works, December 14th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, when the Prime Minister announced the Governor General's appointment he said that the Governor General and her consort would be partners. That is not exactly what we just heard. We heard that this individual is a private citizen.

Which is it? Are they acting as partners, as the Prime Minister said, or is this individual in fact a private citizen?

[Literary Works, December 14th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, this government forced Jean-Louis Roux to resign as lieutenant governor of Quebec because of controversial activities in his student days, 50 years in the past.

Why is this same government defending His Excellency, when it forced Mr. Roux to resign?

[Literary Works, December 14th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the government undermined the role of the Governor General of Canada, one of Canada's institutions. The viceregal household must be above politics and John Ralston Saul broke that rule.

In light of her consort's controversial comments and continued insistence on participating in political debate, will the government advise the Governor General that His Excellency should withdraw completely from his public role?

[The Budget, December 13th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, we have asked the finance minister over and over again to identify one single cent of waste that he cut out of the budget. He has not done that.

I am going to give him the opportunity again right now. I want him to identify, and not to talk about what we might do, one single penny that he cut out of the budget that was wasteful.