Jane Stewart

[Foreign Affairs, January 25th, 1994]

Madam Speaker, I would like to thank and congratulate the hon. member for his personal and poignant intervention today.

Having had that personal experience it adds clearly to the debate. I note he urges us to remain in Bosnia and in the war torn areas. I contrast that with other personal accounts made earlier today by members who may not have been there but who still have families there. Those members have indicated that their best view is that we should pull out. It is a very difficult decision we have before us.

I would like to note that the hon. member has indicated his recognition for the lack of clarity and strength in our current mandate. I too am concerned about that. I am greatly concerned that without a clear mandate we may be allowing ourselves, whether we mean to or not, should we stay, to move from peacekeeping to peacemaking. I would find that an unacceptable transition.

I would like to ask the hon. member how long he would have us stay in these troubled areas without a clear mandate, with risking identifying ourselves as being the enemy and not the peacekeeper.

[Yugoslavia, January 25th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, the following poem was read by Corporal Stewart Lowe on New Years Day in my riding. It was written by his friend, Corporal Ron Hefferman, in honour of their chums who were killed in the former Yugoslavia.

Today it seems appropriate to share it with all members of this House:

Remember me

We bid farewell to family and friends

In hopes that someday we can live as brothers.

I pray for the day that wars will end

And my fate will be spared to others,

It was the war to end all wars,

That was what they said,

But after seventy six long years,

Canada still counts her dead.

I was a true Canadian, I wish you could see,

All I ask is-Remember Me.

In war I fought and died, I thought that it would cease;

Now under the blue beret I die for world peace like

Michael, Ralph, John Zerpapolski

Plus the thousands of soldiers before

On November 11 I died for Peace not war.

I was a true Canadian, I wish you could see-All I ask

is

Remember Me.

[Speech From The Throne, January 21st, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, what I would like to say to the hon. member is that her suggestions are very good. I think some of them are not necessarily new. Perhaps they felt out in the wilderness in the west because they have not been represented by Liberals in the very recent and in the long term.

[Speech From The Throne, January 21st, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate the hon. member on her speech. It was very well presented with some very good ideas.

I just wanted to comment that in fact many of the ideas that she suggested certainly have been used by my colleagues in the Liberal Party. I know in talking with many of the members that they have used faxes for a number of years to connect with their constituents. In talking to others they have effectively used householders to communicate new and innovative ideas with members of their ridings.

For myself, I have had a forum on finance already as the member is suggesting she is going to do in her riding. It has been very effective and very useful. I think many of the things that the hon. member is talking about are in fact things that are done by individual members and they do not require specific legislation.

[Speech From The Throne, January 21st, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I felt compelled to respond to a couple of things that the hon. member mentioned in his speech.

First, I believe he said that we as Liberals talked about our health care system as being the best and the least costly. Yes, we did talk about it as being the best but certainly not the least costly. Our position was that we spend a tremendous amount of money on our health care system and our challenge is to make sure that we spend it effectively and wisely.

Second, I would like to ask both the member and his leader a question. They have identified or they seem to believe that just because we wish to change, improve and make more relevant the social safety net we have here in Canada that we will necessarily make it more difficult for those less advantaged. I ask the hon. member why he assumes that is in fact so.

[Inter-City Products Canada Limited, January 20th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, it is with great concern and regret that I announce a plant closing in my riding of Brant.

Today Inter-City Products Canada Limited is closing its Elgin Street plant in the city of Brantford. Three hundred men and women will be looking for employment come tomorrow. Inter-City has been part of our community for 45 years. It has had to rationalize and downsize as a result of today's economic climate.

Our local Canada Employment Centre and the Industrial Adjustment Service are working with the company and with the union to support the employees. But I would encourage our ministers to continue to push hard with the infrastructure program in Ontario, with the initiatives that we have in support of small and medium-sized business and to develop new opportunities for our young people.

Brant needs this and so does Canada.