House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2000, with 67% of the vote.
Taxation May 1st, 2001
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance has answered the question on a number of occasions and certainly the government speaks with one voice on the issue.
The fact is that we do not believe in the concept of dedicated taxes. We believe that all moneys raised from all manner of sources go into the consolidated revenue fund and can be used for all kinds of government programs, such as health care, highways and the like.
Official Languages April 26th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, obviously Air Canada is obligated to comply with the Official Languages Act.
If the hon. member has a specific case to present, I am prepared to speak with the president of Air Canada to improve the situation. There is no excuse for Air Canada not providing services in both official languages.
Infrastructure April 26th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member refers to zero in British Columbia. I am not sure exactly of the context of those remarks.
If he is talking about highway funding there has been an allocation announced for all 10 provinces of $600 million. That will go a long way to meeting highway needs in Canada.
Infrastructure April 26th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member should know that the province of Ontario certainly has the resources to make the kind of repairs and expansion the hon. member desires. There is a $600 million program. We are hopeful that more money will be put in at the next budget to assist the provinces with their highway needs.
For nearly 80 years the federal government has used its spending power to be involved in highway upgrades across the country. I think the program we have in place is a good one.
Blue Water Bridge Authority Act April 25th, 2001
moved that Bill S-5, an act to amend the Blue Water Bridge Authority Act, be read the first time.
(Motion agreed to and bill read the first time)
Highways April 6th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, I have been accused of a lot of things in my life but not of being a thief.
The fact is the Government of Canada uses fuel taxes as part of general revenues to fund the many government programs Canadians demand, including the $600 million that the Minister of Finance has announced.
It seems to me that the hon. member said in the preamble to his question that there is no funding problem. If that is the case then he should go to the British Columbia government to deal with the Revelstoke problem on an urgent basis.
Highways April 6th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, I do not know where my hon. friend has been for the last number of years. The fact is that for 80 years the federal government has contributed in some way to provinces for the construction of highways. We agreed on a basic 25,000 kilometres of the national highway network. The Minister of Finance announced $600 million for that purpose last year.
Yes, we would like more money and I am hopeful that more money will be applied. We have just announced funding allocations to the province of British Columbia. Hopefully that will deal with the very pressing problem in Revelstoke.
Highways April 6th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, I remind my colleague that highways are primarily a responsibility of the provinces, although there is a tradition going back 80 years for federal involvement using the federal finance power.
A year ago the Minister of Finance announced $600 million for highways. I said publicly that this was just the start and I hoped there would be additional resources.
There are lots of calls upon the government's resources. The hon. member's party has been first and foremost in asking that money be allocated to health care, on which we all agree. We have to live within our means. We have to live within our own priorities.
Highways March 30th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member will realize that in last year's budget some $600 million was provided for the beginning of highway renewal across the country. We are now in the process of negotiating these arrangements with the various provinces. Certainly we would hope that the pressure points, particularly the one at Revelstoke that he mentioned, can be dealt with.
I have to emphasize that the priority for building highways rests with the provinces. Certainly the federal government wants to be part of any final solution on the matter.
Contaminated Water March 22nd, 2001
Mr. Speaker, I have been told that most of the residents of the region affected by the problem are satisfied with the solutions Transport Canada has offered.