Ivan Grose

[Michael Starr, June 11th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, it was my privilege on Wednesday, June 3, to attend a dinner in Oshawa to recognize the honourable Michael Starr.

Mike Starr was born in northern Ontario in 1910. He served as mayor of Oshawa and his other public activities covered three pages in his bio.

He became minister of labour in 1957 in the Diefenbaker government, but, as a I say at home, even the most illustrious among us sometimes has a shortcoming.

Mike Starr served in a Tory government but his work in anti-discrimination and fair labour laws would have qualified him to be a Liberal, maybe even NDP. Now he is an ardent supporter of the Reform Party which of course assures that his candidate in Oshawa will continue to lose.

After the foregoing unpaid ads, I will expect applause from all sides of the House.

[Pension Benefits Standards Act, 1985, June 8th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, a lot of what has been said here tonight I consider to be blather. To discuss it in this House at this time is my idea of having nothing to do. But the member opposite raised a point that I think should be addressed and that is the Minister of Finance's ownership of shares in Canada Steamship Lines.

As the member opposite knows, that ownership and those shares are in a blind trust. That is the law. If the member opposite wishes to challenge the validity of that blind trust, I would suggest he do it rather than doing it through the ethics commissioner, and I would also suggest that he do it outside this House.

[Committees Of The House, May 15th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present the 11th, 12th and 13th reports of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts, respecting chapters 35, 32 and 31 of the December 1997 report of the auditor general.

As acting chair of the committee and on behalf of government members of the committee, we wish to thank the members drawn from our colleagues across the aisle. Their spirit of co-operation and hard work has enabled us to bring five reports to this House this week. This is an example of how all members of this House can best serve all our constituents.

Pursuant to Standing Order 109 the committee requests the government to table comprehensive responses to these reports.

[Committees Of The House, May 12th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present the 9th and 10th reports of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts respecting chapters 25 and 29 of the December 1997 report of the auditor general.

Pursuant to Standing Order 109 of the House of Commons the committee requests the government to table comprehensive responses to these reports.

[O'Neill Collegiate Choir, April 3rd, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I wish to recognize a group of students from my riding who are in Ottawa today. These students are members of O'Neill Collegiate's intermediate chamber choir. Members who saw and heard them yesterday as they performed in the rotunda will acknowledge that they are fine.

O'Neill Collegiate bands and choirs have represented Oshawa and Durham region at music festivals and concerts across Canada and in Europe. One of the reasons for this recognition is the efforts made by their teachers to provide their students with outstanding quality opportunities to work with the best clinicians and hear the finest ensembles on the continent.

I am proud to tell the House that in Oshawa we not only make the finest cars in the world, we also turn out quality people.

We were not sure whether the O'Neill choir could be here because its fame has spread even to Ottawa. They were invited to perform at Gloucester High School.

To the members of this House I present some of the finest young people in this country from Oshawa.

[Committees Of The House, April 2nd, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present in both official languages the seventh report of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts. The report is in relation to the Public Accounts of Canada, 1996-97. Pursuant to Standing Order 109 of the House of Commons, the committee requests the government to table a comprehensive response to this report.

[Committees Of The House, March 26th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present the sixth report of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts. Pursuant to Standing Order 109 of the House of Commons the committee requests the government to table a comprehensive response to this report.

[Division No. 101, March 17th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Mr. Speaker, I would ask that my vote be recorded with my party.

[Privilege, March 9th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, at this point I will make an admission. I was the initiator of the demonstration that was put on last Thursday.

It was to illustrate my patriotism, my love for my country and my love for the flag. I thought I and my country and this House had been offended. That was my way of demonstrating that I had been offended, my country had been offended and this House had been offended.

It may have been ill advised. It never was supposed to go this far. At this point I would ask hon. members on both sides of the House whether we could let this thing die and whether we could get on with the business that we are supposed to be doing for the people who elected us.

As far as I am concerned, it is a dead issue. I would ask all members, on both sides of the House, to adopt the same attitude.

We have important business to do and what we are doing now is not important business. I very much doubt that I can get unanimous consent, but I will try for it.

[Gun Control, April 11th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, today I will raise an issue close to my heart, gun control.

Having just returned from Europe where I was repeatedly congratulated on our government's courage in enacting a bill to restrict the ownership of firearms, I am utterly amazed at the flip flop of the New Democratic Party on the issue.

I have always had grudging admiration for the party of M. J. Coldwell and Tommy Douglas and its reputation as the conscience of the Canadian nation. It is with extreme sadness that I see its descent into political expediency.

I beg members of this old and formerly honourable party to rethink their attitude on this issue at their upcoming convention. My plea applies not only to members of the House but to aspirants for election to the House including the candidate in my home riding.

Let us preserve our distinct society as opposed to our neighbours to the south. In Canada guns are bad. In the U.S.A. guns are good.