House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2000, with 71% of the vote.
National Defence November 24th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, I just returned from Honduras where the men and women of the Canadian forces are providing terrific service in a humanitarian way.
I have been to Bosnia. I have seen them patrol areas where otherwise ethnic cleansing would occur. I have seen them operate in the ice storm and during the floods.
They do a great job for Canadians and they deserve our support. They deserve a far better standard of living.
National Defence November 19th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, we simply are determined that the patterns of the past will be avoided now and in the future.
We have opened up, through the national investigation service, a 1-800 line. We have asked people who in fact have allegations and issues that were not properly dealt with previously and where justice was not properly attained to come forward. That is why there is an increase in the reporting of these cases.
Many of these cases go back many years. But we are determined to get to the bottom of these matters. We are determined that justice be done.
National Defence November 18th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, our effort here and our discussions with the province of Nova Scotia and with Shearwater Development Corporation is to use lands that are no longer required for Department of National Defence purposes for the benefit of the people of that province, of that community and to create economic development opportunities so that jobs can be created there. We will continue with those discussions and bring about that very positive outcome.
Canadian Forces November 5th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, again those are allegations. I believe they are creating unnecessary harm. They are fear-mongering and creating harm for our armed forces personnel. Without the evidence they are just shameful allegations.
Any case that is brought to our attention will be properly examined and an appropriate response will be given.
Canadian Forces November 5th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, the matter of pensions is a matter of privacy. It is a matter that is before the Department of Veterans Affairs.
As to the other allegations, those are matters that are being looked into. I do not rely on what members of the Reform Party say. Most of the time they get it quite wrong.
Canadian Forces November 5th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, if the hon. member were really interested in an answer he would have submitted this information previously.
What he is doing is casting aspersions on a senior officer of the Canadian forces. I think that is shameful. Any of these accusations will be looked into.
Canadian Forces November 5th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, I think cheap is correct. I think we saw a demonstration of it yesterday by that party and by that member in a shameful exploitation of people who served in the Canadian forces.
As to this specific matter I do not rely upon any information that he would give and I will certainly check into the matter.
National Defence November 4th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, we want to respond just as quickly as possible to the report of the Standing Committee on National Defence and Veterans Affairs on quality of life issues.
A high priority for this government is to make sure that the men and women in uniform are properly looked after. We are going through an analysis of the 89 recommendations of that report just as quickly as we can, costing of the various recommendations and as soon as possible we will bring our report forward.
National Defence November 4th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, all of these cases have been examined very thoroughly. We have provided medical services to look at all these individual cases and to deal with them fairly. We will continue to do that.
National Defence November 4th, 1998
Mr. Speaker, this government cares very much about the men and women who serve in the Canadian forces.
We recently commissioned a report that deals with the injured in our services. We provided that to the Standing Committee on National Defence. It has formed part of the many recommendations the committee has made on how we can improve the quality of life for our service people past and present.
They should be ashamed of themselves for trying to exploit this difficulty that many people find themselves in. We are trying to deal with the matter properly.