Lost his last election, in 2000, with 42% of the vote.
Supply October 9th, 1997
Madam Speaker, with nine years of seniority and after a four year absence to recycle himself, the hon. member for Abitibi has changed sides. He is making certain allegations and I want to know the names, the amounts and the companies who made contributions. If he cannot answer these three questions, then he should pipe down and go for another makeover.
Supply October 9th, 1997
Madam Speaker, I would like to ask my distinguished colleague, the hon. member for Berthier—Montcalm, to go back in time and tell us about the nine years that preceded the arrival in office of the Liberal Party.
Surely, the hon. member for Abitibi must have known former member Richard Grisé, who was president of the Conservative caucus in Quebec and who, like several other Conservative ministers and members at the time, must have been implicated in scandals as shameful as the one which the Liberal Party has been covering up for two weeks already.
Earlier, the hon. member for Richmond—Arthabaska, who, as the former mayor of Asbestos, presided over the destiny of his RCM's economic development corporation, dared mention in this House the dubious actions of the Liberal Party. The worst in all this is—and I ask the hon. member for Berthier—Montcalm to comment on this—that it is not surprising to see fundraiser Pierre Gobeil demand cash contributions. Was part of the $50,000 or $25,000 he collected in Drummondville or in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region going to the party, with the rest going somewhere else? Sometimes, there are potholes along the way and it is necessary to patch up here and there.
I find it very strange that a fundraiser for the Liberal Party of Canada would demand cash contributions. Worse still, that person even went so far as to give advice to the human resources director on how to cover up the misappropriation of funds, because this is what it is. It is criminal. It is a very serious matter to tell someone how to bill for false computer purchases. It is a serious offence.
This morning, I was listening to the former assistant director general, who is the new member for Bourassa. The member rose and pretended to be offended by our comments, but I wonder if, in fact, the Liberal Party does not agree. All the opposition parties could settle the issue within a week by proposing legislation whereby only voters could contribute to a political party's fund. The government could give, for example, one dollar for each vote received by a party during the previous election, to make up for the loss of revenues from major companies.
When Laurent Beaudoin, the president of Bombardier, gives $100,000 to the Liberal Party—as shown in the ledgers—it is not to get $100,000 out of it but hundreds of millions of dollars.
So, I would appreciate it if the hon. member for Berthier—Montcalm could elaborate on these issues.
Supply October 9th, 1997
Outrageous!
Supply October 9th, 1997
He is the scapegoat.
Supply October 9th, 1997
Mr. Speaker, I would like to praise my distinguished colleague, the young member for Témiscamingue, for his skill as a speaker.
I jokingly asked the new Liberal member for Abitibi, who sits next to my colleague who just spoke, and who sat in this House for nine years with his former colleagues from the Progressive Conservative Party but has now changed vehicle—he bought a red car to get elected—I asked him if they use the same fundraising methods as those he employed when he was a Tory. He said: It is the same, except the cheques have changed colour.
You can see how candid the member for Abitibi is; he says the method is the same.
If the Liberal Party is in such a mess right now, it is because of its tradition of scheming. What disturbs me most however is that now they ask for cash. They no longer accept certified cheques. They ask for cash and they say: “Just shut up, or you won't get your grant”. Unfortunately, that is what we have come to.
You will remember Gérald Martineau from the Union nationale. He was quite something. In his days, all contractors who could get a contract from the Quebec government had to increase the price they would normally ask by 10% because Gérald Martineau was to receive 10% of all contracts. It was standard practice. At that time, the Liberals strongly condemned that practice. But now, we have a similar system.
I ask the member for Témiscamingue to tell us if, in his region, only one mine or only one industry was approached. He was very clear. He invited the public to put the question to the Liberal members, to ask them if they knew some people from the Liberal Party in his region. He even sought help from his neighbour, the new member for Abitibi, so we could get some names. However, I am convinced that the member for Témiscamingue could shed some light on the issue or could ask a more precise question.
Supply October 9th, 1997
Half goes to Corbeil and the other half to the other one. ..[English]
Supply October 9th, 1997
And the amounts.
Supply October 9th, 1997
Give us some names and figures.
Supply October 9th, 1997
We are right, since you no longer accept certified cheques, only cash.
Supply October 9th, 1997
Name them.