André Arthur

[Federal Accountability Act, June 21st, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I will vote in favour of the motion.

[Federal Accountability Act, June 21st, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I will vote against the motion.

[Federal Accountability Act, June 21st, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I will vote against the motion.

[Federal Accountability Act, June 21st, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I will vote in favour of this motion.

[Federal Accountability Act, June 21st, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I vote yes.

[Public Health Agency of Canada Act, June 20th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I vote in favour of this motion.

[International Bridges and Tunnels Act, June 20th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I vote in favour of this motion.

[Justice, June 15th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, during his inquiry, Justice John Gomery learned that federal judge positions in Quebec had been granted, in fact sold, in exchange for contributions to the Liberal Party of Canada, but he refused to investigate. Every citizen who will one day appear before these judges should be worried about this.

Quebec's chief justice is the former president of the Liberal Party of Canada; a credible investigation will not come from the current judicial authorities and the government has a duty to reassure us about the integrity of those who are able to decide on the liberty of other citizens.

Does the government intend to investigate—

[Committees of the House, June 13th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, after consultation, I am voting yea.

[Canada's Commitment in Afghanistan, May 17th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member for La Pointe-de-l'Île has given us a perfect illustration of the absurdity of conducting a humanitarian mission and carrying out a military operation at the same time. Based on what she just said I am even more ambivalent about what our government is doing and how our country comes across. I am very much aware of Canada's international reputation and I know that it is precisely through peace missions that Canada won the Nobel peace prize all those years ago.

However, when we choose to go to Afghanistan to punish terrorists who have attacked so cruelly, I wonder if we are in the right place or whether we are getting war mixed up with Olympics. In war, what is important is not to participate, but to win.

In that vein, I would like to point out in this House that the next contingent leaving for Afghanistan—according to the information available to us—is from my riding. The Valcartier garrison will likely be called to contribute. So, I ask the question seriously. By sending a garrison like Valcartier to a country like Afghanistan to carry out a mission that the Canadian public does not fully understand and that the Quebec public does not understand at all, are we not asking these soldiers to assume a responsibility that goes well beyond the training they have received, and certainly beyond the support they are getting and the equipment they have been given? The story in the Quebec City area is that soldiers leave Valcartier with their military gear and make it only two kilometres down the road before having to call a tow truck. If we send them to war, we must answer for the results.

I want to thank the hon. member for her history lesson and her eloquent illustration of the difficulty of conducting humanitarian missions with people who are armed with automatic weapons.