Bob Rae

[Foreign Affairs, October 21st, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, the answer of the parliamentary secretary does not deal with the fundamental question. The government has stood on many occasions and talked about Canada's national interests.

As an opposition, we simply have to ask how it can possibly be in our national interest to lose access to a military base that has been important for our mission in Afghanistan, important to us and important to our allies in NATO. How can it possibly be in our national interest for us to have committed such a gaff in the negotiations that in fact we have lost ground with what is surely the economic hub of the Middle East? That is what the government has allowed to happen.

[Foreign Affairs, October 21st, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, can the government tell us how it can be in Canada's interests to lose a military base that is important not only to us as a country, but also to our NATO partners? How can it be in Canada's interest to lose access to the economic capital of the Arab world? Why does the government continue to confuse principles with government incompetence?

[Foreign Affairs, October 18th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, since when was incompetence a matter of principle? That is what we are faced with. We are faced with sheer incompetence. When we add to it ideology and neglect, that is what we have. It has nothing to do with principles. It has to do with incompetence.

There is no finer example than what the government has allowed to happen with the Government of the United Arab Emirates. How could we have sunk so low in our diplomatic capacity that the government would have allowed these negotiations to go completely off the rail, threatening our entire operation in Afghanistan? That is what we are faced with. It is incompetence. It has nothing to do with principle.

[Foreign Affairs, October 18th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, let us look at the facts: a significant refusal on the part of the government to even talk to the Government of China over many years; a decision to exclude a number of African countries from being recipients of aid; freezing our entire CIDA budget into the indefinite future; and a complete abnegation of responsibility with respect to climate change.

When will the government take responsibility for a major diplomatic failure on the part of Canada?

[Foreign Affairs, October 18th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the government.

Instead of blaming the leader of the official opposition, blaming the members of the UN General Assembly and suggesting that having a seat at the Security Council is not important, when will the Conservative government take responsibility for a major defeat for Canada and for our reputation around the world?

[Firearms Registry, September 30th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is the man who said, “I make the rules.” That is the approach the government takes on Canadian democracy. Two examples of that are the census and the firearms registry. It is clear that the public is going in one direction, while the government is going in another.

My question is very simple: why are the Conservatives prejudiced against democracy in Canada?

[Firearms Registry, September 30th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, we have had two examples in the last week, when the House clearly made decisions on the long gun registry and on the census, clearly reflecting a sense of give and take, with all parties giving way somewhat to come to a conclusion and to come to a compromise.

I would like to ask the Prime Minister a very simple question. What is his problem with democracy? What is his problem with parliamentary sovereignty, and what is his problem with his party which makes decisions that are completely contrary to the will of Parliament?

[Questions Passed as Orders for Returns, September 20th, 2010]

With regard to climate change: (a) what recommendations have been made by the Departments of the Environment and of Foreign Affairs regarding the inclusion of a discussion on climate change as part of the G8 and G20 agendas; and (b) what recommendations have been made by the Departments of the Environment and of Foreign Affairs regarding the government’s climate change policy following the Copenhagen conference?

[Questions Passed as Orders for Returns, September 20th, 2010]

With regard to Haiti: (a) how many Canadian peacekeepers are currently serving in Haiti; (b) how many Canadian peacekeepers were serving in Haiti prior to the earthquake on January 12, 2010; (c) how many applications has the government received from Haitians seeking refugee status in Canada since the earthquake on January 12, 2010; (d) how many of the applications in (c) have been approved by the government; (e) how many Haitian children were scheduled to be adopted by Canadians prior to the events of January 12, 2010; and (f) how many Haitian children have been successfully adopted by Canadians since January 12, 2010?

[Questions Passed as Orders for Returns, September 20th, 2010]

With regard to the earthquake in Haiti on January 12, 2010: (a) how much money has the government spent in matching the donations of Canadian citizens; (b) to which organizations has the money from the matching program gone; (c) how much money has been spent in each social assistance sector; and (d) how much additional money has the government spent on the reconstruction and redevelopment efforts in Haiti since the earthquake?