David Anderson

[Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games, March 4th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are overcome with patriotism. The Vancouver Winter Olympics have been a huge success. Never before has Canada won 26 medals. Never before has any country won 14 gold. The longer the games went, the stronger Canada became.

Who can forget that finale, the incredible shot that brought millions of people to their feet? We could hear the cheers across the country.

Two of the top Olympic athletes come from southwest Saskatchewan, and I want to recognize them. Both are world-class athletes. Hayley Wickenheiser is recognized as the world's pre-eminent women's hockey player and the captain of Team Canada, who once again was the cornerstone of a champion. Patrick Marleau is the pride of Aneroid, Saskatchewan and stars with the San Jose Sharks. His Olympic gold adds one more accolade to an all-star career.

These athletes, indeed all our Olympic athletes deserve our thanks. This event has brought Canadians together and has raised our national pride. Our athletes did in fact “Own the Podium” and the hearts of Canadians.

[Questions on the Order Paper, November 27th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, I ask that the remaining questions be allowed to stand.

[Questions on the Order Paper, November 27th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, a revised response to Question No. 433, originally answered on November 16, 2009 will be tabled today.

[Government Response to Petitions, November 27th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8) I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to four petitions.

[2009 Grey Cup, November 27th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride, actually it is with Rider pride, that I stand in the House today as the 13th man. The Saskatchewan Roughriders nation is sporting jerseys, green body paint and watermelon helmets and following its team west in a sea of green to the 97th Grey Cup at Calgary's McMahon Stadium. To get there last weekend we hosted the western final for the first time in 33 years, beating Calgary 27-17.

But just like the challenge that Rider fans will face in finding a watermelon this time of year, the Saskatchewan Roughriders will face the challenge that is the Montreal Alouettes.

Some say the Als are virtually unbeatable. Some will also say that finding a watermelon this time of year is virtually impossible. But the Riders will play like champions and I am confident that 2009 will bring our province its fourth Grey Cup trophy.

The Riders and their fans will be sporting not just watermelon helmets, but sheer determination and passion. That is why they are Canada's team.

[Canada-Colombia Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act, November 17th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, did I just hear the member say that one of the main reasons the NDP is opposing this is that it will give opportunities to Canadian farmers to access markets in Colombia? He just said that a couple of minutes ago.

I stopped what I was doing, because I think this explains why the NDP has so far removed itself from its grassroots. At one time it used to be a rural party representing rural areas and said that it represented farmers. Now we understand why it does not get support across the rural areas of this country.

He stood up and actually said that the NDP was opposing this bill because it would allow Canadian products to go into Colombia's markets as a result of the tariffs and barriers coming down. Does he not understand even the basics of free trade, that those Colombian farmers would have opportunities to come into our markets as well?

It is hard to believe that the day has come when the NDP is actively opposing Canadian farmers in the interests of its ideology.

[November 16th, 2009]

Madam Speaker, the thing that is clear here is that this government has gone beyond obligation. It has gone toward cooperation and leadership, which is what we can be most proud of. In every area, not just in terms of the medical isotope issue, this government has brought Canada to new levels on the international scene.

We are proud of the fact that we are leading the way in fostering a new global direction for medical isotope productions. A reliable, resilient global supply will be dependent on more than one provider. We look forward to working with the expert review panel and its solutions and the presentations that it will o be making for the future direction for isotope supply in this country and around the world.

[November 16th, 2009]

Madam Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to speak to this issue because, although it has been months since the member asked the question, we have been busy taking care of this issue in ways that she obviously does not understand. If she had talked to medical providers, provincial governments and the federal government she would have known that we are working together to address this problem and deal with a tough situation.

We actually owe thanks to the medical providers and to the governments for being able to deal with the situation as we find it. We should avoid the politicization the Liberal Party has engaged in with so many of these health issues over the last few months.

If the member were to take the time to talk to the people in the medical community, they would tell her of the people who are willing and have been working overtime and of the people who have been moving their shifts in order to accommodate the supply of isotopes. They would talk about administrators who will admit that they are now working far more efficiently than they have in the past in order to get the procedures delivered to the patients. They will talk about patients who are receiving appropriate care. She can go to the news media to find those reports but she certainly can talk to the healthcare providers who would give her information about the fact that adjustments have been made, Canadians are receiving their treatments and this issue is being dealt with.

It is interesting that we have also been able to work with the international community in ways that the Liberal government never could. It seems to me that there is no use in politicizing these issues. The Liberals are struggling to get traction on any issue and it is obvious that they want to politicize these issues. It is almost like they are throwing lines out trying to snag something desperately that they can use to try to save themselves but it is not working. It is not working with isotopes and it is certainly not working with H1N1 because the government, led by the health minister, has been able to come up with an emergency plan to see the approval process through in record time. We have been able to work with the provinces and healthcare providers to distribute the vaccine across the country and we began to move ahead on the immunization process ahead of schedule.

Do the Liberals thank us for a job well done? Of course they do not. They want to politicize this as much as possible, and that was seen in the H1N1 discussion when one of their members had to apologize for the types of communications that she was sending out to deal with this issue.

I plead with the Liberal opposition to stop this bottom trawling. It is time for us to begin to work together and recognize what has actually been happening. As the member opposite is well aware, the resources have been put into AECL. The minister has instructed it to give absolute priority to the safe and reliable return to service of the NRU as soon as possible. AECL has advised us that based on the evidence collected to date, those vessel repairs can be made and the NRU will be safely returned to service in the first quarter of 2010.

The member mentioned the international leadership the minister has provided, and she certainly has done that. As well, we have chaired a high level group to carry the international agenda forward and the expert review panel will be making its report in just a few short days here. We look forward to it coming forward with suggestions. As far as I know, it has received 22 different proposals on how to move ahead with the nuclear industry and the isotope production in the future. We look forward to seeing the report and to moving ahead on those issues.

[Economic Recovery Act (Stimulus), November 16th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, I listened with interest to the member's speech. I heard the first part of it the other day. He barely touched on Bill C-51. He does not seem to really want to deal with it at all, and I think there are a number of reasons why. Even today he has talked about a whole lot of other things other than the bill.

One of the main reasons he does not want to talk about it is that it contains the home renovation tax credit. This is probably one of the most popular tax reduction measures that has been brought in for years. People across Canada have taken advantage of it, but the Liberals have opposed it and voted against it.

Many people across the country are using the home renovation tax credit to renovate their homes and it is creating jobs. Given that it is as popular as it is, could he explain to Canadians, since millions of them are watching, why the Liberals are opposed to the home renovation tax credit?

[Economic Recovery Act (stimulus), November 6th, 2009]

Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Some of us have made the trek here today to hear debate about the bill before the House today. I am not sure if the member is trying to mock you, Madam Speaker, but I would ask you to ask him to get to the bill. He is referencing everything but the bill.

A valid point was made earlier. Perhaps the Liberals should talk about their position on the bill, which they do not seem to have. We would really like to hear their position so we can actually have some debate on it rather than this kind of wandering and meandering, which that member seems to be doing.