House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2015, with 48% of the vote.
Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply March 11th, 2010
Mr. Speaker, it is only NDP logic whereby we would increase tourism by reducing passports at half the cost for Canadians. How would that increase tourism in Canada? It could be that the hon. member is talking about reducing the passport fee for Canadians leaving the country because it would not increase tourism into this country. I do not understand the hon. member's logic.
Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply March 11th, 2010
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Public Works has said that she is looking into those things the hon. member is talking about. There is no boondoggle. As soon as it came to light, we are looking into it and investigating that issue.
In reducing the deficit, we have to take the first steps, and move in that direction. We are taking the first steps, and giving everyone indications that the government is very serious in reducing the deficit. We will proceed with that. The deficit will certainly not go away overnight, as the hon. member is talking about.
These are the first initial steps that will be taken, and let us not go to other issues. Let us go on to the bigger issue that the government's direction is the right direction and that is the way the government should go, and ultimately we will reach the target of reducing the deficit.
Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply March 11th, 2010
Mr. Speaker, I join the hon. member in wishing my colleague here a happy retirement. It has been a pleasure serving with him here in the House. Being more senior to me, he had a lot of wisdom to give to me in debate, and I thank him very much. He also served with me on the committee as well.
In reference to my friend's question, I am extremely proud that Calgary has been the headquarters for that. Calgary, if the hon. member forgets, is part of Canada and so is Newfoundland.
Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply March 11th, 2010
Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to speak on behalf of the constituents of Calgary East in reply to the Speech from the Throne, followed by the budget the next day, outlining the way this government will proceed.
It is important to recognize that when the economic crisis hit around the world, this government immediately took strong action to address the issues and, through that action, we introduced the economic action plan, the stimulus action plan.
We know that the Liberals, the Bloc and the NDP opposed that action plan. Today, however, because of that economic action plan, we are poised with the Speech from the Throne and the budget to look forward. We are now at the stage where recovery has started and we now need to address the issues going forward.
I recently returned from a diplomatic tour across Central Asia, the South Pacific and Europe. Wherever I went, there was an admiration for Canada and for the way Canada had handled its affairs. Everywhere I went people were saying that we had done an excellent job.
Knowing what happened in the U.S., Britain, Germany and everywhere else, Canada stood out showing that its fiscal system was in order and was the one that took the shocks of this global downturn.
We need to take credit where credit is due and, as other institutions have said, we have done a good job minus the fact that the NDP and the Liberals would not support those actions.
Now we have come to the stage of asking what we do next. Everybody is looking to Canada. Now it is time to address the deficit. Canadians are saying that they did belt-tightening and want to know what belt-tightening we will be doing.
The Speech from the Throne clearly said where the government will go in belt-tightening. The government has asked all the MPs, ministers and senators to freeze their salaries. Not only that, the government also said that every budget of the MPs and ministers will be frozen, including those of the departments. It has asked all MPs to do that.
I am happy to say that since I came to Parliament I have been returning my MOB to the government every year to the tune of $25,000. It is by example that we lead by and it is by example that this government leads by.
I am happy to state that the government has taken the step to address the deficit. The Liberals will not like it because the Liberals know how to spend money but not how to save money, as we know from the sponsorship scandal.
The Speech from the Throne and the budget address important economic issues facing this country, which are tackling the deficit and putting our house back in order as is needed.
I would like to talk about the most important issues concerning my constituents that this government has addressed.
The three parties on the other side oppose any action plan that we put forward. It was a very sorry state to see all three parties joining together again yesterday to work against our budget, a budget that would reduce the deficit. I do not know what seems to be their problem. Why would they not support a budget that would reduce the deficit? Some members did abstain from the vote so that we would not have an election. When the previous Liberal leader did not want to support a budget, his Liberal members would not stand up. The important thing to recognize is the fact that this budget is taking steps to address important issues.
Let me get back to what I was saying about my constituents.
Like other Canadians across the country, the number one priority of my constituents is jobs. This government addressed this point very well. EI benefits had been frozen. Our government gave more extended benefits to people for retraining.
All the announcements that we made were very well received by constituents in my riding so they could meet the challenges of losing a job and being retrained. That was another important point that this government made. Let me repeat something which I think should be repeated more often: the opposition voted against that.
Seniors in my riding are concerned about the OAS and other matters. This government again addressed their concerns. We addressed one of their issues through the tax free savings account so seniors could save money and not pay taxes on their savings. We also allowed seniors to take advantage of income splitting. Those were very good moves that we made so seniors could have more money in their pockets.
I see my colleague is shaking his head, but what would he know? Seniors would tell him that this government took very important steps to address their concerns.
My riding is made up of many new Canadians. Close to 27% of new Canadians from all over the world live in my riding. During bad economic times it is important for them to know what will happen with respect to their credentials. I am happy to state quite clearly that this government has acted on the issue of foreign credentials as opposed to the Liberals, who for many years said they were going to do something but did nothing. This government addressed those concerns.
With respect to our tough on crime agenda, Canadians are concerned about crime. This government has put forward some of the strongest legislation on crime. We did not expect the Bloc or the NDP to support us, but we thought the Liberal Party would have supported our agenda.
A strange thing happened with respect to our crime legislation. When our legislation was sent to the other place, Liberal senators would cut it down. They would not listen to the will of this House, including their own members here.
Canada is on the world stage and looking forward to remaining on the world stage when we host the G8 and the G20.
Rights & Democracy March 11th, 2010
Mr. Speaker, Rights & Democracy is an arm's-length organization that is run by its board of directors and staff, and it is not part of the public service. This government takes very seriously Rights & Democracy and has appointed a new president to continue working to give a new direction to Rights & Democracy. We will be working with him in the foreign affairs committee to look at this issue.
Ukraine December 4th, 2009
Mr. Speaker, Canada supports the free and fair elections in Ukraine, but we must understand that we must coordinate this with the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. Whatever it has requested is what Canada is supplying.
People should understand that we must coordinate this with the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe and that is what we are doing.
Ukraine December 4th, 2009
Mr. Speaker, the Government of Canada is supporting free and fair elections in Ukraine by deploying Canadian election observers through the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. Because of our strong commitment to Ukraine, Canada will be sending the maximum number of observers requested by the OSCE.
The OSCE has a respected track record and has observed elections in Ukraine since 1998. Supporting the OSCE mission improves voter coordination and ensures effectiveness.
Madam Speaker, that is the precise case. Canadian Forces only pick up soldiers in the theatre of war, and we are talking about Canadian detainees. Of course Afghanistan may not have all the conditions, but that is where Canada helps the justice system. As far as the Canadian detainees are concerned, there is not a shred of evidence. People who have gone to visit them have reported that there is no credible evidence of torture.
I repeat it again. Mr. Colvin came in front of the committee, but he did not prove this. People who have been on the ground have given a very clear indication.
As far as the documents are concerned, the government has stated this and will continue to state it. Yesterday the committee received the documents that we could legally give out. Therefore, this government is transparent and if members want the documents, they get them.
Madam Speaker, before I start, let me be very clear in regard to what the member has been saying. We have been doing that. Investigations have been done by the Military Police Complaints Commission and by other authorities.
The opposition has already made up its mind that there should be some minefield over there, that there should be some kind of torture, and they are going on a fishing expedition to try to find it, irrespective of the fact that we have had witnesses appear before the special committee on Afghanistan, of which I am a member, and the hon. member opposite sits on that committee as well.
The generals, the people in charge, the people who are looking after the whole process, have laid out in clear terms and have outlined exactly what they have been doing, how they have been monitoring, working with the Afghan authorities, and working with the Red Cross, working with the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission to do exactly what is required under international law.
First of all, let me remind my colleague that Taliban prisoners are detained by Canadian Forces and then turned over to Afghanistan because they have attacked or killed soldiers, or they are going to do harm to the soldiers. These are the detainees who have been captured in that theatre of war, and are now being transferred by the Canadian Forces to the Afghan authorities.
The witnesses who came before the committee have been absolutely clear about the process. When the 2005 agreement was not adequate enough, we went into a further agreement in 2007 to ensure, and I want to repeat this to the member, that there was monitoring. They have been monitoring all these things.
The member has asked a question about what we have done and how many visits we have made to the prisons since May 2007. I can say that Canadian officials have conducted nearly 200 visits to Afghan detention facilities in Kandahar and Kabul.
Yesterday when we were in the committee, we heard from the corrections officer about how many times she has gone over there and witnessed. But the fact remains that everyone has said they have not seen evidence of torture.
Yes, claims of torture have been made. That is what the opposition is trying to find from the claims of torture, but there has been absolutely no evidence. That is what all of the officers have said, including those who have gone to the prisons and monitored them.
I find it very strange that somebody in this Parliament, away from the theatre of Afghanistan, can sit here and say there was torture there. They do not want to listen to the people on the ground who have gone there to see and verify that there has been no torture, I am going to repeat this, to the detainees transferred by Canadians.
We are not talking about the overall aspect of others who are out there. For the other aspect, that is where Canada's assistance comes into play by helping the Afghans respect international human rights conventions.
Business of Supply December 1st, 2009
Mr. Speaker, I thought I said it very clearly in my statement when I said that we very much support the diplomats and the people on the ground over there.
As the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, I am very proud of our diplomats and all the work they have done. The point is that they should be the ones who should be listening to them and understanding them when they come in front of the committee.
He asked me why we cannot support the inquiry. An inquiry would be a total waste of time because there is no credible evidence behind it. It would just be a political fishing expedition by opposition members. They never supported the Afghanistan mission and neither did the Bloc, so it is understandable that the opposition is on a fishing expedition.
This government takes the work of its diplomats and its soldiers very seriously. We stand behind them. We know they comply with international rules.