House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2015, with 48% of the vote.
Foreign Affairs May 16th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, Canada has never used cluster munitions. We are actively participating in meetings in Oslo, Lima and Vienna. Also, I am proud to say that we have signed on to the Wellington declaration. Again, we will be active participants in all the meetings
Perhaps the Liberals should talk more about their carbon tax, which Canadians are more interested in because it will destroy the economy.
Foreign Affairs May 16th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, Canada shares the goal of reducing the negative humanitarian impact of certain types of cluster munitions. Canada has never used cluster munitions. We are destroying whatever cluster munitions we have.
We have agreed to participate in the Oslo process. We are actively participating in meetings in Oslo, Lima and Vienna.
National Defence May 16th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, there is an operating budget and there is a capital budget. We have indicated what will be the operating budget and what will the capital budget. It is as simple as that. Now if the members do not understand the plan, that is fine.
However, Canadians would like to know about the carbon tax that the Liberals will charge them. That is an issue in which Canadians are interested.
As far as we are concerned, the Canada first strategy is where the armed forces are going in the future.
National Defence May 16th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, the 20 year plan that the government has announced includes replacing six core fleets, including the destroyers, land combat vehicles and fixed-wing research and rescue aircraft. For the forces, it includes ensuring the continuity of defence infrastructure and ensuring that the Canadian Forces are ready to deploy where and when they are needed. The time for the decade of darkness is over. We ordered that, and that is in the plan.
National Defence May 16th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Prime Minister and I made it very clear what these expenditures are and what was said about this plan.
What Canadians would like to know is what the Liberals' plan is on the carbon tax that they are going to be charging Canadians. Their leader has been saying that they are going to be charging Canadians a carbon tax. We want to know what is in their plan.
National Defence May 16th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, as the Prime Minister said yesterday very clearly, this is a long term plan, and the long term plan calls for 20 years and to spend $30 billion by 2028, which is the operating budget. It will be annually by that time.
The other $45 billion to $50 billion is for capital expenditures. That is the plan, as the Prime Minister said, and that is the long term plan for the armed forces over that period of time.
Mr. Speaker, as I have told the hon. member, Canada takes this decision very seriously. That is why we are making all kinds of representations, and will continue to do that. As I told the member, our high commissioner has informed the U.K. foreign secretary and we have informed the British High Commission in Ottawa as well of the decision.
We will continue to work to ensure that this decision is revisited.
Mr. Speaker, the Government of Canada is surprised and disappointed by the U.K.'s decision to end funding to Canadian scholars under the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan. There had been no consultation with Canadian officials prior to the decision being taken, and it is all the more disconcerting given that the decision coincides with the 50th anniversary of the Commonwealth scheme in 2009.
The establishment of the plan was, as members of the House may be interested to know, a Canadian initiative.
The Canada-U.K. relationship is a friendly and long-standing one, one that has resulted in positive benefits for both countries. The relationship has grown even stronger through cooperation in many areas, one of which is academic cooperation.
The Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan has played a significant role in developing and fostering these relations as well as grooming Canada's past and current leaders. In fact, previous Commonwealth scholarship recipients, as the member said, include Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of Canada, Edward Greenspon, Editor in Chief of the Globe and Mail, as well as Kevin Lynch, Clerk of the Privy Council. Similarly, British students have benefited from their studies in Canada. The current British contingent of post-doctoral students in Canada under the plan represents a very impressive group of young scientists.
Even before the news hit the media, the government expressed its concerns to U.K. authorities over the decision. Officials of my department contacted the British High Commission in Ottawa to seek clarification and to express our concern with the decision taken. In a letter to U.K. Foreign Secretary David Miliband, Canada's High Commissioner to the U.K., James Wright, expressed our concern over the decision and requested that it be revisited. In delivering this letter, high commission officials also pursued the matter further with U.K. officials. Similar concerns have been raised by members of the British Parliament, and we await the outcome of these discussions.
I would also like to acknowledge the efforts being undertaken by the university communities, both in Canada and the U.K., to express their dissatisfaction and to call for a reversal of the decision. In a recent press release, the umbrella organization for U.K. universities, Universities UK, has called for the program to be restored.
Canada takes this decision very seriously and we will continue to pursue the matter with UK authorities.
National Defence May 15th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, let me tell the member quite clearly that despite the decade of darkness, this government has acted.
I want to say this. We kept all our contractual obligations alive. In fact, we spent $18 million to ensure the safety of our Sea King helicopters and pilots.
As I said, we will continue to spend money where it is needed, as announced in the Canada first defence strategy.
National Defence May 15th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, it is amazing to have a hypocritical question come from the party on that side which was responsible for the search and rescue aircraft and did not do anything.
This government has been acting. I can assure the House that we take the safety of our crew very seriously. We do not put them at undue risk. We do not fly unsafe aircraft. It is as simple as that.