Denis Coderre

[Haiti, March 11th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, we have all seen Canadians' and Quebeckers' extraordinary solidarity and generosity in the wake of the January 12 earthquake in Haiti. Action was urgently needed. People had until February 12 to make donations. What was the result? People donated $154 million, and the federal government created a $128 million emergency fund. Time was of the essence, according to CIDA, because this money had to be used quickly to meet urgent needs in Haiti.

If action was so urgently needed, why has not one cent of this fund, nothing, nada, been spent to date, when the minister has been in a position to spend this money for several weeks now?

[Points of Order, November 27th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, there is a limit for partisanship. I believe Montreal is in order: Go Als, go.

[Business of Supply, October 28th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, I know the hon. member for Outremont is anxious to defend himself, but before he does, I have a brief question for him.

As a former minister of immigration, I applaud my colleague's speech for many reasons. First of all, the motion is somewhat pointless, because it is stating the obvious. This is merely an attempt to get media attention. That is fine; all members do it and everyone talks about it. In fact Tout le monde en parle, which translates into “Everyone is talking about it”, is an excellent program. Too bad some members will never be invited on, since I could give them some hints.

I would like to get back to the topic of immigration. We are not talking here today only about education, which falls under provincial jurisdiction. We are saying that when newcomers arrive and want to settle in Quebec, they must learn French first and foremost. I completely agree with the motion moved by my hon. colleague from Outremont, whom I quite like.

Could the hon. member for Westmount—Ville-Marie expand a little on the importance of governments? Our government at the time was always very respectful of the agreement on immigration, and it made greater investments in that regard. I would remind the House that the agreement gives the Government of Quebec full powers to choose its own immigrants, and to work with the funds it has and the funds needed for—

[Interparliamentary Delegations, October 22nd, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1), I have the honour to present to the House, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian delegation of the Canadian branch of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie respecting its participation in the Bureau meeting and the 35th regular session of the APF, held in Paris from July 2 to 6, 2009.

In addition, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1), I have the honour to present to the House, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian delegation of the Canadian branch of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie respecting its participation in the 25th regional assembly and the conference of presidents of the Americas section of the APF, held in Halifax, Nova Scotia, from September 16 to 20, 2009.

[Resignation of Member, September 16th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, I do not know whether "smarmy" is unparliamentary, but my colleague's speech seemed rather funereal. We will be a little gentler.

I want to talk about the contribution of the member for Hochelaga. We have known one another for many years. We have had some epic battles, but we were able to be adversaries and still respect each other. It has always been conducted in good taste.

When I think of him I will remember his exceptional contribution to respect for diversity. He has never been afraid of his sexual orientation and has been an advocate and a defender of his group. All to his credit, in my opinion.

There is something else I found exceptional. We had a very unfortunate occurrence in Montreal. It was the death of young Daniel Desrochers. Members will recall that a bomb exploded during the war between the Rock Machines and the Hells Angels. I know that the member for Hochelaga worked extremely hard to make us aware of this matter in order to help us carry out our role as legislators fully.

We obviously do not share the same opinion on what Quebec's role should be, but I have always respected those who work full-time in the interest of their constituents.

The member for Hochelaga was always learning. He studied at the University of Ottawa, where he got his law degree. I have done an MBA while I have been a member, and I know that one has to work doubly hard. I think his sense of sacrifice and his commitment to lifelong learning round him out as a person.

I wish him good luck. It is unfortunate that I am a lad from Montreal North and that I am not in Hochelaga, because I cannot tell him I will help him. I wish him good luck even though we may not support the same candidate for mayor.

There is one thing I know, however, and that is that he has always served his constituents well. Each time he speaks, he will speak the truth and will speak truly in support of the interests of his neighbourhood.

Good luck, sir.

[Canada-U.S. Relations, September 15th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, what I find interesting about this minister's tie is that now that it is almost blue, it is turning orange.

At the meeting of the three amigos this summer, President Obama pushed aside, even trivialized, the issue of the “Buy American” clause. He even said that it was not that serious and not to worry. At the time, the Prime Minister had the opportunity to protect the interests of Quebeckers and Canadians, yet he did nothing. Tomorrow marks one month of silence. It has been seven months since he said anything. He will have another opportunity to assert our interests.

How can we have confidence in this Prime Minister when he is rendered speechless by President Obama?

[Canada-U.S. Relations, September 15th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, the only climate change we have witnessed today is the change in the colour of the Prime Minister's tie. It has changed from blue to orange.

Although the NDP leader and the Conservative Prime Minister are trying to invent a new dance, known as the SOCO or socialist-conservative dance, Quebeckers are no fools. They have no faith in this government. Tomorrow, the Prime Minister will be in Washington. Will this be another Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde?

We would like to know who will be the real Prime Minister? Will it be the friend of the reformist dinosaurs, who we heard speaking in Sault Ste. Marie, or the smiling Conservative charlatan?

[Employment Insurance, June 16th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, I was a minister longer than him and I know how it works. During an election campaign, there are departmental officials who negotiate, and they are not about to fall asleep at the switch.

I would, however, like to ask a serious question.

The minister hesitated earlier. I am asking her to rise. Can she tell us why she cannot table her employment insurance plan immediately? People are going to starve this summer and they want to know what will be done about employment insurance. What is she waiting for?

[Employment Insurance, June 16th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, that is completely irresponsible of the Treasury Board president and he knows it. Once we voted for the budgets, negotiations could begin. The amounts were approved. So everything he is saying is false. Whether in English or in French, what he said is false, absolutely false.

Now, as for employment insurance, can the minister tell us, since there is a plan for the fall, what is stopping her from tabling it immediately?

[National Defence, June 15th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, he does not have an answer, again.

We have learned today that the government is contemplating restarting the process to acquire support ships for the Canadian navy from the beginning. We are in the midst of an economic crisis and this would mean the loss of $44 million.

The government already aborted a call for tenders for joint support ships last August, and now we have this. We are talking about a project worth some $2.1 billion, of which $500 million will go to implementing the program. This is not Monopoly money, it is not an open bar, this is taxpayers' money.

Why is taking the minister so long to clear this up?