Denis Coderre

[Immigration, April 30th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, is the member telling us that we should shut the border, that everybody who comes to the border and wants to be a refugee in this country does not have a chance?

Does he ask us not to fulfill our international duties? He should be ashamed of himself.

[Immigration, April 30th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I just do not buy that. Yesterday the critic was saying that we should welcome only the people from countries where there are no terrorists and we have to be very careful. The reason we have a new regulation is that we took our responsibility. Security is a priority for the government but we also want to keep it open because this is a place for immigration.

[Terrorism, April 29th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, there were several television broadcasts. There was also one on CTV Newsnet, where Mike Duffy said that the Progressive Conservative Party had offered its research bureau to Sixty Minutes . If this is the kind of thing he is telling us with this sort of question, I can see where he is coming from.

He should be ashamed of it.

Second, we act and we react. After September 11 we added more resources. We have created the maple leaf card which is fraud resistant.

We have taken responsibility. The member should be more responsible than that.

[Terrorism, April 29th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, first, I would like to congratulate my colleague for her new appointment as the critic for immigration. I hope she sees that as a promotion and not as a demotion. However I would say that she needs more briefings.

When we consider every refugee or immigrant as a terrorist, it is not the case. Maybe now Le Pen has a franchise in Canada.

We have to be very careful of what is going on. We have made a lot of movement since September 11. We have put more money into resources. We are implementing a new system. This country was built on immigration.

[Supply, April 25th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I know people are listening and I think the Bloc Quebecois member is making that speech in very bad faith.

The government of Canada, through all the ministers who worked on the issue, has had the opportunity to look for solutions and is still doing so. Why is this question being raised today? They are just now bringing that up. I discussed the fact with my colleague, the member for Hull--Aylmer, earlier.

We must not forget that the member for Argenteuil--Papineau--Mirabel himself is a lobbyist. He would have liked to be a liberal federal candidate. He worked very hard to that end because, at the time, he really believed we were an excellent government.

One should not think that this situation with the GM plant in Boisbriand has just happened overnight and that nothing is being done. I know Luc Desnoyers. I worked with that man. We spoke together. He has been in constant communication with us. We have had some meetings. The Deputy Prime Minister himself, who was industry minister at the time, went to Detroit.

Instead of playing petty political games as they are doing right now, to take advantage of the situation and find a justification for their presence in Ottawa, the members should work with the government. That way, maybe they could show they have some good common sense.

[Supply, April 25th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I am extremely respectful of the debates. Of course, we are celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and we have freedom of speech.

However, I believe there is a lack of decorum on the part of the member for Charlevoix who, every time the member for Argenteuil--Papineau--Mirabel refers to the Minister of Justice, calls out his name.

I believe he should withdraw his comments.

[Immigration, April 15th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, that is the most important question of the day.

It is a step by step approach. In the fall, for the first time there will be a federal, provincial and territorial conference. We will talk about provincial co-operation and about equivalence and credentials. Right now there is a process where by the end of June we will have through the regulation certain questions answered.

I think that it is everybody's business on both sides of the House. It is probably one of the most important questions, especially since the new census.

[Immigration, March 19th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, regarding safe third countries we are already negotiating with the Americans. I think it is a good proposition also to look to our European friends. We have to look ahead, and that is exactly what we have planned right now.

However we have to be very careful. This is the week against racial discrimination. I do not want to put the label of human smuggling on every refugee. We must be very careful of that.

[Immigration, March 19th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, this is obviously a very serious matter. People smuggling is a serious crime. We are taking the necessary action.

For certain countries, we require a visa when necessary. With the new immigration and refugee protection legislation, we are able to give our immigration officers the tools they need.

Right now, we are keeping an eye on the situation and, if necessary, I will take the necessary action.

[Citizenship and Immigration, March 12th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to understand why the official opposition voted against the budget for security. Why did they vote against Bill C-11 at the time? All these tools were helping us and were allowing us to address these issues.

We took our responsibilities. They should now apologize.