Geoff Regan

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Chair, although the minister says it is important to have the right resources at the right time, the evidence is that the government is not providing the right resources at the right time.

In fact, in the Halifax Chronicle-Herald on Wednesday, we saw a report from a woman who is a mother of someone who works in the forces. Ms. Pauline Clarke of Kentville, Nova Scotia, does not think they are being supplied at the right time. I will quote from the story, which states:

Her son, who works in supplies, told her that soldiers have been waiting months to get their boots replaced....

[ She says,] “They do a lot of walking and those boots just wear out, (but) they have to wear the old boots because they have no other choice”.

I see members across the way smiling and joking about this because it is about boots. They seem to feel that is not important to soldiers. They are making a joke about the fact that soldiers' boots are wearing out.

Is this what the minister means by the right resources at the right time?

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Chair, from the point of view of the navy it seems more like cruel accounting than accrual accounting.

In fact, we have a situation whereby the government is cutting one destroyer and retiring the navy's two refuelling and resupply ships, which will be gone two years before the three new ones that the Liberal government ordered will arrive. There will be a two year gap and yet he is saying there is no loss to the navy whatsoever, that the navy obviously has enough funding.

How can the navy have enough funding if there is going to be a two year gap before the new resupply vessels arrive?

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Chair, I guess the question is, then, how does the government pay the rent for all these tanks? Where did the money come from?

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Chair, these tanks, I understand, cost in the range of $650 million. That is the amount set aside for them. Of those dollars, the government has taken $368 million from the navy to pay for these tanks. Is it the minister's view that the navy is overfunded? Is that why he pulled out $368 million from the navy?

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Chair, I appreciate your kindness.

My question is for the minister. The government ordered tanks that will not arrive until after February 2009, but the minister said tonight that the government has a responsibility “to make sure that they have the right resources at the right time to do their jobs”.

Does this mean, in fact, that contrary to what we have heard, the government has in fact committed to have our troops in southern Afghanistan after February 2009?

[Business of Supply, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Chair, I will splitting my time with the member for Oakville and the member for Richmond Hill. We each will ask questions for approximately five minutes.

[Points of Order, May 17th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, it seems to me that members ought to be entitled to know what summer job grants are being given in their ridings. The minister is here citing from a list he obviously has. Perhaps what he is telling us is that he has not got the complete list with him, but surely he has access to it.

Why would he be saying that members ought not to have access to that list, that the public ought not to know immediately what are in those lists and what grants have been given out in each of the ridings of all the members of the House?

[The Environment, May 16th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, at the G-8 Summit, France, Germany and Great Britain all argued for a strong statement on climate change. During that time, the Prime Minister, like his friend President Bush, remained silent and Canada’s reputation suffered as a result.

Will Canada show some leadership at the G-8 Summit or will it continue to act like mere background scenery?

[The Environment, May 16th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, Governor Schwarzenegger's environmental adviser says that this Conservative government has made the same mistake as President Bush and that these neo-con cousins are asleep at the switch.

Reports out of Bonn say the Bush administration is trying to water down the G-8 climate change statement. It refuses to endorse the most basic of limits. It will not even recognize the UN as an appropriate forum for negotiating future global action.

Could the minister today tell us his position on these issues, or is he still waiting for instructions from Washington?

[Afghanistan, May 4th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, the government knew about the abuse. It knew and yet it did nothing. Worse, the government denied the facts, distorted the truth, and deceived Canadians day after day, week after week. It is appalling and it is shameful.

Canadians deserve some answers. They deserve them from the ministers across the way, not from a Federal Court judge. When did the minister know about the case Colonel Noonan reported?