Gilles Duceppe

[Census, September 28th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservative government and the Conservatives were very critical of previous Liberal governments for not respecting the will of the House. Now that the Conservatives are in power, they are doing the same thing. The Conservative government has announced that it will not respect the motion to reinstate the mandatory long form even if the motion is passed by a majority in the House. While he is at it, why does the Prime Minister not lock the door to the House of Commons? That way he could govern all alone to his heart's content.

[Census, September 28th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, an internal Conservative government report confirms that abolishing the mandatory long form census will make certain data no longer reliable. The government knew the consequences its decision to abolish the mandatory long form could have and went ahead with its decision anyway.

Why is the Prime Minister insisting on changing the census when he knows full well that this will compromise the reliability of data that a number of groups in civil society depend on?

[Infrastructure, September 27th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, administrative delays in evaluating infrastructure projects have led to increased demand for certain materials and higher labour costs. The deadline further complicates matters: everything must be done by March 31, 2011, or there will be no money.

Why is the Prime Minister refusing to extend the deadline? The funds are already earmarked, so extending the deadline would cost nothing extra and would create jobs.

[Infrastructure, September 27th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, in his progress report on the economic recovery plan, the Minister of Finance boasted that 97% of the infrastructure projects are underway or have been completed. However, in Quebec, one-third of the projects may not be completed by March 31, 2011. As a result, they will not receive the funding promised by the Conservative government.

Does the Prime Minister realize that by refusing to extend the March 31 deadline, he is penalizing Quebec as a whole while the economic crisis marches on?

[Firearms Registry, September 23rd, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, a few days ago, the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons promised to work with the opposition and listen to what it had to say. If the government House leader really meant what he said, why does he not start by ending the gun registration amnesty, which is compromising the registry?

The role of government is to enforce the law, not to find ways around it. Its job is to enforce the law. Why is it doing the opposite?

[Firearms Registry, September 23rd, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, when the Prime Minister was in opposition, he repeatedly accused the Liberal government of the day of not respecting the will of the House. The Prime Minister's statement following yesterday's vote suggests that his feelings have changed. He has no intention of respecting the will of the majority of the members.

If the Prime Minister thinks it is so important to respect the will of the House, then why is he not respecting the outcome of the vote, which confirmed that a majority wants to maintain the gun registry?

[The Economy, September 22nd, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, he is helping the unemployed by taking $20 billion out of their pockets. He is helping the forestry industry by doing nothing. Come on. If the Prime Minister was serious, he would ask his Minister of Finance to stop using scare tactics and extend the deadline for infrastructure projects.

Does the Prime Minister realize that his inflexibility in this matter is a threat to one third of the infrastructure projects in Quebec, which are creating jobs and keeping the economy going? It seems to me that, in the midst of an economic crisis, that is more important than an absurd speech to the Canadian Club.

[The Economy, September 22nd, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, at the Canadian Club of Ottawa, the Minister of Finance gave a partisan, alarmist, even ridiculous speech. Specifically, he predicted the loss of 400,000 jobs if a coalition of the three opposition parties were elected.

Instead of having his finance minister invent doomsday scenarios, why does the Prime Minister not deal with the real issues, such as the real economic crisis we are going through? Why does he not implement a real recovery plan that would help the forestry industry, which is experiencing real problems?

[Millennium Summit, September 21st, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, another goal of the Millennium Summit was to ensure environmental sustainability. The Conservative government has a poor record in that area as well.

How can this government believe that it will achieve this goal after killing the Kyoto protocol, sabotaging the Copenhagen accord and continuing to challenge the scientific basis of climate change?

[Millennium Summit, September 21st, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, in 2000, at the UN Millennium Summit, Canada agreed to support eight goals including eradicating extreme poverty and hunger. To that end, the government promised to allocate 0.7% of its gross domestic product to international aid. Eleven years later, the Conservative government is committing 0.31%, or less than half.

How can the Prime Minister have the gall to go to the United Nations as the champion of international aid when he has not even made the required contribution toward the main goal of the Millennium Summit, to eradicate poverty?