Hélène LeBlanc

[Extension of Sitting Hours, May 27th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I want to commend my colleague on her speech. She very eloquently illustrated the government's lack of professionalism. She showed how adding extra sitting hours does not mean working more effectively. It means botching bills the way the government keeps doing. Then we have to fix the government's mistakes later.

I would like my colleague to elaborate on the government's dysfunctional nature and its inability to work effectively in the House.

[Business of Supply, May 15th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for Saint-Laurent—Cartierville, who just made a speech. He reminded us of the importance of having a public broadcaster like the CBC, not only for Canadian culture, but also for the Quebec, French Canadian and English Canadian cultures.

Could he elaborate on the difference between a public and a private broadcaster and their respective mandates? Also, how important is the public broadcaster in terms of how it contributes to the development of Canadian talent?

[Business of Supply, May 15th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Louis-Hébert for his speech.

He raised some important points in his speech. In fact, since the arrival of the Conservative government, the gap between rich and poor, and also between men and women, has widened. Furthermore, he also pointed out that the cuts to CBC will further increase the gaps, particularly between the regions and urban centres.

CBC's mandate is much broader than what is on paper. Consider Radio Canada International and also the reputation of this institution, which is internationally renowned.

We know that CBC is a vehicle for broadcasting Quebec and Canadian culture and how that is so important in a North American context.

I would like him to elaborate on CBC's broader mandate.

[Kidnapping of Girls in Nigeria, May 12th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Ottawa—Vanier for his speech, and all the members who have taken part or are now taking part in the emergency debate to raise questions about the tragic kidnapping of these young women.

I know that the member who just spoke has travelled in Africa. I would like him to tell us about the economic situation in Nigeria. Also, the present government has an increasing tendency to tie international co-operation to industry and industrial projects. I would like to hear his comments on that subject.

[Business of Supply, May 6th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for Peace River for his speech.

It is clear that there is a problem. Employment and Social Development Canada seems to be looking for ways to change the rules on the fly. However, we need to be addressing the root of the problem.

By dismantling Statistics Canada, the Conservatives completely dismantled the system that provided an accurate picture of the economic and employment situation right across the country. That is why they are still fumbling and trying to fix the problem. There is obviously a very real problem here.

Does my colleague agree that it is time the government stopped playing games with the temporary foreign worker program and asked the Auditor General to conduct a full review?

[Committees of the House, May 6th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the third report of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women in relation to its study of the main estimates 2014-15.

[Business of Supply, April 10th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his speech. As we have already said, the NDP supports this motion.

Why did the Liberals not go even further? The NDP had moved a motion that went much further. It gave more power to the Speaker, in order to prevent the government from using this measure—time allocation—as a guillotine, as his colleague mentioned. A referee, such as the Speaker of the House, could determine when it would be appropriate to use a time allocation motion. Furthermore, this kind of motion should be used only in exceptional cases.

Why are the Liberals afraid to go even further and put an end to this abuse?

[Petitions, April 10th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present a petition signed by thousands of Canadians who are concerned about our democracy. They want to protect our Democracy 24/7. They are calling for a public inquiry into the fraud that occurred during the last election.

[Economic Action Plan 2014 Act, No. 1, April 8th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his very insightful question. This is something we looked into together at the Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology, where he had the opportunity to serve a few times. He also looked into this when he was the science and technology critic.

My colleague is absolutely right. There has to be a chain. You have to go from the top down. Applied research is downstream, but there needs to be a well, a reserve. This well is drying up because the current government has no interest in science and is not particularly interested in basing its policies on science or solid evidence. We all know about the cuts at Statistics Canada. This data is key to ensuring we have an economic portrait of Canada for our discussions on the economy and the budget. This information is missing and data collection has stopped since the famous long-form census was cancelled. That worries me, and it should worry my Conservative colleagues because not having this economic portrait is very harmful to Canada's economic future.

[Economic Action Plan 2014 Act, No. 1, April 8th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question.

I mentioned in my speech that companies had not reinvested $567 billion, even though they had received tax breaks. Those corporate tax breaks are not being reinvested in Canada to create jobs. That was my point.

I must admit that I would have liked to have much more time to talk about this subject. I am sure all the other members in the House would agree, but unfortunately the government chose to impose time allocation. We will not have time to debate this bill—and, most importantly, to study it carefully in committee to improve it—even though this bill will have some very serious consequences for Canadians.