Hélène LeBlanc

[City of LaSalle, March 12th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, this year, LaSalle will celebrate its 100th anniversary. Located on the banks of the St. Lawrence River, it owes its name to René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, born in 1643 in Normandy. He settled in the region that was later called Lachine—meaning China—because of the great explorer's ambition to find the route to Asia.

Just like its illustrious namesake, it was builders and labourers who founded LaSalle in 1912. These women and men had that same energy and determination which gave rise to the industrial boom of the Island of Montreal.

Settlers named Bergevin and Newman were followed by others named Caruso, Singh and Wong. Newcomers from Italy, Nigeria, Pakistan, Cameroon and many places in between have found LaSalle to be a vibrant, welcoming and respectful community where they can work and live together. I am looking forward to taking part in the festivities to commemorate the centenary of LaSalle and to celebrate the rich heritage of this forward-looking community.

[Committees of the House, March 7th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for his description of the last few years of so-called economic growth and the turmoil we have been through under the Conservative government.

I would like him to explain how, over the past few years, Canada has lost its reputation as a leader and innovator and why our industries are having a hard time innovating and being industrial leaders.

[Protecting Canada's Immigration System Act, March 6th, 2012]

Madam Speaker, I want to commend the hon. member for Saint-Lambert on her excellent work and her excellent presentation and on the remarkable job she does within the NDP as the deputy immigration critic.

I would like her to elaborate a bit on the issue of the countries that would be put on a list, on the fact that the list would be developed only by the minister and how this process might go off the rails given that any decision would be the responsibility of just one person.

[Protecting Canada's Immigration System Act, March 6th, 2012]

Madam Speaker, I would like to point out once again that many people in LaSalle—Émard are in extremely difficult situations precisely because they are trying to claim refugee status. I have heard some very troubling stories.

I wonder if the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration could tell us why the government decided to amend the legislation and introduce Bill C-31, which, in the end, creates two categories of refugees and makes judgments regarding different refugee cases?

[Protecting Canada's Immigration System Act, March 6th, 2012]

Madam Speaker, I would like to say that in the riding I have the pleasure of representing, there are many people with refugee status. There is a lot of confusion, and many people are worried. These people's stories are disturbing, and I am very upset and worried about them.

I have a question for my colleague from Winnipeg North because he is a member of the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration. First there was Bill C-4, which was studied in the House. Now we have Bill C-31, and before that, there was Bill C-11. Is my colleague concerned that all of these changes will make the refugee claim process even more cumbersome?

[The Environment, March 5th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, a number of climate research projects are in jeopardy, and major projects have been scrapped because the Conservatives did not keep their promise to invest $35 million in this scientific field. The Conservatives broke their promises, and the PEARL Arctic research lab will have to be shut down.

Why is the minister consigning decades of investment to the scrap heap and, in the process, sacrificing our reputation as a science leader? Will the government save PEARL?

[Aerospace Industry, February 28th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the government announced that it was going to review all the programs that support the aerospace industry. Canadians are no fools. They know that “review” often means “cut” to the Conservatives. The aerospace industry supports 80,000 jobs, 40,000 of which are in Quebec, including in the Montreal area. The industry accounts for 70% of the research and development done in Canada.

Will the government commit to funding the research and development that supports thousands of jobs in the aerospace industry?

[Ending the Long-Gun Registry Act, February 13th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I wish to congratulate my hon. colleague from Scarborough Southwest on his excellent speech. He gave us a lot of information.

I wonder if he could describe for us how eliminating the firearms registry will affect his riding and the greater Toronto area.

[Ending the Long-gun Registry Act, February 13th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I have a question for the government member who just spoke. Since the May 2 election, it has become clear that the current government really wants to increase public safety, considering the bills it has introduced, for instance. Wanting to destroy the information that already exists in the registry would appear to run counter to that, since destroying the data will not bring back the money that has already been invested in creating the registry.

Why does the government want to throw away billions of dollars' worth of information that Canadian taxpayers have already paid for, when the provinces and police forces are telling us that the registry helps enhance public safety?

[Copyright Modernization Act, February 8th, 2012]

Madam Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member, with whom I sit on the Standing Committee on Industry. I would like him to elaborate on the way in which creators will be paid for their work. I am talking about authors of textbooks or articles, musicians, etc. What would Bill C-11 do in terms of providing the creators with fair compensation for their work?