Mr. Speaker, I would like to present a petition from over 800 residents who are calling for the government to axe the GST from being charged on the federal and provincial excise tax on fuels.
House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2025, with 60% of the vote.
Petitions November 21st, 2005
Mr. Speaker, I would like to present a petition from over 800 residents who are calling for the government to axe the GST from being charged on the federal and provincial excise tax on fuels.
Aboriginal Affairs November 18th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, if the Liberals are serious about that, they would not have scrapped the Indian governance act.
The Peguis First Nation for Democracy requested the RCMP and INAC to investigate the past two elections. The first investigation is just coming out now and found election irregularities, yet the same chief is still in power today and has continued with the same practices to win the last election in March by only 29 votes.
The government makes phony claims about fixing the democratic deficit and improving accountability. People in first nations communities deserve better. The minister was made aware of this months ago and has done absolutely nothing about fixing the problem that is on the reserve right now.
Aboriginal Affairs November 18th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, we have a terrible election scandal involving vote buying, influence peddling and election rigging, but for once this does not directly involve the Liberal Party of Canada.
During the last three band council elections on Manitoba's Peguis First Nation reserve, voters have been intimidated, bribed and defrauded. Mail-in ballots were illegally purchased. Others were stolen from the post office. All of this has been declared by over 270 band members.
Why has the Minister of Indian Affairs not intervened to ensure that democracy is preserved in our first nation communities?
Excise Tax Act November 17th, 2005
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-448, An Act to amend the Excise Tax Act (motor vehicle fuel).
Mr. Speaker, I am proud today to introduce a bill that would correct the injustice of charging consumers too much for fuel by removing the GST being charged on the federal excise tax and provincial excise taxes across the country and to put that money back in the pockets of hard-working Canadians.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
Agriculture November 15th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, the Liberals love to talk about their phoney numbers but are ignoring the facts.
On the Liberal mini-budget, Bob Friesen of the CFA said, “The Liberal government abandoned rural Canada and have not supported Canadian farm families...yet...given the opportunity, farmers were neglected again”.
The minister should consider the facts. The fact is grain and oilseed prices are below the cost of production. The fact is U.S. and European subsidies are driving down commodity prices. The fact is the CAIS program is not going to save family farms. The fact is the Liberals had a chance to put farm aid in their mini-budget and did not.
Why are Liberals ignoring the facts and ignoring our farmers?
Sponsorship Program November 4th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, that was complete nonsense. On Page 438, Justice Gomery describes the sponsorship scandal as:
--inappropriate political interference in administrative matters...excessive concentration of power in the Prime Minister's Office, carelessness and incompetence and blatant disregard of Treasury Board policies, greed and venality. The public trust in its system of government was subverted and betrayed, and Canadians were outraged, not only because public funds were wasted and misappropriated, but also because no one was held responsible or punished for his misconduct.
The Prime Minister has been aware of this for a long time. Why have no Liberals gone to jail yet?
Sponsorship Program November 2nd, 2005
Mr. Speaker, today is a very sad day for Parliament. We now know from Justice Gomery that the Liberal government is guilty of funneling millions of public dollars into the Liberal Party.
Gomery has said that the Liberal Party, as an institution, cannot evade responsibility for the sponsorship scandal and what he calls a “depressing story of greed, venality and misconduct”.
Justice Gomery confirmed the existence of a culture of entitlement in the Liberal Party. The Liberal cabinet with the current Prime Minister, as finance minister, conceived and designed the sponsorship program. The Liberals ran the program. The Liberal Party benefited from the program and Liberals used the stolen public funds for partisan activities.
We know that $45 million is still unaccounted for. We know that at least $5.4 million has ended up in the hands of Liberals. This allowed the Liberal Party to buy elections, buy people and buy power.
The government and those responsible must be held to account. Why has no one gone to jail? It is indeed sad that the Liberal Party is still in government and it is even sadder that the NDP continues propping up that corrupt government.
New Democratic Party October 18th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, when it comes to parliamentary democracy, the New Democratic Party is acting more like an old autocratic party.
When the member for Churchill stood up for her conscience and her constituents by voting to preserve the traditional definition of marriage, the NDP leader stripped her of her critic responsibilities. Then he encouraged his hand-picked candidate to defeat the hard-working MP in a nomination battle, forcing her to sit as an independent member.
The MP for Churchill is a former hospital employee, union representative and a school board trustee. She is hard working and well liked by her constituents and parliamentary colleagues. In short, she represents the populist spirit of Tommy Douglas. But that spirit has no place in today's NDP which puts slavish devotion to political correctness far ahead of mainstream Canadian values.
If people want an MP who stands up for her constituents and does what she believes is right, not just somebody who toes the party line, they have no home in today's downtown NDP.
Correctional Service of Canada October 7th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, it has been well over three years now and the Treasury Board has not settled a contract between the Correctional Service of Canada and its corrections officers.
The labour minister has been bragging about his success in settling the short-lived CBC dispute. He said in the London Free Press that he brought the two groups together, read them the riot act and told them to think of the public interest.
Will the labour minister do the same for corrections officers who have been without a contract for three long years and are not allowed to strike?
Selkirk—Interlake October 7th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, my riding of Selkirk—Interlake has had a very challenging year. We have had the threat of water contamination from Devils Lake. As well, spring flooding and the record precipitation levels have left fields flooded and created the worst crop year on record. The excess moisture also has created major damage along riverbanks and shorelines. All of this has caused concern and great hardship for many people in my riding.
The communities along Lake Winnipeg and Lake Manitoba are now facing the threat of flooding from the high water levels on the lake due to fall storms and gusty winds. The residents of Selkirk—Interlake have responded to these challenges. With cooperation of property owners, residents and municipalities, we have been able to secure dikes and protect our communities.
I want to thank all who helped sandbag and build dikes. I also want to thank all the municipal officials for their hard work protecting our communities and establishing emergency plans to deal with this latest flood threat.