House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2000, with 54% of the vote.
Code of Conduct June 5th, 2002
Mr. Speaker, as a gift for what the member announced today, I would like to inform her that we intend to do that. It was part of the speech I made two weeks ago. The leader of the government has written to all parties about setting up a committee, so there will be guidelines for members of parliament and senators. Unfortunately the Alliance does not want to participate in such a committee.
Member for Halifax June 5th, 2002
Mr. Speaker, I would like to pay tribute in the House today to the member for Halifax. She has decided to step down as the leader of the New Democratic Party. We hope she will remain a member of parliament but I would like to congratulate her for a job well done.
She has been a pioneer in Canada in many ways. She started with her party under extremely difficult circumstances provincially and built a party from nothing. She led the official opposition at one time and could have perhaps become the premier but decided she would like to try to become prime minister instead. It was our gain.
She has been a great personality in the House. She has a lot of friends. She has great convictions and is a great example.
What has always impressed me is her desire to show all Canadians, French-speaking ones in particular, the importance of celebrating both official languages of this country.
She comes from Halifax and has never missed an opportunity to convincingly illustrate our country's bilingual nature.
I think all of us in the House consider the member for Halifax as a friend. For some of us on this side of the House, it is sometimes easier to have friends on the other side. It is less of a problem.
The member for Halifax has served her constituents, her party and her country extremely well. I thank her for a job well done.
Cabinet Ministers June 4th, 2002
Mr. Speaker, I never thought about it but it is a good idea.
Cabinet Ministers June 4th, 2002
Mr. Speaker, he just told me that he has a part time job with Tim Hortons on top of that. If he has too much work, I will become his assistant.
Cabinet Ministers June 4th, 2002
Mr. Speaker, this morning in cabinet the minister of fisheries said “Prime Minister, you have to play golf on Sunday and I will be your caddy. I want you on the golf course on Sunday, not at the governor general's”.
Cabinet Ministers June 4th, 2002
Mr. Speaker, Sunday perhaps.
Cabinet Ministers June 4th, 2002
Mr. Speaker, I have absolute confidence that the Deputy Prime Minister can handle it very effectively. He has established an extremely good rapport with Governor Ridge of the United States. The file is about to be completed and I wanted to finish the job. The job will be well finished and relations with Governor Ridge are excellent.
The Leader of the Opposition said that to have good relations with the Americans is to bend and receive a kick in the back and turn and ask the person--
Cabinet Ministers June 4th, 2002
Mr. Speaker, the many talents of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance are very well known by the people of Canada and by me in particular.
Government Contracts June 3rd, 2002
Mr. Speaker, I am reading the letter sent to the minister of public works on May 30. It states “A number of organizations anticipating funding from the sponsorship program have already included this considerable amount in their budgeting. Depriving them of this source of funds in the short term would, without a doubt, be disastrous for a number of them”. These are his words, not mine.
Government Contracts June 3rd, 2002
With pleasure, Mr. Speaker, because this file is extremely well known. The reality is that 20 jobs were created in my riding where we had 18% unemployment. The loan was made six years ago and the loan is still in operation, so it is a sign that the risk was pretty good if the payments are still made after six years.