Jean Chrétien

[Government Contracts, May 29th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, first of all, what the member said and what the Deputy Prime Minister said are not the same thing.

He said that at the present time, we are working to establish a code. We will soon be tabling in the House a code to guide relations between members, ministers and crown corporations.

Right now, in response to the opposition in particular, we have asked the auditor general to conduct a review. That is what she is doing at this time and she is an officer of the House of Commons.

[Minister of Immigration, May 29th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I do not think this question deserves an answer.

[Government Grants, May 29th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, again, how low can they go?

I know the minister's brother and he has been an extremely competent public servant for a long time in P.E.I., working for a public administration.

The member of parliament says that he was lobbying for his brother. He was lobbying for a public institution in the province of P.E.I. I think it is shameful to act like that in the House of Commons.

[Government Grants, May 29th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, the solicitor general is the minister responsible in the House for the province of P.E.I. Institutions in that province made an application. They sent a copy of the application to the minister who passed it on to his department. It was the commissioner who discussed it after he had received the document.

It was his duty as a member of parliament to represent his constituency and do something that could be useful for the RCMP and the people of Prince Edward Island.

[Government Contracts, May 29th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, this question is completely unacceptable. One could rise and ask the same question of everyone.

When someone asks a member whether he was in a particular bar last night, even if they know he was not, doubt is created.

One could ask a member whether he beat his wife yesterday. If he does not answer or says he did not, doubt will be created in people's minds. This is a deeply destructive and dishonest line of questioning.

[Ethics, May 29th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, rather than reading a prepared question, if he had listened he would have understood what I said. I said that I was inviting the House of Commons to establish an ethics counsellor who would look at the ethics of members of parliament, senators and ministers and would report to the House. I said that a minute ago. He should listen before asking questions.

[Ethics, May 29th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I thought those people had some standards. Yesterday I was in Rome for one of the most important days in the western world. We made a decision to take the Russians into NATO.

Perhaps I can inform the hon. member that while I was there, NATO Secretary General Robertson said to me “Thank you, Prime Minister of Canada. The first time this problem was discussed at NATO it was an idea of Canada”.

[Government Contracts, May 29th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, the minister and the Deputy Prime Minister have said that there is an investigation. We have seen no mention of former minister Gagliano's name on any of the documents or in any public communication in relation to this inquiry.

[Government Loans, May 29th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I am a graduate in law and I know that if a loan has not been paid after six months the loan is recalled and the company is sued. There is no such a record to the effect that the loan has not been paid. If the loan has not been paid, the Caisse populaire, le Fonds de solidarité and the Business Development Bank would have taken action against that businessman and they have not done so in the last six years.

[Government Contracts, May 29th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, the minister acted very properly. He said that what was going on in his private life before he became minister was his own business. If there are public matters that have occurred since then, while he was a minister, then he would have to answer questions.

The case to which the hon. member is referring involves a contract which, as far as I know, was awarded by the department of public works.