House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2008, with 38% of the vote.
Manufacturing Sector April 9th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec was tooting his own horn about phase two of his eponymous plan. Phase one of his plan was so effective that since he took the job two years ago, Quebec has lost nearly 45,000 jobs in the manufacturing sector.
Is the minister aware that two times zero is zero, and that if the second phase is anything like the first, the manufacturing jobs crisis will only get worse in the regions of Quebec?
Business of Supply April 1st, 2008
Mr. Speaker, I heard my fellow member say that the Bloc Québécois is trying to intrude on federal legislation. When it comes to minimum wage, which involves the Canada Labour Code for federally regulated workers, how can the federal government agree to adjust the federal minimum wage to match the provincial minimum wage? How can the federal government agree to adjust the minimum wage in Quebec so that it is the same? How can it be the same in New Brunswick, in Ontario and yet this is acceptable to the federal government? This is not a matter of intruding on federal jurisdiction. It is simply asking for accommodation, as was the case for minimum wage, which would give telecommunications, transportation, bank workers, and so on the right to work in French. Currently, these institutions have no obligation to make people work in French.
Earlier, my colleague from Abitibi gave examples. I can also give a very concrete one. At the Dorval airport, the person at security could not even speak to me properly in French. Worse still, she could not speak to me properly in English. I did not understand a single word of what she said to me in English. All she was asking was if she could touch my sweater, and I did not understand what she was saying because she spoke English poorly and her French was worse.
I think that there is a problem in institutions under federal jurisdiction, and we should give people the right to speak French. Speaking in your mother tongue when serving someone who speaks the same language as you is a fundamental right.
Business of Supply April 1st, 2008
Mr. Speaker, my colleague has been focusing only on language. In the motion, we used the language issue as an example.
The Minister of Labour said earlier that the Conservative Party had recognized the Quebec nation. However, it was not the Conservative Party that recognized it. It was the House of Commons. More than 260 members voted in favour of that motion. It was the House of Commons that recognized the Quebec nation.
My question for my colleague is very simple. What is the meaning of “Quebec nation” for him? What does “nation” mean? What does this word actually mean? It is only a symbol? Does a nation have powers and prerogatives? Is the existence of that nation based on certain elements? I do not want the member to focus his answer on the language once again. Everybody recognizes that French is the official language in Quebec. This does not prevent people from being bilingual or trilingual. It does not stop us from having international relations.
My question is very simple and I would appreciate an answer. What does the member actually understand by “recognition of the Quebec nation”? What does the word “nation” mean for him?
Regional Development March 11th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, what we want is for Quebec to have full power to develop its own regions. And until then, Quebec has the right to have its fair share.
In western Canada, where the economy is booming, the government is planning a $16 million increase in the economic development budget for 2008-09, while in Quebec, which has been hit by the forestry and manufacturing crisis, the government is cutting $107 million.
Does the Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec think he is still representing the interests of Quebec well when his own government is focusing on the west and its rich oil companies?
Regional Development March 11th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, while the government is helping the oil industry in the west, nothing is being done for Quebec. Two years ago, the Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec spoke of a sort of Marshall plan to revitalize the regions.
If we look at the evolution of his budget, his plan is more regressive than progressive. The agency's budget was $439 million in 2005-06, when the Conservatives arrived, and the budget for 2008-09 is $287 million, or barely half of that.
How can the minister talk about developing the regions of Quebec when he is cutting their funding?
Concept Mat March 3rd, 2008
Mr. Speaker, a Matane business, Concept Mat, was recently awarded two prizes at the Trophées Innovation 2007 gala in Montreal.
Concept Mat earned accolades in two of the five categories, specifically, “innovative product or technology—residential” and “innovative product or technology—sustainable development”.
The company broke new ground by creating environmentally friendly walls made of soya vegetable oil and recycled plastic. Expanded with water, these walls are air tight, have superior soundproofing qualities and are even recyclable.
The eco-concept walls are mildew resistant, emit no harmful substances for the ozone layer and have the advantage of being fire retardant.
This business from my riding is a good example not only of ecological innovation, but also of sustainable development.
Congratulations to the management and staff at Concept Mat in Matane.
Sustainable Development Awards February 28th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, recently, the Agence régionale de mise en valeur des forêts privées du Bas-Saint-Laurent announced the winners of the Mérite forestier du Bas-Saint-Laurent, promoting sustainable development in private forestry management.
I want to congratulate the winners in the category “Owners of under 120 hectares”: Adélard Bérubé, from Saint-Octave-de-Mitis won first place; Jean-Paul Morneau, from Rivière-Bleue, won second place; and Yves Detroz, from Trinité-des-Monts, won third place.
In the category “Owners of 120 hectares or more”, first place went to Michel Labrie, from Saint-Cyprien; second place to Mario Lagacé, from Saint-Hubert, and third place to Louis-Cyrice Albert, from Saint-Cyprien.
All these producers are passionate, hard-working and versatile people whose hard work is a credit to sustainable development.
On behalf of myself and my colleagues in the Bloc Québécois, I would like to congratulate these foresters who represent Quebec's know-how in the responsible management of natural resources.
The Budget February 28th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, the answer is very simple. When I was saying that the Minister of Finance might not survive, I meant he would not survive as Minister of Finance. That is what I meant. This has nothing to do with physical harm. We are talking about a minister and we are saying that he is a bad manager. Let us be clear.
The Budget February 28th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, people here seem to have an exaggerated sense of the ridiculous. The fiscal imbalance has not been resolved. Let us be honest: to resolve the fiscal imbalance, there have to be tax transfers or something the federal government cannot go back on. Currently, if we get a new government and it decides to cut the transfers, then it is game over. Cutting a cheque will not resolve the fiscal imbalance. That is not how the fiscal imbalance will be resolved with the provinces.
Furthermore, my colleague said that the regions should be pleased with the budget. There is absolutely nothing in this budget for regional development. There is zero—less than zero. Not only is there less than zero, but the proposed measures will harm the regions. The government is currently closing research centres. For example, it has closed the research centre in Trois-Rivières and is going to close the one in Rimouski. And yet, these research centres would help us develop businesses. The hon. member cannot tell me that this budget will help the regions and that we should be happy to vote in favour of it. Let us be reasonable.
The Budget February 28th, 2008
Mr. Speaker, indeed, they are so happy about what they were offered that if the Minister of Finance had been standing in front of them, he probably would not have survived. That is definitely a symptom of the Conservative budget. I call it a symptom, because it is practically a disease.
If we want our society to develop, we must invest heavily in education and training. Telling young people that we will not invest enough in post-secondary education basically means telling people from low income families that they will never be able to access post-secondary education, or complete university or even a college program. We cannot forget that, despite the loan and bursary system, young people still leave university with a heavy debt load. At present, the system does not really meet the needs of our citizens who want to receive training, particularly young people.
The federal government had an incredible surplus. It had the capacity to reinvest in education through transfers to the provinces, but it did not do so. This is unfortunate, since it is our future that is being forfeited by the federal government. It is jeopardizing the future of many citizens who will unfortunately never be able to access post-secondary education.