Joe Volpe

[Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, October 20th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, as I have indicated before, I conduct my business after hours, on weekends, et cetera, and I do it all according to the appropriate guidelines, as the member will know as he enjoys reading the Internet.

In fact, as I indicated before, I have invited him to come to some of these meetings and he has declined. I have had to go to Edmonton and speak with the mayor, speak with business and speak with labour to hear what they have to say about immigration because he does not ask any questions about them. I wonder why I should be doing his job.

[Citizenship and Immigration, October 6th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I have already given an indication that I invited members of the opposition to the same kind of lunches and dinners for consultation purposes but they declined.

I have had to go to Saskatchewan and to Alberta. I have met with premiers and with stakeholders, I have met with the mayors, with labour and with business in order to talk about the immigration issues that members refuse to raise in the House. I have had to go out there and do their job for them.

[Citizenship and Immigration, October 6th, 2005]

What is a good thing, Mr. Speaker, is the fact that we have already moved on measures to improve the way that people can come into this country.

I am really surprised that the member from Vancouver has something against the Children's Wish Foundation and the good people of Windsor, Nova Scotia, who have invited someone to come and participate in a fundraising exercise for the benefit of the larger community. Is she objecting to that?

[Citizenship and Immigration, October 5th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I have indicated that I have several responsibilities and I try to discharge them as responsibly as possible.

I have invited members of the immigration committee to such lunches and dinners. I noticed that the member opposite decided to decline as we were discussing business that would be of some benefit to the House, as I present an immigration plan later on in the month.

[Citizenship and Immigration, October 5th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, as I have indicated already in other answers, I conduct meetings with stakeholders and other constituents over the course of hours that are beyond the normal working hours in the House. When I invite those people for the benefit of their consultation, I do so in a responsible fashion and I pick up the costs of those meetings.

We put it on proactive disclosure in the House and we do it to demonstrate that we do this—

[Citizenship and Immigration, October 5th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, as I—

[Citizenship and Immigration, October 4th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, once again, everyone in the House is aware that one of the reasons we post these on a proactive disclosure is so everyone sees exactly where the money is spent and how it is spent. I am quite happy that the House is going through a period where it is beginning to understand all of these.

As for the member, it is difficult to appreciate what he says because he is one of those individuals who has not seen a $3 bill that he would not idolize.

[Citizenship and Immigration, October 4th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for recognizing that one of the functions of the minister is to have consultations and to think in terms of developing a plan for immigration.

I will be pleased when he recognizes, as the press has today, that three cities in Canada, Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto, have made it to the top 10 list of most desirable cities. They have one thing in common and that is they are filled with immigrants.

I look forward to discussing those issues with the House as we unfold the plan.

[Citizenship and Immigration, October 3rd, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I guess he is absolutely right. In this instance we are talking about working meals designed to ensure that the roles and responsibilities as a minister, both in immigration and in regional responsibilities are done through stakeholder meetings and with other ministers and other people who have an interest.

We have seen the outcome of some of those discussions already in terms of the immigration policy that is being developed. I am sure the member will look forward to applauding what we are going to present for the House's consideration in just a few short weeks.

[Citizenship and Immigration, October 3rd, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I think we have already answered those kinds of questions.

These things are posted on a proactive disclosure website so that everybody understands exactly what happens with the moneys that are put at the disposal of ministers for the conduct of business.

I think if the member did an examination of what each and every one of those expenses were for, he would find that everything was well within measured Treasury Board guidelines and that it involved the conduct of business. If the member took the trouble to examine that, he would find that he would be more than satisfied.