Mr. Speaker, I in fact did not hear the interventions that were said.
I know we disagree on many issues with the leader of the Bloc Québécois, but let me be very clear: I certainly do not believe that he supports the Taliban.
House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2011, with 45% of the vote.
Points of Order December 2nd, 2010
Mr. Speaker, I in fact did not hear the interventions that were said.
I know we disagree on many issues with the leader of the Bloc Québécois, but let me be very clear: I certainly do not believe that he supports the Taliban.
Business of the House December 2nd, 2010
Mr. Speaker, we will continue today with the opposition day motion by our friends from the New Democratic Party. Pursuant to an order made earlier today, the vote on the NDP motion will be deferred until the end of government orders on Tuesday.
Tomorrow we will consider a great bill proposed by the Minister of Justice, Bill C-22, protecting children from online sexual exploitation. The Minister of Justice has another great bill, Bill C-54, protecting children from sexual predators, which we will then debate. We will then move to Bill C-33, the safer railways act, on which the Minister of State for Transport has done a lot of very good work. Next is Bill C-21, the standing up for victims of white collar crime act, which is another strong justice bill brought forward by the Attorney General of Canada.
Next week we will continue with business from Friday.
I am pleased to report that there are ongoing constructive, and even harmonious, discussions among the parties, so the list of business that I mentioned may change.
Next week, each and every day we will be debating great bills that will do great things for Canada.
Also I will return to the House at a later time to designate the last allotted day.
Taseko Mines Limited December 2nd, 2010
Mr. Speaker, I think the Liberal Party has changed its position. The member for Bourassa talked about the possibility and yesterday the member for Ajax—Pickering came to the conclusion that in fact it was a fact, which of course it is not.
If the member opposite has any evidence to back up the claims and the speculation in which he is engaging, I would encourage him to table it before the House.
If the Liberal Party will not table this information before the House after question period, what does it have to hide?
Taseko Mines Limited December 2nd, 2010
Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to tell the member for Bourassa that I do share his view that the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans is a woman of great integrity.
The government rejected this project based on the publicly available environmental assessment which said that it would do irreparable harm to the environment. We did the right thing for the environment.
Release of Documents by WikiLeaks December 2nd, 2010
Mr. Speaker, I was watching television a few moments ago and the Prime Minister is in Mississauga, so it would be very hard for him to stand here.
Release of Documents by WikiLeaks December 2nd, 2010
Mr. Speaker, as I said yesterday in response to the question that was directed to me by the New Democratic Party, this individual is no longer an adviser to the Prime Minister and has not been for some time. I would not share the view, and I disagree with him. That would be the view of the government.
Foreign Affairs December 2nd, 2010
Mr. Speaker, our government, and I think all Canadians, are incredibly pleased that Aung San Suu Kyi has finally been released from house arrest in Burma. Canada has taken very strong sanctions against this repressive regime.
The leader of the NDP has been a good advocate on this file and the government is certainly pleased to continue to work with him on this important issue.
Pensions December 2nd, 2010
Mr. Speaker, I remember a lot of very strong words and strong speeches from the Liberal member for Toronto Centre back in the early 1990s, when the Liberal government of the day gutted the public health care system. I believed the hon. member for Toronto Centre then and I believe him now when I look back at those great words.
Our government has really led by example. We have reduced spending in the offices of ministers. We made an incredible cut in the use of military aircraft for political actors. We have also cut polling. We have also cut spending on hospitality and travel. We have a good record in that regard.
Pensions December 2nd, 2010
Mr. Speaker, the global economic downturn has had real consequences for every country in the world, not just Canada. Canada was the last country to go into those uncertain economic times. We are very proud we are the first country to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
We have seen the creation of a substantial number of jobs, more than 420,000 net new jobs. We are pleased with that.
We are always concerned about seniors. This is why every budget we have brought forward supports seniors. We have done an incredibly important job. One of the most important issues for seniors is health care. This government has increased funding by 30%, where the previous government cut it by $25 billion.
Pensions December 2nd, 2010
Mr. Speaker, it will not come as any surprise to the member for Wascana or anyone else that I do not share his characterization in the run-up to his question.
The Prime Minister spoke very clearly yesterday that we would continue to support seniors and that the initiative was cancelled.