House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2011, with 45% of the vote.
Ethics June 20th, 2011
And never will be. That is the real deal. I like the member for Winnipeg North Centre, and he is not the member for Winnipeg North Centre.
I am pleased to confirm to the House and to my friend opposite that none of the three individuals he mentioned approved any of the 32 projects.
Ethics June 20th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, try as the member might, he is not the member for Winnipeg North Centre.
Ethics June 20th, 2011
Absolutely not, Mr. Speaker.
Government Spending June 20th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, I am happy to describe some of these projects and what was done. There is an airport in North Bay. The government helped resurface the runway so that planes could land on it.
There is a provincial highway in that part of rural Ontario that was repaved. That is important. A community centre was also built. It is now available for the benefit of the people in that municipality, and I could go on.
Foreign Affairs June 16th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, we stand with our allies in condemning this regime and the crackdown that followed the election just two short years ago. It was absolutely brutal and totally uncalled for.
Two years on, the repression continues, sadly, in Iran. Next door in Syria, Iranian officials are assisting the al-Assad regime's crackdown on the vulnerable people of Syria.
We will work with the international community to increase pressure on these regimes. We stand with the people of Syria. We stand with the people of Iran who yearn to be free and to exercise their rights.
G8 Summit June 16th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, in fact, it was not $50 million. It was about 10% or 20% less than that.
The Auditor General made some observations and recommendations to this government and to Parliament on how we could have greater transparency and openness. We have fully accepted those recommendations.
While I am on my feet, let me thank Sheila Fraser for the outstanding job she has done for Canadians over the past 10 years.
Government Spending June 16th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, I congratulate my friend from Hull—Aylmer for going back and reading various quotes I made as president of Treasury Board. I do hope other members of her caucus will reflect on some of those great speeches and comments.
This is what the government did. We spent money fixing up an airport in North Bay. We spent money fixing up a provincial highway in southern Ontario. We built a community centre. Those are all good public infrastructure projects that will benefit people in these municipalities for many years to come.
The Auditor General has come forward with some good advice and some good observations, and the government accepts all that good advice and will do better in the future.
Border Crossings June 16th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, as has been reported in this House numerous times, and I am pleased to do it again, we used an existing spending authority to help expeditiously move to get these 32 public infrastructure projects undertaken.
The Auditor General has suggested that we need to be more open and that we need to be more transparent in terms of the estimates that are presented to Parliament. We have fully accepted the Auditor General's good advice.
Auditor General's Report June 16th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, let me remind the member opposite that there are not 150 members of Parliament standing behind the President of the Treasury Board. There are actually 165, and together they form a strong, stable, national majority Conservative government.
Auditor General's Report June 16th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, I do enjoy these daily rhetorical flourishes from my friend opposite.
The bottom line is that 32 public infrastructure projects were provided with government support. Every dollar is accounted for. Airports were fixed up. A community centre was built. A provincial highway was resurfaced.
The Auditor General came forward with some suggestions and observations on how the government can do a better job of being more open and transparent, and we fully accepted her good advice.