John Baird

[The Budget, March 23rd, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, the priority of the Liberal Party is to bring Canada into a reckless election and to form a coalition with the Bloc Québécois and the NDP. That is not in the interest of hard-working Canadians.

What Canadians told us, when we consulted on this budget, was seniors living in poverty needed help, and it is in there; that volunteer firefighters needed support, and it is in there; that the men and women who worked in our hospitals needed an increase in transfer payments to the provinces, and it is in there.

The Liberal leader should put aside his own narrow partisan interest and do the right thing for Canadians and support the budget.

[The Budget, March 23rd, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, the budget presented yesterday by the Minister of Finance focuses on the priorities of Canadians, whether it is most vulnerable senior citizens living in poverty, there is help for them; whether it is support for volunteer firefighters who do an extraordinary job in communities across Canada, there is support for them; or whether it is support for health care, which will have risen by 36%, an unprecedented commitment to public health care.

The Liberal Party, and he will not know because he was not here, cut health care by $25 billion. I know that because the member for Toronto Centre told me so.

[The Budget, March 22nd, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to respond to the point of order. The member opposite did yell out that she had read it.

[Health, March 22nd, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, we believe that health care is an incredibly important priority, particularly when it comes to those in first nations, and those in northern Ontario and northern Canada. We have made an unprecedented commitment to health care, and we would be very pleased to look into the matter that the member raised.

[Ethics, March 22nd, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, it is this government which brought in the Federal Accountability Act that established this five-year ban because we believe it is important that Canadians who want to serve in government come with the best interests of Canadians and not to enrich themselves.

When information was brought to our attention, we immediately referred them to the relevant authorities. We are going to let them conduct an investigation and if anyone has broken the law, he or she should face the full force of the consequence of that same law.

[Ethics, March 22nd, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, when information was brought to our attention in this regard we did the responsible thing and forwarded it to the relevant authorities. We will let them conduct an investigation. We sent it to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Ethics Commissioner and the Commissioner of Lobbying. These are the independent officers who can look into this matter.

Anyone who breaks this very important law should face the full force of the law.

[The Budget, March 22nd, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, the government would never do that.

The Minister of Finance, the Prime Minister and members of this government caucus have fanned out right across the country to listen to Canadians' views on the budget.

But look at what the Liberal Party is doing. It is now charging people to “ensure your opinion is represented in the Liberal caucus room. All you have to do is make a donation to the Liberal Party of Canada”. I have here an email and it is very simple: “Taking part is simple. Just make a donation of as little as $10 and they can ensure your views are heard in the Liberal caucus”.

Canadians reject this pay to play attitude from the Liberal Party and call on them to cancel this call this afternoon.

[Ethics, March 22nd, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, there is no indication of one single dollar being paid to the individual. If the member opposite has any evidence to suggest that was the case, she should table it before this House.

[Ethics, March 22nd, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite is making some rather outrageous claims. If he has any information to back up what he has said, he should table it in the House. If he refuses to, I would ask the hon. member what he has to hide.

[Ethics, March 22nd, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, what we are talking about are the actions of a private citizen. There is no indication whatsoever that the individual received any grant or any favour from the government.

Any individual who does not respect the tough new laws that this government has put in place should face the full force of law. When it was brought to our attention, we immediately forwarded the matter to the relevant authorities. That was the responsible thing to do.