Lawrence Cannon

[Government Programs, June 11th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, the purpose of the MTEP is to help out the Canadian tourism industry, which is in great need. The goals of this two-year recovery program have been met. During the first year of the program, almost 75% of the funding was granted to large Canadian cities. During the second year, we want to make sure that the smaller cities and towns can also benefit from the program and that is why 19 new events will receive funding this year.

[G8 and G20 Summits, June 11th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, once again, I would remind my hon. colleague that a large part of this spending is related to security. Of course some is also being spent on our marketing strategy. I would also add that certain aspects of the G8 and G20 summits allow us to celebrate Canada's achievements, particularly in terms of the Canadian economy as well as job creation and other indicators that show that we are the strongest country in terms—

[G8 and G20 Summits, June 11th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, infrastructure spending has been and continues to be part of programs that necessarily had to be approved by the House, by government. That is our economic action plan. The benefits of this plan introduced by the government can be seen across the country. We certainly are extremely proud of delivering. I can say that, over the course of 20 months, we have delivered—

[G8 and G20 Summits, June 11th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, as we have indicated, a good part of the costs involve security. Yes, a part will be used for the promotion, the marketing of Canada and the province of Ontario, as well as the area where these events will be held. That is perfectly normal, and that is the standard practice in other countries when they host summits. Many officials are applauding us for it.

I will say one last thing. For the past 20 years, they have been big on claims, small on delivery. They have not delivered a thing for Quebec.

[Access to Information, June 11th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, it is quite normal for a government to communicate with taxpayers. That is what we are doing and what we will keep on doing so that we can tell people about the good things our government has done, especially stimulating Canada's economy and creating jobs. Those are things that count, not just for Quebeckers, but for Canadians. Unfortunately, I cannot say as much for the Bloc Québécois, which has accomplished nothing in Quebec in the past 20 years.

[Access to Information, June 11th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, not at all. Communicating with the Canadian people is one of the government's most important jobs. That is why the Prime Minister and other ministers have spent the past 18 months travelling from coast to coast telling Canadians the good news about our economic action plan. It is also why we have gone the extra mile to communicate with the local and regional media. Canadians can count on us. We are going to keep on communicating with Canadians.

[G8 and G20 Summits, June 11th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, both the G8 and the G20 are excellent opportunities to showcase Canada's strengths to the world, to attract investment and, obviously, create jobs.

We are leading by example. As members know, we have the lowest taxes on new businesses and new business investment of any major economy. We have the lowest debt of any major economy. We have the strongest economic growth of any major economy, including from 2010 to 2011 to 2012. All of this is according to the IMF. We are getting the job done.

[G8 and G20 Summits, June 11th, 2010]

They have been deemed to be in line with the cost of summits.

Maybe the member for Wascana, instead of yapping as he is doing, should be listening to the answers then he would not ask ridiculous questions.

[G8 and G20 Summits, June 11th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, as we have indicated in the House, a majority of the costs that are associated with the holding of both summits that will be taking place in June are costs associated with security. These costs were given to us by a number of consultants.

[Rights & Democracy, June 10th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, I do not agree with my hon. colleague. Canada is leading the way in terms of defending human rights, and we do that on a daily basis. We have done it in Myanmar and in Afghanistan. We are doing it all around the world. We are standing up for human rights in Iran.

The young gentleman over on the other side should stand up with this government when we defend human rights around the world.