House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2015, with 58% of the vote.
Points of Order February 2nd, 2012
Mr. Speaker, your predecessor, the hon. Peter Milliken, indicated to this House that statements by members could not be used to directly attack a fellow member of this House. You were the Deputy Speaker at the time.
Do you intend to enforce that rule? If so, I would ask you to verify today's statement by the hon. member for North Vancouver.
Jean Pigott February 2nd, 2012
Mr. Speaker, Jean Pigott, one of the grandes dames of Ottawa, died earlier this year. Many already miss her sage advice, me included.
An Officer of the Order of Canada, Jean Pigott paved the way for future generations of Canadian women in business and politics. In the 1970s she served as CEO of Morrison Lamothe Bakery, one of only a handful of female CEOs in Canada at the time. In 1976, she was elected as a federal member of Parliament under the Progressive Conservative banner.
A positive force for change in the nation's capital, she headed the National Capital Commission from 1985 to 1992. In that role she became a highly visible champion of the capital as a place of symbols, history and pride. As a passionate and visionary community leader, she strived to make the nation's capital a second home for all Canadians.
The memory of Jean Pigott and the impact she had live on and will continue to do so for a long time yet. I want to thank her husband Arthur and the rest of her family for loving her, caring for her, and sharing her with Ottawa for so many wonderful years.
Merci, Jean.
Madam Speaker, I knew they would hide behind Mr. Ferguson's candidacy. That is not what we are criticizing. We are not criticizing the man, just the fact that the government said it wanted someone who was fluent in both of Canada's languages, which is perfectly reasonable, but that did not happen. The government did not even satisfy its own criteria. I hope there will be consequences.
The Commissioner of Official Languages, who is responsible for ensuring linguistic duality here in the House, is investigating the matter. I am looking forward to the results of that investigation. We cannot let this go without raising a fuss. This indicates a total lack of respect for Canada's two linguistic groups. When an agent of Parliament is required to master both languages, but the appointee does not fulfill that criterion, that demonstrates lack of self-respect and lack of respect for Canada's two linguistic groups. That is what we are not happy about, not the candidacy of any particular individual. The government should respect its own criteria.
Madam Speaker, this evening I am coming back to the question of the Auditor General of Canada, who is an officer of Parliament. We all remember everything that happened in the fall when the government presented the results of a process it had itself initiated by publishing the criteria in the Canada Gazette that the candidate had to meet. The announcement stated very clearly— it was written and spelled out—that fluency in English and French was essential. When the Prime Minister consulted the opposition party leaders in writing, he did not mention the fact that the candidate who had been chosen was not in fact bilingual.
When this became known, it caused a lot of ink to be spilled. It made a number of waves, and it is not over. Even the then President of the Public Service, Ms. Barrados, when a question was put to her at a parliamentary committee about the procedure followed by the public service when someone did not meet the specified criteria for a competition, said very clearly that if the person did not meet the language requirements they simply did not get the job, particularly if fluency in both languages was considered to be essential.
The mere fact that the government went ahead with the appointment and forced the vote in the House on the appointment of a person who did not meet the basic criteria is evidence of a lack of natural justice.
I know people who did not apply because they were not bilingual, when the position required it. If the government was going to insist on appointing someone who is not bilingual, then, and everyone acknowledges it, it should have started over from zero and changed the criteria, but it did not do that. It bent the selection process. The Conservatives’ answer, and I do not doubt they will spin the same yarn tonight, is that they looked but they could not find anyone. To offer that kind of rationale is absolutely unbelievable.
There is another major concern: there are several parties sitting in the House. There are at least three that are recognized because they have enough members to have party status: the Conservative Party, the New Democratic Party and the Liberal Party. There are also Bloc Québécois representatives and a representative from the Green Party. However, what we have to realize is that when the vote was called for, to approve the appointment of Mr. Ferguson, only one party supported it, when an officer of Parliament should have the support of more than one party. The New Democrats, the Liberals and the representatives of the Bloc and the Green Party voted against it.
The government has set a dangerous precedent for this officer of Parliament position. I think it will have consequences. I think Canadians are entitled to know that the government set up a process and then failed to abide by it, and that it put Mr. Ferguson in an extremely delicate and embarrassing position by insisting that he be appointed even though he did not meet the basic prerequisite in a country with two official languages, where the Charter of Rights and Freedoms states that loudly and clearly.
As well, only one party in the House supported it. The situation this creates is a matter of considerable concern, and I think the government should revisit its approach.
Questions Passed as Orders for Returns January 30th, 2012
With respect to the Action Plan for Official Languages 2003–2008, what were the actual expenditures by fiscal year, department and program?
Questions Passed as Orders for Returns January 30th, 2012
With regard to the Roadmap for Canada’s Linguistic Duality 2008 2013, what are the actual expenditures by department and program for fiscal years 2008-2009 and 2009-2010?
Questions Passed as Orders for Returns January 30th, 2012
With regard to refugee claims from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, how many claims were made in (i) 2006, (ii) 2007, (iii) 2008, (iv) 2009, (v) 2010?
Questions on the Order Paper January 30th, 2012
With regard to the 2011 official visit by the Right Honourable David Cameron, Prime Minister of Great Britain, which African ambassadors and high commissioners were invited to attend the joint session of the Senate and the House of Commons of Canada to listen to the speech given by the aforementioned Prime Minister?
2012 NHL All-Star Game January 30th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, first of all, I would like to wish everyone a happy new year. I extend my best wishes for good health and happiness.
Now let us talk about the 2012 National Hockey League All-Star weekend just held in Ottawa.
Ottawa was proud to host the celebratory game. Kudos to Alfredsson and his team. Kudos also to the folks involved, the league, the Senators hockey team, the Governor General, the city, the convention centre, the volunteers and the fans who made our city a destination.
The residents of Ottawa have demonstrated once again how welcoming we are. The entire weekend was a great experience for thousands of tourists and locals. They also got to meet NHL stars and see the Stanley Cup. The entire city came alive.
Hockey teams, no matter where they are based, experience highs and lows. This is also the case in politics. The important thing is to keep the team spirit and sense of camaraderie alive and to skate for the puck. One thing is for certain: on the weekend, everyone in Ottawa was a big winner.
Let us see this famous weekend once again in the not too distant future.
Points of Order December 15th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, I wish to correct the impression given by the Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism that I was asking for personal information. I was not. I was asking if he would look at the case, use his discretion and ensure cohesion in the implementation of a program.
He knows full well that I gave him the information I referred to. I gave him a copy of the front page edition of the Ottawa Citizen for December 8.