House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2015, with 59% of the vote.
Firearms Registry December 13th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, we have always said, on this side of the House, that we respect the Canadian Constitution. That is what Canadians and Quebeckers want.
We have passed a bill that, at the end of the day, represents the responsibility of the federal government in relation to criminal law. That legislation will be in force shortly, when we proceed to third reading. I hope that all provincial governments will respect the Canadian Constitution, as we do.
Firearms Registry December 13th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, the best way to fight crime, whether in Quebec or outside Quebec, is to have tougher laws that will mean that we have safer streets and communities where we can live in peace. We recently passed a bill in the House of Commons, and I am eager to see that bill come into force, as quickly as possible. That is one of the ways to fight crime. We are not going to achieve that goal with a long gun registry.
Firearms Registry December 13th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind my colleagues that on September 26, 2006, which was 5 years ago, the Auditor General stated, after having reviewed the long gun registry:
We found the information in the database to have significant quality problems:
...Verification frequently determined that information on the weapon's action, make or serial number was wrong.
This dates back to 2006. The database is incorrect, inaccurate and outdated.
Firearms Registry December 13th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, there is absolutely nothing new in what our government is doing. We made an election promise to all Canadians and Quebeckers. We said that we would scrap the registry, and that is what we are going to do. The registry consists of inaccurate, outdated and obsolete data. We do not want a provincial government to recreate, through the back door, a registry with inaccurate, outdated, and obsolete data.
Firearms Registry December 6th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, it is true that this government and this country remember. We remember the terrible tragedy that occurred on December 6, 22 years ago already. We want to ensure that the violent and tragic events that occurred 22 years ago never occur again.
We may never fully understand what happened that day, but together in this House we can ensure that it never happens again. We are working on it.
Official Languages November 25th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, we will continue promoting and protecting the French language, not just in Quebec, but also in Canada. The government announced that it will launch a consultative committee that will work on the ground to speak with Canadians and ensure that employees of federally regulated businesses in Quebec are fully able to work in French. We will examine the facts and take action if necessary.
Official Languages November 25th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, I am disappointed to hear the opposition member talk about wasting time. Taking a close look at an issue before making a decision is not wasting parliamentarians' time.
Official Languages November 25th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, as I said earlier, the committee will look at the facts and then report to Canadians. The most important thing for us is that we live in a bilingual country and we must promote the two official languages of that country. This is what we are going to do.
Official Languages November 25th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, when it comes to French, we will not take lessons from the NDP. It is important to promote French and also English. We are a bilingual country and I am proud to be a Canadian.
As regards the legislation, our government always passes laws that are based on facts. We will see what is going on in Quebec before supporting any bill.
Firearms Registry November 17th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, during the election campaign we promised to destroy the gun registry. Guess what? The registry is made up of data, information. That is all there is to destroy. I do not know what else my colleague would like us to destroy. We will destroy what we promised to destroy because the data is wrong. The Auditor General said so on September 26, 2006.
In closing, I will quote the Auditor General:
Verification frequently determined that information on the weapon's action, make or serial number was wrong.
We will be destroying information that is wrong.