Mr. Speaker, many message event proposals are submitted in the language of origin only. Producing and translating the information requested would involve thousands of records and is not possible in the time period required for this response.
House of Commons photoLost his last election, in 2015, with 43% of the vote.
Questions on the Order Paper May 5th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, many message event proposals are submitted in the language of origin only. Producing and translating the information requested would involve thousands of records and is not possible in the time period required for this response.
Ethics April 30th, 2015
Again, Mr. Speaker, the constitutional practice on this has been clear for almost 150 years, but it is awkward when that member asks a question about ethics when, of course, he was one of the members who was identified as having to return living expenses. I am not sure why they would have him ask this question. There are other people in the caucus who could ask it.
The member for Vancouver Centre—but she has campaign debts outstanding, so she could not ask it. Maybe the leader could have asked it, but of course, he accepted speaking fees when he was a member of Parliament, so he could not ask that question. When we go down that—
Ethics April 30th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, I have already answered that question with respect to constitutional practice.
Having said that, of course, this is a party that fought tooth and nail when we were trying to bring accountability to the Senate. The Liberal Party tried to make victims out of these senators. We are doing just the opposite. Of course, it was the Liberal Party that appointed someone like disgraced senator Mac Harb, who owes the Canadian taxpayers $250,000. It was prime minister Trudeau who I believe appointed the senator from Puerto Vallarta who never sat in the Senate but was happy to collect his things. I do not recall him doing anything about that. Of course, there was Senator Lavigne.
We are bringing accountability to it—
Ethics April 30th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, as I said, the constitutional practice on this has been clear for almost 150 years.
It is also very clear that the NDP members, yet again, are caught using taxpayer resources inappropriately. To have a member of the union working inside the office of the Leader of the Opposition, doing partisan political work at the expense of the taxpayers, is completely inappropriate. I hope the Leader of the Opposition will do the right thing—take a step back and pay the taxpayers back the millions of dollars he owes them. He should do the right thing.
Ethics April 30th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, I have already answered that question on a number of occasions.
How disappointed Canadians must be this morning. They work hard, they play by the rules, and yet again they find out that the New Democrats are using their money callously. There are 68 of them who are accused of illegally using taxpayer resources for illegal offices, and 23 of them for inappropriate mailings. They were forced to pay back $350,000 worth of illegal union donations. They were charged $40,000 for illegal robocalls. Now we find out that working in the office of the Leader of the Opposition, using taxpayer resources, is a union member who is using taxpayer money for partisan attack.
Ethics April 29th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, again, I am not going to comment on matters before the court. It is Mr. Duffy's actions that are before the court now.
At the same time, why did the member for Québec, for example, use up to $30,000, in violation of the rules of the House?
The NDP member of Parliament for Quebec redirected resources for her riding from Quebec to an illegal office in Montreal. She was one of 68 members of the NDP caucus who broke the rules, took money meant for their constituents and funnelled it to an illegal office.
They ought to pay it back.
Ethics April 29th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, I have already answered this question, but there is another issue before the House. Why did that member use over $25,000, in violation of the rules of the House, for an office in her riding?
This member owes Canadian taxpayers almost $30,000 because, as opposed to supporting her own constituency with the resources provided to it, she funnelled money to an illegal office in Montreal and she ought to pay it back.
Ethics April 29th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, I completely reject that question. As I said, we are not going to comment on a matter before the courts. It is Mr. Duffy's actions that are before the court.
I do not think it is a farce to talk about the tax cuts that this government has brought in, as highlighted by the member for Ottawa Centre. He highlighted things like the apprentice tax credit, income-splitting and the universal child care benefit. It was 14 pages of tax cuts that this government had brought in and he was taking credit for it.
Unfortunately, the member for Ottawa Centre voted against all of those, but good news for the people of Ottawa Centre, in a few days that 14-page guide is going to be 16, 17 and 18 pages of even more tax savings.
Ethics April 29th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, obviously, I reject most of that question, but these are matters that are before the court. I am not going to comment on evidence that is before the court.
However, I have been accused of being too partisan, but last night when I got home to my condominium apartment in Ottawa Centre, how excited I was to get the 2015 tax tip for families from my member of Parliament here in Ottawa, chock full of 14 pages of tax savings for the people of Canada thanks to this government.
I want to thank the NDP member of Parliament for Ottawa Centre for highlighting all of these great tax savings that we have done on this side of the House. I hope he will continue to vote for them in the next budget. Congratulations.
Ethics April 29th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, as I said, the constitutional practice on this has been clear for almost 150 years.
At the same time, when we were fighting very hard in order to bring accountability to the Senate, it was the NDP and the Liberals who were trying to make victims out of these people. Disgraced former Liberal Senator Mac Harb, who represented Ottawa with that member of Parliament in this House before becoming a senator, is accused of taking $240,000 of taxpayers' resources. Liberals have to answer for that.
Of course, we cannot forget the senator from Puerto Vallarta who was appointed by Prime Minister Trudeau. Can the House imagine the coalition that we would have, that pretend leader and deputy prime minister who is the leader of the opposition—