Paul Calandra

[Privacy, May 2nd, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, it seems that the opposition is finally moving in the right direction. I know that yesterday the Liberals said it was millions and millions of Canadians who were being spied on. Then it was 1.2 million to two million from the NDP. Now it is thousands. I am sure by next week, the truth will actually be talked about by the opposition. What we are doing here is that the telecoms are being asked, in instances of national security, in instances when violent crime is taking place, to assist our authorities. There is, of course, civilian oversight to make sure that this is all done properly.

Moreover, any personal information protected by the charter requires a warrant. There is Bill S-4 in front of the Senate, which will help improve this even further.

[Privacy, May 2nd, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member knows that that is not true. Moreover, as I was mentioning toward the end of my last answer, there is a bill being brought forward to look at tightening this up a little further. It is Bill S-4. The minister has been in contact with the Privacy Commissioner. She has suggested that the bill does advance Canadians' privacy further.

I would suggest that the opposition really take a hard look at what it is they are suggesting. Our security services do excellent work in making sure that our communities stay safe. It is time for the opposition members to get on board with them and trust that they are doing a good job. I know that we trust them to do that, and the results have been staggering. Great work.

[Privacy, May 2nd, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, it is questions like that that help Canadians understand why after 16 straight elections, the NDP has never actually made it to this side of the House.

I would suggest that Canadians can be proud of the fact that Canada is a safer place because we have security services that are doing the hard work to make sure that our communities are safe. That is what we are talking about here. We are talking about protecting Canadians from acts of terrorism.

If there is a violent crime taking place, a local police force is able to contact our partners and make sure that they have the information they need to stop it as it is taking place. Moreover, there is a bill before the Senate that will help the--

[Privacy, May 2nd, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member knows that any private information protected under the charter requires a warrant. The information being asked for helps our security services in terms of violent crimes and in terms of terrorism. It can range from a whole host of things. Moreover, our security services have civilian oversight, and they have constantly been shown to be following the law.

[Health, May 1st, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I could not agree more with my hon. colleague on the importance of health research. Just today, the Prime Minister was in Montreal announcing that we will be supporting five new research projects in the areas of Alzheimer's prevention and autism, under the Canadian brain research fund. As members know, this fund was introduced in 2011, and it represents one of the largest public-private investments in health research in Canadian history. Our government remains committed and will continue to support health research across this country.

[Port of Montreal, April 9th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, the president of the Port of Montreal is appointed by the board, and it did not appoint Mr. Abdallah president.

[Halvor Moorshead, April 9th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honour and remember my dear friend Halvor Moorshead, who was a strong-spirited, community-minded man and a true friend to all. This past March, Stouffville lost a dedicated community leader and volunteer.

Halvor held a lifelong passion for genealogy and cutting-edge technology, which he was happy to share with anyone who was interested. Throughout his life, he was a dedicated magazine publisher in the fields of genealogy and technology. After a successful career as an editor and publisher, Halvor retired from publishing in 2008, and to Stouffville-ites, he came to be known as a voice of WhiStle Radio, where he served as chair of the board of directors and as a community host. Halvor had a great passion for our local community radio, and I was glad to have been able to share time with him both on and off the air.

Halvor will be sadly missed by all who knew him, but I am personally honoured to have called him a friend.

[Telecommunications, April 7th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise today to announce to the people of my hometown, Whitchurch-Stouffville, that the proposed nine-storey cell tower that was going to be built in our historic downtown will not be proceeding at this time.

I want to take a moment just to congratulate and thank Rogers, which has been a good partner on this issue. Rogers took the time to listen to the residents and took the time to meet with me. On the weekend, over 100 residents came to our local town to talk about both the need for improved infrastructure and the need to preserve our historic downtown.

I am very proud of the work that the entire community did. Again I want to congratulate and thank Rogers for taking the time not to proceed at this time and to work with us, to work with me, and to work with the community to find the appropriate location for this tower going forward.

[Economic Action Plan 2014 Act, No. 1, April 4th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, it is always interesting to hear the member speak as an Ontario member of Parliament. I recall when the member was a minister in the Ontario NDP government that almost bankrupted the province of Ontario, that saw a million people on welfare, that saw millions of people lose their jobs and promise after promise broken.

This is a member who just criticized the fact that we are giving Canadians $100 extra every month. She criticized that. She criticizes the fact that we have increased funding for our veterans by $5 billion. She criticizes and votes against the good work done by the Minister of International Trade, who signs new free trade deals that tremendously benefit her region of the country. An incredible investment is being made. The deal that the minister signed recently will help manufacturers in her own riding, and she will stand to vote against that as well.

On every measure that counts when it comes to job creation, protecting the environment, protecting manufacturers, or enhancing the economy, the member votes against it. Her party has a record of destroying economies.

[Health, April 3rd, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate the member for Oakville for the incredible work he has done since 2008, helping to turn back the billions of dollars in health care cuts that were, of course, the hallmark of the Liberal time in office.

As members may know, I am the father of two beautiful young girls. As a father I try to make healthy food choices for my family.

Our Minister of Health has been doing some excellent work on this file. Part of that work has been hosting consultations with mothers and fathers across this country so that we can do our best to improve labelling. The minister's consultations will be a major part in meeting our throne speech commitment to making sure parents have the knowledge they need to make the right choices.