Mr. Speaker, the government has the power to act under the UN resolution with specific institutions and specific individuals being named. Those are the ones that were named.
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Terrorism September 25th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, the government has the power to act under the UN resolution with specific institutions and specific individuals being named. Those are the ones that were named.
Terrorism September 25th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, it was published by the President of the United States yesterday at a press conference which the hon. member might have watched. Canada, on the instructions of the Prime Minister, proceeded immediately to speak to OSFI. OSFI spoke to the banks and the assets are frozen.
Terrorism September 25th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, I was in the House when the government House leader stood up and asked for the unanimous consent of all members to support a government motion to do that very thing and the opposition voted against it and said no.
Terrorism September 25th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, the action being called for by the Leader of the Opposition is one taken by the financial institution or bank in question. This bank or institution deals directly with the RCMP, that is how it is done.
Terrorism September 25th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister responded when the question was posed about the 19 terrorists. Yesterday there was follow-up. When the president set out 27 institutions or individuals and said that the United States would proceed to freeze their assets, Canada proceeded forthwith and those assets are now frozen.
Federal-Provincial Relations September 24th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, one of the many benefits of the prudence with which the government has proceeded is that Canadians in fact can rest assured that the basic social programs, the foundation of the country, are fully protected.
It was a year ago September that the government signed an historic accord for $23.5 billion in transfers to provinces for health care and education. I can tell the House that $2.8 billion will be transferred this year, $1 billion to the member's province alone.
As a result of the courage with which the government has operated, Canadians can rest assured that their basic programs are fully protected.
Terrorism September 24th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, I can assure the member that we will do everything possible to avoid a deficit.
That being said, I can also state that we will allocate the necessary funds for national security.
Terrorism September 24th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, the member must know that not all of the costs are known yet, neither the costs that we will incur here in Canada to protect national security, nor the costs involved in the international fight against terrorism. The United States and other countries have not yet given us an idea of the scope of what they have in mind.
That being said, I can assure the member that we have sufficient reserves set aside. In fact, I am able to give an example. In response to a request by the Minister of Transportation last Saturday, the government was able to help air carriers with their insurance.
The Economy September 20th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, as I have said on a number of occasions, all options are open. The fact is that before one comes down with a budget, one has to have a fairly good grasp of where the economy is going.
We have seen that we are in a period of considerable uncertainty. At the same time, given the costs of augmenting our national security, which is our number one priority, and the joining together with the United States and other countries in a major international effort against terrorism, it would be premature for us to contemplate when a budget would be brought in.
However, I can assure the hon. member that a full and comprehensive statement will be provided in the month of October as to where our spending, our debt retirement and our tax plans fit into the projections.
The Economy September 20th, 2001
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member will know that a substantial portion of that package in the U.S. is for the reconstruction of downtown Manhattan and the Pentagon as a result of the terrible tragedy that occurred. That is where that money is going.
In terms of the date of the next budget, we have not foreclosed any options, but at the present time we are obviously waiting for a fair amount of substantial input, such as the cost of the tremendous fight against terrorism. It is going to be an international effort and there is a cost that is going to occur here. These are the priorities and they are all very important input to any budget.