Paul Martin

[Sponsorship Program, November 1st, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I would simply ask the hon. member to take a look at what the government has done in terms of the way that improvements were made, in terms of the whole question of audits--

[Sponsorship Program, November 1st, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I must remind the leader of the NDP that the Liberal Party created the Gomery commission. We did this because we wanted the facts. Now, we have them.

The leader of the NDP just said that $1 million will be repaid. That decision belongs to the Liberal Party of Canada. As a matter of fact, we decided that we would put money in a trust account. Since the amount has now exceeded that figure, we have added to the fund.

We made this decision, because we believe that this is the way that politics should be conducted in Canada.

[Sponsorship Program, November 1st, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I understand clearly why the leader of the Bloc, the chief of staff, is so disappointed, now that the facts have been established. Now, the Bloc can no longer make false allegations or tell tales. Justice Gomery has established the chain of events and the facts. Now, we know exactly what happened.

[Sponsorship Program, November 1st, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, that is not what Justice Gomery said. He certainly criticized some inappropriate actions. We accept that and we have already admitted that. Furthermore, we have already taken remedial action.

I must say that right at the beginning, the Quebec wing of the Liberal Party of Canada phoned the RCMP and asked it to investigate this matter. It was the Quebec wing of the Liberal Party of Canada that replaced the guilty directors and organizers and revoked certain party memberships. I could go on for some time.

[Sponsorship Program, November 1st, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, first of all, over a year ago, I apologized. Over a year ago, I said that I wished that I had been more vigilant. Last night I read Mr. Justice Gomery's report which clearly established the facts in this particular case. He said where in fact the responsibility lies.

He went on to say that measures had to be taken. We look forward to his second report, building on the reforms that we have brought in, the most extensive reforms possible in terms of running the government. Perhaps the Leader of the Opposition ought to begin to address those.

[Sponsorship Program, November 1st, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, as to what Mr. Justice Gomery said, I would ask the hon. member to read the preface. He talks about the strength of our democracy. He talks about the strength of accountability. He asked what other country would call a commission of this kind? What other country would be as open and transparent? What other government would call for otherwise confidential documents to be made public?

We asked that the facts be established in an open, transparent and public way. That is what has happened and I am very proud of that.

[Sponsorship Program, November 1st, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, if the hon. member is asking whether cabinet has a collective responsibility, obviously it does. However, the fact is that the opposition has a responsibility, when it stands up, to accurately quote what Mr. Justice Gomery said.

Now that Mr. Justice Gomery has established the facts, the Leader of the Opposition refuses to accept what Mr. Justice Gomery said. The fact is that we accept it, he knows what happened, and we accept his conclusions.

[Sponsorship Program, November 1st, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, what Justice Gomery is saying is that certainly, with respect to sponsorships, there was a group of individuals who did completely inappropriate things. As soon as the Liberal Party became aware of this, we alerted the RCMP and set up the Gomery inquiry. I must say that I am very proud of the Gomery report because now, for the first time, we have all the facts. Yes, I am very proud to be a Liberal.

[International Trade, October 31st, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, if the leader of the NDP was listening, then perhaps he is finally starting to understand the scope of the problem.

Obviously we insist that the Americans stick to the spirit and the letter of the agreement. It is certainly our intention to take them to court because we will not back down. We have no intention of negotiating what we have won.

[Sponsorship Program, October 31st, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, with a report of this importance, governments are always given a copy first, because they have to take action.

The precedents are clear, as I have said. In the case of the Somalia inquiry, the government received the report three days ahead of time. In the case of the Krever inquiry on contaminated blood, the government received the report five days ahead of time. In the case of the Commission on Aboriginal Peoples, it was 20 days.

In this particular case, the government has given itself the shortest time period: 12 hours.