House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2019, with 55% of the vote.
The Environment April 2nd, 2012
Mr. Speaker, my colleague is quite correct in at least part of her quotation. I have expressed our government's appreciation and thanks to the round table for its service over the decades, but it was created a quarter century ago at a time, as my colleague reminded us, when there were very few and limited resources of policy advice on the environment and, in particular, those with regard to the environment and the economy.
The Environment April 2nd, 2012
Mr. Speaker, this budget demonstrates the Government of Canada's full commitment to a strong environmental agenda even as we take significant action to address fiscal issues and the deficit. We have renewed funding for a number of key environmental programs, the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act and the Species at Risk Act. We have renewed funding to clean up Lake Simcoe and Lake Winnipeg.
Under this budget, EC continues to have all of the resources it needs to protect the Canadian environment.
The Environment March 30th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, I know my hon. colleague is doing her best to find something to complain about with regard to the environmental chapters in the budget but the fact is that we renewed full funding to protect species at risk. We renewed full funding for the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act. We are moving forward, for example, on a new national park in the Rouge Valley in Toronto. We also are ensuring new and continuing funding for Lake Simcoe and Lake Winnipeg. We are getting the job done.
The Environment March 30th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, our government appreciates and has thanked the round table for its service over the years for any number of reports addressing environmental issues.
However, the reality is that the round table was created a quarter of a century ago. It was created before the Internet, when there were few such sources of domestic, independent research and analysis on sustainable development. That is simply no longer the case. There are now any number of organizations and university based services that provide those services.
The Environment March 30th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, if the NDP members would stop lobbying against new jobs in the resource sector and stop their campaign against responsibly regulated resource development, they would have a great deal more credibility in their professed concern for the environment.
Yesterday's budget contained a clear commitment by our government to continue a very active and fully forced environmental agenda, while, at the same time, help to protect jobs and our economy.
The Environment March 28th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, our government makes no apologies for finding more cost-effective ways of protecting both the environment and jobs and the Canadian economy, but I did find a very interesting quote the other day. It says:
People in politics tend to see successes in terms of increasing the budget, but when I was minister of the environment, I reduced by 15 per cent the budget....
Who said that? The newly minted leader of the NDP.
Science and Technology March 26th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, as I have said any number of times in this House, Canadians can be proud of their scientists, particularly of the scientists working at Environment Canada and the contributions they make to science journals and the general media.
Our department continues to make its experts available to the media on a regular basis, many hundreds of times, in fact, in the past year.
The Environment March 14th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, if the NDP spent a little less time lobbying against Canadian jobs and a responsibly regulated industry, the member would have a better chance of helping to protect the environment.
The Environmental Assessment Act and the good work of the agency are very much front of mind. We are well aware of where improvements to the act can be made. That said, we do appreciate the recommendations made by the standing committee.
The Environment March 14th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, that is not true at all.
The standing committee has completed its review of the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act and has made some constructive suggestions for improvements to the act that will allow for continued rigorous protection of the environment while at the same time protecting Canadian jobs and the economy.
Our consideration of legislative change will certainly benefit from the recommendations of the standing committee.
The Environment March 8th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, the answer is short and the answer is “no”.