Peter MacKay

[Sudan, March 30th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that the hon. member raised this serious issue. In fact, word today is that things have deteriorated further.

Canada has thus far contributed $48 million with respect to the combined mission. We are hoping that the government of Sudan and the president will continue to move in the direction of a unified force that will allow UN troops to enter the country to begin the necessary humanitarian work. In the meantime, we support the lift aircraft, that is, fixed wing and helicopters that are there. We are continuing to provide trainers that work in the region.

Yes, there is much more to do. Will Canada be there with the international community? Will we continue to work toward the alleviation of the suffering of the people of Darfur? Yes, we certainly will. I look forward to working with the hon. member and all members in this House to see that Canada continues that work.

[Foreign Affairs, March 30th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, Canada has been a leader in this and so many other areas. This particular issue is one which we have been following closely for some time. We will continue to work with those interested groups, those who express concerns about human rights, particularly as they pertain to the workforce.

I appreciate the hon. member's interest in this particular area and her support for Canada to continue to provide the necessary input and the necessary action to improve the working conditions of those individuals.

[Iran, March 30th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, as a result of this, tensions have risen in the region. We have called in the Iranian Chargé d'affaires to express Canada's concern over their actions in seizing British sailors in international waters that were clearly defined as Iraqi waters, not Iranian waters.

We have called for the immediate release of these sailors. We have expressed our support. The Prime Minister was in direct contact with the British, as was I yesterday after the meeting with the Chargé d'affaires.

We continue to express support for the British at this time and for the international community for Iran to come in line, not only with the release of these soldiers but also with the request from the UN Security Council that it cease and desist with its nuclear ambitions.

[The Budget, March 30th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, the members of the Conservative caucus and Conservative cabinet stand up every day for Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador, in fact so much so that we have been able to deliver so much more.

The misrepresentations and mistruths that constantly come from the lips of the member opposite will do nothing for the people of his province. He should be trying to embrace these new programs, work with his constituency and work with this government to try to deliver more of these programs effectively, rather than the ineffective Scrooge-like approach that was taken by his government.

[The Budget, March 30th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, as is so often the case with member for Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, nothing could be further from the truth. This budget was extremely good news for Atlantic Canada. It creates an ability now for the governments of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador to do so much more with the additional money that has been given to them.

As well, there is the option that they have with respect to embracing the Atlantic accord now or in fact taking more money. As I have said many times in this place, they can take more money, which is good for the province, or even more, which is provided by this budget.

That is all good news. I do not understand why the member from Nova Scotia, as he did in the previous case, is advocating for less money for his province.

[Afghanistan, March 29th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, there is hardly any attempt to hide the facts. In fact, quite the opposite. We are working with the Dutch and NATO allies to see that the situation, as far as Afghan prisons, is improved.

We continue to do that on every level, just as we do in areas of development, just as we do in areas of building infrastructure within that country by creating programs for vaccinations and creating programs to create new vocations for Afghan people.

We are there doing an important job on behalf of the entire NATO community. We are there putting more money into these programs. We will continue to do so and we will do Canada proud.

[Afghanistan, March 29th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I think the Minister of National Defence is hardly shutting his eyes to the situation. He has acted decisively. He met with individuals in Afghanistan to correct any perception or any reality that prisoners would be mistreated.

What we have in our Minister of National Defence is a man who has served his country honourably for 30 years, has led men and women in conflict situations, has served this country proudly as our defence minister, and we are very proud of the job he is doing.

[Palestine, March 28th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the righteous indignation. Perhaps she did not hear me. I do speak directly with the president. I speak with Mr. Abbas quite regularly about the situation and his efforts. I commend him. On behalf of the Government of Canada, I have expressed support for the work he is doing.

This is an ongoing process. We hope that we will see the unity government express in a more forthright way its respect of and adherence to the road map, to the principles the quartet has clearly laid out. I know the members opposite do not want to hear the answer, but I will tell them again. We will deal directly with President Abbas. We will continue to support the Palestinian people through aid. We will continue to support the peace process.

[Palestine, March 28th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, while l was speaking with President Abbas about this particular situation I reminded him that we are in fact very closely following developments in the peace process. This is a very sensitive issue, as we all know, and there is much progress that is being made.

I advised the president that we continue to support his efforts to bring peace, in particular to the territories, but until such time as we see progress in the area of the quartet principles, which call for the recognition of Israel, which call for the cessation of violence and which call for the road map to be adhered to, we are not going to deal directly with a terrorist organization, namely, Hamas.

[Foreign Affairs, March 28th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member knows full well, this was a private meeting arranged by the president of Liberia. I met with her in my office for almost an hour. We discussed important issues of development and debt reduction. We had a very informed and very useful discussion on how Canada can continue to help the people of Liberia. We have been there for them in the past. We will be there for them in the future.

This is a very inspiring woman, one in whom the Government of Canada places a great deal of respect and a great deal of hope for the future of the people of Liberia.