Peter MacKay

[Petitions, May 5th, 2004]

Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Standing Orders it is my pleasure to table, on behalf of citizens of Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough, a petition calling on the government to modify Canadian tax law, specifically with respect to the clawback or carry back taxation of lump sum pay equity payments, and to eliminate the taxation of interest payments retroactive to January 1, 1999.

The petition carries the names of citizens of my constituency who have brought this to the attention of Parliament through their member.

[Sponsorship Program, May 5th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, here is another important quote. This one comes from Quebec lieutenant Jean Lapierre. He says there is something wrong with the Liberal Party of Canada. He said:

It's like we took over a house, all the rooms looked nice and okay, and then we opened the fridge...Inside, we found a big stinking fish. It smells up the house.

We all know the fish rots from the head, and this Prime Minister is stinking up this House with his interference in the ad scandal. Why is the Prime Minister interfering in the ad scandal? Why does he not want the truth to be uncovered?

[Sponsorship Program, May 5th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, the big kahuna opposite is going to get a chance to answer questions soon enough when he is on this side of--

[Sponsorship Program, May 5th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, it is great to see the Prime Minister did show up for work today. Pot to kettle, Mr. Prime Minister. The political manipulation of the committee process is not unlike the political manipulation of the sponsorship scandal.

The member for Hillsborough has admitted he spoke to officials at the PMO just prior to having a press conference attacking the committee chair. Now his instructions are clearly to spin that the committee has to be shut down without hearing from critical witnesses.

Why will the Prime Minister not let the committee get to the bottom of the ad scandal, as he promised, and does he plan to shut it down before calling an election?

[Sponsorship Program, May 4th, 2004]

Finally an unequivocal answer from the Prime Minister, Mr. Speaker.

There is no Canadian in the country better equipped to tell Canadians what happened in the sponsorship scandal. Sheila Fraser knows, yet the Auditor General told us yesterday, “at the end of the day we still don't have an explanation for why essential controls failed and why there was so little oversight”.

The Prime Minister is not going to wait to get to the bottom of this, as he has promised. What Canadians really need to know before an election is, who took the money and where did it go?

[Sponsorship Program, May 4th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, somebody needs to state the obvious. Those questioning the integrity of the Auditor General are some of the same people most responsible for the sponsorship scandal: Gosselin, Guité, Lafleur, Gagliano. All of the same individuals who are intimately involved in the sponsorship scandal have the audacity to smear Sheila Fraser. Her report uncovered $250 million in misspent money. How many Liberal friendly firms have their snouts in the trough benefiting?

The real question remains, is the Prime Minister questioning the veracity of the Auditor General's report?

[Health, May 3rd, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, health care and Canadians cannot afford another 10 years of this government in health care. The Prime Minister's true colours came through when he was minister of finance. He decimated health care more than anybody else. He is the one to blame for the long lineups and the underfunding.

Health Canada is in worse shape today than it was under the previous government. The Prime Minister has made it harder to access disability tax credits.

When will the government reveal this much publicized health care plan for the next 10 years? Will it come before the next election?

[Health, May 3rd, 2004]

Let me repeat, Mr. Speaker. There is the Prime Minister, the biggest contradicter of the Canada Health Act. While he was minister of finance, he inflicted the deepest cuts in Canadian history to Canadian health care. Now he wants Canadians to rejoice because he may give some of it back.

The government says that it has a 10 year health plan. Where is it and will we see it before the next election?

[Health, May 3rd, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, rather than governing, the Prime Minister continues his touring, pre-election. The Prime Minister, shipping magnate, millionaire, champion of the poor, defender, creator of the democratic deficit, now healer of health care is in Toronto today announcing $10 million to help the disabled.

The Prime Minister is a walking contradiction. While he was minister of finance, he inflicted the deepest cuts in Canadian history.

[Ethics, April 29th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, this is question period. It is funny how the government continually waits to get caught before reacting.

The Prime Minister feigned outrage over the sponsorship scandal when information went missing. Well, information is missing. Canadian taxpayers have to file their tax forms on time or the government comes knocking.

If the information was readily available at the time of the appointment, which presumably it had to be, where is it now? Why has the Prime Minister not acted and what is he hiding?