Rona Ambrose

[The Environment, May 9th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I look forward to working with the hon. member as we move forward. Speaking of the economy, as I said earlier, we are being honest and transparent with Canadians about the impact of the Kyoto protocol on our economy. As I stated earlier, we have two options if we would like to try and meet that target: one is to shut down the entire economy, and that includes the economy in the north; or two, send billions of dollars in taxpayer money overseas, money we could invest in the north. I would encourage the hon. member to work with us on doing neither of those.

[The Environment, May 9th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I reiterate again that we are not the only country on the international scene facing these challenges. Many countries are having difficulty and will not reach their Kyoto target.

One of the reasons that we are engaging in the discussions in Bonn on the open dialogue on Kyoto targets and future participation by Canada is to see where we can go from here to participate in the global challenge of climate change.

[The Environment, May 9th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, we are being honest and transparent with Canadians about the targets that the Liberals set under the Kyoto protocol. What the Liberals should have done years ago was to be honest with Canadians about this unreachable target. We will not reach our Kyoto target. The only way we can reach our Kyoto target is to, first, shut down the Canadian economy or, second, ship billions of dollars overseas.

I would like to ask the hon. member which one he would prefer.

[The Environment, May 9th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, it is important for all Canadians and all members of the House to understand that we are not the only country within the Kyoto protocol facing challenges. A number of international counterparts within the protocol agree with us that countries like China and India have to take on commitments to reduce their pollution and greenhouse gases. We need to engage countries outside of the protocol, like Australia and the U.S., to also make commitments. That is the approach we are going to take.

[The Environment, May 9th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I continue to engage international counterparts on the issue of climate change. In fact, I am very proud that our government has taken the position we have in our approach to international talks on climate change. We are taking an inclusive approach.

It is important for Canadians to understand that 73% of countries in the world are the large emitters and 73% of emissions are not caused by countries that are in the protocol. We have to talk to countries that are within the United Nations framework and countries outside the framework. That is the direction the government is taking.

[The Environment, May 8th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I am always proud to get up to talk about our made in Canada solutions and our made in Canada plans.

Under the former Liberal government we could have seen up to $600 per Canadian family in taxpayer money shipped overseas to countries like Russia and China with no accountability to the environment here at home. Under our made in Canada plan, we will see all Canadian taxpayer money invested right here at home in Canadian solutions for the environment.

[The Environment, May 4th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I agree with most of what the hon. member said. I would like to make sure he understands that under the Liberal Kyoto plan we could have seen up to $600 per Canadian family shipped overseas on international credits.

I can assure the member that under our made in Canada plan our Canadian transfer values will be spent right here at home on our own environment.

[The Environment, May 4th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I look forward to working with the hon. member as we develop our plan.

Our government has made a clear commitment to invest in the Canadian environment right here at home. Our Prime Minister has shown the courage and the leadership to address this pressing issue with a strong commitment to a made in Canada plan to clean up our environment. We will continue to work with industry, our colleagues in the House, the provinces and Canadians in the development of our plan to ensure that we can show real results on the environment.

[The Environment, May 4th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, today unfortunately, after years of Liberal rule, we have fallen behind in every single industry sector compared to the U.S. on pollution control. The Liberals did not make the necessary investment in clean transportation.

We have taken significant steps to invest in cleaner transportation and invest in environmentally friendly choices for Canadians to use that transportation. I hope that the hon. member will work with us and every one in the House to develop our clean air act to deal with industrial pollution.

[The Environment, May 4th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, our government and our Prime Minister are very concerned about the health risks associated with pollution. Last year, the member across the way might like to know, there were 53 smog advisory days in Ontario, 35 in Quebec and, for the first time ever, we had 10 winter smog advisory days in Canada. That is the Liberal record.

On those days, children with asthma and elderly people with respiratory diseases cannot leave their homes. We took positive steps forward in the budget to clean up the air that Canadians breathe by investing in cleaner types of transportation and encouraging Canadians to use that transportation.