House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2015, with 64% of the vote.
Taxation October 5th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, the government has been lowering taxes of all kinds for businesses, families and individuals. It is one of the reasons that Canada has a far better job creation record than most countries.
There are measures right now before the House of Commons to give specific tax allowances and specific tax breaks to the manufacturing sector. I would call on the NDP to support those and stop opposing good things for Canada's manufacturers.
Suicide Prevention October 4th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, I am reluctant to speak for a minister on this but I can certainly inform the House that we are well aware of this fact. That is why we do have programs that specifically look at this phenomenon in aboriginal communities and try to decide how to deal with it. Obviously, this is a complex phenomenon.
One of the things we want to do besides tackling that program directly is to ensure that we create hope and opportunity in those communities. In many parts of the country where those communities are located there is unprecedented economic opportunity and we want to ensure young aboriginal people participate in those opportunities.
Suicide Prevention October 4th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, all suicides are a tragedy for our families, and we want to prevent this from happening to our soldiers and our veterans. This is a very serious concern. We have doubled our support in this regard, but we are always prepared to look at how we can improve our performance.
Suicide Prevention October 4th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, this is obviously a very important issue. Far too many Canadian households are affected by the anguish of a suicide. As many members will know, we on this side of the House had the suicide of one of our former colleagues. We understand well the pain that this causes.
The government has taken important initiatives, such as the setting up of the Mental Health Commission and specific programs to help with suicide prevention in communities across the country. Obviously, we will look at any specific ideas to see how we can improve on this particular national health problem.
The Economy October 4th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, it is important to note that there are analysts and experts who feel that a recession is unlikely for the Canadian economy, but of course the global situation is very fragile at the moment. That is why our government has its economic action plan. Yesterday in this House, we tabled hundreds of pages of specific measures to stimulate growth and create jobs. I encourage the NDP to stop voting against measures that are good for Canadians and our economy.
The Economy October 4th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, last night we did vote for a resolution that was extremely vague and general in nature, and I guess I congratulate the NDP for that.
What I do not congratulate it for, though, is the fact that immediately afterward we tabled literally hundreds of pages of specific economic actions, and the NDP chose to vote against those.
It is time for the NDP to get beyond vague bromides and start to actually vote for things that are doing good work for the Canadian economy.
Champlain Bridge October 4th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, our government has taken the initiative of investing money to ensure the bridge's safety on several occasions. It is indeed an essential asset for that region. However, I am disappointed that every time we invested money, the NDP voted against those investments in the greater Montreal area.
Minister of National Defence September 29th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, this minister uses the Challenger for government business, not personal business. Those are the facts. When this minister pays his respects to the families of our fallen soldiers I expect the official opposition to support us and the minister by showing respect for these families.
Minister of National Defence September 29th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, I can repeat my answer. This minister uses government aircraft 70% less than his predecessors. Half the time, he does so to attend repatriation ceremonies for soldiers who gave their lives for our country. That is why we have such great respect for the Minister of National Defence on this side of the House of Commons.
Minister of National Defence September 29th, 2011
Mr. Speaker, the fact is the Minister of National Defence has participated in some 55 repatriation ceremonies for over 80 lost Canadian service personnel. The facts are also, as the House knows well and the member knows well, when he refers to the vacation, this was something the minister paid for himself.
When the member asks these kinds of questions and behaves this way, he reflects on his own character, not on that of the Minister of National Defence.