House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2015, with 64% of the vote.
National Defence February 17th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, the government is clearly telling the truth about the cost of our mission with our international allies in Iraq. We have told the truth about the air combat mission and the mission to assist and advise the Peshmerga forces. I am very pleased to see that Canadians support this truth. Only the NDP hates the truth.
National Defence February 17th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, of course the government has released the costs of the mission exactly as it said it would, an additional $122 million in incremental costs to this point in time. That is very clear. I do not know how much clearer it could be.
The reality is that the New Democrats will hate even a cent spent on the Canadian military. However, I can assure the House that, for this mission, we are ensuring not only that our personnel are well paid but that they are well equipped and have the ordnance necessary to do their job. All Canadians are very proud of the job they are doing fighting ISIL.
Infrastructure February 4th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, we agree that it is important to invest in our infrastructure.
That is why we have a program of $75 billion of infrastructure investments over the next 10 years. It is the largest infrastructure program in Canadian history.
However, unlike the Liberal Party, we do not believe it is necessary to hike taxes on families in order to fund infrastructure.
Our policy involves a balanced budget, lower taxes and targeted investments in areas such as infrastructure in order to promote economic growth.
Infrastructure February 4th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, here are the facts. Two years ago, the government announced a program of over $70 billion in infrastructure investments over the next 10 years. Just in the last few weeks I announced an additional $6 billion going into just federal infrastructure, most of that to be spent over the next three years. Those are big numbers. Those are the real numbers. I urge the leader of the Liberal Party to familiarize himself with that basic arithmetic.
Infrastructure February 4th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, we obviously agree that infrastructure is important for economic development. That is why we are running the largest, longest, biggest infrastructure program in Canadian history. Just within the last few weeks I announced additional funds at the federal level to make sure we eliminate the infrastructure deficit.
Unlike the Liberal Party, we do not believe it is necessary to hike taxes on families in order to fund infrastructure. We can have lower taxes, balanced budgets, and investments that will grow our economy--
Public Safety February 4th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, the bill already enhances oversight.
Obviously, we agree on this side that freedom and security go hand in hand, which is why on this side we support some security measures. How does the leader of the NDP, if he thinks they go hand in hand, explain his opposition to every single security measure we ever put forward? That is not responsible. That is the kind of approach we expect from a party that takes public funds and uses them for party offices.
Public Safety February 4th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, the example the Leader of the Opposition cites indicates that in fact the system works, that SIRC does take its responsibilities very seriously, provides robust oversight, and has noted that these agencies operate within the law.
On top of that, there are additional clauses in this law that require additional powers to be used to seek judicial authorization.
The oversight is there. The oversight is strong. What we need to do is ensure our police and security agencies have the tools they need—that is the real job here—and ensure we are not going after them but we are going after terrorists and jihadists.
Public Safety February 4th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, we have a robust oversight system for our security agencies. Our laws also require judicial authorization for the use of specific powers.
Our system is very robust. Our job here is to go after terrorists and jihadists, not our police and security agencies.
Employment February 4th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, the manufacturing sector has been very supportive of this government's policies for that sector, and it has criticized the NDP's opposition to those policies. It has also criticized the NDP's policies to increase taxes and the deficit.
More than 80% of the 1.2 million net new jobs are full-time, and 80% are in the private sector. Two-thirds of those jobs are well paid. The numbers speak for themselves.
Employment February 4th, 2015
Mr. Speaker, obviously no one ever likes to see a Canadian lose a job, although these have to do with particular business decisions of particular companies.
What I do know is that, following our economic action plan of low taxes and balanced budgets, we have created 1.2 million more new jobs than have been lost. That is 1.2 million additional people working.
It is important that we continue to focus on the needs of Canadian families by lowering their taxes and creating a good business environment so we continue to have the kind of superior record we have had as an economy during the post-recession.