Stephen Harper

[Automotive Industry, February 12th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, it is not a question of dictating outcomes to the United States. It is a question of Canada coming to the table as a partner. We have indicated that we are willing to do that in collaboration, as the hon. member should know, with the Government of Ontario.

We have been working hand in glove with the American administration and with our Ontario counterparts for some time now to ensure that, as this industry is restructured, Canada maintains its vital part of the North American automobile industry.

[Ethics, February 11th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, I have already said all I have to say about this case. I would note that the leader of the Liberal Party is no longer in his position. Maybe the leader of the NDP had something to do with that too.

[The Economy, February 11th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, Parliament has not even passed these measures let alone implemented them.

That opposition leader talks about trade. That is the same leader who last week was urging the government to use its stimulus package as part of a trade war with the United States. That is why the opposition is not trusted to govern this economy.

[The Economy, February 11th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, many measures in the budget will help these sectors. Unfortunately, the NDP decided to vote against these measures before even reading them. That is a completely irresponsible position, considering the families that depend on these sectors.

[Culture, February 11th, 2009]

On the contrary, Mr. Speaker. This government established science and medicine prizes to create world-class awards for this country. Now, we want to do the same thing for culture, with the artistic community. The Minister of Canadian Heritage and his department are holding consultations to develop specific proposals. I hope the Bloc leader will support this important prize for the cultural community.

[The Economy, February 11th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, nothing could be further from the truth. This is the only party in the House of Commons that regularly brings forward initiatives that affect rural Canada, whether it is forestry, mining or agriculture.

Not only will there be important help for livestock producers, once again, I would urge the Liberal Party to move into the 21st century, to listen to western Canadian farmers and allow marketing choice in the western Canadian—

[The Economy, February 11th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, our budget contains many measures—including innovation, marketing and environmental development measures—for this industry. It was our government that resolved the softwood lumber dispute with the United States. The continued existence of this agreement is very important for our industry.

I encourage the Leader of the Opposition to change his position and protect our access to the American market.

[The Economy, February 11th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, you will know that these trade numbers are conditioned by a couple of factors: the weakness in world trade markets and the sudden drop in the value of Canadian exports.

At the same time, we expect the change in the value of the Canadian dollar to help that situation, but in the meantime we and all governments of the G20 are trying to stimulate the world economy through a series of coordinated measures that we are taking in Canada and elsewhere.

I ask the Leader of the Opposition, who has no economic policies of his own, to help us by getting on with passing these important measures.

[The Economy, February 10th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, as the leader of the New Democratic Party should know, this government has made clear that it is working in close collaboration with our partners in the United States on the restructuring of the auto industry. That is a fact. What Canadians and Canadians in the auto sector want to know is that the New Democratic Party will actually support some of these initiatives instead of deciding it is against them before it even reads them.

[The Economy, February 10th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, as the House will know, the government began adopting stimulus measures in the fall of 2007. Those stimulus measures are certainly equal to what any other country in the world has done. They are one of the reasons, notwithstanding the difficulties we have, why our relative growth in employment rates have been positive compared to a lot of other countries. We certainly do not want to replicate the situation in the United States of 3.5 million job losses here in Canada.