House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2015, with 64% of the vote.
Democratic Reform March 5th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, I have no intention of indulging the conspiracy theories of the leader of the NDP. The proposals the government has made on the Elections Act are in black and white and they are before this Parliament. I would encourage the New Democrats to read them, to take them seriously, and to engage in intelligent and informed debate on them.
Ethics March 5th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, the member in question, as you know very well, voluntarily apologized. He, at his own initiative, brought this to light in the House of Commons and corrected the record, and he is to be commended for doing so.
Democratic Reform March 5th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, I noticed that the NDP decided to oppose the bill before even reading it.
That is the fact.
The reality here is that the partisan tactics are those of the NDP, which decided and said very publicly that it opposed the legislation even though its critic had not even read it.
These are sensible, long-overdue changes. We encourage Parliament to take a look at them. They should benefit Canadian democracy generally. We encourage the parliamentary study and encourage debate on the actual contents of the bill instead of the conspiracy theories of the leader of the NDP.
Democratic Reform March 5th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, I am very disappointed to see that the NDP decided to oppose the electoral reform before reading the bill. The party's critic admitted as much. The bill is currently in committee. I look forward to the committee's decisions.
Foreign Affairs March 5th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, I told the Prime Minister of Ukraine that Canada is prepared to help his country in partnership with our international partners. We are currently in discussions with the International Monetary Fund. We are prepared to co-operate in this regard. It is critical that there be economic stability in Ukraine.
Foreign Affairs March 5th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, the short answer is yes, and I appreciate the question from the leader of the NDP.
Canada will contribute observers to an important military observer mission in a coordinated effort to better monitor the Russian military intervention in Crimea.
I can also announce today that at the request of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine, we will be imposing economic sanctions on members of the Yanukovych regime. I am also announcing that we are suspending our participation in a joint economic and commercial commission with Russia.
Foreign Affairs March 4th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, we are working with our allies and other countries all around the world to make sure that the position of Canada and our G7 partners is firmly understood.
Just to reiterate, what has occurred, as we know, has been the decision of a major power to effectively invade and occupy a neighbouring country, based upon some kind of extraterritorial claim of jurisdiction over ethnic minorities. We have not seen this kind of behaviour since the Second World War. This is clearly unacceptable.
It is our view that the world community, as it reflects upon these actions, will isolate Russia as a consequence.
Foreign Affairs March 4th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Foreign Affairs informs me that the ambassador has just arrived and will be meeting with him later today, but let me be absolutely clear in terms of what we have said about this.
Under the current situation, all of our economic and diplomatic bilateral relationships with Russia are under examination and will continue to be under examination. Working in concert with our allies, we will continue to search for ways to apply ongoing pressure and isolation to the Putin regime until such time as Russia reverses its course of action.
Foreign Affairs March 4th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the question from the hon. member and the support of all parties for the government's actions.
He will know that the Canadian embassy in Kiev has been closed. It has been closed because, obviously, it was near to and became connected with some of the unfortunate protests and violent activities that were occurring in the city some time ago. It will be not reopened, obviously, until such time as we believe it is safe for Canadian personnel.
In the meantime, we are looking for every avenue through which we can continue to maintain our relationships with the Government of Ukraine, as I discussed yesterday with the Prime Minister of Ukraine.
Foreign Affairs March 4th, 2014
Mr. Speaker, just to be clear, all of our G7 partners have suspended their preparations for the G8 summit in Sochi. It is my view that all of these actions, including the suspension of G8 summit preparations, should remain in effect until such time as President Putin's government leaves all occupied sovereign Ukrainian territory.
In terms of a G7 meeting, I spoke to President Obama on that matter on the weekend. I have suggested that, and I know there are discussions among G7 sherpas about the possibility of a G7 meeting in the upcoming weeks.