House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2019, with 50% of the vote.
Veterans Affairs March 7th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, any breach of privacy is totally unacceptable. That is why this government has posed a 10-point action plan.
One other thing I can say is the member for Sackville—Eastern Shore has voted consistently, not against the veterans, but against the military, their families and even against farming in his own riding.
We will continue to provide our veterans with the services they deserve and the tribunal will continue to deliver its service to the veterans.
Veterans Affairs March 7th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, the only party in the House that is living in a dream world is the NDP. I do not have enough fingers to count the number of times NDP MPs have voted against veterans.
The thing that gets me is that the New Democrats are misleading our veterans. The NDP wants to maintain the rampant bureaucracy. It wants to maintain the costs and maintain the red tape.
We are committed to maintaining benefits and cutting red tape. Against the advice of the NDP, we are going to provide our veterans with the unprecedented level of service we have been providing them for the past six years.
Veterans Affairs March 6th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, our veterans deserve respect, as do all parliamentarians. What is important, and I would like to repeat it for the member, is that our Conservative government will maintain veterans' benefits. It will also cut down on red tape and creeping bureaucracy, which are burdening our veterans and their families.
If he truly wants to stand up for our veterans, I invite the member to support our Conservative budget and our initiatives to improve veterans' quality of life.
Veterans Affairs March 6th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, the member knows the tribunal is an arm's-length organization. It is important to show respect to veterans, but what is really at stake in the House is who really cares and supports our veterans. Instead of supporting red tape and an improvised and wasteful bureaucracy, the NDP member should support our budget initiative, support our government and vote for the veterans.
Business of Supply March 5th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, I want to add my voice to those of the two official critics, to commend the work of our chair of the veterans affairs committee. As well, I commend the work of the whole committee, which has provided an excellent report on remembrance as we approach the centennial of the First World War, which is very important.
The member raised the issue of the Battle of Vimy Ridge. This is at the very heart of our country. I wish every member and every Canadian could seize the sacrifices made by those Canadians at that time.
Tomorrow, I will be more than happy to appear in front of the committee where I will present an additional budget of $43 million that will be required for the current fiscal year. I will also be seeking support for an additional $3.5 billion in the main estimates for next year. I hope I will get the support of the member as well.
My question for the chair of the committee is this. Today we have a motion, but is it not more important to vote when there are budget initiatives? What can we expect from a party that is consistently voting against veterans? Should we not be more proactive and support our veterans?
As we heard, the member is asking for streamlining of processes so we have more money for veterans and less for bureaucracy.
Business of Supply March 5th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, I have a few questions for the hon. member for Gatineau. Of course there is a motion, but members can truly make a difference by supporting bills and budget initiatives. She mentioned that when she spoke to veterans on November 11, Remembrance Day, she told them that it is important to take action in the House. How does she explain to them that the NDP refuses to take action for veterans in the House, even to support the creation of an ombudsman whose role is to protect the interests of veterans? Why was the NDP opposed to creating this ombudsman? Why did they vote against money for improving the lives of modern-day veterans, the most seriously injured veterans? How does she explain to them that she voted against opening five clinics to treat operational stress disorders? She was talking to us about mental health. As a member of Parliament, it is important to take action here.
Are veterans telling my colleague that it is important to take action in this House by supporting the Conservative government's initiatives? Are veterans also telling her that we need to cut red tape? Our veterans deserve first-class service and we have to cut red tape for them.
Business of Supply March 5th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate my colleague for Mississauga East—Cooksville, who came to Canada from Poland, for his excellent speech and for pointing out how important it is to help our veterans who have mental health issues. For that reason, we have 17 clinics that serve 15,000 veterans and their family members. As the member said, we must continue to improve.
Have the veterans in his riding asked him if we should continue to improve our services, especially by reducing red tape? Should we stop burdening our veterans with a bureaucracy that draws out processing times and makes its procedures unwieldy? Have veterans in his riding asked him to cut down on bureaucracy and red tape in order to improve services?
I would also like to thank him for supporting our programs, such as the helmets to hard hats program. Unfortunately, we were not able to count on the support of the NDP. However, I would like to thank the member who supported our veterans.
Business of Supply March 5th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind the member for Dartmouth—Cole Harbour that for the last five years our government has increased its investments for veterans by more than $200 million and is expected to invest even more in our veterans next year.
The veterans would certainly agree with me that it is important to maintain our benefits to veterans.
I would like to ask the hon. member about his third amendment, which is about responding to our veterans in a timely and comprehensive manner. We agree. Would the member agree that we do not want our veterans to be hindered by red tape? We do not want our veterans to be hindered by a wasteful bureaucracy.
Does the member agree that we need to do the best for our veterans and, in order to do so, we need to streamline our processes, as we are willing to do and as this government has been consistently doing for the last six years by investing in our veterans, not in bureaucracy and red tape?
Veterans Affairs March 5th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, the member has done the right thing and apologized. This government has the utmost respect for our veterans and especially for those who dedicate their lives to each other.
How we can show real respect in the House to veterans is by supporting our budget initiatives. Every member of our government has supported, for the last six years, our increases in the investments in our veterans, and we will continue to do so.
Veterans Affairs March 5th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, it is clear the opposition wants to maintain the red tape. That is what it wants to do. We want to maintain benefits to veterans. If the member is serious about getting unanimous consent, he would support our amendment to ensure that benefits are maintained.
Our veterans all over the country are telling me to cut the red tape. Is the member ready to cut the red tape and get rid of wasteful bureaucracy? That is the question.