House of Commons photoWon his last election, in 2011, with 78% of the vote.
Softwood Lumber October 24th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, that rings pretty hollow. The Prime Minister clearly has flip-flopped on his softwood position, from hollow threats to the silent treatment and now the moving target approach.
How can the Prime Minister expect Americans to take his position seriously when he does not take it seriously himself?
Softwood Lumber October 24th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, for 72 days, Liberals have sent conflicting messages on softwood. The ministers of Industry, International Trade and Foreign Affairs have said no to further negotiations. This morning the Prime Minister flip-flopped in favour of negotiations.
With the U.S. Secretary of State in Ottawa, is the Prime Minister even in a position to demand a resolution today or has he mismanaged this file so badly the Americans do not even know what we want?
Agriculture June 27th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, the confirmation of a positive case of BSE in the American cattle herd has shown what producers around the world have known for years: that we are all in this together.
While this case is unfortunate, it was not unexpected. It provides an opportunity for the Canadian government to truly commit to the fight for Canadian cattle producers and return cross-border trade to pre-2003 levels. Canadians need real leadership and a government that works for increased global trade for all sectors of the Canadian economy, not just the unbalanced trade deficits with which the Liberals have become satisfied.
As Canadians enjoy their well-earned summer holidays, the Conservative Party of Canada will continue to listen to small and large business owners and work to ensure Canada harnesses our potential in new and emerging markets.
An Act to Authorize the Minister of Finance to Make Certain Payments June 20th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, I would like to take a moment to commend the hon. member for the good work he has done on these specific issues, not only in affordable housing for Canadians but the passion he has shown in helping people in other countries. That brings the Conservative message out loud and clear that we on this side of the House do actually want to follow up on our promises. We do actually want to help Canadians.
There is probably one very simple way to answer my hon. colleague's question. Promises made, promises broken. We have seen it repeated many times in I have forgotten how many red books now. The numbers quoted are probably very accurate, but we probably should not be very proud of those numbers.
An Act to Authorize the Minister of Finance to Make Certain Payments June 20th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, perhaps I was not very clear in some of my comments if they were actually misconstrued as being supportive of this budget. Clearly nothing that I commented on could be classified as supportive, but I guess one grasps at the support one thinks one might get.
It is interesting that my hon. colleague mentioned the fact that the Prime Minister is finally addressing some of these trade issues, such as not enough consulates in different areas and certainly with our largest trading partner. The government has had 12 years to put those in place. It is not as if Canada's trade interests came out of nowhere and just started last year. The government has had 12 years to develop these trade initiatives and to increase our opportunities to trade.
There is one comment I might make about the consulates. Certainly they are a good thing, but I still do have to question to whom the consulates are reporting. My sense is that they are reporting to foreign affairs and not to trade. If indeed these are consulates that are set up to initiate trade deals and help Canadian companies, then they should be reporting to the trade department rather than to foreign affairs.
I would also have to question how much we are leading at the WTO. In fact the Minister of International Trade was not even present at the last two mini ministerials leading up to Hong Kong in December. How can we be a leader if we are not even at the table?
An Act to Authorize the Minister of Finance to Make Certain Payments June 20th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, I must rise in the House today to speak against the NDP budget bill and I have a few key reasons for my opposition. I join my colleagues to bring to Canadians a clearer view into the deficiencies of this spending spree.
To begin with, let us talk about the support for Canada's international trade strategy by this NDP-Liberal budget or, should I say, lack of support for any kind of trade strategy.
In this very short bill, which was apparently cooked up in a Toronto hotel room under the supervision of the unelected Buzz Hargrove, the Liberals paid a ransom of $4.5 billion. The NDP added provisions for the environment, post-secondary education, affordable housing and foreign aid.
Those are all worthy projects. In fact, so worthy that they demand thoughtful planning and are undermined when they are treated like pawns in a Liberal-NDP power game.
We see nothing to help fuel international trade for the Canadian economy from the corrupt minority Liberals or from their armchair enablers, the NDP.
On the other hand, the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade just today accepted proactive Conservative Party policy ideas to the emerging market strategy report that will be tabled in this House. Time will tell what the Government of Canada will say in response to this.
There is no question that creating and pursuing a strong strategy to promote trade with new and emerging markets is very important. There has been action to grow beyond the traditional Liberal notion of inflated imports alone as trade objectives.
Comments over the past months and even years by the Liberal Party, the NDP and the Bloc have fallen victim to debate, using reactionary protectionist language.
A balance must be struck between adjustments to the ever changing global trade economy and invoking temporary and unsustainable interventions to shield sectors from external market forces.
The Conservative Party of Canada recognizes the unique nature of our domestic trade objectives. We urge all members of this House and specifically counsel the Liberal government to end its policy of divisive and polarizing dialogue on international trade.
Canadian industry relies on the federal government to continue its ambitious agenda of trade liberalization. This cannot happen if the Liberals are successful in pitting region against region and sector against sector.
We have seen in this House legitimate discussions on the government's commitment to defend the unique policy models and institutions. However in words and in action the Liberal government has not balanced the debate by reaffirming its commitment to aggressively pursue a global increase in strong, rules based, clean market access for Canada's export oriented commodities.
To be perfectly clear, the Conservative Party of Canada will defend Canadians in their pursuit of prosperity through free and fair trade. The Canadian economy has unlimited potential to grow and prosper but it needs a federal government that stands up for its producers, manufacturers and service industries, both in our largest export market, the United States, and around the world.
The Conservative Party, as the official opposition and as Canada's government in waiting, believes that strategic trade policy must focus on efforts to achieve strong and enforceable rules based trade agreements at the bilateral and multilateral levels. These agreements must secure increased, effective and efficient market access to global markets in established regions, such as Europe, and especially in new and emerging markets, such as China, India, Brazil and Russia.
The Conservative Party of Canada has called on the Government of Canada to recommit to achieving a strong and enforceable agreement at the WTO that achieves increased effective and efficient market access to global markets, while also maintaining the sovereignty to retain domestic marketing practices consistent with WTO obligations.
Jobs, competitiveness and productivity that fuels increased international trade are the real issues that should have been addressed in any budget addendum.
Briefly I would like to discuss the foreign aid section of the NDP budget. The Conservative Party of Canada has repeatedly demanded that the Government of Canada address concerns raised by the unlegislated nature of CIDA. Without a legislated mandate, this crucial element of Canada's global contribution is vulnerable to misappropriation.
The NDP should not have given the Liberals another blank cheque that is supposed to be spent on development when CIDA funds were already included in the commerce section of the recently released international policy statement. This should raise concerns from the NDP, as it has in the Conservative Party, that CIDA funds may be diverted from development work toward priorities such as trade promotion rather than being effectively leveraged to enhance the development advantages that can be achieved as a consequence of Canadian industry investment in developing nations.
In an increasingly competitive global economy, trade remains the key to future prosperity in Canada. Many Canadian jobs depend heavily upon foreign markets. Those jobs are placed in jeopardy when other nations make it difficult for our exporters to sell their products. The Conservative Party of Canada is committed to improving overall economic growth in Canada through facilitating competition, improving productivity, streamlining regulation and fostering innovation in concert with free and fair trade agreements.
The Government of Canada must bring more security to existing trade related jobs. To create new employment opportunities, it is critical to focus on diversifying both the products we sell abroad and the markets into which we sell those products.
Secure access to international markets through a rules based trading system will maximize the benefits we have as a free trading nation, emphasizing the need to establish trading relationships beyond North America. The Government of Canada must vigorously pursue reduction of international trade barriers and tariffs, eliminate trade distorting government export subsidies within clearly established time limits, and seek a clear definition of what constitutes an export subsidy.
The Conservative Party of Canada urges the Government of Canada to resist implementing reactionary protectionist policies, balance its domestic and international dialogues to reflect all sectors of the Canadian economy, and reject pressure to undermine Canada's foreign aid budgets by raiding legitimate CIDA programming to achieve international trade objectives.
Finally, the Conservative Party of Canada supports the development of an innovative and aggressive strategy to develop trade ties with emerging markets.
Alternative Energy June 6th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, in the town of Okotoks, Swindells Pool, the Murray and Piper arenas, and the recycling and operations centres are all heated, cooled and lit using solar technology.
In Vulcan, residents are becoming leaders in renewable energy use. A plan to use football field sized solar panels and biomass energy would cut Vulcan's non-renewable energy use by 40% to 60% and heat homes and water.
In Willow Creek, the McBride Lake wind farm powers more than 32,500 homes annually with wind energy.
Efforts to increase slaughter capacity led to an environmentally innovative beef processing plant planned for Pincher Creek.
The 250 head per day New Generation Co-op will use bio-digesters to convert animal waste into bio-gas, killing BSE prions and other organisms in the intense heat. The bio-digester will generate electricity to operate the plant, with the excess sold to the grid creating 110 jobs locally.
Petitions May 20th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition on behalf of my constituents of MacLeod. This petition requests that the House pass legislation to recognize the institution of marriage in federal law as being the union of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others.
An Act to Authorize the Minister of Finance to Make Certain Payments May 19th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, the member's question certainly raises the larger question that everyone on this side of the House is asking. We have seen promises, promises and promises that have not been kept. Therefore, why would we expect the promises in this legislation to be kept either?
An Act to Authorize the Minister of Finance to Make Certain Payments May 19th, 2005
Mr. Speaker, the member is absolutely correct. These piecemeal agreements that we have seen not only are ineffective, they are antagonistic. They have done nothing but pit one province against another.
It adds to what we have seen in the sponsorship scandal. In so many of the claims that we have seen, the money has gone to people in Quebec. That is the way it appears but that is not the fact. It may have gone to people in Quebec, but it had nothing to do with Quebec. It was the Liberal government trying to buy off Quebec, trying to buy the allegiance of one province.
This exemplifies what the Liberals have done. It magnifies it and brings it out to everyone that the Liberal government does not show equal respect to all provinces.