Tony Clement

[Regional Economic Development, November 28th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I actually did not do any of that. I simply indicated that businesses in the country make, from time to time, business decisions and sometimes they reverse those decisions due to market conditions. Regardless of that, we have great faith in the Ring of Fire certainly as a concept of development that will produce tens of thousands of jobs for the local communities throughout the province and throughout the country.

We have been supportive in terms of our role and responsibility when it comes to training, when it comes to the dialogue with the first nations and other communities and we will continue to be so.

[Regional Economic Development, November 28th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I can certainly assure the House that this government understands that business decisions are made and sometimes business decisions are unmade. However, we as a government have been very supportive of the Ring of Fire. We understand Noront is still there and still actively developing its proposals. We have been there for training. We have been there for the dialogue with first nations communities in the area, as well as the other communities. We will continue to be helpful in the future as well.

[Public Service of Canada, November 28th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I can do that.

'Tis a month before Christmas
But I'll stand in this House
To say Happy Holidays
Not to bicker or grouse.
I told the public service
They could deck the halls
Their offices, their desks
And even the walls.
Let's make sure public servants can show their cheer
With garland, minoras or a red proboscis reindeer.
'Tis the season of cheer
Not partisan fights.
So Merry Christmas to all
And Happy Festival of Lights.

[Government Accountability, November 27th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, that is completely false. The Treasury Board Secretariat and all departments that have been audited have accepted all of the Auditor General's recommendations.

This question refers to the audits of the financial controls in place in the departments. Under the Federal Accountability Act, our government created departmental audit committees, which provide objective advice about the quality and functioning of the departments' control and governance processes.

[Government Advertising, November 27th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, this certainly is an interesting turn of events. I will answer the question.

The hon. member knows, or should know, that it is a long-standing practice across various governments to have such nomenclature. A simple check of online archives shows that the terms “Chrétien government”, “Martin government”, and similar variations appear in official government communications by various governments.

In fact, journalists, if I may be so bold as to reference them in this chamber, the public, and in fact the Liberal Party itself use these official terms, including on the Liberal Party website.

There is no harm done, no foul.

[Government Services, November 26th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, we are very excited to work with the Auditor General, other agents and other parliamentarians on expanding the online offerings for citizens. It is better for citizens, more convenient and less costly to the taxpayer. We are going to the online world through a single portal called “Canada.ca”. That is ongoing and we will be starting in December.

In fact, we are continuing to offer more online data for the average citizen, for researchers and for entrepreneurs. There are 200,000 data sets online as we speak.

[Access to Information, November 19th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, we would be happy to put on the record some of the actual statistics. Last year, our government processed nearly 54,000 access to information requests, a 27% increase over the previous year. We also released a record number of materials, over six million pages.

Our record is clear when it comes to transparency. Of course, we are waiting for the commissioner's report on other changes that she would suggest. If the opposition has other positive changes, we would consider those as well.

[Access to Information, November 19th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, our record is also clear regarding access to information. We are providing more responses to access to information requests. Last year, for example, there were 55,000 responses to information requests. Our record is clear. There may be some changes in the future. If the commissioner and the opposition propose any positive changes, we would be happy to discuss them.

[Government Accountability, November 19th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, as I have said, our record is very clear. With respect to accountability to the House and in this city, we will make positive changes. We can also talk about changes that might be made in the future.

[Government Accountability, November 19th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, we on this side of the House are proud of the legislation that we put forward right at the start of this government to ensure that there was more accountability for activity within government and the activity of those who were in government who then went outside of government. We are proud of that legislation. We believe it has done a great job to change the mentality in this place.

If the hon. member has some suggestions, as we are waiting for the reports from various commissioners on some changes that could be improvements, we would be happy to have his suggestions as well.