Ethics  Duffy collected $90,000 in expenses that we consider to be inappropriate. We have been very clear from the beginning with him that he should have repaid this. I was assured that he had. He assured the entire Canadian public that he had in fact done so. He had not. That is why he should face the appropriate sanctions.

Ethics  Speaker, the senator in question has been accused of absolutely nothing. The perpetrators here are absolutely clear in this particular affair. Mr. Duffy took expenses he should never have taken and then he falsely claimed to have repaid them. Mr. Wright repaid those on his behalf and did not properly inform me and others that that is what happened.

Ethics  Mr. Speaker, my position is very clear and the time for apologizing is past. It is now time for the Senate to take action and determine the appropriate sanctions for the actions of these senators. Mr. Wright is no longer on the public payroll and the Senate should remove the three senators in question from the public payroll as well.

Ethics  Speaker, if the Senate were not an independent body, those three senators would no longer be sitting in it, but the fact is it is. The government's position is absolutely crystal clear. The time for making apologies over there has long passed. The senators have collected hundreds of thousands of dollars of money that they should not have collected. They did it deliberately or with little care.

Ethics  Mr. Speaker, once again, I think we have all been very clear on this. Mr. Wright was told that his actions were inappropriate and he no longer works for me. Mr. Wright has also accepted, himself, that his actions were inappropriate. He is no longer on the public payroll.

Ethics  Mr. Speaker, the facts are very clear. Mr. Wright acted inappropriately, and for that reason, I very clearly explained to him that he no longer worked for me. Mr. Wright is no longer on the public payroll. That was the appropriate action.

Ethics  Mr. Speaker, Mr. Wright has been clear. The decision to repay Mr. Duffy with his own money was his and his alone. He informed very few people. The allegations contained in that question are completely false and designed to do one thing and that is to deflect attention from the fact that it is the Liberal senators and the Liberal Party that refuse any reform in the Senate and refuse any attempt to discipline any senators who have behaved inappropriately.

Ethics  Speaker, I addressed that matter months ago. Mr. Wright made this decision. He has been very clear. He informed very few people. It was his own decision and his own initiative. Any insinuation or any suggestion that I knew or would have known is incorrect. As soon as I knew, I made this information available to the public and took the appropriate action.

Ethics  Speaker, once again, the matter of the expenses of two senators, including Mr. Duffy, was raised in caucus. In response, I was extremely clear. I said, “You cannot claim expenses you did not incur”. That message was also delivered personally to Mr. Duffy at the end of the meeting.

Ethics  Mr. Speaker, once again, I have been very clear on this subject. The issue here is not whether one can argue whether or not one can bend the rules and interpret the rules in such a way as to do something that is clearly inappropriate.

Ethics  I think the allegation here is that Mr. Duffy and I were in Ottawa on the same day. I made it very clear to Mr. Duffy, and I said long before, on February 13, that he should repay his inappropriate expenses. I learned only later, on May 15, that he had not done so, and that Mr. Wright had done that on his behalf.

Ethics  Speaker, my answers on this matter from day one have been exactly the same as they are today. The facts are clear. Mr. Duffy was told. Mr. Duffy now says he is a victim because I told him he should repay his expenses. Darn right I told him.

Ethics  Mr. Speaker, I have been crystal clear about this. I continue to be so. It is interesting. We, of course, insisted that those who are responsible be held accountable for their actions, unlike the hon. leader opposite. The very first thing he said was he thought that Mac Harb should be readmitted to the Liberal caucus.

Ethics  Wright but to many others who were present and who heard them. Those instructions were absolutely clear. I expected Mr. Duffy to repay his expenses and not Mr. Wright to repay them for him. That was also not correct, which is why Mr. Wright is no longer working for me and why Mr. Duffy is no longer in the Senate.

Ethics  Mr. Speaker, Mr. Wright was very clear when he made that decision. It was his responsibility. He took responsibility for the decision, just as this government accepts its responsibilities. We are responsible for fostering growth, jobs and economic security for Canadians, and we will continue to pursue those goals.