Privilege  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his comments, even though we have fundamentally different views. We believe that what happened is much more serious and that a committee should examine the issue in order to shed light on what really happened. How can an honourable colleague say that he saw people doing something with his own eyes, and then 18 days later, say that he is sorry but that he actually did not see anything.

Privilege  Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for his excellent speech on such a key issue. In theory, we should all agree that good public policy must be based on sound research and verifiable facts. The government is amending the Canada Elections Act, the bedrock of our democracy, not just without facts, but with incomplete facts that are being presented as the rationale for amending the Canada Elections Act.

Privacy  Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives have made drastic cuts to public services such as employment insurance and Canada Post, they have made partisan changes to the Canada Elections Act, and they used a diplomatic visit to boost the Conservative Party's database. Let us not forget the Wright and Duffy scheme, which was orchestrated in the Prime Minister's very own boardroom.

Privacy  Mr. Speaker, the Aga Khan came to Canada to share a message of tolerance and openness that is strikingly similar to the NDP's “Working together” slogan. Apparently, the message went way over the heads of the Conservatives. They put the Aga Khan's speech up on the Prime Minister's website, but in order to listen to it, people had to submit their email address.

Ethics  Mr. Speaker, I have been stabbed in the back before, which is why I no longer believe the stories the Conservatives are telling. We already knew that Michel Fournier, a good friend of the Liberals who was also known as Zorro, awarded a contract to repair and renovate the Jacques Cartier Bridge to SNC-Lavalin.

Prime Minister's Office  Mr. Speaker, while staff of the Prime Minister's Office stuff their faces with pizza at the taxpayers' expense, every day over 18,000 children in Quebec have to rely on breakfast clubs so they do not start the day on an empty stomach. In his bubble, the President of the Treasury Board thinks that the rules do not apply to the Conservatives and that it is completely normal to spend $130,000 on lunches for the Prime Minister's staff.

Government Advertising  Mr. Speaker, perhaps the Conservatives thought that no one would notice that they spent $2.5 million to advertise a program that exists only in the Minister of Employment and Social Development's overactive imagination, but people did notice. That is why the Conservatives were the big winners at the gala put on by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, an organization that not so long ago was headed by the Minister of Employment and Social Development.

Prime Minister’s Office  Mr. Speaker, the members opposite rode into Parliament on their trusty steed, the white horse of reform, promising to defend taxpayers at any price. Today, they have to defend expensive lunches for PMO staffers, people with more ambition than principles who seem incapable of taking two pieces of bread, spreading them with mayonnaise and adding ham, cheese and lettuce—it is important to eat healthy—especially when taxpayers are footing the bill.

Rosemont Community Development Corporation  Mr. Speaker, today I would like to mark the 25th anniversary of the Corporation de développement communautaire de Rosemont, or the CDC. For 25 years, this organization has rallied the people of Rosemont around promising community building projects that improve community life. The CDC brings together various stakeholders in the Rosemont community in order to fight poverty and improve social conditions.

Canada Post  Mr. Speaker, whether it is in the language of Shakespeare or Molière, the important thing is for it to make sense. Last week, the people of Rosemère, Lorraine, Bois-des-Filion, Repentigny and Charlemagne learned that they would be the first in the G7 to lose their home delivery service.

The Budget  Mr. Speaker, Mr. Pétain, a citizen concerned by the state of our economy, said, “In times like these, it is hard to establish a proper finance system. The minister is certainly not the right person for the job”. Well, he was right. This budget attacks the provinces and workers.

Canada Post  Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives have a report detailing options that could ensure Canada Post's survival. However, that report was never made public. What is worse, the crown corporation and its 23 executives—who are paid $10 million—have even denied ever having done this research.

Fair Elections Act  Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his comments, although his introduction seemed a little far off topic. There was a lot of speculation. More seriously, we in the NDP believe that people should have the maximum opportunity to vote, to participate in civic matters, to take part in an election campaign and perhaps even to donate to the political party they support.

Fair Elections Act  Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for his advice and his comments. On the subject of the people of Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, I would like to provide him with immediate reassurance. I am very pleased to have received the support of 51% of them, while the Conservative Party received just 3.8% of the votes.

Fair Elections Act  Mr. Speaker, it is important to remind people of the context of this debate. I will address matters as they stand. We are dealing with a bill that has dragged on, but instead of taking the time to work on it intelligently, meeting with people and discussing it with them, the Conservatives worked on this in secret behind closed doors.