National Defence  Mr. Speaker, the chief has stated publicly that the matter is closed. I stated that yesterday. There is no damage to the helicopter or to the planes. I would like to repeat the position of the Government of Canada in English. The natives believe that their reserves are sovereign.

Multiculturalism  Mr. Speaker, the comments made yesterday in the House that suggested multiculturalism creates ghettos are wrong. Some members seem to believe new Canadians will flock together in abject poverty if multiculturalism is allowed to continue. This is absurd. To its credit, the Government of Canada wants new Canadians to retain their culture and heritage.

Poverty  Mr. Speaker, the city of Winnipeg has the highest percentage of low income households in western Canada. Twelve thousand households use food banks every month, almost three times as many as in 1990. Unfortunately there has been a collective growth in the number of people using food banks across the country.

Speech From The Throne  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for his question. Yes, we probably do have similar rural areas in our constituencies in the provinces of Nova Scotia and Quebec. There is no doubt I feel certain parts of the government are too centralized. They should be partly relocated to the areas where they generally would fit into the activities of that area.

Speech From The Throne  Mr. Speaker, I want to agree with the hon. member's comment that the social economic condition is extremely important to health care. The Minister of Human Resources Development is certainly looking at ways of improving the social safety net and making better use of every dollar spent.

Speech From The Throne  I thank the hon. member for his kind words. I do not think we are going to have to wait very long for very many decisions. The decisions and the problems that the government is looking at right now are going to be handled with the help of all Canadians. Most of the ministers have spoken already in the House and talked of the process where they are going to be opening up the decision making.

Speech From The Throne  Mr. Speaker, with respect to the comments of the hon. member, I come from the province of Saskatchewan where people cherish their independence very much and certainly do not appreciate the interference of government at most stages, including taxation, but I will not get into that.

Business Of The House  Mr. Speaker, today we will continue with debate on the Address in Reply to the Speech from the Throne. As we know the House will sit until ten o'clock this evening. There will also be a continuation of the throne speech debate tomorrow. If there is to be a vote on the motion, the vote will take place if necessary at 6 p.m. this coming Tuesday.

High-Speed Train  Mr. Speaker, the Government of Canada is anxious to work together with the private sector on all modes of transportation that can be helpful as part of the infrastructure and provide applications for advanced technology. It is true that we are experiencing a budget crisis, as the hon. member's friend, the member for Saint-Jean, said in this House.

Kemano Project  Mr. Speaker, my question is directed to the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans. Many people in my riding, including representatives of environmental groups and First Nations, have voiced their concerns to me regarding the completion of the Kemano project. Earlier this week the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans hinted that he might be able to shed some light on how and when the government intended to honour the commitment made by the Prime Minister to participate in the current British Columbia Utilities Commission review of the Kemano completion project.

Infrastructure Program  Mr. Speaker, when the provincial premiers were here at the first ministers' conference on December 21 they all agreed in principle to the program, so Quebec is indeed a part of the program. What we are attempting to do at this point in time is to dot the i 's and cross the t 's on the framework agreement.

Auditor General's Report  Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister was referring to the same discrepancy between what we feel are accurate costing figures. I think he did a very good job at explaining in graphic terms the difference between our concept of how these costs should be arrived at and that of the Auditor General.

Immigration  Mr. Speaker, I just finished saying that the hon. member actually applauded the first appointments that we made, as did the Reform Party of Canada. What we have laid down is an unprecedented consultation process with respect to the Immigration Refugee Board. We consulted with NGOs across the country.

Cigarette Smuggling  Mr. Speaker, we are very concerned with the problems of contraband and cigarette smuggling. The government and I as Minister of Health are extremely concerned with smoking and the effect it has on the health of Canadians. Not only do young children start smoking every day, but those who purchase cigarettes on the black market do not pay the taxes which help us fund the health care system.

Auditor General's Report  Mr. Speaker, the hon. member will realize that the way the supplementary question was asked by his colleague left some in doubt as to what he was actually trying to get at. No one disputes the fact that public servants report to their political masters as elected and members of the government.