Natural Resources  Mr. Speaker, our government supports Canadian jobs from coast to coast to coast. We understand that developing our resources creates jobs and economic growth across the country. Our message does not change when we are in Canada or abroad. The Liberal leader, however, pits one region against another in an attempt to win votes.

National Hunting, Trapping and Fishing Heritage Day Act  Mr. Speaker, I was deeply honoured when the member for Northumberland—Quinte West asked me to second the bill. I was very moved by his speech just now, especially when he talked about the family aspect of hunting and fishing. The experiences he recalls mirrored my own. Indeed, my love of hunting and angling caused me to have a career in conservation.

International Trade  Mr. Speaker, the Canada-EU trade agreement will have great benefits for small businesses, manufacturers, and the people of Dauphin—Swan River—Marquette. Companies in my riding, such as Spruce Products, Hylife Foods, Louisiana Pacific Building Products and manufactures such as AG Shield in Benito, will now have access to a $17-trillion market of more than half a billion people.

Economic Action Plan 2013 Act No. 2  Mr. Speaker, I listened with interest to my colleague's description of what happened at Iroquois Falls. I am deeply sympathetic to that, having worked in an Abitibi mill myself, in a previous life, that is now closed. I think he is quite right to describe the pain those resource workers feel when an operation like that is shut down.

Economic Action Plan 2013 Act No. 2  Mr. Speaker, all the members opposite talk about is spending and never address the issue of how our country and our economy can create the wealth for which we can have all these great social services that our government is funding. Could the minister tell us why it is important to have a climate for economic growth and what our budget is doing to ensure that economic growth continues?

Economic Action Plan 2013 Act No. 2  Mr. Speaker, I was truly bowled over by my colleague's praise of NDP governments. One only has to come from Manitoba, as I do. High taxes and rising unemployment are the track record of NDP governments. Thankfully, the people of Nova Scotia saw fit to throw the NDP out after one term.

Economic Action Plan 2013 Act No. 2  We're happy to have you.

Recreational Fisheries  Mr. Speaker, last May, the Prime Minister announced the creation of the hunting and angling advisory panel, an acknowledgement of our government's appreciation for the conservation record of Canada's hunting and angling community. Today I am proud to talk about our government's recently announced $10 million recreational fisheries conservation partnership program.

Safe Drinking Water for First Nations Act  Mr. Speaker, the phony outrage from my friend opposite is almost too much for me to bear, having 10 reserves in my constituency and he having none. The contrast between the reserves in my constituency and the thriving agricultural communities around them is very stark. The agricultural communities are self-sufficient, thriving and have a very important difference from the reserve communities: people have property rights.

Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada  Mr. Speaker, days, weeks, and even months have passed by since news broke of Liberal Senator Pana Merchant's $1.7 million off-shore account, and the leader of the Liberal Party still has not said a word. What is worse, the Liberals are blocking the Auditor General from undertaking the audit in the Senate for which our government called.

Manitoba Women Entrepreneurs  Mr. Speaker, I rise to honour two business people from my riding, Judith Mccaskill, owner of the Sandy Lake Hotel, and Marsha Trinder, owner of the T.W. Ranch, finalists for the 2013 Manitoba Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Awards. I also want to congratulate Ms. Mccaskill for winning the contribution to community award.

Bill C-60—Economic Action Plan 2013 Act, No. 1  Mr. Speaker, I am a very strong supporter of the changes we made to the Fisheries Act and to environmental laws. What we did was eliminate needless duplication. What my hon. friend and members across the way do not appreciate is that project proponents and businesses today build the very best environmental standards into the design of their projects from day one.

Bill C-60—Economic Action Plan 2013 Act, No. 1  Mr. Speaker, I am not sure where my friend has been, but one of the most common complaints of the business community is that we have lots of jobs but not enough workers to fill them. That is why the Canada job grant is so important. It matches what employers need with the skills that potential workers have.

Bill C-60—Economic Action Plan 2013 Act, No. 1  Mr. Speaker, I am not sure about the question there, but as I have the floor again, I want to reiterate the importance of creating a climate for business and economic growth. Public policy matters. Letting Canadian entrepreneurs and Canadian businesses go about their jobs of creating wealth will make our country strong, generate income for vital social programs, fund retirement benefits for seniors and make our country better overall to withstand any economic perturbations that may happen in the future.

Bill C-60—Economic Action Plan 2013 Act, No. 1  Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate the Minister of Finance for once again introducing a budget that would put us on track for jobs, growth and long-term prosperity. Low taxes are an integral part of our budget, and we are on track to balance the budget by 2015-2016. Economic action plan 2013 would announce more savings in government spending, totalling $2 billion by 2015-2016.