Cape Breton Development Corporation  Mr. Speaker, the loud and vacuous antics of the NDP yesterday made it impossible to deal seriously with what is obviously a serious issue for the people of Cape Breton. With respect to Devco let me simply quote what I said over two months ago to a Senate committee. One could only have a rational discussion about privatization vis-à-vis Devco once commercial viability has in fact been achieved.

Privilege  I went further when I appeared before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food to discuss Bill C-4 last October. I told the committee that I had consulted with farm groups about election methodology and I asked that committee the exact same questions that I asked the farm groups.

Privilege  Mr. Speaker, I rise in relation to an alleged question of privilege raised last Tuesday by the member for Prince George—Peace River pertaining to Bill C-4, an act to amend the Canadian Wheat Board Act. Let me begin by expressing my appreciation to you, Mr. Speaker, for ensuring that on this alleged point the government side is heard in this House in response to the five interventions that were heard from the Reform Party.

Cape Breton Development Corporation  Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member knows, a private sector firm has made a proposal and is studying the feasibility of the concept. I have not received—

Cape Breton Development Corporation  Mr. Speaker, the rudeness of the member is rather startling. The answer is a feasibility study is being conducted by a private sector firm on its own initiative and no decision will be taken by Devco or by this government until we get that information.

Points Of Order  Mr. Speaker, the question from yesterday to which the hon. gentleman has just referred was a question directed to me in the House. On that same point of order, let me say that I am very pleased to hear the member's apology in respect of Mr. Vollman. I am certain that Mr. Vollman is even more pleased that the record has been corrected and that there is no slur against his character or his reputation.

The Environment  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to tell the House that the Government of Canada is fully on track, not only to meet but likely to beat its commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions from its own government operations. That commitment was to get to 20% below 1990 levels by the year 2005.

Sable Island Natural Gas  Mr. Speaker, to be very specific let me quote Premier Bouchard of Quebec: “It is preferable to leave it up to the market and the regulatory bodies to look after matters relating to natural gas transmission”. That is what we are doing. If there are parties in the private sector who feel aggrieved by any technical aspect of the process, they are perfectly at liberty to appeal to the courts, which indeed some of them have done.

Candu Reactors  Mr. Speaker, rather than repeating the erroneous assertions of people in the United States who may be on sales missions in an effort to discredit the Canadian competition, the member might like to know that the Candu technology is robust, sound and secure. That is a finding not only by the Atomic Energy Control Board of Canada but also in fact by American consultants who examined Candu and found it to be just fine.

Candu Reactors  Mr. Speaker, any country with which Canada does business must of course adhere to all the international rules pertaining to nuclear power and the use of uranium. In addition to that, AECL is meticulous in doing its own prestudy of any situation to ensure that the facility can be constructed safely and it must of course be constructed not only to the standards that exist in the foreign country but to Canadian standards and international energy standards as well.

Sable Island Natural Gas  Mr. Speaker, every application before the National Energy Board is examined according to the same standards to make sure that every one of those applications complies with all the applicable rules and regulations. In fact, that is a request that is made not only by the energy industry in this country but by all the premiers of all the provinces, including explicitly and specifically Premier Bouchard of Quebec.

Sable Island Natural Gas  Mr. Speaker, the hon. gentleman should know that the regulatory process is not yet complete. There are some stages yet to go. The Government of Canada is being absolutely meticulous in adhering to the spirit and the letter of the regulatory process, its integrity and its independence.

Sable Island Natural Gas  Mr. Speaker, a joint independent panel was established by the Government of Canada and the Government of Nova Scotia to conduct a review. That panel worked for 10 months. It held 20 information meetings and 56 days of public hearings. It heard from 125 different intervenors. It was open, transparent, balanced and fair, and I believe it did a very thorough job.

Questions On The Order Paper  The Cassiar asbestos mine in British Columbia has not been reopened. The project mentioned is in fact a pilot project to reprocess waste from the old mine. The Cassiar pilot project went into service on October 19, 1997 and is producing only for test purposes. To date, there has been no industrial production.

The Environment  Mr. Speaker, all provinces are invited to take part in developing the Canadian implementation plan from Kyoto. The Government of Canada has stressed no unreasonable share of the burden for any region or sector, no carbon tax, deeper commitments by the private sector, greater energy efficiency, more renewable and alternative sources of energy, a powerful focus on research and development and the maximum use of international flexibility provisions.