Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I want to commend my colleague from Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola for bringing the motion forward today. My colleague on this side asked a question a few moments ago, and he definitely did not get an answer. One part of the question was this. Does the member on the Liberal side believe that it is a constitutional right for Canadians to do business across provincial borders without penalty?

North Okanagan—Shuswap  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize collective achievements in communities across the North Okanagan—Shuswap, the collective achievements of our high school graduates. Over the past and coming weeks, 18 high schools across the North Okanagan—Shuswap will see hundreds of graduates cross the stage, marking a successful achievement in their lives.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I believe that referral to the Supreme Court of Canada for clarification and negotiations with the provinces should go hand in hand. To move negotiations forward and come to an agreement without seeking clarity from the court on whether the negotiations and agreements are constitutional would simply be wasting time.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I am not clear that there was a question there, but as I stated, the directive from this motion would be to refer this matter to the Supreme Court, the highest court in the land, to get a referral on how the negotiations and legislation should be moved forward so that we do not end up with court battles over the constitutional correctness of future negotiations and those that may be taking place right now.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, the member for Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola is very well versed on this. He certainly knows the fine points of the Gold Seal decision and the Comeau case. The fact that the Comeau case brought new evidence forward and directed the decision around section 121 of the Constitution is why it has become important that we refer to the Supreme Court, as the highest ruler in the country on constitutional issues.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak to the motion brought forward by the hon. member for Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola. I will be sharing my time with the member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan. I thank the member for Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola for his continued efforts to promote economic vibrancy through interprovincial trade across our great nation.

Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 1  Mr. Speaker, it was interesting to hear the previous question about the Canada child benefit program. We could better refer to the budget as the Canada child deficit program, with the continuing long-term deficits being brought in. I asked a question earlier today regarding the GST increases that are projected to be 21% over the next five years.

Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 1  Mr. Speaker, the member talked about what the Liberals would implement with this budget. What are they implementing with the huge deficit they have budgeted for, with no plans to balance the budget? These are serious things to implement upon the Canadian public. What is more concerning to me is on page 235 of this year's budget.

Budget Implementation Act, 2016, No. 1  I'm not talking about the campaign.

Committees of the House  Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech today and for the great explanation of the importance of supply management. It is a very important issue in my riding of North Okanagan—Shuswap. I truly support the dairy and poultry producers there and the economic input they have.

Abandoned Vessels  Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise in the House today as the member for North Okanagan—Shuswap and deputy critic for fisheries and oceans, and the Canadian Coast Guard. I rise today to speak on Motion No. 40, a motion to address the issue of abandoned and derelict vessels. I thank the member for South Shore—St.

Ethics  Mr. Speaker, Canadians are disturbed with the appointment of the government House leader as the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard. The Ethics Commissioner has banned the House leader from participating in any discussions or decision-making involving the Irving Group.

Ethics  Mr. Speaker, Canadians deserve to know how the new Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard can do his job effectively without breaking the Ethics Commissioner's ban on communications with the Irving Group. The fact is that J.D. Irving has a position on the minister's very own advisory committee on Atlantic salmon.

Petitions  Mr. Speaker, I present three petitions today, all on the same issue. The petitioners call on the House of Commons to pass legislation which would recognize preborn children as separate victims when they are injured or killed during the commission of an offence against their mothers, allowing two charges to be laid against the offender instead of just one.

Petitions  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition initiated by Mr. Bob Spiers of Vernon, B.C. and signed by Canadians from coast to coast to coast. The petitioners call on the Government of Canada to establish a tax credit for auxiliary police officers, similar to that already given to volunteer firefighters and search and rescue volunteers.