Petitions  Madam Speaker, I rise today to present a petition that I would prefer not to have to present. If the government decided to keep the Maritime sub-centre open in St. John's, Newfoundland, then this petition would be unnecessary. However, I will read the petition to point out how important it is to keep this facility open.

Triple Bay Eagles Ground Search and Rescue Team  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize a remarkable group in my riding of Random—Burin—St. George's, the Triple Bay Eagles Ground Search and Rescue Team in the Clarenville area. Comprised of 34 members, this volunteer group accumulated 3,935 hours of volunteer work last year, the highest in all of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Supporting Vulnerable Seniors and Strengthening Canada's Economy Act  Mr. Speaker, Liberal members will be voting against.

House debate  Mr. Speaker, I have to respond with disbelief at some of the commentary just made by my hon. colleague, to suggest that this is a way of saving dollars and of becoming much more efficient. This is about safety. If the government wants to save dollars, it should look at cabinet, look at the size of cabinet and the fact that it has increased.

House debate  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak once again to the closure of the maritime sub-centre in St. John's and of course the centre as well in Quebec City. At this point in time, my concern is that we cannot seem to get across to the Government of Canada how important that sub-centre is to the lives of people who spend much of their time at sea, whether we are talking about sailors, fishers, or people who just use the sea for pleasure, or oil workers, for instance.

Search and Rescue  Mr. Speaker, not only are experts in search and rescue saying that closing the Maritime rescue centre is the wrong thing to do in St. John's and Quebec City, but so are sea captains. Captain Charles Domineux, the captain of the ferry that sails between Saint-Pierre and Miquelon and Newfoundland and Labrador, is furious at the government's actions.

Search and Rescue  Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans wants us to believe that the closure of maritime search and rescue centres in St. John's and Quebec City will not affect lifesaving services. However, yesterday, Winston Pitcher, the head of the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary in Newfoundland and Labrador, told the Prime Minister that these closures could delay rescues and put public safety at risk.

Cultural Scholarships  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize a young man from the first nations Mi'kmaq community of Conne River in my riding of Random—Burin—St. George's. Mise'l Jeddore was awarded the 2011 cultural scholarship for St. Anne's School in Conne River. Despite his young age, Mise'l is proving to be an outstanding ambassador for the aboriginal culture.

Search and Rescue  Mr. Speaker, whether it is trying to de-staff lighthouses or refusing to put money into search and rescue in Newfoundland and Labrador, the government seems willing to put the lives of people at risk. Fishers and oil workers in particular work in a risky environment and the last thing they need is to worry about their safety because of this move.

The Budget  Mr. Speaker, I welcome the member for St. John's South—Mount Pearl to this House. It is good to have him here with us. The issue for us is to ensure that the fishery survives. That is what is crucial. We have to ensure that we do everything we can to see that industry continues as a viable industry, whether that means some restructuring.

The Budget  Mr. Speaker, clearly, the member opposite has no understanding of the lifestyle and the impact in terms of having access to a centre like that in Newfoundland and Labrador, with 10,000 miles of coastline and people working in that distress centre who understand what is happening on the waterways of Newfoundland and Labrador.

The Budget  Speaker, I am pleased to stand today to speak to the budget. First, I want to acknowledge the support of the people of Random—Burin—St. George's. I am honoured again to have the privilege to represent them. This is the second time they have elected me in this federal capacity. I represented part of the riding in the District of Grand Bank for 12 years, so this is a continuation of the opportunity again to represent those constituents.

Questions Passed as Orders for Returns  With regard to Recreational Infrastructure Canada projects in Newfoundland and Labrador: (a) in which federal riding is each project located; (b) what is the description of each project; (c) what is the expected cost of each project; and (d) what is the expected completion date of each project?

Political Financing  Mr. Speaker, last night the House, the Canadian people's House, voted to have the Conservative government repay money it illegally obtained from election fraud. Nine Conservative MPs, including two cabinet ministers, got money back in their bank accounts. This is a fraud based on 67 forged invoices, where $200,000 of taxpayer money went into and is still sitting in Conservative bank accounts.

Political Financing  Mr. Speaker, this is not an accounting dispute. This is not a disagreement over legal fine print. Senior Conservatives decided they would forge documents, lie to Elections Canada and they could now face jail time. They did it in 67 ridings. The former Conservative member for Simcoe-Grey refused to do it because she knew it was wrong.