Komagata Maru  Mr. Speaker, May 23 will mark the 93rd anniversary of the arrival of Komagata Maru in British Columbia, carrying 376 South Asian immigrants to our shores, only to be met with injustice and denial of the right to land. I would like to recognize the tremendous work of Mr. Sahib Thind and the Professor Mohan Singh Memorial Foundation of Canada as well as those Canadians who have worked so hard to bring this issue to national attention.

Olympic and Paralympic Marks Act  Mr. Speaker, the member for Davenport shows commitment. I went the other way around. I was in Alberta to begin with and moved to British Columbia. I would love to have him back there. He would be welcome. I also congratulate him as a city councillor for his efforts and the work that he has done on the 2008 Olympics bid.

Olympic and Paralympic Marks Act  Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate my hon. colleague from Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca for all his work because he was there even before I was on this Olympics file. He has done good work. When it comes to children, I see where the member is coming from. He has a commitment to youth and our future generations.

Olympic and Paralympic Marks Act  Mr. Speaker, I am a proud British Columbian and proud to be part of the 2010 Olympics as the hon. member was a proud Quebecker in 1976 when Montreal hosted the Olympics that year. When it comes to the government working on anything, the Conservatives delay each and every thing.

Olympic and Paralympic Marks Act  Mr. Speaker, I welcome you back into the chair. I am a new member in the House, even though it is over a year, but there are always certain things that when I speak, I go off line, and I thank you for your input. You always give it to me after my speech, the things that I should have done differently.

Olympic and Paralympic Marks Act  Mr. Speaker, I know the member has some concerns but I can tell him that I was a Calgarian when we had the Olympics in 1988 and I was very proud to be an Albertan at the time. However, now I am a British Columbian and I am very proud to have British Columbia hosting the 2010 Olympic Games.

Settlement of International Investment Disputes Act  Mr. Speaker, we have this convention right here in the front of the House. We are debating it and all members of Parliament are supporting it. My Liberal colleagues and I are supporting this convention. These are the types of agreements that, once put in place, are good for years to come.

Settlement of International Investment Disputes Act  Mr. Speaker, let us look at the example. It is clear that when we took over in 1993 Canada was an international credit risk. The country was almost broke. We were paying $40 billion in debt payments. What we did as the Liberal government was that budget after budget there was a surplus or a balanced budget.

Settlement of International Investment Disputes Act  Again, Mr. Speaker, we have to look at this as a whole. We cannot look at it piecemeal. We cannot look at one situation and forget about the others. As I mentioned in regard to the tourist agreement and the rebate on the GST, I am involved with all of that. When it comes to agreements like this, I note that the Chamber of Commerce from my riding recently travelled to China.

Settlement of International Investment Disputes Act  Mr. Speaker, I am in support of the bill because this is the type of decision we have to make. The secretary of state asks why now, after over 40 years. The ICSID convention was negotiated in the 1960s prior to the general inclusion of federal state clauses, provisions commonly found in international treaties that allow a state a position of ratifying a given convention in respect of some of its sub-entities.

Settlement of International Investment Disputes Act  Mr. Speaker, I certainly am honoured that you give me direction. I am getting there. When talking about agreements such as these, the government's credibility, integrity and competency are three factors that are also important to Canadians when they make their investments, which is why I was talking about that.

Settlement of International Investment Disputes Act  Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to speak in support of Bill C-53, the settlement of international investment disputes act. The International Convention on the Settlement of Investment Disputes between States and Nationals of Other States, the ICSID convention, is an international instrument sponsored by the World Bank to facilitate and increase the flow of cross-border investment.

Sales Tax Amendments Act, 2006  Mr. Speaker, I could not agree more with the hon. member from the Bloc, because my riding is also a border riding adjoining the U.S. I am from British Columbia. The 2010 Olympic Games are coming to B.C. Tourism is a key industry in British Columbia. I am sure it is also key in Quebec and from coast to coast to coast as well.

Sales Tax Amendments Act, 2006  Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my hon. colleague, the member for Skeena—Bulkley Valley, for putting this question to me, because when we talk about fairness when it comes to taxes, they should be equitable. When we look at the more remote areas, like the north and the rural areas, we have to pay attention.

Sales Tax Amendments Act, 2006  Mr. Speaker, thank the member on the other side for St. Catharines for keeping his speech to the point, and I am going do it as well. I am pleased to rise today to speak to Bill C-40, An Act to amend the Excise Tax Act, the Excise Act, 2001 and the Air Travellers Security Charge Act and to make related amendments to other Acts.