Ethics  Mr. Speaker, the minister was not the only familiar face on that Belize trip. Mr. Jaffer also accompanied her and participated in official ministerial events. Given that he was still an MP and Conservative caucus chair at the time, did the government pay for Mr. Jaffer's travel and does it have detailed records of who he met with while in Belize?

Ethics  Mr. Speaker, in 2008, when the former status of women minister represented foreign affairs, she went on a government-funded trip to Belize. On the trip, she met with those at the highest levels of power. However, according to media reports, it is alleged by the Prime Minister's own informant that the minister and Mr.

Access to Information  Mr. Speaker, “totally obliterated” is the phrase used by the Information Commissioner about what is happening to access to information in Canada. She said she has seen “no evidence” of a culture of transparency in the government. The Prime Minister's chief of staff helped to prove that point at committee yesterday when he refused to answer if political staff had intervened to stop information from being released.

Afghanistan  Mr. Speaker, this morning before the justice committee, the Minister of Justice refused to say that solicitor-client privilege does not apply to Mr. Iacobucci's employment with the government. This fits into a three year pattern of deny, deflect and delay. Conservative stamina for subversion seems to be limitless, but we will continue to seek the truth.

Afghanistan  Mr. Speaker, it is interesting that the minister refused to answer the question. The Minister of Justice said today that Mr. Iacobucci has received some documents and that he will be able to receive any documents that he needs, but who determines need? Is it the government's position that Mr.

Afghanistan  Mr. Speaker, at this very moment, the International Criminal Court is conducting a preliminary investigation into the conduct of the Canadian government, as it relates to torture. Also at this very moment, our government continues to hand over prisoners in Afghanistan to a serious and real risk of torture, even though the U.K. has ceased transferring prisoners altogether because of this very risk.

Resumption of debate on Address in Reply  Mr. Speaker, my colleague started his remarks by recognizing or giving the government some credit for the help it said would come for military families. I too hope that it will indeed materialize, but as a former member of the veterans affairs committee I know that we have heard time and time again of the need to do something about post-traumatic stress disorder among veterans.

World Firefighter Combat Challenge  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a young man from my riding of Random—Burin—St. George's. Dwayne Drover, originally from the small town of Lourdes, a community of 550 people, can rightly claim to be a world champion. At the World Firefighter Combat Challenge held in Las Vegas in November, Dwayne finished first in the individual category earning him the title of the best firefighter in the world.

Afghanistan  Mr. Speaker, why the delay of the terms of reference? The Minister of Justice has said that Mr. Iacobucci will report to him, but why does he not report directly to Parliament and to Canadians? When will this work even begin? If the government cannot give us such basic information, how can we expect it to give Mr.

Afghanistan  Mr. Speaker, according to the government, Mr. Iacobucci will decide what affects national security. That is far too narrow. Will he also report on references to torture, rendition and outsourcing of torture? Will he look at whether the government had a deliberate policy of rendition?

The Budget  Madam Speaker, the reality is that even the Minister of Finance is predicting an increase in unemployment rates. We will go from 8.2% to 8.5% under the Conservatives' watch. In the riding of Random--Burin--St. George's, a mill closed in Stephenville that put 300 people out of work.

The Budget  Madam Speaker, let me assure my hon. colleague that this is one member who will be voting against the budget. I can assure him as well that we will do what is in the best interests of the Canadian people and Canadians from coast to coast to coast are telling us that the last thing they want is a federal election.

The Budget  Madam Speaker, my colleague understands totally the situation that Marine Atlantic finds itself in. Where have we ever heard an Auditor General come out and say that an organization needs a certain amount of money? The Auditor General is saying that Marine Atlantic needs $1.6 billion just to maintain the service or else the service is at serious risk of not being able to provide the service for which it was intended.

The Budget  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to stand in the House today to respond to the budget, particularly today on International Women's Day. Without a doubt this budget was a resounding disappointment. The Prime Minister indicated he needed an opportunity to refocus his government and suspended Parliament for six weeks to do so.

Points of Order  Mr. Speaker, I rise today because I take my responsibilities in the House of Commons seriously and I do sincerely think I have a contribution to make to the debate in the House. Therefore, I cannot begin to tell you how disappointed I was when I was told, and I did not hear this, that the Minister of National Defence, in response to my second question to him, suggested that “she adds nothing to the debate”.