The Budget  Mr. Speaker, I appreciate this opportunity to speak. I want to—

The Budget  No, Mr. Speaker, I am rising to speak to the budget this morning.

Petitions  Mr. Speaker, today I rise to submit a petition from more than 1,600 residents of Alberta. Many of us in the House will remember the flood of June 2013, which devastated many communities in my riding, including High River. However, what made that flood more damaging to the community was the actions of the RCMP after the flood, where it allegedly illegally entered more than 4,600 homes in the community.

World’s Greatest Horseman  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to represent the riding of Foothills, the heart of cattle country where pioneers settled the west relying on work ethic, ingenuity, family, and horsemanship. I am proud to say that that character remains true in Alberta today. Today I rise in the House to pay tribute to an incredible Albertan who epitomizes that character.

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, the Alberta NDP is using money from the building Canada plan as its own personal slush fund. Instead of funding key infrastructure projects like roads, bridges, and water treatment plants, Premier Notley is withholding $300 million from rural municipalities to pay for her massive debt, and the Liberal infrastructure minister is letting her get away with it.

Committees of the House  Mr. Speaker, the Conservative members of the Standing Committee on Natural Resources feel that some parts of this report are lacking substance. There are recommendations in it based on testimony we did not hear, and it excludes any concern we heard from industry stakeholders and leaders relating to the Liberal carbon tax.

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, in the last election, the Liberals promised to fund infrastructure projects, but I do not recall any promises about paying down Alberta's NDP debt. Alberta municipalities are furious. The NDP is funnelling hundreds of millions of dollars from the new building Canada fund to pay for its out-of-control spending.

Questions Passed as Orders for Return  With regard to the government’s usage of collection agents, since November 4, 2015, and broken down by department, agency, and crown corporation: (a) how much has been spent on collection agents or agencies, including fees, commissions, salaries, recovery costs, and other expenses; (b) how many debts have been assigned to collection agents or agencies; (c) how many of the debts referred to in (b) have since been recovered in full; (d) how many of the debts referred to in (b) were (i) personal, (ii) corporate; (e) what is the total value of debts assigned to collection agents or agencies; (f) what is the total value of debts fully recovered to date by collection agents; and (g) what are the policies in place regarding fee structures paid to collection agents or agencies?

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, I want to thank the member for her soapbox, I guess. However, the facts have shown that when it comes to a carbon tax being revenue neutral, it is just not the case in B.C., Alberta, and Ontario, the three prominent provinces that have a carbon tax. It is not revenue neutral.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for his nice comments. He was not the one who sprayed me, so I appreciate that. We are starting to see some things turn around in Alberta, but I would invite him to come to Alberta. I had a jobs task force and I had four round tables in my constituency this fall.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, I want to thank the member for supporting my family's business. I do not get anything in that. Again, things are much better in Saskatchewan compared to Alberta. Its unemployment numbers have gone down, where Alberta is reaching double digits in several jurisdictions.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, a lot of what we have heard today is about the Liberal government's profession of the benefits of a carbon tax, but what we are really talking about is transparency, openness, and being forthright with Canadians. We heard it earlier today, but one of the fundamental cornerstones of our democracy is no taxation without representation.

Natural Resources  Mr. Speaker, twice the Prime Minister has gone to the United States. He has met with two different presidents and their administrations, but both times he has left the Minister of Natural Resources here at home. When it comes to our resources, the United States is our biggest customer, but also our largest competitor.

Job Losses in the Energy Sector  Mr. Speaker, I think I have the gist of the question. If we go through with what the NDP would like us to do, there would not be a boom and bust. There would just be bust. That is really what the NDP is advocating. Our young people in Alberta are used to this boom and bust. The attitude in Alberta is work ethic.

Job Losses in the Energy Sector  Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my hon. colleague for bringing that up, because I really did not have a chance to talk about the carbon tax in my five-minute presentation. It was nice of her to put that ball on the tee and let me hit it off. The member is exactly right. Actually, the carbon tax in Alberta was brought in before, in 2004.