The Environment  Mr. Speaker, accountability is no joke. The Speech from the Throne demonstrates the government's lack of commitment toward the environment. After years of progress on greening government procurement, the government is turning back the clock. Why?

The Environment  Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Public Works and Government Services, and I hope someone can relay the message. Why is the minister backtracking on the department's green procurement policy by closing down the Office of Geening Government Operations?

Petitions  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present the following petition to the House. The petitioners call for an amendment to the Canada Health Act and corresponding regulations to include intense behavioural intervention and applied behavioural analysis therapy for children with autism. They also ask that the provinces provide funding for these essential treatment for autism as well.

All India Pingalwara Charitable Society  Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to bring to the attention of the House the work of Dr. Inderjit Kaur. Dr. Kaur is the President of the All India Pingalwara Charitable Society. She is presently in Canada touring the country on behalf of the local branch of the association.

Supply  Mr. Speaker, the fact that I was very calm with my remarks does not mean that I lack passion or interest in this very important topic. There is no doubt in my mind that freedom of information is a key pillar of our democracy and is a key pillar of how our government functions. We have a responsibility to recognize the openness of government but also to recognize the confidentiality elements of it with respect to the function of the executive branch of government.

Supply  Mr. Speaker, I understand the concerns brought forth by the member. The member sits in committee with me and we have had the opportunity to examine this issue in great detail. The member would have to agree that during our consultations with the Minister of Justice and other individuals who came before the committee, including the Information Commissioner, as we started to discuss the complexities of this particular subject matter, we saw the need to further investigate certain elements of it.

Supply  Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the hon. member for Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Lachine. Today's discussion is with respect to the opposition motion regarding reforms to cabinet confidences in the Access to Information Act and the Canada Evidence Act. By motion, the member for Regina--Lumsden--Lake Centre stated that in his opinion, the Access to Information Act should be amended to, among other things, establish a cabinet confidence exclusion subject to review by the Information Commissioner, provide a general public interest override for all exemptions and make all exemptions discretionary and subject to an injury test.

Question No. 210  Mr. Speaker, government policy provides that all ministerial responses should respect the protections afforded by the Privacy Act and Access to Information Act, regardless of whether those acts apply to the government organization providing the information in the responses. Consequently, ministerial responses prepared by a government organization should not include information whose disclosure would be prohibited by those acts, if they were to apply.

Petitions  Mr. Speaker, I would like to table a petition which is signed by many of the seniors in my riding. The petitioners ask the government to designate legislation that would give all Canadian seniors equitable treatment toward the distribution of the old age security pension.

Chief of Police for Peel Region  Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to acknowledge the contributions of Noel Catney, the chief of police for Peel region, who is retiring on December 31 after 35 years of community service. He has served the community in many capacities, from investigator to officer in charge to deputy chief of police.

Pacific Gateway Act  Madam Speaker, I understand my colleague's passion for this particular subject matter. The following organizations have issued public statements endorsing the Pacific gateway strategy, Bill C-68; CN, CP, the Port of Vancouver, the Railway Association of Canada. Would the member agree with these stakeholders and also support the strategy regarding Bill C-68?

Questions on the Order Paper  Mr. Speaker, I ask that all questions be allowed to stand.

Order in Council Appointments  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to table, in both official languages, a number of order in council appointments made recently by the government.

Gursikh Sabha United  Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the Gursikh Sabha United Soccer Team. Earlier this month GS United won the National Soccer Championship in Calgary, Alberta. It was the first time in 16 years that a team from Ontario won the cup and it is the 11th team from Ontario to win the cup since the tournament started in 1902.

Jaswant Singh Randhawa  Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the late Jaswant Singh Randhawa. He was a successful businessman, a devout Sikh and a community leader. Mr. Randhawa passed away last year after he courageously battled cancer for 12 years. His legacy, however, will live on through the Jaswant Singh Randhawa Memorial Foundation.