Finance committee  I suggest that in your future rounds of advertising you make it abundantly clear to Canadians that this is a very significant date if they intend to claim the credit. The other question I had was whether there is a way in which the interpretation of the legislation can be such that if a contract is not completed prior to December 31, the access to the credit can still be had.

Status of Women committee  So it's for both workers and employers, and making sure as well that we're fair to lower-paid workers. I think it's really clear that there's an urgency here. Joel has raised it. Whether it's a private plan or whether it's the Canada Pension Plan, there's an urgency that we do something. It is an economic stimulus.

Status of Women committee  The unfortunate thing is, the federal government's announcement today, while I hope it's well-intentioned, has no intervention in the bankruptcy proceedings, which is federal jurisdiction, to be completely clear. The government of the day could bring in an emergency system of pension insurance. It could tell Canadians that they will adopt the pension plans that Canadians have in bankruptcy court at their full value—so a 52% funded pension would be a 52% pension.

Human Resources committee  The onus is on the minister and the officials to get it in good time for the committee to use, not for us to have to chase it. I just want to make that clear; that is proper procedure.

Technical Assistance for Law Enforcement in the 21st Century Act  At the same time, the government has ignored call after call by public inquiry after public inquiry for proper and adequate oversight. The reports and conclusions of Justice Iacobucci and Justice O'Connor made it clear that new oversight mechanisms were critical to ensure that public confidence remained in our national security institutions and our national police force, yet the government ignored it.

Human Resources committee  Thank you, Chair. We oppose this legislation for reasons that we've made clear, which I won't go into again. I just want to indicate that it's frustrating. The minister was here on October 8, the officials were here on October 6, and we asked questions. We receive it at the meeting where we're doing clause-by-clause.

Finance committee  I take your point, Mr. Laforest, about the importance of the countries following the G-20 mandate, which is clear, to refrain from encouraging tax havens. The key to that is ensuring an exchange of information. We've seen some significant progress on this, I must say, since the G-20 discussions on the subject this past year.

Fisheries committee  So if it seems odd to have a Pacific coast professor, I've got some good bona fides from the east coast and I've spent some time, of course, studying the apple in different ways. I want to make it clear that obviously I'm not here defending the government in any way, shape, or form. I think the Government of Canada is quite happy that I'd never speak for the Government of Canada on any issue, and I suspect that will continue.

Technical Difficulties in the Chamber  The Bloc Québécois quite appropriately pointed out that because of that, their members were impeded from actually getting clear interpretation of the questions and the dialogue and debate that would take place. Because of that, there have been discussions among all parties and I think you would find unanimous consent for the following motion: That, notwithstanding any Standing Order or usual practice of the House, on Wednesday, October 28, 2009, the proceedings pursuant to Standing Orders 38 be extended by no more than 20 minutes to allow the hon.

Government Operations committee  With regard to projects the municipalities are involved in, for example, we had the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and two municipal representatives from Quebec at committee not too long ago talking about how so many of the projects that have been announced have not yet been started. And that, combined with the timeframe of 2011.... They've been very clear. It is still the policy that if a project is not finished by 2011, then the municipality will be on the hook for the costs. The number that was given was 3,000 projects that have been announced to great fanfare--the government is quite happy to take advantage of announcements.

Human Resources committee  Then it increases in levels, from 8 to 15 years, regardless of whether you are an apprentice or not. That needs to be very clear for everyone.

Status of Women committee  We think that number is probably going to need to be adjusted just because of the changes we've seen. But we should be very clear that when you look at those numbers, it doesn't mean that all those women are in full-time, full-year, good jobs. While the expectations on working women have changed, caregiving expectations have not.

Status of Women committee  We believe regular scenario testing will help plan administrators understand the risks they face. We also encourage plans to develop funding policies, as this is one way to be clear about the level of risk they are comfortable with. Governance is not one-size-fits-all. More complex benefit structures or more sophisticated investment products and strategies will require more sophisticated governance procedures and more time and effort to assess and monitor risks.

Privilege  In the news release, which I have not had a chance to read as carefully, the Minister may have stuck to the ins and outs of the environment in which the bill is being introduced. However, in the technical information sheet that accompanied the news release, it is very clear that the essence of Bill C-53 is being disclosed to the public and the media before being disclosed through first reading in this House. I believe that is contempt of the House. I defer to your decision, Mr.

Finance committee  Even though Canada is in a good position to emerge from the recession relatively stronger than most other developed economies, as the Prime Minister has pointed out, we were drawn into events which occurred beyond our borders during this recession, and we are going to continue feeling the effect of those events, especially the ones that took place in the United States, our biggest trading partner. The road to recovery will not be clear and straight, but bumpy, with sharp turns along the way, especially if we take our eyes off the road. As the G-20 leaders stated in their communiqué following the most recent G-20 summit in Pittsburgh, “A sense of normalcy should not lead to complacency.