Supply  Mr. Speaker, it is pretty clear that the Liberals are extremely worried about the fact that our leader is making an extremely positive impact in the country to the south of us. They know that Canadians also are waking up to the common sense, workability and hope that the Reform program offers.

The Budget  We did away with the draconian measures imposed by the Conservative Party. When you look at the reform, it is very clear that the women's role is very important to us and that we will act accordingly.

The Budget  Canadian companies, particularly small businesses, have not integrated leading technologies as rapidly as their competitors abroad. The message is clear. The number of businesses doing research and development and investing in state of the art technologies must increase dramatically. The questions we have to answer are these: How are we going to make more than one in ten Canadian companies into exporters?

Canada Student Financial Assistance Act  Madam Speaker, let me begin by saying that as a government member I am somewhat perplexed by the motion put forward by the leader of the Reform Party. A clear look at the changes and amendments we made in the Canada Student Financial Assistance Act will show that we included the concept and notion of an income contingent loan repayment system.

Canada Student Financial Assistance Act  I remind the leader of the Reform Party that when the government began reviewing our social security system, we made it clear federal support to post-secondary education would have to be put to the best possible use because of limited resources. That is still the case. Nothing has changed in that regard. The budget proposes to bring together transfers for health, post-secondary education and social services into a single bloc transfer.

Supply  I congratulate members of the Bloc for devoting this opposition day to such an important subject. By way of comment, may I make it clear to my colleagues that the government is keenly aware of the findings of study after study in recent years which have addressed the issue of violence against women, and which have concluded almost invariably that violence against women is connected directly to the economic inequality of women.

Supply  My colleagues have, throughout the day, reminded this House of the government's failure to adopt concrete measures to promote the economic equality of women. Bloc members also condemned the drastic cuts in the latest federal budget and made it clear that women may be severely affected. The government claims it cannot afford to take steps to promote equality and equity, but it is not doing a thing to stop the waste, duplication and inconsistencies generated by overlapping federal and provincial policies.

Supply  As part of its program review process, the government examined the role of Status of Women Canada, of the Equal Opportunities for Women Program at the Department of Human Resources Development, and of the Canadian Advisory Council on the Status of Women. It became clear that these three structures promote women's equality and, to various degrees, conduct research and work in close co-operation with women's groups. Consequently, the government concluded that the best way to improve efficiency was to consolidate its initiatives to promote women's equality under the structure of Status of Women Canada.

Supply  The Liberal government's latest decision to abolish the Advisory Council on the Status of Women is a clear indication of the cabinet's concern about women. It appears that the government is no longer interested in hearing a voice independent of political power express the rightful claims of women.

Supply  This demonstrates, on her part, a great interest in the status of women in Canada and I commend her for that. I should make it clear that by consolidating all women's programs into Status of Women Canada we are working in the best interests of all women. I know that some women are concerned that merging the advisory council with my department would essentially mean that the government could help itself to its funding.

Crow Rate  As I just explained, the minister of agriculture indicated that he is going to discuss this with a wide variety of farm organizations, which is what he is doing today, and to provide those kinds of answers. He made his position very clear. We want to ensure that the compensation package is used in the most effective way possible to enhance the development and the reorganization of western agriculture so it can continue to offer a major base of economic growth in western Canada.

Canada Post  I cannot for the life of me figure out why the Prime Minister would not ask the ethics commissioner to clear the air. Why will he not?

Quebec Sovereignty  And, in order to prevent separation, all we are asking the Bloc Quebecois and the Parti Quebecois is to finally make a decision and ask the population a clear question: Do you want to separate from Canada? And Quebecers will say No.

Leader Of Action Démocratique Du Québec  We hope that many people will take part in the consultation". Three months later, he said and I quote: "I think that it is not necessarily clear in the minds of all the citizens who came to participate, because if they had been told at the beginning of the consultation that they were wasting their time and that everything had been decided in advance, there might not have been 55,000 participants".

Francophones Outside Quebec  At last the Bloc is showing its true colours to francophone communities. But when Paul Piché and Laurence Jalbert made it clear they were separatists, after receiving financial assistance from Canadian Heritage for the production of records and videos, did you hear any federalists insulting them? Not at all, and it goes to show how open-minded federalists are, and we expected Bloc members would show the same respect for the opinions of others.