Political Parties  He asked whether there was any intent to force public servants into contributions that they should not be making. The answer is no, clear and simple. There is no intent to twist anybody's arm or indeed to have any direct contact with public servants. It was a mistake made because we purchased a list from a private company.

Department Of Labour Act  I maintain that he had all the time in the world to come up with some amendments. I made it clear to him from the very beginning when he asked for my support that I could not give it to him. Now that we are debating this bill in the House and he is making his speech, he is coming back to this point.

Electoral Boundaries Readjustment Suspension Act, 1994  I think he is bothered by the fact that the goal of our leader, the leader of the opposition, is so clear cut and that the sovereignty of Quebec is clearly part of that goal, and I think we will soon be there. I am sure that what brought on the hon. member's comments is the fact that the Reform Party is going nowhere fast.

National Transportation Week  Canada's economic deficiency in large part is directly tied to its efficiency in transporting goods and people. A clear example of this is when Canada entered into trade agreements without making the necessary improvements to our transportation system to compete with the Americans, the Mexicans and the rest of the world.

The Economy  The member will also recognize that we are dealing with only 2 per cent of our debt, the extent which is foreign pay and that they confirmed the AAA rating that Canada enjoys on its domestic currency debt. Furthermore, Moody's clearly recognized that the government had taken very clear action in terms of deficit reduction. I would assure the hon. member and the financial community that we intend to hit our deficit targets.

Indian Affairs  Speaker, the statements of the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development were very clear yesterday. We have appointed a negotiator and the negotiations are going quite well. I am sure that is a big disappointment to the Bloc members who would like to see the whole thing go up in flames.

The Economy  Yesterday the minister expressed disappointment at Canada losing its last AAA foreign currency debt rating. Disappointment is not enough for bond rating agencies or the Canadian public. It is clear that investors do not believe that current fiscal measures are sufficient to allay their concerns about Canada's debt crisis. Besides promises to meet deficit targets, what new action is the minister going to take to ensure that no further erosion of our credit rating takes place?

Francophones In Canada  As noted in La Presse today, the Leader of the Opposition is indeed a man who has served the cause of francophones well, with more yet to come. The ACFO president made himself very clear on that subject, stating there had never been a clearer and more concrete and specific commitment to francophones outside Quebec and that over the past eight months, the Bloc Quebecois had risen more often to speak for francophone communities than the Liberals had during the entire Conservative mandate.

Electoral Boundaries Readjustment Suspension Act, 1994  It was our opinion, given the always unpredictable nature of demands on parliamentary time, that a two-year timetable for new legislation was not unreasonable even though, as I said, we regarded this not as a minimum but a maximum time. It has since become clear, however, that there is some considerable concern in parts of the country that this maximum would become a minimum and therefore that the provision for a two-year suspension appeared to make it impossible for an election in 1997 or 1998 to be held on the basis of new boundaries.

Government Contracts  They should confirm that they want some safeguards instilled to protect them and their hard earned income from the Liberal process of mismanagement. I want to run through a couple. I want to make it very clear that these were expenditures within the Conservative government. However, I am making my point here that there is very little difference between this Liberal government with regard to management of fiscal resources in this country and the Conservatives.

Government Contracts  The Bloc cannot suck and blow at the same time. This government's commitment to the integrity of the procurement process was made very clear with the recent release of new guidelines for public and open research and advertising contracts by the Minister of Public Works and Government Services. This announcement by the ministry clearly illustrates the commitment of the Prime Minister and this government to an open and fair process for the Canadian people.

Supply  He also referred to a United Nations report according to which Canada was number one in terms of quality of life. I would just like to make one thing clear. This report was based on 1992 data. If my memory serves me right, the Conservatives were in power in 1992. All of a sudden, the very people who criticized the Conservatives for all their political and economic actions are-or so it seems-singing their praises, telling us they have given this country the best quality of life in the world, after saying just the opposite during the election campaign.

Supply  In short, the failure of the federal regional development policy has had a severe impact on the demographic decline of the Lower St. Lawrence. People in that area will speak loud and clear during the upcoming election and referendum. This morning, our ability to read was questioned so, to conclude, I would like to quote from John Naisbitt's book entitled Global Paradox .

Indian Affairs  Speaker, the question will have to be put with more clarity before I can answer it. After the House convenes if the member wants to make that a clear question and on a specific point I would be prepared to talk to him and answer specifically what he is talking about.

Supply  It is another fine example of duplication and, even more, an illustration of federal contempt and disrespect for Quebec's regions and the interest groups that seriously spent so much energy and money to come up with a clear vision for their regional development. The federal government must change its approach to regional development. I am not talking here about section 25's or DEPs, which can be termed the welfare approach to regional development.