Supply  I am not denying that there are serious problems, but before I proceed any further I must make two things perfectly clear. First of all, I would like everybody to understand that rail is an efficient means of passenger transportation, which has a proven track record. In Canada, in 1977, the responsibility for passenger service was taken away from CN and CP and given to the newly-created VIA Rail.

Supply  The agency takes public interest into account before deciding whether a line should be abandoned or maintained. However, the law is not clear on the public interest criterion for lines that have no chance of becoming viable in the future. So far, in practice these lines are simply abandoned. Moreover, the agency is required to review line abandonment documentation only if abandonment was opposed so that, in the absence of opposition, lines can be abandoned without the agency having to justify the application.

Supply  CP has also offered its lines between Delson, Quebec, near Montreal, and Sherbrooke for sale. What is clear is that our class 1 freight railways, CN and CP, not only have other alternatives than simply waiting for traffic on lines to decline to the point at which abandonment is the only possibility, but they are beginning to move more rapidly to spin-off short lines to potential operators while this makes good business sense for all partners.

Points Of Order  Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Revenue stated, and I quote from Hansard at page 7767: -I am not prepared to respond to the question of October 28th. I am prepared to respond to the question of October 24th. Standing Order 38(5) is clear. Ministers or parliamentary secretaries are to respond to the matters raised by members. Not only did the parliamentary secretary not respond to the matter I raised; she admitted she was not prepared to respond and she apologized for not doing so.

Committees Of The House  We especially fault the government for not taking into account such fundamental issues as nationalism, the emergence of new states and the recent arrival on the international scene of many new actors. We also deplore the lack of clear guidelines regarding foreign aid, the interference in Quebec's areas of jurisdiction, especially education and culture, and their impact on the international level. Finally, we find the lack of a chapter dealing specifically with human rights inexplicable.

Grain Transportation  My question for the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food is this. Is he defending the Crow benefit from attack? Is he prepared today to clear the air and let prairie farmers know that it is the federal government's intention to keep grain moving by rail by ensuring that the Crow benefit remains-

Shipyards  The difference between the two issues is easily understood. I hope that with time, possibly in a year or two, the distinction will become clear to my hon. colleagues from the Bloc.

Collège Militaire Royal De Saint-Jean  Mr. Speaker, I think there is a clear pattern in the federal government's concept of the kind of educational institution that should be made available to francophones in Kingston. It means barracks for the francophone cadets who will leave Saint-Jean and barracks and washrooms across the street for students at the Marie-Rivier school.

Supply  And government has retained the professional service of wood gundy, and investment banking firm, to provide advice on the financial aspects of the proposed transaction. The overall review is proceeding quickly but the government made it clear that it would take all the time required to conduct a proper assessment of the offer. This unsolicited bid prompted the Minister of Transport to announce on september 29 the creation of a task force on the commercialization of CN North America.

Supply  I also had an opportunity to talk to municipal authorities, who told me they had no objection to reviewing their right to raise property taxes and to business people who expressed an interest in investing in short-line railway companies. In fact, the only ingredient still lacking is a clear-cut decision by the government and the Minister of Transport to include the public or its representatives in this debate. So far, and we see this in the so-called task force set up by the Minister of Transport, there is no room for the opposition, not for the Official Opposition and not for the Reform Party.

Supply  In that respect, the railway system is a tool among others. My colleague, who has experienced railway systems in Europe, made it very clear a few minutes ago. In Europe, railways cross borders almost every 600 or 700 kilometres and there is no problem. Nobody ever said: "We will have a network in France, but no connection with Belgium, Italy or Spain".

Supply  Upon analyzing the whole issue, the federal government's sinister intentions in the railway system become clear. I would now like to review briefly the events of the past year regarding the rail issue. The minister referred to it this morning. First, there was the statement made by the CN chairman, Mr.

Supply  Planes do not land in every European country for clearance purposes before flying over the border. Whether you are travelling by train, plane or ship, you are cleared upon departure and arrival. It would make no sense. Obviously, the hon. member was talking through his hat since he had never taken the Lille-Brussels HST. I mentioned earlier in my speech plans to build a cement factory in Port-Daniel, which is located in his riding, in the Gaspe Peninsula.

Supply  The member invited us to put questions to him and to be constructive in this debate. I am going to ask him some serious questions and I will ask that he give me clear answers. First, I would like the member to indicate why, in April 1994, he refused to take part in hearings on the future of the Chaleur, in the Gaspé Peninsula, in his own riding, which were organized by Mrs.

Supply  Then we have the immigration department and the so-called consultations that are going on. I say so-called because people are demanding action and they are making very clear what kind of action they are looking for. They are going out and selling a preconceived government agenda. Then we have the minister of fisheries, the fisheries department. Again, here is where we are having another study whose only purpose is to provide a scapegoat for the inaction on the part of the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, soon to be the minister of oceans because the fisheries will be destroyed.