Petitions  Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to rise to support a petition that has come from 1,038 members of my riding, which reads as follows. We the undersigned residents of the province of British Columbia draw the attention of the House to the following: that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is a real and hurtful form of discrimination in this country; that all forms of families in this country, those based on financial and emotional interdependence, are equally meaningful and important to the social well-being of Canada; and that both protection against discrimination and recognition of relationships based on financial and emotional interdependence are necessary to ensure the equal treatment of gays, lesbians, and bisexuals under the law.

Hearing Awareness Month  Mr. Speaker, you might agree that in your chair you are more often a listener than you are a speaker, but not all Canadians share the luxury of hearing as you do. May is Hearing Awareness Month and as such is an occasion to promote greater public understanding of Canadians who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Health Insurance And Services  Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure today to speak to the motion of the hon. member for Surrey North. I have worked with her on the standing committee on health and have great respect for her thoughtfulness. The hon. member raised the issue of more flexibility for the provinces. The provinces already have flexibility.

Government Spending  Mr. Speaker, I think the hon. member has been the victim of misinformation. On the whole issue of the tobacco conference, the government has joined with other governments to give money to the International Development Research Centre looking at the issue of tobacco use in developing countries.

Government Spending  Mr. Speaker, maybe I did not make my answer clear the first time. Health Canada and the government have not donated a single penny to the conference in Italy.

Mental Health Week  Mr. Speaker, mens sano in sano corporae. Everyone remembers the old saying, a healthy mind within a healthy body. Today I would like to reverse the phrase. Without a healthy mind the body will not thrive. That is why I inform the House that this week is Mental Health Week. During this week the Canadian Mental Health Association sponsors events across Canada to raise public awareness of mental health issues, to reduce the stigma of mental illness, and to encourage the acceptance of those who suffer from them.

Canada Health Act  Mr. Speaker, this government said in the budget and the Minister of Finance has said repeatedly that the Canada Health Act is not negotiable. The hon. member is discussing funding of medicare. We know that many reputable studies have now shown that we spend more as a percentage of our GDP for health care than most other nations with systems of medicare like ours.

Tobacco  Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for the question because it gives us a chance to ensure that everyone knows what the facts are in this issue. Epidemiology is a system of ensuring that the demographics and all things that make a disease occur are checked out. When we set about our strategy for tobacco we ensured there were four parts of a survey that would be done by Statistics Canada to look at evaluating the strategy.

Grandparent Year Act  Madam Speaker, the gist of the hon. member's question is concerned about the issue of universality which actually has nothing to do with cost. Universality means that we are all eligible for health care services regardless of what is our status in terms of employability or whether we have chronic illness, chronic diseases or not.

Grandparent Year Act  Madam Speaker, I am delighted to speak today to Bill C-291, an act respecting a national year of the grandparent. I take the opportunity to speak on behalf of the government's commitment to Canada's grandparents. I have not yet had the fortune of becoming a grandparent. I guess my sons have control over that and so I may never become a grandparent.

Supply  Madam Speaker, the hon. member suggested that he does not understand why I would say this is a political agenda. It flies in the face of common sense. That is why I say there must be another agenda. Surely we are talking about creating a set of principles. As I said earlier, principles give us a national objective.

Supply  Madam Speaker, I apologise. Another member of the opposition party said: "I think that there is not one Canadian or Quebecer who questions the importance and value of the five principles set out in the Canada Health Act". The hon. critic again said that the federal government should uphold the five principles.

Supply  Madam Speaker, I am confused. I am confused by the motion because it talks about national standards as being things which are not desirable to Her Majesty's opposition. Yet last Thursday, on opposition day, the health critic for the opposition party, Mr. Daviault said: "In Quebec we have no trouble with the five criteria.

Infectious Diseases Protocol  Mr. Speaker, the hon. member should know that this government supports that process very much. It is very concerned with the health and protection of frontline workers such as firefighters. As a result, and because of that commitment, the government has assisted firefighters in setting up a meeting in January of all the stakeholders to discuss this issue.

Dental Health Month  Mr. Speaker, I want members to notice that I am smiling today to remind the House that April is Dental Health Month in Canada. This month provides an opportunity for all Canadians to show off their teeth by sharing their smiles. I am proud to note that Canadians enjoy one of the highest standards of oral health in the world.