Zero Tolerance for Barbaric Cultural Practices Act  Mr. Speaker, I am glad to have the opportunity to address this important piece of legislation in the House today on behalf of my constituents in the great riding of Wetaskiwin. I always stand never knowing for sure if this is going to be the last time I speak as a member of Parli

Digital Privacy Act  Mr. Speaker, I certainly appreciate the comments the minister has made. I will just use my time to ask a substantive question about the piece of legislation. When I sat on the ethics and privacy committee for a number of years, we did have substantive debates about these kinds

Port State Measures Agreement Implementation Act  Mr. Speaker, I spent a number of years on the fisheries committee when I first arrived here in 2006. My background is in conservation, law enforcement, and fisheries management. Therefore, I have a very active and keen interest in this. I am very pleased that the government is mo

A Better World Canada  Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to rise in the House today to recognize the efforts of A Better World Canada, an international development organization headquartered in my hometown of Lacombe, Alberta. Recently celebrating its 25th year, this organization, co-founded by Mr. Eric

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I just want to thank my colleague for his speech. We were both elected in 2006 and we are both from Alberta. I just want to say that I hope this is not the last speech I hear from him, but if it is, it was a wonderful speech. I was glad to sit behind him as he delive

Safe and Accountable Rail Act  Mr. Speaker, the hon. member finally got to his question dealing with fatigue. I got a little fatigued listening to him finally get to that particular point, but in all fairness, the question is a very serious one. Anybody who drives a truck or flies on an airplane knows that pi

Safe and Accountable Rail Act  Mr. Speaker, I am not sure if the hon. member was making the case for nationalizing the railways or not, but that certainly would not be the position of the Conservative government. The member talked about an unfortunate accident, but what he does not understand is that, in that

Safe and Accountable Rail Act  Mr. Speaker, I am truly honoured to rise in this place today to speak to this very important piece of legislation. I represent the great riding of Wetaskiwin, which has major rail lines in it, both CP and CN. Constituents in that large rural riding know the value railways have, a

Petitions  Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to rise in the House today to present several petitions signed by hundreds of Albertans who are calling upon the government to implement new mandatory minimum sentences for those convicted of impaired driving. The petitioners also want the Criminal

Taxation  Mr. Speaker, we know Canadians cannot afford the reckless plans of the NDP and the Liberals. We know the NDP and Liberals would hike taxes on middle-class families, middle-class consumers, and middle-class businesses. Whether they want to purchase a new home or car, start a new b

The Budget  Mr. Speaker, my colleague is a great colleague in the House and I appreciate the leadership he has shown. I know he spoke passionately about some of the benefits for students. One of the things I suffered when I went to university was that I worked part-time and I came from a r

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague. He is a good friend of mine, a very astute biologist, and has a great track record when it comes to all things of the environment, but the question I have for him today is more about the choice of the NDP to have this topic brought befor

Criminal Code  Mr. Speaker, it is hard to follow the distinguished steps of the former solicitor general who does not understand how courts work. However, I will ask this question of my hon. colleague from Dauphin—Swan River—Marquette. As a young lad growing up on a farm on the prairies of Al

Criminal Code  Mr. Speaker, he is chirping away. That is okay. He does not get it. The very first time I held a gun in my hand it was a pellet gun. It was my grandfather's, it was my uncle's and my father's before that. It was a little Crosman air rifle that I used to take out into the field t

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I listened intently to my hon. colleague's comments. One of the things I have learned from being here as long as I have, is to be a little bit cynical. The reality is that the motion could have been brought forward by anybody at any particular point in time in order