The Budget  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to be given the opportunity to speak to budget 2008, a budget, as in previous Conservative budgets, that has let Canadians down. As a member of the official opposition, my job is to critically evaluate the performance of the Conservative government and

The Budget  That is not fair, Mr. Speaker. He had more than one minute to ask his question. The fact is that the Liberal Party is the reason Canada has been experiencing so much economic and social growth over the last 13 years. I want to thank the hon. member for helping me to remind Canad

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, last November, Mississauga city council reluctantly voted to implement a special infrastructure levy. Much of the city's infrastructure is aging and, as one of the fastest growing cities in Canada, the needs continue to rise. Mississauga mayor, Hazel McCallion, has

Status of Women  Mr. Speaker, later this week women around the world will celebrate International Women's Day and its theme, “Strong Women, Strong World”. We will remember Canadian trailblazers, Emily Murphy, Nellie McClung, Henrietta Muir Edwards, Louise McKinney and Irene Parlby, whose fierce

Federal-Provincial Relations  Mr. Speaker, Ontario is facing real economic challenges, challenges like the struggling manufacturing sector, the weak forestry industry and the rising infrastructure deficit, to name a few. Instead of offering meaningful solutions to those challenges, the Minister of Finance dec

Louise Arbour  Mr. Speaker, it is my honour to rise in the House to recognize an extraordinary Canadian. Louise Arbour was the first francophone ever appointed to the Ontario Court of Appeal. Renowned for her courage, she relentlessly pursued justice and dignity as chief prosecutor for both Rw

Income Tax Act  Mr. Speaker, I support the bill. I think it is a very well-intended and needed bill to help young couples buy their first home. However, I have a question that I hope the hon. member can answer. By increasing this limit, it might reduce tax revenue for the government. With the R

Ontario Economy  Mr. Speaker, that answer proves my point. The minister is delusional. The minister ignores the manufacturing job crisis with his “laissez-faire, I don't care” attitude. Instead, he cares about phantom trains in his riding. He cares about rigging an application process to favour

Ontario Economy  Mr. Speaker, Ontarians remember the failed policies of Mike Harris and that finance minister. Their policies gave Ontario a $5.6 billion hidden deficit, hospital closures, thousands of nurses fired, the Walkerton catastrophe, the Hydro mess, the heartless attacks on the homeless

Automotive Industry  Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Finance, not the Minister of Industry. This week the GM plant in Oshawa laid off another 900 workers, bringing the total up to 2,000 workers in just four months. The job losses are just down the street from the minister's office, b

Automotive Industry  Mr. Speaker, Canadians are walking with their pink slips past the office of the Minister of Finance, so it is disappointing but not surprising that he is letting the minister from Calgary answer that question. The Minister of Finance ran a $5.6 billion deficit in Ontario. It wa

Nuclear Liability and Compensation Act  Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to speak to Bill C-5. I spoke in the debate at second reading and now I have the opportunity to speak at report stage. Fundamentally, the bill is an administrative one. It does a lot of housecleaning on the Nuclear Liability Act. The last

Nuclear Liability and Compensation Act  Mr. Speaker, this is the first time I have had to make a speech over a period of two days. I have about two minutes left so I just want to summarize what I said previously in my speech, which is that the Liberal Party does not support the amendments presented by the NDP. We think

Nuclear Liability and Compensation Act  Mr. Speaker, I first want to echo my colleague's comments about the fact that our committee has been doing a pretty good job of working together and advancing good, strong, sound policies. Fortunately our committee has escaped some of the Conservative tactics. I want to thank the

Nuclear Liability and Compensation Act  Mr. Speaker, I am really surprised because my colleague is not known for hyperbole and being selective in his remarks. When I spoke to the bill, I said that not only the industry asked for it, but the host communities did as well. I do not know if he was there when the mayors te