Fair Representation Act  Mr. Speaker, it is a bit disingenuous for the member to say that we should give them the numbers when we have said our plan is based on census figures. We know the Conservatives do not seem to like the long form census. They did away with it. They do not seem to like the census,

Fair Representation Act  They are yelling now, but the reality is it just makes no sense. They did not come forward to the public last spring and say “elect us and we'll go for lower representation for your province”. What does the member he think of the Liberal plan to make five provinces effectively l

The Economy  Mr. Speaker, it is incredible to us that they betrayed the workers of Hamilton. That is what is incredible. Like the official opposition, Mr. Carney of the Bank of Canada believes that the best way to create a virtuous circle of employment and economic growth in Canada is to sti

The Economy  Mr. Speaker, we did not vote against a virtuous circle; we voted against this vicious circle that the Conservatives imposed: job losses, lower wages, the highest family debt ever in our history. What are they doing now? They are cutting taxes for banks and big oil companies swamp

The Economy  Mr. Speaker, we take no lessons from the government, because we know the job numbers that it throws out are—

The Economy  They do not like to hear the truth, Mr. Speaker. Canadians are also starting to see very clearly that the government has problems managing money. The PBO report is clear. The Minister of Finance is refusing to publish important information on trade, taxation and GDP. The PBO say

The Economy  Mr. Speaker, the Parliamentary Budget Officer confirms that this government is increasingly having problems making budgetary estimates. The difference between the government's numbers and the real numbers is roughly $10 billion a year. The government is overly optimistic and it i

Prohibition on Importing Goods Produced by Sweatshop Labour Act  moved for leave to introduce Bill C-378, An Act to prohibit sweatshop labour goods. Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Joliette for seconding the first reading of this bill. As members know, Canada is a signatory to the International Labour Organization Convention. It talks ab

Employment  Mr. Speaker, 19,000 jobs were lost last month, and almost half of those were lost in the manufacturing sector. This is another sad record for this government, which already has the worst trade deficit in our country's history—

Employment  Mr. Speaker, 19,000 jobs were lost last month, and almost half of those were lost in the manufacturing sector. This is another sad record for this government, which already has the worst trade deficit in our country's history, the worst level of family debt in our country's histo

Employment  Mr. Speaker, that is a bizarre thing to say, that it is positive to lose jobs. Nineteen thousand jobs were lost last month. Seventy-two thousand full-time jobs in the month of October are gone. Mills and factories that support families across this country are gone. They have los

The Economy  Mr. Speaker, the latest OECD report is damning. The gap between the rich and the poor is growing bigger more quickly here than in other developed countries. The poor are getting poorer and the rich are getting richer. Average families are having more and more difficulty making en

The Economy  Mr. Speaker, sadly the results are in on the Conservatives' so-called plan. They lost 19,000 jobs in the month of November. They lost 72,000 full-time jobs in the month of October. Because of their policies, the gap between rich and other Canadians is growing. The OECD says that

Volunteerism  Mr. Speaker, Cuso International and Volunteer Canada have partnered to launch the first State of the World's Volunteerism Report, launched today at the UN General Assembly and in 70 other countries, coinciding with International Volunteer Day. The report calls for making voluntee

Harmonized Sales Tax  Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Prime Minister sent the premier of B.C. home empty-handed with no agreement to reduce the $1.6 billion payback on the hated HST. That is money that will have to come from health and education B.C. families rely on. There was no recognition of two years