Joe Jordan

[Motions for Papers, May 22nd, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I ask that all Notices of Motions for the Production of Papers be allowed to stand.

[Questions on the Order Paper, May 22nd, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I ask that all questions be allowed to stand.

[Order in Council Appointments, May 22nd, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to table, in both official languages, a number of order in council appointments made recently by the Government of Canada.

[Question No. 132, May 21st, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I ask that the remaining questions be allowed to stand.

[Questions Passed as Orders for Returns, May 21st, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, if Question No. 132 could be made an order for return, the return would be tabled immediately.

[Questions on the Order Paper, May 21st, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, the following questions will be answered today: Nos. 133, 134, 135, 136, 137, 138, 139, 141 and 142.

[Government Response to Petitions, May 21st, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8) I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to 19 petitions.

[Supply, May 6th, 2002]

Madam Speaker, I come from a rural riding in eastern Ontario. We certainly have experienced some difficult times recently. Some plants have closed. It has a lot to do with our proximity to the border. We are putting together a recovery plan. We did a very detailed analysis of the rural economy and the drivers of the rural economy. We came up with some specifics that we required.

One of the barriers to economic development in eastern Ontario, and I think most rural communities, was found to be a lack of bandwidth. One of the benefits of being in a rural area is the lifestyle. Technology allows businesses to decentralize but without the bandwidth we are not in the game. Bandwidth is an important aspect to rural development. When we proposed bandwidth expenditure in the budget, it was openly mocked by the Alliance Party. It did not present debate about the pros and cons of bandwidth. It dismissed it as an absolute waste of time and money.

My riding has a number of plants that are restructuring. One of the major contributors to the turnaround is HRDC. For six months the Alliance Party mocked HRDC, although today in question period we could see the theme. It is absolutely trying to encourage this kind of development which it should have been doing all along if it understood how rural economies work.

With respect to the Farm Credit Corporation, we changed the rules for farm credit so it could get involved and finance businesses that are associated with rural economies and not strictly farms. The Alliance Party stood and voted against it.

Does the hon. member not think it is strange that we spent an entire day of the House's time listening to Alliance Party members moan and whine about rural Canada when they do not have a clue of how the rural economies work? Every time there has been a piece of legislation in the House to help the rural economies they have sat in their seats and have not supported rural Canadians.

[Supply, May 6th, 2002]

Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I realize the member has trouble with polls but the poll is that 70% of politicians are corrupt. I think she should stand in her place, if she has any integrity, and correct the record.

[Canada-U.S. Border, May 3rd, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member may be aware, the Deputy Prime Minister has been working very closely with his U.S. counterpart Tom Ridge on implementing the smart border action plan.

Since the very beginning of this process the Deputy Prime Minister and his cabinet colleagues have received very constructive insights from a variety of sources, including the business community. This input is crucial to ensure that the action plan supports the initiatives of Canadians and Canadian businesses. In fact, on Monday the Deputy Prime Minister, along with the hon. Minister for International Cooperation, will be participating in another of the ongoing dialogues with border stakeholders in Windsor.