Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, I am very proud of the fact that the Prime Minister took responsibility for what happened. As soon as the commissioner's report was released, he accepted the findings and told Canadians he would do better next time. He said he would tell the commissioner about all future family and personal vacations.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for St. Catharines. It is always an honour and a privilege for me to rise in the House to tell Canadians about the remarkable work being done by our government under the leadership of our right hon. Prime Minister. That same Prime Minister took responsibility for his actions and accepted the findings of the former commissioner as soon as her report was released.

National Anthem  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to speak today in memory of the hon. member who held this seat before me. Last night, I was honoured to be present in the gallery as Bill C-210, an act to amend the National Anthem Act, was voted on by senators. After sitting in the other place for 19 months, including nearly a year at third reading, I was delighted to see senators finally adopt the bill and send it for royal assent.

Democratic Institutions  Mr. Speaker, Canadians are proud of our democracy. An important principle of that democracy is that everyone has an equal opportunity to run for office. Can the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Democratic Institutions update this House on the government's response to the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta ruling on the $1,000 deposit for federal election candidates?

World Diabetes Day  Mr. Speaker, November is Diabetes Awareness Month and November 14 is World Diabetes Day. This date was chosen because it marks the birthdate of Dr. Banting, who made crucial breakthroughs in research that led to the discovery of insulin. In fact, his work earned him the Nobel Prize in Medicine.

Health  Mr. Speaker, our feminist Prime Minister is recognized around the world for our government's efforts to promote and defend women's rights. However, in my riding of Ottawa—Vanier, I hear from many female public servants that the public sector health care plan does not support their choice of contraceptive.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his question and speech. I want to reiterate the importance of the new measure that was announced yesterday. As mentioned earlier, we announced that we have lowered the small business tax rate from 10% to 9%. I see this as an opportunity to strengthen Canada's small and medium-sized businesses.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his comments. As members know, the Minister of Finance took this summer's consultations very seriously. The good news is that I personally had the opportunity to speak with a number of my constituents who had serious concerns. With their help, I was able to submit some suggestions to the finance minister, and he took them into account.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I thank you for the opportunity to continue my remarks. As I mentioned earlier, a number of initiatives have been put in place since we were elected, since our government came to power. There is still a lot of work to do and we are in the process of getting it done.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I would like to inform you that I will be sharing my time with the member for Pierrefonds—Dollard. It is a pleasure for me to speak to the House about the government's plan to help the middle class and all those working hard to join it. We were elected by promising Canadians real change in what we do and how we do it.

Pierre de Blois  Mr. Speaker, last week we lost a great friend, mentor, advocate, and community builder, who passed away as a result of a sudden heart attack. Pierre de Blois was a generous, kind-hearted man who had a larger-than-life personality and whose personal motto was carpe diem. He worked as a senior executive at the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages and as executive director of the Association of Professional Executives of the Public Service.

Journalistic Sources Protection Act  Madam Speaker, I thank you for this opportunity to speak to Bill S-231, an act to amend the Canada Evidence Act and the Criminal Code (protection of journalistic sources). Please allow me, Madam Speaker, as others have done before me, to express my gratitude to the Senate sponsor for his hard work and dedication in relation to this important bill.

Franco-Ontarian Day  Mr. Speaker, as a proud Franco-Ontarian, I want to take this opportunity to point out that Monday, September 25, is Franco-Ontarian Day. Francophone communities in Ontario have a rich history dating back 400 years to when Samuel de Champlain explored and mapped parts of Ontario by navigating the Ottawa River and arriving by boat at the current site of the city of Ottawa in 1613.

Status of Women  Mr. Speaker, in a matter of days, Canada will be celebrating its 150th anniversary. Despite the significant progress made over the past 150 years, women, girls, and people who are gender non-conforming still do not have their rightful place in society. A lot remains to be done to make gender equality a reality in Canada.

Events in Ottawa—Vanier  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to thank the Minister of Environment for the sunshine in tomorrow's forecast. Tomorrow there are two important charitable walks in Ottawa—Vanier. Curvy Girls Scoliosis Support Group of Ottawa will celebrate its 6th annual walk of Scoliosis Awareness Month.