Prime Minister Harper addresses the Oakville Chamber of Commerce

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Honoured guests,

Members of the Oakville Chamber of Commerce,

Ladies and gentlemen,

Thank you for that warm welcome.

And thank you Stephen for that kind introduction.

Ladies and gentlemen, I can’t tell what a pleasure it is to be with you here today in Oakville.

I have been prime minister for almost eight months, and during this short period of time I’ve learned one key point. 

In Ottawa, everyone wants a piece of your time.

The bureaucrats want to fill your days with policy briefings.

Foreign diplomats want you to meet with every visiting dignitary who sets foot in the capital. 

And in a seemingly never-ending barrage, lobbyists are approaching you for “just 15 minutes.”

If these people all got their way, the sole job of the prime minister of Canada would be to attend back-to-back meetings in Ottawa, with only one break: the manufactured theatre of question period. 

And that’s why I’m so happy to be with you here today in Oakville …

To get off of Parliament Hill…

And to meet with some working Canadian taxpayers.

This isn’t the first time I’ve gotten out of Ottawa in recent weeks.

In Calgary, just prior to thanksgiving, I met some employees at an innovative and growing manufacturer of specialty office furniture. 

Shortly thereafter, I went to Vancouver where I met a group of Korean-Canadian students.

Their educational achievements were being rewarded with scholarships from a community association.

And last week, in Niagara Falls, I attended a luncheon organized by the insurance brokers association of Ontario – some of you may even have been there. 

The groups were different.

But their concerns were the same.

They weren’t preoccupied with politics, polls, or process.

Rather, their expectations of their governments and leaders are straightforward:

Be clear as to where you stand;

Run the government honestly and properly;

And, most importantly, deliver.  Actually follow through on what you say you are going to do.

Yes, some of them were tough customers.

But they – and you – have a right to be tough.

You have a right to expect results.

Because, after all, it’s your money that’s at stake – and you work hard for it.

So too do you have a right to a government that is clear and upfront about what it believes in.
 
And I think, if I may say so, this is one area where Canada’s New Government has been an improvement. 

As you would expect – as a politician – I come across people who don’t like this or that about what our government is doing on one day or the next.

But from these men and women one comment is the same: “at least you’re clear about who you are and know where you stand.”

We’ve always made it a priority to let Canadians know where we stand on the issues that matter to them.

Issues like:

Ensuring accountability;

Tackling crime;

Protecting the environment; and

Keeping our economy strong. 

Last month, I made it clear that these four items would be our priorities for this fall session of parliament.

And to date, we’ve made some great progress.

For example, on our economic and fiscal policies, our priorities are clear. We are:

Paying down debt;

Focussing our spending on priorities and controlling its growth;

Investing in long-term growth drivers like education, research and infrastructure, and;

Reducing taxes for families, businesses and individuals.

On the environment, we’ve introduced Canada’s first national Clean Air Act.

It’s complicated piece of legislation, far-reaching in scope, long-term in its implications.

But let me give you the simple version – how it differs with the previous government’s plan, the so-called Kyoto plan.

First, this legislation targets air pollution as well as greenhouse gases.

The previous plan did nothing at all about air pollution, about smog, the number one air quality concern of Canadians.

Second, this legislation targets emissions reduction in this country.

The previous plan was based on purchasing so-called “hot air credits”.

In other words, sending your tax dollars overseas with virtually no environmental improvement in Canada.

Third, this legislation will establish compulsory targets across industry, unlike the previous voluntary standards.

So these are pretty big differences.

But, ladies and gentlemen, I want to focus today on the other two priorities – on crime and on accountability – because these are the matters on which the liberal opposition is presently attempting to block our agenda.

As we all know, safe streets have long been a defining feature of our great country.

We’ve long been rightly proud of the fact that crime has been so much less of a problem in places like Toronto than in their American counterparts.

Unfortunately, times are changing, and so are our communities. 

Levels of gun, gang, and drug crime have been rising in Canada – people in the GTA are among the most aware of this fact.

As politicians, we have a choice.

We can ignore the problem or perhaps make excuses for it.

Or, we can do something about it.

Canadians were clear in the last election.  They want something done about it.

And all the parties, not just us, promised to crack down on crime.

Our government’s position is clear - safe communities shouldn’t only be a luxury for a few but a reality for us all.

So that’s what we have done – crack down on crime. Beginning in May, we’ve tabled legislation to, for example:

End conditional sentences, so-called “house arrest” for serious crimes;

Impose mandatory prison sentences for gun crimes;

Create tougher laws against street racing;

Raise the age of protection from 14 to 16 against the activities of sexual predators; and

Keep in prison the most violent, repeat and dangerous offenders in the country.

This is what we promised to do. This is what the public asked for.

And all parties told the public they would get tough on crime.

But what has happened. It’s nearly November. The legislation has barely moved.

And this week, on the very first bill, the opposition voted to water it down.

Not in parliament itself, but in a committee meeting, they voted to remove all property offences, even serious property offences, from the legislation.

In essence, the three opposition parties voted to allow criminals who break into your home, or steal your car, just as examples, to potentially serve their sentences at home. 

This is not what Canadians voted for.

It is not what Canadians want.

And it is certainly not what the opposition told the people they stood for in the last election.

So I call upon the opposition to stop stalling and watering down legislation and get tough on crime as they promised they would in the last election.

Ladies and gentlemen, that’s leads us to accountability – another big topic of the last election.

You will recall that we had been through an unprecedented series of investigations, boondoggles and scandals.

So bad were these that, in the province of Quebec, the image of federalism was so tarnished that new life had been breathed into the separatist movement.

As we said we would in the campaign – in great detail I might add – we tabled the most sweeping set of reform and anti-corruption measures in Canada’s history – the federal accountability act.

The intent of this act is straightforward:  to change the way Ottawa works…

Because, quite frankly, Ottawa needed changing.

Among other things, the accountability act:

Tightens the rules on lobbying;

Ends the practice of giving political staff priority for appointments in the public service;

Takes corporate and union money out of party politics and eliminates large donations and;

Creates a single ethics and conflict of interest commissioner with judicial experience.

And you should know, ladies and gentlemen, that all of these changes were adopted last spring by the House of Commons, after three months of debate.

In fact, not a single mp stood to vote against the legislation.

But this week, the items I just mentioned were reversed by the liberals. They voted:

To restrict investigations into the breaking of election or lobbying rules;

To give special, partisan political access to non-partisan government jobs;

To restore big donations to political parties; and, most notably,

To establish a separate, watered-down ethics officer for the senate.

How? Well, they did this in the senate.

That’s right.

After stalling the accountability act for over four months in the senate, the Liberals are trying to overturn major anti-corruption reforms by using their unelected majority in that undemocratic, antiquated institution.

Ladies and gentlemen, this is not what the house voted for. 

It is not what Canadians voted for.

It is not what Canadians want.

So I call on the Liberal senate to stop playing games, pass the accountability act and give Canadians the reforms they voted for.

While I’m at it, let me say also that there couldn’t be a better example of why we need senate reform in this country.

The senate is also actually blocking – for five months - our attempt to shorten the terms of senators – from 45 years to 8 years!

Which is just another reason why, if the senate is to exist at all, senators should be elected by the people they are supposed to represent.

So there you have it.

Ladies and gentlemen, earlier this year, Canadians voted for change.

They gave our party a mandate to lead that change.

And we are determined to lead.

Determined to deliver.

We promised to cut taxes, pay down debt and deliver benefits to working Canadian families.

We promised to implement a comprehensive Clean Air Act.

We promised to crack down on crime.

We promised to clean up government and introduce the Federal Accountability Act.

And we have been doing what we promised.

We don’t expect the opposition to always agree with us – but we do expect them to be upfront with you.

If the opposition disagrees with us, they should do it in the open, not in some committee meeting, not in the unelected senate, and not by endlessly stalling a democratic vote.

And don’t just tell Canadians you don’t like our government/party, they already know that. They know the parties are in competition.

Tell the Canadian people why you’re opposing accountability, opposing tough measures against crime - and explain to them why you didn’t tell them this in the election.

You know, I notice that some opposition politicians are saying that this shows we should have an election.

Well, they can force one anytime. But we shouldn’t have an election to pass the things that Canadians already voted for – the things that Canadians want.

Ladies and gentlemen, that’s my message today. In a minority parliament, where every vote counts, you must remind mps what you want, what you voted for. Only then will they get past the games, and work on the issues.

So if you want to have safe streets and safe communities, to crack down on criminals, and end nonsense like house arrest for serious crimes, you must voice your opinion to your elected representatives.

If you want to ensure that the federal accountability act passes and we make long-term reforms to clean up government in Ottawa, you must let your members of parliament know how you feel.

To ensure this parliament works.

That things actually get passed.

That laws get changed.

Canadians like yourselves must write, call, or email MPs of all parties to let them know that these aren’t just our priorities, but your priorities as well.

Thank you for inviting me.

God bless Canada.