Mr. Don Boudria (Glengarry-Prescott-Russell):

Mr. Speaker, my question to the Minister of Public Works deals again with the lease renewal contract for Vincent Massey Place, in Hull. Yesterday, in the House, to justify a $15 million gift to Mr. Tessier, the Minister of Public Works told us that the lease would have expired in three years from now.

Is the Minister prepared to admit that he made a mistake yesterday, because the lease still has another eight and a half years to run? Is he prepared to admit that it was a gift from the Government to one of its friends, out of Canadian taxpayers' money? Moreover, could he explain to us why another contract for $106,000 has been awarded to the same Mr. Tessier to renovate a room on the fifth floor? How could he justify all that?

Hon. Stewart Mclnnes (Minister of Public Works):

Mr. Speaker, the original lease in 1973 was signed by that Government.

Mr. Boudria:

Yes, it should have been kept.

Mr. Mclnnes:

We were obliged to pick up the tab for these renovations, to respond to the Fire Inspector. That is a policy we have followed in other buildings in Ottawa, and the same policy was followed here.

Kickback.

Mr. Mclnnes:

The Hon. Member has been investigating this particular matter for weeks. All he has produced to the House is innuendo and scurrilous, false accusations. I suggest that if he has knowledge that anybody was involved in improper political interference, he go out of this Chamber and make the accusations and take the consequences.

Hear, hear!

Mr. Boudria:

I did not mean to get the Minister all excited.

Mr. Don Boudria (Glengarry-Prescott-Russell):

Mr. Speaker, let me try to get it straight. The House should know that the Minister initially refused to give me the documents concerning the building. Is the Minister telling us that the fact that Mr. Tessier has, for 25 years, been the friend of someone working for the Prime Minister, that Mr. Tessier gave healthy contributions to the Conservative Party, that government officials overturned decisions-

Mr. Mazankowski:

Sleaze!

Mr. Boudria:

-overturned decisions in favour of Mr. Roy's friend are all just happy coincidences in this cosy leasing arrangement, or is it the lease that they could do for a friend?

Hon. Stewart Mclnnes (Minister of Public Works):

Mr. Speaker, there are an awful lot of suggestions there. Let the Member go out of the House and restate exactly what he said, and take the consequences.

Mr. Guilbault (Saint-Jacques):

You are stuck in the corner.

Mr. Crosbie:

Senator McCarthy-Turner.

Ms. Pauline Jewett (New Westminster-Coquitlam):

Mr. Speaker, my question is directed to the Deputy Prime Minister or the Acting Secretary of State for External Affairs who, I believe, is the Minister for International Trade. This week in Maclean's letters column, the Secretary of State for External Affairs wrote: "There is no truth to the assertion that Canada will give unlimited access to all U.S. vessels to use the Northwest Passage". Is it the position of the Government to give unlimited access to U.S. vessels to use the Northwest Passage?

April 3, 1987

Hon. Don Mazankowski (Deputy Prime Minister and President of the Privy Council):

Mr. Speaker, I have not read the report to which the Hon. Member refers. I will check and get back to her on it.

Ms. Pauline Jewett (New Westminster-Coquitlam):

Mr. Speaker, 1 quoted the Minister so that the Government would know that the Cabinet position has been stated in his letter. However, it is not clear. Therefore, my supplementary question is based on the same quote by the Secretary of State for External Affairs. If the Government is not giving unlimited access, is it preparing to give limited access to some or all U.S. vessels in Canadian Arctic waters?