Real Results for Canadians

March 31, 2008

As the House of Commons resumes its business after Easter break, there will be one more Conservative MP working hard on behalf of Canadians.

Rob Clarke will take his seat as the Desnethé--Missinippi--Churchill River Member of Parliament after a decisive Conservative by-election victory in this formerly Liberal riding.

Mr. Clarke won the Desnethé--Missinippi--Churchill River by-election because he campaigned on the priorities of local families: lower taxes, safer communities, and strong leadership for the economy.

The Conservative by-election victory is also an endorsement of the strong leadership and real results local families see from Prime Minister Harper and the Conservative Government. These results include:

• Forging a new consensus on the Mission in Afghanistan,
• Passing the Tackling Violent Crime Act, that punishes gun criminals, impaired drivers and sexual repeat violent and sexual offenders with tougher sentences.
• Passing Budget 2008, a prudent and responsible budget that will keep Canada on a strong economic footing while making it easier than ever for Canadians to save what they earn.
• Partnering with provinces to help retrain workers in struggling single industry communities, improve transit and recruit 2500 new police officers to keep Canadian families safe.
  

The most recent round of by-elections also provided a sobering experience for Stéphane Dion. The Liberals lost one seat during the spring by-elections, and came close to losing in a riding that had previously been one of their most secure electoral fortresses.

Even the areas where the Liberals were successful in clinging on to their seats still created leadership problems for Mr. Dion as his already disgruntled caucus now contains two more of his former leadership rivals.

After months of flip-flopping on important decisions such as whether or not he will raise the GST, promising tens of billions of dollars of spending that he knows Canada cannot afford, and making a mockery of the role of Official Opposition by abstaining and hiding from key issue after key issue, Mr. Dion has reduced the Liberal Party to a demoralized, distracted and divided party that is not prepared to govern and not ready to lead.

The choice Canadians face is clearer than ever. Strong leadership, real optimism and real results from Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Conservative Government, or weak leadership, no priorities and tens of billions in new debt from Stéphane Dion and the Liberals.