The Liberal leadership race is approaching a crucial juncture, with the delegates for its Montreal convention being selected across the country over the weekend of Sept. 29 to Oct. 1.
globeandmail.com invited all of the candidates to come on-line before that delegate-selection process.
We were pleased to have Joe Volpe take part in this series of live on-line discussions.
The questions and Mr. Volpe's answers appear on the bottom of this page.
(Andrew Vaughan/CP)
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Mr. Volpe has been a Toronto MP since he was first elected in 1988. He has served as Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Canada and the Minister Responsible for Ontario and Toronto. Afer joining cabinet in 2003, Mr. Volpe served as Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development.
During his Parliamentary career, he has served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health as well as Chair of the Standing Committee on Natural Resources and the Standing Committee on Government Operations, and as a member of the Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology.
Editor's Note: globeandmail.com editors will read and allow or reject each question/comment. Comments/questions may be edited for length or clarity. We will not publish questions/comments that include personal attacks on participants in these discussions, that make false or unsubstantiated allegations, that purport to quote people or reports where the purported quote or fact cannot be easily verified, or questions/comments that include vulgar language or libellous statements. Preference will be given to readers who submit questions/comments using their full name and home town, rather than a pseudonym.
Rasha Mourtada, globeandmail.com: Good afternoon, Mr. Volpe, and thank you for joining us today to take questions from globeandmail.com readers. Let's get started. What is the single most-important reason why you should be elected leader of the Liberal party and have a chance to become the Prime Minister of Canada?
Joe Volpe: I am the only candidate who believes in a growth model for Canada's future. I have a comprehensive view of how to accomplish that through investments in human resources (a skills and learning strategy predicated on investments in post-secondary education, union-learning centres, building best practices for skills and accreditations to facilitate mobility and promote productivity); through an immigration program design to recruit for Canada's labour market and demographic needs - for today and into the next generation; through an infrastructure program that recognizes the transportation requirements and security requirements of Canada's global commercial requirements; and, a foreign policy predicated on defending and promoting Canada's interest everywhere but especially with the emerging economic giants of China and India. Moreover, I am the only candidate with experience in the party and in government in senior portfolios: I can talk about what needs to be done because I've actually done it!
Jim Sheppard, Executive Editor, globeandmail.com: Where do you place the 10 candidates right now in terms of being front-runners, middle-of-the-pack or well-behind-the-rest? What's your strategy since it appears no one will win on the first ballot at the convention?
Joe Volpe: Not one delegate has been elected so far. True, some ex-officios have expressed an opinion, but they have not cast a ballot. So, bogus polls and wishful thinking by editorial boards will have to wait until next week's Super Weekend before we find out who is in the lead and who is in the middle of the pack. For now, we are concentrating on getting our potential delegates elected across the country. We will deal with hypothetical issues when they become reality.
Len Lombardi, Richmond Hill: A leader must have a strong vision of the future in order to instill passion and purpose into the populace. What is your vision of Canada and how do you plan to instill passion and purpose into the young generation?
Joe Volpe: Since Michael Ignatieff, Bob Rae, and I first graduated from the University of Toronto, some seven million people from around the world have come to Canada to create a future for themselves and our country. Their entrepreneurial spirit, their willingness to sacrifice for collective good and their desire to fashion a society based on the rule of law and reward of merit have infused our country with a dynamic that we often ignore to our great misfortune. They give us an opportunity to export the Canadian experience and Canadian expertise (along with its commodities) worldwide. We have an international network that we need as a government to provide leadership in bringing to fruition. Finally, in so doing, we will have an opportunity to influence emerging nations by engaging them in the great Canadian experiment. This is a true test of Citizenship and equality, not just before the law, but in the actions that we can showcase to the world. Canadians want to feel that they are contributing to the development of a great Canadian ideal because they live a great Canadian adventure. Government leadership should be exercised in investing to ensure that that adventure is shared by all Canadians. For me, Canada has been a land of great promise and dreams fulfilled. I want to ensure that everyone else will be able to say the same.
