Stephen Harper quotes - page 3

Now I know it's unfashionable to refer to colonialism in anything other than negative terms. And certainly, no part of the world is unscarred by the excesses of empires. But in the Canadian context, the actions of the British Empire were largely benign and occasionally brilliant...This genius for governance shown by the mother country at the time no doubt explains in part why Canada's path to independence was so long, patient and peaceful. (Stephen Harper)
While [Montreal] it is a French-speaking city – largely – it has an enormous English-speaking minority and a large number of what are called ethnics: they who are largely immigrant communities, but who politically and culturally tend to identify with the English community. View quote
Stephen Harper
[The Reform Party] also has some Buchananist tendencies. I know there are probably many admirers of Mr. Buchanan here, but I mean that in the sense that there are some anti-market elements in the Reform Party. View quote
Stephen Harper
Out security agencies work with each other and with others around the globe to track people who are threats to Canada and to watch threats that may evolve. I think though, this is not a time to commit sociology, if I can use an expression. It's time to treat this- these things are serious threats. Global terrorist attacks, people who have agendas of violence-deep and abiding threats to all the values that our society stands for. View quote
Stephen Harper
a light of freedom and democracy in what is otherwise a region of darkness will always have Canada as a friend. View quote
Stephen Harper
[S]ome basic facts about Canada that are relevant to my talk... Canada is a Northern European welfare state in the worst sense of the term, and very proud of it. View quote
Stephen Harper
We also have no history of colonialism. So we have all of the things that many people admire about the great powers but none of the things that threaten or bother them. View quote
Stephen Harper
Last year, when we had the Liberal government putting the protection of sexual orientation in our Human Rights Act, the Reform Party was opposed to that, but made a terrible mess of the debate. In fact, discredited itself on that issue, not just with the conventional liberal media, but even with many social conservatives by the manner in which it mishandled that. View quote
Stephen Harper
Universality has been severely reduced: it is virtually dead as a concept in most areas of public policy...These achievements are due in part to the Reform Party... View quote
Stephen Harper
In exercising our sovereignty over these waters, we are not only fulfilling our duty to the people who called this northern frontier home, and to the generations that will follow; we are also being faithful to all who came before us, who through great hardship and sacrifice made a quest for knowledge of the North. View quote
Stephen Harper
Same sex marriage is not a human right. ... [U]ndermining the traditional definition of marriage is an assault on multiculturalism and the practices in those communities. (Stephen Harper)
When people think of Islamic terrorism, they think of Afghanistan, or maybe they think of some place in the Middle East, but the truth is that threat exists all over the world ... There are a number of threats on a number of levels, but if you are talking about terrorism it is Islamicism ... There are other threats out there, but that is the one that I can tell you occupies the security apparatus most regularly in terms of actual terrorist threats ... homegrown [Islamic] terrorism is something we keep an eye on. View quote
Stephen Harper
Whether Canada ends up as o­ne national government or two national governments or several national governments, or some other kind of arrangement is, quite frankly, secondary in my opinion... And whether Canada ends up with o­ne national government or two governments or ten governments, the Canadian people will require less government no matter what the constitutional status or arrangement of any future country may be. View quote
Stephen Harper
We must aim to make Canada a lower tax jurisdiction than the United States. View quote
Stephen Harper
[T]he NDP is kind of proof that the Devil lives and interferes in the affairs of men. View quote
Stephen Harper
Canada is in budgetary deficit now only because of the recession, only because of stimulus measures, and we will come out of it. We will go back into surplus position when the economy recovers. So there is no need in Canada to raise taxes. View quote
Stephen Harper
If Ottawa giveth, then Ottawa can taketh away. View quote
Stephen Harper
My own views on abortion, I'm not on either pole of that and neither of the interest groups on either end of this issue would probably be comfortable with my views. View quote
Stephen Harper
As a religion, bilingualism is the god that failed. It has led to no fairness, produced no unity, and cost Canadian taxpayers untold millions. View quote
Stephen Harper
I think first and foremost everybody should understand that Canadians are strongly committed to the system of universal health insurance, to the principle that your ability to pay does not determine your access to critical medical service. View quote
Stephen Harper
We'll support the government on issues if it's essential to the country but our primary responsibility is not to prop up the government, our responsibility is to provide an opposition and an alternative government for Parliament and for Canadians. (Stephen Harper)
We have in this country a federal government that increasingly is engaged in trying to determine which business, which regions, which industries will succeed, which will not through a whole range of economic development, regional development corporate subsidization programs. View quote
Stephen Harper
I think because we're such a trading nation, I think Canadians understand that first and foremost we're part of the global economy. View quote
Stephen Harper
First of all, I can't forget my first responsibility - which is to be the Leader of the Opposition and that's to provide an alternative government. View quote
Stephen Harper
Universality has been severely reduced: it is virtually dead as a concept in most areas of public policy. View quote
Stephen Harper