Hon. Céline Hervieux-Payette: Honourable senators, my question is for the Leader of the Government. We were not surprised to learn that, under healthy pressure from Canadians and the Government of Saskatchewan, the Minister of Industry, Tony Clement, rejected the sale of PotashCorp. This last-minute about-face by the Reform government, which is supposedly ideologically in favour of deregulation, reminds us of the need to clearly define what constitutes a "net benefit" and the need for greater transparency in the analysis of a transaction that would allow a foreign company to take control of Canadian interests.

Can the Leader of the Government tell us when her government will show transparency and accountability when Canada's strategic interests are at stake, and will she tell us the terms and conditions under which this transaction was rejected?

Recent Statements from Liberal Senators