Kim Campbell Quotes

Our first Prime Minister saw a country that would be known for its generosity of spirit. And so it is.

There's no evidence that registering guns reduces the level of gun violence. It's not that I don't think it's something worth doing, (but) it's something you do much later.

Government cannot and must not replace private initiative.

On the same day I was sworn in as Prime Minister of Canada, I announced the most sweeping reform ever undertaken in the structure of our federal government.

There are certain things in gun control that have a certain public appeal, but when you're legislating you need to look at the research on what works, what doesn't, and what really has an impact, recognizing you're never going to do away entirely with gun violence

For me, unemployment and poverty in the Greater Montreal area is not mainly a problem of structure, or design, or statistics. It is a profoundly human situation.

I have always believed governments must adapt to the needs of the people, not the other way around.

There is no greater honour than to serve Canadians.

For too many, to work means having less income.

It would be naive to imagine we have solved all our income security problems simply because the roles of the federal and provincial governments in the area of skills training have been clarified.

The world has changed profoundly since our programs were first established.

Canada is the homeland of equality, justice and tolerance.

Progressive Conservative candidates from Quebec want to exert real power in Ottawa, not simply be content with playing a secondary role.

Canadians know that our difficulties will not be resolved overnight. They are tired of politicians who pretend they will be.

In all modesty, we must admit that governments are not always the best doctors when it comes to diagnosing economic ailments and prescribing the right treatment.

Despite our high rate of unemployment, 300,000 jobs go unfilled largely because many of the unemployed lack the skills needed today as a result of technological progress.

Some of you may have been hoping that today I would speak about Lucien Bouchard's latest economic theories. But I have decided to spare him for the time being: after all, he is a man.

Governments allocate enormous resources for social programs. And it is true that for many years we have had one of the best social service systems in the world. Yet we are still incapable of meeting the needs of tens of thousands of Canadian families.

I'd be prouder still to say I was Canada's 10th woman prime minister.

We Canadians are not given as a people to great patriotic displays.

[When criticized for appearing bare-shouldered Madonna-like at a banquet:] A comparison between Madonna and me is a comparison between a strapless evening gown and a gownless evening strap.

I believe it is time for new leadership that is able to leave the '70s behind.

We now know that unity, the cornerstone of Canada's greatness and prosperity, is above all a matter of emotion and reason for every citizen.

If you never encounter anything in your community that offends you, then you are not living in a free society.

An increasing number of Canadians must juggle the demands of work with the need to care for children, or for family members who are ill or too frail to care for themselves. Our programs have simply not kept pace with these societal changes.