Debates of Oct. 17th, 2000
House of Commons Hansard #130 of the 36th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was health.
Topics
- Privilege
- Government Response To Petitions
- Clean Internet Act
- Whistle Blower Human Rights Act
- Competition Act
- Petitions
- Questions On The Order Paper
- Request For Emergency Debate
- An Act To Incorporate The Western Canada Telephone Company
- Canada Health Care, Early Childhood Development And Other Social Services Funding Act
- Auditor General's Report
- Miss India-Canada Pageant
- Federal Election
- Performing Arts Awards
- The Francophonie
- Desjardins Week
- Darrell And Anthea Archer
- Canadian Federation Of Independent Business
- Information Commissioner's Report
- Thames River
- Canadian Federation Of Independent Business
- A Week Without Violence
- Canadian Federation Of Independent Business
- International Anti-Poverty Day
- World March Of Women
- Atlantic Tourism Industry
- World March Of Women
- Brain Tumour Awareness Month
- Information Commissioner's Report
- Auditor General's Report
- Information Commissioner's Report
- The Environment
- Auditor General's Report
- Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
- The Environment
- Transportation
- Economic Diversification
- Grants And Contributions
- Information Commissioner's Report
- Housing
- National Defence
- Correctional Service Canada
- Presence In Gallery
- Business Of The House
- Defence Production Act
- Privilege
- Defence Production Act
- Business Of The House
- Canada Health Care, Early Childhood Development And Other Social Services Funding Act
- Supply
- Division No. 1426
- Proportional Representation
- Peacekeeping
Auditor General's Report
Oral Question Period
2:45 p.m.
Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel
Québec
Liberal
Alfonso Gagliano Minister of Public Works and Government Services
Mr. Speaker, first concerning the bidding process, my department had an internal audit and the matter was dealt with. As a matter of fact, in the internal audit concerning that space, the auditor general cited that ACOA had potential partners but that those partners did not come through, and that was the problem. Now the government of Nova Scotia is renting most of the space.
Auditor General's Report
Oral Question Period
2:45 p.m.
Reform
John Williams St. Albert, AB
Mr. Speaker, I like these internal audits. They lead to places.
Let me give another example. The Canada Communication Group was privatized in 1997. It is now owned by St. Joseph Corporation. The auditor general told us in 1997 that it was given a privileged advance arrangement, in other words a sweetheart deal, because it could go five years in business with no competitive bidding.
What is the connection between privileged advance arrangements and the fact that in the last two years CCG and St. Joseph donated $30,000 to the Liberal Party?
Auditor General's Report
Oral Question Period
2:45 p.m.
The Deputy Speaker
I think that question is out of order as it does not appear to relate directly to the competence of the government.
The first part of the question concerning the contract with the crown corporation may be in order and the hon. Minister of Public Works may choose to answer that part of it.
Auditor General's Report
Oral Question Period
2:45 p.m.
Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel
Québec
Liberal
Alfonso Gagliano Minister of Public Works and Government Services
Mr. Speaker, St. Joseph printing, like any other printing company, had to bid for the contract. It was an open process and therefore the company had no sweet deal. As a matter of fact it complained that we were too hard on it.
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
Oral Question Period
October 17th, 2000 / 2:45 p.m.
NDP
Peter Mancini Sydney—Victoria, NS
Mr. Speaker, I would like to take the minister back to the deal cut in October of 1995 among ACOA, Public Works and the Liberal government of Nova Scotia, all of whom leased the space in Sydney at 30% more than the market rate from a golfing buddy of the Prime Minister.
The key provincial Cape Breton cabinet minister at the time is today the minister of ACOA. Why would the government enter into such a dubious deal? Is this the kind of questionable conduct we can expect from the new minister?
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
Oral Question Period
2:50 p.m.
Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel
Québec
Liberal
Alfonso Gagliano Minister of Public Works and Government Services
Mr. Speaker, as I said, during that time my department had an internal audit on that matter and all the questions were dealt with. As a matter of fact the auditor general in his report quoted the internal audit.
The question of the transparency was dealt with and everything was done according to treasury board policy.
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
Oral Question Period
2:50 p.m.
NDP
Michelle Dockrill Bras D'Or, NS
Mr. Speaker, in Cape Breton, Liberal values mean contracts offered to golf buddies of the Prime Minister: a friend under RCMP investigation who got ministerial help arranging a sole source contract from ACOA that saw hundreds of thousands of dollars spent on renting empty offices. These are the values laid out in the auditor general's report today.
Will the new unelected minister for ACOA be responding to these documented abuses before Canadians are forced to go to the polls?
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
Oral Question Period
2:50 p.m.
Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel
Québec
Liberal
Alfonso Gagliano Minister of Public Works and Government Services
Mr. Speaker, I can continue on and repeat the same thing. Everything was in order. Everything was done according to the rules. The department had at that time an internal audit and confirmed that everything was done according to the rules in terms of space. The partners for that space did not come through and ACOA was able to rent the extra space to the government of Nova Scotia.
The Environment
Oral Question Period
2:50 p.m.
Progressive Conservative
John Herron Fundy Royal, NB
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Canadian Heritage.
Internal e-mails to NRCan show that the heritage minister intervened on behalf of a company to permit them to manufacture less energy efficient refrigerators for 18 months beyond the current regulation in the guise of protecting jobs.
Yet Camco's own internal documents, which I have here, show that it will be sourcing those same refrigerators from the United States 18 months from now anyway. This is a very precarious precedent for industries and companies who invest in environmental technology due to governmental regulations.
The minister is not concerned about jobs in Alberta for which she makes regulations. Why are jobs in Hamilton more important than jobs in Alberta?
The Environment
Oral Question Period
2:50 p.m.
Timiskaming—Cochrane
Ontario
Liberal
Ben Serré Parliamentary Secretary to Minister of Natural Resources
Mr. Speaker, the government must strike a balance between our environmental goals and job creation and economic development. We believe it is very important to save 300 jobs for Canadians.
Transportation
Oral Question Period
2:50 p.m.
Progressive Conservative
Bill Casey Cumberland—Colchester, NS
Mr. Speaker, the auditor general has identified many inconsistent and unfair practices in dealing with Canada's airports. Toronto gets a $185 million rent reduction right out of the blue, while documents from the ministry of transport show that Moncton airport will be in a deficit position for 20 years.
Why does the minister have a special deal for the airport in his own area and nothing for anybody else? Why the double standard? Why the special treatment?
Transportation
Oral Question Period
2:50 p.m.
Don Valley East
Ontario
Liberal
David Collenette Minister of Transport
Mr. Speaker, I would like to tell the hon. member that the devolution of Canada's airports was one of the most successful programs initiated by the government.
It is a program that has improved quality, has put management into the hands of local entrepreneurs, has responded to the needs of local communities and has given the kind of investment that the public sector would have had to pay for but is now being paid for by users.
The regime that has been put into effect is an accountable one and one that has had uniform application across the country. It has been tough in negotiating some of these deals because airports have not liked the fact that we have to be consistent. This has been consistent.
Economic Diversification
Oral Question Period
2:50 p.m.
Liberal
Réginald Bélair Timmins—James Bay, ON
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Veterans Affairs, who is also the minister responsible for western economic diversification and for francophonie.
The Commissioner of Official Languages has just released her 1999-2000 annual report. In connection with economic development, the commissioner acknowledges the efforts of Western Economic Diversification in helping to bolster linguistic duality and the vitality of francophone communities outside Quebec.
Would the secretary of state share with us how his department obtained such results?
Economic Diversification
Oral Question Period
2:55 p.m.
Saint Boniface
Manitoba
Liberal
Ronald J. Duhamel Secretary of State (Western Economic Diversification) (Francophonie)
Mr. Speaker, first of all, allow me to thank the commissioner for her report.
We followed a very simple formula. We went out into the francophone communities and listened to the people. We asked them what their priorities were. We were able to provide them with some funding, modest amounts, yet important.
The women and men in those communities went ahead and implemented their plans, with highly successful outcomes.
We shall continue with the same approach.
Grants And Contributions
Oral Question Period
2:55 p.m.
Reform
John Williams St. Albert, AB
Mr. Speaker, the information commissioner has been bullied by the government but fortunately he has not bowed out. The auditor general is being swept aside as if his reports were not important, but they are. We hear from HRDC about the thousands of grant applications that have been handled incompetently, with money being used questionably. We see from the auditor general on the CIDA grants that a $6.3 million contract was approved contrary to the rules.
Is there nothing that this Prime Minister will not do to help his friends?