Debates of Oct. 28th, 2003
House of Commons Hansard #145 of the 37th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was child.
Topics
- Interparliamentary Delegations
- Committees of the House
- Open Government Act
- Petitions
- Questions on the Order Paper
- Question No. 248
- Question No. 256
- Supplementary Estimates (A)
- Supply
- Business of the House
- Supply
- Points of Order
- Supply
- Don Deacon
- Rural Woman of the Year
- Assisted Human Reproduction
- Child Pornography
- Breast Cancer Awareness Month
- Landmines
- William Kalleo
- Réseau des organisateurs de spectacles de l'est du Québec
- The Homeless
- Greece
- National Library Day
- Volunteers
- Liberal Government
- Landmines
- Acadian Community
- Landmines
- Member for LaSalle--Émard
- Ethics
- Liberal Government
- Ethics
- International Aid
- Ethics
- Agriculture
- Ethics
- Arts and Culture
- Ethics
- Budget Surplus
- Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
- Ethics
- Highway Infrastructure
- Ethics
- Insurance Industry
- Ethics
- Quebec
- Broadcasting
- Canada Customs and Revenue Agency
- Ethics
- Nuclear Industry
- Ethics
- Royal Canadian Mounted Police
- Ethics
- Health
- Ethics
- Business Development Bank
- Supply
- Business of the House
- Library and Archives of Canada Act
- Supply
- Supplementary Estimates (A)
- Assisted Human Reproduction Act
- Canada Pension Plan
- Bankruptcy Legislation
Highway Infrastructure
Oral Question Period
2:45 p.m.
Bloc
Jocelyne Girard-Bujold Jonquière, QC
Mr. Speaker, since the construction of highway 175 was announced 14 months ago, nothing has been done in the Saguenay. The member for Chicoutimi—Le Fjord blames the delay on Quebec provincial officials.
Can the Minister of Transport tell us whether or not his government is prepared to take on 50% of the cost of building highway 175, as well as 50% of cost overruns, if any?
Highway Infrastructure
Oral Question Period
2:45 p.m.
Don Valley East
Ontario
Liberal
David Collenette Minister of Transport
Mr. Speaker, last year we made a commitment regarding construction of this highway. We are going to pay 50% of the cost of constructing this highway.
Highway Infrastructure
Oral Question Period
2:45 p.m.
Bloc
Jocelyne Girard-Bujold Jonquière, QC
Mr. Speaker, Quebec's Liberal minister, Françoise Gauthier, confirms that the only thing blocking the agreement now is that the federal government refuses to accept responsibility for its share of cost overruns.
Will the Minister of Transport confirm that the Canadian government's commitment to paying 50% of the highway costs also means it will share 50-50 with Quebec on any cost overruns? If he will not make that commitment, it puts the whole agreement at risk.
Highway Infrastructure
Oral Question Period
2:45 p.m.
Don Valley East
Ontario
Liberal
David Collenette Minister of Transport
Mr. Speaker, there is an agreement that our contribution to construction of this highway will be 50%.
Ethics
Oral Question Period
October 28th, 2003 / 2:45 p.m.
Canadian Alliance
Jim Gouk Kootenay—Boundary—Okanagan, BC
Mr. Speaker, the government seems to think that our questions today are inappropriate, but what is inappropriate is the government's conduct which has necessitated our polling of its ministers as to their improper conduct.
Has the Minister of Labour received any undeclared gifts in excess of $200, except for the one that she belatedly reported this week?
Ethics
Oral Question Period
2:45 p.m.
Moncton—Riverview—Dieppe
New Brunswick
Liberal
Ethics
Oral Question Period
2:45 p.m.
Canadian Alliance
John Duncan Vancouver Island North, BC
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister and the Minister of Natural Resources are treating this ethical issue of reporting undeclared gifts over $200 as one of partisanship, not principle. That has been the problem all along.
Has the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development ever received undeclared gifts in excess of $200?
Ethics
Oral Question Period
2:45 p.m.
Kenora—Rainy River
Ontario
Liberal
Insurance Industry
Oral Question Period
2:45 p.m.
Liberal
Peter Adams Peterborough, ON
Mr. Speaker, a few months ago I asked the Secretary of State for International Financial Institutions to launch national public hearings into the state of the insurance industry. Since then, things have gone from bad to worse in all insurance fields.
On behalf of the realtors of Canada, especially those in Peterborough, I now ask the secretary of state if he will initiate federal hearings into the declining availability and the rising cost of property insurance.
Insurance Industry
Oral Question Period
2:45 p.m.
Vaughan—King—Aurora
Ontario
Liberal
Maurizio Bevilacqua Secretary of State (International Financial Institutions)
Mr. Speaker, I share Canadians' concerns over the impact of rising insurance rates, which is why I have already taken action on this file. I asked OSFI to prepare a report on the industry in those areas covered by its mandate and OSFI reported that overall it considers the industry's investment portfolios and strategies to be prudent.
I know that the member, who has served as a parliamentarian at both the federal and provincial levels, knows it is the provincial governments that are responsible for regulating the market conduct of all P&C companies, which includes the issues of insurance contracts and premiums.
The fact that rising insurance premiums were major issues in several recent provincial elections clearly demonstrates that fact.
Ethics
Oral Question Period
2:45 p.m.
Canadian Alliance
Rahim Jaffer Edmonton—Strathcona, AB
Mr. Speaker, in the past two weeks the House has caught high ranking cabinet ministers with their hands in the Irving cookie jar. It seems that the line-up of Liberals coming out of the closet to admit their wrongdoing by accepting these gifts will only keep growing.
Since this trend seems to be increasingly fashionable among the Liberal ranks, I would invite the Minister of National Revenue to hop on the bandwagon. Canadians want to know. Has this minister ever accepted an undeclared gift in excess of $200?
Ethics
Oral Question Period
2:50 p.m.
Thornhill
Ontario
Liberal
Ethics
Oral Question Period
2:50 p.m.
Canadian Alliance
Diane Ablonczy Calgary—Nose Hill, AB
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has made much of his new ethics package as part of his legacy. It is pretty hard to take him seriously when he makes a mockery of those who raise concerns about the ethics of his own ministers.
Has the immigration minister received any undeclared gifts of over $2,000, or $200?
Ethics
Oral Question Period
2:50 p.m.
Bourassa
Québec
Liberal
Denis Coderre Minister of Citizenship and Immigration
Two thousand dollars? Now, Mr. Speaker, there is a raise in the question.
First of all, according to our sources, our ratings have unfortunately dropped by about 80% in the past two hours. As for myself, I have most certainly never accepted that kind of thing, to the best of my knowledge.
I note once again that these questions are coming from people who are not capable of respecting their own signatures on an agreement with another person; they tell me that Jim Hart is still waiting for his $50,000.
Quebec
Oral Question Period
2:50 p.m.
Bloc
Yves Rocheleau Trois-Rivières, QC
Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs made it known that he would be voting against the Bloc Quebecois motion calling upon the House to recognize that Quebec constitutes a nation.
My question is this: Can the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs explain to us how he could have voted in favour of recognizing the Nisga'a nation and yet now can oppose recognizing Quebec as a nation?