Debates of Feb. 27th, 2003

G-8 Summit

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Public Works and Government Services]

Mr. Speaker, a procedure was defined well in advance of the G-8 summit in order to identify losses that were compensable. Guidelines were established on whether compensation would be payable.

I am, of course, insisting that my department apply those guidelines as they were pre-agreed prior to Kananaskis.

[James Rajotte, Canadian Alliance, Edmonton Southwest, AB]

Mr. Speaker, this is not the first time the government has reneged on its commitment to local businesses.

Businesses here in Ottawa had problems obtaining compensation after damage was done during the G-20 meeting in November 2001.

Quebec City had to take the government to court for compensation after hosting the G-7.

The government is simply continuing its record of broken promises.

When can local business owners in Calgary, Canmore and Kananaskis expect the government to compensate their losses?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Public Works and Government Services]

Mr. Speaker, the procedure is proceeding according to guidelines. I understand there are approximately five enterprises that may not be satisfied with the status of the matter at the present time.

However I have given a clear instruction to my officials that they should follow the guidelines and apply them as they were agreed prior to Kananaskis.

Banking Institutions

[Pierre Paquette, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the federal government has changed the legislation on banking institutions to oblige banks to open an account for any customer who meets the minimum requirements.

According to consumers' associations, however, the planned regulations on access to basic services weaken that obligation by giving the banks too much latitude.

Is the Minister of Finance aware that his planned regulations allow the banks too much discretion, particularly in permitting them to deny an account to someone merely because he or she has had credit problems in the past?

[Maurizio Bevilacqua, Liberal, Secretary of State (International Financial Institutions)]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his question because it is an area for which the government truly cares, which is the reason we introduced Bill C-8, precisely to take care of concerns as cited by the hon. member.

I know the hon. member is an individual who follows the file so he probably knows that the regulations were pre-published on November 30, 2002.

[Pierre Paquette, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Mr. Speaker, there have been over 200 consumer complaints in the past six months in metropolitan Montreal alone. If a person does not have a bank account, it is impossible to cash cheques and to have access to direct deposit. It is also very hard to pay rent or get paid.

Does the minster intend to amend his planned regulations so that people can have ready and normal access to basic banking services regardless of their social and financial situation?

[Maurizio Bevilacqua, Liberal, Secretary of State (International Financial Institutions)]

Mr. Speaker, actually the largest component of Bill C-8 was consumer protection. That is precisely what we have done. We will continue to do that whether or not the hon. member shouts along the way.

Our priority is to make sure that the interests of consumers are safeguarded and the measures taken by Bill C-8, including the establishment of the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada, speak to that reality.

Firearms Registry

[Cheryl Gallant, Canadian Alliance, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the government was forced to withdraw $72 million for the firearms registry last December. The minister is now asking for $172 million. Would the minister please explain why the House should provide him with the funding that Parliament, including his own colleagues, has already rejected?

[Martin Cauchon, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, the member should get in touch with those organizations that decided to speak out over the past few days and weeks supporting the notion of gun control. She should also have a look at the statistics since the time we decided to proceed with that wonderful policy. As well, she should have a look at the plan of action that we tabled last Friday.

It is clear in my mind that there is strong support from the Canadian population. It is also clear that we are going in the right direction.

[Cheryl Gallant, Canadian Alliance, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Speaker, a fouled up list of duck hunters does nothing to protect Canadians.

The government is determined to throw good money after bad. This is $18 million more than the minister was originally planning to spend in the 2002-03 report on plans and priorities.

The minister is unable to tell Canadians how much this program is going to cost because he does not know himself. Why should Canadian taxpayers be on the hook for the minister's incompetence?

[Martin Cauchon, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, let us have a look at the statistics. We see for example that 9,000 licences have been revoked or refused with our system. We see that the number of lost or missing firearms has declined by 68% from 1997 to 2001. We see that the number of stolen firearms has also decreased by 35% for the same period of time.

Of course when one's colleague sends out a press release saying that gun control will result in more crime, more injuries and more deaths, one cannot support common sense.

The Environment

[Andy Burton, Canadian Alliance, Skeena, BC]

Mr. Speaker, on Tuesday, February 18 the B.C. energy minister was asked a question in his legislature. That question was based on a statement by the federal environment minister that $120 million would need to be spent on environmental studies before the federal government would consider lifting the drilling ban for oil and gas off Canada's west coast.

Did the Minister of the Environment make such a statement and if so, on what does he base his numbers?

[David Anderson, Liberal, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, I made clear in a number of statements that before there could be offshore oil and gas drilling in British Columbia there would have to be substantial investment in studies so that we could make sure we had the information necessary to weigh the risks against the potential benefits.

I indicated that I could give no clear final figure, but the figure could well be between $100 million and $120 million. It might well be higher. I just cannot give a firm figure because until the studies are done we will not know what all the potential concerns might be.

[Andy Burton, Canadian Alliance, Skeena, BC]

Mr. Speaker, how many more studies need to be done?

The B.C. energy minister stated in the B.C. Hansard :

Well, there are only a few negative people in British Columbia that don't want to see any development in the province. They're [the federal environment minister] and the two [NDP] members that sit in opposition. I can't tell you whether the $120 million is real, because I don't think [the federal environment minister] knows whether it's real. He continues to throw roadblocks in front of British Columbia on any kind of development we want to move forward with.

My question for the minister is, why? Is he really from British Columbia?

[David Anderson, Liberal, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, it is not a question of roadblocks. It is a question of a decision being made about the potential impact of the oil and gas sector getting involved on the British Columbia coast, which is now barred by 32 years of a moratorium. It is not a question of trying to prevent that. It is trying to say that there should be some analysis of what the benefits and risks might be.

The Alliance does not believe there could possibly be any risk. I suggest that it look at the figures for the coast of Spain, the 100,000 people who--

[The Speaker]

The hon. member for Laval Centre.

Immigration

[Madeleine Dalphond-Guiral, Bloc, Laval Centre, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the refugee appeal division established under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act has suspended its activities for more than eight months now.

In a letter to Kemi Jacobs, of the Canadian Council for Refugees, the minister said he was exploring avenues concerning the establishment of an appeal procedure, but did not even refer to what is already in the act.

Could the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration explain why he continues to refuse to implement the appeal procedure provided for in the act, thereby allowing a situation to go on which denies refugee status claimants access to a procedure that is consistent with the fundamental principles of justice?

[Denis Coderre, Liberal, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for her question.

Not only is Canada a model for refugee protection, but it is envied around the world. I do not think we have any lessons to learn in that respect.

In addition, I have made a commitment to the general assembly of the Canadian Council for Refugees to put forward an appeal system. It is coming. There are resource issues, and there are application issues. We are currently in the development phase.

National Defence

[Jean-Yves Roy, Bloc, Matapédia—Matane, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of National Defence is about to close the cadet camp located in Cap-Chat. This is an institution that is over 30 years old where, each year, some 500 cadets come for training.

Can the Minister of National Defence tell us why, in a region where unemployment exceeds 20%, he is about to cut 70 jobs and deprive a whole community of $3 million in economic spinoffs?

[John McCallum, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, since I myself was a cadet for four years, a number of years ago, I am well aware of the value of that institution. It is my objective and that of my department to preserve and promote the cadet program in Canada.

As regards the hon. member's region, I will inquire and report back to the House with the appropriate information.

Canadian Heritage

[Wendy Lill, NDP, Dartmouth, NS]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday's main estimates show some disturbing cuts to programs under the Department of Canadian Heritage. There was $7 million taken from Telefilm Canada and a $20 million cut to aboriginal organizations and native friendship centres.

The minister said there would be more money for the CBC, but the estimates clearly show a $56 million cut to its operating budget. That money was being used to create Canadian programs.

How can the minister justify cuts to distinctive Canadian programs on TV and radio in both official languages?

[Sheila Copps, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, I am happy to use the very important question of the member to clarify once and for all in the House that when the supplementary estimates are presented in September, the amount of money available to the CBC will be at an all time historic high. In fact the amount of money made available will be $1.57 billion. I think that is a significant contribution and a significant increase in the amount of investment we have made in this very important arm of public broadcasting.

Foreign Affairs

[Bill Casey, Progressive Conservative, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the defence counsel for the opposition leader in Zimbabwe recently asked the RCMP for information which might help prove his innocence. The RCMP has now given the requested information to the Department of Foreign Affairs.

In the interest of defending democracy and justice, has the department forwarded this information to the defence counsel in Zimbabwe?

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Solicitor General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, the fact of the matter is that the RCMP has been cooperating to the best of its ability and has provided the information. We have been in contact with a number of national and international partners on this matter, including the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

Absolutely, from the point of view of the RCMP, the Solicitor General and DFAIT, we want to see that due process is followed and that the information is provided.

Business of the House

[Carol Skelton, Canadian Alliance, Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar, SK]

Mr. Speaker, it is my honour today to ask the hon. government House leader what business we will have for the rest of today, tomorrow and the week after the break.