Debates of Feb. 26th, 2004

Epilepsy Awareness Month

[Rahim Jaffer, Canadian Alliance, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Speaker, March is Epilepsy Awareness Month. Epilepsy is one of the diseases that affects all too many Canadians, yet is also one of the diseases that Canadians do not like to talk about. It is estimated that one in ten Canadians or 300,000 people will suffer an epileptic seizure in their lifetime.

Many people with epilepsy feel isolated, discriminated against and often ridiculed. Added to the emotional burden are the physical difficulties of having unexpected seizures and dealing with the sometimes devastating side effects of medication.

The Edmonton Epilepsy Association, working in partnership with Epilepsy Canada and the Canadian Epilepsy Alliance, has adopted the lavender ribbon campaign to bring awareness to this horrifying disease.

I am proud that the Edmonton Epilepsy Association is a national leader on the issue. I wish it the best in its endeavours to bring awareness and comfort to those who suffer from the disease.

Official Languages

[Eugène Bellemare, Liberal, Ottawa—Orléans, ON]

Mr. Speaker, linguistic duality is an asset for Canadians. It is part of the global knowledge based economy that means better access to world markets and jobs.

According to the Centre for Research and Information on Canada, 77% of anglophones outside Quebec believe it is important to learn to speak a language other than English. Of that number, 74% believe that French would be the language most important for their children to learn to speak.

Other findings in the study reveal that two out of every three Canadians agree: living in a country with two official languages is one of the defining factors of what it means to be Canadian.

We must continue to encourage linguistic duality.

Freedom to Read Week

[Christiane Gagnon, Bloc, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, during Freedom to Read Week, I want to stress the courage of men and women here and elsewhere who have committed to fight for freedom of expression, often putting their lives, health or safety at risk.

2003 was a terrible year for freedom of the press. Forty-two journalists were killed, mainly in Asia and the Middle East, due to the war in Iraq. The memory of Zahra Kazemi, the Iranian-born Quebec photographer murdered in the line of duty, is still fresh in our minds.

The situation in many regions of the world remains of great concern. I am thinking in particular of Algeria, where, last Friday, several imams called journalists traitors and enemies of Islam.

Freedom of expression is a precious legacy we must defend doggedly. Even in a so-called free country, this right can be threatened. We need only think of the search at the office and home of Juliet O'Neil, a journalist with the Ottawa Citizen .

Agriculture

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

Mr. Speaker, on February 4 the United States department of agriculture report confirmed that Canadian and the United States beef industries are so highly integrated that “the first case of BSE in the United States cannot be considered in isolation from the whole cattle production system in North America”.

Yesterday North Dakota Senator Byron Dorgan issued a statement which read “Dorgan says keep ban on imports of Canadian cattle”. On January 27 Senator Tom Daschle issued a statement calling for the border to remain closed.

These statements ensure only one thing, and that is that farmers in Canada and the United States will continue to suffer. If Senators Dorgan and Daschle were concerned about opening markets for their producers, they would join us and tell the world together, based on science, that there is no BSE problem in North America.

The world community knows that we have a North American industry. Canada knows it. Mexico knows it. These senators are more concerned about playing politics than the well-being of their farmers or ours.

Adventure Tourism Industry

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

Mr. Speaker, the decision by the former finance minister, now Prime Minister, to push for changes to the Marine Liability Act, which benefited his personal company, Canada Steamship Lines, created a crisis in Canada's adventure tourism industry.

Changes to federal legislation to limit liability insurance claims for Canada Steamship Lines has resulted in skyrocketing insurance premiums for small tourism operators who run tour boats, whitewater rafting, fishing outfitters, anyone who carries passengers.

They were never consulted about these changes that are putting them out of business. Even if small businesses can afford the premiums, insurance companies are refusing to provide coverage at any price for some of them.

The adventure tourism industry needs help now with waiver protection and legal recognition that individuals who participate in outdoor activities do so by choice.

If the federal government does not act decisively to change the Marine Liability Act, the adventure tourism industry is headed for the same demise as the family farm in Canada.

Louise Arbour

[Yvon Charbonneau, Liberal, Anjou—Rivière-Des-Prairies, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we were very proud to learn that Madam Justice Louise Arbour of the Supreme Court of Canada has been named High Commissioner for Human Rights by the United Nations.

We are happy that the undeniable qualities of Madam Justice Arbour have thus been recognized by the international community. She succeeds Sergio Vieria de Mello, who died in a terrorist attack in Baghdad. The task awaiting her is enormous.

Madam Justice Arbour has already shown her remarkable abilities as chief prosecutor at the tribunals that brought to trial those responsible for the Rwandan genocide and the atrocities in the former Yugoslavia.

Such a record suggests that the status of human rights in the world cannot help but improve through the competent and dedicated work of Madam Justice Arbour.

Freedom to Read

[Wendy Lill, NDP, Dartmouth, NS]

Mr. Speaker, February 22 to 28 is Freedom to Read Week organized by the Canadian Book and Periodical Council. This is the 20th year for this celebration of intellectual freedom in Canada. Each year, books and periodicals are challenged in our public schools, in our public libraries, at our borders and in our bookstores.

This week reminds everyone that our right to read cannot be taken for granted. Censorship of books is only one issue. In June 2003 the Haycock report on funding for school libraries asked, if children are denied books, are they not deprived of the freedom to read?

As National Librarian Roch Carrier has said, the library is the heart of a school. Too often, school libraries and the librarians who staff them are considered a luxury instead of a necessity. The result is reduced student achievement in reading, literacy and use of information.

To celebrate Freedom to Read Week, there are events happening all over Canada, including a reading that just finished here on Parliament Hill.

I ask all parliamentarians to join with me in supporting intellectual freedom in Canada, especially the freedom our children should enjoy to discover books in their schools.

Paul Berval

[Caroline St-Hilaire, Bloc, Longueuil, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday morning, Paul Berval died at the age of 80. A native of Longueuil, Mr. Berval had been a singer, actor and humorist. He had a complete range of talents, and the main one was to make people laugh. For nearly 50 years, he was one of Quebec's leading comics.

My childhood soundtrack was the voice of Paul Berval. I still remember Alacazoo in Passe-Partout and Fred Caillou in Les Pierrafeu , the French version of The Flintstones . Several generations of Quebeckers have laughed till they cried when they saw him in many productions, such as Les Plouffe , Les Colombe , Le Matou ,

Chez Denise, Le Pirate Maboule and, of course, with his comedy troupe Le Beu qui rit , among others.

This man who devoted his life to humour will receive one last, well deserved tribute at the Gala des Olivier this coming Sunday. It will be a special time for the public to bid him a final farewell.

And as for me, I salute and thank the great artist from Longueuil for the wonderful moments he gave us.

Stress

[Christian Jobin, Liberal, Lévis-Et-Chutes-De-La-Chaudière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Charles Aznavour wrote one of the most beautiful songs of the Francophonie on that theme, while Léo Ferré preferred to just watch it go by: time. Unfortunately, for most of us, time seems to be a rare commodity. Yet, it is a matter of organizing our lives to cope with a condition typical of the 21st century called stress.

I am pleased to announce to the House that, tomorrow, a seminar under the theme “Stressé...pas l'temps!”, will be held in the riding of Lévis-et-Chutes-de-la-Chaudière. This event, which is organized primarily by the Lévis Chamber of Commerce, is an ideal opportunity to learn to manage time efficiently, to channel one's energy and to fully enjoy life.

I am proud to take part in such an event, and I congratulate all those involved in one way or another in making this event a success.

Immigration

[Maurice Vellacott, Canadian Alliance, Saskatoon—Wanuskewin, SK]

Mr. Speaker, the government says it does not have the money for migration security officers for the Saskatoon and Regina airports to continue the practice of meeting new arrivals when their flights land from other countries.

Are new arrivals from other countries going to be asked to report voluntarily to a downtown immigration office, unattended and on their own initiative? After business hours, are all new arrivals going to be detained at the airport until the next day? If they are, it will cost more money for security than it would cost to have the migration security officer come to the airport. What about new arrivals who may have a criminal record? Will they report voluntarily?

Why do the Liberals always have enough money for their Liberal buddies, but not enough for the things that Canadians care about, such as immigration services, health care and agriculture? Why do Liberals give themselves first class treatment while the needs of the country are at the bottom of the priority list?

Paul Berval

[Gilbert Barrette, Liberal, Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we were saddened to learn of the passing of Paul Berval.

Mr. Berval made Canadians laugh over a period of several decades. As a multi-talented person, he found all sorts of ways to make people laugh. He first met with success in plays where his parody of classical lines made people roar with laughter.

Mr. Berval also entertained thousands of television viewers by doing the voice for characters such as Fred Caillou in the animated cartoon Les Pierrafeu . The younger ones will also remember him as the zebra Alacazoo, in the popular television show Passe-Partout .

I invite hon. members to join me in saluting the memory of Paul Berval, who won the hearts of many Canadians by putting a touch of humour in their lives.

Sponsorship Program

[Gerald Keddy, Progressive Conservative, South Shore, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal sponsorship scandal is a grievous breach of the public trust and a serious waste of taxpayers' money.

Nova Scotia in the past year has faced several financial challenges as a result of storms, floods and hurricanes. The $250 million wasted on the sponsorship scandal is roughly equal to the average annual taxes paid by 30,000 Nova Scotians. In other words, almost all of the taxes paid by 30,000 Nova Scotians last year simply vanished.

Other choices would have better served the South Shore. The sponsorship money would have paid eight years of salary for 20 new nurses in my riding. It would have hired 20 police officers for eight years and given each of them a new cruiser. It would have paid four years of university tuition for 360 deserving South Shore students, and that is only 1/25th of the money the Liberals gave to their friends. The money belonged to the citizens of Canada, not Liberal cronies.

From coast to coast, Canadians deserve better.

[Grant Hill, Canadian Alliance, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the story is getting even tougher to explain now. The deputy minister of public works said today at committee, under oath, that there was a 1996 internal audit of the sponsorship program and the results were so bad that external auditors were called in.

How can the Deputy Prime Minister continue to say to the Canadian public that it was only in 2000 that this story started to get out?

[Anne McLellan, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, of course we know that there were internal audits done in relation to sponsorship. For example the internal audit that was done in 2000 indicated that there were administrative and management problems with the program and from that point on they were addressed.

I want to reassure the hon. member that everything this government has done speaks to our commitment to getting to the bottom of what happened here and putting in place mechanisms to make sure it does not happen again.

[Grant Hill, Canadian Alliance, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, I am not sure the Deputy Prime Minister heard me on the first question.

This audit was initiated by a whistleblower who was part of the sponsorship program, and I say again, in 1996. I am going to give the Deputy Prime Minister another opportunity. How can she stand up today and say that this was not known until 2000 when this was contradicted today by the deputy minister?

[Reg Alcock, Liberal, President of the Treasury Board and Minister responsible for the Canadian Wheat Board]

Mr. Speaker, the sponsorship program was approved on November 20, 1997.

[Grant Hill, Canadian Alliance, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, that is the kind of nonsense that we are hearing. The deputy minister under oath today in committee said very plainly there was an internal audit and it was in 1996 and the results were so bad that external auditors would come in.

I want to simply ask the government, how can it stick to this foolish story that this was not found until 2000? It is nonsense.

[Anne McLellan, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, it is my understanding that the sponsorship program that we have been discussing over this past number of weeks and the sponsorship program addressed by the Auditor General in her report of some two weeks ago in fact did not exist until 1997.

[Peter MacKay, Progressive Conservative, Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough, NS]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Finance.

Internal documents obtained through access to information reveal that officials in his former department, public works, knew of political interference and manipulation of the sponsorship program as early as October 2000. The public works communication branch was planning answers to deny systemic problems, political interference and criminal wrongdoing.

I ask the minister, did the former minister of public works, now finance, do a thorough investigation of his old department and if so, why did he not know about these documents?

[Reg Alcock, Liberal, President of the Treasury Board and Minister responsible for the Canadian Wheat Board]

Mr. Speaker, the documents that the member refers to are the internal communication documents that were prepared for all people involved when the audit result was put on the website. The audit was put on the website and the documents were prepared to tell people it was up there and what the responses would be.

Government Contracts

[Peter MacKay, Progressive Conservative, Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough, NS]

Mr. Speaker, my supplemental question is for the Minister of Finance.

Will the minister confirm that in his former capacity in natural resources that he headed a trade mission to China and was accompanied by a video photographer who recorded that event? Will the minister confirm the cost of that video and will he confirm that it was sole source, an untendered contract?

[The Speaker]

The Chair has grave reservations about the propriety. The hon. member knows that questions cannot be addressed to ministers in their former capacities. Another minister may answer but the normal practice, it seems to me, would be to put the question to a minister who might have responsibility for the expenditure in question.

I see the government House leader is rising to answer.

[Jacques Saada, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister responsible for Democratic Reform]

Mr. Speaker, I would be pleased to find out about the answer to the question that the hon. member just asked.

Sponsorship Program

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, there were seven ministers at the cabinet communications committee meeting of June 10, 2002. Today, most of them say they do not remember which minister continued to defend the firms run by friends of the Liberal Party.

Since the Prime Minister says he wants to get to the bottom of things, can we know which minister continued to defend the firms run by Liberal Party friends one month after the Auditor General published her report on Groupaction, when everyone knew about the sponsorship scandal?

[Anne McLellan, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, we have made it very plain that we want to get to the bottom of this situation. That is why we have a public inquiry in place. That is why the public accounts committee is hard at work.

In addition to that, all ministers on this side of the House have indicated that they will, if called upon, appear before the public accounts committee or the public inquiry to answer any questions asked of them.