Debates of Nov. 21st, 2006

Government Response to Petitions

[Tom Lukiwski, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister for Democratic Reform]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8) I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to eight petitions.

Interparliamentary Delegations

[Bernard Patry, Liberal, Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1), I have the honour to present to the House, in both official languages, the report of the parliamentary delegation of the Canadian branch of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie that participated in the meeting of the Bureau of the APF in Rabat, Morocco, on June 29, 2006, and in the 32nd annual session of the APF, also held in Rabat, Morocco, from June 30 to July 3, 2006.

World War I Veterans

[Peter Stoffer, NDP, Sackville—Eastern Shore, NS]

Mr. Speaker, there have been consultations between the parties and I believe you will find unanimous consent for the following motion. I move:

That, in the opinion of this House, the Government of Canada should honour all who served Canada in the first world war by sponsoring a state funeral on the passing of the last Canadian veteran of this Great War.

[Tom Lukiwski, Conservative, Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre, SK]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. We received this request from my hon. colleague yesterday and while we would have preferred to have a discussion on the various approaches, we will support this motion since it was one of the options that the government had been considering in any event.

That said, I think it is prudent that we take the time to properly consider other options, and proceed with the most appropriate and dignified one to honour all veterans of the first world war.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

Does the hon. member for Sackville—Eastern Shore have the unanimous consent of the House to propose this motion?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The House has heard the terms of the motion. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

(Motion agreed to)

Bill C-285--Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation Act

[Michel Guimond, Bloc, Montmorency—Charlevoix—Haute-Côte-Nord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, following discussions with my colleagues from the other parties, I think that if you were to seek it, you would easily find unanimous consent to adopt the following motion. By unanimous consent, it was ordered:

That the recorded division scheduled for Wednesday, November 22, 2006 on a motion for second reading of Bill C-285 be redeferred to Tuesday, November 28, 2006, at the expiry of the time provided for government orders.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

Does the hon. member for Montmorency—Charlevoix—Haute-Côte-Nord have the unanimous consent of the House to move this motion?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The House has heard the terms of the motion. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

(Motion agreed to)

[Jay Hill, Conservative, Prince George—Peace River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. There appears to have been a bit of miscommunication. I wonder if you would find it possible to revert to introduction of government bills.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

Is there unanimous consent to revert to introduction of government bills?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

No.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

There is no consent. I called introduction of government bills but nobody rose. I was not aware that there was a bill to be introduced.

Presenting petitions.

Literacy

[Sue Barnes, Liberal, London West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have a petition from citizens in London and Middlesex drawing the attention of the House that literacy is a prerequisite for social and economic development, that approximately 38% of Canadians have difficulty reading and writing, that illiteracy costs Canadian society approximately $10 billion annually, and that the successful elimination of adult illiteracy is a key component in ensuring Canadian competitiveness in the global market as well as ensuring the quality of life for thousands of Canadians.

Therefore, the petitioners call upon Parliament to reinstate funding to literacy programs cut by the Conservative government and to undertake a national literacy strategy to ensure that all Canadians have the opportunity to achieve this vital skill. There are a couple of pages of signatures from my constituents who are very much in favour of funding the literacy programs in full.

Marriage

[Mike Allen, Conservative, Tobique—Mactaquac, NB]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36 I have the pleasure to present three petitions today signed by a number of people from the riding of Tobique—Mactaquac, specifically in the Carleton Country area.

The petitioners are calling upon Parliament to reopen the issue of marriage in this Parliament and to repeal or to amend the Marriage for Civil Purposes Act in order to promote and to defend marriage as the lawful union of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others.

Questions on the Order Paper

[Tom Lukiwski, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister for Democratic Reform]

Mr. Speaker, I ask that all questions be allowed to stand.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

Is that agreed?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

The House resumed from November 20 consideration of the motion, and of the amendment and of the amendment to the amendment.