House of Commons Hansard #109 of the 40th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was animals.

Topics

Foreign AffairsOral Questions

Noon

Pontiac Québec

Conservative

Lawrence Cannon ConservativeMinister of Foreign Affairs

Mr. Speaker, as I mentioned in my previous response, I did speak with the president. He has reassured me, as well as the minister of state for the Americas, that they will be continuing to keep to the game plan that the previous government had put forward.

We as well as our allies, which are not only involved in building infrastructure, building institutions, policing that country and ensuring that Haitians take over that country, are satisfied with the course of action taking place.

I want to reassure the members of the House that we are satisfied with that course of action as well.

House of CommonsRoutine Proceedings

Noon

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Peter Milliken

I have the honour to lay upon the table the Report of the House of Commons to Canadians for the year 2009.

Commissioner of FirearmsRoutine Proceedings

Noon

Oxford Ontario

Conservative

Dave MacKenzie ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the 2008 Annual Report of the Commissioner of Firearms in accordance with section 93(2) of the Firearms Act.

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

Noon

Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre Saskatchewan

Conservative

Tom Lukiwski ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8) I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to 14 petitions.

Interparliamentary DelegationsRoutine Proceedings

Noon

Liberal

Mauril Bélanger Liberal Ottawa—Vanier, ON

Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1), to present to the House, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian Delegation of the Canada-Africa Parliamentary Association respecting its bilateral visits to Luanda, Angola and Windhoek, Namibia on August 16 to 21.

One of the changes we have made with this report is in the past we have not made specific recommendations, but at this point, the delegation unanimously thought it should recommend that the government seriously consider the establishment of a trade office in Angola for the purposes that are very obvious and are referred to in the report.

Public AccountsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

Noon

Liberal

Shawn Murphy Liberal Charlottetown, PE

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 19th report of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts in relation to chapter 5, Passport Services—Passport Canada of the 2009 report of the Auditor General of Canada.

Procedure and House AffairsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

Noon

Bloc

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

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Orders 104 and 114, as vice-chair of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 23rd report of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs regarding the list of members of the committees of the House.

If the House gives its consent, I intend to move concurrence in the 23rd report later this day, that is, very, very shortly.

Canadian Human Rights ActRoutine Proceedings

Noon

Liberal

Raymonde Folco Liberal Laval—Les Îles, QC

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-481, An Act to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Canada Labour Code (mandatory retirement age).

Mr. Speaker, I am rising today in this House to introduce my bill on human rights and the Canada Labour Code to prohibit federally regulated employers from setting a mandatory retirement age. This would include private-sector employers subject to federal acts and regulations, as well as the federal public administration.

I would like to thank the member for Vancouver Quadra for her support on the bill.

The purpose of my bill goes one step beyond the decision of April 9 by the Federal Court of Canada, which found that age discrimination violated the charter following complaints by two Air Canada pilots. This was followed by a Human Rights Tribunal decision on August 28, which said, in part, that mandatory retirement was an affront to the right to equality and found that the infringement of equality rights through mandatory retirement could no longer be justified.

My bill would remove the offending provisions of the Canadian Human Rights Code and other federal acts and regulations.

These changes would affect more than 840,000 Canadians, or 10% of the country's labour force, at a time when our birth rate is on the decline. I hope that members on both sides of this house will support the swift passage of this bill.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

Procedure and House AffairsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

12:05 p.m.

Bloc

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

Mr. Speaker, if the House gives its consent, I move:

That the 23rd report of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, presented earlier this day, be concurred in.

Procedure and House AffairsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

12:05 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Peter Milliken

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

Procedure and House AffairsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

12:05 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

Procedure and House AffairsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

12:05 p.m.

Liberal

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?

Procedure and House AffairsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

12:05 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

Procedure and House AffairsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

12:05 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Peter Milliken

(Motion agreed to)

FinanceCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

12:05 p.m.

Prince George—Peace River B.C.

Conservative

Jay Hill ConservativeLeader of the Government in the House of Commons

Mr. Speaker, there have been consultations among all parties and I think if you were to seek it, you would find unanimous consent for the following motion. I move:

That, notwithstanding the provisions of Standing Order 83.1, the deadline for the Standing Committee on Finance to table the 2009 Pre-Budget Consultation Report be extended to Wednesday, December 9.

FinanceCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

12:05 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Peter Milliken

Does the hon. government House leader have the unanimous consent of the House to propose this motion?

FinanceCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

12:05 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

FinanceCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

12:05 p.m.

Liberal

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?

FinanceCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

12:05 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

FinanceCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

12:05 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Peter Milliken

(Motion agreed to)

City of Greater SudburyPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

November 6th, 2009 / 12:05 p.m.

NDP

Glenn Thibeault NDP Sudbury, ON

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present these petitions today on behalf of close to 200 citizens in my riding of Sudbury.

The petitioners ask the federal industry minister to issue an official apology to the citizens in the city of Greater Sudbury. In an article in The Sudbury Star in July, the industry minister referred to Sudbury as being the valley of death and made other remarks that angered citizens across the city of Greater Sudbury. Sudbury is a very proud community and deserves respect from the federal government, just like other communities across Canada.

The residents of Sudbury call upon the Minister of Industry to officially apologize for his comments and confirm the federal government is doing what it can to support the city of Greater Sudbury.

Animal WelfarePetitionsRoutine Proceedings

12:05 p.m.

Liberal

Michelle Simson Liberal Scarborough Southwest, ON

Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure to present a petition signed by close to 100 constituents in my riding of Scarborough Southwest.

The petitioners would like to bring to the attention of the House that there is a scientific consensus and public acknowledgement that animals can feel pain and suffer, that all efforts should be made to prevent animal cruelty and reduce animal suffering, that over one billion people around the world rely on animals for their livelihoods and many others rely on animals for companionship and that animals are often significantly affected by natural disasters and yet seldom considered during relief efforts in emergency planning despite their recognized importance to humans.

The petitioners call upon Parliament to petition the Government of Canada to support a universal declaration on animal welfare.

VeteransPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

12:05 p.m.

Conservative

Stephen Woodworth Conservative Kitchener Centre, ON

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition from constituents in my riding of Kitchener Centre and elsewhere.

The petitioners call the attention of the House of Commons to the fact that veterans have served with honour and have demonstrated a willingness to sacrifice in the service of our country. However, there exists a chronic shortage of medical and convalescent facilities for them and they face multi-year waiting lists for services.

Therefore, the petitioners ask the House to expand the range and scope of medical and convalescent services for veterans, to expand the number of beds and to initiate a re-evaluation of medical services provided to our veterans, specifically those in their seniors year, to ensure adequate resources and attention are being paid to those who have served their country so well.

The EnvironmentPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

12:10 p.m.

NDP

Don Davies NDP Vancouver Kingsway, BC

Mr. Speaker, I rise to present a petition on behalf of my constituents, citizens of Vancouver and, indeed, all Canadians.

The petitioners call upon the government to pass Bill C-311, the climate change accountability act. They care deeply about the future of our planet and believe Canada should be playing a leadership role in the global effort to combat climate change. They want the government to take immediate action to meet the science-based greenhouse gas reduction targets that are mandated in the bill. They know climate change is real. They know we need to take our responsibilities and actions seriously now. They want us to commit to strong environmental targets at Copenhagen.

I am honoured to stand today in the House of Commons and present their call to action. Our future hangs in the balance.

Volunteer Service Medal for VeteransPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

12:10 p.m.

Liberal

Shawn Murphy Liberal Charlottetown, PE

Mr. Speaker, during the periods September 3, 1939 to March 1, 1947, and subsequently from June 27, 1950 to July 27, 1953, certain veterans received the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal for Korea.

This petition is from residents of the greater Charlottetown area and a smaller number from Oakville and Victoria. They are calling upon the Government of Canada to recognize by means of the issuance of a new Canadian Volunteer Service Medal to be designated the Governor General's volunteer service medal, for volunteer service by Canadians in the regular and reserve military forces and cadet corps support staff who were not eligible for the aforementioned medals, and who have completed 365 days of uninterrupted honourable duty in the service of their country since March 2, 1947.