House of Commons Hansard #52 of the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was chair.

Topics

Maternal and Child HealthOral Questions

2:30 p.m.

Liberal

Maternal and Child HealthOral Questions

2:30 p.m.

Durham Ontario

Conservative

Bev Oda ConservativeMinister of International Cooperation

Mr. Speaker, the reason why we will be focusing on maternal and child health is because today 500,000 women are dying during pregnancy and delivery, and eight million children under the age of five are dying every year.

This demonstrates the kind of leadership that Canada will have going into the G8 and the G20. Because we are leaders, that is why we are also hosting all the great leaders of the world to discuss these important issues.

Offshore DrillingOral Questions

2:30 p.m.

Liberal

David McGuinty Liberal Ottawa South, ON

Mr. Speaker, although the Americans have instituted a moratorium in the same waters, the Conservatives are moving forward with issuing permits for oil exploration in the Beaufort Sea. And they have less stringent regulations than the ones that apply to companies exploring in the American section of that same sea.

Will the government suspend all oil activities in the Canadian Arctic, including Lancaster Sound and the Beaufort Sea, until a comprehensive review of the risks of offshore drilling in the far north has been completed?

Offshore DrillingOral Questions

2:30 p.m.

Mégantic—L'Érable Québec

Conservative

Christian Paradis ConservativeMinister of Natural Resources

Mr. Speaker, on May 11, the National Energy Board announced that it would review offshore drilling regulations. I remind my colleague once again that no drilling permits have been issued for the Arctic or the Beaufort Sea.

We are happy that the American authorities have also decided to suspend the drilling that was planned for this spring, because they have reached the same conclusion as us. The entire process must be reviewed.

Offshore DrillingOral Questions

2:30 p.m.

Liberal

David McGuinty Liberal Ottawa South, ON

Mr. Speaker, the government says there is no explanation in the Beaufort, but it is fast-tracking licences and allowing seismic testing on the sea floor.

The National Energy Board warned the government that it did not know whether a relief well could ever be drilled in the same season should there be an accident. That means a spill in the north could last up to a year or longer.

Shell Oil and Cairn Energy are already beginning to drill in those same waters. For the fifth time, will the government immediately table an emergency and safety contingency plan to deal with any oil spill off any of Canada's three coasts?

Offshore DrillingOral Questions

2:30 p.m.

Mégantic—L'Érable Québec

Conservative

Christian Paradis ConservativeMinister of Natural Resources

Mr. Speaker, no drilling authorization has been granted, period. No drilling is taking place at present in the Arctic or the Beaufort Sea. This is the case.

President Obama wants to examine what happened in the Gulf of Mexico to better understand and improve the regulations to ensure the future safety of workers and to protect the environment. The President has reached the same conclusion as we have here in Canada.

Let me be clear, the NEB announced that it will review the entire process, the public will be invited, and the process will be open and transparent.

Firearms RegistryOral Questions

2:30 p.m.

Liberal

Alexandra Mendes Liberal Brossard—La Prairie, QC

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives hid a report on the effectiveness of the firearms registry for a number of weeks.

They wanted to mislead Parliament just as members were to vote on whether or not to maintain the registry.

The Conservative culture of deceit has soared to new heights when the Prime Minister wants to mislead Canadians and their Parliament on such an important issue.

What right did they have to hide this report from parliamentarians last October?

Firearms RegistryOral Questions

2:30 p.m.

Oxford Ontario

Conservative

Dave MacKenzie ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety

Mr. Speaker, I am sure the member opposite did not hear because she was yelling when I answered this before, but the RCMP has confirmed that the force submitted its firearms report on October 9, 2009, and that the report was, in fact, tabled according to the rules.

Firearms RegistryOral Questions

2:30 p.m.

Liberal

Alexandra Mendes Liberal Brossard—La Prairie, QC

Mr. Speaker, they do not listen to police. They accuse them of being in a cult. Then, they bury a report that shows that police need a registry.

The icing on the cake is that Senator Boisvenu blamed the overpopulation of deer on the registry and single mothers. That is shameful. The registry saves 300 lives a year, and police want to keep it.

Do the Conservatives and the NDP really want to be responsible for 300 deaths a year just for the sake of the deer population?

Firearms RegistryOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Oxford Ontario

Conservative

Dave MacKenzie ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety

Mr. Speaker, let me say what Al Koenig, former president of the Calgary Police Association, had to say:

--proposed mandatory minimum sentences for gun crimes-- nd not the gun registry--will curb firearms offences. Wiping the slate clean and not making responsible gun owners into criminals is a good start.

Foreign AffairsOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Bloc

Francine Lalonde Bloc La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC

Mr. Speaker, the Israeli army launched a bloody attack on a convoy of ships bringing humanitarian aid to Gaza. The convoy, led by a flagship carrying over 600 people who wanted to be involved in bringing aid, was sailing in international waters. It was loaded with 10,000 tonnes of building material, textiles and food. Between 10 and 19 people were killed.

Will the government officially demand that an international investigation be launched into the circumstances surrounding this tragic raid?

Foreign AffairsOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Pontiac Québec

Conservative

Lawrence Cannon ConservativeMinister of Foreign Affairs

Mr. Speaker, clearly, Canada deeply regrets this incident, which caused deaths and injuries. We are trying to obtain more information at this time in order to shed some light on this tragic incident.

Foreign AffairsOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Bloc

Francine Lalonde Bloc La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC

Mr. Speaker, arms control is a vital part of the peace process in the Middle East. In the past, the Canadian government has been very active in controlling and limiting nuclear proliferation.

Did the Prime Minister take advantage of Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to ask the Israeli leader to sign the international nuclear non-proliferation treaty?

Foreign AffairsOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Pontiac Québec

Conservative

Lawrence Cannon ConservativeMinister of Foreign Affairs

Mr. Speaker, I think it is important to note that the parties that have already signed the treaty, specifically Iran, must comply fully and completely with existing International Atomic Energy Agency treaties.

SecuritiesOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Bloc

Daniel Paillé Bloc Hochelaga, QC

Mr. Speaker, the Quebec coalition continues to grow. Constitutional expert Henri Brun is adding his voice and denouncing the federal power grab in the area of securities.

He believes that voluntary membership is just a sham, a ploy, and even though the federal government is pretending that there is no requirement to join, Quebec will lose its ability to regulate financial markets.

Why is the Conservative government taking over this economic lever and showing contempt for the Constitution and the people of Quebec?

SecuritiesOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Macleod Alberta

Conservative

Ted Menzies ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance

Mr. Speaker, the lever that this government is trying to put in place is a lever that will protect and encourage investments coming into this country. It will protect the secure investments of Canadians. We are putting in place a voluntary Canadian securities regulator. Quebec and all the provinces are welcome to join whenever they wish.

SecuritiesOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Bloc

Daniel Paillé Bloc Hochelaga, QC

Mr. Speaker, the parliamentary secretary must be suffering from jet lag to say such things.

If the Conservative government succeeds in its power grab at the Supreme Court, Henri Brun believes that a very powerful undertow will negatively affect Quebec on the financial markets, and, I quote: “This will exert enormous pressure [on Quebec] that we will not be able to withstand.”

Why is the Conservative government pushing so hard to create an administrative nightmare? Is it to strip Quebec of its financial position for the benefit of Toronto perhaps?

SecuritiesOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Macleod Alberta

Conservative

Ted Menzies ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance

Mr. Speaker, I know the hon. member was envious that he was not able to join us at the OECD last week. He stayed here to try to fight something that most Canadians are in favour of. In fact, if he had been with us at the OECD he would have heard this statement by the OECD:

The presence of multiple regulators has resulted in inadequate enforcement and inconsistent investor protection. It also makes it harder for the country to respond to changes in the global market place or to rapidly innovate.

We heard that at the OECD last week. And I am over my jet-lag, thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Minister of IndustryOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Liberal

Wayne Easter Liberal Malpeque, PE

Mr. Speaker, the industry minister cannot seem to help himself. It is one mess after another. The G20 $1 billion boondoggle is largely due to him vainly attempting to shoehorn it into his own riding, until a costly switch to Toronto.

As health minister, he used his title to act as pitchman in a video produced by one of his political supporters.

Does the minister not understand that favouring one company over all others violates Treasury Board rules?

Minister of IndustryOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Parry Sound—Muskoka Ontario

Conservative

Tony Clement ConservativeMinister of Industry

Mr. Speaker, nothing could be further from the truth. There is no conflict here. There is no pecuniary interest.

We did not hear the hon. members on the other side of the aisle when Jean Chrétien went around the world with team Canada: 100 business people, 200 business people. They were happy to applaud him when he did that but I cannot stick up for the people in my riding.

We are here to do a job. We are here to build businesses in this country. We are here to build the economy. We had a 6.1% growth in the last quarter. We are doing our job.

Minister of IndustryOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Liberal

Wayne Easter Liberal Malpeque, PE

Mr. Speaker, this video is no trade mission. Even the National Post gets that message. It said that it was no trade mission. It said today:

If [he] doesn't understand the distinctions, maybe he's not qualified to be industry minister.

It added:

Picture Hillary Clinton... promoting Mars bars in Shanghai.

Government policy bars a minister from providing a marketing advantage to single entities. Will the Prime Minister act on this brazen violation of the rules?

Minister of IndustryOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Parry Sound—Muskoka Ontario

Conservative

Tony Clement ConservativeMinister of Industry

Mr. Speaker, we on this side of the House are proud in our role and responsibility as MPs and as cabinet ministers to promote business, promote Canadian business, promote jobs and promote opportunities. That is part of our job.

What do those members do on the other side? They think of ways to tax Canadians and tax businesses, which is why they are on that side. That is why we have 6.1% growth in quarter one. We are proud of our record.

EthicsOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Liberal

Siobhan Coady Liberal St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL

Mr. Speaker, today, Justice Oliphant found countless ethical violations involving Brian Mulroney.

Mr. Mulroney received a $2.1 million settlement from Canadians after he claimed, under oath, that he had no business relationship with Karlheinz Schreiber.

Justice Oliphant called Mr. Mulroney's excuses “patently absurd”.

In light of today's report, will the government immediately launch legal proceedings to recover the $2.1 million and launch a broader inquiry to finally get to the bottom of the Airbus affair?

EthicsOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Niagara Falls Ontario

Conservative

Rob Nicholson ConservativeMinister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada

Mr. Speaker, the government sends its appreciation to Justice Oliphant and all those who worked with him in producing that report.

The report was released about an hour and a half ago. It makes a number of recommendations and the government will be reviewing those recommendations.

EthicsOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Liberal

Marcel Proulx Liberal Hull—Aylmer, QC

Mr. Speaker, it was the Conservatives who prevented Justice Oliphant from investigating the real issue.

Brian Mulroney stated under oath that he did not have a business relationship with Karlheinz Schreiber. This got him a $2.1 million payment from the government. We must immediately initiate legal proceedings to recover the $2.1 million and there should be a public inquiry into the Airbus affair.

Will they take these two steps or will they continue to protect their own?