House of Commons Hansard #128 of the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was s-4.

Topics

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Liberal

Sean Casey Liberal Charlottetown, PE

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Acadie—Bathurst for his speech. It is clear that he is passionate about bilingualism.

He said it was important to follow up on the report and ensure that this translates into tangible action on the ground. I agree with him on that.

However, one thing that we heard at committee from someone who practices criminal law on a daily basis is that while these rights are enshrined, and while it is the duty of parliamentarians to review the application of this section of the code, in reality what we commonly see in criminal proceedings is that when a defence lawyer goes to the accused and says, “You have the right to a trial in either language and to testify in either language; do you want to proceed in your maternal tongue or in Canada's other official language?”, the answer is commonly, “I do not care; whichever gets me out of here the quickest”.

Keeping in mind the member's emphasis on what is happening on the ground, does this reality concern him? Is this something that we can really address through legislation?

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

NDP

Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB

Mr. Speaker, accused persons who say they do not care and they just want to get out of there fast do this because they know the mechanism is not in place for them to be heard in the language of their choice. The last thing they want to do is frustrate the judge. That creates a problem. When we say “follow up”, we mean to put the mechanism in place to make sure that when people get to court, they know that when they pick the language they want to be heard in it does not hurt their cases. That is the last thing they want to do.

I do not know how many times I have heard accused persons say they do not care but they will pick the language that will get them out of court and not put in jail or accused of something when they are not guilty. They do not want to make a mistake. They trust their lawyers to do it for them. The problem is that if people cannot express themselves in their own language, maybe they will make a mistake that will find them guilty when they are not guilty. That is the problem and that is why I say it is so important for the minister to make sure the mechanism is in place across the country so that people do not have to ask “what language should I speak to get out of here?”.

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:35 p.m.

NDP

Philip Toone NDP Gaspésie—Îles-de-la-Madeleine, QC

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Acadie—Bathurst. He is clearly the best defender of official languages in Canada. He worked very hard on this file and he should be commended for that.

The current Government of Canada seems less concerned about official languages. It demonstrated that lack of concern by appointing a unilingual auditor general and by closing the Maurice Lamontagne Institute library today. This goes against many of the reports issued by the Commissioner of Official Languages. I am very concerned about the fact that this government does not seem to pay any attention to those reports.

We are talking about the report of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights today because this government does not seem to care about the fundamental rights of Canadians, including the right to a trial in their language of choice.

The government has an obligation to stand up for the fundamental rights of Canadians, but today's debate proves that this government has had to be reminded of that obligation time and time again.

Does my colleague believe that we need to continue to put pressure on this government or will the government finally ensure that Canadians' basic rights are respected once and for all?

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:35 p.m.

NDP

Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Gaspésie—Îles-de-la-Madeleine. He has gotten right to the heart of the matter.

We are mainly concerned about the government's recent decisions to close French libraries in minority areas, including the library in Mont-Joli and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans library in Moncton. Some might say that Quebec is not a minority, but it is a minority within the Government of Canada, and we are losing francophone institutions.

I doubt that the government will close all the anglophone libraries in Canada, but it closed two francophone libraries. What is more, it wanted to close the only French-language marine rescue centre in Canada, which is located in Quebec City. It is thanks to the Commissioner of Official Languages and the work that he did that the government finally decided to allow that centre to remain open.

I am pessimistic because the Conservatives basically do not care. The Prime Minister likes to start his speeches in French but that is not what is happening out in the community. There is no end to the cuts. The Conservatives wanted to transfer the marine rescue centre to Trenton, Ontario, and Halifax.

Leadership needs to start at the top, not the bottom. We need to respect both official languages and examine the impact that these closures will have on official-language communities before we move ahead. That is not what we are seeing, and that concerns us.

I made the effort to move this motion today and talk about this report so that we can discuss it and so that people can learn about the problem. The legislation was passed in the 1900s and there are still problems in 2014. Judges still have to be told to inform the accused of their right to have a trial in the language of their choice. That is terrible.

It remains to be seen what the government will do, but I am pessimistic. I would like to be an optimistic MP who says that everything will be fine, that we all have a good relationship and that the minister has responded. However, this is not the first time there has been a report and the minister has responded to it. We still have the same problem.

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:35 p.m.

Mississauga—Erindale Ontario

Conservative

Bob Dechert ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice

Mr. Speaker, I thank the House for the opportunity to speak to this important matter. The Minister of Justice mentioned to me earlier today that he recently met with the Commissioner of Official Languages and that he wishes to thank the commissioner for his very good work in this area and all areas concerning official languages.

As members know, access to justice in both official languages is an important issue for all Canadians. Canadians wish to live in a law-abiding society with an equitable, accessible and fair justice system for all. In criminal matters, these principles mean that the courts must be able to operate in French and in English in accordance with the official language chosen by the accused for his or her trial. It is extremely important that one's constitutional rights are well understood, and this is a fundamental principle of justice.

First, it is important to remember that because of the division of legislative authority between the federal and provincial governments, the federal government has a limited role in the implementation of the Criminal Code provisions. While the federal government has exclusive jurisdiction over amendments made to the Criminal Code and over criminal procedure, the provinces are primarily responsible for the administration of the courts and the prosecutions under the Criminal Code.

While the Prime Minister has executive authority for the appointment of superior and appeal courts judges, the provinces and territories are responsible for the composition of the provincial courts. This means that under the provisions of the Criminal Code, which form the basis for the standing committee's statutory review of part XVII, the provinces and territories must ensure that they have the institutional and human resources necessary within their respective criminal justice systems to allow defendants to face trial in the official language of their choice. That said, working within its jurisdiction and its means, the Government of Canada is supported by the minister and the Department of Justice, and works with its provincial and territorial counterparts in order to support and improve the implementation of the language provisions found in the Criminal Code.

Our government's commitment to official languages is undeniable. In Canada's economic action plan 2013, our government pledged to support official languages by maintaining funding dedicated to protecting, celebrating and reinforcing Canada's linguistic duality. This commitment is reflected in the road map for Canada's official languages 2013 to 2018. The road map, which was approved by this government in December 2013, has three pillars: education, immigration and communities. Under the road map, the Government of Canada has undertaken a number of measures to fulfill its commitment and to support our provincial and territorial partners. The access to justice in both official languages support fund, with a five-year funding envelope of $40 million, allocates resources to, among others, the provinces, territories, court administrations, universities, training centres and official language minority communities. This funding supports justice in both official languages within their respective spheres of activity. In addition to grants and contributions, the government also provides support to its governmental and non-governmental partners in the form of collaborative activities and ongoing consultations.

All told, provinces and territories can count on this government to provide them with the necessary financial and collaborative support for language-training programs that are specifically adapted to the needs of justice stakeholders, including crown prosecutors, provincial court clerks, provincially appointed criminal judges, and probation officers.

In addition, as part of its ongoing efforts and in response to the standing committee's recommendations stemming from the statutory review of part XVII of the Criminal Code, the Department of Justice has made a contribution toward the creation of a national consortium for justice training in both official languages. The consortium is essentially made up of post-secondary teaching institutions, jurilinguistic centres and non-profit organizations that provide training services. This consortium will advise the Department of Justice, where appropriate, on the language-training needs of provincial justice stakeholders. It will also develop collaborative approaches among its members in an effort to meet these training needs. It should be noted that the Minister of Justice, as evidenced by the government's comprehensive response to the committee's report, has committed to bringing the committee's recommendation with respect to court interpreters and transcribers to the consortium's attention for consideration.

In addition to its justice stakeholder training initiatives, this government is committed to ensuring that all Canadians from coast to coast to coast can rely on accurate, reliable and easy ways to find and access legal information in the official language of their choice. In this regard, the Department of Justice will call upon an extensive network of partners to develop a concept of justice information hubs. In order to prevent the unnecessary duplication of structures and to build bridges between organizations serving both official language communities, partnerships between minority community associations and organizations will be encouraged.

Once they are rolled out, these hubs would serve as a stepping stone for Canadians to become more knowledgeable about their legal rights and obligations, including their language rights under the Criminal Code and the Canadian charter, and to be better equipped to deal with everyday legal issues.

In addition to the access to justice in both official languages support fund initiatives, the Government of Canada also fulfills its commitment through the Contraventions Act fund, which provides provinces and territories that have signed agreements with the Department of Justice to implement the federal contraventions regime with financial support to cover judicial and extrajudicial measures that guarantee language rights provided under part XVII of the Criminal Code and part IV of the Official Languages Act, regarding services and communications to the public.

This fund, consisting of approximately $50 million over five years, demonstrates the government's strong commitment to supporting measures and providing the necessary resources, such as the hiring of bilingual judicial and extrajudicial court personnel, language training, bilingual signage and documentation, to enhance Canadians' access to justice in both official languages.

Furthermore, the government's commitment to justice in both official languages is also reflected by the close co-operation between federal institutions, such as the Department of Justice, the Public Prosecution Service of Canada, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Department of Public Safety. As evidence of this close co-operation on the issue of access to justice in both official languages, these institutions have created an interdepartmental network on justice and security, specifically dedicated to the issues faced by Canada's francophone and anglophone minority communities.

At the intergovernmental level, the Government of Canada has adopted a fair and reasonable approach to support access to justice in both official languages, based on collaboration with the provinces and territories. As the standing committee rightly recommends in its report, it is essential that the government continue in the same vein in order to ensure compliance with part XVII of the Criminal Code and to find solutions to the particular challenges associated with access to justice in both official languages.

As part of its efforts in this regard, the Department of Justice co-chairs a federal-provincial-territorial working group on access to justice in both official languages. In addition, other intergovernmental forums, such as the federal-provincial-territorial heads of prosecution committee, are actively addressing issues relating to the implementation of part XVII of the Criminal Code as part of their respective mandates.

As stated at the outset, and as evidenced by the concrete measures and steps I have just outlined, the government's commitment to official languages is abundantly clear.

On behalf of the government, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the members of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights for its work accomplished as part of the statutory review of part XVII of the Criminal Code. Rest assured, the Government of Canada is taking the committee's recommendations into consideration and is grateful for the possible solutions that the committee outlined so as to help ensure a better implementation of part XVII of the Criminal Code, and more generally, access to justice in both official languages for all Canadians.

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:45 p.m.

Liberal

Sean Casey Liberal Charlottetown, PE

Mr. Speaker, in the report presented by the justice committee, the second recommendation was that the federal-provincial-territorial heads of prosecutions committee meet with the Department of Justice Canada to discuss issues related to the composition of bilingual juries and court interpretation in both official languages. This week, the heads of prosecutions in this country are meeting in Charlottetown. My question for the parliamentary secretary is whether the Department of Justice officials are there and whether this is on the agenda.

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:45 p.m.

Conservative

Bob Dechert Conservative Mississauga—Erindale, ON

Mr. Speaker, my understanding is that the justice officials are participating in that meeting.

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:45 p.m.

NDP

Philip Toone NDP Gaspésie—Îles-de-la-Madeleine, QC

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleagues for allowing me to ask a question.

Our colleague began his speech by saying that the government was taking its responsibility seriously, and that this is a matter of provincial jurisdiction. That much is true, as least in terms of administering justice.

However, it falls to the federal government, not the provinces, to ensure that Canada's official languages are being respected. While it may be up to the provinces to administer justice, it is up to this government to uphold the Charter and fundamental rights.

How will my colleague ensure that there will be a follow-up on the points repeated over and over by the Commissioner of Official Languages, especially given that there are doubts that this government is taking the rights of francophones in this country seriously?

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:45 p.m.

Conservative

Bob Dechert Conservative Mississauga—Erindale, ON

Mr. Speaker, as the member will know, there are several funds and interprovincial and joint committees of the provincial jurisdictions and the federal jurisdiction dealing with access to justice in both official languages. Those committees meet regularly. They determine where there are issues to be addressed to ensure that there is parallel administration of justice in all parts of Canada in both official languages.

There is funding available in two funds, one of $40 million over five years and the other of $50 million over five years, which is to be applied by the provinces to ensure that there is a parallel provision of court services in both official languages in all courts in Canada. If the member looks at those, I think he will be very satisfied with the way that is proceeding.

He will also know, if he read the committee's report, that the committee had reports from most of the provincial and territorial attorneys general. Not all of them responded, but most did. Most said that the system was actually working very well and that, in their view, Canadians who were involved in the justice system had equal access to all necessary procedures in both official languages. There were a few situations pointed out in which, for example, there were not sufficient resources for the translation of documents in certain provinces. One of the recommendations made in the report by the committee was that further resources be made available for the training of court translators.

In all, the provincial and territorial ministers of justice and attorneys general reported that the system is working very well and that Canadians have good, fair, and equal access to justice in Canada in both official languages.

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:50 p.m.

Liberal

Sean Casey Liberal Charlottetown, PE

Mr. Speaker, I am taking this opportunity to join in the debate with respect to the justice committee report on part XVII of the Criminal Code.

Part XVII of the Criminal Code deals with the language of the accused. Contained in that section is a mandatory statutory review. The review was undertaken by the justice committee, which is the committee that is designated under that section of the code. The review took place over the course of five meetings.

The goal or the purpose of having a statutory review such as this built into the Criminal Code, built into this particular section of the Criminal Code, is that at the time it was brought in there was a realization that circumstances change, that society evolves. In this case, we can look back on recent years and see the increasing diversity in Canada. We can look at the levels of language training in the various provinces, the various interpretations of the charter of rights over the years, and the development of technology and the impact it has had on the administration of justice.

The drafters, at the time, inserted this into the code so that these things could be taken account of. It forces parliamentarians to address their attention to the language rights measures in the code, and every so often ask if they could be improved, if they were still effective and if there was something else that needed to be done. Quite frankly, it just makes good sense for something as fundamental as language rights to be assessed on a regular basis, in that way, for that reason.

The other complicating factor here is the overlapping jurisdictions. The Government of Canada has jurisdiction over the Criminal Code, but the administration of justice is a provincial responsibility. Any time there are overlapping jurisdictions, there is always a risk that something is going to fall through the gaps. Indeed, we see that in this country in health care. The drafters of this provision within part XVII realized that when it comes to the language of the accused, when it comes to the fundamental rights, when it comes to the overlapping jurisdictions, this was something they wanted to be very certain had the vigilant eye of parliamentarians.

For that reason, it made good sense for this review to happen. The committee took its work very seriously, as I said. We heard from provincial ministers of justice, the Commissioner of Official Languages, and others. We heard from practitioners in the field. They came before the committee to offer their suggestions and advice. The conclusion, I am happy to report, is that these provisions of the code are generally being administered without any major difficulty, but there is some room for improvement. The room for improvement is reflected in the report, in the eight recommendations at the end.

By way of background, this provision of the code was enacted in 1978 and was eventually adopted by all the provinces by 1990. Under part XVII of the Criminal Code, on application by an accused, a judge will order that the accused be tried before a judge or a judge and jury, as the case may be, who speak the official language of Canada that is the language of the accused. If the accused speaks neither English nor French, a judge will order that he or she be tried before a judge or a judge and jury who speak the official language of Canada in which the accused can best give testimony. Courts are also required to make interpreters available to assist the accused, counsel and witnesses.

Some of the issues that were identified during the course of the committee's review included the right of notification of the accused to be tried in the official language of his choice. The fact is that this right is communicated to the accused in ways that are not consistent across the country.

In some jurisdictions that right is given to the accused verbally by the presiding judge. In other circumstances the judge simply notifies counsel for the accused and leaves the responsibility of advising the accused of that right with his counsel. In my experience in the criminal court I would suggest that either is equally effective. When counsel gives his undertaking to the court that he or she will take the advice of the judge and pass it on to the accused, that can be taken to the bank. That is a solemn undertaking given to the court. It would be a breach of professional ethics to violate that undertaking. In some courts there is a printed card that is given to the accused to notify him or her of this.

Probably because of the overlapping jurisdictions and different practices within provinces, the varying degrees of presence of both official languages in different jurisdictions is uneven. That does not make it bad but it does underline the need for a regular review.

We heard also about judicial language training. This is critical for language rights within the justice system to have any meaning. For the judges who are presiding over cases, whether appointed provincially or federally and whether at the provincial court or the Supreme Court level, and I would argue even at the Court of Appeal level, there has to be a capacity to be able to provide a fair hearing in the language of choice of the accused.

In some jurisdictions, that is harder than it may seem. In my home province of Prince Edward Island I can say that there are three provincial court judges, five supreme court judges and three judges of the court of appeal. None of them would have their mother tongue as French, but more than half of them are actively pursuing French language training and one to the point where he has succeeded in getting what civil servants call a level C. That is Mr. Justice Gordon Campbell. There are others who are in it. This is something that is taken very seriously by the judges in this country, even in areas where a French trial would be a rarity.

However, it goes beyond the training of judges. In order for this right to have teeth, it is not just the judges that need a capacity in both languages, there is also a need for court interpreters and for some capacity to be able to select a jury in both official languages. Indeed, that can be a challenge. These are the types of issues we heard about at committee.

There are a couple of other issues that came up at committee that are also dealt with in the recommendations. When we talk about the right of an accused to a fair trial, I would suggest that it is not just about what happens in the court room after the accused pleads guilty. In the preliminary proceedings prior to a trail there is often a bail hearing. I would suggest that the right to be tried and have access to the judicial system in the language of one's choice would include the right to have a bail hearing conducted in French or English. In any criminal proceeding it would also include that the accused has the right to a complete package of disclosure from the Crown, which would include police notes and the like. These should be made available to an accused person in the language of his or her choice.

All of these require resources and funding. Any time we have resources, funding and two levels of jurisdiction inevitably the finger pointing starts as to who is responsible. That is the very thing that needs to be avoided in the interest of justice.

At the conclusion of the testimony, at the conclusion of all the evidence we heard from the experts, from the provincial attorneys general, the justice committee came up with eight recommendations.

I believe that the recommendations were well-reasoned. The parliamentary secretary was quite right. While we did have a good discussion at committee, this report was adopted on consensus, and I am pleased to stand by the report. I do believe that a proper and thorough examination was done, as was contemplated by those who mandated the statutory review within the Criminal Code with respect to language of the accused. I am pleased to stand in support of concurrence in the committee report.

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

4 p.m.

Mississauga—Erindale Ontario

Conservative

Bob Dechert ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. Liberal justice critic for his speech and for his good work at the committee on this particular study.

I wonder if he could give the House a bit of a flavour of some of the testimony we heard from witnesses.

There were a few issues brought up about the lack of sufficient French-language, legally trained, court document translators in the province of Saskatchewan, and the time it takes to find a judge who speaks in the other official language, whatever the majority language was in a particular province. In some provinces, and Yukon springs to mind, sometimes it took a bit of time to find a francophone judge to take a trial in that province and to preside over preliminary hearings. We also heard some testimony from one particular practitioner about the delay in finding access to anglophone judges and services in some smaller communities in Quebec.

I wonder if the hon. member could comment on that and just give us a flavour of some of the other testimony that the committee heard.

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

4 p.m.

Liberal

Sean Casey Liberal Charlottetown, PE

Mr. Speaker, indeed we did hear from a wide range of witnesses. The situation across the country, as we might expect, is not uniform. We live in a country where there is one officially bilingual province, and that is the province of New Brunswick. Indeed, the challenges would be significantly less in a place such as New Brunswick than in provinces where the linguistic minorities are much smaller, I would say, including the province of Prince Edward Island and probably the Yukon. The one that was specifically referenced was Saskatchewan.

I come back to the question I asked the member for Acadie—Bathurst. In spite of these challenges that come with the relative size of our minorities, the challenges that come with our geography, quite frankly, because that is a big part of it, all in all, there is what is practical as well.

Probably the most compelling testimony we heard at committee was from a defence lawyer who said that when he sees someone who is on remand down in the holding cell and he talks to that individual about his rights, his language rights, his charter rights and what to expect, the only thing that individual wants is out. It does not matter whether the individual can understand the proceedings on a scale of 10 to 10 or six to 10, if he can get a judge and a hearing quicker by electing one official language rather than the other, that is the one he wants.

That is the reality in this country. I think it is problematic. However, it is not perfect, and given the diversity we have and given the huge geography we have, we cannot allow perfection to be the enemy of the good.

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

4:05 p.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

Is the House ready for the question?

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

4:05 p.m.

Some hon. members

Question.

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

4:05 p.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

The question is on the motion. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

4:05 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

On division.

Justice and Human RightsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

4:05 p.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

I declare the motion carried.

Canada PostPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:05 p.m.

NDP

Charmaine Borg NDP Terrebonne—Blainville, QC

Mr. Speaker, I have several petitions to present today.

The first petition calls on the government to reject the plan to cut services at Canada Post and to explore other avenues to modernize the crown corporation's business plan. The people of Terrebonne will be affected by the changes and by the elimination of home delivery in the spring or summer of 2015. They are very concerned about this.

HealthPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:05 p.m.

NDP

Charmaine Borg NDP Terrebonne—Blainville, QC

Mr. Speaker, the second petition calls on the government to fully co-operate with the provinces and territories to negotiate a new health accord by 2014. This petition is also signed by a number of my constituents. Last Saturday they got together and went door to door on this issue. I am very proud of that.

The EnvironmentPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:05 p.m.

NDP

Charmaine Borg NDP Terrebonne—Blainville, QC

Mr. Speaker, the third petition calls on the Government of Canada to ensure that the old Saint-Maurice shooting range is decontaminated within a reasonable time frame and that the wetlands in the Saint-Maurice shooting range are protected and preserved.

DementiaPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:05 p.m.

NDP

Linda Duncan NDP Edmonton Strathcona, AB

Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure today of tabling two petitions on the same matter.

The petition calls for a national dementia strategy and support for the bill introduced by the member for Nickel Belt.

The petitioners are calling for action on the national dementia strategy in consultation with the provinces and territories, providing annual reports based on remedial action, a standing round table, and greater investment and research.

Canada PostPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:05 p.m.

NDP

Hélène LeBlanc NDP LaSalle—Émard, QC

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present some petitions that have been signed by hundreds of my constituents.

Today we learned that thousands of Canadians will be losing home delivery service. These people are denouncing the cuts to Canada Post. They are calling on the government to review these cuts so that they can receive home delivery, since the elimination of this service will have a negative impact on my constituents and Montreal's highly urbanized areas.

Consumer ProtectionPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:10 p.m.

NDP

Matthew Kellway NDP Beaches—East York, ON

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to present a petition today to stop pay-to-pay fees.

Pay-to-pay fees are those fees levied by companies against customers who continue to receive a printed statement of their bills. The petitioners argue that these pay-to-pay fees unfairly penalize seniors and those who do not have regular access to the Internet, or are simply not comfortable performing such transactions online.

The petitioners point out that Canadians are struggling already to pay their bills, and therefore they call upon the Government of Canada to prohibit the use of pay-to-pay fees and charging customers for receiving a monthly bill or statement in the mail.

TelecommunicationsPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

October 20th, 2014 / 4:10 p.m.

NDP

Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present a petition on behalf of hundreds of residents of my constituency of St. John's East who object to the erection of a cellular telephone antenna on the rooftop of a hotel that is close to a child care centre and across from a major subdivision. The petitioners believe this is potentially harmful for their children and the neighbours.

The petitioners are requesting that the Minister of Industry deny the application for a licence to erect this tower, or alternatively that Bell Mobility and the hotel owners withdraw the application and move the cell tower at least 200 metres away from area residents and child care facilities.

AsbestosPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:10 p.m.

NDP

Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to rise again to present yet another petition signed by literally tens of thousands of Canadians who call upon Parliament and the House of Commons to take note that asbestos is the greatest industrial killer that the world has ever known. They point out that more Canadians now die from asbestos than all other industrial and occupational causes combined.

Therefore, the petitioners call upon Parliament to ban asbestos in all of its forms, institute a just transition program for asbestos workers who may be affected by such a ban, end all government subsidies of asbestos both in Canada and abroad, and stop blocking international health and safety conventions designed to protect workers from asbestos, such as the Rotterdam Convention.