Lost his last election, in 2006, with 34% of the vote.
Inglis Limited November 16th, 1994
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Industry.
Yesterday I was advised by a representative of Inglis Limited that its parent company, Whirlpool Corporation, will be closing its manufacturing facility in my riding of Cambridge.
Given that my riding has had both very good and very bad news in the course of one week, does the minister have any words of advice for those workers at Inglis who will be losing their jobs and of course for my people in Cambridge?
Petitions November 15th, 1994
Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to table a petition containing 52 signatures which was forwarded to me by constituents of my riding of Cambridge.
The petitioners pray and request that Parliament not amend the human rights code, the Canadian Human Rights Act or the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in any way which would tend to indicate societal approval of same sex relationships or homosexuality.
Toyota Motor Corporation November 4th, 1994
Mr. Speaker, the people of Cambridge received some great news yesterday. Toyota Motor Corporation announced that it will be expanding its operation in my riding of Cambridge by investing an additional $600 million in its Corolla plant.
This move will create an additional 1,200 direct new jobs and hundreds of jobs in spinoff industries by 1997. Production at the plant will increase from 80,000 to 200,000 vehicles per year.
Yesterday Toyota informed the rest of Canada and the world that Cambridge is a community with a skilled workforce, one worthy of investment.
I would like to thank Toyota for having faith in the people of Cambridge and of Canada. I look forward to a long and good working relationship with this exceptional corporate citizen.
Department Of Canadian Heritage Act November 3rd, 1994
Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to be able to share with you today my views on Bill C-53, the bill to create the Department of Canadian Heritage. The proposed legislation is a technical measure that gives official recognition to the departmental structure and division of responsibilities that was adopted when the government took office.
As most members know the department has been functioning well now for more than a year and a half. The passage of this bill is a necessary legal step and will substantiate the areas of jurisdiction within which the Minister of Canadian Heritage will exercise his powers and carry out his duties and functions.
The Department of Canadian Heritage brings together components from five former or existing federal departments, namely environment, communications, secretary of state, national health and welfare, and multiculturalism and citizenship. This fact alone allows you to imagine the abundant variety of programs that can be found within this department.
The legislation reflects the breadth of the department's mandate which includes responsibilities in areas such as cultural development, multiculturalism, official languages, heritage conservation, national parks, national historic sites, and amateur sports.
Moreover, the policies and programs of the Department of Canadian Heritage are designated to promote increased understanding of our diversity, the involvement of all citizens in Canadian society and awareness of our cultural and natural wealth. In other words, the department is active in those areas that are linked to our identity as Canadians.
One of the most visible programs administered by Canadian heritage is Parks Canada which is also one of the department's three principal sectors. Many Canadians and for that matter many tourists who visit Canada have taken advantage of the opportunity to experience the magnificence and unique natural beauty of the country's system of natural parks, natural historic sites and historic canals. As steward of these unrivalled examples of our natural and cultural heritage it is Parks Canada's duty to ensure their protection and interpretation on behalf of all Canadians.
Parks Canada has a strong and respected presence in every region of the country. It contributes in a significant way both directly and indirectly to the local economies of communities all across Canada through expenditures on its own operations and through the tourism and economic benefits generated as a result of those activities.
The second major sector of the department that I would like to mention encompasses those programs aimed at the promotion of Canadian identity and civic participation. As one would expect with such a broadly based mandate this sector includes an impressive variety of program areas.
Some of the government's most important initiatives are being implemented in this sector. These include the promotion of official languages, the pursuit of excellence in amateur sports, the promotion of our cultural diversity and encouragement of the full and open participation of every Canadian in society, the promotion of greater understanding of human rights, fundamental freedoms and related values, as well as multiculturalism.
All Canadians must feel a sense of belonging to this country. Multiculturalism seeks to bridge the gap between cultural communities with diverse interests and backgrounds. Within this sector are the programs that speak to us regarding what it means to be Canadian, that set us apart from the rest of the world
and that have helped Canada earn its top ranking by the United Nations for overall quality of life.
Last but not least, the other key sector that will occupy the time of the minister is concerned with the growth and development of Canada's cultural sector. This area has never been more important than it is now, given the significance of its contribution to the Canadian economy.
Some maintain that culture is first and foremost a way of looking at the world and a symbol of our civilization. It is through this unique perspective of the world that we are able to distinguish ourselves from others. Culture therefore with the traditions and values it encompasses is what gives us our identity.
Most members will agree that the federal government responsibility in cultural matters extends to those areas that are pan-Canadian, interprovincial and international in scope. Federal activities in this area remain complementary to those of the other levels of government. It is vital that there be many agents of cultural development and for governments to play an active role.
The federal government's key objective in this area is to ensure that Canada's artists, creators and cultural industries are provided with the support they need to create and distribute cultural products and that Canadians have access to these important examples of cultural expression.
Culture is the very essence of the national identity, the foundation of national sovereignty and national pride. In a world where globalization and the information and communications revolution are bypassing national borders, Canada needs to commit itself more than ever to cultural development.
To summarize it is clear that the programs and policies of the Department of Canadian Heritage span Canada's past, present and future. The department can be regarded as the flagship of Canadian identity, bringing together a mosaic of federal programs that will help to confront and surmount the challenges that lie ahead.
I fully support the passage of this legislation and look forward to the official recognition of the Department of Canadian Heritage, so help us God.
Registered Retirement Savings Plans October 26th, 1994
Mr. Speaker, I have received numerous letters from constituents concerned about the upcoming budget and whether they can expect to be taxed on their RRSPs.
These constituents believe that an understanding between government and Canadians has existed since the 1950s when RRSPs were first introduced. At that time the government rewarded Canadians who took responsibility for their own retirement by offering both an initial tax deduction as well as tax free accumulation.
Since then thousands of Canadians have assumed responsibility for their own retirement by taking advantage of RRSPs. They have done so in part because of strains on the Canada pension plan and old age security and their need for greater income security during retirement.
My constituents and I feel that any move on the part of the minister to change the ground rules by taxing RRSPs would be unfair and unwelcome. It is our sincere hope that the minister will listen to these concerns and not tax RRSPs.
Child Sex Offenders September 30th, 1994
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today to speak to Motion No. 305 proposed by the member for Brampton.
There is no doubt our criminal justice system is flawed when it comes to dealing with high risk offenders, in particular sex offenders who prey on young children.
There have been several tragic cases in the past few years which have exposed terrible problems of how the justice system deals with sexual predators, but perhaps the most tragic is the case of Christopher Stephenson.
The criminal justice system failed 11-year old Christopher Stephenson of Brampton in 1988 when it released Joseph
Fredericks onto the streets. Christopher Stephenson was abducted at knifepoint from the Shoppers World mall in Brampton on June 17, 1988 by Joseph Fredericks, a known pedophile and psychopath.
Fredericks had spent his childhood in foster homes, his teens in an institution for the severely retarded, although he was not actually retarded, 24 years of his adulthood in a hospital for the criminally insane, and his middle age in Ontario prisons. This man who repeatedly raped, tortured and then murdered Christopher Stephenson on June 17, 1988 had been given early release from Warkworth Institution after the National Parole Board and Corrections Canada ignored an Ottawa judge's warning not to release him without psychiatric reassessment and extensive monitoring.
To make matters even worse, it was revealed during the inquest into Christopher's death that the prison psychologist believed there was a high probability that Fredericks would reoffend, but he crossed his fingers when he dropped Fredericks off in Brampton. A criminal justice system that simply crosses its fingers and hopes that a psychopath will not reoffend does not serve the interests of Canadians. In particular it does not serve the interests of young, innocent children like Christopher Stephenson.
We must make the necessary changes to ensure that such tragedies are not repeated.
Several years following Christopher's murder an inquest into his death was held by the ministry of the solicitor general in the province of Ontario. The inquest jury made 71 recommendations, the first of which was that legislation be enacted to "provide for the protection of the community by permitting the continued detention of sexually violent predators beyond the expiry of their sentence and to provide treatment during their confinement".
The jury also recommended that legislation be modelled on the Washington state protection act of 1990, a law that allows the attorney general to launch court proceedings against an individual even if that individual has been released from jail, to commit him to a special facility, possibly for life. While the Washington state act was considered to be somewhat extreme by Canadian standards, members may recall that in the dying days of its administration the Conservative government introduced legislation to deal with high risk offenders.
That particular bill proposed to allow the National Parole Board to detain any inmate believed likely to commit a sexual offence involving a child before the expiry of their original sentence. The bill in question was of course lost when the federal election was called.
The time has come to introduce new legislation to deal with this serious problem. My colleague's motion echoes the recommendation of the inquest jury that legislation is needed.
There have been many proposals for reform which have come not only from the Stephenson inquest, but from a working group on high risk offenders constituted by the previous Solicitor General. The time has come to act on those recommendations.
I believe that legislation to keep high risk offenders in prison much longer would go a long way to improving public safety. I am also of the opinion that any legislation brought forward by the government should include a provision which would allow sentencing courts to impose a post-detention term of supervision for high risk offenders.
A supervision provision would allow for the monitoring of an offender's behaviour and actions for an extended period of time following sentence expiry. In addition to placing a high risk offender under supervision for a period of 10 years residency for example, treatment and reporting conditions would also be imposed.
Any breach of those conditions would land the offender back in jail and remove any chance of future early release. That is the only way we will be able to monitor the serious sex offenders who we have no choice but to release after sentence expiry.
Perhaps if such provisions had existed in June 1988 Christopher Stephenson would be alive today. Perhaps if the parole officer responsible for Joseph Fredericks had known where Fredericks was living Christopher could have been found in time. But there were no residency restrictions placed on Fredericks and he had not bothered to report to his parole officer. This cannot be allowed to happen again.
At a recent criminal justice conference in Hamilton, victims rights organizations including CAVEAT, Canadians Against Violence Everywhere Advocating its Termination, stressed the need for high risk offender legislation.
Criminal justice reform advocates and even the new chairman of the National Parole Board have stated that supervision and residency restrictions are necessary if we are to protect innocent children from sexual predators and other high risk offenders.
As terrible as the murder of Christopher Stephenson was, we must learn from it as we must learn from all other cases in which high risk offenders have preyed on innocent victims. We cannot stand by and let such tragedies recur. We must act now by supporting this motion and supporting any forthcoming legislation that will keep sick people like Joseph Fredericks off our streets.
Dominic Cardillo September 29th, 1994
Mr. Speaker, I would like to join my colleagues from Kitchener and Waterloo in paying homage to Kitchener Mayor Dominic Cardillo.
Dominic Cardillo is being honoured today by the citizens of Kitchener for his tremendous contribution to their city. He was first elected as alderman in 1963 and has served as mayor of Kitchener for the last 11 years. Such longevity during a time when politicians are not very popular is a testament to Dom's integrity and hard work.
Mayor Cardillo must be congratulated for his tireless promotion of the interests of Kitchener. During his tenure Kitchener has grown in population and has matured as a city. His greatest achievement is the new city hall which provides a strong, people oriented focus to the municipal government and downtown Kitchener.
Dom Cardillo has been a model civic leader whose dedication to the interests of his constituents will long be remembered.
Lester B. Pearson Day Act September 28th, 1994
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-276, an act respecting Lester B. Pearson Day.
Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure of tabling a private member's bill, the purpose of which is to honour the Right Hon. Lester B. Pearson for his contribution to Canada, the international community and world peacekeeping by designating the second Monday in February of each year as Lester B. Pearson Day.
I hope that all members will support this bill which aims to recognize a truly remarkable Canadian.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed.)
Petitions September 20th, 1994
Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to table a petition containing approximately 75 signatures which was forwarded to me by a constituent in my riding of Cambridge.
The petitioners pray and request that Parliament not amend the human rights code, the Canadian Human Rights Act or the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in any way which would tend to indicate community approval of same sex relationships or homosexuality.
Petitions June 8th, 1994
Mr. Speaker, my last petition concerns human rights sexual orientation. Over 300 petitioners who have signed this petition in Cambridge pray and request that Parliament not amend the Human Rights Code, the Canadian Human Rights Act or the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in any way which would tend to indicate public approval of same sex relationships or homosexuality. I fully endorse and support those petitioners.