Ken Boshcoff

[Immigration, April 19th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, new Canadians are very concerned about the proposal of the hon. member for Newton—North Delta who demands his constituents post a $50,000 to $100,000 bond in return for support of short term visa applications--

[Charter of Rights and Freedoms, April 15th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, the 20th anniversary of the coming into force of section 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is an important milestone for persons with disabilities.

This equality rights provision represents the Government of Canada's commitment to build communities in which everyone is fully included. It emphasizes that what we all want as Canadians is to have the opportunity to contribute to the economic and social life of our country.

The charter puts into words what we believe as Canadians. The guarantee of equal rights under the charter for individuals with a mental or physical disability is an important achievement and a major driver in helping Canadians with disabilities become full participants in our society.

As chair of the subcommittee on persons with disabilities, we remain committed to the goal of full inclusion for persons with disabilities.

[National Day of Bulgaria, April 13th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to rise in the House as the first federal member of Parliament of Bulgarian heritage.

It was a great honour for me to attend the National Day of Bulgaria celebration at the Bulgarian Embassy. The National Day of Bulgaria celebrates the liberation of Bulgaria from Ottoman rule in 1878.

On that auspicious occasion, I witnessed the presentation of the Insignia of Honour, the “Golden Laurel” of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria to Mr. Luc Dupont for his contribution to the development of economic relations between Canada and Bulgaria. Mr. Dupont is the first Canadian to receive this honour.

I would ask that all parliamentarians join me in offering their congratulations to Mr. Luc Dupont on his receipt of the Golden Laurel and to Bulgarians around the world in celebration of their National Day of Bulgaria.

[Special Olympics Winter Games, April 5th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to rise today to congratulate Miss Joyce Gosselin for her success at the 2005 Special Olympics World Winter Games that were held recently in Nagano, Japan.

This winter was the 12th year that Miss Gosselin has participated in the Special Olympics. She captured the silver medal for 200 meter snowshoeing, the silver for the 400 meter relay, and received the gold medal for her personal favourite, the 100 meter snowshoe race with a time of 1:07.55. This is especially exceptional because Miss Gosselin was the oldest participant in each of her events.

Much of her time in Fort Frances is spent fundraising for a variety of non-profit organizations such as the Salvation Army and the Canadian Cancer Society. She has raised thousands of dollars for many community based agencies. Miss Gosselin has received much due credit for her community centred spirit. In 2004 she was declared Fort Frances Citizen of the Year as well as Female Athlete of the Year by Special Olympics Ontario.

Please join me in congratulating Miss Joyce Gosselin for her success at the Nagano Winter Games and her efforts to better Canadian society as a whole.

[Foreign Affairs, March 10th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, 46 years ago today the people of Tibet held massive demonstrations to demand that the Chinese restore the full independence of their country. These demonstrations resulted in the slaughter of tens of thousands of Tibetans by the People's Liberation Army. In the days that followed, the Dalai Lama and some 80,000 Tibetans fled to neighbouring countries for refuge from the Chinese troops.

In a statement this morning, the Dalai Lama indicated that he is encouraged by the support Tibetans are receiving from various parts of the world and within certain Chinese intellectual circles for their middle way approach. The Dalai Lama remains hopeful that this longstanding issue will be resolved.

Representatives of the Tibetan community are with us here today. I ask my fellow parliamentarians to join with me in a moment of remembrance of the Tibetans who gave their lives for the cause of Tibetan freedom.

[Supply, March 10th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, enlightening members of the opposition is always a delightful experience. I hope to be able to do that.

When we talk about Bre-X in 1996 and the debate today is dealing with organized crime, are we assuming that Bre-X was an organized crime organization? I am not sure that it was. In fact, the tragedy of the senior geologist jumping out of the helicopter probably addresses some of those issues.

When we talk about a dynamic response, the fact is that criminals are always on the creative edge of things. There is no doubt that those of us who obey and respect the law always seem to be catching up and trying to respond. It is very much reactive in a way that is going to try to pre-empt those. For us, the long list of government responses I believe is a very credible record over the past number of years.

The member makes reference to Saddam Hussein. I would think that much of the proposed legislation indeed would encompass organized crime for terrorist crimes.

I have been actively involved in the police services board. Indeed, my record includes establishing community groups such as 911 groups, block parents, crime stoppers and those types of things. I am very keenly aware of what it is that communities must do.

The fact that those messages have been translated, sent and received by the other orders of government, provincial, territorial and of course federal, means that when we talk about the dynamic there is always something that needs to be done. This legislation is a very solid case of something that all members of all parties can support. I very much appreciate the member's question. I hope I have enlightened him.

[Supply, March 10th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to provide you with an overview of the government's response, working in close collaboration with its provincial, territorial and law enforcement partners, to the problem of organized crime in Canada.

I support the motion before us because we need more tools against organized crime. Organized crime is a diverse and persistent problem. It extends into every community in Canada, whether it is violent turf wars among rival gangs on our streets, marijuana grow operations in our residential neighbourhoods, or telemarketing schemes that prey upon our senior citizens.

We know that organized crime is increasingly profitable and increasingly costly for hard-working Canadians who face higher taxes and insurance premiums as a result of these activities. As someone who has been a registered insurance broker for the past 25 years, I know well the impact of claims on Canadians, on individuals, business people, and indeed, even on not for profit community organizations.

In response to this diverse and pervasive problem, Canada has established a strong record of concerted and vigorous action. In the year 2000, federal, provincial and territorial ministers responsible for justice endorsed the national agenda to combat organized crime. The national agenda recognizes that the fight against organized crime is a national priority that requires governments and the law enforcement community to work together.

The national agenda sets out a blueprint for action to combat organized crime in four key areas: through improved national and regional coordination; through stronger legislative and regulatory tools; through additional research and analysis; and through more effective communications and public education efforts.

I would like to take the time today to highlight just a few of the many steps federal, provincial and territorial governments have taken under the national agenda to combat organized crime.

Efforts under the national agenda are coordinated through a national coordinating committee on organized crime, a group composed of federal, provincial and territorial officials, prosecutors and law enforcement representatives, which is supported by five regional coordinating committees.

When ministers endorsed the national agenda in 2000, they also endorsed a list of shared priority issues that need to be addressed by governments and enforcement partners alike: illicit drugs, outlaw motorcycle gangs, economic crime, high tech crime, money laundering, trafficking in human beings and migrant smuggling, corruption, and street gangs.

Today I would like to highlight some of our collective efforts to address these priority issues.

Illicit drug trade tops the list. The government has made substantial investments to reduce the supply of and demand for drugs. In 2003, when the Canada strategy was renewed, an additional $245 million over five years was committed to bolster our efforts in the areas of prevention, treatment, harm reduction and enforcement. As well, under the renewed strategy, the RCMP is receiving new resources to combat the production and trafficking of marijuana and synthetic drugs in Canada.

Efforts to combat outlaw motorcycle gangs, another top priority, were bolstered by Criminal Code amendments that came into force in 2002. These included new offences and tough sentences targeting involvement with criminal organizations. Strong partnerships among law enforcement agencies are vital to dismantling these organized crime groups and the RCMP plays a very active and necessary role in mitigating this criminal threat. In the last two years, collaborative police efforts have led to the arrest of hundreds of outlaw motorcycle gang members and associates.

Efforts to combat economic crime, whether it is identity theft, credit card fraud, telemarketing fraud, fraudulent solicitations, security and stock market fraud or counterfeiting, represent another top priority in the fight against organized crime. Economic crime victimizes Canadians of all ages and occupations. It also has a negative impact on the strength and competitiveness of our economy.

National efforts to combat economic crime were strengthened in 2003 when the RCMP launched RECOL, reporting economic crime online, an Internet based fraud reporting system. RECOL provides Canadians with a single port of entry for complaints regarding suspected fraudulent activity.

RECOL also allows for improved communications among law enforcement jurisdictions across Canada and internationally.

This is a dynamic area. The federal government is open to considering both potential reforms and new innovations to strengthen the tools available to fight organized crime, for instance, in the areas of proceeds of crime megatrials and disclosure.

Research and analysis is another key component under the national agenda. When ministers endorsed the national agenda to combat organized crime, they identified the need for sound data to measure more effectively the scope of organized crime in Canada. Government officials, working in close conjunction with police, are implementing a multi-year work plan under which meaningful national data collection will begin this calendar year.

Strengthening our communications and public education efforts on organized crime is the last of the four components of the national agenda. It is also of vital importance. We need to tell Canadians that organized crime activity, from identity theft to illicit drugs to street gangs, affects all communities. It is not someone else's problem. We have been working with the provinces and territories and the law enforcement community to get this message out.

To this end, fact sheets on several of our national organized crime priorities, such as outlaw motorcycle gangs, illegal drugs, money laundering, fraud, trafficking in human beings, and economic crime, have been posted to the website of the Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness of Canada.

Fulfilling the mandate made in the fall 2003 meeting of the FPT ministers responsible for justice, the first FPT public report on organized crime, entitled “Working Together to Combat Organized Crime”, was released to the public in May 2004. The report details how governments and the law enforcement community have come together in partnership in recent years to find solutions to the pervasive problem of organized crime.

I have highlighted today a number of aggressive steps the government has taken, along with its partners, to combat organized crime. I can assure the House and all Canadians that we remain committed to working with our provincial, territorial and law enforcement partners to address this problem. Strengthening our ability to follow the proceeds of crime, to ensure that crime does not pay, will be a key element of our work.

[Martial Arts, March 9th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the city of Thunder Bay on its recent designation as the martial arts capital of Canada.

Thunder Bay established a Martial Arts Council in 2000 with the mission of fostering awareness of the benefits of training in these arts, encouraging participation to make the community a healthier place, and generating economic activity.

The Martial Arts Council has been very successful in its endeavours. It hosted a martial arts championship in April 2002 and staged a celebration of martial arts in September 2002. In July 2006 Thunder Bay will host an international forum on Tai Chi with hundreds of delegates from Asia, China, Europe and North America expected to attend.

I ask my fellow parliamentarians to join me in congratulating Thunder Bay on its designation as Canada's martial arts capital.

[Gasoline Industry, February 25th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, the industry committee has considered the lack of competition in the retail and refining sectors of the gasoline industry.

With inexcusably high prices for gasoline in many markets, with little or no competition in these sectors, could the Minister of Industry advise us how proposed amendments to the Competition Act aimed at predatory pricing will help consumers in all regions of the country?

[Thunder Bay Public Library, February 16th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Thunder Bay Public Library on the occasion of its 35th anniversary.

The Thunder Bay Public Library is dedicated to providing community access to local and global information resources that support lifelong learning, research and leisure activities. At its four locations across the city, the Thunder Bay Public Library provides residents of all ages and income levels the opportunity to appreciate the works of award winning authors, musicians and filmmakers. Over the years the Thunder Bay Public Library has been recognized with numerous awards for the quality customer service that it provides.

I would ask my fellow parliamentarians to join me in congratulating the Thunder Bay Public Library on its excellence for the past 35 years and to wish it many more years of service to the community.