Penny Priddy

[Business of Supply, March 6th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the comments of the member opposite, and I would like to ask her a question.

In the province of Quebec child care is $7 a day, and that model has been looked at by many people. What does she think the Conservative government's message is to women? I work with woman who is a single mom, holds down a job and has an eight year old. She receives this joyous gift from the Conservative government of $100 a month.

In the province of British Columbia that $100 a month will allow her to have before and after school care for maybe eight days in a month. Then the eight year old goes home, by herself, after school. She is also by herself before school. The $100 a month, this generous child care gift, does not provide even half a month of before and after school care, never mind full time care.

What is the Conservative government's message to that women. What should I tell her it is?

[Business of Supply, March 6th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, it is really a very interesting point that the member opposite has raised, because this is about what the current government has not done and what is not in the budget.

I need to remind people that there were 18 Liberal women who helped the 2008 budget pass on March 4. These were: the members for London West, Brampton West, St. Paul's, Oakville, Guelph, Brampton—Springdale, Laval—Les Îles, Vancouver Centre, Mississauga East—Cooksville, Thornhill, Nunavut, Churchill, Sudbury, Beaches—East York, Winnipeg South Centre, Don Valley East, York West and Newmarket—Aurora. They all said this budget should pass.

Therefore, I am astounded at what I now am hearing from an opposition member who passed the budget.

I have worked on child care through three cabinet portfolios in previous times. I was very encouraged at one stage that child care might actually come about.

Now those Liberal members say that the government was dissolved 46 days before they wanted it dissolved. Now they say that in those 46 days they was going to secure child care. In 46 days? That is a miracle.

Those members opposite say they were going to clean up the environment in 46 days. That is another miracle.

They were going to alleviate the living conditions of aboriginal people in 46 days. That is another miracle.

I would really like the member to tell me, having been there all that time, why the Liberals waited until the last 46 days to do those things.

[Salmon Habitat Restoration Program, March 4th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, I frequently hear the statement that the environment and youth are the keys to our future.

The city of Surrey has a program that exemplifies those two things. It is called SHaRP, salmon habitat restoration program. This program has provided career oriented training and employment to hundreds of high school and post-secondary students.

Over its 12 years of operation, SHaRP has been recognized as an innovation that promotes sustainability and assists students to fund their education. The goal is to rehabilitate creeks and streams to improve salmon habitat.

The students are involved with ravine cleanup, stream bank planting, spawning bed enhancements and minor erosion control works. Over 100 tonnes of debris have been removed from local creeks, 5,300 plants have been established in riparian zones and there has been the stabilization of over 100 metres of creek banks.

Funding comes largely from the city with contributions from the provincial and federal governments, until this year when the federal government decided to withdraw its funding. Youth and the environment are keys to our future.

[The Budget, March 4th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, I listened to the hon. member's comments. I want to ask a question based on my personal experience living in the city of Surrey, which has for a long time been one of the fastest growing cities and remains one of the fastest growing in the country.

When we look at the budget from a Surrey perspective, the infrastructure that is so important to us, like flood control for farmers as there are more floods in Surrey, is not there. Transportation for a city our size is not being enhanced at all.

I want ask the member particularly about mental health services. A study is being done by very respectable people, but people with mental health needs are being studied to death. I use the phrase “to death” deliberately, because many people have died while we study. What it really means is we need services, assistance and housing. When I ask about housing, I hear about mental health. People with mental health needs will not cover themselves with the paper that will be created by the study. They need actual safe places to live.

Is the perspective I see from Surrey reflected in the perspective the member from Quebec sees?

[Questions Passed as Orders for Return, March 3rd, 2008]

With respect to the Annual Report of the Office of the Correctional Investigator 2006-2007: (a) what progress has been made in addressing the twelve key barriers to public safety identified in the report; (b) what internal strategies have been developed to ensure the five key priorities listed in the report are achieved; (c) how much additional funding was made available following the release of the report on June 29, 2007, and how was that money allocated; and (d) how much targeted funding is required to achieve these goals in 2008-2009?

[Afghanistan, February 26th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, the motion talks about a regular way of informing Canadians about progress in Afghanistan. I listen to radio shows and there is a lot of confusion about what is going on over there. People are saying the aid money is going there but it is not actually getting to the people. There is all kinds of confusion about what is actually going on over there that is making life better for Afghans.

What kind of regular reporting plan does the government have to present to Parliament and to Canadians so that we are better informed about the issues my colleague is concerned about?

[Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, February 5th, 2008]

Is it already out?

If someone believes in a security certificate process, absolutely, but, fundamentally, we do not believe in that process.

Have those three amendments around torture and so on made that bill better? If that is the system the member believes in, then it probably has. However, we fundamentally oppose the security certificate process. This is not about whether somebody made it better. It is about the fact that we believe there needs to be a different system.

[Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, February 5th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, I can see the headline now, “NDP agrees that Liberals have assisted to make this a much better bill”.

[Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, February 5th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, do you want me to give a short answer?

[Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, February 5th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his always very helpful participation and interventions in the committee.

Other models have been suggested other than this. I would go back to using the SIRC model, which was recommended by a number of people who are very concerned about the security certificate model but who would support the SIRC model being used.

What would we do with those people? If those people are truly guilty of having committed terrorist activities, I would far rather have them in jail here for a long period of time where I know they will not be engaging in those activities, than simply sending them back to their country of origin where they will continue to either work by themselves, which is unlikely, or work with a broader group of terrorists, organized crime or engage in espionage.

I do not see anything wrong with them being in prison for long lengths of time if the evidence supports that. What I cannot deal with is keeping someone in jail for seven years without that person having the ability to know his or her crime, what the charge is and what evidence is being used. That is a fundamental abridgment of a person's human rights.

Let us be clear, terrorism is frightening and we should do everything we can to ensure Canadians know that every member in this House takes this incredibly seriously. However, I do not think security certificates are the only model for that. There could be the SIRC model and there could be prison terms.