Bonnie Brown

[Gavin Maxwell, May 10th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, today I congratulate Gavin Maxwell of Oakville who last Saturday won the single man canoe race at the hemispheric qualifier in Gainsville, Georgia.

This convincing victory guarantees Gavin a trip to the Olympic Games in Atlanta this summer. The win was especially satisfying because two of the paddlers in the field, the American and the Mexican, had defeated him last fall at a pre-Olympic regatta.

Gavin Maxwell is a fine young man who not only excels in athletics but is an outstanding example to the youth of our country. His hard work and integrity have made him a model ambassador for sport and for Canada.

I know the people of my riding of Oakville-Milton are extremely proud of Gavin and will be cheering him on this summer in Atlanta.

[Speak Out Canada, April 18th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to acknowledge the efforts of Gloria and Harold Williams who reside in my riding of Oakville-Milton.

Motivated by the events of the October referendum in Quebec, Mr. and Mrs. Williams along with 24 of their friends founded Speak Out Canada, a non-profit, non-partisan, grassroots community group dedicated to keeping Canada united.

Since December 1995 their organization has grown considerably with over 200 volunteer members. It is encouraging and assisting the formation of other unity groups across the country.

They have adopted an extensive agenda for the immediate and long term future, including planning unity oriented events and organizing discussion quorums. Their ultimate goal is to reach out to their fellow Canadians through links with other grassroots organizations to promote an increased awareness of our country and the benefits of working together to keep us united and strong.

I commend Mr. and Mrs. Williams for their efforts and I wish them ongoing success.

[Automobile Leasing, March 28th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, the automotive industry is of critical importance to the Canadian economy. One component of that industry, the car dealers, are feeling threatened today. On average, 40 per cent of their business is based on leasing and this percentage is increasing every year.

Now the chartered banks want our approval for their entry into the lucrative car leasing business. I believe that if we permit the banks to enter we would risk jeopardizing the stability and success of the dealership network in Canada. In the long run, competition would be reduced and thousands of jobs might be lost.

I strongly urge the Secretary of State for Financial Institutions to help those who sell and lease cars by keeping the banks out of the automotive leasing business.

[Petitions, March 19th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, it is my honour to present a petition which has been duly certified by the clerk of petitions and signed by 126 residents of my constituency of Oakville-Milton.

The petitioners call on the government to promote an international ban on the use, production, stockpiling, transfer, export or sale of anti-personnel land mines; to legislate an end to Canadian mine production, use and export; to increase existing de-mining programs; and to support land mine victims with financial and medical care.

This petition was initiated by members of St. John's United Church in Oakville. I commend their efforts and support them in their cause.

[Krever Commission, March 12th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Minister of Health announced he was taking the lead in making Canada's blood system the safest in the world.

Justice Krever made 43 recommendations in his report on the blood system in Canada. Seven of those were aimed at the federal government. It has now responded to all seven.

Now the government is going even further. It is responding to the challenge of leadership. It is going to the provinces and territories where it will renew and redefine the blood system for the benefit of all Canadians.

More than 300,000 Canadians receive transfusions of blood and blood products each year. It is a vital element of our health system and one that demands care and attention. This government is placing on it the emphasis that it deserves.

[International Women's Week, March 5th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, in this International Women's Week we celebrate the contributions of women and renew our commitment to their equality.

Today women make up 45 per cent of all workers but they also continue to do two-thirds of the unpaid work in Canada. In 1992 Statistics Canada estimated the total value of all unpaid work at between $210 billion and $318 billion. In order to make sound public policy, we need to take this productive activity into account and we will begin to do this in May.

For the first time ever, the national census will ask questions on unpaid work related to housework, child care and care of the elderly. In doing so, we are recognizing the tremendous contribution of women's unpaid work to Canadian society and the Canadian economy.

[Committees Of The House, March 4th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I find it strange that the previous speaker, who obviously is a new member of the heritage committee, probably appointed in September 1995, would choose to use the attendance record as reasoning behind his quest to have a member of the Reform Party as the vice-chair of that committee.

As a person who sat on that committee for the 18 months previous to his arrival, I would like to point out that should he have regarded the attendance records of the first 18 months, he would have found that the Bloc Quebecois members were most regular in their attendance and surprisingly it was the members of the Reform Party whose attendance was highly questionable.

May I also point out that the Bloc Quebecois members in the first 18 months not only attended the public hearing sessions of that committee, not only attended the briefings by department officials, but they also attended the in camera sessions when for weeks we were seriously working on a written report about the future of the CBC. It seemed rather strange to me that the Reformers came to the meetings when the press was in attendance but not one meeting when the press was not in attendance.

As far as I am concerned, I think the vice-chairs of committees must be committed not just to those sessions of the committee meetings when the press is in attendance but also when the solid, quiet work of the committee is done in camera.

[Banks, December 4th, 1995]

Mr. Speaker, the Toronto Dominion Bank and the Bank of Montreal announced substantial increases in 1995 profits last week. Their profits rose 17 per cent and 19.5 per cent respectively over last year.

While these figures may earn the industry the respect of its shareholders, they are also drawing criticism from small and medium size business owners. We have all heard their frustration at the banking industry's reluctance to lend to the small business sector. We know it plays a critical role in our economy. That is why we are working hard to foster a new environment of opportunity for it.

We cannot do it alone. It is our view that the banks have a special obligation to assist small businesses in obtaining financing. Let us hope their increased profits motivate them to fulfil that important obligation.

[Protection Of Personal Information Obtained By Certain Corporations Act, November 30th, 1995]

Mr. Speaker, as we consider Bill C-315 we should review what the government is doing in this area.

Industry Canada and the Department of Justice are working on a comprehensive approach to privacy protection to respond to the recommendations of the information highway advisory council. For this reason, I do not want to support Bill C-315. I would rather wait until the Minister of Industry tables his response to the information highway advisory council.

Both that council and the Canadian Direct Marketing Association have called for comprehensive legislation based on the Canadian Standards Association's model privacy code. It seems to be more advisable to start from this consensual base and start the work that needs to be done to get broad-based support in the full community for action in this area.

I understand that the ministries of industry and justice are examining the recommendations I just mentioned. They are trying to come up with a broad based approach to the issue that both consumers and business would prefer. Any such approach would encompass existing voluntary efforts and the many excellent codes business has already put in place in a voluntary fashion. We should

take the time to allow this process to unfold and not start working on quick fixes to one problem after another.

This is not to underestimate the work of my hon. colleague who brought forward the legislation, but rather to pull the threads together of work that is being done in many areas of government on this issue. For example, my colleague, the hon. member for Nickel Belt, has also called for a national privacy law, building on the work of the Canadian Standards Association. He has also called for a working group to be struck to work on the drafting of such legislation, ensuring that it is enforceable and that there is an independent body for oversight. I commend his interest in this issue and I would suggest that we build on the work that is already going on in government.

Bill C-315 would require that an organization notify each individual on a mailing list each time that list is sold to another organization and ensure that the individual's consent has been received. In addition, it requires that the organization selling the list also notify that same individual that his or her name has been obtained. The legislation deals only with the sale of mailing lists.

Organizations would have 10 days to comply with requests from individuals to have their names or certain elements of information removed from the list. Fines for repeated offences could reach $20,000.

This legislation would affect the marketplace narrowly, in that it focuses only on personal information linked to mailing lists. It does not provide protection for personal information involving the vast majority of marketplace transactions.

The role of the federal government could be open to constitutional challenge, in that the regulation of personal information provided as part of a contract could be interpreted as a provincial responsibility. Quebec has already made such a claim in establishing privacy legislation applicable to all personal information gathered as a result of marketplace transactions.

A government infrastructure would be required to enforce the legislation. The sheer number of names contained in mailing lists suggests that there would be numerous complaints to be handled by the federal government. The resulting bureaucracy could be very costly.

Some have said this legislation is too narrowly focused to provide adequate protection of personal information. Lists are more commonly rented than sold today, and the legislation fails to address rentals. The legislation would be costly to enforce and cannot deal with nominative lists originating with organizations based outside of Canada.

A recommendation from the information highway advisory council on establishing framework privacy legislation is currently under consideration.

I know the minister does not support the passage of the bill at this stage, as he is hoping for a broader response to this very current issue that affects consumers. As a result, I am not going to be supporting this bill, although I would like to thank the hon. member for bringing this important issue forward to the front burner of our national agenda. I believe we should ask the Minister of Industry to report back to the House on the work that is in progress rather than cut short his efforts and those of the justice minister by starting fresh work in a new and more limited direction.

[Banking, November 21st, 1995]

Mr. Speaker, I commend Canada's major banks for their corporate citizenship in establishing a banking industry ombudsman. This will strengthen procedures for handling complaints from small business when the operation begins on April 1, 1996. Certainly the framework is welcome news to the small business community that has often voiced its frustration in dealing with lending institutions.

In addition they have announced the appointment of their own internal ombudsman. I know that Mr. Al Horton who resides in my riding has accepted the challenge involved in becoming the first ombudsman for the Bank of Montreal.

Canadians should know that expenses to operate the system will be borne by the banks and not by the taxpayers. The new framework will benefit the small business community, a sector that is vital to the Canadian economy and to job creation in Canada.