Raymond Côté

[Canada–Panama Economic Growth and Prosperity Act, May 28th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for Québec for her speech. It shows great intelligence and her great capacity for work. It is very promising. It makes me trust her work on the Standing Committee for International Trade. It is a committee that I am familiar with and I enjoyed my time on it very much. It is a fascinating field to learn about.

My colleague really put her finger on the problem of our Canadian values. These values are shared by people throughout the country, by 34 million Canadians. These values, of which we are extremely proud, are related to issues of world peace and human rights.

Sometimes I have the impression that the party in power, as well as the third party in the House, have confused these values with monetary values and other values relating to the development of natural resources or to human exploitation.

I will not hide the fact that I hesitated a long time in deciding that it was an approach that suffered from naïveté, which would be touching in other circumstances, were it not for the interests linked to it and to the fact that it might colour and in fact even damage and destroy our worldwide reputation. Or else, was it tied to much less commendable interests for a small portion of the population who profit handsomely from it, and have both hands in the cookie jar?

I would like to hear my colleague’s opinion on this issue.

[Canada–Panama Economic Growth and Prosperity Act, May 28th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Dartmouth—Cole Harbour for having given such an eloquent presentation that really went to the heart of the matter.

I wish to speak to my colleagues about another matter. I am very worried because a factory in my riding has been closed for a long time. One might reasonably hope that it could reopen within a few days, but unfortunately, the workers in my riding have no idea whatsoever about what the conditions will be like. Currently, it is owned by a private investor, or at least assumed to be.

Unfortunately, the Conservatives now want to raise the threshold for mandatory review of foreign investment to $1 billion. They want to raise it from $330 million to $1 billion. I am rather disturbed about this inconsistency in the government's approach to the management of our domestic economy while at the same time exporting problems that were created here in Canada by signing free trade agreements with countries whose treatment of their people raises serious doubts. There are all kinds of concerns about Panama.

Is my colleague as concerned as I am and can he tell us more about this matter?

[Canada–Panama Economic Growth and Prosperity Act, May 28th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague surely knows the old adage, “give a dog a bad name and hang him”. It is obviously always a pleasure to talk of all manner of ills and illnesses—and why not talk about illnesses while we are at it.

However, I would like to bring my colleague back to the more serious matter of the interests at play in the free trade agreement with Panama. Considering that the Liberals and the Conservatives clearly seem very swayed by particular interests—or what could be described as corporate interests with ties to the world of finance—could my colleague talk more about the fact that this trade agreement will not defend the interests of 99% of the population?

[Canada–Panama Economic Growth and Prosperity Act, May 28th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for Hull—Aylmer for clearly defining the conditions under which the New Democratic Party might consider supporting a free trade agreement with one or several countries.

I wonder if my colleague could elaborate on the wrong message that Canada might send about labour rights, among other things, if we were to accept a free trade agreement with Panama under the current conditions.

[Canada–Panama Economic Growth and Prosperity Act, May 28th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I am very glad that my colleague has had a chance to speak on the subject of this bill, which once again shows just how unbelievably see-no-evil the Conservatives and Liberals are when it comes to trade and international relations.

One hon. member spoke on the subject of China and tried to ensnare us with some pretty fallacious reasoning. Briefly, in reference to China, it owes its economic success to what is essentially dumping, with massive state intervention, and to making loans that end up being gifts to companies, using the banking system.

Since it is that see-no-evil approach that has devastated our industrial fabric and ultimately trapped people in undesirable, low-wage jobs, all so that we can have very low-priced goods—really, cheap goods, I would like to ask my colleague what he thinks about the approach taken by the government and the third party in the House.

[Canada–Panama Economic Growth and Prosperity Act, May 28th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I am glad to see that members of the other parties are attacking us more and more. That proves that our opinions are gaining currency.

I would like to thank my colleague from Windsor—Tecumseh for his presentation on the situation. He raised some very important points.

Unfortunately, when we enter into free trade agreements with other countries, we tend to overlook the fact that the entire world is watching the important step being taken. That is part of the reality of international relations. Any important step taken is observed and interpreted. Unfortunately, Canada has taken steps, especially regarding the Kyoto protocol, that have tarnished its reputation in certain parts of the world.

Some countries believe that by signing a free trade agreement with Panama, we will be condoning certain practices that really should be condemned, such as money laundering.

I would like my colleague to talk a bit more about the message that Canada is sending to the rest of the world.

[Continuation and Resumption of Rail Service Operations Legislation, May 28th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I congratulate my colleague from Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie on his speech. I very much liked the image he used, at the start of his speech, of the government as a repeat offender. It seems to me that that is quite apt. As a member of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights, I have noticed that the government members talk quite a bit about repeat offenders. They always wonder how best to deal with recidivism.

My colleague was very eloquent and stated the facts very clearly. In short, this government is completely abandoning the people of this country. I know what I am talking about, because my riding went through the brutal closure of a plant that is due to reopen soon. However, the workers still do not know under what conditions the plant will reopen. I am talking about the Stadacona plant of White Birch Papers, which is owned by foreign investors.

Something else that has not been considered is the fact that many companies have unfortunately come under foreign control. Workers then lose many benefits, and much of the company's profits goes out of the country.

Could my colleague elaborate on this? This is another truly distressing aspect of what the government is doing, and it may raise the review threshold under the Investment Canada Act to $1 billion.

[Iran, May 14th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to ask my esteemed colleague some questions.

One very disturbing aspect is the fact that the death penalty is being imposed on minors, on adolescents. I just want to remind the House that puberty is considered to take place at age 15 for boys and age 9 for girls. There have been instances of children that young being executed.

I would like to hear my colleague's thoughts on that particular subject.

[Daniel Larouche, May 3rd, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, on Sunday, April 29, Daniel Larouche passed away. He was the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada representative for the workers at the Stadacona mill in Quebec City.

Mr. Larouche made a name for himself during the painful labour dispute at White Birch Paper, where he worked selflessly representing the Stadacona mill workers.

Former Stadacona CEO André Sarasin described Mr. Larouche as a credible, trustworthy person with an intelligent approach to the issues. Renaud Gagné, vice-president of CEP-Quebec, said Mr. Larouche was a craftsman and everyone at CEP is mourning his loss.

I saw Daniel Larouche on several occasions. I am sorry to see this man, who was so dedicated to and respected by the workers he represented, leave us just a few short years before his well-deserved retirement.

I want to offer my sincere condolences to the love of his life, Ginette Bouffard, his children, Katherine-Sarah and Thomas, and all his fellow workers.

[Business of Supply, April 26th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I congratulate my colleague from Chambly—Borduas on his speech. It was very important. In particular, he has highlighted a serious problem of disparity between generations, which, as he pointed out very clearly, does not erase the problems associated with certain occupational groups.

Before I became a member of Parliament, I had the pleasure and honour of being a warehouse labourer for many years. I saw some of my fellow workers develop major physical problems. It was very easy to predict that some of my co-workers would be unable to keep going to the age of 60 or 65 if they continued doing the work they were doing.

Given that some of our young people are also going to be facing health problems that will prevent them from working until they are 60 or 65 or even 67 years old, I would like my colleague to talk a little more about this unfairness to certain generations, in spite of the fact that it has been widely shown that the system could have been sustainable.