Business of Supply  We have heard from scientists and people across Canada who have experienced the Conservative government's suppression of science and muzzling of scientists. They are deeply troubled by it. We heard just last week about Steven Campana, former DFO scientist, a researcher of the population dynamics of sharks and other fishes.

Business of Supply  Why are scientists so upset about the government's communications policy, about muzzling of federal government scientists?

Business of Supply  The international scientific community and science journalists have spoken up and called upon the government to stop muzzling scientists. In the United States, government scientists have been encouraged to talk about their research and even give their personal opinions about government policy, as long as they make it clear that it is just their personal opinion.

Science and Technology  Then it dismisses reports of the muzzling of federal scientists and the fact that they are not able to speak freely. It says a lot of papers are published and federal scientists are not being muzzled. Counter to that, there is some very significant anecdotal evidence of scientists not being able to speak freely or on a timely basis with the media or the public.

Science and Technology  National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration gave an administrative order on scientific integrity, telling its scientists to speak freely to the public and to the press about their research. Canadian government scientists do not have freedom of speech. This week, the American Association for the Advancement of Science meets in Vancouver with a talk entitled bluntly “The Muzzling of Canada's Federal Scientists”.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I think my colleague from Alberta does not understand how scientists communicate and what kind of communication is needed to convey and understand scientific research. I want to read a letter I received from a scientist. It says: Thank you for raising in the House the question of first-hand access to scientific findings.

The Budget  I am sure that good science will come out of these programs because of the proven quality of Canadian scientists. The point I would make is that the funding on these new programs does not come near what all the cuts have been so far. Let me just summarize. The Conservative government's spending on science, technology, research and development, according to Statistics Canada, is down $900 million since it took power.

Science and Technology  I would ask the average Canadian, “Whom do you trust? Do you trust the Conservative government, or do you trust the scientists who work for your government?” The scientists are saying, “No, we are not free to speak, and it is affecting your health and safety.” This is what is new in this long conversation about the muzzling of scientists, which has lasted several years, from even before I was elected.

An Act to amend the Statistics Act (appointment of Chief Statistician and long-form census)  However, the quality of national statistics has been compromised. In 2011, the voluntary national household survey replaced the long form census. Researchers have publicly called that survey worthless. What are some of the effects? In May 2014, the Progressive Conservative premier of New Brunswick said that the elimination of the long form census makes it hard to track the outcomes of the province's poverty program.

Economic Action Plan 2013 Act No. 2  We know that this approval process has been very slow, probably too slow for the comfort of the Minister of State for Science and Technology. Certainly it has been too slow for the morale of the scientists and researchers at NRC. We know that morale has been severely tested at NRC. We receive messages all the time from people who work at NRC. We even know that there was an online survey on the internal NRC website that showed how low morale was and how dissatisfied workers at NRC were.

The Budget  There is confusion over where $700,000 a year for bare bones operations will come from so that we do not have to give it up to another country this fall. Given budget 2014's recognition of basic research in the new Canada first research excellence fund, would the minister please instruct either the NRC or the CFI to provide operational funding so that Canadian scientists continue to have access to this world-class research?

Business of Supply  Speaker, rattling off a list of projects that the Department of Fisheries and Oceans spends money on misses the point of the motion. Let me address one of the points of the motion by asking the minister about muzzling scientists and not letting them talk to people. If we go back to the announcement that Conservative Minister John Crosbie made in 1992 announcing the moratorium on the cod fishery and we try to understand how it is that we fished out all the cod without realizing it, we realize that fishery scientists thought there was a bunch of fish out there but the inshore fisherman, who actually went out and tried to catch fish, were saying that the number of fish was decreasing, as was their size.

Privilege  Some of the data in this report was incorrect as the result of a coding error. This is not something for which I would find fault with the government or researchers. Tabulation errors are bound to happen here and there, and in my work as a scientist I have made such mistakes and have had to fix them. In fact, that is how good scientists work. Mistakes are discovered, acknowledged and fixed, and our understanding advances.

Science and Technology  Mr. Speaker, today, The Globe and Mail calls for an end to muzzling scientists. BBC News has let the world know that Canadian government scientists do not have free speech. The prestigious international journal Nature states that “it is time for the Canadian government to set its scientists free”.

Government Communications  Speaker, the government cannot admit the truth that Conservatives are against free speech for scientists. Yesterday Francesca Grifo, director of the Union of Concerned Scientists' scientific integrity program, spoke about the muzzling of Canadian scientists calling it a scary thing, something that is happening quite frequently.