Finance committee  The wording for proposed paragraphs 60(y) and 60(z) is as follows: (y) $1,000, if the taxpayer performed in the taxation year at least 100 hours but less than 200 hours of volunteer service as an ambulance technician, a firefighter or a person who assists in the search or rescue of individuals or in other emergency management (mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery) activities; and (z) $2,000, if the taxpayer performed in the taxation year 200 hours or more of volunteer service as an ambulance technician, a firefighter or a person who assists in the search or rescue of individuals or in other emergency management activities.

Finance committee  “...emergency management activities.”

Finance committee  I have a copy for you.

Finance committee  I think our comments were just enlarging the perspective in terms of preparation to face disasters. Following the ice storm, setting up 300 shelters from one day to the next in Canada was not something we envisaged. More and more preparation in the role of citizens in those situations is key.

Finance committee  Well, it's a little different in our case. They're not waiting in a centre to intervene, so that doesn't call for it. We're just emphasizing that we're increasing the training quite a bit and that the training should be part of that, but they're not waiting in a location, so it wouldn't be...unless they're intervening, really.

Finance committee  In our case again, there's no intervention where there's no municipal agreement, in terms of defining.... So we don't have volunteers volunteering on their own.

Finance committee  Absolutely.

Finance committee  In the case of the Red Cross volunteers, no.

Finance committee  Yes, and the simulations, of course. It's everything related to that.

Finance committee  Yes.

Foreign Affairs committee  Thank you, Mr. Chairman, members of Parliament, colleagues from CARE and UNICEF. Thank you for this opportunity to discuss the ongoing efforts in Haiti and the role of the Red Cross. There is no need to mention the events that have brought us here today. We are all aware of the destruction and devastation caused by the Haitian earthquake about 20 months ago.

Foreign Affairs committee  Thank you. I think you're absolutely right in terms of the concern about violence and abuse prevention. The Canadian Red Cross is one of the leaders, actually, in the world of the Red Cross in terms of training and education around violence and abuse prevention. It's part and parcel of all our programming in Haiti, such as the education component and codes of conduct for all of our staff and everybody working for us.

Foreign Affairs committee  Thank you. Actually, in your second question you touched a little bit on the first one with deforestation. The issue is that these homes, actually...and two-thirds of them are already built. It costs about $5,000 a unit, absolutely. These are wind-resistant to about 240 kilometres.

Foreign Affairs committee  Yes. We put out a tender in Canada to find a supplier. And we have to bring the materials there because there are no existing materials in Haiti. That is part of the problem, and I think you've raised it. I think one of the presentations talked about how we get away from patchwork....

Foreign Affairs committee  Yes. Leogane and Jacmel are peri-urban areas. We're managing to move fast there. The challenge is more in an urban area like Port-au-Prince, where there is debris. Where there is already built infrastructures it is much more complex. We can get into that, but it's a complex question.