Bill C-331 (Historical)

An Act to amend the Criminal Code (legal duty outside Canada)

This enactment amends the Criminal Code to extend the legal duty of every person who directs how another person does work or performs a task to Canadian citizens and organizations wherever they are in the world.

[Borys Wrzesnewskyj, Liberal, Etobicoke Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, we just saw a blatant case of revisionism on the part of the parliamentary secretary.

He said it was in the small print. First of all, the Conservatives did not even put anything in their 2006 or 2007 budgets for internment, but he said it was in the small print. If he listened, it was referenced in the opening paragraphs of the 2005 budget and he actually acknowledged there was $25 million. In fact, the sources and uses table on page 4 indicates that an additional $30 million was put into this particular program.

The Ukrainian Canadian community has said that CHRP and NHRP, the new programs mentioned by the hon. parliamentary secretary, are absolutely unacceptable. In fact, if the government proceeds down this path, they will be looking at legal avenues.

Bill C-331--

Criminal Code

[Pat Martin, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-331, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (legal duty outside Canada).

Mr. Speaker, Canada broke new ground when it extended the Criminal Code in the matter of exploiting children for sexual purposes of Canadians when travelling abroad. The bill seeks to expand on that same policy. Corporations, when operating abroad, would be bound and governed by the same codes of ethics, codes of practice, codes of health and safety and codes of environmental stewardship that we stipulate them to in our country.

In the case of the Westray bill, in which we were all very proud to take part in the 37th Parliament, we believe there is such a concept as corporate murder when workers die on the job due to poor health and safety conditions. This would also extend that same concept to corporations, the mining companies, et cetera, operating abroad.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)