House of Commons Hansard #53 of the 35th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was police.
Points Of OrderOral Question Period
The Speaker
Before I turn the floor over to the hon. member for Carleton-Gloucester, I did read over Hansard and I did see the tapes. It is my understanding that the hon. member has
withdrawn the word bigots categorically. He has withdrawn that and I turn the floor over to the hon. member for Carleton-Gloucester.
Eugène Bellemare Liberal Carleton—Gloucester, ON
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank you for giving me this opportunity to respond to the Reform Party's House leader, the one who had just thrown four sheets to the wind.
Eugène Bellemare Liberal Carleton—Gloucester, ON
Mr. Speaker, we have here a prime example of what the Reform Party--
Points Of OrderOral Question Period
The Speaker
Order. I would encourage the hon. member, as he is directly involved, to please direct himself to the point of order on the floor.
Eugène Bellemare Liberal Carleton—Gloucester, ON
Mr. Speaker, the House leader is offended by the fact that I talked about ethnic cleansing. He quoted some pages of Hansard to support his contentions a short while ago.
I would like to refer to page 3147. A member of the Reform Party stated yesterday that language fractures a country and he made reference to Bosnia and suggested that all the problems and wars in the world today are caused by ethnic problems. He then continued to speak about the problems that the French Canadians are creating in Canada by wanting to be recognized for their rights, minority-
Points Of OrderOral Question Period
The Speaker
Order. Of course we are engaged every day in very strenuous debate in the House. We all encourage one another to use language which is not offensive in any way to any hon. members. Sometimes in the heat of debate we use words which are not entirely appropriate.
The hon. member has raised a point of order and rather than get into a debate about perhaps what was said and what was not said, I wonder if he would give me the time to review, in total again, the specific words which were said. Then perhaps we could take this up tomorrow when I could make a ruling on the particular words that were put before us.
If we would agree to this, I would look into it and come back tomorrow.
Elwin Hermanson Reform Kindersley—Lloydminster, SK
Mr. Speaker, I am sure that my colleagues would be happy to drop this matter and not put you to the trouble if the member would withdraw those statements.
Points Of OrderOral Question Period
The Speaker
I hope there is agreement in the House to give your Speaker time to review all the words that were said and the context in which they were said.
I believe there is agreement and, if so, I will come back to the House tomorrow. Is that agreed?
Anne McLellan LiberalMinister of Natural Resources
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to table, in both official languages, the 1992-93 annual report of the administration and enforcement of the Energy Efficiency Act, pursuant to section 36 of that act, chapter 36, Statutes of Canada, 1992.
Allan Rock LiberalMinister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2), I have the honour to place before the House, in both official languages, draft amendments to the Criminal Code and the customs tariff dealing with crime cards and board games.
Don Boudria Liberal Glengarry—Prescott—Russell, ON
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to four petitions.
Anne McLellan LiberalMinister of Natural Resources
Mr. Speaker, I am proud to present the first annual report on the administration and application of the Energy Efficiency Act.
By promoting energy efficiency and alternate energy my department will help increase economic competitiveness by lowering energy bills and reducing the environmental impacts associated with energy use.
This report notes a variety of important departmental activities which integrate economic and environmental objectives. Through my department's programs and initiatives the Government of Canada is working in partnership with business to promote energy efficiency.
I will use these initiatives as a base for a more co-ordinated program with higher visibility among Canadians. Energy efficiency is widely recognized as the best short term strategy to achieve our economic and environmental goals. I have encouraged an expansion of voluntary action programs within both government and the private sector.
We are working with the provinces and the Canadian Federation of Municipalities to reduce duplication and expand the scope of these programs, and we are participating in initiatives to encourage fuel efficiency in transportation fleets and residential energy retrofits.
I encourage all members of this House to support the gradual direction in which Canada is moving for the sake of greater energy efficiency.
Roger Pomerleau Bloc Anjou—Rivière-Des-Prairies, QC
Mr. Speaker, the report which the Minister of Natural Resources has just tabled is another example of the form of centralizing federalism which Quebec chose to move away from on October 25 last. Whereas the Government of Quebec already has jurisdiction in this area, now the minister is announcing clearly today her plans to move further into this field.
Responsible energy management is a provincial matter. It is precisely this kind of jurisdictional overlap between levels of government that we must eliminate if we are to avoid these endless squabbles over jurisdiction which ultimately cost the taxpayers a pretty penny indeed.
Must we remind the minister once again that Quebec has already adopted a broad energy efficiency strategy, that it administers sizeable budgets for energy efficiency research and development and demonstration projects, and that it already has in place an important energy productivity program? Through its Department of Natural Resources, the Government of Quebec is already involved in this area, acting in co-operation with Hydro Quebec, the private sector and regional chambers of commerce.
If, as she claims, the minister really wants to reduce overlap between the provinces, then she should be setting an example and abolishing her department's own programs which only add to the confusion and distort the efforts undertaken by Quebec. If the minister cannot bring herself to do this, then she should at least have the decency to allow Quebec to oversee its own energy efficiency policy independently and turn over to the Quebec government the money she was planning to spend in the province under these nice Canada-wide programs.
Elwin Hermanson Reform Kindersley—Lloydminster, SK
Mr. Speaker, we appreciate the tabling of the document. We have no further comments at this time.
Interparliamentary DelegationsRoutine Proceedings
London East Ontario
Liberal
Joe Fontana LiberalParliamentary Secretary to Minister of Transport
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1), I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the report of the Canada-Europe Parliamentary Association of the 21st annual meeting between the Canadian and European Parliaments held in Vancouver, British Columbia, from February 15 to 18, 1994.
Might I add that this is one of many examples of a parliamentary association doing positive work on behalf of Canadians on an issue that could potentially have been very damaging to the Canadian economy and thousands of jobs, namely the forestry industry.
I want to thank everyone who participated in this great forum because I think we did good work for Canada.
Sue Barnes Liberal London West, ON
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-239, an act respecting the decade of the brain.
Mr. Speaker, I wish to introduce a bill to declare the 1990s the decade of the brain following an original initiative of the World Health Organization in the late 1980s.
It is the human brain which makes us unique among living creatures. Ailments of the brain carry with them heart rending disabilities that can rob us of the very essence of personhood. The real tragedy is not only the disease that may cause death but the disintegration of the mind, with devastating impact on family and on society.
A great threat to the independence of the elderly are diseases of the brain, some treatable, most preventable. A healthy mind is the greatest guarantee for continued independence.
A cognitive mental stability enhances the ability to heal and recuperate, to cope and overcome physical ailments. It is also important to note that diseases of the brain are among the costliest, both directly and indirectly.
It is my fond hope that the bill will raise the awareness of Canadians and will encourage further research and support to those in our communities who are forging advances of knowledge that will ultimately improve the lives of all of us.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed.)
Deborah Grey Reform Beaver River, AB
Mr. Speaker, as members know, music is one of the most effective ways of communicating our love for Canada. In this week of national citizenship some of us participated in the Hall of Honour yesterday reaffirming our oath.
We sang "O Canada" like it has never been sung before, I am sure, in these halls. In every one of our constituencies there are gifted individuals, choirs, et cetera. Unfortunately music is conspicuously absent from the daily proceedings here in Parliament. After having given notice to the other two official parties in the House I am seeking unanimous consent for the following motion:
That Standing Order 30 be amended by adding the following words: "and shall cause Canada's National Anthem to be played or sung in the House every Wednesday immediately preceding oral questions".
I think you would find unanimous consent in the House for that, Mr. Speaker.
Don Boudria Liberal Glengarry—Prescott—Russell, ON
Mr. Speaker, I agree with the substance of what the member is trying to propose.
However, there are errors in the drafting of the text. Perhaps the member would be willing to move that the item in question be referred to the parliamentary committee on procedure. I am acting chairman and I commit to her to deal with it forthwith. As a matter of fact, we have a meeting as early as tomorrow morning. There are errors in the text. It does not refer to what subsection of section 30 the item should be addressed to.
It is traditional for amendments to the standing orders to be made pursuant to a recommendation of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs.
If the member is willing to make that small modification, on behalf of my colleagues I am willing to give consent to have the matter referred immediately to the parliamentary committee in question.
Deborah Grey Reform Beaver River, AB
Mr. Speaker, it is my understanding that when we asked the Table and the clerks about this, it was in order. It was given back to me saying that it was in order and we could proceed with it. I appreciate the generosity of the member and, barring unanimous consent in the Chamber now when we are on national TV, that the secondary way we could proceed is as he suggested.
As an individual member I believe I have every right and privilege to ask if there is unanimous consent for the motion so I would like the Chair to put the motion to see if there is unanimous consent for it.
Don Boudria Liberal Glengarry—Prescott—Russell, ON
Mr. Speaker, it is not a matter of whether this issue is dealt with on or off television. I would like to think that we stand for a bit more substance than that.
The issue is whether the wording is proper. I am acting chairman of the committee this week. I have given my undertaking to the member. If this is as serious as she claims it is and I believe it is, then surely a commitment to deal with it at 10 or 10.30 tomorrow morning in committee would not seem like undue delay in anyone's mind and in any reasonable Canadian's mind, listening to the proceedings on or off TV.
National Citizenship WeekRoutine Proceedings
The Deputy Speaker
As an alternative the hon. member for Beaver River might wish to wait until tomorrow.
She has already indicated she wants me to ask if there is unanimous consent now. We have not heard from the Official Opposition. Perhaps she could put it off for 24 hours and bring it back tomorrow, having discussed it with the deputy whip for the Liberal Party.
It is entirely her right if she wants me to ask for unanimous consent. I will do it as soon as she sits down.
Deborah Grey Reform Beaver River, AB
I did ask once, Mr. Speaker. That was my request.
Let me then put an amendment because the hon. member is upset about the technicalities of it. I would move an amendment:
That Standing Order 30, subsection (1), be amended.
And everything further to that. Yes, we would like unanimous consent but barring that we would be willing to send the matter to committee.
This is a very large thing, but in fact a very small thing for the House to deal with. There is no shame to it, and surely this is the place for us all to say: "Yes, we love this country". Maybe we should sing it right now. Who knows?