Debates of June 20th, 1994

National Defence

[Fred Mifflin, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to Minister of National Defence and Minister of Veterans Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2) and an undertaking made in this House by the minister on May 30, 1994, I would like to table on behalf of the Minister of National Defence and Veterans Affairs, in both official languages, a series of documents entitled measures taken by the Department of National Defence to address the issue of harassment in the Canadian forces.

Government Expenditures

[Marlene Catterall, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure of tabling on behalf of the President of the Treasury Board a document requested in this House, a review of service provision options for the administrative flight service.

The report is an exhaustive review of options for the administrative flight service, in both official languages.

Committees Of The House

[Jim Peterson, Liberal, Willowdale, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present to this House, in both official languages, the ninth report of the Standing Committee on Finance.

This report is about replacing the GST, options for Canada. This work could not have been accomplished without the tremendous hard work and non-partisan co-operation of all members from all parties of the finance committee.

Reserve Force Act

[Jim Hart, Reform, Okanagan—Similkameen—Merritt, BC]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-261, an act to facilitate participation in the reserve force.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for Saanich-Gulf Islands for seconding this bill.

Canada is relying more on reservists to meet its military commitments and with the recent downsizing of the regular force the demand on reservists will undoubtedly increase.

The auditor general in his 1992 report to this House found that reservists had a serious training deficit when compared with trades and ranks in the regular force. He put much of this down to the reservists being unavailable for training, often due to the demands of their jobs or difficulty in scheduling time off to coincide with the training exercises and courses offered. Many reservists use their annual vacations to attend exercises essential to developing their military skills. This is a great price for them to pay and for their families to have to forfeit a well deserved vacation to serve Canada.

If we are to have an effective volunteer reserve force and if Canada is to be able to meet its international commitments we must take steps to ensure that reservists are able to get the training they need and the time required to get that training.

This bill will enable reservists employed by the federal government to be given up to a two month leave of absence to attend reserve training and exercises. This bill in a small way seeks to ensure that the Government of Canada lead the way to demonstrate leadership by ensuring that the federal government provides leadership of all Canadian employers in facilitating the development and professionalism of the Canadian reserve force.

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

Petitions

[Suzanne Tremblay, Bloc, Rimouski—Témiscouata, QC]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36, I have the honour to table two petitions signed by residents of eastern Quebec, mainly constituents from the ridings of Rimouski-Témiscouata and Bonaventure-Îles-de-la-Madeleine.

The date of December 5, 1990 is imprinted on the memory of the people of eastern Quebec as the sad day when the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation announced it was closing its three television stations located in Rimouski, Matane and Sept-Îles. This decision has had a very negative impact on the economy of the region. It has also limited considerably access to information.

These petitioners ask that CBC service be restored to Eastern Quebec so that the region will no longer be isolated and will be able, through this essential communication tool, to make a valuable contribution to the effective development of the francophone and Acadian communities of Canada.

[John Richardson, Liberal, Perth—Wellington—Waterloo, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to present three petitions on behalf of my constituents.

The first is dealing with the suspected cancellation of the VIA Rail service from Sarnia to Toronto which is the second most patronized route in Canada. This is about the 10th petition I have presented on this.

[John Richardson, Liberal, Perth—Wellington—Waterloo, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition states that the majority of Canadians pray that physicians in Canada should be working to save lives as most physicians agree and they petition we must not sanction suicide or euthanasia.

[John Richardson, Liberal, Perth—Wellington—Waterloo, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the third petition deals with the extension of societal privileges to same sex relationships and the amendments to the Human Rights Act to include the undefined phrase sexual orientation as a grounds for discrimination.

These petitioners have asked that Parliament not amend the human rights code, the Canadian Human Rights Act or Charter of Rights and Freedoms in a way which would tend to indicate societal approval of same sex marriages and/or allow adoptions.

[Gérard Asselin, Bloc, Charlevoix, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure of tabling, a petition regarding the 1990 closure of CBC's television stations in Sept-Îles, Matane and Rimouski.

According to these petitioners, this decision has had disastrous effects on the people both in terms of the economy and in terms of the right to information. It has resulted in many jobs being lost, has not produced the expected benefits as far as restoring the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's financial health is concerned, and all the while the people of Eastern Quebec have been deprived of a communication tool essential to the effective development of the community.

The petitioners ask that CBC stations in Eastern Quebec be reopened immediately.

[Colleen Beaumier, Liberal, Brampton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition from the residents of Brampton calling upon parliamentarians to encourage the flying of the UN flag throughout Canada in recognition of the fine work being done by our UN peacekeeping troops throughout the world.

[Yvan Bernier, Bloc, Gaspé, QC]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36, I am pleased to table a petition signed by people from the Lower St. Lawrence and the Gaspé Peninsula concerning the closure of Radio-Canada's regional stations in Matane, Rimouski and Sept-Îles.

The people who took the time to sign this petition denounce the cuts made in the regions by Radio-Canada, the French network of the CBC. I want to point out that Radio-Canada cut almost 2,000 hours of regional programming, so that regionally-produced programs have all but disappeared.

When Radio-Canada acts as it did, communities such as ours that are located far from major centres lose not only jobs but mostly a communication tool allowing us in the east to communicate with one another and tell major centres and governments about ourselves.

I therefore table this petition.

[Ronald J. Duhamel, Liberal, St. Boniface, MB]

Mr. Speaker, in the first instance the petitioners point out that seniors have contributed and continue to contribute significantly to the quality of life that we enjoy in Canada today. They point out that as the population ages there will be a need for more housing, more

affordable and accessible health care and more appropriate and adequate pensions.

They ask government that whenever it undertakes any legislative or program changes, it reflect upon its seniors, their contributions and the changing demographics in Canada.

[Ronald J. Duhamel, Liberal, St. Boniface, MB]

Mr. Speaker, in the second instance we have petitioners who condemn abuse in the media, whether it be physical abuse, abusive language or other forms of abuse. They point out that abuse often counteracts the efforts of parents to raise their children. They also point out that abuse is not necessary in order to entertain or to inform.

[Jan Brown, Reform, Calgary Southeast, AB]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36, I am pleased to present a petition duly signed by 95 constituents from my riding of Calgary Southeast.

These 95 constituents are petitioning Parliament to use trade sanctions to urge the communist government in Hanoi, Vietnam to eliminate human rights abuses, establish a multi-party democracy by the means of free elections, respect human rights, release all political prisoners and respect religious freedom.

Finally, the petitioners urge that Parliament make representation to the United Nations High Commissioner to ensure that all Vietnamese refugees are treated with fairness and dignity.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—Woodbine, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to table a petition from a group of constituents who wish for the government to toughen the Young Offenders Act. It is my duty to table over 150 signatures from my riding.

[John Cummins, Reform, Delta, BC]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36, I am pleased to present the following petition which reads in part: "Your petitioners pray and request that Parliament not amend the human rights code, the Canadian Human Rights Act or the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in any way which would tend to indicate societal approval of same sex relationships or of homosexuality, including amending the Human Rights Code to include in the prohibitive grounds of discrimination the undefined phrase sexual orientation.

[John Finlay, Liberal, Oxford, ON]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36, I have the duty to present two petitions today.

The first petition is from 534 constituents of the riding of Oxford. These petitioners request that Parliament not amend the human rights code, the Canadian Human Rights Act or the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in any which would tend to indicate societal approval of same sex relationships or of homosexuality, including amending the human rights code to include in the prohibitive grounds of discrimination the undefined phrase sexual orientation.

[John Finlay, Liberal, Oxford, ON]

The second petition, Mr. Speaker, I present on behalf of my colleague from Kent. This petition is signed by hundreds of the constituents of Kent who call upon the government support a domestic ethanol industry in light of the fact that a $170 million plant for Chatham is in jeopardy without federal involvement. Since legislative support of ethanol is Liberal policy, the petitioners want it to become government policy.

[Jay Hill, Reform, Prince George—Peace River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36, I am presenting six petitions on three subjects on behalf of the constituents from Cecil Lake, Tumbler Ridge, Fort St. John, Dawson Creek and other communities in the Prince George-Peace River riding.

The first two petitions call upon the House of Commons to act to extend protection to unborn children by amending the Criminal Code.

[Jay Hill, Reform, Prince George—Peace River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the next two petitions request that Parliament not amend the human rights code, the Canadian Human Rights Act or the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in any way which would tend to indicate societal approval of same sex relationships or to include sexual orientation explicitly in the prohibited grounds for discrimination.

[Jay Hill, Reform, Prince George—Peace River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the last two petitions are petitioning Parliament to make no changes to the law which would allow or sanction assisted suicide or passive or active euthanasia.

[René Canuel, Bloc, Matapédia—Matane, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to table today in this House a petition that circulated in my riding and in other eastern Quebec ridings. The stations in Matane, Sept-Îles and Rimouski closed down in 1990, which led to job losses and deprived the population of important communication and development vehicles.

This petition asks the federal government to reopen Radio-Canada television stations in eastern Quebec so that the population can be served well by state television. I hope that this House will take the petitioners' request into consideration.

[Reg Alcock, Liberal, Winnipeg South, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I wish to present a petition of Ayub Hamid, Kalid Igbal, Golam Kibra and 236 others who are calling upon the Government of Canada to take the lead and use its influence in the UN to take any and all actions required to restore the territorial integrity of Bosnia.

[Bob Mills, Reform, Red Deer, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it is with pleasure that I present a petition today signed by some 1,100 constituents of Red Deer.

By signing the petition these citizens are expressing to the government their sentiments that it is time to take harsh action against young offenders. Currently our Young Offenders Act has many deficiencies. Our penalties must be designed to fit the crimes. It is my pleasure to present the petition today.

[Tom Wappel, Liberal, Scarborough West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to present two petitions on behalf of residents of the communities of Millgrove, Carlyle, Waterdown and Branchton in the Hamilton area of Ontario.

The first one prays that Parliament act immediately to extend protection to the unborn child by amending the Criminal Code to extend the same protection enjoyed by born human beings to unborn human beings.