Debates of March 23rd, 1995

Indian Affairs

[Ron Irwin, Liberal, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development]

Mr. Speaker, the question was whether our concept is based on the municipal form of government as espoused by the Reform Party? Certainly not.

[John Duncan, Reform, North Island—Powell River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I expected more of a complete answer.

Can the minister confirm that his $5 million policy paper states that he is making provincial participation mandatory in self-government negotiations?

[Ron Irwin, Liberal, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development]

Mr. Speaker, what was proposed at the Quebec conference of ministers and aboriginal leaders by the federal government is that we would have a broad consultation process. This is the $5 million alluded to by my friend.

Sixty-nine submissions were received by aboriginal people. I have met with about half of the provinces. I am trying to gain a consensus that there is a good starting document there and not a document that will be repudiated from day one and wind up on someone's shelf to be forgotten.

I am not looking for 100 per cent but certainly for some form of consensus. If I do not get it I will come forward with the policy as we proposed in our red book.

Burundi

[Maud Debien, Bloc, Laval East, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the situation in Burundi is deteriorating significantly and the risks of a Rwanda-like genocide are increasing. The official opposition is very concerned about this and has asked the government several times to take the steps required to prevent such a massacre.

How can the Minister of Foreign Affairs reconcile his government's position on this matter with the comments made this week on CBC by his representative in Bujumbura, who said that everything was going well in Burundi?

[André Ouellet, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I wish to remind the hon. member of what I said before in this House, namely that Canada, too, was concerned about what is happening in Burundi. In addition, I would like to correct the hon. member, who attributes to our representative in Burundi an assessment of the situation which is not the one he gave.

On the contrary, he explained that the situation was difficult but that, despite these difficulties, it should not be compared to the situation that existed in the days preceding the massacre in Rwanda. I think that, objectively, she should not ascribe to our representative comments he has not made.

[Maud Debien, Bloc, Laval East, QC]

Mr. Speaker, could the minister tell us what steps the government has taken to help stop the escalation of the ethnic conflict in Burundi and, among other things, to promote the creation of an international inquiry

commission on the October 1993 events, as the participants in the regional conference on Burundi requested last month?

[André Ouellet, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, again, I think it is important to remind you that the government did not wait for the opposition to ask us a question in this House before taking action. My colleague, the Secretary of State, travelled to Burundi to attend a conference with officials from other countries concerned about this matter and about Rwanda.

Several weeks ago, we appointed a special roving ambassador on these issues, Ambassador Dusseault, who, week after week, visits Burundi, Zaire, Rwanda and other countries interested in what is happening over there.

Of course, Canada wants to avoid a bloodbath. Of course, these ethnic conflicts are reprehensible, but I will remind the hon. member that the representations we have made at both the UN and the Organization of African Unity to try to convince other countries to join Canada in taking action cannot be attributed to Canada's lack of interest. On the contrary, we are very interested, very concerned, but Canada alone cannot resolve this persistent ethnic problem in Africa.

National Defence

[Pierrette Ringuette-Maltais, Liberal, Madawaska—Victoria, NB]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of National Defence.

In previous years his department has been contracting seasonal work to retired military personnel receiving a pension, thus double dipping and leaving in the cold many Canadians seeking employment.

Can the minister tell us if his department will continue to hire retired military personnel or will civilians have a fair opportunity to work at these seasonal jobs?

[David Collenette, Liberal, Minister of National Defence and Minister of Veterans Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind the House that retired military personnel have the same rights and privileges as all Canadians.

One set of guidelines we follow is federal legislation. All Canadians have an opportunity to compete for these jobs. We are monitoring the situation to see that there are no instances in which people are being favoured because of their former involvement in the armed forces. It is of great concern to us.

The hon. member should know that everyone should be treated fairly, and they will be.

Gun Control

[Garry Breitkreuz, Reform, Yorkton—Melville, SK]

Mr. Speaker, on Monday night 99 per cent of the members of the Saskatoon Police Association voted in opposition to Bill C-68, the Firearms Act.

Polls taken in Estevan, Prince Albert, Weyburn and Moose Jaw show 95 per cent of the city police are opposed to this bill.

Who is the Minister of Justice going to believe, the chiefs of police sitting in their offices or the real police experts out on the streets catching the real criminals?

[Allan Rock, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, like all other information that derives from the gun lobby, I urge the hon. member to check for the real facts.

Let us determine first of all how many officers in those departments participated in the so-called vote. Let us find out what they were asked and the reason for the meeting being called in the first place.

The Saskatchewan Federation of Police Officers intends to conduct its own poll and we shall see what happens when all the police in the province are asked the full question.

There is no doubt there are individual police officers, individual police chiefs, who do not agree with all parts of the firearms bill. However, while it is not unanimous, we continue to believe this bill has the support of the vast majority of Canadians and police officers.

[Garry Breitkreuz, Reform, Yorkton—Melville, SK]

Mr. Speaker, we have also had many chiefs of police contacting us, vehemently opposed to more gun controls. The Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities is overwhelmingly opposed. It had over 600 members at the meeting. The Saskatchewan legislature is unanimously opposed to C-68 and wants it withdrawn.

If the Prime Minister's claim is true that registering guns is no different than registering cars, will the minister allow the province of Saskatchewan to establish its own gun control laws?

[Allan Rock, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, there is no doubt that in this election year all sorts of things will happen in Saskatchewan and in its legislature.

Perhaps the members opposite can look at the facts of this case and examine the question that in Saskatchewan the fatality rate from firearms is 50 per cent higher than the national average. The suicide rate from firearms is twice the national average. Let us talk about community safety.

Indian Affairs

[Bernard Deshaies, Bloc, Abitibi, QC]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Indian Affairs.

A report from the Department of Indian Affairs on the transport of food to the far north links the health problems of aboriginal people to the lack of affordable nutritious food.

How does the minister explain that the millions of dollars spent by his department still have not made a significant difference, and that the price of food remains two to three times higher in these regions than in the south?

[Ron Irwin, Liberal, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development]

Mr. Speaker, we will be allocating in the range of $16 million toward food mail. The problem is recognized. The hon. member for Saint-Jean repeatedly brings it to the attention of the House.

We are trying to break up the food into a more definitive process: perishable and non-perishable. It will continue to be a problem. I can only commit to the member that my ministry will be there. We will be lobbying governments and, hopefully, the province of Quebec, which has a responsibility. The people living there are not only citizens of Canada, they are also citizens of Quebec. I would like to work co-operatively with Mr. Cliche and with the premier to solve the problem in Quebec.

[Bernard Deshaies, Bloc, Abitibi, QC]

Mr. Speaker, my supplementary is for the same minister.

In the last four years, over 400 pages of studies and reports have been produced by that department on the Omnibus air service and the nutritional status of the Inuit.

Based on these studies, can the minister explain why the cost of food remains so high, in spite of substantial subsidies?

[Ron Irwin, Liberal, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development]

Mr. Speaker, the answer is quite obvious. It is distance. It costs money to send food that far.

The alternative to living as Canadians in their environment is to move everybody to Montreal, which we do not want. We want them to live there. We want them to live peacefully in our country and with good health. I am committed to working with the hon. member, the Bloc party and the province of Quebec to do a better job.

National Capital Commission

[Ken Epp, Reform, Elk Island, AB]

Mr. Speaker, earlier this month the general manager of the National Capital Commission proposed a grand plan which would cut 28 per cent from the NCC's budget. But hear this, the 1994 public accounts indicate that NCC's outstanding commitments for office space leasing will increase from $1 million to $4 million per year thereafter.

How can the minister explain this 300 per cent increase?

[Albina Guarnieri, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member knows that the National Capital Commission has an arm's length arrangement with the ministry and is responsible for the management of its funds.

[Ken Epp, Reform, Elk Island, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the taxpayers of the country have an arm's length relationship with their money too, and they want answers.

Our research shows that the NCC leases no office space other than the new NCC Chambers Building. I have a surprise for the House. José Perez was handed the contract to build and lease the Chambers Building with no tender. His competitors cried foul, to no avail.

Why does the government not order a public inquiry into the whole affair of Mr. Perez? What is to hide?

[Albina Guarnieri, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, I will be happy to relay the hon. member's concerns to the minister. Since the question deals with a specific accusation, I would be happy to provide more details.

Rail Strike

[Tony Valeri, Liberal, Lincoln, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have had many calls from small and medium size businesses that are absorbing additional costs because of the rail strike. Other constituents have called saying they will be laid off soon if the rail strike continues.

Can the Minister of Industry explain to the House and, in particular, to those Bloc members who are holding up this back to work legislation just what this strike is costing Canadian industry and what it is costing the business constituents in each and every one of our ridings?

[John Manley, Liberal, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that the hon. member indicates an interest in this important question. Evidently some members do not understand

that as they delay passage of the back to work legislation they are affecting the jobs and the incomes of Canadians across the country.

According to the President of the Canadian Manufacturers Association, this strike is costing Canadians over $3 billion per week in lost profits and productivity. The jobs of Canadians are in the hands of members of the Bloc and members of the NDP. I would like to know where the premiers of the provinces of Quebec, Ontario, Saskatchewan and British Columbia are. Why are they not calling on the separatists and the NDP to get these people back to work?

Ethics

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the Prime Minister said in the House that senior public servants working for or against political parties were not governed by the act which prohibits them from conducting such activities. Moreover, the Prime Minister claimed that the Supreme Court had invalidated the applicable legislative provision.

Can the President of the Treasury Board confirm that this provision in the Public Service Employment Act is still in effect, and can he tell us if the Treasury Board always applies the legislation in an unbiased way?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, President of the Treasury Board and Minister responsible for Infrastructure]

Mr. Speaker, the answer was given yesterday by the Prime Minister. I think that is the valid answer.