Debates of April 3rd, 1995

Government Spending

[Jan Brown, Reform, Calgary Southeast, AB]

Mr. Speaker, as Mrs. Simms adjusts to the new reality, we hear now she is on a taxpayer funded nine-day junket to the Philippines. While her colleagues in her department are packing their bags, Mrs. Simms and her assistant are packing theirs to go on this wonderful trip to the Philippines.

Given that her job is finished and given that this trip is redundant and frivolous, will the government commit here and now to cancelling this junket?

[Jesse Flis, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I do not know why but every time a member of Parliament or someone representing Canada goes to another country somehow members in the opposition feel it is a junket. This commitment was made in November of 1994. When we as a country make a commitment to another country we must honour and respect it.

To call this a junket is an offence to Canadians representing Canada abroad.

Kanesatake Reserve

[Claude Bachand, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, my question is directed to the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development.

Last week at a press conference, a Mohawk resident of Kanesatake condemned as unfair the system for allocating property unlawfully occupied in Kanesatake.

Does the minister still maintain that a process for allocating homes that ignores the expectations of law-abiding citizens while rewarding those who have no respect for the law is working well, as he said the other day in this House?

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

Mr. Speaker, I am well aware of the individual who has lodged the complaint. My friend should spend more time checking out that person's background. That is my primary observation of what is happening.

We have gone through an extensive list primarily through the Mohawk housing authority. Those people in need have been allocated the houses. The houses have been allocated to various people by letter. What fairer system is there than that?

[Claude Bachand, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I can inform the minister that I know what I am talking about. Right now, houses are allocated in Kanesatake as follows: whoever has the biggest gun has the biggest house.

Does the minister realize that his department's tolerant attitude merely encourages unlawful occupancy by residents and constitutes a disavowal of the current procedure of putting people on a waiting list?

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

Mr. Speaker, to my friend, because he is consumed with the Mohawks on this reserve, if he wants to talk about tolerance he should talk about the broader aspects of aboriginal people in Quebec.

I refer him to none other than Pierre Vallières, well known to separatists, who said yesterday that Mr. Parizeau recognizes aboriginal sovereignty but he does not give aboriginal people the means to achieve it. He also accused the Parti Quebecois government yesterday of discriminating against aboriginal people by denying them the means to self-government.

We are providing the means, they are using them fairly and we will work with them.

Government Appointments

[Jim Silye, Reform, Calgary Centre, AB]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Prime Minister.

Page 88 of the Liberal red book states the Conservative regime has deliberately undermined our national cultural institutions. Given this fact, how can he justify putting a former Conservative cabinet minister behind the wheel of the CBC, unless it is to score cheap political points for patronage?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I had the opportunity to observe Mr. Beatty in the House of Commons when he was a member of the government. He has a lot of experience on the Hill. He was elected some 20 years ago and he has learned a lot.

He was available to do the job and I know he will do his best to ensure the CBC becomes an organization which will adjust to the new realities. His experience in Parliament will help him a lot in communicating that goal to employees of the CBC and to the Canadian public.

[Jim Silye, Reform, Calgary Centre, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it is amazing how things change. A year ago the former cabinet minister was undermining national cultural institutions.

Given that the general public is fed up with making millionaires of defeated politicians and then watching them being appointed to federal boards and agencies, and given the government's hypocritical stance on patronage appointments to date, will the Prime Minister undertake to restore integrity, as he promised in the red book, to the appointment process by removing his exclusive franchise on the selection process and creating a non-partisan board to make these appointments, of course with his final approval?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the government is responsible. When we make bad appointments, the people know who is responsible. We cannot pass the blame to anybody else.

They are independent and when we give them an independent rule, we respect that. Just because somebody has been a member of Parliament does not mean they are disqualified. They had the honour of representing the Canadian public.

I see some members of the Reform Party. They are not all alike. I might be happy to appoint some of them some day.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh.

Kanesatake Reserve

[Maurice Godin, Bloc, Châteauguay, QC]

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

On Friday, the Solicitor General declared that the provinces have jurisdiction over casinos and that the Kanesatake Mohawks must obtain Quebec's authorization before building their casino. Quebec's Minister of Public Security has already stated that Quebec would refuse to approve the project for security reasons.

Will the minister indicate what kind of negotiations are going on between the federal government and the Kanesatake band council regarding the construction of a casino?

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

Mr. Speaker, the preface and the observation of the hon. member are correct.

The former government delegated jurisdiction for casinos to the provinces. The province of Quebec, at least from press reports, is not prepared to grant a casino in this case. No specific negotiations are going on with the Mohawk communities on casinos.

I have had general discussions with perhaps 100 First Nations across the country from time to time as to what is the state of casinos, what we can do to help them and this type of general discussion. There are no specific negotiations on this matter.

[Maurice Godin, Bloc, Châteauguay, QC]

Mr. Speaker, does the minister intend to clearly explain to the band council that it is up to Quebec to decide whether a casino will be built on Kanesatake?

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

Mr. Speaker, what is clear is that this does not fall under the jurisdiction of Quebec.

We have allowed Quebec through an agreement to do this job. Some provinces are doing it well. For instance in Saskatchewan they have an agreement where there will be two classes of casinos, one in Regina, four on aboriginal reserves with a split of profits. Some are in chaos but some are doing well.

We intend to work with the provinces and work with the aboriginal people to see if we can bring order to the chaos.

Hate Literature

[Reg Alcock, Liberal, Winnipeg South, MB]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Solicitor General.

Whether it be paper mail or electronic mail, hate mail is still hate mail. The availability of hate propaganda on the Internet is a matter of grave concern for many Canadians.

Can the Solicitor General inform the House on what is being done by the government to address the issue of the increasing availability of hate literature on the Internet?

[Herb Gray, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Solicitor General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, the government believes that the use of the Internet as a vehicle for hate propaganda or the facilitation of hate crimes is a serious concern that deserves to be dealt with.

At the same time, because of the structure of the Internet not coming within the clear jurisdiction of any country or countries creates a serious problem when it comes to dealing with the matter.

However, officials in my department, the Department of Justice and the department of heritage are working on possible solutions. Whether it involves the Criminal Code, telecommunications legislation or an international agreement, we are working to deal with this problem because we believe Canadians do not want to see the Internet misused for the purposes of hate propaganda.

Alliance Quebec

[Bob Ringma, Reform, Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the newspaper La Presse revealed some very interesting financial information about Alliance Quebec this weekend. According to a report, this group, devoted to protecting the rights of anglophones, has spent more than 75 per cent of its budget on salaries and rent. Its budget of $1.2 million comes from taxpayers. Membership in the organization continues to dwindle, while other groups are doing an excellent job while arranging for private funding.

Would the Minister of Finance explain how this type of special interest funding fits in with his budget commitment to change our approach to interest group funding?

[Alfonso Gagliano, Liberal, Secretary of State (Parliamentary Affairs) and Deputy Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, the government supports minority language groups across Canada, whose leaders have been democratically elected. These associations actively defend the interests of their communities, and the Government of Canada believes a dynamic anglophone community is important for Quebecers as a whole.

We believe it is possible to promote the French fact in Quebec, while recognizing and promoting the contribution of the anglophone minority.

[Bob Ringma, Reform, Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC]

Mr. Speaker, even Alliance Quebec's past president was quoted as saying that former employees and activists of Alliance Quebec end up becoming political attachés, bureaucrats and Liberal candidates.

The Canadian taxpayer deserves better. When is the government going to get rid of this Liberal lap dog that is masquerading as a special interest group?

[Alfonso Gagliano, Liberal, Secretary of State (Parliamentary Affairs) and Deputy Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, the last government lasted nine years. It supported the same organization. It is important that the Canadian government supports minority language groups outside and inside Quebec. That is what we are doing. That is what we will to continue to do.

Hepatitis C

[Pauline Picard, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Health. After nearly a year of hesitation and pussy-footing, the Red Cross is finally starting to contact individuals who were infected with hepatitis C between June 1990 and February 1995.

Can the minister tell us why the Red Cross has decided to contact only those who contracted hepatitis C between 1990 and 1995, when many were contaminated before 1990, as the Krever inquiry has shown?

[Diane Marleau, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, I can tell you that the hon. member recognizes that there are many jurisdictions involved in this issue. I must also say that a screening test was developed only in 1990. Of course, the Red Cross is just beginning its search. We are eagerly awaiting

Justice Krever's recommendations on contacting individuals infected with hepatitis C.

[Pauline Picard, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind the hon. minister that this decision was made by the Red Cross. Does she not realize that the Red Cross's decision not to contact individuals infected through blood transfusion before 1990 is unfair and puts the members of their families at great risk of being contaminated?

[Diane Marleau, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, I will repeat it in the other official language of the country. No test was in use or available in Canada prior to 1990 to detect hepatitis C.

The whole question of hepatitis C and traceback is one that is being seriously considered by all of the players in the country. That includes hospitals, provincial governments as well as the Red Cross and the federal government.