Debates of May 5th, 1995

2005 World Fair

[Michel Dupuy, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question. It is, indeed, an important question. We are in the process of reviewing Canada's participation in a major world fair. Consultations have to be conducted and that is what I am doing in conjunction with my colleagues. I hope that we will have an announcement to make very soon.

[Stéphane Bergeron, Bloc, Verchères, QC]

Mr. Speaker, given the fact that more than a third of the 45,000 public service jobs that will be cut as a result of the budget are in the federal capital region and that, according to the report tabled by his committee, this region would receive greater support than Calgary both in Canada and abroad, does the minister not agree

that the federal capital should be the logical and unanimous choice of cabinet?

[Michel Dupuy, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, I see that our colleague has a message for us, and I take good note of it.

The Economy

[Herb Grubel, Reform, Capilano—Howe Sound, BC]

Mr. Speaker, we should not yet panic about the unfortunate but strong and distinct signs of economic slowdown. However, we should be prepared for it to continue since Canada's record high real interest rates are sure to keep consumers from buying cars, homes and other durables.

My question for the Minister of Finance is how much economic slowdown and resultant reduced tax revenues can Canada take before the contingency reserve in his budget is exhausted and he will miss the deficit target he has vowed to meet?

[Doug Peters, Liberal, Secretary of State (International Financial Institutions)]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member has made some interesting points.

I point out to him however that our interest rate levels are below the levels that were in the budget. Economic growth is running in the first two months of this year at about 5 per cent above last year's numbers. Our deficit numbers are very much on target. The contingency reserves are not in any sense endangered by the present economic slowdown.

[Herb Grubel, Reform, Capilano—Howe Sound, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I do not believe this slowdown was in any of the models. It had never been put into the forecast about economic growth in the future. It comes as a total surprise.

The coming economic slowdown will cause higher unemployment. This will surely cause members of the Liberal cabinet and caucus to increase their resistance to spending cuts, cuts which they could not get themselves to approve during last year's boom.

Given the likely political resistance to essential spending cuts, will the minister support Reform's proposed balanced budget legislation which has been used in many other jurisdictions to protect taxpayers from shortsighted and selfish actions of politicians?

[Doug Peters, Liberal, Secretary of State (International Financial Institutions)]

Mr. Speaker, it is quite possible for the hon. member to gather economic statistics that are negative. However, there are a lot of positive things as well.

The member talks about slowing employment. Let me remind him that over the last 12 months 338,000 new jobs have been created in this country. The rate of GDP has been expanding. Exports were up 25 per cent in the first part of this year. Our deficit numbers for last year came in well below our target numbers.

If the hon. member's question was whether or not we would support his balanced budget amendment, the answer is no.

Job Creation

[Martin Cauchon, Liberal, Outremont, QC]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Secretary of State for Training and Youth. Recently, the Minister of Human Resources Development created a human resources investment fund in order to focus on employment priorities. In addition, 11 pilot projects directly related to job creation and the human resources investment fund were recently launched in Quebec.

Can the Secretary of State tell us about the objectives of the investment fund and about the link between the 11 pilot projects and this revolutionary investment fund?

[Ethel Blondin-Andrew, Liberal, Secretary of State (Training and Youth)]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Outremont for making the announcement in Quebec several weeks ago.

We are putting in place 70 pilot projects across Canada, 11 of which are in Quebec. These are new, innovative CECs that will deliver a simplified and more flexible set of re-employment measures. This is an indication of where this government wants to go with the new human resources investment fund.

Postal Services

[Paul Crête, Bloc, Kamouraska—Rivière-Du-Loup, QC]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Canadian Heritage. In the last budget, the Minister of Finance announced an 8 per cent cut, over a three year period, to the postal program designed to subsidize the distribution of magazines and publications in Quebec and in Canada.

How does the Minister of Canadian Heritage explain that his officials indicated to Canadian publishers that the cut affecting the postal program was 24 per cent over 13 months, instead of 8 per cent over three years, as announced in the budget?

[Michel Dupuy, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, I will check with my officials. This is obviously a very important issue for the magazine industry. As I

said before in this House, we are considering ways of changing the financial support we give that industry in order to ensure that it continues to flourish.

[Paul Crête, Bloc, Kamouraska—Rivière-Du-Loup, QC]

Mr. Speaker, one change is the fact that the program had a budget of $220 million in 1990, compared to $77 million this year. How can the Minister of Canadian Heritage, who claims to be the protector of the Canadian publishing industry, justify such drastic cuts to a program so vital for publishers?

[Michel Dupuy, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member should realize that we are in a period of fiscal austerity. Obviously, the fiscal restraint announced in the budget will have consequences. However, as I just said, we are currently looking at ways of readjusting our programs to avoid any adverse effect on that important industry.

[English]

Immigration

[Art Hanger, Reform, Calgary Northeast, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it is official. We have received a memo from OHIP stating that as of this April the federal government and not the provincial health plan will be paying for the costs of any health services consumed by people who are applying for refugee status, including I presume those refugee claimants with AIDS.

My question is for the Minister of Health. How is it that the federal government can afford to pick up the tab for tens of thousands of refugee claimants while simultaneously cutting funding for Canadians?

[Mary Clancy, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, for a long time we have heard the opinions of the Reform Party with regard to refugees and immigrants to Canada.

This government believes in health care for all Canadians. We believe in health care for people who come to this country. We do not cut people off and leave them to be sick in the streets.

[Art Hanger, Reform, Calgary Northeast, AB]

Mr. Speaker, because of Canada's bizarre appeal system for failed refugee claimants, many stay in the system for years without determination. By not funding health care for these people, Ontario expects to save an incredible $32 million which the federal government will now have to pay.

I ask the minister of immigration when will the government put Canadians first and reconsider the provision of expensive medical services for failed refugee claimants who are filing appeal after appeal just to avoid legal deportation?

[Mary Clancy, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, the minister of immigration has announced a number of reforms to the immigration system. We have announced a number of changes to the Immigration and Refugee Board. It is a shame that the hon. member cannot see his way clear from time to time to support these changes and reforms, as well as to support such bills as Bill C-41.

Cn Rail

[Nelson Riis, NDP, Kamloops, BC]

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

Today we learned of another astonishing initiative taken by this government, the privatization of CN and as we learned earlier presumably with no limit on foreign ownership.

When we consider this alongside the abandoning of the Crow rate, the reduced support for health care, post-secondary education, social programs, cultural programs and I could go on, this government is beginning to make Brian Mulroney's Tories look very good.

When we look at what this government has done over the last 18 months, what is it that is Liberal about this Liberal government?

[Douglas Young, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I regret that the hon. member's rose coloured glasses are not working today.

Many of the initiatives which have been undertaken by the department for which I am responsible have been very well received. I am astounded that the hon. member does not recognize the tremendous support in his province, for example, for the policies on international air routes and the bilateral agreements with the United States.

When the merger talks went on with Canadian Pacific and the offer from Canadian Pacific to buy the assets of CN in the east, everyone in the west wanted to make sure we had a national, viable, transcontinental railroad. That is what the purpose of all of this legislation will be: to make sure we have a strong railroad network in this country. That certainly is Liberal policy.

Underground Economy

[Paul Szabo, Liberal, Mississauga South, ON]

Mr. Speaker, on May 17 this House will debate a motion which recommends that we develop and pursue new initiatives to deal with the serious problems related to the underground economy. While the size of the underground economy is not certain, most agree that it is significant enough that we should pursue all reasonable steps to break the back of the underground economy.

My question is for the Minister of National Revenue. Given the broad concern that many Canadians have about the preva-

lence of the underground economy, would the minister advise the House of what commitments the government has taken to address the serious problem of the underground economy?

[David Anderson, Liberal, Minister of National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, it is appropriate that in the week when people have to file their taxes a question like this should come up.

I assure the hon. member and this House that the measures undertaken three weeks after this government took office are bearing fruit. We are succeeding in reducing the scope of the underground economy through a number of measures, in particular of course with greater enforcement.

We have done this in co-operation with the provinces. We now have agreements with every province in the country. We exchange information, carry out joint orders, work with them. We have agreements with the professional and trade associations in areas of particularly high non-compliance so that we can use the industries themselves.

I can assure the hon. member that the result of this has been a very substantial increase in the revenues coming to the government. I would like to point out that in the last month for which we have figures, revenues are up over 8.5 per cent of what they were a year ago. Some of this at least is due to the underground economy initiative, although I must admit that-

[The Deputy Speaker]

The hon. member for Elk Island.

Ethics

[Ken Epp, Reform, Elk Island, AB]

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

Canadians are becoming weary of the endless, empty talk on government ethnics; all talk, no action.

After appointing an ethics counsellor who is completely beholden to the Prime Minister, the government is now moving to draft a code of conduct for MPs and senators, but it has decided to let MPs and senators, under the influence of lobbyists, write their own code of conduct, with no input from regular Canadians. That sounds somewhat like putting Mr. Fox and Mr. Weasel in charge of chicken coop security.

Can the Deputy Prime Minister please tell the House how this obvious conflict of interest is going to enhance public trust of government?

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

Mr. Speaker, I suggest that the hon. member should read the motion before the House. The motion provides for a committee that will be in a position to take evidence from people right across the country and to incorporate those views into its recommendations.

Furthermore, when the hon. member speaks of foxes and weasels, I hope he is not looking at himself in the mirror.

Quebec City Bridge

[Philippe Paré, Bloc, Louis-Hébert, QC]

Mr. Speaker, my question is directed to the Minister of Transport. For many years, the federal government has been very negligent about maintaining the Quebec City bridge, which has led to major deterioration of the structure as a result of rust, so that today, repairs are necessary that will cost an estimated $40 million. Two years ago, the government turned the bridge and responsibility for its maintenance over to Canadian National.

Considering that the federal government is about to privatize CN, does the Minister of Transport intend to include in the appropriate legislation a provision that the potential buyer will be responsible for maintenance of the Quebec City bridge?