Debates of June 12th, 1995

Floods

[Monte Solberg, Reform, Medicine Hat, AB]

Mr. Speaker, floods ravaged southern Alberta last week affecting High River, Pincher Creek, Fort Macleod, Lethbridge, and the community of Medicine Hat.

Friday night the South Saskatchewan River peaked at almost 10 metres above normal, forcing the evacuation of 5,000 people from Medicine Hat. Hundreds of homes were affected and acres of real estate were submerged. It was the worst flooding in over 100 years. Now with the receding of the floodwaters comes the back breaking and dirty job of cleaning up.

While it is too soon to tally the damage, by all accounts it will be in the tens of millions of dollars. In the wake of a calamity like this it is hard to see the good but there is good. The concern, the kind words and the sweat on the brows of hundreds of volunteers are eloquent testimony to a community that would not stand idly by while its neighbours struggled.

I know I speak on behalf of the members for Macleod and Lethbridge when I say it is a great privilege to serve the people of southern Alberta who have shown great character in the face of adversity.

Transport Canada

[Bill Blaikie, NDP, Winnipeg—Transcona, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I rise to draw to the attention of all members of the House the Transportation Safety Board's report on the crash of an Air Manitoba flight at Sandy Lake on November 10, 1993.

The report finds that previous to the crash Transport Canada's audit and surveillance of Air Manitoba "did not uncover serious maintenance discrepancies that were present". In general it finds serious "shortcomings" in Transport Canada's "regulatory overview process of air carriers". It makes a number of recommendations to improve the audit.

Families of the victims of the crash are also concerned that when safety infractions are found by Transport Canada they are not then made public, depriving crew and the travelling public of information they need to make decisions.

This incident has raised serious questions about the effectiveness of Transport Canada's monitoring of safety regulations in the airline industry and thereby of the safety of airline crews and the travelling public.

I call on the Minister of Transport to address these problems with the greatest of urgency.

The Environment

[Jean Augustine, Liberal, Etobicoke—Lakeshore, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I extend my congratulations to the Environmental Centre for New Canadians which in partnership with Environment Canada and the Environmental Partners Fund established a very worthy environmental educational project. The creation of a multilingual resource centre which provides materials on the impact of pollutants on the environment will increase the diversity, experience and numbers of people involved in improving the state of our environment.

The centre's goal is to overcome the barriers new Canadians face in their attempts to seek information on a range of environmental issues. Their voices strengthen the efforts to improve our

environment, facilitating a better relationship with all levels of government, schools, corporations and environmental groups.

Our government along with several community partners in the metro Toronto area support the need for culturally and linguistically sensitive and relevant environmental information to diverse ethnic groups. Sustainable development can after all only be achieved through preventive environmental care by all Canadians.

The Philippines

[Rey D. Pagtakhan, Liberal, Winnipeg North, MB]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians of Filipino heritage join the Filipino people in their celebration today of the 97th anniversary of Philippine independence.

Anniversaries like this give us an occasion to recall the immortal writings of her national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal, and the bloody struggle that led to the triumph, and to renew the commitment to defend it at any cost. That proclamation of independence has since been a source of pride.

The Filipino people have also shown that democracy, a tool to secure freedom and dignity for the citizenry, can be restored without a drop of blood; witness the peaceful Aquino revolution of 1986.

Freedom is not an end in itself. It is a challenge to a higher calling: freedom to do good and thereby ensure human dignity for all.

Filipino Canadians who are proud of their new home and who pledge their undivided loyalty to Canada are equally proud to share this noble heritage.

I urge all colleagues to join Filipino Canadians nationwide on this very glorious occasion in the history of the Filipino people.

National Public Service Week

[John English, Liberal, Kitchener, ON]

Mr. Speaker, this week, June 11 to June 17, is National Public Service Week.

A prominent politician once remarked:

Public servants serve you right; indeed, often, they serve you better than your apathy and indifference deserve.

During this week Canadians should note the valued role that public servants play through the services they deliver.

The government recognizes and supports an efficient and strong public service. At a time when we are re-examining the role of government, public servants in my riding of Kitchener and throughout Canada are rising to the challenge to assist in tailoring a system that more effectively meets the needs of today's Canadians.

The excellence of the public service of Canada is recognized worldwide. I wish to extend my gratitude to all public servants who have offered services to Canadians in a manner second to none. I remain confident and look forward to a public service with a more defined role that is more satisfying, fulfilling and challenging for the 21st century.

Quebec Sovereignty

[Pierre De Savoye, Bloc, Portneuf, QC]

Mr. Speaker, today we wish to draw the attention of the House to the historic agreement endorsed by the Action démocratique du Québec, the Government of Quebec and the official opposition in Ottawa, the Bloc Quebecois. In response to the expectations of Quebecers, the team for change will put before Quebecers this fall a proposal for sovereignty for Quebec and an offer of economic and political partnership with Canada.

Faced with the atmosphere of resignation and inertia engulfing the "no" camp, the forces for change united to offer a plan for the future and invite Quebecers to say yes to themselves, to stand tall and to speak as equals to the other nations of this world.

We are all confident that this plan for partnership reflects the genuine and profound aspirations of the people of Quebec.

Liberal Party Of Canada

[Elwin Hermanson, Reform, Kindersley—Lloydminster, SK]

Mr. Speaker, along with millions of Canadians I am angry at the Liberal government for its frequent use of undemocratic tactics regarding firearms, employment equity, sentencing for hate crimes, and MP pension bills.

The Liberals are proving that they are no different from Mulroney's Tories who used procedural trickery to ram through the GST. Liberals have equaled Brian Mulroney when it comes to lack of fairness, honesty and integrity in the House.

What is worse, Liberals have got into bed with the separatists to expedite the hijacking of Parliament. They struck a deal with the Bloc so sovereignty could start by St. Jean Baptiste weekend.

Now it seems that the PQ-BQ alliance treats its members as ruthlessly as the Liberal government. Mr. Parizeau punished one of his members for voting against the PQ budget, just as the member from Notre-Dame-de-Grâce was punished for voting against the Liberal budget and three other Liberals were punished for voting against gun control.

It is clear the Liberals and the Bloc-PQ parties are old style political parties cut from the same cloth. They have no sense of fairness or democracy and are arrogant in the extreme.

Gun Control

[Judy Bethel, Liberal, Edmonton East, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to challenge the leader of the Reform Party to explain to the Canadian people why he is blatantly disregarding their expressed wishes by voting against Bill C-68, the firearms control legislation.

He is sanctimoniously paying lip service to his stated principle of casting his vote with the majority. Can he not hear the voices of the 71 per cent of Canadians, of the 58 per cent of Albertans and of the 79 per cent of women who believe that registering firearms will bring greater safety to our streets and in our homes, or is he just refusing to listen?

The leader of the Reform Party has offered no proof that he has consulted with his constituents in Calgary Southwest on gun control. Will he follow the example of his own MPs, the hon. members for Calgary West and Edmonton Southwest by seeking the collective wisdom of their constituents and supporting the legislation, or will he ignore the two-thirds of Calgarians who support registration of firearms? Canadians deserve an explanation.

Nigeria

[Jesse Flis, Liberal, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today marks the second anniversary of Nigeria's 1993 presidential election which led to Moshood Abiola being chosen as the first democratically elected leader of Nigeria.

Regretfully President Abiola has been prevented from assuming office by the military regime backed by General Sani Abacha. General Abacha has disbanded all elected bodies, jailed the president elect, closed newspapers, repressed labour unions and carried out public executions.

Nigerians have already demonstrated their readiness and enthusiasm for democracy. On behalf of the Government of Canada I call on General Abacha to respect human rights and the democratic process.

Nigeria must be free to choose its own leader and its own future.

Unemployment Insurance

[Michel Gauthier, Bloc, Roberval, QC]

Mr. Speaker, at a time when the economy is in low gear, with almost zero growth during the first quarter, the statistics tell us that for the sixth month in a row, there has been no net job creation in Quebec.

Meanwhile, the federal cabinet is looking at a new plan for reducing unemployment insurance benefits. Clearly, Ottawa has decided to reduce its deficit at the expense of the unemployed.

Will the Prime Minister confirm that the federal cabinet is putting the finishing touches on a plan to reduce unemployment insurance benefits that would cut $1.6 billion from the plan?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the government made a commitment to reform social programs. There will obviously be transfers from one program to another. At this point, all I can say is that this fall, we will have a bill on the subject. The minister is consulting with his cabinet colleagues and his provincial counterparts. Hon. members will know what the bill is about as soon as it is ready this fall.

[Michel Gauthier, Bloc, Roberval, QC]

Mr. Speaker, considering what was indicated in the last federal budget and what was leaked to the newspapers last weekend, the Prime Minister should give us some assurances or confirmation.

Now that for the past six months there has been no net job creation in this country, would the Prime Minister confirm that the plan now before cabinet would oblige young people entering the labour market to work for 26 weeks full time-six full months-before they were protected under the unemployment insurance plan? Is that what he has to offer the people of Shawinigan, which depends even more than other cities in this country on government programs?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, everyone knows that in the past 19 months since we came to power, the unemployment rate went down from 11.5 per cent to 9.5 per cent. We think we can do better. We must keep working on creating jobs. With changes like those we want to make in existing social programs in this country, we wish to provide an incentive for people to work instead of receiving social benefits. Social program reform is based on a desire to create jobs and help people to find work instead of staying home, to give them back the dignity of being able to work, which is something I am sure they all want.

[Michel Gauthier, Bloc, Roberval, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister can make pretty speeches and juggle the figures, but the fact remains that the number of workers who are no

longer entitled to unemployment insurance because of the government's cutbacks and are now on welfare is absolutely shocking.

That being said, how can he justify the fact that the unemployment insurance reform his cabinet, his government, is considering will, according to his own analysis, affect people with incomes of less than $25,000 annually, in other words, workers whose employment status is precarious, who are at the bottom of the wage scale, the neediest in our society, and that these people may be permanently disqualified from receiving unemployment insurance benefits as a result of his cutbacks?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, since this Parliament has been in session, we have been used to hearing the official opposition make similar predictions that have never come true.

I would simply ask the hon. member to wait until the bill is introduced in the House of Commons. Our objective is to help people on low incomes find jobs and to give them a chance to get back into the labour market. That will be the objective of the reforms proposed by the Minister of Human Resources Development.

[Christiane Gagnon, Bloc, Québec, QC]

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

The major proposed cuts to the UI program will primarily affect women and will do so in a very significant way. Indeed, women, who often hold the most precarious jobs, will be particularly affected by the proposed cuts.

Does the Prime Minister realize that, by increasing the number of hours of work required to be eligible for UI from the current level of 180 to 300 hours to somewhere between 450 and 700 hours, he is directly targeting women, who hold the vast majority of part time jobs in Canada, and that many of them will no longer be eligible for UI benefits?

[Lloyd Axworthy, Liberal, Minister of Human Resources Development and Minister of Western Economic Diversification]

Mr. Speaker, as the Prime Minister said, no decision has been made regarding the UI program. A bill will be tabled this fall but, again, there has been no decision yet.

I consulted Canadians, including Quebecers, and 60 per cent of them are asking for a UI reform that will promote work and a more equitable distribution of income. This is the purpose of the UI reform.

[Christiane Gagnon, Bloc, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, are we to understand that the minister is ruling out any cuts to the UI program? Or are we to understand that the federal government's answer to the women's march, which ended in Quebec City last week, is a program of UI cuts which will force women trying to re-enter the labour force to hold a full time job for six months to be eligible for UI benefits?

[Lloyd Axworthy, Liberal, Minister of Human Resources Development and Minister of Western Economic Diversification]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to point out to the hon. member that in the last several months, for example, by the previous changes to the Unemployment Insurance Act the government has provided additional benefits for close to 300,000 Canadians drawing unemployment insurance, of whom about 80 per cent were women. They gained an extra $1,000 per year income benefit. That was one of the direct results of our changes.

In the province of Quebec alone we have provided direct assistance to over 50,000 women for training and career development programs. We are introducing a special program for women to go on to graduate school in universities. We have established under the self-employment program special initiatives for women to set up their own businesses.

The hon. member for Rimouski-Témiscouata attended a meeting at the women's human resource centre in her riding, to help women find work.

We are very committed but we have to make changes in the programs so we can move from passive assistance to active support with new tools to help people get back to work.

Code Of Ethics

[Preston Manning, Reform, Calgary Southwest, AB]

Mr. Speaker, in the House on Friday the Deputy Prime Minister admitted that Howard Wilson, the government's much touted ethics watchdog, has no teeth and has been relegated to a very minor role on ethical questions.

"If there are questions about the ethics of the government, the ultimate arbiter of those questions is not a bureaucrat, it is the Prime Minister". Canadians will take little comfort in that revelation, given the government's mishandling of the Canadian heritage minister's unethical behaviour.

Since section 23 of the federal conflict of interest code has been violated by the heritage minister without reprimand or penalty, and since the Prime Minister is now the de facto ethics commissioner, will the Prime Minister tell us what parts of the code he is prepared to uphold and how he intends to enforce it?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the Deputy Prime Minister was absolutely right when she said it is the responsibility of the Prime Minister of the country to make decisions about the ethics of his ministers. I am

the one who named them, and I am the one who has the responsibility to dismiss them if ever I decide to do so.

In the case of the minister of heritage, I said very clearly last week that all he did was have a fundraising activity that was according to the laws of Canada. The names of the people involved are public. Everyone has admitted they have given money to the Liberal Party, just like money is given to the Reform Party and to all other parties. Everything is public.

I discussed that with the ethics commissioner, who is there to advise the Prime Minister. The final responsibility is the Prime Minister's. I always take it. I never run away from my responsibilities.

[Preston Manning, Reform, Calgary Southwest, AB]

Mr. Speaker, we are asking the Prime Minister to accept responsibility. We are not talking about fundraising.

The Prime Minister has code of conduct guidelines, which he waved around with great flourish at the beginning of the session. One section of it says that a public office holder shall take care to avoid the appearance of being placed under any obligation to any person that might profit from special consideration on the part of the office holder. The heritage minister broke this guideline. He did not avoid the appearance of conflict of interest.

If the Prime Minister assumes ultimate responsibility for the application of these guidelines, will he hold the heritage minister accountable for violating not some general thing about fundraising but this specific guideline in his own code of conduct guidelines?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, when we go to any fundraising activities we meet people who do business. I do that regularly, ministers have to do that regularly, and members of Parliament do that regularly. We meet with the Canadian people and some contribute to the good functioning of the democratic institutions of Canada. Everything is public.

The Reform Party is proposing at this time to make it even more open than it is today. It would like third party groups to finance while they are not running for office, to favour one cause or the other.

We say if people want to be elected to Parliament and have influence, they should run for a political party and raise the money according to the laws of Canada. That is exactly what this party is doing, the Bloc Quebecois is doing, the Reform Party is doing and the Conservative Party is doing. They go to the people of Canada and ask for contributions. The contributions are made public; everybody has access to these lists, and anyone can check at any time of the year. The list for last year will be published in the next few days. The Reform Party will check the list of people who gave to us and we will check the list of those who gave to the Reform Party.

[Preston Manning, Reform, Calgary Southwest, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I say to the Prime Minister that every day he pretends not to understand what the issue is he strengthens the public's suspicion that the government has something to hide.

The heritage minister clearly violated the Prime Minister's conflict of interest guidelines with his dollars for contracts dinner, and the Prime Minister has gone to great lengths to pretend that this indiscretion was merely some part of routine fundraising, which it was not and is not.

Will the Prime Minister stop this charade, admit that it is now his office that is managing the disclosure or cover up of ethics code violations and provide the House with a full and frank disclosure of the heritage minister affair-who was invited, who contributed what and who got what?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, to a very long question there is a very simple answer.

There is no cover up of any kind. The leader of the Reform Party, the third party, which is about to become the fourth party in Canada, knows the names of everyone who was invited and contributed. It is all well known. It is all public information. We have nothing to hide. We gave the list of the people who were present at this party. There is no cover up. They have the names of the people and the amount of money that was contributed. That is the way we have raised money for political parties in Canada for many, many years. That is the way the Reform Party does it all the time.

The leader of the Reform Party has a lot of those kinds of dinners all the time with a lot of people who contribute to his own party.