Debates of Oct. 4th, 1996

The Minister Of International Co-Operation

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

Mr. Speaker, in recent public statements, often partisan ones, the Minister of International Co-operation has criticized the official opposition for not having asked him anything in the House since his appointment.

In his speeches, the minister refers very little to international co-operation, preferring mostly to entertain his audience with questions relating to Canadian unity or the constitutional debate, since he realizes that his colleague in Intergovernmental Affairs enjoys precious little credibility in Quebec.

Yet, it would be worth his while to do more in his own area, and to question the unacceptable decisions made by his predecessor, André Ouellet, such as the abolition of the public awareness program, the use of double talk in defending human rights, the watering down of official development assistance through the NGOs and the propensity to favour only the private sector.

As you can see, we have an urgent situation here.

Canadian Aids Society

[Elijah Harper, Liberal, Churchill, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Canadian AIDS Society on its sixth annual National Aids Awareness Week which wraps up tomorrow. The annual AIDS Awareness Week helps increase awareness about AIDS and raise funds for services and programs.

Many people think that AIDS is only a problem in the cities, but it is also a serious threat in our northern communities. Ignorance of this threat makes it worse, as our people think they do not have to worry about it. There have been few AIDS programs in rural areas.

Healthy Thompson, a volunteer organization in the city of Thompson, is working with Health Canada to address this issue in the Thompson region. It is working to improve treatment, prevention and awareness of AIDS in this area. I applaud Healthy Thompson and I applaud all Canadians who have contributed to a successful week of AIDS awareness activities all over Canada.

Frazer Institute

[Stephen Harper, Reform, Calgary West, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I wish to draw to the attention of the House the September edition of Fraser Forum . To cut through the bafflegaff, two years ago the Fraser Institute developed a Canadian budget performance index to monitor the financial records of the country's 11 senior governments.

The index is composed of an array of variables dealing with both spending and taxation as well as deficits and debt. The best performer in 1995 was the province of Alberta, and Saskatchewan is forecast to be the best performer in 1996.

The worst? Over the two year period it is forecast to be the federal government, placing 10th out of 11 in 1995, and forecast to be no better than 9th for this year. This is all the more fascinating since much of federal budgetary progress in the past two years has been in the form of offloading to the provinces.

There are two lessons here. First, Canadians should not be conned about the federal fiscal situation. The federal Liberals have a record of brilliant propaganda and mediocre performance. Second, the House should be reminded once again of the invaluable public policy work that is regularly provided to Canadians by the Fraser Institute.

Liberal Government

[Maurizio Bevilacqua, Liberal, York North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, taking a tough line on violence against women and children, strengthening our gun control laws, reforming the Young Offenders Act, improving our sentencing system, reducing hate crimes, introducing measures to deal with high risk violent offenders, reversing Canada's growing crime rate; in 1993 this was the list of what the government promised to do to improve the lives and safety of Canadians.

In 1996 it is a list of what we have done. We promised to provide Canadians with safer homes and safer streets and we have delivered. Canada's crime rate fell again in 1995, its fourth straight drop, following 30 years of almost constant increase. Violent crime is down for the third year in a row and the homicide rate reached its lowest level since 1969.

This government has indeed made a difference.

Seniors

[Maurice Dumas, Bloc, Argenteuil—Papineau, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in 1990 the UN General Assembly designated October 1 as international senior citizens' day.

As the official opposition critic for senior citizens organizations and as a retired teacher, I would like to emphasize the important role played by seniors throughout the world.

The United Nations has asked the government and non-governmental organizations to contribute to a special UN fund on aging in order to increase public awareness throughout the world.

In a world where work and productivity are the order of the day, senior citizens must not be perceived as a burden on society. Every year, this international day dedicated to senior citizens reminds us that these people have contributed to the development of our society and will continue to do so according to their abilities.

I would like to pay tribute to all senior citizens throughout the world, and especially to those who built this country.

Yvonne Tousek

[Janko Peric, Liberal, Cambridge, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in order to create greater awareness of women's contribution to Canada, the federal government declared October Women's History Month. For this reason I wish to pay tribute to Yvonne Tousek who, with great determination, represented Canada at the Atlanta summer Olympics.

A member of the Cambridge Kips Gymnastics Club, Yvonne was named the 1995 athlete of the year by the Canadian Gymnastics Federation and was the only Canadian to reach the gymnastic finals, competing with the elite of the world and placing a very impressive 26th.

On behalf of the people of Cambridge, I congratulate Yvonne on her tremendous effort and excellent showing as a member of Canada's gymnastic team.

British Columbia

[Val Meredith, Reform, Surrey—White Rock—South Langley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, on Monday when the House was debating a motion on federal issues that are adversely affecting the province of British Columbia, we witnessed a litany of Liberal members inform this House that they are responsible for B.C.'s booming economy. Never mind that B.C. had been doing just fine prior to this government's election in 1993, the Liberals actually wanted everyone to believe that they were responsible.

However, yesterday the provincial Government of British Columbia announced that it has slashed the province's economic forecast from 2.7 per cent to just 1 per cent.

Well, if you want to claim the credit you also have to accept the blame. So can we expect the Minister of Transport to admit to British Columbians that his government's policies are responsible for this significant drop in B.C.'s rate of growth? Of course not, because this government's philosophy is accept the glory but put the blame on somebody else.

Job Creation

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

Mr. Speaker, my question is directed to the Deputy Prime Minister.

As he vaunted his government's performance on job creation, the Minister of Finance said that Canadians were doing well. However, in its latest report, the Conference Board estimates that in 1995, two million Canadians were jobless and 500,000 had left the labour force. This means, according to the Conference Board, that the real unemployment rate in 1995 was not 9.5 per cent but 12.5 per cent.

Considering the government's triumphant statement on job creation, could the Deputy Prime Minister explain why the real unemployment rate in Canada, which includes those who have given up looking for a job, is now 12.5 per cent?

[Sheila Copps, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, we are certainly not triumphant. We are still looking for ways to create new jobs. That is why I was somewhat surprised to hear that the leader of the Bloc Quebecois does not fully support the federal government's plans for the infrastructures program, which has created 80,000 jobs across the country, many in Quebec.

I am surprised he does not endorse the second infrastructures program, which could be expected to create more new jobs.

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

Mr. Speaker, I would like to correct a tendency of the Deputy Prime Minister to misquote people. The Leader of the Opposition said that he was prepared to support an infrastructures program, provided that, unlike the first program, which created temporary jobs,

this one would provide stable and well-paying jobs. That is what the leader of the opposition said.

How can the Deputy Prime Minister say, with the Minister of Finance, that Canadians are doing very well, when according to the Conference Board, two million people are still jobless and the figures of Statistics Canada indicate the government has created only 153,000 jobs since early 1996? These figures come from Statistics Canada, not from the Bloc.

[Sheila Copps, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, as long as there is a single unemployed person in this country, we have no reason to be triumphant. Someone who is unemployed means someone who cannot feed his family, and that is why we want to go ahead with the infrastructures program.

I can assure you that although the Bloc Quebecois did not support a program that created 80,000 jobs across this country, we, the Government of Canada, trust that we proceeded with a program that was supported by the people in their ridings.

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

Mr. Speaker, I thought the Deputy Prime Minister had a poor memory, but now I wonder whether she hears what is said.

I said that the Bloc supported the infrastructures program, provided there were durable, well-paying jobs. Did you hear me, Madam?

[The Speaker]

I may remind hon. members that I am the one who is supposed to hear.

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

Mr. Speaker, I wish some day you would make sure she understands what was said.

The Deputy Prime Minister refuses to face the facts. Not only has the labour market not returned to what it was in 1989, the real labour force participation rate is in free fall and the job-population ratio is stagnating. Even worse, Canadians are 7 per cent poorer than they were after the last recession, in 1989. If that is what you call doing well in this country, I wonder what the future will be like.

Does the minister realize that the labour market situation is a disaster and that the few jobs created by her government have failed to add to the wealth of Quebecers and Canadians? It is high time the government created stable, well-paying jobs.

[Sheila Copps, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, according to the Mayor of Montreal, one of the current problems is political instability. I would urge the hon. member opposite to consider what her own leader said yesterday when he referred to the infrastructures program as an election goody.

I am going to make sure we go ahead with this program, even if the Bloc Quebecois is now obstructing a program that created jobs in all ridings across the country, including the ridings with the highest rate of poverty and unemployment in the province of Quebec.

[René Laurin, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Mr. Speaker, what the Conference Board is saying is that low productivity is the primary reason for the lack of investment in research and development and the lack of job training. A distinction must be made.

My question is for the Deputy Prime Minister. If it had wanted to bring back the sort of job market the people of Quebec and of Canada had in 1989, in terms of the unemployment rate and the participation rate, this government would have had to create over one and a half million jobs since it came to power. According to its own statistics, the government has created only 669,000 jobs. It still has over 800,000 to go.

Does the Deputy Prime Minister realize that, at the rate this government is going with job creation, it would take at least four more years before we see conditions similar to those of seven years ago before the last recession?

[Sheila Copps, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, when we see the rate of unemployment among young people, and especially when we see that the majority of people who have left the province of Quebec this year are young people, it is a terrible loss.

What we want to do, through programs like the infrastructure program, which has not been supported so far by the Bloc Quebecois, by the way, is to restore some semblance of economic stability. For this to be possible, the Bloc Quebecois and the Parti Quebecois must respect the promises of Quebec's premier to set aside the quarrels over separation and work flat out on the economy.

That is what we want, but unfortunately it is not what the Bloc Quebecois is doing right now. Right now, it is creating political instability.

[René Laurin, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Mr. Speaker, is political instability the reason why New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland have an even higher rate of unemployment than Quebec? Yet there is no talk of separation in these provinces.

After 2 years and 10 months of power, this government is crowing about having created 669,000 jobs, while the former government created 930,000 jobs in the same length of time. For a government that was elected to create jobs, we have seen better.

When will this government stop patting itself on the back and admit that it has not yet delivered on its main election promise?

[Sheila Copps, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, what creates political instability is what they are now calling the referendum. There was one referendum, and Canada won. A second was held, and Canada won. Now, they are talking about trying again. As long as they keep on wanting to hold referendums, the Parti Quebecois and the Bloc Quebecois are adding to the climate of political instability, whose results we are now seeing.

Smuggling

[Art Hanger, Reform, Calgary Northeast, AB]

Mr. Speaker, on Wednesday one person of a group of ten who arrived in Canada from Pakistan died as their boat turned over in choppy waters on the St. Lawrence River near Cornwall en route to the United States.

Yesterday, Akwesasne police and the OPP charged a Canadian man with manslaughter in connection with this botched smuggling attempt. This incident illustrates a well documented problem, namely, the unchecked flow of illegal smuggling through the Akwesasne reserve.

Why has the solicitor general not clamped down on this activity? How many more must die before he takes action?

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

Mr. Speaker, it was a tragedy the other evening when lives were lost in an illegal attempt to smuggle people across the border.

The hon. member knows that any such activity is a criminal offence under the present laws of Canada, that the RCMP work closely with the American immigration and naturalization service. Every effort is made to discourage, detect and to prosecute this unlawful activity.

The reality is that some three years ago, the government created the anti-smuggling initiative which represented an increased investment of funds and people into the resources of the RCMP and related services to deal with smuggling in general, including the smuggling of people.

Our resolve in that regard continues. We shall do everything we can to detect and to prosecute such illegal activity.

[Art Hanger, Reform, Calgary Northeast, AB]

Mr. Speaker, unfortunately the reality is that the police are afraid to patrol the river at night because the criminal activity is a threat to their safety. Organized criminals, drug traffickers and bootleggers are running rampant on Akwesasne and Cornwall Island. Obviously the police on the reserve have been ineffective in doing their jobs.

Canadians are beginning to question if the police there are turning a blind eye to the smuggling and drug running that is going on. If the Akwesasne police will not do their jobs, maybe it is time to send in the RCMP or even the Canadian Armed Forces.

Will the solicitor general send in the RCMP to clean up the mess? Or will he continue to tolerate organized crime and give it free rein on Akwesasne?

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

Mr. Speaker, I can assure the hon. member that the RCMP are very much directly involved in efforts, not only in that area but across our border to deal with efforts to smuggle and to break Canadian laws.

Last weekend the solicitor general and I hosted a forum on organized crime in Canada. The forum was attended by representatives of police forces, provincial governments, prosecutors, defence counsel and working police officers. We reviewed not only the present state of the situation but also specific measures that can be taken to give police additional tools in their efforts to combat organized crime.

Arising from that conference, together with the government's demonstrated resolve to deal effectively with smuggling, I am certain that we will have even more effective steps in the months ahead to deal with this problem.

[Art Hanger, Reform, Calgary Northeast, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the police in the area and in other areas of this country have been seeking desperately the assistance and support of the federal government and have not been able to obtain such.

This tragic incident demonstrates the government's double standards in enforcing the laws in the nation. The government has made it a priority to arrest, detain, fine and even harass western farmers who want to do nothing more than to sell grain to the United States at the best price they can get. The solicitor general turns a blind eye year after year, even after people have died, from the rampant crime on Akwesasne.

Will the solicitor general commit today to end the double standard, enforce the law equally and send in whatever force necessary to stop the crime at the borders, in other words, do his job?

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

Mr. Speaker, I can only assure the hon. member that the RCMP take their responsibilities very seriously. Their resources were supplemented almost three years ago with the anti-smuggling initiative.

The border is never going to be entirely beyond the commission of offences. It is a 3,000 mile border and it is an open border. The hon. member knows the level of difficulty in policing it all.

We believe that the RCMP are doing as effective a job as they can under difficult circumstances and the government's resolve to do everything possible against smuggling is quite clear.