Debates of Dec. 2nd, 1996

Copyright

[Jim Abbott, Reform, Kootenay East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the heritage minister and her department are ramming Bill C-32 which amends Canadian copyright law through committee. However today in Geneva, Canadian government officials are participating in discussions on intellectual property rights, copyright. These international treaties will render Bill C-32 obsolete before they are even debated in this Chamber.

Does the heritage minister have any idea about what is going on? Why are we wasting our time in committee?

[John Manley, Liberal, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, Canada is participating in the international copyright negotiations that are going on in Geneva under the auspices of the World Intellectual Property Organization. This is normal. I am sure the hon. member would not expect that we would do other than participate in these discussions.

I am sure he is also aware that in the case of many of these agreements, Canada does not necessarily sign on. For that matter, if agreements were entered into at an international level that required obligations on the part of Canada which were inconsistent with the provisions of our copyright law and to which we wished to subscribe, then of course we would present the appropriate legislation to Parliament.

[Jim Abbott, Reform, Kootenay East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is no surprise that the heritage minister did not stand, even though Bill C-32 was brought to this House under the heritage minister.

I ask again. Considering that the legislation which is presently before committee was brought forward by the heritage minister and that Canadian officials are presently in Geneva negotiating on copyright legislation that very well may end up making Bill C-32 redundant, can she possibly explain to the House what is going on and who is in charge?

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

Mr. Speaker, I can only speak on behalf of the members of Parliament who have participated in the process over the last number of months. I believe they have heard 60 representations which represent thousands of Canadians. It is a very significant piece of legislation and will complement existing copyright laws which date back a number of years.

I only hope that the work the members of the committee have put into the copyright process will be respected. I certainly have no reason to suspect that the work of the members is irrelevant. In fact members on all sides have made very significant contributions. We expect to entertain approximately 60 or 70 amendments precisely because of the work by members of the standing committee.

Canadian Airlines

[Svend Robinson, NDP, Burnaby—Kingsway, BC]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Transport and concerns Canadian Airlines.

As the minister knows, it has been federal Liberal and Conservative deregulation policies that have led to massive overcapacity and empty seats and destructive competition in the airline industry.

Will the minister ensure the level of federal funds needed to keep Canadian Airlines flying, bearing in mind that the B.C. government alone has committed over $12 million? Most important, will the government show leadership and put in place policies necessary to stabilize the airline industry and to ensure the continued long term survival of Canadian Airlines?

[David Anderson, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I am always amazed by the New Democratic Party's enthusiasm for moving forward into the past.

We have a deregulated system now which has created dramatic opportunity, first for Canadian consumers for whom the whole air transport system is set up. They have more choice, cheaper fares and they are using these fares in occupying these seats more frequently.

Deregulation has increased, in addition, the jobs available to Canadians as flight attendants, ticket agents, machinists and pilots. The whole industry has benefited by increased employment.

Again, the hon. member and his party would prefer to cut out those jobs and go back to the old system of regulation where fares would be, I point out, approximately $1,700 across this country instead of an average of $700. That is their policy, Raise fares, reduce competition, reduce jobs and in turn have people travel on foreign airlines instead of Canadian.

Canada Savings Bonds

[Jean Payne, Liberal, St. John's West, NL]

Mr. Speaker, the sales for Canada savings bonds have been released and I notice that they are looking very good. I wonder if the Minister of Finance could tell us what these figures mean to Canada savings bonds.

[Paul Martin, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I would be delighted to. As the hon. member knows, this is the first year of the new government retail debt agency, Canada Investment and Savings. In this, the first year, I am delighted to say that 1996 Canada savings bonds sales have totalled $5.7 billion, an increase of 24 per cent over last year.

After redemptions the sales were 38 per cent higher than last year. This reflects partially certainly the innovative 10 year guaranteed minimum pricing structure that is so well suited to Canadians.

For those who might not have had a chance to buy Canada savings bonds and who would like to, the government will be introducing a new retirement savings product to be launched in February in time for the RRSP season.

I would like to thank all participating employers for their efforts and all Canadians who bought Canada savings bonds.

International Development Assistance

[Don Boudria, Liberal, for the Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to section 5 of the International Development Assistance Act, it is a pleasure to table, in both official languages, two copies of an order in council to be presented in this House.

In addition, I am also tabling a document describing the procedure that applies in this case. The order in council is tabled on behalf of my colleague, the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Government Response To Petitions

[Karen Kraft Sloan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to three petitions.

Committees Of The House

[Lyle Vanclief, Liberal, Prince Edward—Hastings, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present the third report of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food. It deals with Bill C-60, the Canadian Food Inspection Act. I am proud to report this bill with several amendments.

Income Tax Act

[Paul Martin, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-69, an act to amend Income Tax Act, the Income Tax Application Rules, the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act, the Canada Pension Plan, the Children's Special Allowances

Act, the Cultural Property Export and Import Act, the Customs Act, the Employment Insurance Act, the Excise Tax Act, the Old Age Security Act, the Tax Court of Canada Act, the Tax Rebate Discounting Act, the Unemployment Insurance Act, the Western Grain Transition Payments Act and certain Acts related to the Income Tax Act.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed.)

Excise Tax Act

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, for Minister of Finance]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-70, an act to amend the Excise Tax Act, the Federal-Provincial Fiscal Arrangements Act, the Income Tax Act, the Debt Servicing and Reduction Account Act and related Acts.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed.)

Tobacco Act

[David Dingwall, Liberal, Minister of Health]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-71, an act to regulate the manufacture, sale, labelling and promotion of tobacco products, to make a consequential amendment to another act and to repeal certain acts.

(Motion deemed adopted and bill read the first time and printed.)

Firearms Sunset Act

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

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-357, an act to provide for the expiry of gun control legislation that has not proven effective within five years of coming into force.

Mr. Speaker, today I am reintroducing an amended version of my firearms law sunset act which I first introduced in this House on September 28, 1995. My bill is the total opposite of Bill C-68 and the regulations tabled by the Minister of Justice last week.

Bill C-68 and any subsequent decrees issued by the minister are based on his opinion and the false hope that they will somehow improve public safety.

The reason I say my bill is the opposite of Bill C-68 is that my firearms law sunset act is based on the premise that any gun control laws passed by the government should be automatically repealed after five years unless they can pass a public safety test administered by the auditor general.

The constitutionality of Bill C-68 is being challenged in court by four provinces and two territories. They are also opting out of the unreasonable burden of administering this federal boondoggle. My bill will be supported by people and politicians in these provinces.

Bill C-68 will guarantee that gun controls are both costly and ineffective, whereas my bill will guarantee that every gun control law has to be both successful and cost effective in saving lives and reducing the criminal use of firearms. People arguing against my bill would have to argue that they support gun control even if it does not work and no matter how much it costs.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed.)

Petitions

[Gilles Bernier, Independent, Beauce, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to table a petition signed by 1,810 residents of the riding of Beauce, Quebec, Canada, all of whom are Canadians but are receiving a U.S. pension. Their U.S. pension has been reduced by 25.5 per cent since the amendments to the Canada-U.S. income tax treaty came into effect. These pensioners are being penalized, and this reduction represents a major drop in their income. Furthermore, some of these people are already receiving social assistance.

I table this petition before Parliament in the hope that a solution will be found to compensate for the loss of income of these 1,810 residents of the riding of Beauce and others as well.

[Paul Szabo, Liberal, Mississauga South, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have three petitions today. The first comes from Hampton, Ontario.

The petitioners draw to the attention of the House that our police and firefighters place their lives at risk on a daily basis as they serve the emergency needs of all Canadians. They also state that in many cases the families of officers who are killed in the line of duty are often left without sufficient financial means to meet their obligations.

The petitioners therefore pray and call on Parliament to establish a public safety officers' compensation fund to receive gifts and bequests for the benefit of families of police officers and firefighters killed in the line of duty.

[Paul Szabo, Liberal, Mississauga South, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition comes from Stony Plain, Alberta. The petitioners draw to the attention of the House that managing the family home

and caring for preschool children is an honourable profession which has not been recognized for its value to our society.

The petitioners therefore pray and call on Parliament to pursue initiatives to assist families that choose to provide care in the home for preschool children, the chronically ill, the aged or the disabled.

[Paul Szabo, Liberal, Mississauga South, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the final petition comes from River Bourgeois, Nova Scotia.

The petitioners draw to the attention of the House that consumption of alcoholic beverages may cause health problems or impair one's ability and specifically that fetal alcohol syndrome and other alcohol related birth defects are 100 per cent preventable by avoiding alcohol consumption during pregnancy.

The petitioners therefore pray and call on Parliament to enact legislation to require health warning labels to be placed on the containers of all alcoholic beverages to caution expectant mothers and others of the risks associated with alcohol consumption.

[Rose-Marie Ur, Liberal, Lambton—Middlesex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to table a petition signed by the constituents of Lambton-Middlesex and surrounding areas which has been duly certified by the clerk of petitions, pursuant to Standing Order 36.

The petitioners request that the House of Commons enact legislation or amend existing legislation to define marriage as the voluntary union for life of one woman and one man to each other to the exclusion of all others.

[Chuck Strahl, Reform, Fraser Valley East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions to present today. The first has to do with the Canadian Human Rights Act and the charter of rights and freedoms. The petitioners ask that they not be amended in any way that would indicate societal approval of same sex relationships or homosexuality. They ask that Parliament deal with that issue, which unfortunately it already has.

[Chuck Strahl, Reform, Fraser Valley East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, for the second petition I would like to add another 1,000 names to a petition with some tens of thousands of names that I have presented on this subject. The petition deals with serious personal injury crimes and sexual offences involving children.

The petitioners ask that the government amend the Criminal Code to allow for post-sentence supervision and/or detention of those involved in sexual offences against children, a public notification of sex offenders being released, a central registry including fingerprints that would be available to all people, a registry for life of those people convicted of this type of offence, a Criminal Code amendment to prohibit pardons and to prohibit for life all those convicted of sex offences against children from holding positions of trust and responsibility regarding children. It is a pleasure to present this petition.

[Werner Schmidt, Reform, Okanagan Centre, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I have four petitions to present. In the first your petitioners pray and request that Parliament not amend the Constitution as requested by the Government of Newfoundland and refer the problem of educational reform in that province back to the Government of Newfoundland for resolution by some other non-constitutional procedures.

[Werner Schmidt, Reform, Okanagan Centre, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition is signed by people who pray and request that Parliament not amend the Human rights code, the Canadian Human Rights Act or the charter of rights and freedoms in any way which would tend to indicate societal approval of same sex relationships or of homosexuality, including amending the human rights code to include in the prohibited grounds of discrimination the undefined phrase sexual orientation.

[Werner Schmidt, Reform, Okanagan Centre, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the third petition deals with Bill C-205, introduced by the hon. member for Scarborough West, that it be passed at the earliest opportunity so as to provide in Canadian law that no criminal profits from committing a crime.