Debates of May 13th, 1996

Unemployment Insurance Reform

[Francine Lalonde, Bloc, Mercier, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the government has once again been asked to withdraw his reform proposal, this time by representatives of the coalition against the unemployment insurance reform.

Representatives of the CEQ, the CSN, the FTQ and the Fédération des femmes du Québec have made one last-ditch attempt at changing the government's mind. They asked the Bloc Quebecois to table more than 40,000 postcards addressed to the Minister of Human Resources Development in protest.

Indifference and rashness typify the attitude of every single government member. Do they not realize that young people, women, immigrants and regions struggling with high unemployment, just to name a few, will be hard hit by their reform?

Arrogance and disrespect have a price and there will indeed be a very high price to pay when the people will finally get a chance to rebuke this government for not listening, because enough is enough, after all.

The Senate

[Jim Abbott, Reform, Kootenay East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Alberta is the only province with a law requiring the election of senators. It has every right to ask the Prime Minister to respect its opinion.

The Senate today is a functioning part of the parliamentary law making process in Canada. The outdated anachronism of Senate porky patronage appointments is unconscionable and must end because senators today, while not elected, are making key decisions on everything from human rights legislation to the Bank Act.

Last Thursday the Prime Minister said: "I will name a senator who I will choose and who will represent my party in the House of Commons". He also said: "At a time when the senators are all Tories and the House of Commons is building legislation to be

passed, I will use my privilege and exercise my duty to name a senator who will respect the will of the House of Commons".

The Prime Minister clearly shows his aggressive arrogance on this issue when he indicates his belief that the Senate is not for Canadians but is his tool to give the Liberal Party supporters patronage appointments.

[The Speaker]

Colleagues, in these statements we give every latitude to members, but I would caution all members to not reflect on the other place in a derogatory fashion.

Mining Industry

[Peter Adams, Liberal, Peterborough, ON]

Mr. Speaker, since this is national mines week, it is important to stress the economic, cultural and social contribution of this industry for several regions of Canada.

For example, the mining sector shaped the development of several Quebec regions, particularly in the north, where I lived for a number of years. To this day, the mining industry remains a major economic development tool. Year in year out, mining shipments total between $2.5 and $3 billion. The mining industry is also a major employer, including in rural areas.

To be sure, the challenge for this sector is to turn to high technology and thus contribute-

[The Speaker]

I am sorry to interrupt the hon. member but his time is up.

Publishing Industry

[Warren Allmand, Liberal, Notre-Dame-De-Grâce, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to mention the opening, today, of the Institut des communications graphiques du Québec, in Montreal.

Through its $3 million financial contribution, the Government of Canada concretely shows its interest in technological development and innovation, particularly in Quebec's publishing industry.

This initiative will allow the industry to be at the forefront of new technologies, thanks to the possibilities provided by multimedia and the information highway, which have become indispensable tools for the development of a modern society.

Education

[Bernie Collins, Liberal, Souris—Moose Mountain, SK]

Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise in the House today to recognize the fantastic work that is being done in the education of our young people.

Mr. Leo Carteri received the Prime Minister's award for teaching excellence in science a few weeks ago. Recently I was able to visit his school and attend a ceremony honouring him, his fellow teachers and of course the students.

Mr. Carteri's students rarely go home from the Canada-wide Science Fair without at least one prize. Mr. Carteri believes that competitions like these not only widen the students' academic horizons but also expose them to the corporate world through business scholarships.

Canada's youth is this government's priority. I know members of the House will join with me as I commend Mr. Carteri in helping to encourage and enrich our young people.

Referendums

[Michel Gauthier, Bloc, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, there is no minister present and the Prime Minister is not here, how are we supposed to have a question period in this House?

[The Speaker]

My dear colleague, we do not generally make reference to hon. members' presence or absence.

[Michel Gauthier, Bloc, Roberval, QC]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Prime Minister and concerns the federal government's plan to prevent Quebecers from having a democratic say in their future.

My question is, therefore, for the Prime Minister, or one of the other referendizers, although I see none of them around either. So I will ask somebody to answer for them because Quebecers are waiting for a government answer.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh.

[Michel Gauthier, Bloc, Roberval, QC]

I trust that they will heed what the Prime Minister wrote in his book entitled In the Lion's Den . In it, the Prime Minister of Canada wrote that if they lost, they would respect Quebecers' wish and accept separation. That is what the Prime Minister of Canada wrote.

My question then-

[Hedy Fry, Liberal, Vancouver Centre, BC]

Get to the question.

[An hon. member]

Question.

[Pauline Picard, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

They do not like to hear that, do they?

[Michel Gauthier, Bloc, Roberval, QC]

No, they do not like to hear that, Mr. Speaker, the-

[The Speaker]

I would ask the Leader of the Opposition to please get to his question.

[Michel Gauthier, Bloc, Roberval, QC]

Yes, Mr. Speaker.

Having stated he would respect Quebecers' wishes and accept separation, could the Prime Minister or somebody else on his behalf explain whether, having jumped into bed with Guy Bertrand to deny Quebecers' right to decide their own future, he is not now denying what he himself wrote not that long ago?

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

Mr. Speaker, first of all, we do recognize the right of the people of Quebec to express themselves democratically in a referendum. We deeply respect that right. But the Quebec attorney general has said something more. In the Bertrand case, the Quebec attorney general said that the Constitution and the courts had nothing to do with the process of Quebec's achieving independence.

We believe in the rule of law in Canada. As the attorney general of Canada, it is my responsibility to take part in the Bertrand case, not in order to back Mr. Bertrand, but in order to respond to the position taken by the attorney general of Quebec against the rule of law in Canada.

[Michel Gauthier, Bloc, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the government's action must be interpreted as a challenge to Quebecers' right to decide their future themselves. The government is trying to subordinate this right of Quebecers to a decision by the courts.

Does the Prime Minister realize that, with this action and by trying to join forces with Guy Bertrand, not only is he launching a direct attack on sovereignist Quebecers, that is obvious, he is attacking all of Quebec including his former partners on the no side in the latest referendum?

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

Mr. Speaker, those who know our position know this is not true. As I said, we recognize the right of the people of Quebec to express themselves in a referendum. It is another matter entirely, however, when the attorney general of Quebec says the Constitution may be nullified by popular vote. It is not true, and I cannot, as attorney general of Canada, stand on the sidelines in the light of the position of the attorney general of Quebec.

So, we decided to get involved in the matter, not to support Mr. Bertrand, but to support the rule of law. We have had the opportunity since last August to become involved in Mr. Bertrand's case and we decided not to. It is not our intention to support Mr. Bertrand; we are there only to support the rule of law and the Constitution of Canada for all Canadians, including Quebecers.

[Michel Gauthier, Bloc, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Justice is knocking himself into a cocked hat in an effort to prove he is not supporting Guy Bertrand, but everyone in Quebec knows, everyone in Canada knows, that the federal government is joining forces with Guy Bertrand to please the rest of Canada.

Since he is so good at explanations, perhaps he would explain why the Prime Minister told Quebecers, before the latest referendum, that a yes would mean an irreversible outcome, when he had planned at that point a legal challenge to the right of Quebecers to decide their future? Perhaps he could explain.

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

Mr. Speaker, you have to look at the facts. The facts are that we did not get involved in Mr. Bertrand's case to support Mr. Bertrand. We have had the opportunity to become involved since last August.

It was only once the attorney general of Quebec said, a few weeks ago, that the Constitution did not apply to Quebec's move to independence that we decided it was necessary to become involved on behalf of Canadians and the rule of law.

The hon. Leader of the Opposition can say what he said today, but it is not right. The facts are clear. We decided to take part in this matter only in response to the position taken by the attorney general of Quebec.

[Michel Bellehumeur, Bloc, Berthier—Montcalm, QC]

Mr. Speaker, at the time of the last referendum campaign, the Prime Minister told Quebecers, so that they would vote no, that their decision was irreversible and that he would respect their decision. Now, six months later, he is launching his government into a court challenge to deny Quebecers the right to decide on their future democratically.

My question is for the Prime Minister. Does the Prime Minister admit that the strategy he has adopted is one of confrontation, the sole purpose of which is to provoke the people of Quebec?

[Marcel Massé, Liberal, President of the Treasury Board and Minister responsible for Infrastructure]

Mr. Speaker, the federal government recognizes clearly that referendums are a

means for the public to express its opinion, and there is no doubt that democratic means such as referendums are open to Quebec, as they are open to Canada.

It is also clear that the Constitution of a country is not and cannot be amended through a referendum in just one part of a country, and that constitutional law and the internal law of a country are the laws that govern popular decisions and that allow constitutions to be changed. In this case, the Constitution and internal law indicate what means we may take to change the Constitution.