Debates of Oct. 28th, 1997

Fisheries

[Rick Borotsik, Progressive Conservative, Brandon—Souris, MB]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans.

It seems that the federal government is not simply content with destroying the east coast and west coast fisheries, but now it wants to destroy a fishery that is actually working, and I speak of the Freshwater Fish Marketing Corporation.

In a recent announcement, the minister appointed Ron Fewchuk as president and general manager of the corporation, a position I might add that pays up to $103,000 a year.

What qualifications does Mr. Fewchuk have other than being an ex-Liberal MP? Did the minister consult with the board chairman, the board and in fact—

[The Speaker]

The hon. Minister of Fisheries and Oceans.

[David Anderson, Liberal, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans]

Mr. Speaker, I do not subscribe to the theory that members of Parliament come to this House with no abilities or qualities and when they leave this House have no abilities and qualities. When I look at the opposition Conservatives I may have to revise my view.

The government has appointed the former Reform member for Saanich—Gulf Islands to the Veterans Appeal Board. We have appointed competent members of other parties to boards and commissions. I see no reason why Liberal members should not be similarly treated.

[Rick Borotsik, Progressive Conservative, Brandon—Souris, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the minister is aware that the Freshwater Fish Marketing Corporation is prepared to retain Mr. Dunn who is the current CEO, in effect have two CEOs. Mr. Dunn will do the real work. Mr. Fewchuk will probably bait hooks.

Is the minister prepared to pay for Mr. Fewchuk's patronage salary out of his department's budget and not out of the fishermen's and get them off the hook?

[David Anderson, Liberal, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans]

Mr. Speaker, all I can hear from the Conservative Party on the other side is that we should go out and fire Kim Campbell. We should fire Benoit Bouchard. We should fire—

[Some hon. members]

Hear, hear.

[David Anderson, Liberal, Victoria, BC]

And clearly the Reform Party believes we should fire Jack Frazer as well.

Canadian Wheat Board

[Reg Alcock, Liberal, Winnipeg South, MB]

Mr. Speaker, recently the Governor of North Dakota made a suggestion that U.S. wheat producers be allowed to sell their grain to and through the Canadian Wheat Board.

I would like to ask the minister responsible for the Canadian Wheat Board if this is what he means by inclusion in Bill C-4?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources and Minister responsible for the Canadian Wheat Board]

Mr. Speaker, the suggestion from the Governor of North Dakota was very interesting. Quite frankly, the proposition that he made may border on the fringes of illegality, but maybe it should be taken under advisement. Certainly he is calling for better cross-border collaboration between Canada and the United States in the grain trade. That is a very positive thing.

With respect to Bill C-4, we are listening very carefully to all of the representations that are being made to the standing committee on agriculture and we will take all of that advice into account in our final decisions.

[Jake Hoeppner, Reform, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, in early October the Manitoba court of appeal ruled that the only responsibility of the Canadian Wheat Board was to Parliament and this responsibility negated any desire or any provision for them to get the best price for farmers' grain.

Does the wheat board minister agree with that ruling?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources and Minister responsible for the Canadian Wheat Board]

Mr. Speaker, this hon. member knows, because he is a party to a legal proceeding that is presently under appeal, that he is asking a question which I cannot answer in the context of that legal proceeding.

In fact he is the plaintiff and he has no business asking that question. I can assure him, however, that the Canadian Wheat Board in every market around the world extracts the very best price it can possibly get for the farmers of Canada.

Tobacco Act

[Pauline Picard, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Health.

The government announced measures which will soften its anti-tobacco legislation and which will likely help keep the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal.

Will the minister explain why the Liberal cabinet decided to adopt measures which will only help the Grand Prix, while leaving other major sports and cultural events to fend for themselves?

[Allan Rock, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, the government proposed the anti-tobacco legislation that has now been passed by Parliament to fight tobacco consumption, which is a major threat to the health of Canadians.

At the same time, we recognized some months ago, in the letter we sent in April, that some legislative changes were required to accommodate Formula 1 racing. Therefore, we will soon be introducing an amendment to follow up on our commitment.

Shipbuilding

[Gordon Earle, NDP, Halifax West, NS]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Industry.

Highly skilled Canadian workers on both coasts sit idle as the government turns a blind eye to Canadian shipping companies investing in shipbuilding jobs in Asia where exploited labour is cheaper and environmental standards are even worse than here.

The government's neglect is threatening to torpedo the entire industry and jettison a whole generation of trained shipyard workers.

Will the minister honour his 1992 promise to the Halifax workers and commit to a national shipbuilding policy that includes—

[John Manley, Liberal, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, I am sure the hon. member is aware that Canada continues to work very hard in the context of the OECD working group to put an end to what are pernicious subsidies, particularly in the shipbuilding sector that supply many countries around the world. If he is asking me to announce that Canada will get into a subsidy bidding war in shipbuilding, the answer to him as it was for the member for Saint John last week is absolutely no.

Canadian War Museum

[Elsie Wayne, Progressive Conservative, Saint John, NB]

Mr. Speaker, we are fast approaching Remembrance Day and Canadians know that our veterans fought Canada's wars to protect our peace.

It has been brought to my attention that the government is looking at changing the name of the Canadian War Museum to the Canadian peace and security museum. I have been getting calls from veterans from across Canada and they are very upset.

Would the Minister of Veterans Affairs assure the House today that the name of the Canadian War Museum will not be changed and that it will remain as it is today.

[Sheila Copps, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, the Canadian War Museum will continue to be recognized as one of the premier museums in Canada. We are hoping that as the Canadian War Museum embarks on its program for the millennium that the very strong support that was shown for the recent medal acquisition will become a giant fundraising campaign for the Canadian War Museum and it will keep its current name.

Transportation

[David Iftody, Liberal, Provencher, MB]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Transport. Western Canadian farmers are legitimately anxious about the transportation of their grain.

The Canadian Transportation Agency is now delaying necessary investigations into the movement of grain apparently until the spring of 1998. The spring of 1998 is too late.

Will that grain be moving this year, next year and the year thereafter? And what is the Minister of Transport prepared to do about these delays in the transportation agency?

[David Collenette, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, the government and, indeed, all stakeholders are concerned that there not be a delay in the grain transportation review. However, as a government we have to be careful not to do anything that impinges on the integrity of the process of the CTA in hearing the wheat board complaint.

Preparatory work is under way. Very soon I will be announcing the appointment of an eminent person to conduct the grain review, to deal with the preparatory work and to continue in such a way that we will not transgress any of those items now being discussed at the CTA.

Pipelines

[Darrel Stinson, Reform, Okanagan—Shuswap, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister and Mr. Bouchard wanted the Sable Island pipeline to go through Quebec. Will the Prime Minister respect yesterday's decision of the joint environmental review panel in order to give the greatest economic benefit to the people of the maritime provinces?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources and Minister responsible for the Canadian Wheat Board]

Mr. Speaker, as I answered the hon. gentleman yesterday, the joint review panel has just filed its report with respect to socioeconomic issues and environmental issues. It made 46 recommendations. The government is in the process of considering those recommendations.

The hon. gentleman should know that this whole process has been conducted very strictly according to the regulatory rules that govern the situation. The government will follow those rules until a final conclusion is reached.

Canadian International Trade Tribunal

[Benoît Sauvageau, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in reply to my question concerning Shan swimwear, yesterday, the Minister of Finance said, and I quote:

—the tribunal advised us that it had received additional information and it requested more time to review the situation.

My question is for the Minister of Finance. How could he give such a reply when, after checking with the tribunal, I was told that it had not received any new information, that it did not intend to review the decision, and that it had not received any request from the department? Whose interests is the minister protecting?

[Paul Martin, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member is well aware, the tribunal reports to the department and the decision is made by the Minister of Finance.

We received new information. We are reviewing it. We will discuss it with the tribunal and a decision will soon be made.

The Environment

[Rick Laliberte, NDP, Churchill River, SK]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of the Environment.

For four consecutive days toxins have been reported in the news. We have seen stories of excluded Canadian technology, toxic waste sites and dumps, PCBs being bulldozed in the Arctic, contaminated ecosystems such as the Great Lakes, and Environment Canada PCB shipment warnings ignored by federal departments.

Does the minister accept the burial of PCBs in the Arctic and is she aware of shipments of PCBs to Swan Hills?

[Christine Stewart, Liberal, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, the federal government, through the Department of the Environment, carefully regulates toxins such as PCBs. We were sending PCBs for destruction to Swan Hills, but we have put a stop to any such shipments until we are assured that that particular facility is operating safely for the environment and the health of Canadians.