House of Commons Hansard #39 of the 36th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was cpp.
Minister Of Intergovernmental AffairsOral Question Period
Saint-Laurent—Cartierville Québec
Liberal
Stéphane Dion LiberalPresident of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs
Mr. Speaker, first, we are not talking about Quebec but about the PQ government.
Second, the leader of the official opposition in the National Assembly, Mr. Johnson, described the question as fraudulent.
Third, the Prime Minister challenged the Bloc to put the question clearly. He said that if they put the question clearly, Quebeckers would make them face the music. So the word on the yes side became “Chrétien, Quebeckers are going to make you face the music”. It was libelous.
Pierre Brien Bloc Témiscamingue, QC
Mr. Speaker, what a performance.
Here is my supplementary. Are we to understand from the minister's provocative remarks that his government has decided to draft the next referendum question?
Minister Of Intergovernmental AffairsOral Question Period
Saint-Laurent—Cartierville Québec
Liberal
Stéphane Dion LiberalPresident of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs
Mr. Speaker, the Government of Canada has said and is saying that Quebeckers have the right to not lose Canada to confusion and repeated trickery.
Philip Mayfield Reform Cariboo—Chilcotin, BC
Mr. Speaker, the minister's focus is on a misunderstanding of Canadian Indian people. For example on one reserve a 13 year old boy with no family is involved in deviancy, gangs and auto theft. A spot in a treatment centre has been reserved for this lad but there are no funds for his therapy. Yet according to the memo leaked from Indian affairs, there are no restrictions to stop others from making multiple claims for social assistance.
Is the minister aware of how some abuse the system by making multiple claims while others in desperate need get nothing? Have her officials so blindfolded her from seeing the real story—
Jane Stewart LiberalMinister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development
Mr. Speaker, it is clear to me that one of the fundamental differences between this side of the House and that side is in the area of aboriginal issues.
On that side of the House they talk about assimilation. Over here we talk about respect and recognition for Canada's First Nations. On that side of the House they refuse to accept aboriginal rights. Over here we are implementing the inherent right to self-government. On that side of the House they use tactics of divide and conquer. Over here we talk about partnership and building communities.
Allan Kerpan Reform Blackstrap, SK
Mr. Speaker, the way I see it the real difference between that side of the House and this side is that we talk to the grassroots Indian people rather than the leaders.
The minister has been talking a lot about working together and partnerships. Yet her department is betraying all the partners in this issue: the grassroots Indian people and the silent partners, the taxpayers of this country, and all the while her bureaucrats, people like her own ADG, Allan Horner, do the talking for the department.
When is the minister going to send Mr. Horner to the corner and take charge of her department?
Jane Stewart LiberalMinister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development
Mr. Speaker, talking about listening to aboriginal people, let me quote from one of the most appreciated aboriginal people in this country, the new national chief, Phil Fontaine. He said: “Using the unfortunate situation in two communities to heighten tensions and claim that they represent First Nations communities is not only irresponsible on the part of the party now acting as the official opposition, but it is divisive to the members of those communities and it is detrimental to the Canadian society as a whole”.
Michel Gauthier Bloc Roberval, QC
Mr. Speaker, the more the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs speaks, the more his true nature shows through. He used strong words like fraud, libel and gimmicky to describe Quebec's plan.
Is the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs not simply going off the deep end when he uses words like fraud, libel, and gimmicky to describe a process the Prime Minister gave credibility to, the very next day—
Minister Of Intergovernmental AffairsOral Question Period
The Speaker
The hon. Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs.
Minister Of Intergovernmental AffairsOral Question Period
Saint-Laurent—Cartierville Québec
Liberal
Stéphane Dion LiberalPresident of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs
Mr. Speaker, once again, it is a question of semantics. We are not talking about Quebec's plan, but the plan to secede that Quebeckers have rejected twice already.
Michel Gauthier Bloc Roberval, QC
Mr. Speaker, how can the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs use such strong language and then justify using it by saying “See, your option was democratically rejected”. When is he telling the truth, before or after?
Minister Of Intergovernmental AffairsOral Question Period
Saint-Laurent—Cartierville Québec
Liberal
Stéphane Dion LiberalPresident of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs
Mr. Speaker, democracy would have been better served had a clear question been put to the people. Then, it would have been clear how much Quebeckers wanted to remain within Canada. Support for the yes side would not have been artificially inflated for the sole purpose of winning the referendum, with a separation they did not want in the first place forced on Quebeckers.
Dale Johnston Reform Wetaskiwin, AB
Mr. Speaker, we have heard the minister say that she is concerned and that she has given many speeches.
Constituents of mine from the Hobbema reserve are also concerned. They are concerned that even though there are billions of dollars spent by her department they have the highest substance abuse, the highest disease rate, the highest crime rate, the highest poverty rate in Canada.
When will the minister stop her talking and act on the report that she has been given?
Jane Stewart LiberalMinister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member makes some very good points, that indeed aboriginal people in Canada do not live on a level playing field, that their lives are significantly different from yours and mine.
It is extremely important for us to understand that we need a new structural relationship. We need to connect aboriginal people to the economic levers that are so much a part of this country.
I would ask the hon. member to join with me to build communities and to work in partnership to make sure that Canada is number one for all.
Garry Breitkreuz Reform Yorkton—Melville, SK
Mr. Speaker, the minister is using all these nice sounding words in her speeches, like partnership and building, but they mean nothing because she does not act.
Sixty-nine of 72 reserves in Saskatchewan have members in the coalition for aboriginal accountability. While she quotes from the letter from the chiefs, these grassroots people cannot meet with her.
My question that she must answer is, why are the bureaucrats in her department shielding her from the concerns of people on the reserves?
Jane Stewart LiberalMinister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development
Mr. Speaker, I categorically deny this. In fact, when the warriors from the Samson First Nation came to Ottawa, they were unable to meet with me because I was in Quebec meeting with other First Nations. They were however invited to meet with my ADM and they had a productive meeting. Our job is to work together, to speak together and in partnership build a modern future, a healthy future for Canada's aboriginal people.
Pauline Picard Bloc Drummond, QC
Mr. Speaker, now that the Krever report has been tabled, we are left with the sad fate of thousands of people who were contaminated because of an inadequate system.
Since the federal government is the first to blame for the lack of rigour in the blood supply system, should it not now compensate the victims of its own negligence?
Allan Rock LiberalMinister of Health
Mr. Speaker, yesterday we accepted our share of the blame for what happened.
As I said earlier today, we can now refer to Mr. Justice Krever's recommendations to deal with the issue of victims' compensation. I will soon discuss our response with my counterparts.
Jean Augustine Liberal Etobicoke—Lakeshore, ON
Mr. Speaker, recently the Law Reform Commission of Canada was established to consider remedies for survivors of physical and sexual abuse in communities across Canada.
Could the Minister of Justice tell survivors of physical and sexual abuse how this commission's mandate will help them?
Anne McLellan LiberalMinister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member raises a very important question in relation to a very difficult and complex issue. Because of that fact, it is the kind of issue the Law Reform Commission of Canada can do well to review and report on. I would hope that everybody in this House would agree that institutional child physical and sexual abuse is a very, very important issue.
What I have asked the Law Reform Commission to report on is the processes by which we as the federal government, and perhaps other levels of government, can deal with this important issue.
I do however want to clarify—
Dave Chatters Reform Athabasca, AB
Mr. Speaker, the empty rhetoric coming from the Indian affairs minister and the accusations she is throwing out are unacceptable.
For 130 years in this country, Conservative and Liberal governments have committed atrocity after atrocity on Indian peoples. This Prime Minister even produced a white paper on assimilation. Therefore, to throw that kind of talk out, I simply ask the minister when she will quit that kind of talking and simply act on the report that is in front of her.
Jane Stewart LiberalMinister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development
Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind the hon. member that in our recent Speech from the Throne the government clearly identified the issues facing our aboriginal people.
We talked about the need to work together, to improve accountability and transparency in government. We talked about the need to build a fiscal relationship that is modern and reflective of government to government relationships. We identified the importance of helping to build a strong community.
Aboriginal AffairsOral Question Period
The Speaker
My colleagues, once again I am finding it a little difficult to follow the answers as well as the questions. I would ask you to please keep your voices down.