House of Commons Hansard #49 of the 36th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was debt.

Topics

Committees Of The HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:20 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

(Motion agreed to)

Committees Of The HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:20 p.m.

Liberal

Paul Szabo Liberal Mississauga South, ON

Mr. Speaker, in the spirit of the Christmas season, I ask for the consent of the House to present a very similar motion to the one just presented.

Committees Of The HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:20 p.m.

The Speaker

Does the hon. member have the unanimous consent of the House to put another motion?

Committees Of The HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:20 p.m.

An hon. member

No.

Committees Of The HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:20 p.m.

The Speaker

All we are asking for at this point is unanimous consent to put the motion. After that we will hear what the motion is.

Does the hon. member have the unanimous consent of the House to put the motion?

Committees Of The HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:20 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

Committees Of The HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:20 p.m.

Independent

John Nunziata Independent York South—Weston, ON

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. My understanding of the rules is that once the motion is put, a debate should ensue.

It seems to me the government has mismanaged the agenda to the point where it is trying to get unanimous consent to run through this House on the last day of sitting a number of measures for which it requires consent. At the very least, the government could grant us the courtesy of advising members of the opposition what these motions are all about.

I have no difficulty giving consent to having these motions carry. However, at the very least I would like to see what I am voting on in advance.

Committees Of The HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:20 p.m.

The Speaker

In order to facilitate matters in the House, perhaps what I will do is give permission for the hon. member simply to put the motion. Would the hon. member please read the motion which he wants us to consider. We will go from there.

Committees Of The HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

Liberal

Paul Szabo Liberal Mississauga South, ON

Mr. Speaker, I believe that is wise counsel. I therefore rise to ask for the unanimous consent of the House to put the following motion. I move:

That 10 members of the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans be authorized to travel to Prince Rupert, Vancouver, Sechelt, Saanich, Ucluelet, Sointula, Alert Bay, Port Hardy and Campbell River for the week of January 18 to 26, 1998 and that the necessary staff do accompany the members of the committee.

(Motion agreed to)

Committees Of The HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

Liberal

Carolyn Parrish Liberal Mississauga Centre, ON

Mr. Speaker, I rise to ask permission of the House to present a report from an interparliamentary delegation that I inadvertently did not present this morning.

Committees Of The HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

The Speaker

Is there unanimous consent?

Committees Of The HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

Interparliamentary DelegationsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

Liberal

Carolyn Parrish Liberal Mississauga Centre, ON

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1), I have the honour to present to the House, in both official languages, the first report of Canadian-NATO Parliamentary Association which represented Canada at the 1997 spring session of the North Atlantic Assembly of NATO Parliamentarians held in Luxembourg, May 28 to June 1, 1997.

Interparliamentary DelegationsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

Liberal

Denis Coderre Liberal Bourassa, QC

Mr. Speaker, I would like to understand. A while ago, my colleague for Notre-Dame-de-Grace—Lachine could not even read her motion. She could not be heard. I would like some consistency, if our colleagues have presentations, if that is the ruling of the Chair, then hon. members—

Interparliamentary DelegationsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

The Speaker

The hon. member is right. I thought we would get through an impasse here. Yes, we do have rules in the House. I detected a will on the part of the House to hear this motion and so I put it to the House.

The hon. member for Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Lachine asked permission to put it to the floor. I asked permission and it was turned down.

You are right. I did perhaps transgress the rules. I hope the House will give me a bit of latitude on that. I think the House is reasonably well pleased with what it did decide on collectively. I take the hon. member's words to heart.

Interparliamentary DelegationsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

Progressive Conservative

Peter MacKay Progressive Conservative Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough, NS

Madam Speaker, I am seeking the unanimous consent of the House to table a very brief petition which I did not table this morning.

Interparliamentary DelegationsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

The Acting Speaker (Ms. Thibeault)

Is there unanimous consent?

Interparliamentary DelegationsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

Progressive Conservative

Peter MacKay Progressive Conservative Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough, NS

Madam Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36, I wish to table a petition from my constituents and individuals from Nova Scotia pertaining to the removal of GST from books, magazines and newspapers.

The petition is intended to urge the federal government to follow that recommendation, and I table it forthwith.

The House resumed consideration of the motion.

Committees Of The HouseGovernment Orders

3:30 p.m.

Liberal

Paul Szabo Liberal Mississauga South, ON

Madam Speaker, before question period the hon. member for Kitchener Centre addressed the House on the pre-budget debate. During the debate a couple of opposition members indicated that the report of the Standing Committee on Finance on the pre-budget consultation was some sort of a trick and that it represented merely the government platform.

The member for Kitchener Centre is a member of that committee, travelled with the committee and participated fully in the process. It would be helpful for Canadians to understand the genesis of the report.

Committees Of The HouseGovernment Orders

3:30 p.m.

Liberal

Karen Redman Liberal Kitchener Centre, ON

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question.

We listened to all sectors of society when we travelled from Vancouver to Edmonton, Toronto, Halifax and St. John's as well as to my own riding of Kitchener Centre. I heard from people who are street people. I heard from people who I know share the philosophy of some members opposite.

They appreciated that we had paid down the deficit. They were looking for leadership from the government, which I think we have provided in a resounding way by achieving a balance in the report of the finance standing committee in which all members participated,

Also we heard from them that there was very little desire for a cross the board tax cut. People were looking for strategic investments. The member will see those recommendations in the finance committee report.

Committees Of The HouseGovernment Orders

3:30 p.m.

Reform

Ken Epp Reform Elk Island, AB

Madam Speaker, I have a comment, and the member may want to respond to it.

She used the same phrase the Liberals use over and over and over. It is not a correct way of stating the situation. She talked of paying down the deficit. That is physically impossible because a deficit is an amount of money that was borrowed. It is true that the Liberal government is now borrowing less, so it has reduced the deficit. It is borrowing less but that has nothing to do with paying the deficit.

Would the member acknowledge and tell Canadians that the government has in fact increased the debt but at a slower rate by reducing the rate of borrowing?

Committees Of The HouseGovernment Orders

3:30 p.m.

Liberal

Karen Redman Liberal Kitchener Centre, ON

Madam Speaker, I thank the member opposite for pointing out that there is a deficit and there is a debt.

Whether or not we want to argue semantics, the reality is the government has taken a huge burden off the backs of both our children and our grandchildren by maintaining a balance, a fiscal balance, so that we can move forward and we can strategically reinvest in this great country.

Committees Of The HouseGovernment Orders

3:30 p.m.

NDP

Angela Vautour NDP Beauséjour—Petitcodiac, NB

Madam Speaker, I wish the Reform Party were as concerned about poverty as it is concerned about the definitions of the deficit and the debt. Then maybe we would have a bit less poverty.

The member across the way mentioned that Canadians were proud.

It depends on where one is living. In the Atlantic provinces Canadians are certainly not proud of the Liberal government. Atlantic Canadians are very poor. They have been slashed, cut, abused and reused.

What does the member opposite think about the way the government has been working? Does she really agree with the poverty that has been caused by her government in the last few years?