Debates of March 9th, 1998

Immigration

[Peter Stoffer, NDP, Sackville—Eastern Shore, NS]

Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House of Commons as a proud Dutch-born immigrant who along with my father, mother and five brothers and sisters, immigrated to Canada in September 1956.

I cannot remain silent and allow this government to even consider in any way, shape or form the current recommendations of the minister's advisory group. Nor will I and my fellow New Democrats across this great country allow the racists and fanatical right wing to implement their own views on current policy.

My family came to Canada with very little English or French skills or very little finances. Within a very short time my oldest brother, Arnold, and my oldest sister, Roely, got employment to support the family.

My mother and father ran a group home for over 25 years to look after foster children, their way of thanking Canada for allowing their doors to be open for us.

I encourage all members of this House to denounce the recommendations of the minister's committee and to stand up and be proud to live in a country as compassionate and caring as Canada.

International Women's Day

[Raymonde Folco, Liberal, Laval West, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the whole world celebrated International Women's Day.

The Canadian government plays an active role in promoting equal opportunities and rights for all women, because it is clear that an enormous amount of work remains to be done in every part of the world.

Last week, I travelled to Algeria with the parliamentary delegation. On that occasion, Canada renewed its resolve to continue to press Algeria to amend its family code, which restricts the rights of women in that country. We were also moved by the despair of the most vulnerable people in Algeria, namely the women who became orphans or widows during the continued slaughter.

Women around the world have made giant steps toward greater equality. It is up to every one of us to rise and to affirm our rights, whether in the workplace or at home.

Status Of Women

[Maud Debien, Bloc, Laval East, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Canadian and Quebec women have made significant progress toward gender equality. In particular, they have gained notional rights to equality, wage equity and security.

However, there is a world of difference between theory and daily reality. Wage equity has yet to be achieved in the public service. Women are still afraid at night. Their salaries are still lower than those of men. They are still, along with their children, the most vulnerable members of our society.

The last federal budget is an insult to their intelligence. Women were asking $2 per woman and girl child to continue their progress toward equality. They got nothing, absolutely nothing.

The Bloc Quebecois reminds the government that our society's progress toward equality is everyone's business, and that the federal government has a role to play.

Therefore, the Bloc Quebecois demands that the government review and increase the budget for the advancement of women. To invest in gender equality is a public responsibility the federal government must assume.

International Women's Week

[Diane St-Jacques, Progressive Conservative, Shefford, QC]

Mr. Speaker, on the occasion of International Women's Week, I would like to draw attention to the work done by my fellow citizens, and especially that of Pauline Ranger, who, despite obstacles, has not only managed to put her personal life in order but has become involved in helping women who are victims of domestic violence.

Since 1995, Pauline Ranger and her team at the Maison d'hébergement pour elles have worked to promote respect for independence, differences and individuality in women's lives.

Women's great struggle for dignity, social equality and pay equity is being fought daily by men and women working as responsible partners to build a better world for everyone and for the future of our children.

International Women's Day

[Eleni Bakopanos, Liberal, Ahuntsic, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, Sunday, March 8, was International Women's Day and marked the start of International Women's Week.

This year the day was dedicated to all those working to raise the profile of women's rights, underscoring the commitment that will be required in the future to promote their equality.

Women's rights are human rights. Today for the third year in a row I gathered together representatives from diverse women's organizations for our breakfast in my riding.

We must, as the government, focus attention on the important work done by women in such organizations as Transit 24, Concertation-femmes, the Montreal Italian Women's Centre, Maji-Soi, the Maison buissonnière, Remue-ménage, Mono-vie Ahuntsic, Entraide Ahuntsic Nord et Sud, the Association de gardiennage d'Ahuntsic and the Centre d'action bénévole Bordeaux-Cartierville to name but a few.

I am honoured to work closely with these women to continue to make important change and improve the lives of all women in my riding. Let us all applaud these women as unsung heroes.

The Budget

[Maurizio Bevilacqua, Liberal, Vaughan—King—Aurora, ON]

Mr. Speaker, last Thursday in the town of Aurora I hosted my post-budget town hall meeting to speak with residents of Vaughan-King-Aurora, hear their views on the 1998 budget and to solicit their recommendations for future fiscal and economic policy.

Participants favoured the budget's balanced approach to economic and fiscal management. They approved of the government's plan to put the national debt on a permanent downward track, to provide tax relief for 14 million Canadians and to make wise investments in key priority areas such as health care, education, youth employment, technology and research and development.

Residents agreed that a balanced budget is not an invitation for a spending spree and share the view that we should not allow deficits to threaten our economic sovereignty or our ability to chart our own future as a nation.

Last Thursday, residents of Vaughan—King—Aurora showed a great deal of confidence. They feel that as a nation we are into a new era, an era of optimism and expanding opportunities for all.

Tobique River

[Gilles Bernier, Progressive Conservative, Tobique—Mactaquac, NB]

Mr. Speaker, the Tobique River runs from New Brunswick's tallest mountain, Mount Carleton, to the wonderful village of Perth-Andover. It is a favourite vacation spot and supports many communities as the source of their drinking water.

Unfortunately, this delicate river is being contaminated by raw sewage that discharges into the river from the thirty year old Plaster Rock sewage lift station.

Who is responsible for defiling this beautiful river? Look no further than the solicitor-general and MP for Fredericton.

Last year I joined with the residents and village council of Plaster Rock in supporting a proposal that would have replaced the ancient lift station. This project was vetoed by the solicitor general because he thought the money could be better spent building shiny new offices for his Liberal colleagues in Grand Falls.

Shame on him. I hope that every time he takes a drink of water or takes a bath or cooks his food he will stop and think about what it would be like if his water was contaminated by raw sewage.

The Senate

[Preston Manning, Reform, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, last week Environics released the results of one of the largest polls on Senate reform ever taken in Alberta. Ninety-one per cent of Albertans, including Premier Klein, want the right to elect their next senator. Only seven per cent want senators appointed by the Prime Minister.

Alberta has now called for a Senate election in the fall and it will elect two standby senators.

Will the Prime Minister respect the wishes of 91% of Albertans and appoint these standby senators to fill the next vacancies?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. leader of the Reform Party should have listened to Albertans when he rejected an elected, equal Senate that was proposed in the Charlottetown agreement. The people on this side of the House voted for that.

Now the Reform wants to have a scheme that will perpetuate our current Senate system. There are more people in Alberta today, with six senators, than there are in the four Atlantic provinces with 30 senators. I am not against elections for senators. I voted for it and he voted against it.

[Preston Manning, Reform, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, he knows as well as I do that Albertans wanted a triple E Senate and that is why they rejected the half baked Senate reform proposals in Meech Lake.

Three weeks ago we asked the Prime Minister about Senate elections. He said we would like to reform the Senate and the best way is to try to convince the provinces to do so.

Alberta has been convinced. It will have a Senate election this fall.

What is the Prime Minister's excuse this time? In this democratic age why should patronage appointments to the upper house continue instead of respecting democratic elections?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, he talks about a half baked Senate reform but he is proposing a one-third baked Senate reform because this has nothing to do with the equality of senators and an effective Senate. Why should we go with a one-third proposition? We had a proposition for an equal, effective and elected Senate and they voted against it.

[Preston Manning, Reform, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, last month the Prime Minister said: “Senator Thompson should do the honourable thing and resign. The Canadian people are asking him to do so”. Ninety-one per cent of Albertans are asking their unelected and unaccountable senators to do the honourable thing and resign to make way for elected senators.

The Prime Minister told Andrew Thompson to resign. Will he now tell the unelected, unaccountable senators from Alberta to resign their seats?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the father of the leader of the Reform Party was appointed to the Senate and he was a very respectable person. Nobody asked him to resign because he had lost something in accepting to serve in the upper chamber.

We have a system that was established in 1867. We did propose a change to it and he said no.

I am for the reform of the Senate. I want real reform of the Senate and I want to make sure the representation of the regions will be better balanced. If we were to take the advice of the Leader of the Opposition that would ensure we keep the same system for generations to come.

I am responsible and when I vote I know the consequences, something that—

[The Speaker]

The hon. member for Edmonton North.

[Deborah Grey, Reform, Edmonton North, AB]

Mr. Speaker, Senator Manning was always in favour of Senate reform and he still would be if he were alive today.

This past Friday the Prime Minister appointed a new senator from B.C. to fill a recent vacancy; another patronage appointment, his friend Ross Fitzpatrick. It just so happens that the Prime Minister was a director on the board of Fitzpatrick's company, Viceroy Resource Corporation, and the Prime Minister was offered up to 50,000 stock options.

Did the Prime Minister consult with the ethics counsellor before appointing a man who had offered him stock options worth potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I worked for a corporation with Mr. Fitzpatrick when I was not in politics at all. I never realized the options that were offered to me for my services to the company and I received no remuneration when I was there. I am happy to quote the premier of B.C. about the appointment of Mr. Fitzpatrick.

He said he has a lot of time for Ross Fitzpatrick and has no criticism of him. He said he was a big help during the restructuring of Canadian Airlines and he believes he will be a good advocate for B.C.

[Deborah Grey, Reform, Edmonton North, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the people's republic of B.C. probably does not have a whole lot to say on that because the Prime Minister went ahead. The only Canadians who seem to be happy with the Senate the way it is are the Prime Minister and of course the current senators who love it.

Instead of an elected, accountable senator for B.C., British Columbians now have to live under a man whose chief qualification for that job is that he is a Liberal business pal of the Prime Minister.

Let me ask the Prime Minister, if a Senate seat in B.C. is worth 50,000 stock options, just how much would it cost for an Alberta seat in the Senate?

[The Speaker]

I will permit the Prime Minister to answer the question.

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, talking about Senate reform, I would like to quote something and ask the member to apologize to the House for talking about a senator we appointed, Archibald Johnstone, who is a very respectable 73 year old man. She should apologize to him and to all seniors for saying “sir, retire, get a motorhome and go to Florida”. What an insult to people who are retired.

Employment Insurance

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, on October 31, the Bloc Quebecois pointed out the disastrous effects of EI reform.

The Minister of Human Resources Development told us that “welfare figures in Quebec have not gone up since our reform”. A scientific study has now shown, however, that Quebec's welfare roles have swelled by 200,000 because of these new policies.

Is the minister finally aware of the devastating impact of his reform?

[Pierre Pettigrew, Liberal, Minister of Human Resources Development]

Mr. Speaker, I must say that I have not yet had the honour and the pleasure of reading the study by Mr. Fortin that the media drew to my attention this morning. I look forward to it with much anticipation.

Mr. Fortin, however, was trying to measure the impact of several successive EI reforms, and was not looking just at the reform it was my pleasure to introduce last year. He was also looking at the reform introduced by the Conservative government in 1990 and another reform in 1994.

I stand by what I have already said on this topic, and I see that the time—

[The Speaker]

The hon. member for Laurier—Sainte-Marie.

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Fortin was indeed talking about the last three reforms, one by the Conservatives and two by this government. That was his focus.

On the day after International Women's Day, when we know that women are the hardest hit by these reforms, what does the minister have to say to all the women who have now joined the ranks of those on welfare in Quebec as a direct result of the reform he presided over in the House?

[Pierre Pettigrew, Liberal, Minister of Human Resources Development]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to begin by pointing out that the number of welfare recipients in Quebec is the lowest it has been in four years.

[An hon. member]

Oh, oh.