Debates of May 28th, 1998

Employment Insurance

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

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is about a year out of date, because we resolved the problem of the short week with two pilot projects across the country.

As soon as we started the pilot projects on short weeks, the problem disappeared.

Infrastructure

[Lou Sekora, Liberal, Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the minister responsible for infrastructure.

The federal government has extended $65 million in infrastructure payments to the province of British Columbia. What specific projects were announced and how will they benefit the people of British Columbia? Will the government commit to keeping this level of participation?

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Port Moody—Coquitlam for this, his first question in the House.

I was pleased that we were able to announce on May 19 the approval of 78 projects worth over $57 million for British Columbia. The announced projects were for permanent core infrastructure upgrades, roads, bridges, telecommunications services, including a $500,000 road project in the hon. member's riding.

Canadian Armed Forces

[Howard Hilstrom, Reform, Selkirk—Interlake, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the leadership of the Canadian military continues to be in serious trouble. Over the last couple of years four generals have left the forces in disgrace. Now the surgeon general is being investigated, as the minister confirmed yesterday.

Will the defence minister take command and tell us the specific allegations, the status of the investigation and is General Clay under suspension?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, matters are under investigation and the people involved in that investigation have the right to the presumption of innocence until there are charges laid, in which case there would be an announcement made as to any of those specific charges.

We believe in a fair process. Let us allow that fair process to take place.

For the opposition to try to bring discredit against a very senior officer, in fact the senior woman in the Canadian military, I think is disgraceful.

[Howard Hilstrom, Reform, Selkirk—Interlake, MB]

Mr. Speaker, this issue is of national importance. It is a top general in our armed forces.

I was in the RCMP and was responsible for press releases on many serious crimes. When the press came to me right out there in the public where I could be sued, I was always able to divulge the specifics of the allegation, was it a fraud, was it a theft, whatever.

Surely the minister can tell us today what specific allegation is being investigated.

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, there has been no charge laid against anyone. They have a right to maintain their privacy. They have a right to presumption of innocence. If charges are laid, and there has been no determination of that, when due process has been followed, then the results will be announced.

Employment Insurance

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Mr. Speaker, around 1991 the federal government ceased its contribution to the EI fund. Yesterday the Minister of Finance admitted he has spent the employment insurance surplus.

My question to the Minister of Finance is very simple. To whom belongs the surplus in the employment insurance fund?

[Paul Martin, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, all government revenues, whether contributions to the EI fund, contributions coming in forms of sales taxes or personal taxes, they all belong to the people of Canada.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance knows very well that this money belongs to the country's workers.

Fewer than 40% of the unemployed are receiving employment insurance benefits, while the government takes their money. The deficit was reduced on the backs of families that have a hard time putting food on the table.

Is the Minister of Finance proud of having reduced the deficit on the backs of those most disadvantaged?

[Paul Martin, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member should tell us his choices. Is he opposed to the fact that we abolished personal income tax for 400,000 individuals? Is he opposed to the fact that we created a national child benefit? Is he opposed to the fact that we transferred an extra $1.5 billion to the provinces?

Is he opposed to the fact that we eliminated the deficit and that interest rates are going down so that Canadians will be able to afford homes and cars? Is he opposed to the policies of this government to help Canadians?

Student Employment

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

Mr. Speaker, this government says it wants to help students find summer employment but it seems this commitment depends on which riding the students live in. For instance, students living in the Liberal ridings of Moncton and in Miramichi will receive twice as much funding as students living in my riding. Students living in the riding of the solicitor general receive three times as much funding as in my riding.

Will the Minister of Human Resources Development commit an equitable funding formula for summer career placements and treat all students equally?

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

Mr. Speaker, I fail to understand what the member is referring to. All students are treated the same way by all our programs across Atlantic Canada.

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

Mr. Speaker, we are in 1998, not 1950, and all Canadians should be treated fairly and equally regardless of their political parties.

A student living in a Conservative riding gets less funding than a student living in a Liberal riding.

According to HRDC, the hon. member's department, the solicitor general's riding gets three times more funding than my riding.

Will the minister commit additional funding today for students in my riding so they can get a good education, like every other Canadian?

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

Mr. Speaker, we treat all ridings the very same way. We welcomed all the projects submitted to us.

If the member has a particular case he wants to raise with me I will be delighted to discuss it with him, but I do not see why he is taking the time of the House on an issue that he cannot substantiate very well.

Asbestos Industry

[Claude Drouin, Liberal, Beauce, QC]

Mr. Speaker, could the Minister of International Trade inform the House of the action plan announced this morning in support of asbestos workers, in light of the fact that France has banned this product?

[Sergio Marchi, Liberal, Minister for International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, I wish to thank my hon. colleague for his question. Since the French government announced its ban on asbestos, the federal government has been working very hard at finding an effective solution.

The French report was supposed to be released in April, then in May. Now, we are days away from June. I will call a meeting with the mayor and reeve to announce that, today, our government has formally referred the asbestos issue to the World Trade Organization.

Year 2000

[Jim Pankiw, Reform, Saskatoon—Humboldt, SK]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the President of the Treasury Board. For weeks now when questioned on the year 2000 bug the minister has said don't worry, be happy.

But the government's chief information officer and the year 2000 team contracted by the government have said that government computers will fail.

What is the minister's contingency plan to deal with seniors who will have to line up and wait for bureaucrats to hand out their old age security and Canada pension plan cheques in the year 2000?

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

Mr. Speaker, the question of the year 2000 bug is an important one and indeed we should all worry, both the private sector and the public sector.

However, in the public sector we have started to put together groups of people. He has alluded to one. There is now one in every one of the most affected departments. These groups are looking at the government-wide emergency systems that have to be made to function and are also drawing up contingency plans in every case. Even though we can never guarantee that nothing will fail, I think we are putting in the efforts necessary to make sure that we are able to meet the problem.

The Environment

[Bernard Bigras, Bloc, Rosemont, QC]

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

Monday, we learned that the government had paralyzed the operation of Environment Canada by making it impossible for the department to protect the environment. In addition, the day before yesterday, the commissioner of the environment confirmed this government's inability to enforce environmental legislation under its own jurisdiction.

How does the minister justify encroaching further on provincial jurisdictions with her Bill C-32 when she is not even able to enforce laws under her own authority?

[Christine Stewart, Liberal, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, my department is implementing all legislation and regulations at the present time. We look forward to the committee's reviewing Bill C-32, the Canadian Environmental Protection Act legislation, because it has important elements in it to help in the enforcement of all our policies and regulations.

Agriculture

[Dick Proctor, NDP, Palliser, SK]

Mr. Speaker, we are witnessing the escalation of yet another trade war as the U.S. and the European Union use subsidies, including cash bonuses, to drive down international grain prices.

Predictably, Canada's minister of agriculture says there is no money for Canadian farmers who once again will be caught in the crossfire as they were in the 1980s and 1990s.

Instead of hand wringing and wishing the problem away, what proposals does the minister have that will be of specific help to Canadian grain farmers.

[Lyle Vanclief, Liberal, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, the proposal we have is the action we are taking. I have already spoken to the secretary of agriculture in the United States and the commissioner of agriculture in the European Union. I pointed out very clearly that it is not in the best interests of anyone to escalate a subsidy war between our two countries or any countries.

We will be there for Canadian farmers with the safety net systems in the future as we have in the past and we will work with them.

Fisheries

[Mark Muise, Progressive Conservative, West Nova, NS]

Mr. Speaker, small craft harbours are in the process of organizing local harbour authorities whose responsibility is to maintain their wharfs. Wharfs with numerous fishing vessels can generate significant resources to maintain their existing facilities. However, small wharfs do not have that luxury and are in danger of losing their facilities.

What is the minister going to do to protect fishermen in small isolated areas from losing their wharfing facilities?

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

Mr. Speaker, as a general rule we are trying hard to make sure those in the local area who use the facilities are responsible for their maintenance and up-keep.

There are, however, as the hon. member has suggested, certain unique and unusual circumstances with certain wharfs and ports where we have made other arrangements or varied standard arrangements with the fishermen.

If he would give details of the case in question I would be able to respond to it. Perhaps he could discuss it with me at some other time.