Debates of Nov. 3rd, 1999

[The Speaker]

As is our practice on Wednesday we will now sing O Canada, and we will be led by the hon. member for Saint John.

Veterans Week

[Jerry Pickard, Liberal, Kent—Essex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Veterans Week will offer Canadians an opportunity to honour the sacrifices of our veterans.

I wish to pay tribute to the more than 1.4 million Canadians who stood in harm's way to safeguard our freedoms and liberties, and in particular, Chatham-Kent born Pilot Officer Leslie Peers, who gave his life during World War II while assisting the French resistance fighters.

Last July, Canada and its allies gathered in France for a memorial service. This was the first time in 55 years that a Canadian delegation set foot on the gravesite to officially commemorate the valiant efforts of Pilot Officer Peers and his six crew members.

This weekend will be another first. French resistance fighters are presenting to the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 28 in Chatham-Kent their battle flag. I am told that no French battle flag has ever left France unless taken by an enemy in battle.

Canada stands proud. The bond between Canada and France endures. We remain very proud of our veterans.

War Veterans

[Peter Goldring, Reform, Edmonton East, AB]

Mr. Speaker, Canada's proud war veterans are now, and should remain, the recipients of the enduring respect of all Canadians for the very high price for peace paid this century past.

We parliamentarians fully recognize that our existence and privileges enjoyed today are due to the efforts of Canada's war veterans and their 110,000 fallen comrades resting throughout the world.

We wish to support greater recognition of Canada's wartime contributions on this passing of the most violent century of all time.

We ask all Canadians to observe a two minute wave of silence to begin in Newfoundland, sweeping across the country in a silent wave through each time zone.

We parliamentarians of Canada should proclaim our support and pledge to encourage a two minute silence in our constituency at the 11th hour of the 11th day in the 11th month of 1999.

Rural Health Care

[Peter Adams, Liberal, Peterborough, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Health and the new federal rural health directorate have been working hard to tackle the special health problems of rural Canada in towns like Peterborough.

The national summit on rural health research in Prince George brought together all stakeholders in rural health care.

There are, in effect, two health care systems in Canada: one for the big cities and one for the rest of the country. While it is clear that some major health facilities have to be in cities, there is no reason that basic rapid response modern care cannot be available to all Canadians. It is the task of the federal government to make sure that our health care system is available to all.

I urge that Health Canada be given the resources to translate its fine preliminary work into action. This will improve health care for all rural Canadians.

Take Our Children To Work Day

[Sarmite Bulte, Liberal, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today is bring your children to work day. It is an opportunity for them to experience various occupations by shadowing their parents and friends. This is vital, as it allows children to broaden their horizons as to what the future may hold for them.

My daughter Lara Treiber and her friend Sofie Faga are spending the day accompanying me. They will experience my life as a member of parliament on Parliament Hill. The day will include attending committee meetings and question period. They have come to meet and share the ideas and experiences of others.

All young Canadians participating in this event will have the opportunity to learn that in today's world there is a recipe for success. It encompasses education and creative energy. It inspires courage and the ability to envision the future and recognize the challenges that still lay ahead.

As parents today we must lead the way and set an example for others and for those who follow in our footsteps. I commend everyone who has chosen to bring a child to their workplace for the day to share the knowledge and experience they have acquired.

Port Of Vancouver

[Dale Johnston, Reform, Wetaskiwin, AB]

Mr. Speaker, farmers and west coast shippers are nervously watching the clock today to see if last minute talks will avert work stoppages that threaten to halt their shipments and decimate their earnings.

At the port of Vancouver a long simmering dispute between the Maritime Employer's Association and the longshoremen's union threatens to close that port by next week. A shutdown could see $89 million a day in Canadian trade disappear down the drain.

Why should farmers worry? After all, did the Liberals not decree that grain like the mail must go through? But wait, there is a wrinkle in this Liberal labour plan. If the grain does not reach the port it cannot be shipped out. A contract dispute between Agricore and the Grain Services Union could stall shipments from 400 Alberta and Manitoba elevators by next week.

When will the government recognize that last year's tinkering with the labour laws did not work? It is time to give labour and management the tools to solve their differences—

[The Speaker]

The hon. member for Perth—Middlesex.

War Veterans

[John Richardson, Liberal, Perth—Middlesex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, as we are about to enter a new century, we can well imagine the excitement felt by all Canadians at the turn of the last one. We were a small nation in almost everything but size and promise.

Yet shortly after the century began the first world war would take 60,000 of our citizens. They would die at Regina Trench, Passchendaele, Vimy Ridge, Beaumont Hamel and Courcelette, to name a few of the battlegrounds that continue to mark our history.

Their sacrifice would indelibly mark Canada as a nation that could be called on to help stamp out oppression and occupation wherever it occurred.

Today there are very few first world war veterans that remain with us. They are national treasures. We must not let their passing dull our memory. Long may we honour those who died so long ago so that their children and their children's children might inherit a great nation. We, their inheritors, pledge to keep their stories alive for the children of the 21st century.

Veterans Week

[Marlene Jennings, Liberal, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Lachine, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the highest military award for bravery in the Commonwealth is the Victoria Cross and on it are inscribed two simple words, “For Valour”. Since the theme of Veterans Week this year is “A Century of Valour”, it is appropriate to acknowledge that on a per capita basis Canadians have won more VCs than any other Commonwealth nation.

The first was awarded to Alexander Dunn for heroism in the Charge of the Light Brigade. Our 95th and last Victoria Cross was awarded posthumously to Robert Hampton Gray for a successful attack on a Japanese warship an hour before the Americans dropped the atomic bomb on Nagasaki, which brought World War II to an end.

In war and in peace Canadians have answered the call to duty. The fact that so many VCs were awarded to our citizens is symbolic of the bravery of all those who represented our country under the most difficult of circumstances.

Le Guide Des Papillons Du Québec

[Ghislain Lebel, Bloc, Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this summer an important work on the butterflies of Quebec and Labrador by Louis Handfield, a notary in Mont-Saint-Hilaire, in the beautiful riding of Chambly, was published. It comprises 1,100 pages of text and colour plates.

It is the outcome of thirty-five long years of research and observation and thousands of hours of data collection; it is destined to become an encyclopedia of knowledge in this field.

When I attended the book launch, Mr. Handfield spoke of his one regret: the lack of co-operation by Heritage Canada, which does not allow specimens to be collected in national parks.

On behalf of Mr. Handfield, and in the name of science, I call upon Heritage Canada to make an exception to this ban for entomologists research and studies.

I must again express my admiration for Mr. Handfield, a modest, frank and straightforward gentleman and for his work, which is sure to be a priceless reference tool for at least the first hundred years of the new millennium.

Congratulations, Louis, for this wonderful contribution to natural science.

Nortel

[Raymond Lavigne, Liberal, Verdun—Saint-Henri, QC]

Mr. Speaker, a major announcement was made by Nortel yesterday. It is going to invest close to $340 million in facilities in Canada, creating 1,450 specialized occupation positions in Montreal and 850 in Ottawa.

The company is doing so in order to meet the constantly growing demand for optical telecommunications products to be used with the Internet, this being an area in which Nortel is considered a world leader.

The Canadian government is delighted with this good news for the economy, since it proves that conditions are right for new investments such as this one announced by Nortel. These conditions give confidence to key economic decision makers.

Agriculture

[Dave Chatters, Reform, Athabasca, AB]

Mr. Speaker, farm families in northern Alberta are suffering terribly because of this summer's extreme drought conditions.

Many of the municipalities in the province of Alberta have declared this region a disaster area. This should qualify affected drought areas for federal tax deferral on the sale of breeding livestock.

The federal minister of agriculture responded by recommending to the finance minister that he approve tax deferral for farmers affected by the drought. The finance minister must be just too interested in spending his multibillion dollar EI surplus to notice the troubles of farmers. So far there has been no response.

These farmers have suffered enough hardship. The very least the finance minister could do is step up and help these farmers by giving them desperately needed access to the tax deferment provision.

World Trade Organization

[Bill Blaikie, NDP, Winnipeg—Transcona, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the plan for the WTO meeting in Seattle in December is to liberalize investment, agriculture and services, thus allowing the public sector, including education, water, health care, social and postal services, fire and police services, to be eventually carved up by multinational corporations.

The NDP along with the Canadian Labour Congress and many other Canadian groups and individuals oppose further liberalization of the WTO. We demand that investment and services be taken off the table and that Canada's ability to govern itself for the sake of all and for the purposes of social justice be compromised no further than has already been the case as a result of NAFTA and the current WTO rules.

It is time for the Liberals to rethink their uncritical approach to the current model of globalization. Canadians want to have their policies decided by their elected representatives, not by WTO bureaucrats or even ministers who take their advice from the global corporations.

Madam Justice Beverley McLachlin

[Ted McWhinney, Liberal, Vancouver Quadra, BC]

Mr. Speaker, we welcome the announcement of the forthcoming promotion of Madam Justice Beverley McLachlin as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada. She will be the first woman to be appointed to the chief justiceship.

Her early teaching work in the law faculty of the University of British Columbia was followed by service on the County Court of Vancouver and the Court of Appeal of British Columbia. She had been Chief Justice of the B.C. Supreme Court prior to her present appointment on the Supreme Court of Canada.

We salute Madam Justice McLachlin's demonstrated qualities of classical legal analysis, coupled with a recognition of the practical possibilities and also the limitations of judicial activism in social and economic policies.

As a trained philosopher as well as a jurist, Madam Justice McLachlin offers great promise for her new role of leadership of the Supreme Court of Canada.

Infrastructure Program

[Maurice Godin, Bloc, Châteauguay, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I speak for the municipalities in my riding, including those of Mercier, Châteauguay, Delson and Saint-Constant, which sent me resolutions and are calling for the immediate implementation of a second infrastructure program, as was mentioned in the latest throne speech.

The first program, funded a third by the federal government, a third by the provinces and a third by the municipalities, was really successful because the federal government fully respected provincial jurisdictions, which it unfortunately does not always do.

The riding of Châteauquay is impatiently waiting for the federal government to give back some of its many budget surpluses taken from the provinces so we may finish two projects begun some 20 years ago: the renovation of the Saint-Constant railway museum and highway 30 in the direction of the 401 to take some pressure off the south shore bridges to Montreal.

Diamond Mining

[Gerald Keddy, Progressive Conservative, South Shore, NS]

Mr. Speaker, diamond mining in the Northwest Territories is an exciting, productive new industry that began with the development of the Ekati mine last year. Now the Diavik diamond mine in the Lac de Gras area outside Yellowknife is hoping to receive government approval to continue its development process.

When these two mines are in operation Canada will become the fourth largest diamond producing country in the world. These mines and other potential diamond sites provide a much needed source of revenue for the territorial governments as well as employment opportunities for all northerners. The Ekati mine is expected to be in operation for 20 to 25 years and represents a $1 billion investment.

The Diavik project is currently waiting to find out if further environmental reviews will be undertaken. Diamond mining is environmentally friendly, but companies are awaiting ministerial approval. Hopefully it is soon coming.

Hellenic Republic

[Eleni Bakopanos, Liberal, Ahuntsic, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of External Affairs of the Hellenic Republic is currently on an official visit to Canada. His presence symbolizes the warm ties that bind our two nations.

While in Canada the minister reiterated his guiding principles of stability, democracy and unity worldwide and particularly in the Balkans. In endorsing these laudable principles we as parliamentarians should also support his efforts to establish a permanent Olympic truce, suspending all hostilities during all Olympic competition to serve as the seed to greater world peace.

Canada-Greece relations have been strengthened by the efforts of the Hellenic foreign minister and our foreign minister who have been working closely together to promote democratic principles, peace, unity and to combat injustice everywhere, thereby continuing to build on Hellenism's legacy of noble statesmen.

As a Canadian parliamentarian of Hellenic origin, I am proud of the continuous efforts for peace and the promotion of human security of both my birth country, Hellas, and my adopted country, Canada.

Agriculture

[Preston Manning, Reform, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister of Canada now says that there is no farm crisis. He sits behind his desk, orders up some statistics from his officials and comes to the conclusion that the crisis has disappeared. He never bothers to talk to farmers and their families. He never bothers to visit the farms. He simply calculates the crisis out of existence.

When did the Prime Minister become so disconnected from western Canadians that he is more willing to listen to federal number crunchers than he is to farmers themselves?

[Herb Gray, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is very concerned about the farm crisis. He is certainly willing, as he has already demonstrated, to listen to farmers and their representatives. That is why he was willing to have a very early meeting when a delegation came from western Canada involving premiers and people of all stakeholder groups. That showed the Prime Minister's interest, which continues, in working with all concerned to find a fair and reasonable solution to this serious matter very soon.

[Preston Manning, Reform, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, thousands of Canadian farmers are staring bankruptcy in the eye and wondering how on earth they will get through the winter. Thousands of farm children are suffering along with their parents, wondering how their families are going to make it at all. Meanwhile in Ottawa the Prime Minister and his minions are putting together a $47 billion spending spree but cannot even deliver the $900 million in emergency aid to keep farmers afloat.

How many farmers have to lose their farms and face bankruptcy before the government and the Prime Minister will acknowledge there is a crisis?

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

Mr. Speaker, when the opposition party said that we should not support farmers and that we should cut the ministry et cetera, this government came to the aid of farmers to the extent of $900 million. We have changed the program since then to include and to give more support.

The numbers the hon. member talked about were numbers people in the western delegation were fully aware of. They were aware of that before they came. If they did not share that with their premiers then they would have to ask that question to the provincial officials that came to visit last week.

[Preston Manning, Reform, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, talk about priorities being out of control. According to sources, the federal government is spending $125,000 per person on illegal migrants, but when hard-pressed Saskatchewan and Manitoba farmers come looking for emergency assistance, the government says that there is no crisis and no need for help.

If the Saskatchewan and Manitoba farmers were to get in a rusty boat and throw their Canadian passports overboard, would they qualify for $125,000 in capital grants this fall?

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

Mr. Speaker, in 1998 and 1999 alone the the federal government and the Manitoba and Saskatchewan governments provided $984 million in assistance through the safety net programs to the farmers in those two provinces. When we add the AIDA support for 1998 and 1999 we will be adding another $550 million worth of support to producers. It is not enough. We wish we had more. We wish we could find more resources. We are looking at it and we are doing all that we possibly can with the resources available.

[Deborah Grey, Reform, Edmonton North, AB]

Mr. Speaker, how much more than a $95 billion surplus would be good enough for the minister?

The Prime Minister and the minister say that things are really rosy, that the farmers should be celebrating and dancing in the streets. I was just in Saskatchewan and those people are really hurting. It does not take long to figure it out.

I spoke with a family who has been farming on that farm since 1910. The young fellow who is farming it now will not last through this generation. His three boys are probably going to have to move off the farm.

Why will the Prime Minister not go out to Saskatchewan and talk to them on their home turf, face to face and tell them things really are not so bad?

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

Mr. Speaker, I have a question for the hon. member. Did she tell that young farmer what the Reform Party's policy was?