House of Commons Hansard #34 of the 36th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was death.

Topics

Aboriginal AffairsOral Question Period

11:35 a.m.

Kenora—Rainy River Ontario

Liberal

Bob Nault LiberalMinister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development

Mr. Speaker, as has been said in the House many times before, the commitment that the government made when we first started negotiating the Nisga'a was that we would enter into discussions and negotiation, then it would go from that negotiation to approval. There would be a referendum with the Nisga'a people, then it would go to the legislature in British Columbia, then to the House of Commons where we are now. That is the commitment we made. We are not about to change course as the opposition tends to do whenever it sees a poll. We are going to continue to honour our commitments.

Aboriginal AffairsOral Question Period

11:35 a.m.

Reform

Philip Mayfield Reform Cariboo—Chilcotin, BC

Mr. Speaker, in a letter dated November 1, 1999 to a native woman in British Columbia, the Secretary for State for Multiculturalism and the Status of Women acknowledges a so-called legislative gap in the protection of native women's property rights. Yet, the secretary of state supports the Nisga'a treaty saying that this gap can be addressed later by aboriginal communities.

Is it the government's position that non-native women should be protected under the charter of rights and freedoms, but that native women should have to fight for their rights as stated by the Secretary of State for Multiculturalism and the Status of Women?

Aboriginal AffairsOral Question Period

11:35 a.m.

Kenora—Rainy River Ontario

Liberal

Bob Nault LiberalMinister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development

Mr. Speaker, there they go again. The fact remains that if these members would read the treaty that deals with the Nisga'a, they would find that we are not dealing with the Indian Act. We are dealing outside of the Indian Act which allows aboriginal women to be treated the same as any woman in British Columbia through provincial legislation. So, there we go, the charter does apply as we have said over and over again.

I want the member to know that we do agree with him that the Indian Act is silent on aboriginal women's rights. We have every intention of correcting that. I will be making that announcement for him very soon.

Airline IndustryOral Question Period

December 3rd, 1999 / 11:35 a.m.

Bloc

Michel Guimond Bloc Beauport—Montmorency—Orléans, QC

Mr. Speaker, nearly 500 InterCanadian employees are in Ottawa at the present time protesting the monumental fiasco in which the Minister of Transport has plunged regional air travel since his announcement this past August 13.

Will the minister agree to organize an emergency meeting with all parties concerned, in order to ensure that InterCanadian gets its flights back up and running as quickly as possible?

Airline IndustryOral Question Period

11:35 a.m.

Thunder Bay—Atikokan Ontario

Liberal

Stan Dromisky LiberalParliamentary Secretary to Minister of Transport

Mr. Speaker, I would like to inform the House that the hon. member has used just as much enthusiasm and drive ever since the month of February at the transportation committee to address the concerns we have about the restructuring and competition within the airline industry. He has attended meetings and he knows the facts. If he would now just be objective and not only be concerned about Quebec, but take a look at the whole process as we deal with the whole air industry in this wonderful country called Canada.

Airline IndustryOral Question Period

11:35 a.m.

Bloc

Michel Guimond Bloc Beauport—Montmorency—Orléans, QC

Mr. Speaker, what an incredible answer.

Does the parliamentary secretary realize that this shutdown of operations has left the regions of Quebec and the Maritimes without airline service, as well as throwing 900 employees out of work? That is irresponsible.

Airline IndustryOral Question Period

11:35 a.m.

Thunder Bay—Atikokan Ontario

Liberal

Stan Dromisky LiberalParliamentary Secretary to Minister of Transport

Mr. Speaker, it is unfortunate that the union and the hon. member feel they need to blame the government for a situation that they dislike at InterCanadian.

The fact is that we do not control the private sector. InterCanadian has made a business decision, in fact, a whole series of business decisions which led to the suspension of service in a particular market with particular circumstances.

The union's and the member's energy would be better served in examining all these factors from the beginning of the creation of this InterCanadian airline company to the present time.

Aboriginal AffairsOral Question Period

11:35 a.m.

Reform

Darrel Stinson Reform Okanagan—Shuswap, BC

Mr. Speaker, in 14 different instances self-government rights in the Nisga'a treaty provide “In the event of an inconsistency or conflict between the Nisga'a law and federal or provincial laws, the Nisga'a law will prevail”.

How can the government award the Nisga'a or anybody else the right to make laws which are superior, not just to provincial laws, but also superior to the laws of Canada?

Aboriginal AffairsOral Question Period

11:40 a.m.

Kenora—Rainy River Ontario

Liberal

Bob Nault LiberalMinister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development

Mr. Speaker, it is pretty obvious the member did not read the treaty. I think he should read it. I do not know which treaty the members opposite are debating. The debate they are having must be some sort of mystical treaty.

The reality of it is those 14 areas we are talking about relate to language, culture and custom of the Nisga'a people, nothing really to be concerned about as it relates to Canada's sovereignty.

Aboriginal AffairsOral Question Period

11:40 a.m.

Reform

Gurmant Grewal Reform Surrey Central, BC

Mr. Speaker, with the Nisga'a treaty the Liberals are creating the third tier of government, based on ethnicity. By trying to amend the constitution through the back door this weak Liberal government is creating permanent inequality. It is disenfranchising non-Nisga'a people. It insists on segregating our aboriginal people with agreements based on race.

Is this the reason it is trying to shut up the people of B.C. by not holding a referendum?

Aboriginal AffairsOral Question Period

11:40 a.m.

Kenora—Rainy River Ontario

Liberal

Bob Nault LiberalMinister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development

Mr. Speaker, the party here that is at 9% nationally does not have to give us any lessons about representing Canadians. That is the first thing. If it was at least a party that knew what its name was, we could have a serious debate.

Let me make it very clear to the hon. member. We have a position as a government as it relates to negotiation and dealing with rights of aboriginal people. I am still waiting, as I did yesterday in the House, for this party to tell us what its position is as it relates to dealing with aboriginal rights that are in the constitution under section 35.

Orphan ClausesOral Question Period

11:40 a.m.

Bloc

Monique Guay Bloc Laurentides, QC

Mr. Speaker, today, the Bloc Quebecois will debate its Bill C-212.

The purpose of this bill is to eliminate any provision in a collective agreement that discriminates against newcomers on the labour market, and to ensure that employees hired after a specified date enjoy the same benefits, wages or conditions of employment as the other employees.

My question is for the Minister of Labour. What concrete measures does she intend to take to prohibit discriminatory orphan clauses, and when will she do it?

Orphan ClausesOral Question Period

11:40 a.m.

Moncton New Brunswick

Liberal

Claudette Bradshaw LiberalMinister of Labour

Mr. Speaker, all collective agreements are put together by management and the union. Therefore, it is up to them to include appropriate clauses in these agreements.

LandminesOral Question Period

11:40 a.m.

Liberal

John McKay Liberal Scarborough East, ON

Mr. Speaker, this is the second anniversary of the signing of the land mines treaty. People are being killed and maimed at a terrible rate even as we sit here in question period.

Canada takes great pride in successfully concluding that treaty, but I would ask the Minister for International Cooperation what financial resources has Canada actually put on the table in the execution of this treaty.

LandminesOral Question Period

11:40 a.m.

Beaches—East York Ontario

Liberal

Maria Minna LiberalMinister for International Cooperation

Mr. Speaker, less than a year after its entry into force the land mines treaty process has created a new international arm against this weapon and its impact is significant. Victims' rates are falling. The use, production and trade of AP mines are all declining. Over 14 million Thugfeld mines have been destroyed.

In addition, I announced a $3.4 million contribution to help Kosovo, Colombia and regions of Africa to reduce the threats of land mines.

FisheriesOral Question Period

11:40 a.m.

Reform

John Duncan Reform Vancouver Island North, BC

Mr. Speaker, yesterday RCMP and fisheries officers seized 30 tonnes of Fraser River sockeye from a business. This is not the first time. These fish were caught under a native food fishery supposedly for consumption by the Sto:Lo, Musqueam and Tsawwassen band members, this in a year when there was no commercial fishery on the Fraser for conservation reasons.

Is the minister going to take control of the west coast fishery, or wait until we no longer have a fishery?

FisheriesOral Question Period

11:40 a.m.

Vancouver South—Burnaby B.C.

Liberal

Herb Dhaliwal LiberalMinister of Fisheries and Oceans

Mr. Speaker, illegal fishing is a serious problem. We at fisheries are investigating. This shows us the example where fisheries officers, with the RCMP, are investigating and, if they have to be, charges will be laid against anybody who is fishing illegally.

FisheriesOral Question Period

11:45 a.m.

Reform

Bill Gilmour Reform Nanaimo—Alberni, BC

Mr. Speaker, due to gross mismanagement DFO has destroyed the Atlantic cod fishery and, according to the auditor general, is about to do the same with Pacific salmon.

The auditor general states that the Pacific salmon fishery is in trouble and the sustainability of the fishery is at risk. He warns that the Pacific salmon fishery may face a five year closure to allow stocks to recover.

When will the fisheries minister do as the auditor general suggests and actually manage the west coast fishery?

FisheriesOral Question Period

11:45 a.m.

Vancouver South—Burnaby B.C.

Liberal

Herb Dhaliwal LiberalMinister of Fisheries and Oceans

Mr. Speaker, that is not what the auditor general said. Let me read to the hon. member what he said, that the department had already taken the first steps to address the challenges it faces. It has affirmed conservation as its primary objective to protect existing salmon stocks. The hon. member knows that is what the auditor general said. Unfortunately it is very convenient for him to leave that out.

The auditor general also said we had to reduce capacity, and that is exactly what we are doing in the buyback licence. He said as well that we had to work together with the provinces, and that is what we are doing as well. We are already taking the necessary steps to make sure that we have a sustainable fishery on the west coast.

National DefenceOral Question Period

11:45 a.m.

NDP

Gordon Earle NDP Halifax West, NS

Mr. Speaker, regarding alternative service delivery the auditor general said that the Department of National Defence had real problems identifying baseline costs for projects, CFB Halifax being a case in point.

The report also clearly showed that in-house bids met all the criteria of the good business case while outside industry bids fell short of the requirements.

Would the minister ensure that an in-house bid would be welcomed and considered for supply chain projects?

National DefenceOral Question Period

11:45 a.m.

Pontiac—Gatineau—Labelle Québec

Liberal

Robert Bertrand LiberalParliamentary Secretary to Minister of National Defence

Mr. Speaker, the department is really committed to this program, which helps us do our job much more effectively by freeing up resources that can best serve and support our operational capacity.

To improve the program, we followed up on all the recommendations made by the auditor general.

National DefenceOral Question Period

11:45 a.m.

NDP

Gordon Earle NDP Halifax West, NS

Mr. Speaker, the auditor general said projected savings from alternative service delivery may have been overstated.

The first supply chain business case projected a 15% to 30% saving, but the second revised case projected only 4% to 14% savings, and even that would not start to accrue for seven years, a lifetime in business terms.

Will the minister tell the House exactly what the expected savings will be?

National DefenceOral Question Period

11:45 a.m.

Pontiac—Gatineau—Labelle Québec

Liberal

Robert Bertrand LiberalParliamentary Secretary to Minister of National Defence

Mr. Speaker, we have so far saved $68 million and we expect to increase those savings in coming years.

HealthOral Question Period

11:45 a.m.

Progressive Conservative

John Herron Progressive Conservative Fundy Royal, NB

Mr. Speaker, this week the Ontario College of Family Physicians and the Canadian Environmental Law Association released a damning report on the effects of pesticides on Canadian children.

Pesticides are now assessed based on adult exposure and sensitivity to a product, ignoring the vulnerability of children and pregnant women. In the U.S. a similar report requires its new legislation to re-examine pesticides by looking at their effects on children and fetuses.

We now know the draft legislation that has been ready since 1997 does not include this scientific criterion. Why is the Minister of Finance willing to actually risk the health of Canadian children?

HealthOral Question Period

11:45 a.m.

Anjou—Rivière-Des-Prairies Québec

Liberal

Yvon Charbonneau LiberalParliamentary Secretary to Minister of Health

Mr. Speaker, the issue of pesticides is currently being reviewed, both by the Standing Committee on the Environment and by the appropriate authorities at the Department of Health.

The necessary amendments will be made when the time and expertise become available.