House of Commons Hansard #201 of the 36th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was crime.
John O'Reilly Liberal Victoria—Haliburton, ON
Mr. Speaker, the person who was to share my time did not show up. I do not mind doing 20 minutes. I may have to actually start reading something, which would be quite a change for me because the member across tells me that I have to read a speech. I have never read one yet in here and so I do not think I will start now.
Youth Criminal Justice ActGovernment Orders
An hon. member
Reading was never your strong point.
John O'Reilly Liberal Victoria—Haliburton, ON
The happiest days of my life were the three years I spent in grade eight.
Art Hanger Reform Calgary Northeast, AB
Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. You have extended the member's time by 10 minutes and a Liberal member spoke before him. Does that mean they have 30 minutes speaking time?
Youth Criminal Justice ActGovernment Orders
The Acting Speaker (Mr. McClelland)
No, it means that in order to accommodate the Leader of the Opposition to speak out of sequence we had to do some juggling to get back into sequence.
Peter Adams Liberal Peterborough, ON
Mr. Speaker, I simply want to say that we were very pleased to make the arrangement so the Leader of Opposition could speak.
John O'Reilly Liberal Victoria—Haliburton, ON
Mr. Speaker, I sit on a lot of committees with the member for Calgary Northeast. Ten plus twenty is thirty. The member is absolutely right. I am very glad he was able to work that out. That might have something to do with that stroke in intensity he was studying in Singapore. It takes a fair bit of time.
I go back to some of my personal experiences in court cases involving young offenders. It is a very serious thing to go into a prison to do a parole hearing. I appreciate that the simplistic approach applied by the Reform Party is well meaning. Some Reformers are very intelligent former Conservatives and Liberals. I know they cannot get elected out west except by running under Reform so I appreciate that they are doing that and I wish them well as long as it is not well in my riding.
I could talk about the young man who was hung by his heels at age 14 by his parents, who was sexually abused and beaten as a child, who was not taught values, who dropped out of school so he could run away and get away from everything. When he was arrested and incarcerated, he met people who deal with young offenders. They took him under their wing and taught him values he had not been taught before. He got away from his substance abuse and alcohol abuse. He got away from the abusive nature that surrounded him. Today he is a productive member of society.
I know that does not happen all the time and that the Reform Party does not want to talk about it, but the fact is the Young Offenders Act served a purpose that does not serve the purpose of Reform. Reformers cannot build unless they can teach everyone that everything is hate, hate, hate, punish, punish, punish.
The fact is that if we are to rehabilitate people, we do not do it by putting them in boot camps or by putting them in a caning camp or whatever the member wanted. We have to teach them values. We have to teach them the societal things expected of them. If young people are to be productive members of society, they have to be taught values. That simply is what changes people to be productive members of society and that protects society.
I was impressed with a criminal I met who was a musician. When money machines first came out and PINs had to be punched in which had a different tone to the pad, this man could stand behind someone making a withdrawal with their card and he could pick off their pin number because he had a musical ear. He could play any instrument. He was a very talented person. He would follow that person home, find an undetected way to break into their house and steal that card out of their wallet.
If the card is not in our wallets, we often think where did we leave it. We take a couple of days and think somebody else might have it, whatever. Just before midnight or just after 2 a.m. your bank account has been cleaned out by that person. The reason was not because he was a thief but because he was a heroin addict. How do we get a person like that into methadone treatment and let them put their talent to work in society? That same young man is now playing in a band and is very productive. These are a couple of examples the Reform Party cares to not notice.
When we talk about the Young Offenders Act and about rehabilitation, we talk about people who suddenly come into a society where values are taught and they offend only once. They do not become repeat offenders. Repeat offenders are a shame and there has to be a way to deal with them.
If we can save the majority of young offenders, which the Young Offenders Act did and which the Reform Party does not want to mention, we have done society a great justice. I believe Bill C-68 is a good start in changing the Young Offenders Act so we will have a youth criminal justice system that will stand the test of time.
Youth Criminal Justice ActGovernment Orders
The Speaker
My colleague, you still have 10 minutes of questions and comments. I propose that we now go to Statements by Members and we will return after question period.
Jean Augustine Liberal Etobicoke—Lakeshore, ON
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate and to support OXFAM Canada and OXFAM Quebec as they launch OXFAM's international report “Education Now: Break the Cycle of Poverty”.
The report focuses on the 125 million primary school age children in developing countries who are deprived of an education. Mass illiteracy has left them disadvantaged, vulnerable and impoverished. In over 20 developing countries more than 50% of the population, mainly women and girls, are unable to read or write. Universal primary education goals cannot be achieved.
OXFAM's campaign calls on governments to deploy debt relief measures to guarantee basic education targets in developing countries.
I call on all members to support OXFAM's activities in their ridings and to support OXFAM's campaign to eliminate global illiteracy.
Bob Mills Reform Red Deer, AB
Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to announce the bicentenary of Rocky Mountain House, a community in my riding. Its 6,000 people are commemorating the important role this town played in the development of western Canada. It was the base from which David Thompson explored the mountains to the west. By 1840, 2,000 people lived there when Fort Edmonton had only 12 permanent inhabitants.
As we celebrate the 125th anniversary of what is today the RCMP, we should recall the role the town played in this important event. Its lobbying helped convince the Government of Canada of the need to create a permanent police force in western Canada. That presence is an important part of western Canadian identity. Rocky Mountain House is also the site of Alberta's only national historic park, a generous gift from the late Mabel Brierley.
I know members of the House will want to join me in saluting its history and extending our best wishes to the people of Rocky Mountain House, Alberta.
John McKay Liberal Scarborough East, ON
Mr. Speaker, I recently had the opportunity to attend the Girl Guides of Canada ceremony to present the prestigious Canada Cord to 14 Pathfinders in my riding of Scarborough East.
These 15 year old Pathfinders achieved this top award in 1998 through hard work and dedication, having fun and learning skills at the same time. To achieve the award Pathfinders completed challenges in a number of different areas.
I want to congratulate Nadia Bedok, Lauren Canzius, Julie Cushing, Lianne Easton, Katie Eley, Theresa Enright, Jaclyn Iantria, Melissa Kaye, Erin Kotva, Lisa Moore, Amanda Mykusz, Kimberley Rose, Janet Stephens and Heather Wing.
I extend my best wishes to all of them on their outstanding achievement for earning this highest honour, and I wish them continued success in the years to come.
Guy St-Julien Liberal Abitibi, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Nunavik Rangers are a subgroup of the Canadian armed forces that has existed for at least 50 years and that was a strong presence at the New Year's avalanche in Kangiqsualujjuaq.
In 1994, the Junior Rangers, for boys and girls aged 12 to 18, was established in northern Quebec.
The 14 communities in Nunavik now have their Junior Rangers patrols. They are supported by the Canadian armed forces and by the senior Rangers. In the Rangers, young Inuit learn such skills as navigation, weapons safety, ancestral traditions and hunting.
The Canadian armed forces and Major Claude Archambault last week visited the village of Kangiqsualujjuaq with its mayor Maggie Emudluk to offer praise to the Rangers who participated in the rescue operations on January 1, 1999.
Nakuqmiik to the Nunavik Rangers.
John Richardson Liberal Perth—Middlesex, ON
Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to rise in the House today to salute 40 Canadian forces engineers and other Canadian forces personnel who have just returned from Kumanovo in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
They were a part of NATO's deployment to that region and recently received NATO medals for their important contribution.
The Canadian forces engineers and other Canadian forces support personnel worked closely with French engineers to construct and renovate infrastructure such as medical facilities, showers and meal areas in order to enable the members of NATO's extraction force to perform their task.
The conditions in which they were working were very difficult and have been subject to consideration in the House. Once again members of the Canadian forces have shown their determination and professionalism.
Canadians can be proud of the job they have done. Their accomplishments in that region are an eloquent illustration of Canada's commitment to peace efforts in that troubled region.
Jake Hoeppner Reform Portage—Lisgar, MB
Mr. Speaker, western grain farmers have experienced a difficult year with an income crisis and disruptions in key markets, and now with rotating strikes by PSAC workers in the grain weighing sector.
Strikers are back to work today but with no contract. There are no assurances they will not again bring grain movement to its knees.
The government has failed to enact final offer selection arbitration as recommended by Reform for five years. These recurring stoppages are killing agriculture and threatening small communities dependent on the industry.
Governments were told for years that these grain strikes were hurting the whole Canadian economy. The government must now enact legislation that will finally bring a solution to these work stoppages. Farmers can no longer afford these losses caused by government negligence.
Robert Bertrand Liberal Pontiac—Gatineau—Labelle, QC
Mr. Speaker, I would like to pay particular tribute to Major Lionel Guy D'Artois, a national hero, who became famous around the world during more than 30 years of service with the Canadian armed forces.
Major D'Artois passed away Monday in the veterans' hospital in St. Anne. He joined the army in 1934 as a member of the militia contingent of the University of Montreal where he was studying chemistry.
Major D'Artois enrolled as a private during the second world war. For his exploits on French soil, he received the highest military distinctions, including “la Croix de guerre avec palme” from the President of France.
I offer my most sincere condolences to the family.
Yves Rocheleau Bloc Trois-Rivières, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister of Canada must have been joking when he recently told world leaders gathered in Davos that the Canadian economy is no longer dependent on the country's natural resources.
Indeed, at the same time, his government was announcing that a large part of Devco's mining operations, on Cape Breton Island, would stop for good.
The reality is as follows: raw materials and their by-products still account for 35% of Canadian exports, which is more than for any other G-7 country. The transition from a resource based economy to a knowledge based economy has begun, but it is obviously not completed.
Devco is a perfect illustration of the Canadian government's inability to manage this industrial change. No economic diversification programs were implemented to provide alternatives for those who suddenly find themselves out of work.
The Canadian government must take responsibility for this failed economic transition. In the case of Devco, Ottawa must treat the communities affected with the dignity to which they are entitled.
Carolyn Bennett Liberal St. Paul's, ON
Mr. Speaker, last night on the occasion of the 71st Academy Awards in Los Angeles, California, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented Mr. Norman Jewison with the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award.
Celebrated before the eyes of the world a Canadian was recognized for his lifelong commitment to film making.
Mr. Jewison made his debut in London, as a comedian and a screen writer for the BBC. In the fifties, he came back here to work with the CBC and then pursue an impressive career as a producer and director. Mr. Jewison is also the founder of the prestigious Canadian Film Centre, in Toronto.
With a total of 12 Oscars and 46 nominations for films such as The Russians are Coming , Fiddler on the Roof , A Soldier's Story , In the Heat of the Night and Moonstruck , he has taught us how important it is to choose stories worth telling and then tell them brilliantly.
I ask the House to join me in congratulating Mr. Jewison for his achievement of excellence and making Canada so proud.
Jay Hill Reform Prince George—Peace River, BC
Mr. Speaker, I want to share with the House the frustration that one of my constituents has experienced with the new gun registry.
Louis Carew is the owner of CMP Sports in Fort Nelson, B.C. He writes about the hoops that he must now jump through just to continue to sell firearms, hoops that cost him 25% of his Christmas sales.
First, he orders a firearm and gets a reference number from the supplier who has to wait to get a number from the firearms department in Miramichi, New Brunswick.
Second, the government sends him a reference number in the mail.
Third, when he sells a firearm his customer needs a TAN number for which he is charged $25, and again there is another wait. This fee is charged for each new and used firearm purchased.
Fourth, the customer needs an FAC number that has gone up from $10 to $50 plus $200 to take a course. “The amount of government bureaucracy and the wait over the phone is unbearable”, he concludes.
This debacle has cost taxpayers and businesses hundreds of millions of dollars. Would it not make more sense to invest these precious tax dollars in police officers?
Karen Redman Liberal Kitchener Centre, ON
Mr. Speaker, today is World Water Day.
In 1993 the United Nations called upon all nations to promote the conservation and protection of water resources in a sustainable manner. For Canadians, freshwater has an important real and symbolic value. This is why in 1997 we participated in the Global Forum on Water Resources.
Nine per cent of the world's renewable freshwater is found within Canada. We must do everything we can to protect it. Freshwater sustains our life and health on a daily basis. It is a commodity worth preserving.
Our government is leading initiatives to restore, conserve and protect major Canadian watersheds. We are working on the prohibition of the bulk removal of water, including water for export. This is the first issue being addressed nationally as part of the federal freshwater strategy which is presently under development.
On this important day I would encourage all members of parliament to consider the growing global concerns for water quality and quantity.
Bev Desjarlais NDP Churchill, MB
Mr. Speaker, today, March 22, is World Water Day. Countries around the globe will remember that water is a precious resource essential to human life. Without safe drinkable water we cannot survive.
Unlike many countries, Canada is blessed with an abundance of freshwater. As a result we often take clean water for granted but Canada's waters are not endless.
On February 9, a New Democratic Party motion stated that the government should, in co-operation with the provinces, place an immediate moratorium on the export of bulk freshwater shipments and interbasin transfers. The House agreed to assert Canada's sovereign right to protect, preserve and conserve our freshwater resources for future generations. Today we should revisit how we use water in our homes and in our everyday lives. We must value and protect this vital resource.
In my riding communities such as Pukatawagan, God's Lake Narrows and Red Sucker Lake do not have running water in their homes. We must ensure that all Canadians benefit from our resources. Canada's water supply should not be diminished so that a few will profit.
On World Water Day, Canadians have much to be thankful for and to think about.
Denis Coderre Liberal Bourassa, QC
Mr. Speaker, Quebeckers have much to think about right now.
In his travels abroad, Mr. Bouchard is proclaiming that Quebec needs to have its own voice in international forums. Yet that same Lucien Bouchard is denying francophone Quebeckers the right to have a voice in the Année de la francophonie canadienne.
What right does Lucien Bouchard have to deprive Quebeckers of their voice within Canada? What right does he have to try to deprive Quebeckers of their Canadian identity? What right does he have to continue to promote separation, when Quebeckers have twice rejected that option?
Lucien Bouchard claims to be carrying on the tradition of Jean Lesage and Robert Bourassa. Yet these Quebec politicians did not seek to stifle the voices of Quebeckers in their own country, in Canada.
These men had a clearer notion of the word “democracy”. René Lévesque would be ashamed of this Parti Quebecois strategy and would certainly not associate himself with it.
Pauline Picard Bloc Drummond, QC
Mr. Speaker, yesterday we celebrated the international day for the elimination of racial discrimination.
This is an issue which involves every individual and every state in our daily struggle to eliminate the obstacles to equality between people. We must work together to make society a fairer and more democratic one.
Yesterday, during the activities celebrating this event in Montreal, the Bloc Quebecois made a commitment to hold symposiums in the near future to specifically address the issues of democracy and citizenship. These will provide an unequalled opportunity to reflect on ways to bring Quebeckers of all backgrounds closer together.
The Bloc Quebecois also wishes to congratulate the Government of Quebec for the decision, just announced by Robert Perreault, the Quebec minister of citizens relations, to make the Quebec public service more accessible to minorities.
John Herron Progressive Conservative Fundy Royal, NB
Mr. Speaker, the Reform Party's motion to end discrimination against single income families reflects what the Progressive Conservative Party has been advocating for years.
Our position has been consistent since our 1996 policy conference. Our document clearly states that “a PC government would introduce a joint tax return so that single earner households with dependent children stop paying more tax than dual earner households with equal incomes”.
The Sears family of Quispamsis in my riding, like so many families across Canada, is being discriminated against because it chooses to have one parent stay at home to raise the children.
Let us get away from this unfair tax policy where the government believes it can make the best choices. The best choices can and must be made by the people it affects, Canadian families. We should allow Beth Sears to make the choice that best suits her family without unfair tax penalties.
On March 9 the PC caucus along with the opposition members voted in favour of this motion. Unfortunately Liberals voted against it. Again the government had an opportunity to demonstrate its support for children and their families, and it failed to do so.
Marlene Catterall Liberal Ottawa West—Nepean, ON
Mr. Speaker, when the purchase of Met Life in Ottawa by Mutual Life threatened a thousand jobs in this area, MPs from the national capital region began a series of meetings with the company and the minister to minimize the impact on employment in our region and on individual employees.
Recently Mutual officers met with the members to report on how they had met their commitments to us. Mutual has developed 600 jobs in four centres of excellence in Ottawa. Priority was given to hiring nearly 600 staff from Met Life with a freeze on external hiring and a survey to remove any barriers to employment in the new organization.
A career centre, training opportunities and counselling ensured that 93% of affected individuals were successfully repositioned within the first year. A $5 million transition fund has helped over 100 individuals and remains available to assist those who need additional help.
Mutual, under its new name Clarica, will continue and enhance its contribution to volunteer and charitable organizations.
Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
Mr. Speaker, the back to work legislation that was tabled today has a bunch of glaring omissions in it.
The government is asking us to debate and vote on this back to work legislation, and it does not even tell us what the offer is to the corrections officers that are part of the whole Public Service Alliance job dispute.
It seems odd to us. We cannot understand how we can be asked to enter into a prolonged debate today, to deal with something as critical as back to work legislation, and not have, as part of the package, the offer that will be made to the prison guards, to the corrections officers. Back to work legislation is offensive enough, but it is doubly offensive when the government is trying to shroud the whole thing in a veil of secrecy.
We would like to know, and we will be debating it later today, what the government hopes to achieve by this subterfuge, by this idea that it is not going to tell us the terms and conditions that are being offered to the prison guards. How can we order people back to work when we do not even know the terms?