Debates of March 24th, 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 Souris—Moose Mountain.

Caregivers

[Rey D. Pagtakhan, Liberal, Winnipeg North—St. Paul, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the struggles and joys of Canada's home caregivers and those to whom they give care for reasons of infirmity, disability or illness reflect the eloquence of our societal values.

André Picard and his team at The Globe and Mail are to be commended for drawing attention to this issue, the magnitude of which is staggering. Over one million Canadians need help—flexible work time, training, financing, respite and basic services—to cope with the demands of caregiving for their loved ones, most of whom are their parents or spouses. Indeed, governments at all levels have a duty to act and to act promptly.

May the issue ignite and the new social union framework facilitate the creation of a national home care program. To ignore its urgency is to surrender Canadian values at our own peril. The challenge to do good is at hand. We cannot long endure.

Canadian Publications

[John Cummins, Reform, Delta—South Richmond, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Canadian Heritage, in an attempt to protect Canadian magazines, introduced legislation to limit foreign split-run publications.

Now, in a bizarre turn of events, the minister is creating a split-run policy for Canadian publications, taking away the favourable postal classification from a group of Canadian religious publications. The Catholic Register and regional catholic publications, the New Freeman of New Brunswick, the Prairie Messenger , and the B.C. Catholic all lost their favourable postal classifications because they use material from Canadian Catholic News, a news service they jointly finance. For the past 10 years, these publications have pooled their resources in order to report on national issues, something they could not afford to cover individually.

These catholic magazines are Canadian at their heart and soul. The Minister of Canadian Heritage should be a supporter of such publications rather than trying to kill them with friendly fire.

Canadian magazines are not protected by singling out catholic publications for destruction. I would ask the minister to reinstate these catholic publications under the publications assistance program.

St. Mary's Children's Choir

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

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to rise in the House today to congratulate the St. Mary's children's choir on its continued fine performance at regional, national and international competitions.

In 1998 the choir won its seventh provincial title in eight years, and the 10 and under category won both the provincial championship and the national trophy, first place award, receiving the Margaret Wharton Memorial Choral Trophy for outstanding choir work.

The choristers are divided into two choirs: the brio, the junior division, and the presto, the senior and touring division.

The choir has recently finished recording its second professional CD. In addition, the choir also travels extensively throughout Canada and the U.S.A. and as far as Scandinavia and Great Britain.

My congratulations, once again, to the St. Mary's children's choir and its outstanding director, Eileen Baldwin, for the standard of excellence they achieve year after year.

Elimination Of Racism

[Karen Redman, Liberal, Kitchener Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, this past Sunday Canadians recognized the International Day for the Elimination of Racism. To mark this important occasion, grade 6 students in Kitchener Waterloo were invited to design a brochure on the effects of racism.

This contest is sponsored by the Kitchener Waterloo Multicultural Centre. It has been funded in part by the multiculturalism sector of the Department of Canadian Heritage. The winning brochure will be printed and distributed across the Waterloo region. The best five entries will be posted on the multicultural centre's website. The grand prize is a brand new computer.

This competition allows young Canadians to articulate their thoughts and feelings about racism, as well as encouraging them to work with their peers in the fight against racism.

Some of the slogans that have been submitted include “Be smart, don't start”, “Racism is for fools”, and “Racism is like a computer virus, shut it down” .

I am pleased to be a judge for this project and I look forward to reviewing the entries of the 15 finalists who have been chosen by the women of the—

[The Speaker]

The hon. member for Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik.

Social Programs

[Guy St-Julien, Liberal, Abitibi, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Canadian government cares about the plight of our poor.

By maintaining a network of accessible and universal health and social services, the government shows that it cares about Canadians' quality of social life.

Moreover, the Prime Minister asked the federal Minister of Labour to co-ordinate government involvement in improving the plight of the homeless, who have not been as lucky as others in life.

Everyone applauded this initiative on the government's part, and this is to the credit of the Prime Minister, who was acting on behalf of all Canadians when he made the decision.

The Liberal government is fulfilling its social commitments and it strives every day to improve the plight of those who have had some misfortunes in life.

Harry Flander

[Art Hanger, Reform, Calgary Northeast, AB]

Mr. Speaker, Harry Flander joined the Canadian army during World War II so he could do his part for his country.

He completed basic training and was one of dozens of soldiers transferred to the Suffield Experimental Station where he underwent chemical weapons tests.

Mr. Flander had to swear secrecy about the tests and was told he would go to jail if he ever told anyone. Military scientists placed mustard gas on Mr. Flander's arms. They instructed him to walk through gas chambers. They drove him into a field and dropped gas all over him. These experiments left Mr. Flander with chronic chest pains and egg size blisters.

For more than 50 years he lied to his doctors and his family about the cause of the scars on his body. His mother and two sons died without ever knowing what caused them.

Now that the Suffield experiments have been declassified, Mr. Flander and hundreds of other Suffield victims are free to speak. So far they have been rebuffed by the government for recognition and compensation.

I hope we can agree that Mr. Flander and other Suffield victims deserve our thanks for their sacrifices. This government—

[The Speaker]

The hon. member for Pickering—Ajax—Uxbridge.

Bill C-440

[Dan McTeague, Liberal, Pickering—Ajax—Uxbridge, ON]

Mr. Speaker, on Monday Reverend Ilce Miovski was tragically killed by a stolen vehicle as the driver was trying to evade the car's owner and the police.

Reverend Miovski was a constituent of mine and his loss will be deeply felt by the congregation of St. Clement Church.

His death adds to the carnage across Canada resulting from someone using a motor vehicle to evade police.

Police officers also put their lives on the line and are placed in the unwinnable position of trying to apprehend the driver or withdraw. In some cases the police are subject to legal action for the pursuit even though they were only carrying out their direct duty to the public.

Current Criminal Code provisions dealing with dangerous driving and criminal negligence causing death are not appropriate sanctions for this crime. A specific provision is needed in the code, with severe penalties for the offender.

I call on the Minister of Justice to incorporate Bill C-440 into legislation to make those who evade police pay for this act and for the senseless death and injury it can cause.

We cannot wait for more innocent people to die and for their killers to evade justice in the same way they tried to evade police.

St. Lawrence River

[Michel Guimond, Bloc, Beauport—Montmorency—Orléans, QC]

Mr. Speaker, 10 years ago today, the Exxon Valdez oil tanker struck a reef and leaked 41 million liters of oil along the Alaska coast. That tragedy came to symbolize the major risks shipping held for the environment.

In Quebec, two million people live right along the shores of the St. Lawrence River and see similar oil tankers go by, particularly in the Quebec City area, where Ultramar's piers are located.

As members know, the St. Lawrence River is one of the world's most difficult rivers on which to navigate. An inexperienced captain is exposed to many dangers. At the eastern tip of Île d'Orléans, in my riding, a supertanker is only 30 centimetres from the riverbed at low tide.

It is easy to imagine the devastating effects of an oil spill in the river. Half of Quebec's population gets its drinking water from the St. Lawrence, and there would also be irreversible damage to wildlife and plant life.

Luckily, inexperience is not tolerated on the St. Lawrence River. Pilotage is compulsory. It is experts from here, who know all the dangers of the river, who take over as soon as ships enter the estuary.

Through their work, the St. Lawrence pilots help prevent accidents such as the Exxon Valdez . Today I want to thank these pilots and to salute them.

Offshore Drilling

[Charles Caccia, Liberal, Davenport, ON]

Mr. Speaker, 10 years ago the tanker Exxon Valdez ran aground in Alaska, spilling more than 40 million litres of crude oil. More than 1,900 kilometres of shoreline were polluted and hundreds of thousands of fish, birds and mammals lost their lives.

Scientists say eight species, including killer whales, harbour seals and loons, have failed to recover since this accident.

A U.S. report says oil still remains in many stream beds and is dispersed into waterways when tides change. Although Exxon will pay over $1 billion in penalties, money cannot compensate for the damage to the ecosystem and the loss in wildlife.

The Exxon Valdez lesson is that preventing pollution through strong legislation, good rules and effective enforcement is far better than reacting and curing. Therefore the moratorium on offshore drilling should continue.

Kosovo

[Bob Mills, Reform, Red Deer, AB]

Mr. Speaker, as we go about our business here today, conflict continues to escalate in the lands of the former Yugoslavia.

Four years ago it was civil war in Bosnia. Today it is civil war in Kosovo. In both cases Canada and its NATO allies have determined that these conflicts are incompatible with our shared desire for European stability. The concern that the war in Kosovo might spread beyond the borders is very real. The fear of yet another humanitarian disaster in the Balkans is pressing upon us.

Under these conditions NATO interventions are necessary. We all know that efforts to resolve the war in Kosovo through peaceful means have so far failed. We cannot turn aside from the task that is before us, lest the flickering of this small war becomes a firestorm that engulfs the entire region.

I know the House will join me in telling the members of the Canadian forces that the hopes and prayers of all Canadians go with them as they once again are called on to serve our country.

Carrefour De L'Entreprise Et De L'Emploi

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

Mr. Speaker, this coming April 24 and 25, in my fine riding of Verdun—Saint-Henri, a job fair will be held at the polyvalente Monseigneur Richard, on rue Rhéaume, in Verdun: le Carrefour de l'entreprise et de l'emploi. All job seekers are welcome.

This fair will be a job finding opportunity where more than 1,200 positions will be available. As well, it will focus on building people's self-confidence and dignity, both of which are essential for success.

I have accepted the position of honourary chair of the event. On Saturday, April 24, at 2 p.m., the Minister of Human Resources Development will officially open the Carrefour de l'entreprise et de l'emploi.

My congratulations to the team of organizers at Cible retour à l'emploi.

Social Programs

[John Solomon, NDP, Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre, SK]

Mr. Speaker, the phony debate between the Liberals and Reform Party on productivity has nothing to do with productivity at all.

Reform, the Liberals and their right wing friends at Nesbitt Burns and the Fraser Institute just want to cut taxes for the rich and gut wages and working standards for everyone else.

If we read the KPMG study of business costs carefully, it makes another, altogether different point: “Canada and the United Kingdom both enjoy a significant labour cost advantage over the third place United States, where relatively high costs for employer sponsored benefits drive up total labour costs”.

In other words, Canada's social programs give us a leg up on the competition.

Our public health care system, our public pensions and other benefits all help make our workers and our businesses more productive and competitive.

No wonder Regina and Saskatoon are listed in the KPMG report as better places to do business than Calgary or any of our American neighbours in the midwest. In fact, better public programs for income support, child care and training would further reduce the cost of doing business and thereby continue to improve our productivity in Canada.

Yasser Arafat

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Laurentides, QC]

Mr. Speaker, today Canada welcomes the President of the Palestinian Authority, Yasser Arafat, on the occasion of his first official visit to this country.

It is worthy of mention that, in addition to numerous humanitarian aid projects in Palestine, Canada has recently signed a free trade agreement with the Palestinian government. We hope that this agreement will pave the way for a mutually advantageous relationship and a more diversified economic base for the territories administered by the Palestinian Authority.

I would point out as well that, with his participation in the peace process by signing the Oslo agreements, President Arafat has joined the ranks of middle eastern peacemakers, along with Anwar Sadat, Menachem Begin and Yitzhak Rabin. We can only hope that the Palestinian identity and autonomy will grow over the coming years within an overall context of peace between the Palestinian people and their Israeli and Arab neighbours.

[Yvon Charbonneau, Liberal, Anjou—Rivière-Des-Prairies, QC]

Mr. Speaker, today, the government and parliament welcome a political leader with an extraordinary record.

Reaction to the President of the Palestinian Authority, Yasser Arafat, by either adversary, supporter or international public opinion is never one of indifference.

For the past 30 years, under his guidance, the Palestinian people have fought heroically against oppression and repression.

It was under his guidance that the Oslo agreement was signed enabling the Palestinian people to enjoy a form of recognition and political autonomy and providing for the establishment of the Palestinian Authority in some of the land occupied by the Israelis since 1967.

The Palestinian people have a long road ahead of them toward a global, just and sustainable peace that will provide them with security, a complete state, the return of refugees, and normal economic, social and cultural conditions.

I hope this visit will provide an opportunity for officials in our country to assure the Palestinian Authority of our support in its people's struggle to recover its rights and territory.

National Defence

[David Price, Progressive Conservative, Compton—Stanstead, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Government of Canada has joined its NATO allies in war with Yugoslavia and Canadian CF-18s and their crews are now about to engage Yugoslav military targets. The governments of the United Kingdom and the United States have been fully briefed and have debated issues prior to the attack.

In the press we have heard statements from the minister of “soft power”, who now sounds a lot more like the minister of war, talking about military action in Kosovo, but no debate, nothing from the Minister of National Defence, nothing from the chief of defence staff, nothing even on D-NET. Even when the Prime Minister decides to go skiing instead of attending state funerals, we see the chief of defence staff.

Now that Canada has gone to war, we still hear nothing from the military responsible. There have been no briefings to parliament and no debates. After our party pressed the government, the Minister of Foreign Affairs agreed to make a ministerial statement.

Will the real minister of defence please stand?

Foreign Affairs

[Preston Manning, Reform, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, NATO air strikes in Yugoslavia have begun. We understand that Canadian CF-18s will be involved. On behalf of the official opposition, and I am sure all members, we want to offer our support to our brave men and women who will be in danger.

So far Canadians have been provided with very little information on the role that our CF-18s will be playing. I wonder if the Prime Minister would tell Canadians what specific functions our CF-18s will be playing in the NATO air campaign.

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to say thank you to the Leader of the Opposition in wishing luck to the brave Canadians who will be involved in the operation. I can tell him that they will be very satisfied to know they have the support of the Canadian parliament in a difficult time.

With respect to the particulars of the activities of these soldiers, the Minister of Foreign Affairs is supposed to make a statement about it at 3 p.m.

I discussed this issue with President Clinton this morning and we agreed—and all NATO partners are in agreement—that the time has come to tell the leader of the Republic of Yugoslavia that we cannot tolerate the activities that he is imposing on the people of Kosovo, as I said in my statement last night.

[Preston Manning, Reform, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, by all accounts the Serbs may well offer serious military resistance to the NATO strike. Unfortunately, this military campaign could turn into a long one. Canada's defence budget, as we all know in this House, is already seriously strained.

Can the Prime Minister pledge today that any Canadian personnel sent into that conflict will be properly equipped and supported throughout? Will he also agree to fully brief and consult with parliament before any new commitments are considered?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I am happy with the question from the Leader of the Opposition. I can assure him, the House and the Canadian people that everything that is needed will be provided for our troops who will be involved in this very difficult action.

For a new development we have initiated, with the collaboration of all parties in the House, to have a debate on foreign affairs before taking action. That did not exist before 1993. We will have a debate in this House. The Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Minister of National Defence have been invited to brief and have discussions with the critics on these issues during the process of the operation.

[Preston Manning, Reform, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the disintegration of the Yugoslav federation has been characterized by bloody military conflict in Slovenia in 1990 and Croatia in 1991, in Bosnia from 1992 to 1995, and now in Kosovo.

Will the Prime Minister tell us what action is being taken on the political and democratic diplomatic fronts to halt this disintegration and what role he sees for Canada in that process?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we are very keen and hopeful that these activities by NATO will lead Mr. Milosevic to come to his senses and negotiate to find a political solution. We are available if we can play a role. There is already a mechanism established for that.

If more activity by the Canadian people is requested we will be happy to participate, but we hope that the strikes which started a few minutes ago will tell Mr. Milosevic that if he has any concern about human lives and respect for civil liberties he will come to a political resolution to this difficult situation.

Building Contracts

[Deborah Grey, Reform, Edmonton North, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister could have ended the Shawinigan scandal long ago. The way this whole mess could have been cleared up would be very simple. It would be for him to table all documents and information about loans.

There is no one else to blame. There is no inquiry to hide behind.

Why is the Prime Minister refusing to let any light shine on this shady deal?