Debates of March 25th, 1999

Foreign Affairs

[Preston Manning, Reform, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, Canada also has a longstanding reputation as a peaceful country and our participation in military action against Serbian military positions should not mean that we cease diplomatic and political efforts to find a solution.

Is the Prime Minister or the foreign affairs minister participating in any new political and diplomatic efforts to bring about a peaceful end to the crisis in Kosovo?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister, the foreign affairs minister and all of us are anxious to get back to the negotiating table as quickly as possible.

Overtures have been continually made, the most recent being by Mr. Holbrooke when he was in Belgrade, to get a peaceful resolution of this matter as quickly as possible.

We are there because we are trying to stop a humanitarian disaster. We simply cannot allow evil to take over and good people do nothing. We must ensure that this genocide comes to an end. We do need a political solution quickly and hopefully the bombing will have the effect of bringing them to the table.

The Economy

[Monte Solberg, Reform, Medicine Hat, AB]

Mr. Speaker, let me quote from the Industry Canada estimates released this morning:

We have had the lowest rate of growth in productivity among the G-7 countries for the past 25 years.

This is a damning indictment of the policies of the finance minister.

Is he proud of the high tax, high debt record of his government, of the falling standards of living he has contributed to? Is he proud of that?

[John Manley, Liberal, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, let me quote from the same report:

Canada is well equipped to be a leader in the knowledge based economy of the 21st century. We have the people, the institutions and the research excellence. We know the challenges that we face, and the opportunities afforded to us. By mobilizing our resources, we can be a leader in the new economy. By working together, we can ensure continuing success as we embark on the new millennium.

The policies we have been pursuing over the last five and a half years are the very policies that will turn around that gap and successfully lead us into the 21st century.

[Monte Solberg, Reform, Medicine Hat, AB]

Mr. Speaker, study after study points to the feckless performance of the industry minister and the finance minister.

A month ago the deputy minister of industry said the gap between Canada and the United States is widening. It is interesting that now when the pressure is on the industry minister gets up and tries to defend this terrible record of his government.

Again, is the government proud of a record that is destroying Canada's standard of living?

[John Manley, Liberal, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, the biggest danger to the standard of living when we assumed office was that the Canadian government was running deficits of $42 billion a year. It has been reversing that trend, the key to building success in the next century.

Meanwhile we work hard on issues like increasing R and D performance in the private sector, encouraging the adoption of new technologies, encouraging training in the workforce. These are the things that will make a difference, all of which have been measures that party has consistently been opposed to.

Kosovo

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, now that the air strikes against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia have begun, a number of questions arise, particularly the question of Canadian participation in expanded military operations.

Will the Minister of National Defence tell us whether he intends to support expanding the Canadian contribution to NATO's military effort if necessary and, if so, what action might be taken in the short term?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, we have not been asked for an additional contribution over what we have there at the moment.

We have 6 CF-18s and approximately 130 personnel. We also have approximately 100 personnel working out of Germany under the early warning system known as AWACS. They are all part of this mission as well. We also indicated that we would send ground troops if and when there is a peace agreement signed. That would be premature at this point.

We have a contribution in keeping with the contribution of the other NATO nations save and except the United States which has a very substantial contribution. We have professional expert people there who are well trained and who are doing a terrific job.

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, another question Quebeckers and Canadians have has to do with the risk of the war spreading to other countries in the region.

Could the Minister of National Defence tell us what the Canadian government is doing within NATO and the OSCE, and as a member of the UN security council to ensure that the conflict will be confined to Yugoslavia and other countries not dragged into a deadly spiral?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, there is every effort to contain the matter.

For example, the forces in Bosnia are on special alert. Precautionary measures have been taken. They are also on the border of the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia and Kosovo where the UN mission unfortunately has come to an end. There are NATO troops there and every precautionary measure is being taken to prevent this conflict from spreading. We will try to bring it to an end as quickly as possible.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Laurentides, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in time of war, we need to give a thought to the terrible conditions civilians are experiencing. Kosovo has no lack of examples of such conditions.

My question is for the Deputy Prime Minister. Does Canada intend to play a lead role on the humanitarian level, in order to ensure that measures to provide aid to the many present and future refugees who are victims of the Kosovo conflict are put in place?

[Diane Marleau, Liberal, Minister for International Cooperation and Minister responsible for Francophonie]

Mr. Speaker, we have already committed in excess of $3 million Canadian in the form of humanitarian aid to the refugees, and are prepared to provide more assistance.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Laurentides, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to know from the government whether any Canadian nationals are still in Kosovo, and if so what steps have been, or will be, taken to help and protect them?

[Diane Marleau, Liberal, Minister for International Cooperation and Minister responsible for Francophonie]

At the moment, Mr. Speaker, there are no Canadians in that area.

We trust that the conflict will be over soon, so that we will be able to send over representatives to facilitate humanitarian aid.

Industry

[Alexa McDonough, NDP, Halifax, NS]

Mr. Speaker, Canadian Airlines, Metronet, Canadarm, the list goes on. Slowly but surely American firms are devouring our high tech industries. Today it is Ameritech acquiring 20% of Bell Canada. Head offices go south, R and D goes south, Canada's productivity goes south. What will it take for the government to abandon its don't care policy with respect to Canada's economic sellout?

[John Manley, Liberal, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, the acquisition of an interest in Bell Canada is what the member is commenting on. As she well knows, there are foreign investment limits in our telecommunications sector. We are not proposing to change those.

The growth that is happening in the telecommunications business is increasingly North America-wide. We should be looking at the job and growth opportunities that will exist for our companies as they expand into the U.S. market. I remind the hon. member of some important high tech acquisitions that have occurred going the other direction, Nortel's acquisition of Bay Networks for example.

[Alexa McDonough, NDP, Halifax, NS]

Mr. Speaker, we see it again, the government's “like, whatever” economic policy. Let us look at the facts. In 1994 the sellout was $8 billion. By 1998 it was up to $50 billion. In information technology the sell-off increased sixfold in just one year. Does the minister refute these Industry Canada figures or will he admit there is a direct relationship between Canadian control and growth in the R and D sector?

[John Manley, Liberal, Minister of Industry]

What is happening increasingly, in particular in technology related sectors, is that the world is becoming smaller and much of the market is global and international. It might be interesting for the leader of the NDP to realize that while investment in Canada has been growing, Canadian investment abroad has also been growing, so much so that in 1997 income from Canadian direct investment abroad reached $11.5 billion, the highest figure ever, which is almost equal to the amount that has been paid on foreign direct investment into Canada in the same year.

Homelessness

[Scott Brison, Progressive Conservative, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, on Tuesday the Prime Minister appointed a new minister for the homeless yet this new minister has been given no program budget and no research budget. Can the Deputy Prime Minister explain why the Prime Minister appointed a new minister for the homeless and failed to give this new minister the tools to get the job done? Is this just window dressing?

[Alfonso Gagliano, Liberal, Minister of Public Works and Government Services]

Mr. Speaker, we put up the money at the beginning of December last year. We added an additional $50 million to the RRAP program. We did not wait for a conference. We financed the Anne Golden report. We participated financially in today's conference in Toronto. Our ministers are there and we will continue to listen to Canadians in need so we can answer their needs.

[Scott Brison, Progressive Conservative, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, that is just more talk and what the homeless need is more action from this government. The finance minister mentioned the word homeless in his budget speech but no funding was actually provided to deal with this very serious problem. Since then we have seen the appointment of a new minister for the homeless and she has not been provided with the resources needed to get the job done.

Why does this government only talk about the serious issue of the homeless instead of doing something for the homeless?

[Herb Gray, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member should have listened to the very informed answer of the minister responsible for Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.

We have not been waiting for conferences. We have not just been talking. We have already put money on the table months before this conference. We are ready to take action, as we have made clear by what we have already done. This has to involve a partnership with provincial and municipal governments. We have to hear from them. They have to be involved as well if real action is to be taken to help the homeless.

The Economy

[Deborah Grey, Reform, Edmonton North, AB]

Mr. Speaker, they seem to be house cleaning over at industry. Anyone who has ever said that our standard of living is too low or taxes are too high has been told to change his mind.

Reports are being censored, conference presentations cancelled and diaries are being revised. But before the purge, the deputy minister was able to say at a conference that “improvement of Canada's cost competitiveness has been entirely due to the depreciating dollar”.

Does the minister agree with his deputy that our low dollar is the only thing masking our high taxes and high debt?

[John Manley, Liberal, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, as usual the Reform Party tries to simplify a complex issue and to confuse people about what it is.

If the hon. member would look at the speech the deputy minister gave, it is very consistent with the Empire Club speech that I gave.

We acknowledge that productivity is a key to growing a stronger economy, to creating economic growth and to increasing the standard of living in Canada. The issue that the hon. member raises, trying to simplify it to simply one or two minor questions, is misleading. The reality is that we have to look at issues like research and development, like the commercialization of scientific research in universities, like—

[The Speaker]

The hon. member for Edmonton North.