Debates of May 31st, 1999

The Environment

[The Speaker]

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

Canada Post

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

Mr. Speaker, Canada Post has just provided us with its performance report for the fiscal year that ended in March 1999.

Canada Post is the first postal administration in the world to have the quality of its service checked by a third party and to make the results public.

The service performance objectives set for the 1998-99 fiscal year were higher than those for the previous year. For the first time, the auditors were able to measure the performance of Canada Post in rural areas as well.

Despite the higher standards it had set for itself, Canada Post delivered 97% of local mail, 97% of regional mail, and 96% of national mail in a timely manner.

Congratulations to Canada Post, the Hon. André Ouellet and all the employees who have put so much effort into improving the service. Keep up the good work serving the people of Canada.

Impaired Driving

[Dick Harris, Reform, Prince George—Bulkley Valley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, drunk drivers kill over 1,400 people a year and injure over 60,000. It is a tragic and senseless crime.

The Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights last week presented a report and draft legislation aimed at fighting impaired driving. All parties on the committee agreed that the legislation would go a long way to fight this senseless crime and agreed to fast track it to get it done before the summer recess.

Now Bloc members are threatening to hold up the process, to kill the fast track and perhaps kill the bill. Maybe they should try to justify their actions to the families of the victims of Silvain Bwah. Maybe they should do that.

I urge the government to introduce this drunk driver bill immediately to ensure that this session does not end without us taking a giant step in the fight against impaired driving.

World No Tobacco Day

[Carolyn Bennett, Liberal, St. Paul's, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today is World No Tobacco Day.

I rise today to speak on the occasion of World No Tobacco Day. Youth smoking rates in Canada have increased by 25% since 1991 and recent figures show that half a million Canadian teenagers are daily smokers.

Tobacco kills approximately 3.5 million people a year worldwide, 10,000 per day. This afternoon the Canadian Society for International Health and the Pan American Health Organization will be hosting a public forum on Parliament Hill to discuss the nicotine issue and new approaches to cessation.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the panellists: David Sweanor, senior legal counsel for the Non-Smokers' Rights Association, Dr. Andrew Pipe and Dr. Robert Reid from the University of Ottawa Heart Institute, and Dr. Mark Taylor, President of Physicians for a Smoke-Free Canada. I would also like to thank Janet Hatcher Roberts, the executive director of the Canadian Society for International Health, and Maureen Johnson, also of CSIH, for their help.

This is not just a Liberal issue, a government issue or even a Canadian issue. This is a world problem and I hope that I can count on all of my colleagues for their help.

Natural Gas Resources

[Paul Crête, Bloc, Kamouraska—Rivière-Du-Loup—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Quebec and New Brunswick ministers of natural resources recently agreed to begin negotiating without delay an agreement to give their markets expanded access to the Sable Island natural gas resources, thus creating conditions favorable to the completion of a 550 kilometer gas infrastructure.

This project will enable Quebec to ensure greater security of supply and to enjoy major economic benefits.

When the federal government authorized the line toward New England, it deprived Eastern Quebec and Northern New Brunswick of a strong competitive advantage.

Taxation

[Monte Solberg, Reform, Medicine Hat, AB]

Mr. Speaker, we have always known that money talks and high taxes make Canadians walk, but now we have direct evidence that the low tax policies of the Harris government in Ontario are contributing to national unity, unlike the cupboard love, flag waving and neglect offered by this tax and spend and then tax some more federal Liberal government.

Even our friends in the Bloc, who are encouraged to live in Quebec as a gesture of loyalty, are considering packing the moving vans and heading across the river to Ottawa to take advantage of Ontario's attractive low tax rates.

The lesson for the government is that cutting taxes would be an obvious good start to building a strong and united Canada. If low taxes will attract sovereignists to Ontario, when is the government going to figure out that low federal taxes will keep Quebecers in Canada?

The Harris government should be congratulated for its unwavering commitment to lower taxes to stimulate Ontario's economy. It goes to show that despite political and regional differences one thing unites us all: low taxes.

Kuwait

[Mac Harb, Liberal, Ottawa Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Kuwait is marking the new millennium in a special way. Recently the Kuwait cabinet and Emir made a historic decision that gave women the right to vote and run for office for the first time.

While Kuwait had many women in senior public and private sector positions, they were not able to fully participate in the democratic process.

On behalf of my colleagues in parliament and all Canadians, I would like to congratulate Ambassador Majdi Al-Dhafiri, his government and the people of Kuwait on this historic human rights decision.

Human Rights

[Libby Davies, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, today the Prime Minister is hosting Andres Pastrana, the president of Colombia, while in that country massive atrocities continue as its population is subjected to horrific human rights violations, disappearances and murder.

If one is a labour leader or an activist, one's life is in peril. If one does not agree with the establishment, one may disappear. Even if one happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, one is at risk.

The federal NDP stands in solidarity with the people of Colombia, and we say to the Prime Minister and the Canadian government “Stop the killing”. Tell Pastrana that the 2,700 trade unionists who have been killed since 1987 is unconscionable and justice must be done.

The Canadian Council of Churches Tribunal and Amnesty International have massive evidence of the brutality and murders. Today the Canadian government, in meetings with the Colombian president, must make it clear that under international law the Government of Colombia must be held accountable.

World No Tobacco Day

[Pauline Picard, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

Mr. Speaker, today is World No Tobacco Day.

While we must all delight at the passage of strong legislation to counteract the ill effects of smoking, we must be able to implement the laws we pass. On the weekend, Health Canada acknowledged that it was having difficulty ensuring compliance with its anti-smoking legislation, because of a lack of inspectors. In Quebec, one corner store in two complies with the law by refusing to sell cigarettes to minors.

At home, as in the rest of Canada, the job is not easy. While the federal government is currently carrying out consultations on the various options open to it on regulations concerning the promotion of tobacco products, it must ensure that the measures are realistic and that it can properly put them into effect. Otherwise, the legislator's efforts to reduce the ill effects of smoking will be for naught. They will be fruitless.

Annapolis County Seniors Safety Program

[Mark Muise, Progressive Conservative, West Nova, NS]

Mr. Speaker, over the past three years Annapolis County senior citizens have experienced an added sense of security as a result of a unique seniors safety program that was introduced by the Bridgetown RCMP detachment.

Initially designed as a summer project to open the lines of communication between seniors and the local RCMP, the program quickly generated much public support. Many local communities and business leaders, including the Annapolis West Health Foundation and the Soldiers Memorial Hospital Foundation, were instrumental in providing the necessary financial resources to allow the program to operate on a full time basis.

Ms. Sharon Elliott, its energetic program co-ordinator, has personally conducted in-home visits to over 1,700 seniors, providing them with safety information on how to protect themselves against criminal activity, as well as helpful hints on medication storage.

As we salute the United Nations International Year of the Older Person, let us recognize the heroic efforts of the Bridgetown RCMP detachment.

National Drug Strategy

[Randy White, Reform, Langley—Abbotsford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, almost 1,000 people met in Abbotsford, British Columbia last Thursday to discuss and express their concerns about hard drugs in our society.

People across Canada agree that not enough is being done. The government's national drug strategy does not work. It is not working on the street.

I am asking all hon. members of the House to seriously consider putting aside partisan politics to work on how we can best get programs implemented at the local level.

We need more education on the bad effects of illicit drugs. We need much improved rehabilitation initiatives. We need to consider addiction as a serious health concern. We need to seriously penalize non-addicted drug pushers. We need to clean up our prison drug problem. We need to co-ordinate federal, provincial and municipal programs. Most importantly, in the House we need to work together on this program now.

Water Quality

[Gordon Earle, NDP, Halifax West, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the government continues to issue statements about multiculturalism and racial equality. At the same time, a small, predominately black community in my riding does not even have a safe and healthy water supply.

The families of Hammonds Plains do not have adequate water, which is abominable in our country in this day and age. What makes it even more striking is the fact that this community borders the lake that supplies fresh water to Halifax and Dartmouth.

The people are drinking from wells where the water has been deemed to be unsafe and unsuitable. People have wells that run dry in the summertime. Quite often they have to call upon the local fire department to deliver water to them.

I trust that with new discussions about funding an infrastructure program this government is fully committed to ensuring it will do whatever is necessary to provide fresh water to the residents of Hammonds Plains.

It comes down to a matter of priorities. I have been pursuing this issue on the federal level. I have tried to seek whatever funds might be available from any of the programs that the federal government might have in the area of health, the environment, heritage and so forth. However, to date I have been unable to secure any meaningful funding from the federal government to assist in this project going ahead. Where does the government put its priorities?

Government Of Canada

[Rick Borotsik, Progressive Conservative, Brandon—Souris, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal government has been in government for six years and it still cannot stop blaming all of its administrative failures on the previous Progressive Conservative government.

Last week in the House the Minister of Finance tried to blame the P.C. government for the current income gap between Canada and the U.S. That would be like blaming a grade six teacher for failing high school.

It is time the Minister of Finance and the federal government took credit for the Liberal accomplishments over the last six years. It is time to take credit for the Pearson airport fiasco, which cost taxpayers $1 billion. It is time to take credit for the EH-101 cancellation, which cost taxpayers $1 billion. It is time to take credit for the highest personal income tax levels among the G-7 countries. It is time to take credit for raising taxes 40 times since 1994. It is time to take credit for gutting $17 billion from the health care budget.

These are Liberal accomplishments over the past six years and it is time they stood and took responsibility.

Scientific Research

[Nick Discepola, Liberal, Vaudreuil—Soulanges, QC]

Mr. Speaker, last week the Canadian government announced good news for the Quebec City region, and the scientific world in particular. Laval University will be heading up a Canadian photonics institute and will receive $13 million in funding over the next three years from the Canadian government.

This institute becomes the 15th centre of excellence to receive funding from the federal government. It will bring together 64 researchers from 22 universities across the country, with Laval University co-ordinating activities as head of the network.

This announcement highlights the region's importance in this sector and is another example of how the Government of Canada is helping Quebec's regions.

Summer Employment

[Gurbax Malhi, Liberal, Bramalea—Gore—Malton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, earlier this month I attended the openings of two human resource centres in Brampton and Malton. In my riding the federal government is contributing $174,572 toward a summer job placement program to help create 101 local summer jobs.

At least 50 local businesses and organizations are involved, including one public sector and 10 non-profit organizations.

Private sector firms offering summer job placements include: Allders International, Davroc Test Labs, Keyes Management, Par Pak, Thomson Terminals, Sommerville Package and West Pro Sales.

I would encourage Canadians to hire some youthful energy this summer by hiring a student.

Statistics Canada

[Pierre De Savoye, Bloc, Portneuf, QC]

Mr. Speaker, during a recent appearance before the Standing Committee on Industry, the chief statistician, Ivan Fellegi, said that, when a certain number of people say they are of an ethnic origin not on the agency's list, that ethnic origin is then added.

But by caving in to the “Call me Canadian” political lobby and listing Canadian as an ethnic origin, Statistics Canada has sabotaged the usefulness of the ethnic origin question and wasted taxpayers' money.

Many scientists, including the Association des démographes du Québec, have asked the organization to go back to the 1991 census proposal.

Statistics Canada must put this right. Its reputation as a scientific agency hangs in the balance. Otherwise, by turning the census into a political operation, this federal agency will lose its credibility.

Kosovo

[Preston Manning, Reform, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, as we all know the tensions in Kosovo are growing every week. Our allies are stepping up their commitments and diplomatic initiatives are at a critical stage. At the same time, the House will be recessing for the summer in a matter of days.

What specific provisions will the Prime Minister make to ensure that parliament is involved in any ongoing discussions or changes to Canada's commitments in the former Yugoslavia?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we have been discussing that in the House. Every day the opposition has the opportunity to ask questions to the government. We have had many debates on the situation in Kosovo in the last 12 months. When we eventually adjourn, nothing will be different.

The House of Commons has already indicated that it supports the activities of NATO. We want President Milosevic to stop the cleansing, the murdering and the raping. We want to make sure that the Kosovars can go back to their homes in safety and security where they belong.

[Preston Manning, Reform, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, to date the government has done little or nothing to involve the House in developing Canada's commitments in Yugoslavia.

Most members of the House get more information from television and newspapers than they do from the government on this subject. The government has yet to bring any votable motion at all before the House on this issue.

What more does the government intend to do to involve parliament in a substantive way during the summer recess with respect to this issue?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I can understand that the Leader of the Opposition is not aware of what is going on in his party. We know that very well.

The reality is that twice a week, every week, the members of all parties in the House of Commons receive briefings and everybody is welcome. I do not think that has ever been done before and I am very proud of it.

I understand that the Leader of the Opposition has not been informed by somebody in his own party.

[Preston Manning, Reform, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, this has gone far beyond the necessity of briefing.

The United States is threatening to send 90,000 troops to the former Yugoslavia in a matter of weeks if no peace settlement is reached. Britain is talking about increasing its commitment to 50,000 troops. It is increasingly likely that NATO will send in ground troops in advance of any peace settlement and Canada is expected to be part of that contingent.

Given that an invasion force could be put together within a few weeks, why is the government not bringing forward a plan and a motion to parliament on that issue now?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, there is no plan to send invasion troops. It has been decided that the troops will be there to maintain security and peace for the Kosovars when there is an agreement. That is why some 800 Canadians are moving there.

We have not received any requests at this time for more troops. At this moment there is no plan for the invasion of Kosovo by anybody.

When the estimates come before the House of Commons on June 9 this question can be raised by the opposition in front of the House.

Government Grants

[Chuck Strahl, Reform, Fraser Valley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, for the last month the Prime Minister has been running from questions about a $600,000 grant he announced in his own riding just prior to the last election.

He ducked the question about how he could know about this grant before bureaucrats had even seen a business plan for it. He avoided answering questions by getting his human resources minister to pretend that this happens all the time. However, here are the facts: The Prime Minister announced the $600,000 grant on the eve of an election in his own riding before it had proper governmental approval.

Why did the Prime Minister announce this grant three weeks before the bureaucrats had even seen the business plan?

[Bonnie Brown, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to Minister of Human Resources Development]

Mr. Speaker, the opposition persists in mixing up two proposals from the same proponent to two different programs HRDC provides. They put forward the proposal for the wage subsidy program which did not require a business plan.

Our officials decided that the proposal being put forward fit better with another program which did require a business plan. Once it was provided that proposal was accepted.

[Chuck Strahl, Reform, Fraser Valley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is nice when they can get money from the government and they do not even have a business plan.

The fact is that this jobs transition fund lends itself to abuse. We have had a Liberal fundraiser indicted for influence peddling under this program. We have had convicted criminals and self-confessed embezzlers receive grant moneys. Now an unregistered lobbyist with close ties to the Prime Minister is being investigated by the RCMP for helping corporations in the Prime Minister's own riding receive additional funds.

The Prime Minister only won his riding by 1,600 votes. Does he think that announcing a grant before it was properly approved helped him or hurt him in the last election campaign?