Debates of Feb. 8th, 2000

Forest Industry

[Jim Hart, Reform, Okanagan—Coquihalla, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on behalf of the people of Okanagan Coquihalla who have serious concerns about the softwood lumber agreement. Since Canada entered into this agreement many lumber producers have faced severe hardship. My riding has seen hundreds of layoffs in the forest industry with more and more jobs threatened every day.

J. S. Jones Timber Ltd., the biggest employer in the Hope-Boston Bar area, is on closure notice. One of the most efficient lumber mills in western Canada had to tell over 100 employees they will soon be out of a job because the federal Liberal government negotiated a bad deal. The softwood lumber agreement has failed to protect the interests of our forest industry.

When the softwood lumber agreement expires the people of Okanagan—Coquihalla are demanding that the federal Liberal government remember there are people working in the forest industry in British Columbia and we expect a better deal or no deal at all.

Health

[Judy Wasylycia-Leis, NDP, Winnipeg North Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, Alberta Premier Ralph Klein has his foot to the floor in his drive toward two tier health care. We are only weeks away from the introduction of for profit hospital care in Canada and the Liberal government is still in disarray, wringing its hands, paralyzed in the glare of Klein's headlights.

Canadians do not want two tier health care and across the country are mobilizing to fight it. Only the Liberals seem powerless to act. They should snap out of it and wake up.

The government has the power to stop the Klein monster it created with its transfer cuts and lack of leadership. It can use the surplus budget and restore the transfer payments fully. The government can immediately act to outlaw private hospitals. It can act now, not next month, not next year, to bring in national home care and national pharmacare.

The big question is do the Liberals have the political will to act in time or will our valued public health system become roadkill on the drive to private profits?

Human Resources Development

[Deborah Grey, Reform, Edmonton North, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the government just loves to claim that human resources grants are about job creation. It never cites examples like the $2.5 million grant to Videotron. That is the $5.6 billion merger Videotron. These guys are not exactly needy.

The minister bungled $1 billion. Now she has been caught at it. I am going to ask the Prime Minister again and I would like to see if he could answer this one on his own without any help from binder boy. Will he fire the minister for incompetence?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the exaggeration on the other side is unbelievable. These programs are serious problems—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh.

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Saint-Maurice, QC]

—serious programs that have been established and they do not want them. Even the riding of Edmonton North received grants for the Canadian Nature Federation's office in Edmonton, the Edmonton Evergreen Community Association and St. Michael's Extended Care Centre Society of Edmonton. Do they want me to apologize because—

[The Speaker]

The hon. member for Edmonton North.

[Deborah Grey, Reform, Edmonton North, AB]

Mr. Speaker, Freud lives. The Prime Minister just said it is a serious problem. That is absolutely true.

The minister and the Prime Minister are playing Canadians for fools and they are not going to buy it. Out of 37 files alone, $7 million could not be verified and there are 60,000 files in this case. The minister has had the audit since last August. She kept it quiet. She dodged it in the House and worse, she did nothing about it until we caught her. I would like to ask her, will she fess up and quit today?

[Jane Stewart, Liberal, Minister of Human Resources Development]

Mr. Speaker, I want to repeat again for the record that I never said that things were running perfectly in my department. We received information that told us we could do a better job with the management of our grants and contributions. We made that information public. We are now implementing a six point plan and we will stick—

[The Speaker]

The hon. member for Edmonton North.

[Deborah Grey, Reform, Edmonton North, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the minister made it public only after she knew she was caught. We have a motion on the floor today to make sure that people realize how slipshod the management in this department has been. Members who support this motion today will be reassuring taxpayers that in spite of “Miss Management” over there, someone actually cares about their taxpayers' dollars and how they are being spent.

I would like to ask which one of the cabinet ministers over there will stand in their place today and condemn the minister for bungling a billion bucks?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we will stand up in the House of Commons and vote for programs that are helping people in need in the ridings. We will tell the people of Canada that the program of that party is to cut the taxes of the rich by 40% and scrap the programs that belong to the poor of Canada.

[Diane Ablonczy, Reform, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, we have obtained information on an HRDC job subsidy program. It reveals that just prior to the 1997 election call, the number of approvals skyrocketed. It was a transparent attempt to influence thousands of voters by turning on the public taps.

This is yet another example that HRDC programs are not really about creating jobs as the Prime Minister tries to pretend. They are about creating votes for the Liberals. First the billion dollar bungle, then the cover-up and now this. When will the Prime Minister ask for the minister's—

[The Speaker]

The right hon. Prime Minister.

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I have received information about a riding. I have received information about the city of Calgary. Yesterday somebody mentioned my own riding so I checked, because the programs had to be approved by the Government of Quebec, the Parti québécois. Of the 17 projects that were submitted, only five were approved before the election. Twelve were approved after the election.

[Deborah Grey, Reform, Edmonton North, AB]

Oh, that is okay then.

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Saint-Maurice, QC]

So that was okay then. That proves that we did not use it. Of the five that were approved before the election, if they were to help me to get elected it is probably because Lucien Bouchard wanted me to remain Prime Minister of Canada.

[Diane Ablonczy, Reform, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I think the Prime Minister has a hearing disability.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh.

[The Speaker]

Order, please.

[Diane Ablonczy, Reform, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

I can sympathize with a Prime Minister who does not want to answer serious, serious charges against his government, but the fact of the matter is that these are public moneys that were clearly shovelled out the door in enormous piles just before an election.

What does the Prime Minister and the government have to say to Canadians about such a blatant misuse of their money?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, it is true that I have a problem with hearing. I have had it since I was a baby. I accept that but probably the hon. member should learn not to create things that do not exist. She is still talking about $1 billion of mismanagement when it is not true.

[An hon. member]

That is what it is.

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Saint-Maurice, QC]

No, it is not true. There were 459 files and 37 needed more information. All information will be out. Some cases were extremely small.

As I said and I repeat, the auditing will be carried on until the end. Every dollar that would have been misspent will—

Bill C-20

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

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs refused to meet with the Fédération des femmes du Québec, the Front commun des assistés sociaux, and Quebec's student federations and labour congresses, going so far as to describe these groups as “mothball clubs”.

Will the Prime Minister tell us whether he shares the disdain in which his minister holds groups representing hundreds of thousands of Quebecers or whether he intends to dissociate himself from the minister's remarks?