House of Commons Hansard #69 of the 36th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was transportation.
Pierre Pettigrew LiberalMinister for International Trade
Mr. Speaker, the EDC's corporate account does not use Canadian taxpayer money for these loans. Can I be any more clear than that?
It has received in the last 56 years $1 billion which is in its equity. The $40 billion it uses to help Canadian exporters comes from its own coffers, profits it has made—
Export Development CorporationOral Question Period
The Speaker
Order, please. Perhaps the hon. Minister for International Trade has not finished.
Pierre Pettigrew Liberal Papineau—Saint-Denis, QC
Mr. Speaker, I think it is important to realize that we have a corporation which has helped to leverage more than $300 billion of exports on international markets over its history. This is an extraordinary contribution. Members of the Reform Party should ask the business sector what it thinks of this remarkable contribution.
Libby Davies NDP Vancouver East, BC
Mr. Speaker, instead of fighting off talk of who his successor will be the Prime Minister should focus his time on finding a successor for his human resources minister.
Testimony yesterday by the former deputy minister clearly contradicts her statements about the loose rules for the so-called poverty pockets and transitional job funds. It is pretty clear the minister cannot even manage the cover-up that the government concocted.
Human Resources DevelopmentOral Question Period
The Speaker
Order, please. Go directly to the question, please.
Libby Davies NDP Vancouver East, BC
Mr. Speaker, will the Prime Minister admit that the loopholes were built into the program purposely, not to help the unemployed but to help bolster Liberal fortunes?
Jean Chrétien LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I am sorry because, yes, we have to have some flexibility. Twenty-five per cent of the money was used for flexibility in the ridings of Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca, Kelowna, Kootenay—Columbia, Nanaimo—Alberni, Nanaimo—Cowichan, Okanagan—Shuswap, Vancouver Island North, Kootenay—Boundary—Okanagan and so on.
They are Reform ridings and some on the list are NDP ridings, but there is a good chance that they will be Liberal ridings after the next election.
Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
Mr. Speaker, it can be very frustrating, just when you learn the game, that they change the rules on you.
The riding of Winnipeg Centre was told in no uncertain terms that it did not qualify for any TJF money. Only now that the program is over do we learn about flexibility, pockets of unemployment and all this stuff.
Could the minister explain to the people of Winnipeg Centre why pockets of unemployment in her riding qualify for millions and millions of dollars and pockets of unemployment which are all too real in my riding qualify for not one cent of TJF money?
Jane Stewart LiberalMinister of Human Resources Development
Mr. Speaker, what I will explain is that we have made huge investments in the riding of the hon. member, huge investments that have been there to assist—
Human Resources DevelopmentOral Question Period
The Speaker
Order, please. We heard the question. Now we will hear the answer, please.
Jane Stewart Liberal Brant, ON
There were huge investments under grants and contributions from the Department of Human Resources Development Canada. If the hon. member would like to return them, it would be up to him.
Jean Dubé Progressive Conservative Madawaska—Restigouche, NB
Mr. Speaker, this week the senior public servant in the land flatly contradicted the Minister of Human Resources Development on the issue of pockets of poverty.
Will the minister explain to us what a pocket of poverty is? Is it three Liberals in an apartment on Main Street in her riding?
Human Resources DevelopmentOral Question Period
The Speaker
Only the first part of the question is in order. The hon. Minister of Human Resources Development.
Jane Stewart LiberalMinister of Human Resources Development
Mr. Speaker, again the hon. member is incorrect. The clerks and I are not disagreeing on how the transitional jobs fund moneys were invested.
I would remind the House again that in areas where unemployment was less than 12%, the majority of the money, the majority of the projects is found in opposition ridings.
Human Resources DevelopmentOral Question Period
Progressive Conservative
Jean Dubé Progressive Conservative Madawaska—Restigouche, NB
Mr. Speaker, when the government introduced TJF after the reform to employment insurance why were there no specific guidelines to protect taxpayers' very important money? Why were there no special guidelines to protect them from the very mismanagement we have before us today?
Jane Stewart LiberalMinister of Human Resources Development
Mr. Speaker, again with regard to the transitional jobs fund there were 40 criteria. Those were applied across the country.
There was also thankfully the opportunity to be flexible so that we could make investments in regions across the country that needed help. That included opportunities in northern British Columbia. That included opportunities in Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
From our point of view ensuring that we had the opportunity to support aboriginal communities, Canadians with disabilities and areas, as I say, in northern British Columbia where they needed to diversify the economy, was absolutely the right thing to do.
Joe Jordan Liberal Leeds—Grenville, ON
Mr. Speaker, today is World Water Day, a day recognized throughout the world to draw attention within the international community to the urgent need for the sustainable use of water resources.
Could the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment tell the House what Canada is doing to protect its own fresh water resources?
Paddy Torsney LiberalParliamentary Secretary to Minister of the Environment
Mr. Speaker, the government is leading the way with initiatives to restore, to conserve and to protect major Canadian watersheds and ecosystems, to clean up our water and to protect this most precious resource.
It is the Minister of the Environment who is working with his provincial and territorial colleagues, leading the way on a Canada-wide strategy and accord by prohibiting bulk water removals. Furthermore—
The EnvironmentOral Question Period
The Speaker
Order, please. The hon. parliamentary secretary.
Paddy Torsney Liberal Burlington, ON
Mr. Speaker, although members opposite did not seem to notice, the most recent budget included an extra $133 million to ensure we meet our target, to ensure that we have a cleaner environment for all Canadians.
Charlie Penson Reform Peace River, AB
Mr. Speaker, the Minister for International Trade said that EDC does not give grants, but we know it gives interest-free loans for up to 55 years. They are not payable for that time.
Public accounts show that the Export Development Corporation has lent Venezuela $24 million. Venezuela is one of the original members of OPEC, the international oil cartel which is responsible for the high gas prices that Canadians pay currently at the pumps.
Why does EDC feel it is necessary to lend money to a country whose policies are distorting international oil prices and which are directly hitting Canadians in their wallets every time—