Debates of April 5th, 2000

Petitions

[Jean Augustine, Liberal, Etobicoke—Lakeshore, ON]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36, it is my pleasure to present on behalf of my constituents of Etobicoke—Lakeshore a petition on mammography assurance standards.

Canada has the second highest incidence of breast cancer in the world. One in nine Canadian women will develop breast cancer in their lifetime. In Ontario, only 22% of all mammography units are accredited and only 37% of all mammography units in Canada are accredited. Early detection remains the only known weapon in the battle against breast cancer.

The petitioners therefore call upon parliament to enact legislation to establish an independent governing body to develop, implement and enforce uniform and mandatory mammography quality assurance and quality control standards in Canada.

[Dale Johnston, Reform, Wetaskiwin, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it is a privilege to present this petition on behalf of Canadians.

The petitioners state that, whereas on June 8 the House of Commons passed a motion which stated that in the opinion of the House it is necessary in the light of public debate around recent court decisions to state that marriage is and should remain the union of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others and that parliament will take all necessary steps within the jurisdiction of the Parliament of Canada to preserve this definition of marriage, therefore, the petitioners pray that parliament will withdraw Bill C-23 from its agenda.

[Dale Johnston, Reform, Wetaskiwin, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I would also like to present a petition which states that the Minister of Finance has raised taxes in six budgets out of six and that the burden on Canadian families has skyrocketed by 30%, and also that in six budgets out of six business taxes have grown from $9.4 billion to $20 billion.

Therefore, the petitioners call on parliament to give taxpayers a break by instituting tax relief of at least 25% in federal taxes over the next three years.

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

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36, I have the honour to present a petition that has been signed by 67 of my constituents from Pickering—Ajax—Uxbridge, which calls on parliament to enact an immediate moratorium on the cosmetic use of chemical pesticides until such time as their safe use has been scientifically proven and the long term consequences of their application is known.

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

Mr. Speaker, I have another petition which calls on parliament to repeal subsection 13(5) of the Canada Post Corporation Act, prohibiting rural route mail couriers from having collective bargaining rights.

The petitioners draw to the attention of parliament that due to this subsection rural route couriers are prohibited from bargaining collectively to improve their wages and working conditions.

[Eric C. Lowther, Reform, Calgary Centre, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I wish to present a petition today, adding 400 signatures to the thousands of signatures which have come in. There is a good rationale for the petition, but I will cut to its main point.

The petitioners are praying, along with thousands of others, that parliament withdraw Bill C-23 and affirm the opposite sex definition of marriage in legislation and ensure that marriage is recognized as a unique institution.

[Grant Hill, Reform, Macleod, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, pursuant to Standing Order 36, a petition on Bill C-23. The petitioners call on parliament to withdraw Bill C-23, to confirm the definition of marriage in law as the union of two people of the opposite sex and to ensure that marriage is recognized as a unique institution.

[Rick Casson, Reform, Lethbridge, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I too would like to table a petition that deals with Bill C-23.

My constituents call upon parliament to withdraw Bill C-23, a bill which fails to define marriage in legislation as the union of one man and one woman, a definition which was affirmed by the House on June 8, 1999.

They state that the bill would remove any sort of unique public policy recognition of the institution of marriage, despite significant empirical evidence about the value of marriage as a cornerstone of public policy, and that it is an inappropriate intrusion into the personal lives of Canadians and extends benefits to only those relationships of a sexual nature, to the exclusion of all others dependent upon a relationship.

The petitioners sincerely hope that the government would take these words to heart and withdraw Bill C-23.

[Inky Mark, Reform, Dauphin—Swan River, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present to the House a petition from the good people of Dauphin—Swan River.

The petitioners pray that parliament withdraw Bill C-23, affirm the opposite sex definition of marriage in legislation and ensure that marriage is recognized as a unique institution.

Questions On The Order Paper

[Derek Lee, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, Question No. 79 will be answered today. .[Text]

Question No. 79—

[Jean-Guy Chrétien, Bloc, Frontenac—Mégantic, QC]

With regard to the reception held in the Parliament Buildings on December 13, 1999 to celebrate progress made on the Nisga'a Final Agreement Act: ( a ) did a government department or agency pay for this celebration; ( b ) if so, which department or agency paid for it; and ( c ) what were the costs incurred to hold this reception?

[Bob Nault, Liberal, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development]

Insofar as the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development is concerned, the response is as follows:

(a) and (b) Because of the short timeframe for the organization of this reception, the budget for the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development was used to provide interim funding and was immediately reimbursed by private donations. Total cost to the department was, therefore, nil.

(c) Catering costs of $2621.54, including GST, were incurred and paid for by the private donations.

[Derek Lee, Liberal, Scarborough—Rouge River, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I ask that the remaining questions be allowed to stand.

[The Acting Speaker (Mr. McClelland)]

Is that agreed?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

Motions For Papers

[Derek Lee, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, I would ask you to be so kind as to call Motion No. P-2.

Motion No. P-2

That an order of the House do issue copies of the most recent band audits at all reserves in Canada that showed a deficit or an accumulated debt on their last band audit.

[Derek Lee, Liberal, Scarborough—Rouge River, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the financial statements of first nations and their organizations are treated as confidential and exempted from disclosure by paragraph 20(1)(b) of the Access to Information Act. Portions are mandatorily protected under subsection 19(1), which protects personal information. A federal court decision of April 15, 1988 judged that information on Indian band financial statements was confidential and not subject to public release under paragraph 20(1)(b) of the Access to Information Act by the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. Subject to further direction from parliament, the department follows this law and policy.

First nations are required to make their audited financial statements available to members of their community.

Individuals interested in reviewing a first nations audit can contact the chief and council who will decide whether to disclose audits to non-band members.

Information about public grants and contributions to first nations bands is available in other records related to departmental program spending.

I therefore would ask the hon. member for Skeena to withdraw his motion.

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources and Minister responsible for the Canadian Wheat Board]

Mr. Speaker, as a minister of the crown I would ask that this matter be transferred for debate under Private Members' Business, pursuant to Standing Order 97(1).

[The Acting Speaker (Mr. McClelland)]

The motion is transferred for debate.

[Derek Lee, Liberal, Scarborough—Rouge River, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I ask that all other Notices of Motions for the Production of Papers be allowed to stand.

[The Acting Speaker (Mr. McClelland)]

Is it agreed?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. Could I ask the parliamentary secretary to make inquiries concerning Motion No. M-34, which asks for correspondence with the provinces concerning the clarity bill. Surely the government would want to make this correspondence public.

[Derek Lee, Liberal, Scarborough—Rouge River, ON]

The hon. member opposite has referred to Motion No. M-34. I am not certain that I would, as parliamentary secretary, have authority to deal with that particular motion at this time, but we will certainly take the member's statement as a representation.

[Rick Casson, Reform, Lethbridge, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order concerning what the Minister of Natural Resources just asked. Did he ask for the agreement of the House to do what he was proposing to do?