Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise tonight to address this very important issue.
I wish to deal with the impact of September 11 on the air transport industry from two perspectives: security and safety and the financial viability of the industry.
Obviously on September 11 a total review of safety and security measures was instituted and that is ongoing. Before planes returned to the sky after September 11 Transport Canada instituted tougher, more rigorous standards which were developed in consultation with the FAA.
It is important Canadians understand that we have instituted tougher security measures at airports, both for screening of passengers and employees but also on planes. It is also important to impart this information because the country needs to have people go back to the skies. We must encourage people to fly because flying is safe, especially with the new security measures.
Some of the measures have included: limited access to restricted areas at airports; security controls and screening checkpoints have been tightened; increased police presence at major airports; increased passenger screening; enhanced baggage security measures; measures to prohibit small knives and knife-like objects on board aircraft; the requirement for cockpit doors on all Canadian airline passenger flights, domestic and international, to be locked for the full duration of the flights; the purchase of advance explosive detection systems for a number of Canadian airports; and the active pursuit with the FAA, European authorities and others of security improvements to cockpits, including fortifying cockpit doors. We are in the process of implementing further enhancements to passenger screening and additional security measures with respect to cargo shipments.
My strategy since the tragic events have unfolded is to announce initiatives as they are ready to be implemented, not to stand and make some big speech for public consumption but to announce them either in question period as I did with cockpit doors, in scrums or in other venues, and be available in the House of Commons every day since parliament has opened to answer questions from hon. members on a daily basis.
There has been a lot made of the announcements of Mr. Bush. I do not take those announcements lightly. Except for the issue of federal marshals on board planes, Canada's new security measures mirror or complement initiatives taken in the U.S. In some cases the U.S. mirrors our own regulations.
While allowing armed sky marshals on flights is not a direction in which Transport Canada is actively going at the moment, we will carefully consider all practical means to improve security. A comprehensive sky marshal program would have serious practical and financial implications which would need to be considered in co-operation with other departments and agencies, including the RCMP.