Debates of Oct. 3rd, 2001

The Economy

[Lorne Nystrom, NDP, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Mr. Speaker, 70,000 people in this country are out of work since last June and the number is rising every day. In addition interest rates are plummeting. The bank rate is now at a 29 year low. Despite that, millions of Canadians are paying an interest rate of almost 18% on their credit cards and they are not in a position to renegotiate that charge.

The Prime Minister is saying that people should spend some money. Will the Minister of Finance instruct the banks in Canada to get their credit card rates in line with the falling bank rate? Will he ask the banks to do their part and try to stimulate the Canadian economy?

[Paul Martin, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the banks moved immediately on the reduction in interest rates. We have seen mortgage rates come down dramatically. What is very important is that we maintain the fiscal integrity of the country because that is what enables the Bank of Canada to bring interest rates down. It is what enables the banks to bring interest rates down.

We are in the middle of a global slowdown. It is very important that we protect Canadians through the downturn and that we be in a position to lead the recovery when it comes.

Trade

[Scott Brison, Progressive Conservative, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the security of our perimeter is Canada' s number one economic issue. Canada's trade with the U.S. is currently around $400 billion per year. Canada cannot afford to be outside of a fortress America.

Provincial premiers and business leaders are taking the lead on this issue. Why is the federal government not doing more to ensure the security of our perimeter and to ensure that Canadian exporters are not left out in the cold?

[Martin Cauchon, Liberal, Minister of National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, as a matter of fact the government started work on the question of customs and the volume it faced within a global area a long time ago. Back in 1995 the government signed a shared border agreement with the United States in order to ensure that we keep that land border open for trade.

As a matter of fact a year and a half ago the government tabled a brand new reform which brings a brand new vision to customs, Bill S-23. I will be present at the finance committee tonight in order to ensure that vision, which is a balanced approach to offering Canadian society security as well as keeping trade open on the land border. This is what the government wants to do.

Agriculture

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

Mr. Speaker, according to the most recent Statistics Canada figures, the agriculture industry has lost 39,000 jobs this past year. That is 39,000 jobs. That is the largest single labour force reduction in all industries in the goods producing sector. Other industries have lost jobs as well.

The Minister of Industry, the Minister of Transport and the Minister of Human Resources Development are paying lip service to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food. Why is the minister of agriculture so complacent when it comes to 39,000 jobs lost in the agriculture industry?

[Lyle Vanclief, Liberal, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, I will remind the hon. member again that with the safety net programs between the federal and provincial governments, the program payments to agriculture producers this year will be the highest they have been in a long time. They will be over $4 billion. That will certainly help our agriculture industry.

National Security

[Diane Ablonczy, Canadian Alliance, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the government shows its weakness even in setting up a so-called security committee. The terrorist threat of contamination of water supplies or the spread of deadly viruses is very real. Yet the federal health minister will be absent from the table even though these health concerns are of critical importance to Canadians.

Why is he not a key member of the new cabinet security committee?

[Allan Rock, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, the member should understand that ministers on this side of the House work very closely together. I will be working with the Minister of Foreign Affairs and all of my cabinet colleagues. As a result of the horrific events of September 11 all governments are looking very critically at their capacity to respond to attacks, the nature of which were hitherto unimaginable.

The government is very much aware of that responsibility. Health Canada is on the team. We are working hard to make sure Canada will be prepared for whatever happens.

[Diane Ablonczy, Canadian Alliance, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it is certainly a matter of priorities. Canada's provincial health ministers are way out in front of the government. They are already working on their own emergency response plans. The U.S. secretary of health recently made a televised appearance to assure that his department is ready and prepared to respond to a chemical or biological terrorist attack. Yet our Minister of Health is not even on Canada's new security committee. The question is, if this is such a high priority issue, why is he not on the committee?

[Allan Rock, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, in July 2000 Health Canada opened its new Centre for Emergency Preparedness and Response, led by Dr. Ron St. John, who has an international reputation for expertise in this area.

For the last 18 months he has been building and strengthening Canada's capacity to be ready for whatever might befall the country. We learned on September 11 a lot more has to be done and very quickly. Last week with the provincial ministers we agreed as a matter of priority to look at a list of things that must be undertaken immediately.

Health Canada is on the job. This minister is on the team. The job will be done.

The Economy

[Stéphane Bergeron, Bloc, Verchères—Les Patriotes, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the events of September 11 have affected specific sectors of the economy, vital sectors such as aviation, tourism and air and road transportation.

Will the Minister of Industry acknowledge that his government has a responsibility to support these sectors, which were hit hardest by the events of September 11?

[Brian Tobin, Liberal, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, we have had questions on the economy today which to my mind have not been realistic. There have been questions in essence asking the Minister of Finance if that minister is responsible for a downturn in the economy worldwide. We know we have a powerful, persuasive and excellent Minister of Finance, but surely nobody would blame a downturn worldwide on one minister in Canada.

We are doing our jobs. We have positioned Canada well. We will ride out the storm. We will recover quickly because we have made the right decisions.

[Stéphane Bergeron, Bloc, Verchères—Les Patriotes, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the public expects the government to do just that, its job.

In an economic downturn, businesses often cut their investments, especially in research and development.

Does the minister not think that it would be a good idea to establish tax incentives to encourage or speed up investment that otherwise might be put off?

[Some hon. members]

Oh, Oh.

[The Speaker]

Order, please. It is very difficult to hear. There seem to be a lot of conversations going on at once.

[Brian Tobin, Liberal, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, there are a lot of French professors on the other side of the House.

I appreciate all the help I have been getting.

The Government of Canada will bring forward a budget in good time. That budget will continue to build on the future of the country. As we have said over and over, as important as the security issue is today in this country, it is important to continue to invest in Canada's economy. The member will see that we are going to do exactly that.

National Defence

[Leon Benoit, Canadian Alliance, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the U.S. ambassador says that Canada may be asked to fill in for American troops leaving the Balkans. The defence minister was bragging yesterday, in an open letter in fact, that the Canadian forces are in great shape and that there is no need for concern.

Will the minister please tell the House, if asked by the Americans for assistance, where is he going to get the 2,500 troops, which is well within the government's own white paper commitments?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, whatever the United States has asked of us in this campaign on terrorism we have delivered on. We have put additional jet fighters into the NORAD system. We have been providing valuable assistance in terms of intelligence gathering and analysis. We have given the Americans the wide array of capabilities that we have. They know what capabilities we have. We are in discussions with them as to what role we might play.

The hon. member mentioned the American ambassador. What he forgot was the bottom line of his speech yesterday when the American ambassador said, “Whenever we have asked, the Canadian government has stepped up to the plate. I have no complaints”.

[Leon Benoit, Canadian Alliance, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the American ambassador has indicated that Canada may well be asked again to step up to the plate. What I want to find out from the minister is where is he going to come up with the 2,500 troops which is still well within the government's own white paper commitments? Where is he going to get the people from?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, I have not heard the United States talk about any particular number. The Americans have not asked us for any specific number of troops. The member has it wrong. Again, we have said that we are going to be a key part of the campaign against terrorism in a number of different ways, not all of them military. If we are asked to step up to the plate, we will be there.

Immigration

[Roger Gallaway, Liberal, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in a September 26 CBC radio interview the minister of immigration said she had given the order to do indepth security screening of entrants. She said this had begun and that they had not waited for Bill C-11.

Could the minister of immigration tell us, since Bill C-11 has not passed, under what or whose authority she is acting?

[Elinor Caplan, Liberal, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, after the events of September 11 I instructed my department to intensify security screening at our ports of entry. This was purely an operational matter within the legislative scope that is available under the current law, requiring no new legislative authority.

While the current law does have grounds to bar access to the refugee determination system, it does require multiple steps and poses significant delays. That is why with Bill C-11 we have streamlined so that those who are eligible to make a claim will be identified--

[The Speaker]

The hon. member for Kamloops, Thompson and Highland Valleys.

Multiculturalism

[Betty Hinton, Canadian Alliance, Kamloops, Thompson And Highland Valleys, BC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Prime Minister would not apologize for the thousands of dollars spent sponsoring a conference that became a venue for a hate speech. He said the organizations receiving the funding helped abused women and children.

How does the hate filled, anti-American, anti-male rant help abused women and children?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, let me repeat again that these types of conferences are very useful in Canada and we will not stop having social dialogue in our nation because someone made a terrible speech that we condemn one hundred per cent.

In Canada we have to have meetings of that nature and we still--