House of Commons Hansard #105 of the 37th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was edc.
Jean Chrétien LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, a Prime Minister or a government cannot reverse a court decision. The decision has been handed down.
Is it the legislation that needs changing, then? That is what I have just said. The House of Commons has bills before it aimed at addressing this country's security problems.
I would therefore invite hon. members to express their opinions to the committee and we shall take them under advisement.
Stockwell Day Canadian AllianceLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister needs a little briefing. There are at least two cases working their way to the supreme court that could have the government making a statement on this before the supreme court in a legitimate way.
Millions of refugees are stuck in camps around the world. Canada only accepts 7,300 a year, but there are another 35,000 refugees who come here, 40% coming from the United States. They impose themselves on us. Many do not have documents and are a criminal or a security risk.
When will the government make genuine refugees a priority and deal more directly with those who are a security risk?
Elinor Caplan LiberalMinister of Citizenship and Immigration
Mr. Speaker, that is exactly what Bill C-11, the new immigration and refugee protection act, does. It gives us the ability to streamline our procedures, so that those who are in genuine need of our protection will be welcomed in Canada more quickly and those who are not in need of protection will be able to be removed more quickly.
That streamlining is extremely important. I wish the Leader of the Opposition would understand that this is exactly what we are trying to do.
Grant Hill Canadian Alliance Macleod, AB
Mr. Speaker, the very same top bureaucrat had this to say about Bill C-11 before the Senate, and I quote, “it should be scrapped and started from scratch”.
This top bureaucrat also calls for restoration of the safe third country rule so we do not have refugees coming from a safe country.
Why does this minister not clean up the mess in our refugee determination system?
Elinor Caplan LiberalMinister of Citizenship and Immigration
Mr. Speaker, I am not going to suggest for a minute that the system we have in place today does not need change. In fact it does. That is why we have brought in a streamlined procedure which is presently before the Senate.
I say to the member opposite that the existing legislation as well as the new legislation allows for negotiations of a stage for a bilateral agreement. Certainly he would not ask us to impose that unilaterally on the United States, particularly at this time when the concerns are security concerns.
We know that 40% of refugee claimants come from the United States, but we have to negotiate with them before we can--
Grant Hill Canadian Alliance Macleod, AB
Mr. Speaker, this top bureaucrat who has been around the immigration and refugee system for 26 years has another very interesting quote. He says that the system for screening newcomers, and I quote, “is a shocking and scandalous mess”. That is in this minister's department.
The sad thing about it is that this mess bothers every legitimate immigrant and every needy refugee. Will the minister clean up the mess?
Elinor Caplan LiberalMinister of Citizenship and Immigration
In fact, Mr. Speaker, while we are making significant changes, what we have done is implement intensified security screening. At the present time those interviews are taking three to four hours. We identify people, we fingerprint them, and if we have any concerns about their risk to national security they are detained.
Rather than just taking the quote from someone who was a servant a long time ago who worked for the government, I would like to suggest that the member hear what Commissioner Zaccardelli said this morning. He said that the notion that we are a safe haven is absolutely wrong.
Gilles Duceppe Bloc Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC
Mr. Speaker, we must take all appropriate means at the military, humanitarian and diplomatic levels to continue to fight terrorism. Now that the bombings in Afghanistan have almost reached their limit, it seems that a second phase of military operations is about to begin with the deployment of ground troops.
Before launching this second phase of the conflict in Afghanistan, does the Prime Minister not believe that coalition members must determine together the effective military means that will allow us to make progress in the fight against terrorism?
Jean Chrétien LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, there are no Canadian military personnel taking part in the ongoing operations in Afghanistan at present. We have daily contacts with U.S. army officers. It goes without saying that decisions are made on a daily basis. I do not know when we will enter a new phase of operations. Right now, the United States is still relying on air strikes. It may deploy ground troops some day.
Gilles Duceppe Bloc Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC
Mr. Speaker, in order for the international coalition to remain united and for the response to terrorism to be effective, both of which are dependent on each other, the situation in Afghanistan must be assessed at the United Nations.
Is Canada prepared to take its diplomatic responsibilities and exert pressure on its allies so that discussions can be held at the United Nations on how to continue military operations, before the beginning of the next phase, instead of being consulted only after the fact?
Jean Chrétien LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, as I just said, we are consulting with the U.S. government on this issue.
I have just returned from China, where we had a meeting of all APEC heads of government. We discussed the current situation and everyone agreed that we must continue the fight against terrorism.
As for the means that should be taken, it is the United States that was attacked on September 11 and that is responding right now. We offered our co-operation. As I just mentioned, there are no Canadian troops in Afghanistan right now.
Francine Lalonde Bloc Mercier, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has already asked us to show patience and wisdom. Now that the conflict seems to be moving into a second phase, and the number of warning bells are increasing, is it not becoming increasingly important for the coalition forces to consult one another?
Will the Prime Minister admit that the wisdom of which he spoke demands that the coalition parties take stock of the situation before taking action, and that they do so now under the UN's supervision?
Jean Chrétien LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, the member should know that the security council passed a resolution on September 12 saying that the Americans had the right to retaliate because they had been attacked by the terrorists. Since then, the U.S. has been acting within the terms of the UN resolution.
As for consulting the coalition, we are speaking with the Americans. We have officials in the United States who are speaking daily with top American officials. I know there are representatives of Britain, Australia and probably of France and Germany. There are daily consultations with the allies.
Francine Lalonde Bloc Mercier, QC
Mr. Speaker, given all our expressions of solidarity with the Americans, we can also tell them that the military actions in Afghanistan will not affect just the United States.
Canada's Minister of Foreign Affairs, who recently began a tour of various Middle Eastern capitals, sees the difficulties of the coalition.
Will the Prime Minister tell us whether the Minister of Foreign Affairs intends to use his tour to promote a meeting under UN auspices before the second phase of the campaign is launched?
Jean Chrétien LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Foreign Affairs is currently touring several Middle Eastern countries, where he is trying to convince everyone that we must first fight terrorism and then try to find diplomatic solutions to all the conflicts. I think this is the Canadian position right now.
Is there an immediate need for a debate in the UN General Assembly? I do not know whether this is necessary right now because the security council has already passed a resolution authorizing the activities of the American troops and of members of the coalition.
Alexa McDonough NDP Halifax, NS
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Prime Minister as well.
Canadians want to understand Canada's role in shaping strategy for the current campaign in Afghanistan. For example, the U.S. is dropping cluster bombs. Cluster bombs are like landmines, a lethal weapon killing innocent civilians, particularly children, something that Canada has strongly opposed in the past.
Did Canada approve of the use of cluster bombs? Was Canada even consulted on the use of cluster bombs?
Jean Chrétien LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I do not expect the generals of the United States to call us every morning to ask us at what time they should go.
They are in a war operation at this time. They did not want to be there at all. If the terrorists who are hiding in Afghanistan had not done what they did on September 11 there would be no need for any kind of bomb. I hope that this leader will understand that.
Alexa McDonough NDP Halifax, NS
Mr. Speaker, Canadians do want to know what role Canada plays. They want to know whether the meaning of coalition is that every partner has a say. Is that not the point of a coalition?
Yet in Afghanistan it appears that the United States alone seems to be making the decisions about strategy, about tactics and about targets.
What is Canada's role? Does Canada have a say? Does Canada have any voice at all or are we just there to take orders?
Jean Chrétien LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I think that it would be very naive to believe that every morning all the prime ministers and the leaders would have to consult and decide how many bombs would be dropped today. It does not work like that.
A coalition is not easy and it does not mean that they have to consult on every step.
It is kind of difficult to run a coalition. The member has only to look to the left of herself in the House of Commons.
Joe Clark Progressive Conservative Calgary Centre, AB
Mr. Speaker, the attorney general of the United States has deliberately warned that there could be more terrorist attacks this week.
Canadian police say that Toronto has been a centre for al-Qaeda activity and that as many as five followers of Osama bin Laden may be charged.
Does CSIS have any information confirming that there is a new potential for terrorist attacks in Canada over the next week? Has that information gone to law enforcement agencies across Canada and will the Prime Minister tell parliament the plan for co-operation among law enforcement--
Jean Chrétien LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, no information of that nature has been received by CSIS and the RCMP at this time. We are not under any special threat at this moment. I think we are all the time on an alert basis because there is always a danger, but there is no specific threat against Canadians at this moment.
Joe Clark Progressive Conservative Calgary Centre, AB
Mr. Speaker, I assume the Prime Minister takes enough time to read the newspapers. He would have seen the report by the attorney general of the United States.
Did he ask for information as to whether or not the information that caused the attorney general to warn Americans about an attack this week is information that should cause Canadians to be careful about an attack this week?
If he did his duty, what is his government doing to protect Canadians from a potential attack here in Canada this week?
Jean Chrétien LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I am very sorry to disappoint the leader of the coalition of the corner. There is no special threat against Canada at this time.
I am not going to be mad because Canada is not under a special threat, but I understand that the leader of the corner is mad all the time.