Madam Chairman, the umbrage and bombast from the minister on the other side is certainly inappropriate and highly offensive. For him to use this occasion on a very serious debate to attack the Leader of the Opposition is rather outrageous. In fact the patronage of his party has been well known.
He might stay for just a minute to hear that in my riding in British Columbia, we had arts and culture week in March. People wanted to know why, when $76 per head is the national per capita given for arts and culture, Quebec got 147%, Ontario got 107% and British Columbia received 34% of those dollars. The comments made earlier do in fact have a basis. It is a pity that the minister tried to cover for this with umbrage and accusation.
On behalf of my constituents, mill workers and industry workers who are suffering in British Columbia, I am pleased to enter this softwood lumber debate. I will say right off the bat that this is hurting people in my riding. Since we have been here the past few weeks, hundreds of workers have been idle in my riding of Nanaimo--Alberni. We have saw eight mills close in Port Alberni over the last number of years. Of 1,025 mill workers employed just a few months ago, there are now only 200 working.
In Port Alberni there were 950 loggers gainfully employed and now there are 185. Right now communities in my riding are hurting. They are sitting idle wondering when or if they will get back to work because of the situation that has arisen.
The problem has roots stretching back many years and the government has been inactive on this file. It should not have been surprised by it. We have had five years to prepare for this.
I noticed earlier the minister said that the government was waiting to see what the U.S. would do. Of course we know that the old softwood lumber agreement expired in March and we saw what the U.S. did. It immediately responded with a 19.2% tariff.
Having seen that, mill workers in my riding want to know why Canada did not do anything. Why did it not have a plan ready to take action? Many people in my riding would like to know why the government does not step up to the plate and take action to get our mill workers back to work. It is time to offer some leadership and it is time to get behind the industry.
One of the suggestions put forward was the issue of bonding. If our mills are going to be allowed to export into the United States, the regulation by the department of commerce and customs requires that they have to put up a bond immediately. People in my riding want to know why the government has not stepped up to at least help the companies put those bonds in place.
The bonding issue for the big companies is perhaps something that can be negotiated with banks regarding loans, but many of the smaller companies are simply not in the position to deal with that. They do not have the capital base and many of the marginally profitable smaller producers may be pushed over the edge. Jobs will be lost and families will suffer.
I will quote Rick Doman, the CEO of Doman Forest Products, one of the largest employers in my riding. He said the bonding guarantee is an important issue. This was stated in the Victoria Times Colonist August 25. Mr. Doman stated:
As a short term fix for companies struggling to post a bond, pending a final resolution on the duty, federal aid is being considered in the form of the Export Development Corporation.
That corporation gives bonding at commercial rates but it isn't specific to any one company or industry and it would be optional whether companies took advantage.
That's great news, according to Rick Doman, chief executive of Doman Industries, Vancouver Island's largest lumber producer.
Doman said he's been pushing the B.C. and federal MPs to consider this route as a way of delivering foreign aid without aggravating the Americans.
We would like to know why the government has not stepped up to the plate to help our industry in this manner is an issue?
Canadians have suffered because of the inaction of the government on other issues: the farm crisis; leaky condos in British Columbia; continued high debt and high taxes; the immigration crisis; the low dollar; and the decaying military response and ability. It is time to demonstrate some leadership in this area.
On the bonding issue, the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans was quick to come to the plate in Vancouver shortly after the tariff was announced. I will quote him from the Vancouver Sun . He said:
A loan guarantee financed by the federal and provincial governments could help firms avoid insolvency while Canada fights the duty before international tribunals.
Our mill workers and mills cannot afford to wait one and a half years or two years for the WTO process to work its way through.
We heard the umbrage expressed by the minister over allegations that the government is much quicker to step up to the plate on behalf of industries in other parts of the country. People in my riding watched the Bombardier-Embraer events unfold. The government stepped up to the plate to support an industry in another province. It even offered low interest loans to American firms to secure purchase of regional aircraft. Those people want to know why the government cannot step up to the plate to offer some temporary support to keep our mills open and our workers working while we work through the dispute resolution process.
Unfortunately, we have not seen action that has been helpful to our members at the present time. Believe me, people are hurting, families are suffering and many people are wondering whether they will have a job to go back to.
Members of the House recently received a letter from a U.S. senator suggesting that we sit down and negotiate a settlement. Reaching compromises is appropriate at times but in this case we do not need to compromise. We have a binding agreement but we need some support to get through this dispute mechanism which is already in place with the World Trade Organization.
We will win the argument with the WTO but what will our mill workers do?