House of Commons Hansard #13 of the 37th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was crime.
The Speaker
As is our practice on Wednesday we will now sing O Canada, and we will be led by the hon. member for Sackville—Musquodoboit Valley—Eastern Shore.
Joe McGuire Liberal Egmont, PE
Mr. Speaker, it was a great weekend for female athletes from Prince Edward Island. Lorie Kane winning on the LPGA tour is becoming a regular occurrence, including her most recent win last Saturday after setting a tournament record in Hawaii with an 11 under par. Lorie has become the best female golfer in the world today.
However, history was made last weekend when Summerside native Suzanne Gaudet led her team to victory at the Canadian Junior Women's Curling Championships. It was the first time an Island team has secured the junior women's title.
I should like to take this moment to congratulate skip Suzanne Gaudet, mate Stefanie Richard, second Robyn MacPhee, lead Kelly Higgins, and coach Paul Power.
They have brought credit to their community and their province with their performance and their grace under pressure. I wish them all the luck as they represent Canada at the 2001 World Junior Curling Championships from March 15 to March 25 in Ogden, Utah, where all of Canada will be cheering them on to win the gold medal.
Ted White Canadian Alliance North Vancouver, BC
Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate North Vancouver resident Suzanne Wilson on the completion of her millennium photo project, Your House/Our Home.
Here is something that will shock the Liberals: she completed her project without using a single cent of taxpayer dollars. It was done entirely with her own money and donations from supporters.
In Suzanne's own words “The purpose of my year 2000 photo project, Your House/Our Home, is to leave a photographic and written record of the homes of families of the city of North Vancouver in the year 2000”.
In this she has succeeded. Her more than 2,000 photographs and stories stand as a testament to individual initiative and creativity. I am proud to be recognizing her today in this House.
Suzanne's exhibit gets my vote as the best millennium project in Canada, way ahead of the concrete dinosaurs, herb gardens and papier mâché pigeons that were approved for funding by the Liberal government's millennium bureau in 1999 and 2000.
Alex Shepherd Liberal Durham, ON
Mr. Speaker, everyone knows that today is Valentine's Day, but I rise today to reflect on another truly loved symbol of Canada and Canadians, our Canadian flag. Tomorrow marks the 36th anniversary of the first day that the flag became our country's distinctly Canadian national symbol.
Much more than a piece of coloured cloth, it is the symbol of a nation that is recognized around the world. It was 36 years ago tomorrow that the flag was raised over this building and became our official symbol for a great nation.
A number of years ago I promoted flag day with a number of our elementary schools to provide young Canadians with the opportunity to better understand the significance of our flag. I am happy to say that this initial undertaking has taken root and is now an annual tradition for me.
Tomorrow I will celebrate this day with the staff and students of the Good Shepherd Catholic Elementary School and the Gordon B. Attersley Public School in my riding. I hope all Canadians can and will take a few minutes tomorrow to reflect on our flag, which is the embodiment of our common heritage.
John McCallum Liberal Markham, ON
Mr. Speaker, I would thank the citizens of Markham for according me such a splendid electoral victory over the Canadian Alliance on November 27 and for giving me the opportunity to work on their behalf in years to come.
I will work with others to preserve and promote Markham's position as Canada's high tech capital which, roughly translated, means, look out Ottawa. I will also work with others to alleviate problems relating to immigration and transportation gridlock.
More than half of the people of Markham are new Canadians and the town enjoys a very rapid population growth. As a result, we have many citizenship celebrations. I will be going to one such celebration tomorrow, and I look forward to many more in years to come.
Georges Farrah Liberal Bonaventure—Gaspé—Îles-De-La-Madeleine—Pabok, QC
Mr. Speaker, on February 5, the Minister of National Revenue and Secretary of State for the Economic Development Agency of Canada announced that our government will be investing in 11 projects in Gaspé and Îles-de-la-Madeleine.
This injection of close to $2 million in the regional economy will result in overall investments of some $7 million. In addition, our government's action will make it possible to create and maintain some one hundred jobs in Gaspé and the Islands.
These contributions are a concrete example of our government's commitment to the people of Gaspé and Îles-de—la-Madeleine. They are a clear illustration of our desire to provide the proper support for economic recovery in these regions.
Philip Mayfield Canadian Alliance Cariboo—Chilcotin, BC
Mr. Speaker, the government's attempt to buy popularity with Canadians by issuing energy rebate cheques has been an abysmal failure. All Canadians are directly affected by high energy costs, but only a handful are eligible for the newest Liberal slush fund. It is totally irresponsible to issue rebate cheques to prisoners and the dead while hard pressed millions are left out in the cold.
What are the priorities of the government? While Canadians freeze, hepatitis C victims still await money promised them by the government; our brave merchant marines have waited decades for compensation and routinely turn to food banks to survive; and farm families are being driven from the land by a lack of fair government compensation.
However there is one quick solution to high home heating costs: remove the GST from all home heating fuels and give all Canadians a break this winter. Home heating, like food and clothing, is essential to all.
I urge the government to stop buying votes and start providing legitimate government services to desperate Canadians.
Sue Barnes Liberal London West, ON
Mr. Speaker, cardiovascular diseases impose a devastating burden upon Canadians, accounting for 37% of all deaths annually and placing a significant hardship and a diminished quality of life on those who survive and live with these conditions.
The cost of cardiovascular diseases due to direct health care expenditures, disability, work loss and premature death is estimated to be over $20 billion annually to the Canadian economy.
The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada and the Canadian Cardiovascular Society are calling for us to look at a concerted strategy to address such common debilitating conditions as heart disease and stroke. This strategy would be a first step toward the creation of a common and integrated nationwide approach to the prevention and the tracking of these chronic conditions.
I applaud the energy and the efforts of these fine organizations and urge all my colleagues in parliament to look at their documentation and support this very fine effort.
Jocelyne Girard-Bujold Bloc Jonquière, QC
Mr. Speaker, today is the day we celebrate love, and last night I had a lovely dream. I dreamed of Cupid. In this strange dream, he wanted to give me chocolates.
He could not afford to, however, overtaxed as he was with the GST and an insidious tax on employment.
Then he wanted to express his love, but his ability to express himself was limited by a gag and by this arrogant bill.
He persisted, however, and wanted to shout his love out loud. Brave fellow, his heart full of hope, he succeeded in doing so. He managed to get it out, but there was no one in the unilingual capital who could understand him.
Poor depressed Cupid, away he went. It seems that he was then arrested for carrying a bow and arrows when he got stuck in a traffic jam on one of the bridges. Now he could go to jail, though he is just a kid. Fortunately, that is when I woke up.
When I got to the office this morning, the second reading of Bill C-7 was announced. I felt like crying.
Tony Tirabassi Liberal Niagara Centre, ON
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to offer my congratulations to my colleagues on their successful election or re-election to the House. I am looking forward to working with all members in this 37th parliament.
I wish to thank the citizens of my constituency for placing their stamp of approval on my candidacy on November 27. I give special thanks to my family, friends and supporters in my home town of Thorold for the dedication afforded to me over 15 years as a city councillor. Their past renewed confidence has allowed me to gain the experience and political footing required to begin my service to the larger constituency of Niagara Centre.
The government has brought forward an agenda that speaks to the issues. I intend to dissect from that agenda those issues of interest to my constituents, which in turn will allow me an opportunity to evolve a national perspective so that all Canadians may be the benefactors of my work and decisions.
Gary Lunn Canadian Alliance Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC
Mr. Speaker, yesterday Canada sent a team of scientists to Brazil to determine if there is any justification for banning Brazilian beef. I have no doubt that this is not about beef but about the illegal subsidies which the Brazilian government has provided to its aircraft manufacturer, Embraer.
The Government of Canada has been granted the right to impose countermeasures against Brazil but Canada refuses to act. Yet it insists on hiding behind the veil of mad cow disease, forcing Mexico and the U.S. also to ban Brazilian beef, which they object to.
If the government continues in this vein, it will permanently damage our reputation as a fair trader. To accuse another country of mad cow disease without any justification could only be characterized as being deceitful, dishonest and a cheat. I ask the government to table today all documents that it relied on to accuse Brazil of the threat of mad cow disease.
I am afraid our trading partners are beginning to think it is the Canadian government that has mad cow disease.
Steve Mahoney Liberal Mississauga West, ON
Mr. Speaker, Hazel McCallion, the mayor of Mississauga, turns 80 years young today.
Hazel, born on the Gaspé coast, worked in business for 20 years and entered politics in 1967. Living in Streetsville with her beloved Sam, she became chair of the planning board, deputy reeve and then reeve. In 1970 she was elected mayor of Streetsville.
In 1974 the region of Peel and the city of Mississauga were created. Hazel fought this tenaciously and tried to retain the identity of Streetsville. She lost the battle but won the war. Streetsville lives as a vibrant part of Mississauga.
In 1978 she was elected mayor of Mississauga. We all came to appreciate and respect her dedication and incredible work ethic.
Tonight Mississauga will throw its biggest birthday party ever, a tribute to a woman who loves her people and her city, a party thrown by the thousands of people who truly love her. I wish Hazel a happy birthday and many, many more.
Wendy Lill NDP Dartmouth, NS
Mr. Speaker, in 1996 parliament declared February Black History Month. I am honoured as member of parliament for the Prestons and Cherrybrook to salute the contributions black Nova Scotians have made to the country.
Since the first black loyalists arrived to eke out a living on our rocky shores, black Nova Scotians have battled and still battle racism, poverty, injustice and ignorance in their struggle to raise families and build strong communities.
On behalf of the House I salute the many souls past and present who have tirelessly led the way: artists such as Sylvia Hamilton, Jerimiah Sparks and Walter Borden; the Happy Quilters of Cherrybrook; the Nova Scotia Mass Choir; teachers such as Ruth Johnson; religious leaders like Donald Skier and William P. Oliver; politicians such as Gordon Earle, Wayne Adams and Yvonne Atwell; athletes like George Dixon, Ray Downey and Kirk Johnson; and civil rights activists such as Rocky Jones and Calvin Ruck.
Black Nova Scotians have much to teach all Canadians about the importance of family and faith as we move forward to create a better world.
Benoît Sauvageau Bloc Repentigny, QC
Mr. Speaker, I offer the House a variation on a theme by Jacques Brel:
Insufficient is love As something to share When patronage tales Are afloat in the air
Insufficient is love From the Liberal side When stories of scandals Float in with the tide
Insufficient is love When promises die While taxes like GST Climb to the sky
Insufficient is love When the help you would bring Concerns only bridges Not one other thing
Insufficient is love When Heritage flags Are plastered about The better to brag
Insufficient is love When you turn a deaf ear And gags are the order Our pleas not to hear
But love will create Our own promised land The future is ours Let us just take a stand
Diane St-Jacques Liberal Shefford, QC
Mr. Speaker, today is Valentine's Day, a day to celebrate love in all its forms, a day when one realizes that love is something vital to every human being.
I would like this day to include those to whom life has been less kind. I would like us to give a special thought to those who are alone and have no one with whom to share their love, to children living in violence and deprived of tenderness, hugs and affection, to our seniors, who are too often forgotten and left on their own.
Let us make this a day of peace and love. Let us send our wishes Canada-wide in the hope that Cupid's arrow will bring all Canadians closer together.
Elsie Wayne Progressive Conservative Saint John, NB
Mr. Speaker, during last fall's election the Minister of Industry campaigned throughout Atlantic Canada making a personal commitment to shipyard workers in Saint John, Halifax, Dartmouth and St. John's, Newfoundland, that he would bring in a shipbuilding report by the middle of January 2001.
Sadly the minister has chosen to delay the release of the report on shipbuilding. Government sources close to the minister have confirmed that the report has been completed and it sits on the minister's desk. Why has the minister not released the report? Why will the Minister of Industry not table the report in the House today?
Why does the government continue to ignore the serious problems facing our shipbuilding industry? Why does it insist on prolonging the hardships being endured by our shipyard workers and their families?
Stockwell Day Canadian AllianceLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, the official opposition believes that Canadians want governments to be above suspicion but not above the law, and so as the Shawinigan file continues to grow we continue to demand accountability.
Members will remember Mr. Claude Gauthier as the man who bought the piece of land from the Prime Minister back in 1996 and then donated $10,000 to his 1997 election campaign. He was also the gentleman who got the $6 million government contract, even though he was not qualified, and another $1 million from the transitional jobs fund. Now it turns out that Mr. Gauthier also lucked into $9 million worth of immigrant investor funds after the Prime Minister met with those investors.
Why would the Prime Minister not be concerned about this conflict of interest?
Herb Gray LiberalDeputy Prime Minister
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is quite wrong in his assertions when he alleges a conflict of interest. I repeat that the immigrant investor program in the province of Quebec is a Quebec provincial program and is managed by the province. It makes its decisions on people who are entitled to offer immigrant investor funds. The rules of the flow of funds are according to the rules of the Quebec provincial government. The Prime Minister has nothing to do with those matters and has had nothing to do with those matters.
Stockwell Day Canadian AllianceLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, he does not agree with either the ethics counsellor or the auditor general. I want to remind him that Claude Gauthier bought the land from the Prime Minister that helped boost the value of his shares in the neighbouring golf course. He then donated $10,000 to the Prime Minister's election campaign. During that same period of time, Mr. Gauthier received $7 million from federal government programs, nearly all of which the auditor general says he was not entitled to.
How many millions need to go to Mr. Gauthier before the solicitor general will call for an independent inquiry into this?
Grants And ContributionsOral Question Period
February 14th, 2001 / 2:20 p.m.
Windsor West Ontario
Liberal
Herb Gray LiberalDeputy Prime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I want to again point out that what the Leader of the Opposition says about the views of the ethics counsellor are totally inaccurate with respect to this matter.
In an interview the ethics counsellor made speculative comments about a hypothetical situation. At the same time, he insisted that he had not changed his original decision from last November. He reiterated in January that the Prime Minister was operating within the rules and that he had not broken any conflict of interest rules. The ethics counsellor has maintained this position and the Leader of the Opposition ought to admit that.
Stockwell Day Canadian AllianceLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, the Deputy Prime Minister deals with material that may be up to four years old. It is the ethics counsellor who finds the Gauthier case questionable. It is the auditor general who has brought questions about receiving these funds. It is the ethics counsellor and the auditor general. Why will they not deal with this basic question of conflict of interest?
It is very clear that as the items continue to pile up on this file the questions continue to pile up. I would like to know if there is actually some other information that the Prime Minister is aware of that he does not want us to know about, and that is really the reason he will not allow the solicitor general to move ahead with an independent investigation.
Herb Gray LiberalDeputy Prime Minister
Mr. Speaker, the short answer is, absolutely not. The Prime Minister acted correctly and ethically. That was the finding of the ethics counsellor, which he has reiterated over and over again.
The Leader of the Opposition ought to tell us why he is raising these matters. Is it because he does not want Canadians to know that he really believes we are doing a great job on the economy, a great job on health and a great job on the needs of children? Why does the Leader of the Opposition not tell us that we deserve a valentine instead of raising these misleading and false assertions?
Deborah Grey Canadian Alliance Edmonton North, AB
Mr. Speaker, what a farce.
The Prime Minister benefited from the sale of the land adjacent to the golf course which—
Grants And ContributionsOral Question Period
The Speaker
Order, please. Obviously the excitement of receiving valentines has struck home. The hon. member for Edmonton North has the floor and every member will want to hear her.