Debates of March 30th, 2001

Natural Resources

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources and Minister responsible for the Canadian Wheat Board]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. gentleman does not listen. I have said very clearly that we do not agree. We do not agree with the American position.

Lumber Industry

[Gerald Keddy, Progressive Conservative, South Shore, NS]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister for International Trade. What has the minister done to guarantee that Canadian sawmillers will not wake up on Sunday morning facing U.S. anti-dumping measures against Canadian softwood lumber?

[Pierre Pettigrew, Liberal, Minister for International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, anti-dumping investigations are company specific. We have worked with the industry over the last year and have consulted with it very narrowly. We briefed it solely on the American legislation on anti-dumping. It is not up to us to keep the books of our companies.

I am confident that our companies have respected their international business obligations, and that when we wake up on Sunday morning we will be defending Canadian access to the United States market as we must within NAFTA.

Freshwater Exports

[Loyola Hearn, Progressive Conservative, St. John's West, NL]

Mr. Speaker, the premier of Newfoundland has reintroduced the bulk export of water issue. He said that even if the governments of Canada and other provincial jurisdictions think that it as not in their best interests he will do it anyway.

The premier has told the ministers of industry and trade to butt out as he has “deserted and abandoned any right to have a direct say”.

Does the government approve of the stand by the only Liberal premier? If not, how does the government plan to stop this man on a mission of self-destruction and protect our valuable water resource?

[Denis Paradis, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, Canada's position on this issue is clear, just like our water. The Canadian government has full sovereignty over the management of water when it is in its natural state. What is important is that the NAFTA parties confirmed in 1993 that water in its natural state was not a good.

We strongly urge Newfoundland to stand by its original decision and actions to prohibit bulk water removal. Everyone needs to be on board to protect this environmental resource.

Lumber Industry

[Andy Burton, Canadian Alliance, Skeena, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Deputy Prime Minister just asked for a question on softwood lumber. Here it is. Will the government—

[Some hon. members]

Hear, hear.

[The Speaker]

Order, please. The hon. member for Skeena has the floor.

[Andy Burton, Canadian Alliance, Skeena, BC]

Let us hope we get an answer, Mr. Speaker. Will the government allow the softwood lumber agreement to automatically expire tomorrow night? Yes or no.

[Pierre Pettigrew, Liberal, Minister for International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, the agreement negotiated in 1996 will terminate tomorrow night, March 31 at midnight. That has been the agreement of the House for a very long time.

There is a consensus in the industry from all regions of our country not to renegotiate or re-enter that sort of agreement. Our government policy is to reflect that.

[John Duncan, Canadian Alliance, Vancouver Island North, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the minister for the clear answer. There was some non-clarity over the last few days. I am happy to know that with 24 hours to go the government knows where it is going.

We have a national industry consensus that emissaries represent a good option to advance Canadian interests on softwood lumber. When will the minister announce the Canadian representative?

[Pierre Pettigrew, Liberal, Minister for International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, there was no clarity on the opposition side. It has certainly not used question period to try to illuminate a lack of clarity on our part. They have absolutely ignored softwood lumber. They have not put any questions to us during the whole week on the softwood lumber issue, even though it is a very important one.

We have been working very hard on the envoy issue. I have raised it in every conversation I have had lately with Mr. Zoellick. We will continue to promote it because we are looking with the Americans for a long term solution to the problem.

[Paul Crête, Bloc, Kamouraska—Rivière-Du-Loup—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC]

Mr. Speaker, as the minister said, the softwood lumber agreement comes to an end tomorrow. On Sunday, free trade will automatically kick in.

But the government has reiterated its offer to appoint a special envoy to defend Canada's position with one voice.

Can the minister assure us that this envoy's sole mandate will be to negotiate a return to free trade in the softwood lumber market?

[Pierre Pettigrew, Liberal, Minister for International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, as everyone knows, with the support of the five parties in the House, including the Bloc Quebecois, the parliamentary committee unanimously approved the idea of having one federal co-ordinator and one envoy who could work with the Americans to identify possible courses of action and long-term solutions.

I am therefore a bit surprised at this question from the Bloc Quebecois, which itself supported the appointment of such an eminent person, who could help us with this situation.

We are therefore going to continue to work on this front, and I believe that the United States is also interested.

[Paul Crête, Bloc, Kamouraska—Rivière-Du-Loup—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister did not understand the question. I will repeat it.

Can he assure us that this envoy's sole mandate will be to negotiate a return to free trade in the softwood lumber market, so that Quebec will finally be entitled to equal treatment for its exporters?

[Pierre Pettigrew, Liberal, Minister for International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, I believe that the member did not understand the answer. We have always been very open-minded on this issue. I have said this many times in the House. It is now March 30. The agreement negotiated in 1996 is ending tomorrow.

What will happen on April 1? There are NAFTA rules which apply in the case of softwood lumber. This is what Quebec is asking for. It is what Canada wants. It is what the whole industry asked for and it is what we will have.

Health

[Kevin Sorenson, Canadian Alliance, Crowfoot, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency has announced increased security at our international airports to ensure that foot and mouth disease does not enter our country. These measures include disinfectant mats and sniffer dogs.

However we have reports from travellers that these measures are not being followed at all international airports. Has the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food personally taken any action to ensure that the CFIA's increased security is rigorously and universally applied at all international airports?

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

Mr. Speaker, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, in co-operation with customs and immigration, has stepped up the surveillance of people, goods and materials coming into Canada.

I met again with the agency as recently as 9 o'clock this morning. I went over the communications plan, the actions and the ways in which we will inform business and travellers on the responsibility that we all have in keeping this dreaded disease out of North America.

[Leon Benoit, Canadian Alliance, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, foot and mouth disease, if it entered Canada, would devastate our livestock industry, tear farm families apart and cost up to $20 billion. We must ensure that every effort is made by all branches of government to keep this disease out of Canada.

Could the minister responsible for customs and revenue tell the House and farmers across the country what specific measures he has taken to educate customs officials on the seriousness of foot and mouth disease, and how he personally is monitoring the preventive measures taken?

[Martin Cauchon, Liberal, Minister of National Revenue and Secretary of State (Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec)]

Mr. Speaker, it is a very important question indeed. As has been said by my colleague, we are working with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency as well as with Citizenship and Immigration Canada.

We have made sure that over the past few weeks all the necessary measures have been put into place. The mandate of Canada Customs is both economic development and the safety of our community. Since there is a risk we have taken all the necessary measures to protect our society as well as our farms.

The Environment

[Paddy Torsney, Liberal, Burlington, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in 1995 the House passed the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, an act to ensure that we have clear assessments that contribute to sustainable development in Canada.

For the past year there has been an extensive review of the act, and last week the minister introduced an amendment to it. Could the parliamentary secretary tell the House how the bill will improve the assessment for all Canadians?

[Karen Redman, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, the proposed amendments to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act will help safeguard our environment through a process that is predictable, certain and timely. It will improve quality assessments through measures to improve compliance and ensure more follow up. It will increase opportunities for Canadians to have a meaningful say about projects in their communities.

Use of the Internet will provide Canadians with easy access to information about projects across the country, and it will reflect the unique perspective aboriginal peoples bring to environmental assessment.

Project by project, the revised act will help deliver the government's environmental priorities. Clean air—

[The Speaker]

The hon. member for Calgary Southeast.

Multiculturalism

[Jason Kenney, Canadian Alliance, Calgary Southeast, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the disgraced Secretary of State for Multiculturalism is so busy imagining cross burnings that we find it hard to believe she did not notice a quarter page picture in a national newspaper of four crosses being burned in front of a major Catholic church in broad daylight in Montreal a year ago.

Perhaps the minister just did not notice this because she is the same person who disgraced Christians by saying that a basic tenet of Christian faith is bigotry. How does the minister have any moral authority to criticize this anti-Christian bigotry when she perpetuates it herself?

[Hedy Fry, Liberal, Secretary of State (Multiculturalism)(Status of Women)]

Mr. Speaker, as I said before, my department did not fund the particular activity, and I certainly do not condone the behaviour that went on in Montreal.