Debates of May 4th, 2001

Agriculture

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

Mr. Speaker, we had this discussion at the standing committee the other day and I outlined very clearly to the hon. member and others that there are sectors of our agriculture industry that are financially in better situations than others. There are some sectors, such as the grains and oilseed sectors that have been greatly affected by a number of issues and situations in the world which is why we target the support that we do. Obviously the hon. member did not listen to the answer then and I hope he does today.

National Defence

[Greg Thompson, Progressive Conservative, New Brunswick Southwest, NB]

Mr. Speaker, DND has $70 million of inventory sitting in a Florida warehouse owned by a convicted felon currently awaiting sentencing, including heavy fines, incarceration and possible seizure of assets. What specific measures has the minister taken to protect Canadian property now in the hands of an international drug dealer?

[Paul Szabo, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to Minister of Public Works and Government Services]

Mr. Speaker, the Government of Canada has a competitive contract arrangement with Lancaster Aviation. This is not the company to which the member referred. Lancaster has been paid a fair commission to market and sell these assets. Lancaster Aviation is solely responsible for the marketing and sale of these assets. Those assets are only being warehoused in Florida because that is exactly where the market is.

Immigration And Refugee Board

[Deepak Obhrai, Canadian Alliance, Calgary East, AB]

Mr. Speaker, thousands of Liberals are appointed every year by the great patronage machine of the Liberal government. Over half of the Immigration and Refugee Board is made up of Liberals. Now we find that two Liberal appointees have been convicted of theft and found guilty of professional misconduct.

Why did the government appoint Liberals with records of misconduct instead of appointing the best people for the job?

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

Mr. Speaker, the first criteria for appointment to the Immigration and Refugee Board is qualifications and competence.

The member is attacking a board which has an international reputation second to none. He should know that within that process, in 1995, a ministerial advisory committee was established. Individuals apply and only 30% of those who apply are recommended. Those who are recommended have written a test, have had their references checked and are qualified to serve.

[Deepak Obhrai, Canadian Alliance, Calgary East, AB]

Mr. Speaker, there is something wrong. We are talking about two Liberal appointees who have been convicted of theft and found guilty of professional misconduct. We are not even surprised to find that one of these appointees comes from the Prime Minister's riding.

Will the minister remove these two Liberals from their jobs on the board?

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

Mr. Speaker, if anyone has a concern about competence of a member, the appropriate route to take is to discuss that with the chair of the IRB who has the tools. Under Bill C-11 the provisions are there for him to make recommendations if he has concerns about the competence of a member.

However, I will say that anyone is welcome to apply, whether they are Liberals or members of the other parties. In fact, given the fact that so many people supported the Liberal Party it would not be unusual to see people with Liberal connections appointed. That is appropriate.

I do not know whether the hon. member would qualify but he is certainly welcome to apply.

Contaminated Sites

[Réal Ménard, Bloc, Hochelaga—Maisonneuve, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Quebecois has obtained National Defence documents indicating that the Jacques Cartier River is contaminated by exploded and unexploded munitions and shells.

The federal government is directly responsible for this contamination, which is likely to have harmful effects on the people of the region, particularly because this is a recreational area.

Could the minister tell us what concrete measures he has planned for decontaminating this site as promptly as possible?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, between 1995 and 2000 the segment of the Jacques Cartier River that is located within the limits of CFB Valcartier was completely decontaminated through a program involving several phases. There is no longer a threat that ordnance will migrate outside the perimeter of the base.

Last summer the portion of the river located in Shannon was successfully decontaminated. The department will continue to take these matters seriously and ensure that we clean up these situations.

[Réal Ménard, Bloc, Hochelaga—Maisonneuve, QC]

Mr. Speaker, let us understand each other properly here. According to his own department's documents, steps must be taken on an urgent basis in light of the immediate risk to human health and to the environment.

My question is the following: What does the minister intend to do? When? What is he going to do, concretely, to ensure the complete decontamination of this site?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, as I have said, we have taken action in this regard. We have done so in consultation with both Environment Canada and environment Quebec. We have been communicating with the local municipalities.

We will continue to take whatever action is necessary to ensure that decontamination programs are carried out and that we keep the area safe.

National Defence

[Peter Goldring, Canadian Alliance, Edmonton Centre-East, AB]

Mr. Speaker, 40 years ago Cuba aimed its missiles at North America. Canada and the United States together went on full military alert to deal with the crisis.

Forty years later, the United States has the technology to defend against the missile threat of rogue nations and wants to build a North American protective shield against these threats.

Will parliament be fully involved in the decision making process?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, yes.

[Peter Goldring, Canadian Alliance, Edmonton Centre-East, AB]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, before the Standing Committee on National Defence and Veterans Affairs, General Baril said that Canada's participation in missile defence would be a political, not a military decision.

Yesterday the Liberal member for Oshawa's statement indicated that a political decision had already been made, quote, “we're not going to support it”.

Why was parliament not consulted before this decision was made?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, I guess one member of parliament has made up his mind about the issue. However, the government has indicated many times that we are in a consultation process now with the United States, as it is with other allies, with Russia and with China. It has not designed the parameters of its program. It has not made a decision on that specific program. We are in the consultation phase and we will continue in that phase.

Atlantic Trade Mission

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Beauséjour—Petitcodiac, NB]

Mr. Speaker, the minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, along with the Prime Minister and the four Atlantic premiers, will be leading a delegation of Atlantic Canadian companies on the first ever Team Canada Atlantic trade mission to Atlanta.

Could the minister for ACOA tell us what precisely this trade mission will contribute to economic development in Atlantic Canada?

[Robert Thibault, Liberal, Minister of State (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency)]

Mr. Speaker, it will be a great pleasure for me to lead a delegation of 40 companies to the fastest growing segment of the American market. We will get a strong foothold in the southern United States. We have had great success in the northeastern United States. Our last three missions contributed $7 million in direct sales and $70 million in anticipated sales over the next three years.

I look forward to our participation with the collaboration of the four Atlantic provinces and all private industry to a successful mission.

Multiculturalism

[Ken Epp, Canadian Alliance, Elk Island, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the junior minister of multiculturalism shamelessly slandered the people of Prince George in her now infamous accusation of cross burnings. To add insult to injury, she claimed to have a letter from the mayor, but she has been unable to produce the letter because it does not exist.

In most previous parliaments such blatant behaviour would have resulted in the immediate firing of the guilty minister. Will the Prime Minister fire her immediately or is he planning to wait until summer?

[David Collenette, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. secretary of state admitted to a mistake. She made an apology and that apology was accepted by members of the House.

I would ask the hon. member to show some parliamentary decency and accept the secretary of state's apology.

We all make mistakes. Even the leader of the member's party has made mistakes. We have accepted the apology of the hon. secretary of state. I hope members of his party will accept the apology of his own leader.

[Ken Epp, Canadian Alliance, Elk Island, AB]

Mr. Speaker, all she did was express regret for being caught. She said there were cross burnings, but there were not. She said she had a letter, but there was no letter. Access to information requests now give positive proof that the mayor of Prince George was accurate when he denied its existence.

For a minister in her position to make up such a damning and false accusation is in and of itself sufficient grounds for dismissal. However, to deny and cover up exposes an inherent character flaw and total unsuitability for this position.

Will the Prime Minister show that he has some small semblance of ethics left and just get rid of her?

[David Collenette, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I believe I have answered the question. If the hon. member is so persistent and wants to talk about character flaws, and his colleague says that we should show some leadership, I would ask the members opposite to look at the character flaws of their own leader who has not had the decency to make an apology to a Quebec judge.

Seniors

[Michel Guimond, Bloc, Beauport—Montmorency—Côte-De- Beaupré—Île-D'Orléans, QC]

Mr. Speaker, our seniors, many of them with low incomes, are seeing their purchasing power continually dwindle away.

Seniors' average income has not kept step with the cost of living increases. They are even 10% poorer. What is more, older women living alone experience an ever greater shortfall, and their average income has also dropped since 1997.

My question is for the President of the Treasury Board, unless the presence of the Minister of Transport has rendered her speechless.

Is she aware that our seniors, after a lifetime of work, deserve better than the treatment they are getting from the government? When does she intend to raise the budget for the old age security program—

[The Speaker]

The Minister of Natural Resources.

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

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the Minister of Human Resources Development, obviously the situation of elderly people is a matter of importance to all Canadians.

We have over the years in Canada developed a system including the OAS and the GIS which provides for senior citizens. It is one of the most comprehensive and generous in the world. We are always looking for ways to improve upon it. The commitment to the elderly in Canada will continue to be a characteristic of the government.

Housing

[Carole-Marie Allard, Liberal, Laval East, QC]

Mr. Speaker, recently, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation helped Russia develop a new building code that is based on Canada's national housing code.

This was done in partnership with CIDA, the Departments of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, the NRC and Underwriters Laboratories of Canada.

Could the minister tell us how this initiative may help Canada?