Debates of Sept. 25th, 2001

Supply

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Laurentides, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Châteauguay for his question. It is clear that people are going to react anyway. That have already started to do so.

I receive phone calls. I receive letters at my office. I receive representations from peace groups. It is obvious that actions will be taken to ensure that all members of this House are well aware of these concerns.

People want to know exactly what role the army is going to be called upon to play. They do not want to send our young people to the front without knowing where they are going. People have a lot of concerns with regard to this whole situation because they fear that, when the Americans finally say they need us, the government will send our troops without saying a word, without even asking questions about our army's role in terms of the number of soldiers that should be sent over there or without asking if we agree to send our young people to the front.

We talked about democracy earlier. I would like to say this. There are countries with parliaments similar to ours. I am thinking of Argentina. The government of that country has offered to co-operate with the United States, but on the condition that its participation to any military action be put to a vote in parliament. The same goes for France. There will be a vote by the executive, but the national assembly and the Senate will have to be consulted. The same goes for Germany also.

A country such as Canada that claims to be a great democracy is unable to consult. Let us lead by example and let us be a true democracy. Let us make sure that members have the right to make their own decision and vote on this issue.

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

Mr. Speaker, last Sunday I attended a presentation on changing the authority for the military militia. There were people from all ridings of the lower St. Lawrence and 150 members of the militia.

All militiamen asked the same question: “Will we have a clear mandate of non-liability?”

Yesterday, we saw the Americans opinion of Canada. Yesterday, the Prime Minister came out of the meeting and told us that the Americans had set no requirements.

As representatives of all our constituents and of all those people in the military, if we do not get the opportunity to make sure they receive a specific mandate, a clear mandate on what will happen, whether it is yes or no to our participation, I think we must at least find out what the situation is.

In any case, the federal government will be much stronger if it supported by this motion. Therefore, I would like to know if the member considers that it is important for our military and our militia to know exactly what their government will commit them to?

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Laurentides, QC]

Mr. Speaker, of course it is essential that the military personnel know where they are going and it is also essential to make some provision for this. One cannot come out of a meeting with the president of the United States and say “He did not ask me anything”, and not prepare for anything. Come on, this is not the way this works.

The government must do some prevention, be prepared to face the situation and also carry out consultations. The government, the Prime Minister and the Minister of National Defence will have to see what our capabilities are and not make commitments with both eyes closed and both hands tied behind their backs. That is out of the question. We must protect our people and our military forces. We cannot send them to the front without knowing exactly what role they will be playing.

At present, we know very well how things are going in Afghanistan. They have an army; they have a different mentality. They are prepared to commit suicide for their cause. This means we must pay attention and be careful.

I believe we must also rely on the role of international courts, of NATO and the UN. We must work together with all these organizations in order to ultimately achieve positive results, instead of rushing in without any consultations and without knowing where we are going. We simply ask that democracy be applied here in parliament.

[Antoine Dubé, Bloc, Lévis-Et-Chutes-De-La-Chaudière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this being the first opportunity I have had to speak in the House since the September 11 attacks in New York and Washington, I wish to join with all those who have already offered their condolences to the friends and families of the victims.

I may be a Quebecer but, in circumstances such as these, we become citizens of the world. What happened in New York and Washington could have happened here. It could happen anywhere. Everyone hoped it would not, but the extent of the devastation is unbelievable. It all unfolded on television; we heard the words of witnesses to the tragedy and they moved us.

These attacks took place in the United States but, as I said, they could have happened elsewhere. Basically, it was democracy that was attacked not a country, but the democratic values we all defend were attacked.

As a member of the Sub committee on Human Rights and International Development, I am particularly concerned about this aspect of human rights, not just here or in the United States, but throughout the world. The confrontation which we dread and which will take place will affect civilian populations. The victims of the events in New York and Washington were primarily civilians.

As wars and methods of attack evolve, there are increasing numbers of civilian victims, innocent victims who have nothing to do with the will of their leaders, or leaders of groups, as seems to be the case here.

When it comes to human rights, it is fairly easy to agree that these issues are related to democracy. Sometimes, when I have a speech to make, I have adopted the habit of consulting a dictionary. For instance, the entry for the word democracy says that it comes from the Greek “demos”, meaning “people”. “Democracy” is defined as follows: “political doctrine holding that sovereignty must belong to all citizens”.

I find the words “all citizens” very significant. What have we seen across the way for the past week? The Prime Minister says that they have the situation in hand, that he is speaking regularly to officials throughout the world.

He is even speaking with the president of the United States, who has no memory of their discussions, because he neglected to mention him in his speech on Thursday. Democracy is based on respect for the freedom and equality of citizens, of citizens everywhere.

This morning, the House leader of the Bloc Quebecois moved that there be a debate and a vote before committing our armed forces. Military resources naturally mean human resources and financial resources, but we have to bear in mind that those resources should never be deployed any which way. A military offensive action is the last option which should be considered, though it has to be considered. No options should be dismissed. They say that “if you want peace, you have to prepare for war.” Planning is good.

Before deploying forces, a decision has to be taken. Based on the meaning of the word democracy, this decision should be taken by all citizens.

How did the government react to that proposal? The first speaker was the Minister of National Defence, who spoke about four or five options. His first argument struck me. He said it was contrary to what had been the practice of this government over the last eight years.

Actually, it is the opposite. It seems to me that, even if it involved changing this practice in such an extraordinary situation, it ought to be contemplated.

I will not repeat what other colleagues and the hon. member for Laurentides said, but I will read commitments made in the red book, which clearly stated that before committing important military resources to offensive actions, there would have to be a debate followed by a vote in the House. This was one of the promises upon which the government was elected the first time. It was elected on that basis; that is what the government was saying. Besides, when they were in the opposition, the Liberals said the same thing. Again, I will not repeat the amendment moved by the deputy prime minister to a motion by the then minister of foreign affairs, who is now a member of an opposition party, the Progressive Conservative Party.

What is happening here? We are witnessing a situation where people who are in opposition promise to do something, but once they are in power, they do the opposite or do not meet their commitments. How then can young and ordinary citizens be attracted to politics if election promises are not held? I will not talk about the GST and other issues like free trade, about which the government changed its mind, they have already been pointed out, but this is a matter of utmost importance.

People listening to me could obviously say: “Yes, but it is impossible to predict such an event. It certainly could not be predicted or mentioned in a red book written more than eight years ago”. However we were in a quite similar situation in 1990 with the gulf war. In all that connections could be made with the current confrontation. However, that is not what the government intends to do.

On November 29, 1990, the current Deputy Prime Minister tabled an amendment which said:

This support shall not be interpreted as approval of the use of Canadian Forces for offensive action without further consultations with and approval by this House.

I say again, the Bloc Quebecois, this is my understanding of our position, has given and is giving its support to the Canadian government in order for it to study, discuss and give its opinion to influence the opinion of the American authorities on this matter. We must of course give our support to the fight against terrorism, to a world war against terrorism. We have to do that. However should the use of military means be contemplated immediately? Worse, should the use of such means be considered behind closed doors? For so-called strategic reasons, we cannot mention what we will do. It is somewhat like baseball. It will be a hit and run situation, where they will hit first and consult later. This is not the way things should be done.

In this case, I believe the greatest paradox is that the Canadian government, through its Prime Minister and its external affairs and national defence ministers, says that it cannot vote for the proposition put forward by the Bloc Quebecois. Whereas the country that has been the most concerned up till now, the United States, through its president, obtained a resolution from its two houses, the senate and the House of Representatives. The president, the one responsible for the strategy, has the sanction of his parliamentary authorities but not Canada.

The member for Laurentides reminded us that France has agreed to support the Americans but that it intends to consult the national assembly before making a decision with regard to the deployment of its armed forces. The same goes for Germany, for Argentina, and I am sure it will be the same most everywhere.

This morning, the Minister of National Defence referred to the constitution when he said that we were a representative democracy. He wanted to show that that is the way it is and that is the way it has always been. I must say that, a few moments ago, someone made a mistake.

I will not hold it against the member who made that mistake. Contrary to what a Liberal member said, there was a vote on the issue of the Korean War.

Our society has evolved since 1867. I should remind members of certain facts. Women could not vote in 1867, but they can today. The only people who could vote under the representative democracy of that time were landowners. Today, all taxpayers have the right to vote. Even the voting age was lowered to 18. Now, as elected representatives of the people, we would only have the right to talk. Parliament would be a place for discussion and nothing else.

There is something else that I deplore and that I find rather incredible. Parliamentary committees, namely the national defence committee and the foreign affairs committee, are not even used to discuss this issue. It is now my turn to urge all members of the House to support our motion that says that a vote must be taken in the House before offensive military resources are deployed.

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

Mr. Speaker, I listened intently to the speech of my colleague and I would like to ask him a very simple question.

Is the government's lack of leadership with respect to the vote issue not simply a reflection of its lack of an action plan? The Minister for International Trade, for example, said there was an economic slowdown. The Minister of Finance said there might be a deficit. One day, he says there might be a deficit and the next he says the opposite. After all these statements the Prime Minister himself said that the economy was doing very well and the situation was not so bad.

Could we say that the democratic deficit we see in the House and the government's lack of leadership in this regard are demonstrations of the fact that the Canadian government is now totally disabled by the Prime Minister's lack of leadership on this issue?

[Antoine Dubé, Bloc, Lévis-Et-Chutes-De-La-Chaudière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I may not be as harsh as my colleague, the member for Kamouraska--Rivière-du-Loup-Témiscouata--Les Basques, by saying “Is there a lack of planning”.

I think we can understand that no one could have anticipated such an unpredictable situation. Clearly, there is a lack of leadership, but I believe there is most of all a lack of influence. We saw it in the United States, where the president, to a certain extent, treated the Canadian Prime Minister as someone who did not have to be consulted, as it was a foregone conclusion that he would give his support because we are family.

Somehow, we are the United States of America. In that regard, I can understand that it is not the right time to squabble with the president of the United States, though this attitude is somewhat bizarre. Nevertheless, it proves that the Canadian Prime Minister does not have the influence he claims he does.

However, as far as planning is concerned, since almost two weeks have passed since the events which took place, I believe that we should do everything in our power, my father used to say “Everything could be turned upside down”, to start planning. However, my main criticism of the government at this moment is its total lack of transparency.

[Odina Desrochers, Bloc, Lotbinière—L'Érable, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask the following question to my colleague, the member for Lévis-et-Chutes-de-la-Chaudière.

Members will recall the events which took place in Quebec during the summit of the Americas. The Prime Minister, seeing himself as the great champion of democracy, said that he would do everything he could to ensure that there would be democracy in the Americas.

Does the hon. member not think that there is a lack of consistency of the part of the Prime Minister, since he committed himself openly to act as a champion of democracy, while today he is going the opposite way?

[Antoine Dubé, Bloc, Lévis-Et-Chutes-De-La-Chaudière, QC]

Absolutely, Mr. Speaker. However, in terms of consistency, I would say that the Prime Minister is consistent, because I did not find him very democratic and very transparent during the summit of the Americas in Quebec. Quite the contrary. It may have been the case in the speeches with the presidents, but apart from that, we did not feel that the Prime Minister was concerned about this issue or that democracy or respect for the peoples made him lose any sleep.

MATCH International Centre

[Jean Augustine, Liberal, Etobicoke—Lakeshore, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today we celebrate the 25th anniversary of MATCH International Centre. It is the first Canadian women's organization dedicated to fostering gender equality and social justice in the developing world.

Dr. Norma E. Walmsley and Ms. Suzanne Johnson-Harvor created MATCH in 1976 because they wanted to work with others to improve the lives of poor and marginalized women in countries in the southern hemisphere.

As Canadians we should be proud of the strides MATCH has made in giving hope to thousands of women in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean and South America. The efforts of MATCH over the past 25 years to support self-directed development by women in the developing world has led to new generations of women being aware of their basic human rights.

Fellow members should know that in Sri Lanka MATCH and its partners are working to promote awareness of human rights, good governance and democracy. MATCH is also working in other parts of the world to provide valuable Canadian expertise.

Today the Government of Canada and the Canadian people congratulate this special Canadian organization on its 25th anniversary. We wish it many more successful years.

Health

[Werner Schmidt, Canadian Alliance, Kelowna, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Canada's health care system is failing its seniors. The Canadian Medical Association has sent a dire warning that Canada's system of health care specialists is collapsing. That is a frightening revelation to the thousands of Canadian seniors who require specialty care.

The need for specialized care rises dramatically for Canadian seniors as they reach the age of 75. Many require specialized care on a daily basis to live a comfortable and pain free life.

The Canadian Medical Association has charged the government with systematically underfunding specialty care. The government is neglecting its responsibility to Canadian seniors and their families.

The health care system should not fail those who need it most. Canada's senior citizens should not fear growing old in their own country.

Corpus Christi Parish

[Joe Comuzzi, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, on Christmas eve 1951 the new parish of Corpus Christi in Thunder Bay celebrated its first mass. This year, 2001, Corpus Christi is celebrating its 50th anniversary. It was created under the diocese of Sault Ste. Marie and is now under the diocese of Thunder Bay.

For the first 25 years the parish was led by three outstanding citizens: Father Regis St. James, its founder; Monsignor Roy Carey; and Father Mike Murtagh.

Over the past years it has had many pastors: Fathers Bourguignon, Carroll, Donnelly, Kennedy, Ronquillo, Mahoney and Campeau.

Corpus Christi is more than a building located on Red River Road. It is a parish of more than 700 families strong. It administers to spiritual needs, and never more so than during the recent world crisis of September 11, 2001.

Our pastor, Father Pat Stilla, is loved and respected by everyone. We are all proud and fortunate to have him as our leader.

Hamilton

[Beth Phinney, Liberal, Hamilton Mountain, ON]

Mr. Speaker, recently our community in Hamilton was faced with the unfortunate reality that we too are not immune to the type of ignorance and hate that acted as an impetus to the recent attacks on the United States.

In the early morning of September 15 a Hindu temple on Hamilton Mountain was burned to the ground and a mosque was vandalized. Hamilton has always been a community of tolerance and acceptance, embracing each other's diversity. These acts do not reflect the true spirit of our city.

Since that day I am proud to say that Hamilton's true colours have shone. Political and religious differences have been set aside. Hamiltonians are sitting together at the same table to discuss the common goals of awareness and tolerance.

Physical and emotional support is being offered to the Hindu community. The citizens of Hamilton are uniting in an effort to not only rebuild the Hindu temple but to re-establish Hamilton's spirit of solidarity and co-operation.

Miles For Meagan

[Judy Sgro, Liberal, York West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, September is Ovarian Cancer Month. Last week I had the honour to attend the launch of a special bike tour called Miles for Meagan on behalf of the National Ovarian Cancer Association.

Mike Rodger and his wife Maryilynn lost their 18 year old daughter Meagan to ovarian cancer. Through the tour they hope to bring attention to this brutal disease. A team of riders joined Mike and Maryilynn to cycle from Ottawa through many towns and villages to Toronto where they arrived today.

The number of women diagnosed with ovarian cancer is startling and disturbing. This year in Canada 2,500 women will be diagnosed and each year 1,500 women will die from it. It affects not only women but their families: husbands, brothers, fathers and children.

It is a cause worthy of our support. I hope everyone will join me to celebrate with Mike and Maryilynn as they arrive in Toronto with the Miles for Meagan tour.

National Security

[Rick Casson, Canadian Alliance, Lethbridge, AB]

Mr. Speaker, following the hideous events that have taken place in the United States, our closest friend and ally has had to tighten its borders to protect itself from further attacks. With 50 known terrorist cells active in Canada, Americans are protecting themselves from us.

Trade with the United States is vital to our country. Without it our economy would atrophy and our standard of living would plummet. Our trucking industry is deeply concerned. Just in time deliveries are being missed and the overall movement of goods has slowed. Why? It is because Canada is a security risk to its largest trading partner.

Two weeks after the attack we are still waiting for a concrete plan to secure our country. The government must table a strong piece of anti-terrorism legislation. It must restore funding and resources to government agencies that ensure the safety and security of our citizens. It must re-examine and toughen our standards for customs, immigration and transport to ensure that our borders are secure and that we can travel safely and trade freely.

Autism

[Hélène Scherrer, Liberal, Louis-Hébert, QC]

Mr. Speaker, autism is a disorder affecting the way an individual interprets what he sees, hears and feels. A new study, made possible by financial assistance from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, has revived hopes in the fight against this disease.

Dr. Jeanette Holden, a researcher at Queen's University, is leading a large scale multidisciplinary team that is endeavouring to identify the genes involved in the susceptibility to autism spectrum disorders.

Research has demonstrated that, with intensive therapy in their preschool years, children with autism are indistinguishable from their peers on test scores by school age.

A screening program could identify high risk infants, allowing them to receive the treatment they need and ultimately lead to the possible prevention of this condition.

Dr. Holden and her team deserve congratulations and encouragement for their excellent work, as do all of the researchers of the Canadian Institute of Health Research.

Today's investments in research will benefit all Canadians tomorrow.

Télécentre Work Co-operative

[Pauline Picard, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Télécentre is a work co-operative with a mission to provide the people of the greater Drummondville region with television programming focused on local and regional information.

After a year of existence, the efforts and entrepreneurship of its founding members have already gained recognition. Télécentre has earned national recognition as well as an international award at the 3rd edition of the Quebec entrepreneurship competition.

The international aspect of Télécentre will enable it to establish business connections with France, as well as to maintain and develop its links with the Belgian local television stations that served as models for the creation of this work co-operative.

These distinctions have made the team's first season very special and will certainly give them a good impetus for their second.

I congratulate these young entrepreneurs on the successful completion of their project, and take this opportunity to point out the contribution made to it by COGECO, a cable company.

Terrorism

[Raymonde Folco, Liberal, Laval West, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this being my first day in the House since the beginning of the new session, I would like to take this opportunity to express my sorrow at the tragic events that took place in New York and Washington on September 11.

These events, where thousands of people, Americans, Canadians and citizens of a great many countries, lost their lives, brought out the best qualities in Canadians, our solidarity, our community spirit and our compassion. These events touched the very hearts of people around the world, and Canadians are no exception to this.

On behalf of the residents of Laval West, and on my own behalf, I extend sincere condolences to the families and friends of the victims and to the American people.

National Parks

[Rob Merrifield, Canadian Alliance, Yellowhead, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the nation's 400 park wardens have been unable to fulfill their responsibilities to enforce the laws and regulations of the National Parks Act as a result of a decision by the labour department. In Jasper National Park alone, wardens have been unable to act on any of the 900 violations that have been witnessed.

One incident this summer highlighted how ludicrous the situation has become. A diligent park gate attendant saw a pool of fuel after a diesel tanker pulled away. A warden two kilometres away answered the call but his enforcement powers had been neutered. He could not get involved with enforcement. The warden followed the visible stream of fuel from the diesel tanker through the entire park, waiting for the RCMP to show up and deal with the environmental mess, but nothing was done.

The heritage minister must agree that wardens need their enforcement responsibilities returned. I ask the labour minister to rein in her department. A little common sense would save our parks.

Terrorism

[Irwin Cotler, Liberal, Mount Royal, QC]

Mr. Speaker, counterterrorism law and policy should be organized around five foundational principles.

First, the struggle against terrorism should be a cornerstone of both domestic and international human security policy. It should mobilize parliaments, governments civil society and security forces.

Second, a clear and principled policy requires clear and principled thinking. We must jettison the notion that one person's terrorist is another person's freedom fighter. Rather, the principle must be that one democracy's terrorist is another democracy's terrorist and that terrorism, from whatever quarter and for whatever purpose, is unacceptable.

Third, it must be clear that this is a war against terrorism and not against Islam or any religion.

Fourth, the struggle against terrorism should explore and exhaust a multi-layered strategy of diplomatic, juridical, financial, informational and related strategic initiatives short of a military response.

Fifth, any military response must comport with the principles of international humanitarian law: the doctrines of necessity, proportionality, protection of civilians in armed conflict and the like.

In a word, the new transnational network of super terrorist suicide bombers is an existential threat that requires clear, principled thinking and comprehensive policy and strategy.

Eastwood Community School

[Bev Desjarlais, NDP, Churchill, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge Eastwood Community School in Thompson, the first Cree bilingual school in Manitoba. The Cree bilingual school concept evolved after two years of research and planning involving thousands of parents, guardians and students.

I give special thanks to the Thompson Aboriginal Education Advisory Committee, the Cree Bilingual Community School Steering Committee, the School District of Mystery Lake In House School Development Committee, and the trustees and administration of the Mystery Lake School Division.

Steps have been taken over the years to improve curriculum for native language and cultural awareness but the creation of this Cree bilingual school is the most dynamic yet.

Speaking at yesterday's grand opening, assistant superintendent Dave Hutchinson said:

The long term goal of this school is to develop bilingual and bicultural aboriginal and non-aboriginal individuals who are capable of working together to forge a more prosperous, harmonious, peaceful, just and equitable society.

Speaking at a recent conference in Winnipeg, Stephen Lewis stated that the current school system has failed aboriginal children. The Cree bilingual community school is a step toward restoration of aboriginal language and culture. It is a step in the right direction.

Arab Art

[Christiane Gagnon, Bloc, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, newspapers this morning reported that the Canadian Museum of Civilization in Hull has decided to cancel an exhibition of Arab art.

The executive assistant to the Minister of Canadian Heritage appears to have been aware since last Friday that museum management had decided to reconsider the exhibition, fearing that it might be perceived as a political event.

An exhibition that was planned well before the events of September 11 can in no way be construed as a political event. However, its cancellation constitutes a vote of non-confidence in the public. It is assuming that Canadians and Quebecers can not distinguish between Arab art and terrorism.

This would have been such a good opportunity for this government to put its money where its mouth is. When the Prime Minister went to a mosque to reassure Muslim Canadians that other Canadians were tolerant, did he believe what he was saying? If so, then he must ensure that the Arab exhibition takes place on the dates planned this fall.

Awards of Excellence for Exporters

[Bernard Patry, Liberal, Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday evening in Montreal the Minister for International Trade presented awards of excellence to last year's leading exporters.

It is with great pleasure that I inform the House that FieldTurf of Montreal, and Lauzon Distinctive Hardwood Flooring of Papineauville, two Quebec companies, were among the ten recipients of awards of excellence.

Toronto's Teknion Corporation received the prestigious exporter of the year award. Teknion Corporation is an innovative company. The office systems and office furniture products it markets are original and of high quality. It has distributors in over 50 countries.

In addition, this company has created a large number of jobs. Its success in the export sector is an example to other Canadian countries.

In conclusion, I congratulate Teknion Corporation and all the other award winners. I wish them much success in the future.

Pesticides

[John Herron, Progressive Conservative, Fundy Royal, NB]

Mr. Speaker, the law governing pesticides in Canada has been in place since before man landed on the moon. I do not need to tell hon. members that a lot has happened since that date 30 years ago.

Many pesticides are still registered in Canada that are banned and restricted by our NAFTA and OECD partners. The Liberal government keeps promising a revamped pesticide act, but 30 years after the first act was tabled Canadians are still waiting.

During the 1993 election campaign the Prime Minister pledged in his red book that a Liberal government would introduce new pesticide legislation. Six years later, with no legislation on the books, the auditor general criticized the government for its pesticide management and called on it to overhaul the system.

In the 1999 Speech from the Throne the Liberals promised to address the potential health risks presented by pesticides. In 2000 I asked the Minister of Health when Canadians could expect to see the long awaited legislation. The minister said it was forthcoming. In 2001 I asked the minister the same question and he told me it was coming soon.

Canadians are tired of waiting. The time for honouring the commitment is long overdue. When will we see a new act?

Canada Research Chair Award

[John Harvard, Liberal, Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to announce that five more outstanding researchers at the University of Manitoba have been awarded Canada research chairs. This so far brings to 12 the number of chairs awarded to the University of Manitoba. Chairholders are world leaders or rising stars in the natural sciences, engineering, health sciences, social sciences or humanities.

I am very proud to congratulate the University of Manitoba's newest Canada research chair recipients Dr. Brian Hasinoff, Dr. Kent HayGlass, Dr. Brian Cox, Dr. Lorrie Kirshenbaum and Dr. Lea Stirling. These exceptional researchers will contribute to the University of Manitoba's long tradition of advancing knowledge for the betterment of the citizens of Manitoba and the world.

Terrorism

[Stockwell Day, Canadian Alliance, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday in Washington the Prime Minister said, and I quote, “the Superintendent of Institutions said all the assets of bin Laden and his associates should be frozen”. He said that it was ordered last Friday. In fact, all they did last Friday was send a letter from the FBI asking banks to co-operate with the investigation of the hijackers. All they have done today is send a follow-up letter.

When will the government move from scanning the bank accounts of terrorists, dead terrorists I might add, to seizing and freezing the assets of terrorists who are alive and possibly living among us?