Debates of Feb. 19th, 2002

The Environment

[David Anderson, Liberal, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member should be aware, consultations with the provinces and with the industries concerned are ongoing. In that process we are developing a plan. The costs inevitably depend on which sectors of the economy will bear each proportionate burden.

The discussions are ongoing. Until they are completed, we will not have the type of single precise number the hon. member has talked about.

[Dave Chatters, Canadian Alliance, Athabasca, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the government's first business plan to reach Kyoto was nothing but a vague wish list, a fraud in fact. The provinces do not believe it. Canadians do not believe it.

Why is the government hiding the real costs of Kyoto? When will the minister produce a real proposal so that we can have a real dialogue on the cost of Kyoto?

[David Anderson, Liberal, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member asks for costs. I would like to suggest to him and the other members of his party who come from Alberta what the cost of the drought is in southern Alberta now, which is one of those climate change related extreme weather situations. It is about $5 billion and they do not care. They simply do not care about that type of problem.

The fact is the world has joined together under the Kyoto agreement to try and deal with a global problem and that party wants to keep its head in the sand.

[Serge Cardin, Bloc, Sherbrooke, QC]

Mr. Speaker, with regard to the environment, there is one fundamental and generally accepted principle: the polluter pays.

Why does the federal Minister of the Environment want to set aside this fundamental principle of polluter-pay in connection with the battle against greenhouse gas emissions in Canada?

[David Anderson, Liberal, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, we do not.

[Serge Cardin, Bloc, Sherbrooke, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in 1997, the EU countries had already decided to share the burden of eliminating greenhouse gases.

Today, the minister speaks of consultations. Consultations, indeed. In Canada they have been going on for 10 years now.

Can the Minister of the Environment explain to us why his government has still not assumed its responsibilities by adopting a clear position on this?

[David Anderson, Liberal, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, the difficulty of handling the hon. member's question is that the question itself demonstrates the problem of his party.

We are dealing with some immensely complex issues. We have difficulties and concerns in the science and that is well documented by the debate that is taking place. In addition, it is one of the most difficult international agreements ever arrived at. To suggest that because there has been some discussion already there is no need for further discussion is simply folly.

National Defence

[Cheryl Gallant, Canadian Alliance, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Speaker, on February 4 we asked the minister of defence directly to table the chain of command and reporting policy for significant incidents regarding JTF2. The minister replied “for reasons of national security I will not do that”.

National security prevented the minister from sharing this document in the House of Commons, yet today the media quotes a senior source describing the contents of the secret document. Does the minister now believe that national security was breached by this leak of official secrets?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, the JTF2 in its operations reports through to the chief of defence staff, who in turn reports to me. They have a very clear, defined mission. They have rules of engagement. They follow Canadian law.

If any of those things are violated, if there is anything out of the ordinary, then certainly I report that to the Prime Minister.

[Cheryl Gallant, Canadian Alliance, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the leaked document claims that the Minister of National Defence is the only civilian who receives regular briefings on JTF2 and that it is up to him to inform the Prime Minister when he deems it relevant.

Is the leaked document not simply an attempt to clear the Prime Minister of any knowledge of prisoners under capture by JTF2 and fix all the blame on the Minister of National Defence?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Actually not, Mr. Speaker. The JTF2 were sent over there to help to capture the al-Qaeda, the terrorists responsible for the murderous actions on September 11. That was the purpose for which they were sent over there. They are continuing to do their job. As long as they do their job in accordance with Canadian law, then they are following the proper rules that have been set down by the government. I have the responsibility to the government and to parliament to make sure those rules are followed and report accordingly.

Highway Infrastructure

[Jocelyne Girard-Bujold, Bloc, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, before, during and after the election campaign, Liberal ministers and members of parliament strutted about making all kinds of promises regarding infrastructure in the regions of Quebec.

They made commitments totalling $3.5 billion, while the new infrastructure budget for Quebec is $500 million.

How will the Deputy Prime Minister fulfill the commitments made by his colleagues for expenditures seven times higher than the money actually available?

[John Manley, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Infrastructure and Crown Corporations]

Mr. Speaker, we will definitely fulfill our commitments by working with all interested parties, including provincial and municipal governments, which are discussing among themselves and with us the strategic priorities that will help build a very advanced country for the 21st century.

[Jocelyne Girard-Bujold, Bloc, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, among other commitments, the Liberals promised to build highway 175 in the Saguenay region, highway 30 in the Montérégie, and highway 185 in the Lower St. Lawrence. These three projects would cost $1.4 billion.

How can the government seriously claim that it is being honest with Quebecers when these highway projects alone would require three times the amount in the infrastructure budget?

[Martin Cauchon, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, indeed, commitments were made by the Liberal Party during the election campaign, and these commitments are now part of the government's agenda.

I would like to thank and congratulate all the members of the Liberal Party who worked hard to ensure that these issues are given proper priority.

What is happening is that members opposite are now realizing that, through the work of members of this party, we have developed tools to make sure that we can deliver. We will deliver and we will do so with the co-operation of all the provinces.

Health Care

[Rob Merrifield, Canadian Alliance, Yellowhead, AB]

Mr. Speaker, in January the provinces gave the federal government an ultimatum. They set 90 days to agree to a dispute settlement mechanism or they would go it alone on health care reform. The clock is ticking--

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh.

[The Speaker]

Order please. It is impossible to hear the questions of the hon. members when there is so much noise at the other end of the House.

The hon. member for Yellowhead has the floor, and everyone wants to hear his question.

[Rob Merrifield, Canadian Alliance, Yellowhead, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the clock is ticking. The deadline is approaching. Are we any closer today than we were in January?

[Anne McLellan, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, I can reassure the hon. member that we are very close.

In response to a letter sent by the Prime Minister to the premier of Alberta, the Prime Minister indicated that he wanted his Minister of Health and provincial ministers of health to sit down and conclude our negotiations around a dispute avoidance and resolution mechanism. I can assure the hon. member that I have talked to my counterpart in the province of Alberta who co-chairs this project and we are moving forward.

[Rob Merrifield, Canadian Alliance, Yellowhead, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the social union agreement which the minister helped negotiate is up for review this month. Real federal leadership would have called the provinces together for a national conference to achieve a dispute mechanism and to renew health care confidence.

Why has the minister not called for this conference? Where is the leadership?

[Anne McLellan, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister and premiers provided leadership on the health care renewal file in September 2000.

As it relates to the dispute avoidance and resolution mechanism, officials and ministers are hard at work. We believe there will be a successful conclusion of these negotiations very soon.

Post-Secondary Education

[Lawrence O'Brien, Liberal, Labrador, NL]

Mr. Speaker, in an increasing global society we know that a good education is a key factor in our future success.

The launch of the skills and innovation agenda last week emphasized the importance of skills and learning for building a solid future. But many families face challenges in meeting the costs of education for their children. The Canada education savings grant program has been developed to help families meet this challenge.

Can the Minister of Human Resources Development tell the House how this program is working and whether it is helping Canadian families who need it?

[Jane Stewart, Liberal, Minister of Human Resources Development]

Mr. Speaker, through the Canada education savings grant the Government of Canada matches contributions up to $400 a year to help families save for their children's future education.

Yesterday in St. John's, Newfoundland I had the pleasure of meeting the Porter family, whose daughter Kristina received the billionth dollar of Government of Canada investment in her CESG account.

This $1 billion is matched by $5 billion saved by Canadian families. Now one in five Canadian children has a Canada education savings grant.

Foreign Affairs

[Svend Robinson, NDP, Burnaby—Douglas, BC]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Foreign Affairs who just a few months ago as chair of the foreign affairs committee joined in a call for the lifting of economic sanctions against Iraq.

I want to ask the minister will he make it very clear that Canada will not support any military action directed against iraq that does not have explicit United Nations authority? Will the Prime Minister tell George Bush that we will not follow him down his dangerous Texas gunslinger road to fight in a shootout against the axis of evil? Will he make that clear to Canadians?