Debates of Feb. 4th, 2002

Pesticides

[Howard Hilstrom, Canadian Alliance, Selkirk—Interlake, MB]

Mr. Speaker, when we asked the previous Minister of Health why the Pest Management Regulatory Agency was in such a mess, he stated that everything was just fine. It is not fine.

The government has failed to take any interest in the mismanagement at the PMRA. This neglect is costing producers and putting the environment at risk. For example, the PMRA is continuing to block applications from the Farmers of North America Inc. to import generic chemicals at a fraction of the current cost. By refusing the requests of farmers, the Liberals are siding with multinational companies against farm families.

Farmers across the country are suffering from disastrously low incomes. The cost burden imposed on producers by the federal government is a significant contributor to these low returns. The government could help farm families by immediately reducing the red tape and cost of the pesticide approval procedures.

Producers across the country are demanding that the Minister of Health immediately commit to revamping the prehistoric, deadlocked approval process at the PMRA.

Literacy

[Peter Adams, Liberal, Peterborough, ON]

Mr. Speaker, literacy is much more than reading, writing and numeracy. It is the ability to understand and use printed information in all kinds of daily activities. Literacy touches almost every aspect of our lives. It is key to personal development and economic opportunity and a major factor in Canadians' ability to participate as full and active citizens.

Our literacy levels are linked to our quality of life, employment, health and self-esteem. In the knowledge based economy it is critical that Canadians continue to upgrade their skills to maintain their employability and adjust to the new demands of the workplace. Strong literacy levels are necessary to engage in lifelong learning and become full participants in the economy and society.

Forty per cent of adult Canadians still have low or limited literacy skills. HRDC through the National Literacy Secretariat works to improve this situation with the provinces, the territories, NGOs, business and labour.

Let us support all those who work to improve literacy in the home, the workplace and the community.

Fred Sabatine

[Janko Peric, Liberal, Cambridge, ON]

Mr. Speaker, just before Christmas the last surviving World War I veteran of Cambridge passed away at the age of 102.

Fred Sabatine lied about his age and joined the armed forces at the age of 16. He served in the 43rd Battalion of the Canadian Expeditionary Force, fought in France and Belgium including Vimy Ridge, and faced the horror of mustard gas. Although proud of his British War and Victory medals, Fred never thought of himself as a hero. He did not glorify war but he spoke about its horrors and always implored that it never happen again.

To his wife, children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and to all those whom he touched, I extend my deepest sympathy.

William Hancox

[Shawn Murphy, Liberal, Hillsborough, PE]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the late William James Hancox of Stratford, Prince Edward Island who passed away on December 7 of last year and was posthumously named to the Order of Canada in January of this year.

Mr. Hancox was the former managing director of the Confederation Centre of the Arts. Under his direction this national institution expanded and enhanced its programs, carried out national tours and developed stronger ties with the community.

Along with the late E. Frank Acorn, Mr. Hancox was the founding organizer of two of Prince Edward Island's most popular events: the Gold Cup and Saucer Harness Race, and the Gold Cup Parade.

William Hancox also used his talents for a number of fundraising campaigns and other community organizations. He was in every sense of the word a real community leader, a gentleman and a friend of many.

On behalf of all residents of the district of Hillsborough I extend my respect and praise to William Hancox's family and friends for his remarkable achievements and dedication to community service.

Softwood Lumber

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

Mr. Speaker, the cost of the softwood dispute for Canadian producers now stands at $700 million. Meanwhile the department of trade shrinks from aggressively supporting a NAFTA challenge launched by a Canadian lumber producer.

Our trade minister is suggesting that Canada's loyalty to fighting terrorism should help in trade disputes with the U.S. on softwood and other issues. The reality is that Canada was displaced at the front line by the U.K. and its unequivocal support after September 11 while this government sat on its hands until the Canadian Alliance and Canadians at large moved it from its inertia. During this important time of coalition building Indonesia had tariffs removed from plywood exports to the U.S. while our softwood situation worsened.

Empty statements from the minister and soft Liberal government policies on security, trade and defence are continuing to damage our prosperity.

Rural Development

[Murray Calder, Liberal, Dufferin—Peel—Wellington—Grey, ON]

Mr. Speaker, last Friday in Charlottetown my colleague the Secretary of State for Rural Development officially announced the second annual report on rural and remote Canada. Entitled “Enhancing the Quality of Life for Rural Canadians”, it outlines in detail the achievements for 2000-01.

Twenty-nine federal departments through their hard work have enhanced the lives of Canadians living in rural and remote areas. Just a few of these achievements, based on 11 priority areas, have been identified by rural Canadians and they include: $427 million dedicated to the rural infrastructure program; $125 million invested in environmental initiatives and connecting Canadians to federal government services online; and $90 million toward improving access to financial resources for business and communities.

This is our commitment to rural Canada.

Gala des Masques

[Christiane Gagnon, Bloc, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday evening, the Académie québécoise du théâtre held its Gala des Masques. Three productions stood out: Mademoiselle Julie , Dom Juan and Le Petit Köchel .

In addition to being awarded the mask for a Montreal production, Mademoiselle Julie won the prize for best female performance in a support role, thanks to the performance of Annie Berthiaume, and for lighting, thanks to the work of Guy Simard. Dom Juan won awards for the quality of the design of the costumes by Mérédith Caron, and for best male performance, with Benoît Brière.

Finally, Normand Chaurette's Le Petit Köchel won the masks for best original script and best staging, thanks to Denis Marleau.

The Bloc Quebecois congratulates the winners of the masks, the other artists, the nominees and the Académie québécoise du théâtre for holding this beautiful event again this year.

Right Hon. Herb Gray

[Mauril Bélanger, Liberal, Ottawa—Vanier, ON]

Mr. Speaker, since this is the first time that I rise since the House came back, I would be remiss if I did not take this opportunity to stress the admirable and most impressive career of the right hon. Herb Gray.

He served in this House from 1962 until last January, under nine Prime Ministers and 18 opposition leaders, including himself. He earned the confidence of his constituents by setting foundations that were used not only in his riding of Windsor West, but across the country.

For example, he learned the other official language long before it became the right thing to do.

When I was first elected he is the one whose advice I sought first and, dare I say it, heeding that advice has indeed served me well. He believed in serving the public good, and serve it he did very well for 40 years.

Last month the International Joint Commission got a gift, and if the people who work there enjoy rock and roll music then they are in for a real treat.

I wanted to thank Mr. Gray for his enormous contribution and hope that we will have an occasion later on this year to do so in a better way than we have so far.

Agriculture

[Carol Skelton, Canadian Alliance, Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar, SK]

Mr. Speaker, as we are all aware, there are many deficiencies within the ministry of agriculture. Many of the programs and aid packages offered by the minister of agriculture have extremely slow processing times and the results are often inadequate for farmers.

The Canadian Farm Income Program or CFIP is another example of the problem. I was contacted by a constituent recently who was told by a CFIP official that there were going to be massive layoffs of personnel within the CFIP department. Many producers are still waiting for their applications to be processed from last year. If these layoffs happen the processing of applications for cash strapped farmers will take even longer than it does now.

Can the minister of agriculture assure Canadian farmers their applications for CFIP will be processed in a timely manner, and are these layoffs a reality?

International Development

[Marlene Jennings, Liberal, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Lachine, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this week Canadians are celebrating International Development Week.

For over 50 years Canada has provided assistance to the world's poorest countries and communities. In the early years our teachers, nurses and administrators provided much needed services. Today they are working side by side with their capable and dedicated counterparts from around the world in a spirit of true partnership for development.

Polls confirm that the Canadian public supports international development. The government has acted on their concerns with good reason: international development efforts have yielded considerable results.

In 1975, for instance, 40% of the world's population had access to drinking water, and today that figure is approximately 70%.

I invite all Canadians to show their commitment to international development during this International Development Week.

Health

[Judy Wasylycia-Leis, NDP, Winnipeg North Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are being overwhelmed by a cacophony of noise from advocates of for profit, private health care trying to drown out the voices of the vast majority of Canadians who want to preserve our cherished and proven public health system. Senators, provincial appointees, corporate think tanks and other mouthpieces are repeating as loudly and as often as possible their vision of a profit oriented future.

This is a time when Canadians turn to the federal government desperately looking for a clarion call for public health care, a clear and loud signal for all to hear that the government is committed not only to the letter but to the spirit of the Canada Health Act and to public health care.

Instead we hear the voice of the new health minister leading the privatization chorus. Since her appointment she has gone out of her way not to advocate for public answers to improving our health system but to open the door to private options.

The House can be assured that New Democrats will continue to actively promote innovative improvements within our public health system that will benefit all and not just profit the few.

Medicare is the Canadian way. We will not let them take it away.

Aboriginal Communities

[Jean-Yves Roy, Bloc, Matapédia—Matane, QC]

Mr. Speaker, according to the United Nations, the most serious human rights problem faced by the Canadian population at this time is the situation of our aboriginal people.

At a meeting in Geneva attended by some 300 participants from 30 or so countries, Roméo Saganash, speaking for the Grand Conseil des Cris, called upon all countries to follow Quebec's example. He went on to say that the October 23 peace of the braves represents a formidable step forward in the development of relations between a government and a first nation.

He could not fail to point out that Canada has not demonstrated the same interest as far as nation to nation discourse is concerned.

This coming February 7, Ted Moses, Grand Chief of the Cree, and Quebec Premier Bernard Landry will be signing an historic agreement, one which demonstrates Quebec's pioneering role as it does not hesitate to recognize the aspirations of aboriginal peoples and holds discussions in good faith, nation to nation.

Library of Parliament

[Marlene Catterall, Liberal, Ottawa West—Nepean, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to inform the House that Thomas Fuller Construction Co. from my riding has been awarded the contract for renovations to the Library of Parliament.

Mr. Fuller's great-grandsons are continuing the legacy of their great-grandfather, the original architect of the parliament buildings, who later became the chief architect for the Dominion of Canada. His son, Thomas W. Fuller, became chief architect in 1927 and his son, Thomas G. Fuller, not only had a brilliant military career but also 50 successful years in the building industry.

After 126 years of weathering Canadian winters and surviving two fires, the Library of Parliament will be undergoing major renovations to preserve its historic and architectural value and enhance its capacity to remain on the cutting edge of technology in providing services to parliamentarians.

On behalf of all members I congratulate Thomas Fuller Construction Co. and the fourth generation of Fullers for winning the contract to ensure the library can be enjoyed by generations to come.

Heritage

[Rick Borotsik, Progressive Conservative, Brandon—Souris, MB]

Mr. Speaker, due to budget constraints one of Canada's most cherished historical sites is soon to be lost. The Diefenbaker homestead has been a symbol of frontier Canadian life and was the pride of Prime Minister Diefenbaker throughout his life. At the age of 11 John Diefenbaker helped his father build the house which is now preserved in Regina.

This national historic site has seen tens of thousands of visitors since it opened to the public nearly 35 years ago. Throughout this time the residence has remained the most dynamic symbol of Mr. Diefenbaker's legacy and the home has served as a hallmark of Canadian heritage. The Wascana Centre Authority, the agency responsible for the home, has stated that due to lack of funds it is unable to maintain the home as a tourist attraction.

Mr. Diefenbaker captured the imagination and admiration of all Canadians and it would be a shame to lose such an important reminder of one of Canada's most celebrated prime ministers.

Where is the minister of heritage? Where is Heritage Canada when we need it most? It was able to give $1.75 million to Just for Laughs and Jean Carle. Why can it not give a few thousand dollars to save this historic landmark?

Laval University

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

Mr. Speaker, researchers at Laval University have had a windfall. The Canadian Foundation for Innovation has awarded them over $54 million for a number of new projects. This in addition to the assistance from the Government of Quebec and the private sector, Laval will have invested close to $135 million by the summer of 2003.

Of that $135 million, $20 million will go to Laval's science and engineering faculty. Development here includes a second optic-photonics lab, the implementation of infrastructures and construction of a laboratory to investigate the lifespan of such infrastructures.

All of these new research projects, initiated as the result of commitments by the Canadian Foundation for Innovation, will lead to the creation of close to 400 jobs at the Laval University teaching hospital and a potential thousand or so jobs at Laval University, according to the rector.

This is just one more fine example of teamwork between the provincial and federal governments and the private sector.

Health

[James Lunney, Canadian Alliance, Nanaimo—Alberni, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the need for legislation governing reproductive technology is underscored by unscrupulous practices that amount to the production of babies for sale and for profit. Today's Globe and Mail describes a thriving underground baby making market that includes women who advertise on the Internet, agents who negotiate fees, and lawyers who draw up questionable contracts.

Twenty-one year old Krystal Morgan was talked into being a surrogate by a friend. She needed the money. She was promised $8,500 and a new computer. Another Manitoba surrogate code named Trish 74 was paid to produce a baby boy for a British couple unrelated to the child. A B.C. woman was offered $50,000 to produce a child using sperm from an unrelated source.

The Standing Committee on Health examined issues surrounding surrogacy. We have called for legislation banning commercial surrogacy to ensure women are not exploited and that children's interests and stable families are the focus of reproductive technology.

These issues underscore the need for the Minister of Health to act quickly and bring legislation back to the House without delay.

Minister of National Defence

[John Reynolds, Canadian Alliance, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of National Defence learned that Canadian soldiers had handed al-Qaeda terrorists over to the United States on Monday, January 21.

During the whole week that followed a fierce debate occurred over the handling of the al-Qaeda captives. We know what the defence minister has said but we do not understand why nobody else was informed.

Did anybody within the Department of National Defence inform the PCO, PMO or foreign affairs at the cabinet meeting that al-Qaeda terrorists had already been captured before last Tuesday?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, the JTF2, our commando group, was involved in this matter. Everything was done according to policy. Certainly when I heard about it that is when I wanted to know: were our troops safe, had they carried out the mission successfully, had they done this according to policy, all of which was true. They had done it that way.

[John Reynolds, Canadian Alliance, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, joint task force 2 cannot deploy without the PMO signing off on its mission. Yet here we are on one of the most sensitive missions ever and the PMO seems to have been left in the dark.

Does the Deputy Prime Minister expect us to believe that for a whole week while the minister was in Mexico and an international debate was raging over the treatment of al-Qaeda captives nobody in the government bothered to tell the PMO or the PCO? Does he expect us to believe that?

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

Mr. Speaker, what we have endeavoured to make clear throughout the questions last week was first of all the history of events with respect to the knowledge held by the Minister of National Defence. He has taken some heat on that but he has explained what he knew and when. We expect he will appear before a committee to answer further questions from members of the opposition.

We have explained when the Prime Minister was informed, when he knew, and he has answered accordingly.

We will not start the business of trying to blame public servants. The ministers are accountable to parliament. The ministers have answered for their knowledge and the responsibility is properly borne in that manner.

[John Reynolds, Canadian Alliance, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, maybe we should call up Bono. He seems to know more about what is happening than anybody else these days.

This is about honesty in government and it is about civilian control of the military. When the Prime Minister said that the capture of al-Qaeda prisoners was hypothetical last Monday, had he or his office been informed by the ministry of defence? Had they been informed before last Monday, or certainly before the cabinet meeting last Tuesday?

He has not answered that question and we want an answer to it.

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

Mr. Speaker, what is clear is that the Prime Minister was informed at cabinet on Tuesday. I have no information to indicate that others in his office did or did not know, but in point of fact that is not the responsibility they have to the House. It is the responsibility of the Prime Minister to account for his knowledge and the Minister of National Defence. That has been done.

We are not about to identify, on a witch hunt, some public servant who maybe knew something or maybe did not. They are not accountable to parliament.

[Leon Benoit, Canadian Alliance, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, we are not getting answers. It is hard to imagine how a prime minister in the middle of a war would not demand daily briefings on what is going on in Afghanistan. It would be hard to imagine that.

My question is for the Prime Minister. With the largest contingent of our military serving overseas since the Korean war, how often does he receive briefings from the defence department?

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

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is satisfied with the adequacy of his briefings. He is briefed frequently and regularly and is satisfied with the content of those briefings.

The point we have tried to make here is that if there has been a mistake made the minister of defence has admitted that, but at the same time we do have troops going into the field and they deserve our active support and encouragement. The point of what parliament needs to be doing now is sending those messages to our troops who have a job to do on behalf of all of us.

[Leon Benoit, Canadian Alliance, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I do not know why it is so tough to get an answer to a simple question such as how often the Prime Minister, is briefed. That should be a pretty easy answer to give.

How can Canadians trust the minister of defence? The minister of defence misled Canadians over the deployment of JTF2 last fall. He misled Canadians over whether the United States requested Canadian troops in January or whether in fact Canada asked to be allowed to go. Now he has presented two versions of events to the House on the capture of al-Qaeda prisoners.

How can our forces and the Canadian people trust the minster of defence?