Debates of April 10th, 2002

Middle East

[Bill Graham, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his question because it points out the incredibly positive role that Canada has been able to play in this very difficult dispute.

The issue of the refugees goes to the core of the ultimate solution to this, and Canada's role has been crucial in establishing what degree of trust we can between the two parties to work on this. It does require the two parties to come together. Canada has constantly said that we are willing to resume our role and we will resume our role. We would like them to come back to the table. We would be happy to resume that.

If the hon. member can help through his contacts on either side with parliamentarians, we would be grateful for all the help we could get on this incredibly important dossier, for this issue and for Canada.

[Bill Casey, Progressive Conservative, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has announced that he has committed Canadian peacekeepers to the Middle East.

I would just like to ask two simple questions. Who are we going to send to do this work? How are we going to send them?

[Bill Graham, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, the Deputy Prime Minister, the Prime Minister, the defence minister and I have made it very clear to the House that what Canada is willing to do is examine any practical suggestion that is made to deal with peacekeepers in the Middle East.

We cannot, however, respond to a question or a situation until we are actually given an actual question. When that question comes, when the world community is willing or able to work on this, we will do our part. I assure the House that we are willing to do our part. The moment is not yet right. When it is, we shall act and we shall act forcefully, as Canadians have always done.

Softwood Lumber

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

Mr. Speaker, the senior minister from British Columbia and the Minister of Industry, when in British Columbia, agree with the Canadian Alliance plans for assisting forest workers and to backstop softwood tariff requirements, but once these ministers get to Ottawa, the Prime Minister and the Minister for International Trade reject their ideas.

Why should forest workers and stakeholders trust the statements of senior ministers if they become meaningless in Ottawa?

[Pierre Pettigrew, Liberal, Minister for International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, let us be quite clear. On Monday and Tuesday we had a visit from Premier Gordon Campbell of British Columbia. He made a very clear statement about what he found, with my colleagues, the ministers, and this government, about the softwood lumber industry. I will quote the premier of British Columbia. He said that federal ministers:

...have been very constructive in their comments and understand the huge impact that this has on people and families and communities across British Columbia.

That is his statement and it is worth reading in the House.

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

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Natural Resources has said on occasions in the past few weeks that the government should assist workers and guarantee tariff payments resulting from the softwood lumber dispute.

When will the government finally announce its program to aid forest workers and to backstop softwood tariff payments?

[Pierre Pettigrew, Liberal, Minister for International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, we intend to continue to work with the workers and the communities that are affected by the softwood lumber situation because of the punitive measures by the United States.

All my colleagues who have tools, as is the situation with the Minister of Natural Resources responsible for forestry, and the Ministry of Industry has been involved, the Minister of Human Resources Development is involved, I can tell you, we all pay very careful attention to the situation of the workers and the communities in British Columbia and all across Canada.

Employment Insurance

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

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Minister for International Trade made the statement that the transfer of manpower training to Quebec three years ago was specifically aimed at workers in the softwood lumber sector.

This is not, however, a matter of sending these workers back to school to make plumbers out of them, but rather of helping them survive a trade war for which they have no responsibility whatsoever, until they can get back to work.

What is keeping the minister from convincing her colleagues that the EI system needs to be changed and additional weeks of benefits made available to these workers to prevent them from descending into total poverty?

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

Mr. Speaker, let me reiterate again the concern that the government has for those workers who may be affected by the trade dispute in softwood lumber.

We are very pleased that the employment insurance system is sound. It is strong, it is there and ready to respond to the needs of the vast majority of those working in the industry who may need the support of income benefits as well as active measures.

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

Mr. Speaker, what are we going to tell these people who are getting to the end of their benefit period? That 88% of workers are eligible for EI if they become unemployed?

We are talking here of workers who were laid off last November and are getting to the end of their benefits, but will not be eligible for welfare until they have used up their savings.

What measures does the minister intend to propose to them? Is she going to continue to sit on the $4 billion in the EI account this year?

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

Mr. Speaker, again, the employment insurance system is sound. Over $500 million is transferred to the Government of Quebec every year to assist with issues facing unemployed workers.

We continue to work at the community level, through my department and other departments of government, to follow the initiatives and the issues that come out of this trade dispute and make sure we are there to assist Canadian workers in the softwood lumber dispute.

Government Contracts

[Randy White, Canadian Alliance, Langley—Abbotsford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is really not good enough for the finance minister over there to say the ethics counsellor cleared him of wrongdoing.

His Alberta fundraiser had a lucrative consulting contract with the finance department at the same time that he was raising money for the minister's leadership campaign.

Will the finance minister table a list of those people Mr. Palmer consulted with on behalf of the finance department and a list of the people he raised money from so that we can all see here in the House how the nation's tax policy was really up for sale?

[Paul Martin, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Palmer, as I have said in the House, is an outstanding tax practitioner. He is an expert in natural resource taxation. He is also a person of impeccable reputation.

Mr. Palmer performed a very important role for the Government of Canada. The whole matter has been referred to the ethics counsellor, who has taken a look at it and said it has been dealt with satisfactorily.

[Randy White, Canadian Alliance, Langley—Abbotsford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the ethics counsellor is a paid Liberal hack. I have no confidence at all in his recommendations.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh.

[The Speaker]

Order, please. I think the hon. member will want to be judicious, and perhaps unusually judicious, in his choice of words on this particular occasion. I know he will want to avoid any reference to an individual who is not here and unable to defend himself or herself in the House.

[Randy White, Canadian Alliance, Langley—Abbotsford, BC]

Yes, Mr. Speaker, that is unfortunate.

This is a serious issue, I say to colleagues in the House, a serious issue about the nation's finance minister spending taxpayers' money to raise money for himself to win a leadership race. That is what it is about.

Surely the finance minister does not want questions of improper use of government money hanging around. Why will the finance minister not table a list of who Mr. Palmer contacted, how much money and where it came from for his own personal leadership race to try to become prime minister?

[Paul Martin, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member's statements are simply unworthy of him and unworthy of a member of this House. The matter has been referred to the ethics commissioner. He has dealt with it.

The Environment

[Alan Tonks, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Speaker, recent studies show that smog seriously contributes to heart and lung disease among Canadians of all ages. As we know smog is not just an urban problem but should be of concern to members on all sides of the House. In addition to the nation's cities, smog is a problem in the B.C. Fraser Valley, in southwestern Ontario and from New Brunswick to western Nova Scotia.

Last February the Minister of the Environment announced a 10 year federal agenda on cleaner vehicles, engines and fuels which was a key component of the Government of Canada clean air program. Would the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment tell the House what actions the government has taken recently to move--

[The Speaker]

The hon. Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment.

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

Mr. Speaker, last week the Minister of the Environment announced proposed regulations to tighten exhaust emissions levels for on road vehicles for the year 2004. Among his proposals, sports utility vehicles will be reclassified as cars in order to lower their emissions. SUVs have evaded the regulations that were put in place for passenger vehicles and smog contributions from new SUVs will drop dramatically.

In addition, this summer proposed regulations will be put forth for small spark ignition engines, power chainsaws, snow blowers and lawnmowers. As well, by the end--

[The Speaker]

The hon. member for Port Moody-Coquitlam--Port Coquitlam.

Airport Security

[James Moore, Canadian Alliance, Port Moody—Coquitlam—Port Coquitlam, BC]

Mr. Speaker, at Vancouver's south terminal, Esso Avitat airports and Edmonton city centre airport and dozens of facilities similar to them across the country there is no pre-screening of either passengers or bags. There was no pre-screening in place prior to September 11 and there are no plans to have pre-screening after September 11. Yet these airports, where they are receiving no service, are paying the $24 air security tax.

This is clearly a case of taxation without service representation. How could the government justify taxing Canadian citizens for services they will not receive and a tax that very well may destroy the existence of these airports?

[David Collenette, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I answered the particular question at the Senate committee the other day when it was posed to me.

There are instances across the country where there have been exceptions made, especially in the north, and those people are not paying the charge; but where anomalies exist they will be addressed.

Canada Customs and Revenue Agency

[Gilles-A. Perron, Bloc, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the government has repeatedly boasted about its anti-terrorism measures. However, a temporary directive from the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency, dated March 26, 2001, and telling customs officers not to intercept persons on a customs lookout or likely to be armed, is still in effect.

Despite the extensive changes and the billions of dollars in spending announced after the events of September 11, does it seem right that we still let criminals cross our borders?