Debates of April 25th, 2002

Canada Post

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

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member knows that Canada Post Corporation is an arm's length crown corporation. I do not direct it as to how it manages its day to day operations.

I think all members of the House ought to applaud the fact that an organization which years ago used to cost the taxpayer significant transfers of money year after year is now generating real profits because it is operating its business effectively and efficiently. That is the objective it has achieved.

National Defence

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

Mr. Speaker, a British sub expert who came to Canada and was hired to help fix the new Canadian submarines told me recently that the problem with the subs is simply that they have had zero maintenance since they landed in Canada. He also told me that Canada does not have the infrastructure, tools or training to service these subs. He even went on to say that without service the subs may just as well be used in the movies as props.

Will the minister tell us, is it his intention to upgrade the facilities at Halifax so he can provide service for the submarines or is he just going to turn them all over to the Minister of Canadian Heritage for the movies?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, I am sorry the hon. member has had wrong advice. Canada has a long experience with submarines. We have expertise here. We have systems that are being put in place to continue to in fact maintain and upgrade the submarines as we go along and to put them into service just as quickly as possible.

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

Mr. Speaker, the British submarine expert said we do have expertise in submarines, but not these submarines. We need training for the new submarines.

The original plan was for three of these subs to go to Halifax. One was to go to Esquimalt. First, is that still the plan? If it is the plan, how are we going to service these submarines in Esquimalt if we cannot even service the ones in Halifax?

[Art Eggleton, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, I do not understand where the hon. member gets his information. We have gone through extensive training in the U.K., before we started to bring these boats over. We have worked with the U.K. royal navy. We have worked with the manufacturer of the boats.

We are providing facilities, buildings and facilities, for these boats in Halifax. In fact we have one of them in dry dock now being repaired. We are also providing similar kinds of facilities over on the west coast so that the plan of having three on the east coast and one on the west coast is still relevant and it is still going to be carried out.

Agriculture

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

Mr. Speaker, Canadian cattle producers are being threatened by tuberculosis being transferred from elk living in our Manitoba national park. If there is one more case of TB before April 2005, Canada will lose its TB free status. Right now in Manitoba there are cases of TB in elk and white tailed deer and investigations involving bison and cattle.

The Minister of Canadian Heritage has failed to properly manage elk residing in the Riding Mountain National Park.

When will the Minister of Canadian Heritage begin to take this problem seriously and reduce this threat by culling the herd in Riding Mountain Park?

[Sheila Copps, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, I would not expect the hon. member to suggest the minister should be culling the herd in Riding Mountain National Park.

What we do is rely on the best science and the best experts we have. We have been working on the issue with the best science and the best minds and in concert with area residents to make sure that whatever remedial action is taken is for the long term life of the elk herd and for the ranchers who may live in the area.

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

Mr. Speaker, Manitoba and Canada are on the verge of losing their TB-free status in the next month if another outbreak happens. The herd in Manitoba's national park is an endemic carrier of tuberculosis. There is not enough habitat or feed inside the park for the large number of animals the minister is letting run around in the park. We do not want to see the animals eliminated but we sure want to see them reduced.

The minister of agriculture is trying to help farmers. This minister is trying to destroy the livelihood of our farmers and ranchers. She is the mistake.

[Sheila Copps, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, the reason we asked scientists to carry on this very important work is precisely because it should not be left in the hands of politicians.

Société Radio-Canada

[Christiane Gagnon, Bloc, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, a recent decision by the Human Rights Tribunal has found the Radio-Canada guilty of letting an employee go because of her age, thus confirming the existence of serious problems of discrimination within this corporation.

Is the heritage minister prepared to acknowledge that there is a serious management problem at Radio-Canada and that it is time it stopped?

[Claudette Bradshaw, Liberal, Minister of Labour and Secretary of State (Multiculturalism) (Status of Women)]

Mr. Speaker, once again I repeat, the employees and the employer are at the bargaining table working out a collective agreement.

As for the problems at Radio-Canada the Bloc Quebecois has mentioned, these must be brought to the bargaining table and put into a collective agreement. This is where it needs to be dealt with.

[Christiane Gagnon, Bloc, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, interfering in negotiations is one thing, but having an opinion on major principles is quite another.

How could a government remain unmoved by the fact that there is discrimination pure and simple within a crown corporation, as is the case with Radio-Canada, toward women and young people? I am asking the minister to make a statement on this.

[Claudette Bradshaw, Liberal, Minister of Labour and Secretary of State (Multiculturalism) (Status of Women)]

Mr. Speaker, I will repeat this once more. They have to discuss their problems at the negotiating table. This is why this is the fifth week that staff and management of Radio-Canada have been holding discussions. That is what a collective agreement is all about. That is what a democratic country is all about.

Child Protection

[Larry Spencer, Canadian Alliance, Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre, SK]

Mr. Speaker, regrettably the B.C. government has decided not to appeal the child pornography case of John Robin Sharpe. The onus now falls squarely on the all too comfortable federal justice minister to address this serious problem.

Since the courts have once again failed to protect children from pedophiles and child pornographers, what immediate steps will the minister take to protect children from sexual predators?

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

Mr. Speaker, I have answered that question many times over the past few days. The member is raising a serious and complex issue. There is no simple solution.

We have Bill C-15A which is pending before the House. Bill C-15A would create new offences with regard to the Internet. It is a step in the right direction. I will say exactly the same thing as the leader of the Alliance Party. We need to get involved in a good consultation process and we will do that with members of parliament.

[Larry Spencer, Canadian Alliance, Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre, SK]

Mr. Speaker, all we hear is consultation, consultation. After nine years of consultation and fearmongering, Liberal ministers cannot provide Canadians with real solutions.

The Prime Minister is always talking about leaving a legacy. Canadians want to know what kind of legacy he plans to leave with respect to the rights of children. Will the Prime Minister's legacy be one of defending sexual predators or will he now take action to protect Canadian children?

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

Mr. Speaker, if the hon. member knew what he was talking about he would know we had Bill C-15A in the House. He would also know that there are provisions in the criminal code with respect to child pornography.

What I have said many times during the past weeks is that the government has been working and will keep on working. We will proceed with a good consultation process involving parliamentarians and we will look at the existing provisions to see if we can add more offences to the criminal code.

Research and Development

[Walt Lastewka, Liberal, St. Catharines, ON]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Secretary of State for Science, Research and Development.

The Canadian government has a number of excellent programs which assist small business. One of the best and most cost effective is the industrial research assistance program, IRAP. Due to the success of the program, the funds that are allocated yearly are consistently depleted before the end of the fiscal year.

Given the success of the program in assisting small business, could the Secretary of State for Science, Research and Development inform the House about what measures are being taken to secure additional funding for this most worthwhile program?

[Maurizio Bevilacqua, Liberal, Secretary of State (Science]

Mr. Speaker, I congratulate the hon. member for the excellent work he does on behalf of Canada's small business community. He is right when he says that IRAP is an outstanding program. It serves over 10,000 small businesses and enjoys the support of the small business community across the country.

IRAP is successful, IRAP is effective and, I want to tell the hon. member, IRAP is worth fighting for.

Reproductive Technologies

[Rob Merrifield, Canadian Alliance, Yellowhead, AB]

Mr. Speaker, we have been given to understand that Genome Canada has followed the CIHR in withholding money for experiments on the human embryo no thanks to a health minister who approved the guidelines in the first place, guidelines that pre-empted and offended parliament and the Standing Committee on Health.

Will the government confirm that Genome money has been withdrawn? Why would it allow Genome to make its own rules in the first place?

[Allan Rock, Liberal, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, to the extent to which it is possible to understand the question, I can tell the House that Genome Canada as a condition of funding from the government must comply with the guidelines issued by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research in relation to embryonic stem cell research.

As the House knows, the Minister of Health has already said that she will be tabling legislation in relation to the matter on or before May 10.

[Rob Merrifield, Canadian Alliance, Yellowhead, AB]

Mr. Speaker, that does not say anything about the money that was allotted last week. The CIHR made funding guidelines because of a legislative void in reproductive technology. The minister admitted to that last week.

In many other areas the government has been adrift in a moral vacuum because we have a minister without the fortitude to introduce legislation. We have had nine years of empty promises.

Will the minister explain why she has not made this a priority? Where is the legislation?

[Anne McLellan, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, as I have indicated on a number of occasions in the House, the government will be responding to the report of the Standing Committee on Health as it relates to assisted human reproduction.

As I have indicated in the House many times, we will both be responding to the report and introducing legislation on or before May 10.

Persons with Disabilities

[Robert Lanctôt, Bloc, Châteauguay, QC]

Mr. Speaker, 10 years ago already, a survey on health and limitations condemned the fact that too few people with disabilities were benefiting from the tax credits that were designed for them, because of the unfairly restrictive nature of the definition of the term disabled.

In 1996, people with disabilities again condemned this situation before the task force on persons with disabilities.

What is the government waiting for to review its definition of the term disabled, so that these same people can get the tax credits that are designed for them?

[John McCallum, Liberal, Secretary of State (International Financial Institutions)]

Mr. Speaker, I do not have a specific answer to the question, but I will inquire and report back to the hon. member as soon as possible.