House of Commons Hansard #210 of the 37th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was report.
Buckingham Palace
The Speaker
I have the honour to inform the House that a communication has been received which is as follows:
The Queen has been deeply touched by the many messages of sympathy received after the death of her mother, Queen Elizabeth. Her Majesty would like to thank all those who have so kindly sent words of comfort to her and to her family.
The message was signed by Sir Robin Janvrin, Private Secretary to the Queen.
Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
moved for leave to introduce Bill 479, an act to amend the Canada Business Corporations Act.
Mr. Speaker, the bill is very simple and straightforward. It simply seeks to limit the services that an auditor can provide to a business or a corporation. Many of us were very concerned after the Enron scandal that the auditing firm was providing other financial services to the same company and therefore putting itself in a conflict of interest.
This bill would limit through the Business Corporations Act the services that auditors can provide. If they were providing any other financial services for a period of two years, they would not be able to provide the audit for that company.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
Eugène Bellemare Liberal Ottawa—Orléans, ON
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-480, An Act to amend the Parliament of Canada Act (oath or solemn affirmation).
Mr. Speaker, the bill being introduced at first reading today provides for a new condition to be added to the oath taking ceremony for each member of the House of Commons, as stated in the amendment to the Parliament of Canada Act I am now proposing. This new condition would be a solemn affirmation of loyalty to Canada.
The bill is an add on to the obligations of members of the House of Commons under the Constitution Act, 1867 where the fifth schedule stipulates that we must swear allegiance to Her Majesty the Queen.
I move today that an additionnal oath be taken by members of the House, an oath which is just as important as the existing one and which is the solemn affirmation of the loyalty we all owe to our country.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
Paul Crête Bloc Kamouraska—Rivière-Du-Loup—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC
moved that the Seventh Report of the Standing Committee on Human Resources Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities, presented on March 21, 2002, be concurred in.
Mr. Speaker, as the motion indicates, this report, which was tabled on March 22, is a unanimous report on persons with disabilities. Last week, we debated this issue when the hon. member for Dartmouth, who worked very hard on this, brought forward a motion dealing with this issue.
At a time when we are discovering that the federal government seems to be taking a long time to recover money owed by its friends with respect to sponsorships, a committee has presented a unanimous report in an attempt to regularize and improve the condition of persons with disabilities, particularly with respect to the tax credit for persons with disabilities.
I believe all members of the House have met with people in their ridings who clearly established that Revenue Canada' s interpretation of the tax credit for persons with disabilities was much more restrictive and did not correspond in any way--
Charlie Penson Canadian Alliance Peace River, AB
Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I wonder if there would be consent to go to petitions and then go back to the order of business as it stands at the moment.
Committees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
The Acting Speaker (Mr. Bélair)
Is there unanimous consent to go to petitions before resuming debate?
Charlie Penson Canadian Alliance Peace River, AB
Mr. Speaker, I have one petition to present today calling upon parliament to take steps to outlaw the materials which promote or glorify pedophilia and sado-masochistic activities involving children.
The petition has been signed by over 100 Peace River constituents, and I am pleased to present it today on their behalf.
Mark Assad Liberal Gatineau, QC
Mr. Speaker, in the same vein, I have a petition from constituents in my area that calls upon parliament to protect children by taking all necessary steps to ensure that all materials which promote or glorify pedophiles and their activities involving children be outlawed.
John Duncan Canadian Alliance Vancouver Island North, BC
Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions signed by over 200 individuals from my riding of Vancouver Island North.
The petitioners are calling upon parliament to ensure all necessary steps are taken to protect our children from any material promoting child pornography and to make it clear that any such exploitation of children will be met with swift punishment.
Val Meredith Canadian Alliance South Surrey—White Rock—Langley, BC
Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to present a petition on behalf of constituents who are concerned with the violence and sexual exploitation that is seen on television.
The petitioners are humbly requesting the House of Commons to legislate the CRTC to reduce the sexual and violent content contained in the basic cable and satellite packages.
Mario Laframboise Bloc Argenteuil—Papineau—Mirabel, QC
Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the citizens of Manicouagan and of their member of parliament who is convalescing, I have the honour to present a petition on the $24 airport security charge, which greatly affects everybody in the riding of Manicouagan who has to travel by air from Sept-Îles or Blanc-Sablon.
This petition is signed by more than 80 residents. If their names are added to the more than 1,900 names found on a previous petition, we have more that 2,000 people. In the riding of Manicouagan, this number is the equivalent of 90,000 people on Montreal Island. I hope the government will take this important petition into consideration.
Guy St-Julien Liberal Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Inuit petitioners from Ivujivik, Puvirnituk and Umiujaq, in Nunavik, draw to the attention of the House that the federal government, through one of its departments, ordered the killing of Inuit sled dogs from 1950 to 1969.
The federal government did not hold public consultations with the Inuit communities in Nunavik. The killing of these dogs has had a tragic social, economic and cultural impact on the Inuit in Nunavik.
In conclusion, we are asking for a public inquiry into the federal policy of dog killing that was implemented in Nunavik.
John Reynolds Canadian Alliance West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast, BC
Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure to introduce a petition signed by residents of my constituency calling for the repeal of section 13(5) of Canada Post Act, which would allow for collective bargaining rights for private sector postal workers.
Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
Mr. Speaker, I am very glad to present two different petitions on behalf of people in my riding.
The first petition points out to the House that the creation and the use of child pornography should be condemned by the House of Commons and that the courts have not applied the current child pornography law in a way that makes it clear that such exploitation should not and will not be tolerated.
The petitioners call for strengthening the laws to ensure that we protect children.
Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
Mr. Speaker, the second petition has been signed by literally thousands of first nations citizens who call upon government to reject the first nations governance agreement. They believe it is being imposed on them in the same manner as the Indian Act and Bill C-31 was imposed. They believe it will reduce first nations governments to municipalities and could impact their treaty rights.
They urge all members of parliament to drop the first nations governance agreement and to negotiate a more satisfactory resolve.
Clifford Lincoln Liberal Lac-Saint-Louis, QC
Mr. Speaker, I want to table a petition signed by approximately one hundred constituents from my riding and elsewhere. It reads as follows:
That the creation and use of child pornography is condemned by the clear majority of Canadians.That the courts have not applied the current child pornography law in a way which makes it clear that such exploitation of children will always be met with swift punishment.
Therefore the petitioners call upon parliament to protect our children by taking all necessary steps to ensure that all material which promotes or glorifies pedophilia or sado-masochistic activities involving children be outlawed.
Geoff Regan Liberal Halifax West, NS
Mr. Speaker, in the spirit of co-operation that we have seen in the last few moments, I wonder if you might find consent to go to order paper questions and then revert back to the matter at hand. I have the answers to a number of written questions from members.
PetitionsRoutine Proceedings
The Acting Speaker (Mr. Bélair)
The request is to complete routine proceedings. Is there unanimous consent?
Geoff Regan LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, the following questions will be answered today: Nos. 158, 159 and 166.
Mauril Bélanger Liberal Ottawa—Vanier, ON
In the past five years, has the government awarded grants to the Human Rights Institute of Canada, directed by Dr. Marguerite E. Ritchie, and if so, how much did those grants amount to?
Geoff Regan LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
I am informed as follows: No.
John Williams Canadian Alliance St. Albert, AB
With regard to the Canada Health Infoway established by Health Canada and the Department of Finance: ( a ) what guidelines have been established to set the salary range for the Chair of the Board of Directors of the Infoway; ( b ) what is the salary range of the chair of the board of directors of the Infoway; ( c ) what guidelines have been established to set the salary range for the chief executive officer of the Infoway; ( d ) what is the salary range for the chief executive officer of the Infoway; ( e ) have the chair of the board of directors or the chief executive officer received a performance bonus, and if so, what were the criteria used in each case to establish such a bonus; ( f ) how many contracts have been let by the Canada Health Infoway and what is the value of those contracts; ( g ) is the Infoway required to follow the government contracts regulations and the Treasury Board Secretariat's contracting policy; ( h ) overall, how many contracts were let by Health Canada to Heenan Blaikie LLP between September 1, 2000 and March 31, 2001, and of these contracts, which were awarded on a competitive basis, which were let on an advance contract award notice, ACAN, basis, which were let on a non-competitive basis and what is the dollar value of each contract; ( i ) overall, how many contracts were let by Health Canada to Columbia Communications Inc. between September 1, 2000 and March 31, 2001, and of these contracts, which were awarded on a competitive basis, which were let on an advance contract award notice, ACAN, basis, which were let on a non-competitive basis and what is the dollar value of each contract; ( j ) overall, how many contracts were let by the Department of Finance to Heenan Blaikie LLP between September 1, 2000 and March 31, 2001, and of these contracts, which were awarded on a competitive basis, which were let on an advance contract award notice, ACAN, basis, which were let on a non-competitive basis and what is the dollar value of each contract; ( k ) overall, how many contracts were let by the Department of Finance to Columbia Communications Inc. between September 1, 2000, and March 31, 2001, and of these contracts, which were awarded on a competitive basis, which were let on an advance contract award notice, ACAN, basis, which were let on a non-competitive basis and what is the dollar value of each contract; ( l ) how many contracts have been let by the Infoway from its creation until March 31, 2002 to Heenan Blaikie LLP, and of these contracts, which were awarded on a competitive basis, which were let on an advance contract award notice, ACAN, basis, which were let on a non-competitive basis and what is the dollar value of each contract; ( m ) how many contracts have been let by the Infoway from its creation until March 31, 2002 to Columbia Communications Inc., and of these contracts, which were awarded on a competitive basis, which were let on an advance contract award notice, ACAN, basis, which were let on a non-competitive basis and what is the dollar value of each contract?
Geoff Regan LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
I am informed as follows:
Health Canada: Canada Health Infoway Inc. is an independent not for profit corporation which was established under the Canada Corporations Act, part II. It was not established by Health Canada and the Department of Finance as stated in the written question, Q-159.
Section 3 of the act respecting the provision of increased funding for health care services, medical equipment, health information and communications technologies, early childhood development and other social services and to amend the Federal-Provincial Fiscal Arrangements Act, C-45, October 2000, authorized the Minister of Finance to make a direct payment, for the fiscal year beginning on April 1, 2000, to a corporation, to be named by the Governor in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Health, for the purpose of defining standards governing shared data to ensure the compatibility of health information networks. The corporation that was recommended and named by order of the Governor in Council was Canada Health Infoway Inc.
Most of the questions posed relate to the internal business decisions of Canada Health Infoway Inc., which is a corporation independent of government. Questions relating to the Department of Finance [h) (ii) and (iii)] should be directed to the Department of Finance.
The question (g) asks whether Canada Health Infoway Inc. is required to follow government contracts regulations and the Treasury Board Secretariat’s contracting policy. As the corporation is not a part of the Government of Canada, these regulations and policy do not apply to it.
Regarding question (h), Health Canada did not let any contracts respecting Canada Health Infoway Inc. to Heenan Blaikie LLP between September 1, 2000, and March 31, 2001.
With regard to question (h) (i), Health Canada let a contract to Columbia Communications on Jan. 29, 2001, to develop a communications strategy for the announcement of a federal, provincial and territorial resolution on the protection of personal health information and the Canada Health Infoway Inc. launch, in recognition that protecting personal information is critical to having an accepted and effective electronic health record solution. The process followed was non-competitive as the contract was less than $25,000, the value was $24,877, and the contractor possessed the knowledge and networks to effectively complete the work for the most value.
Finance Canada: No contracts were awarded by the Department of Finance to Heenan Blaikie LLP or Columbia Communications during the specified period.