Debates of Feb. 12th, 2003

Gasoline Prices

[Charlie Penson, Canadian Alliance, Peace River, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I do not think the resource sector will be very happy with that answer, but I want to go to something else. Canadians are rightly upset with the high prices at the gas pumps these days.

Thanks to the Liberals and the Kyoto accord, they ain't seen nothing yet. Ten cents out of every litre of gas go to the federal government in taxes. What is more, the former minister of finance increased gas taxes to eliminate the deficit.

Since the rationale for the increase is gone, when will the Liberal government give Canadians some hard earned relief at the pumps by drastically reducing gas taxes?

[Maurizio Bevilacqua, Liberal, Secretary of State (International Financial Institutions)]

Mr. Speaker, it is surprising that the opposition would be asking a question that is really the strength of the Liberal government. We were the government that reduced taxes by $100 billion, including corporate as well as personal. It is clear to me that the economic plan of the government is working well and it is working well for Canadians.

Iraq

[Francine Lalonde, Bloc, Mercier, QC]

Mr. Speaker, contrary to what the Prime Minister says, Canada's actions so far lead us to conclude that it is siding with the United States by supporting, through its silence, comments made by U.S. Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, who wants to ignore NATO and the UN if it suits his purposes.

Is the Prime Minister aware that his silence is contributing to undermining international institutions and that this complacent attitude breaks with Canada's tradition of respecting major international institutions?

[Bill Graham, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I firmly reject the suggestion that the Prime Minister has been silent. On the contrary, he has been active, diplomatically. He has spoken with President Bush directly on several occasions. He has spoken with all world leaders. He is speaking here in the House.

Our position is clear. We have always encouraged and supported an approach that goes through the United Nations and through the Security Council. We have gotten here, in some measure, thanks to the efforts of the Prime Minister. He has never been silent, he has been active on the international scene and we are very proud of what he has done.

[Francine Lalonde, Bloc, Mercier, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Foreign Affairs is proud of having taken his cues from others. That is what they have done.

Several countries are seeking a peaceful solution to the crisis in Iraq. They include France, Germany, and Russia. Canada, which says it supports peace, has not made any contribution to international discussions that are currently underway.

How can the Prime Minister keep claiming that he is working for peace, when the only actions he has taken support war?

[Bill Graham, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, they may be in opposition, but they must not exaggerate.

It is a well-known fact that we have worked for peace. We must work within an international system. This is a system that we have developed and have worked toward for years. We are there, we worked to build this system. This is the only chance for peace. We will continue our policy and our efforts, despite such statements that have nothing to do with reality.

National Defence

[Leon Benoit, Canadian Alliance, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the former finance minister managed to accomplish something that no enemy force in Canadian history ever could. He has brought the proud Canadian Forces to their knees. He slashed $29 billion from defence spending in the last nine years.

Will the current finance minister promise Canadians to start to undo the damage done by the former finance minister, the phantom from LaSalle--Émard?

[Maurizio Bevilacqua, Liberal, Secretary of State (International Financial Institutions)]

Mr. Speaker, I do not understand where the member has been. What the government has been able to do is get this country out of a mess. In 1993 we were faced with a $42 billion deficit. The IMF was knocking on our door. Now the situation has totally changed. We are leading the G-7 in economic growth and bringing about positive change to people's lives.

[Leon Benoit, Canadian Alliance, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, what the former finance minister did is slash $29 billion from defence spending. Now department sources say they are only going to get $2 billion to $2.4 billion over the next three years.

That is not enough. Our forces need at least $2 billion to be added to the base budget for next year to cover the $1.5 billion military deficit and to start rebuilding our military to fight the war on terrorism.

Will the current finance minister invest enough in the next fiscal year to reverse the erosion of the Canadian Forces, or will he be satisfied to merely slow down the decline?

[John McCallum, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr.Speaker, that is a funny kind of math. He claims a $29 billion cut in defence spending when it was never that high to begin with. Is it negative? Aside from--

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh.

[John McCallum, Liberal, Markham, ON]

Apart from this negative defence spending that those members are conjuring up, I think their case is belied by the fantastic performance of our Canadian Forces in the war against terrorism and in other places around the world.

[Some hon. members]

Hear, hear.

[The Speaker]

Order. I know it is Wednesday, but it is very difficult for the Chair to hear the questions and the answers. Everyone would be horrified if they woke up tomorrow and read Hansard and found something out of order in it. I have to be able to hear in case somebody makes that kind of blunder. No hon. member would want the Chair to miss the questions or the answers. Let us have a little order this afternoon.

Gasoline Prices

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

Mr. Speaker, the vice chair of the Standing Committee on Industry acknowledged this morning that the increase in gas prices is not due to the international crisis, but rather it is because of a lack of competition and that it is up to the federal government to act. Yesterday the Minister of Industry turned a deaf ear to the requests of the Bloc.

Will he listen to us now that a member of his own party shares our opinion? Will he ask the Competition Bureau to intervene and conduct an investigation?

[Allan Rock, Liberal, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, in the Government of Canada, we are always very aware of competition with regard to petroleum products. We monitor the situation daily.

It is important to note that only the provinces have the power to regulate retail prices. In fact, two provinces, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland, have already acted to put in place a regulatory system. This option is open to all the provinces.

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

Mr. Speaker, the minister's problem is that his colleague goes even further. He maintains that too many people accept the oil companies' argument that the increases in gas prices are due to the possible war in Iraq. The vice chair of the Standing Committee on Industry maintains that it is because the refineries are not observing the rules of competition.

In light of this information, will the minister finally resolve to take action and have the oil industry investigated?

[Allan Rock, Liberal, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, frankly, I cannot accept the hon. member's suggestion that all powers be centralized with the Government of Canada. This is frankly unacceptable.

The division of powers is set out in the Constitution. The role of the provinces in this area must be respected. We intend to assume our own responsibilities but also respect the role of the provinces. That is clear.

The Environment

[Bob Mills, Canadian Alliance, Red Deer, AB]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are sick and tired of the candy store mentality this government adopts around budget time. Cabinet ministers get billions of dollars to spend, with no accountability whatsoever.

The environment minister is no different. Reports suggest that he is about to get $1 billion plus to implement Kyoto even though he has no detailed plan.

Could the Prime Minister explain to Canadians the logic behind allocating money to Kyoto with no idea of how it is going to be spent?

[David Anderson, Liberal, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, delighted as I am to have the support of the hon. member for large amounts of money for Environment Canada, I must point out that it is the Minister of Finance, not the environment critic for the Alliance, who will be making these decisions and announcing them on Tuesday next.

[Bob Mills, Canadian Alliance, Red Deer, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the $1.6 billion the government has already wasted on Kyoto does not include the $9.7 million it just spent advertising this non-plan.

Now we are told that the finance minister is ready to sign over another $1 billion dollars plus, before the government even figures out how to waste it.

Rather than having four ministers all trying to get their hands into the Kyoto cookie jar, why does the Prime Minister not outline today his exact plan for spending the Kyoto money, before the budget comes down?

[David Anderson, Liberal, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, I will have to take up this matter with the Minister of Finance. He is clearly telling the hon. critic for the Alliance Party a great deal more than he is telling me.

If indeed the hon. member is right and large amounts of money are coming to Environment Canada for Kyoto measures, all I can say is, that is a very good cause and a very good way to spend money.

National Defence

[Anita Neville, Liberal, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, we have recently read reports that Canada could be considering a return to Afghanistan. Could the Minister of National Defence please tell the House if this is true?

[John McCallum, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, Canada has been approached by the international community for assistance in maintaining peace and security in Afghanistan for the UN mandated mission in Kabul. Canada is willing to serve with a battle group and a brigade headquarters for a period of one year, starting late this summer. We are currently in discussion with a number of potential partners.

Government Spending

[Libby Davies, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, today we have another example of the Liberals listening to the Alliance instead of listening to Canadians.

The so-called balanced approach of half the surplus going to social programs is more like a paltry 10% to social programs and everything else to debt reduction and tax cuts for the wealthy. So much for Liberal values.

The Liberals have missed their budget projections by $80 billion, 130 times more than Enron over-reporting its revenues.

Why is the government hoarding its revenues instead of housing Canadians who desperately need it? That is the priority. Where is the investment in the social sector?