Madam Speaker, I am pleased to have the opportunity to speak to Bill C-228 introduced by the hon. member for Hochelaga—Maisonneuve. The bill touches on important issues of concern to all Canadians and I welcome the chance to address them.
The bill, entitled the antipoverty act, is actually a proposed amendment to our Canadian Human Rights Act. As can be seen, these proposed changes are significant.
First, it would add social condition as a prohibited ground of discrimination. Second, it would explicitly make it a discriminatory practice for banks to refuse to provide service to individuals by reason only of their low income. Third, the hon. member's bill would require the Canadian Human Rights Commission to review every bill introduced in or presented to the House of Commons by a minister of the crown to determine whether it would likely result in a discriminatory practice. The commission's findings would be tabled in both houses.
Last, the bill would have the commission prepare an annual report on poverty in Canada in which it would establish the required annual expenditure to end poverty. This report would also be tabled before both houses and the bill would compel the House of Commons to debate its contents.
Before turning to the specifics of the bill and why I cannot support it, I would first like to take a moment to comment on its objective. Clearly, it is motivated by the desire to alleviate the serious problem of poverty in Canada. With this objective, the Government of Canada has already demonstrated its full agreement.
Poverty continues to prevent some individuals from realizing their full potential as equal members of our society with a right to equal opportunity and equal participation. Addressing the problem of poverty needs to be a priority for all levels of government, federal, provincial and municipal. Unfortunately, despite numerous governmental policies and programs implemented to address this concern, poverty persists.
Federal efforts have included such measures as employment insurance, increased tax credits and national labour and housing strategy. Provincial and municipal governments have also been active in developing and implementing policies and programs aimed at eradicating poverty.
Nevertheless, more remains to be done. As a result, the government has recently reaffirmed its commitment to strengthen the social safety net and to work to eradicate poverty through a number of innovative initiatives. To name one such initiative in particular, the national child benefit is helping children and families break out of that cycle of poverty.
The government promised in the Speech from the Throne to increase the national child benefit, one of the most effective programs we have seen to date for assisting poor families to get on their feet. In addition, specific measures tailored to the needs of low income families caring for children with severe disabilities are being developed. Strides are also being made with respect to improving the educational needs and outcomes of first nations children.
It is true that poverty and the lack of social support have kept some members of our Canadian community from maximizing their individual potential, which is not acceptable in a free and democratic society. Without a doubt, our work is aimed at eradicating the root causes of poverty by ameliorating disadvantage and improving opportunities at any early age. Experience has taught us that band-aid solutions will not work. Our energies and resources must be targeted at those measures that will be the most effective and successful in breaking down systemic barriers to participation and interrupting vicious cycles of poverty faced by some of our citizens.
It is because of the government's commitment to effective, responsive and respectful anti-poverty policies that I cannot support the bill of the hon. member. Poverty alleviation and improved protection from discrimination are fundamental matters that require a more thorough and considered response than that offered in this bill.
This piecemeal approach is reflected on three levels.
First, the inclusion of social condition as a prohibited ground of discrimination without further statutory definition or guidance could have undesired and even unforeseen consequences for the interpretation and administration of our Human Rights Act. For example, if no constraints are imposed, an undefined ground of social condition could conceivably be used to challenge our progressive system of taxation. Rather than protecting the disadvantaged, the CHRA could be used as an instrument of profit by the most advantaged in our society. This is an unacceptable risk.
This is why the Department of Justice is currently conducting a comprehensive review of the CHRA. We are considering structural and procedural improvements for examining the possibility of expanding the scope of protections to include new prohibited grounds of discrimination, one of which is social condition.
We are learning from the experiences of our provincial and territorial counterparts, such as Quebec and the Northwest Territories, that have included social condition and we are determining whether those experiences are appropriately transferrable to the federal arena. Protection from discrimination on the basis of social condition is an important and complex issue that merits dedicated analysis rather than hasty inclusion or a piecemeal approach.
Second, other portions of Bill C-228 are similarly ill-advised as an effective strategy for addressing poverty. Burdening the Canadian Human Rights Commission with the task of reviewing every piece of government legislation and calculating the cost of eradicating poverty on an annual basis would, to say the least, be a substantial extension of its current mandate.
The time, effort and resources that would be required to fulfill these duties would overshadow and overwhelm the central and vital work of that commission as an anti-discrimination agency which assists victims of discrimination with their claims for equality. Not only would these amendments have serious financial and administrative cost consequences for the commission, but the duties to advise Parliament on the costs of poverty and to assess all potential legislation would be decidedly outside the expertise and perhaps outside its statutory competence.
Third, there is also the question of how the bill restricts the operation of Parliament and the discretion of ministers. The government of the nation requires flexibility and autonomy in setting its own agenda to respond to the needs and demands of Canadians promptly and effectively.
This system has worked well. Canadians have let us know what poverty concerns they have and the government has responded in the House through legislation and administrative programs. The government has already moved far beyond with concrete action plans and systemic solutions to break the vicious poverty cycle.
There is no question that the government supports the effective alleviation of poverty. This is clearly demonstrated by our social programs and our social and economic support systems. A comprehensive review of the CHRA is already underway, as I mentioned, which is considering the issue of social condition in its full context. What cannot be supported, however, are cumbersome tasks for our human rights agencies, the inefficient and inappropriate use of administrative resources and the restriction of House operations.
For these reasons, the government cannot support Bill C-228.