Debates of April 30th, 2003

Health

[The Speaker]

The right hon. member for Calgary Centre.

[Joe Clark, Progressive Conservative, Calgary Centre, AB]

Mr. Speaker, regarding inbound passengers, yesterday the son of the member of Parliament for Dauphin--Swan River arrived in Vancouver on Air Canada flight 30 direct from Beijing. He and other passengers filled out a card in Beijing, but they were not screened either in Beijing or in Vancouver. They were not asked any questions about SARS. They were not given any information on what to do if they began to display symptoms. They just walked off the plane.

How does the Minister of Health explain that? Does Canada's safety depend on cards handed out in Beijing?

[Anne McLellan, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, in fact, those cards are passed out to all passengers on flights from cities like Beijing and Hong Kong. Those cards tell about the symptoms of SARS, what to look for, and the incubation period. In addition, we ask for travel locator information so that if someone is thought to be a suspect or probable SARS case coming off that plane, we are able to contact everyone else who was a passenger on that plane.

Let me also inform the hon. member that we have quarantine officers meeting all those planes and those quarantine officers are available and inspecting--

[The Speaker]

The right hon. member for Calgary Centre.

[Joe Clark, Progressive Conservative, Calgary Centre, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the government is a house of cards and what is clear is that Canadian safety depends on cards handed out in Beijing.

My supplementary is to the man responsible for all of this, the Prime Minister. Before or during his vacation in the Dominican Republic, did he see the letter which Ontario sent on April 4? During his belated personal conversation with the World Health Organization did Gro Brundtland tell the Prime Minister directly of her concern about Canada's screening procedures? If the Prime Minister knew these concerns why did he not act?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I never had a communication. She never wrote me a letter, never called me. There was communication with the Department of Health, with the World Health Organization and communication between the ministers of health of the provincial and federal governments. Mr. Clement congratulated the federal minister for the good work that she was doing.

Foreign Affairs

[Stockwell Day, Canadian Alliance, Okanagan—Coquihalla, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the republic of France is once again leading a tiny coalition of countries to divide the NATO alliance. This week France joined Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg in a summit discussing a new military alliance that would be a counterweight to NATO of which Canada of course is a founding member.

The Prime Minister supported France's last adventure by not joining our allies to confront Saddam Hussein. Why will the Prime Minister not now loudly oppose this latest attempt of France to divide NATO?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the decision about the non-participation in the war in Iraq was announced to the American government a year before, when I discussed that with President Bush. So it was not under the influence of anybody. We said that to participate in a war we needed the support of the Security Council. That was known for more than a year.

We are a member of NATO. We are participating in NATO. We think that NATO is a good organization. I am sure that NATO will survive many such meetings.

[Stockwell Day, Canadian Alliance, Okanagan—Coquihalla, BC]

Mr. Speaker, with that type of response it is legitimately in the public interest to know where the Prime Minister gets his advice on these important foreign affairs matters.

I do not fault the Prime Minister's family ties with his nephew, our Ambassador to France, or with Paul Demarais Sr. who is the largest individual shareholder of France's largest corporation, Total Fina Elf, which has billions of dollars of contracts with Saddam's former regime.

With this valuable source of information and experience at his fingertips, has the Prime Minister ever discussed Iraq or France with his family or friends in the Demarais empire?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I never thought that this gentleman would go so low as to attack one of the best bureaucrats we have had in years in the Department of Foreign Affairs because he is my nephew.

I hope he will repeat the attack against the people who have invested money in something outside and he will face the consequences.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh.

[The Speaker]

Order please. We are moving on to the next question.

The hon. member for Roberval has the floor, and we will hear the question.

Taxation

[Michel Gauthier, Bloc, Roberval, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the fact that it persistently denies the existence of the fiscal imbalance, in spite of the fact that it was very clearly demonstrated by the Séguin report, proves that the federal government is using this fiscal imbalance for its own purposes.

My question to the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs is the following. Will the minister admit that the fiscal imbalance is serving the federal government's strategy, allowing it to interfere in areas that are not under its jurisdiction, and that its existence is purposely denied?

[Stéphane Dion, Liberal, President of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I will certainly not deny the need for the members of a federation to help one another out. In the coming years, the Government of Canada will increase transfers to the provinces by 7.3% annually. A Conference Board study predicts a growth rate of 5.3% annually for health care expenditures for the provinces. If we are able to do more, we will. There is no doubt, however, that the best way for the federal government to help the provinces is to never go back into deficit.

[Michel Gauthier, Bloc, Roberval, QC]

Mr. Speaker, clearly the federal government is not likely to go back into deficit when it is collecting too much tax money compared to its responsibilities. In spite of its mismanagement, there will always be some surplus somewhere, which can be given as handouts to the provinces. That is the reality.

I wonder if the minister would be kind enough to clearly state that regardless of who is in office in Quebec, be it the PQ or the Liberals, the federal government's answer remains, “Forget it”.

[Stéphane Dion, Liberal, President of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, the federal government's answer is that, in a federation, we have to help one another out. The hon. member can keep asking the same question over and over, but I found his comment—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh.

[Stéphane Dion, Liberal, Saint-Laurent—Cartierville, QC]

I found his comment irresponsible.

President Clinton left a $200 billion surplus. With comments like the one just made by the hon. member, our modest surplus would melt away. The fact is that today, the United States has a deficit of about $500 billion US. We must continue to act responsibly. That is the best way to help all the governments in this federation.

[Rahim Jaffer, Canadian Alliance, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Speaker, at midnight tonight the deadline expires for Canadians to file their income tax returns. Despite its statements to the contrary, after 10 years in office the government has failed to deliver any form of meaningful tax relief. Canadians still pay almost half of every dollar to Liberal boondoggles like the gun registry, sponsorship abuse and GST fraud. This compares to 19¢ for shelter, 14¢ for transportation and 11¢ for food.

Why will the Minister of Finance not immediately reduce personal income taxes and stop punishing hardworking Canadians?

[Bryon Wilfert, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, we thank the hon. member for that news announcement about the taxes this evening. Maybe the member should know while he is filing his taxes that in October 2000 the government introduced a $100 billion tax cut. This is the third year of it.

Again, we are in the business of reducing taxes, not increasing taxes. Maybe the hon. member should check his figures before he sends them in tonight.

[Rahim Jaffer, Canadian Alliance, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the member knows full well that any reduction in taxes has been eaten up by other Liberal tax increases.

The truth is that before the Liberals took power, tax freedom day was June 8. Now it is June 28. Under the leadership of the former finance minister, the Liberals are making Canadians work 20 days more to pay taxes while health care and the military are still starved in this country.

Why will the minister not do the right thing and reduce personal income taxes by cutting the fat in the government and not the hearts out of Canadians' hopes and dreams?

[Bryon Wilfert, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, when it comes to reducing fat, I would remind the member that in February in the budget the minister announced that $1 billion will be saved across the board. I did not hear the member get up and applaud us for that. I did not hear the hon. member stand and thank us for the work we have been doing both on the capital tax reduction and elimination and the $100 billion tax cut.

Again, the government reduces taxes. It pays off the national debt, as we are doing, down to 44.5% from 71.5% five years ago. We eliminated the national deficit. What is the problem over there?

Canadian Heritage

[Christiane Gagnon, Bloc, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Canadian Heritage has suggested that she might soon make an announcement about the Canadian Television Fund, which she cut by $25 million, thereby compromising television production in Canada and Quebec.

Has the minister changed her mind about the fund and is she now prepared to erase the $25 million in cuts that we have been condemning ever since the last budget was brought down?

[Sheila Copps, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance has been approached by many members, including the members for Notre-Dame-de-Grâce and Lac-Saint-Louis, and Quebec's former minister of culture. Clearly, the Minister of Finance is very open to discussion. That is why we should be making an announcement shortly.

[Christiane Gagnon, Bloc, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, since we have asked the minister many times to review her decision about the Canadian Television Fund, could she announce whatever she is going to announce here in the House, rather than using this as a promotional tool in her leadership campaign?