Debates of Nov. 17th, 2004

Citizenship and Immigration

[Judy Sgro, Liberal, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, in case my official opposition critic is not aware, the member for Cumberland--Colchester--Musquodoboit Valley came to me in this House yesterday seeking my intervention. This is one of thousands of requests, including several that I have received in the very short time that I have been in the House.

This is one of thousands of requests I have received this year from members on all sides of the House. I can assure the member that I will look at all cases on humanitarian and compassionate grounds, and I will continue to do so.

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Central Nova, NS]

Mr. Speaker, in the interests of being completely clear about that, the member for Cumberland--Colchester--Musquodoboit Valley was not seeking input on behalf of someone working on his campaign. There is something completely different about that.

The conflict of interest code states clearly:

Public office holders shall not use their position of office to assist private entities or persons where this would result in preferential treatment to any person.

The ethics commissioner has been asked to investigate. Will the minister agree to table that report in the House and will she step down until this investigation is complete?

[Judy Sgro, Liberal, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, maybe we need to do something with the audio on the other side. I clearly said, and I will repeat it in case he did not hear. For the sake of transparency, I personally contacted the ethics commissioner to demonstrate that my actions were beyond reproach. These findings will be clearly shared with the House.

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Central Nova, NS]

Mr. Speaker, let us review this. The ethics commissioner has been asked to investigate. Here is how this allegation of preferential treatment works. The minister has not provided any information yet. This is the democratic deficit at work. Once the opportunity to investigate has been complete, what does the ethics commissioner do? He reports to the minister.

In the interests of transparency and honesty, will the Prime Minister have the minister step aside until the investigation is complete?

[Judy Sgro, Liberal, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, I have already answered the question twice.

Taxation

[Yvan Loubier, Bloc, Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Auditor General has already criticized the fact that the way billions of dollars in the surplus will be used is not subject to any public debate. Yet there is no shortage of priorities: unemployment, housing, economic development and agriculture. The government's attitude is proof of just how irresponsible it is.

Is the government prepared to admit that its choices for use of the surplus should be debated openly here in this House?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, that opportunity happens many times during the year: the debate on the estimates, the debate on the public accounts, the debate on the budget, and the debate in the finance committee of the House of Commons and its prebudget consultations. Indeed, I look forward to the very learned and constructive contributions of all members of Parliament to the shaping of the future surplus.

[Yvan Loubier, Bloc, Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot, QC]

Mr. Speaker, does the minister realize that, while he is congratulating himself on good administration and they are all busy applauding, agriculture in Canada, in Quebec in particular, is in desperate straits?

What does the Minister of Finance, in his demagoguery, have to say to that? What is his answer to the farmers, who are in such desperate straits and are asking for his help, which he refuses to give?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to answer that question as a former minister of agriculture in this House.

We have put on the books of this country a $5.5 billion safety net system to assist farmers in difficult circumstances. We have, over the course of the last year and a half, put in place $2 billion to be of particular assistance in the case of BSE. We are fighting the fight for farmers at the WTO in order to maintain their trade rights and their marketing rights around the world. Indeed, as further requirements arise in agriculture, they will get a very sympathetic ear from this finance minister and this Prime Minister.

Budget Surplus

[Guy Côté, Bloc, Portneuf, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the government has a huge surplus, not only in its budget, but also in its various foundations. It has billions of dollars it could use to help people.

Instead of continuing its bad habit of disguising the surplus, should the government not use it to solve the problems of unemployment, housing, regional development and agriculture, to name but a few?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, indeed we do. I have already mentioned the money that has gone into agriculture, for example.

The honourable gentleman mentioned issues related to the environment. We have in fact invested $2.7 billion to deal with climate change. We have invested another $4 billion to deal with the cleanup of contaminated sites. We have invested in ethanol, wind power and carbon sequestration. We have a very elaborate agenda for dealing with the environment and under the environment minister, it will increase.

[Guy Côté, Bloc, Portneuf, QC]

Mr. Speaker, our concern is that the government has applied all of its surplus to the debt, with no debate whatsoever here in Parliament. There are urgent problems that require choices to be made.

Will the government acknowledge that it is unacceptable for the entire surplus to be applied to the debt without debate, thus refusing to put his huge financial resource at the service of the people to whom it belongs, in fact?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, through the estimates process, the public accounts process, the budget debate in the House, and the work of the finance committee of the House of Commons, there are huge opportunities to debate the fiscal condition of the country and the priorities in the budget. If the opposition does not take advantage of those opportunities, that is not the government's fault.

Citizenship and Immigration

[Helena Guergis, Conservative, Simcoe—Grey, ON]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday I asked the immigration minister about her employees' expenses during the election and she avoided my question, so I will ask her again.

Three of the minister's staff claimed expenses to be in her riding during the election period. One claimed expenses for a month as her ministerial liaison officer during the election. In fact, from May 21 to June 29, staff members claimed more than $11,000 in travel expenses.

Can the minister assure us that her tax funded staff did not work on her campaign at all?

[Judy Sgro, Liberal, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, I can assure the hon. member that all ministers are obligated to fill their duties during elections. All of the expenses are within the appropriate guidelines.

[Helena Guergis, Conservative, Simcoe—Grey, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the minister's director of parliamentary affairs worked in the riding from May 28 to June 28 and charged approximately $1,200 for transportation, over $2,400 for accommodations, and almost $2,300 for meals and incidentals. A total of almost $5,900 was charged to the taxpayers by one staff person.

Can the minister guarantee to the House that her staff did absolutely no political work during the campaign?

[Judy Sgro, Liberal, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, as I indicated earlier, ministers are required to continue to do their work as ministers. I can assure all members of the House that everything was done according to the appropriate guidelines.

[Rahim Jaffer, Conservative, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the immigration minister seems to think that this country operates under two sets of rules: the rule of law for Canadians and an orgy of corruption for her and her Liberal friends.

According to an ATI, the minister cut short her family vacation when she was appointed to cabinet. Instead of paying the cost herself, she stuck the taxpayer for not only her personal expenses but that of her husband's as well.

Why is the taxpayer on the hook for the minister's travel plans?

[Judy Sgro, Liberal, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, I think the hon. member on the other side of the House should get his facts straight.

[Rahim Jaffer, Conservative, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Speaker, no doubt convinced that she would not be in the cabinet, the future-ex-minister of citizenship and immigration decided to take a vacation outside Canada. She was so torn between her public and her private life that what it took to convince her was the reimbursement of travelling expenses for two, in addition to $10.34 for her passport.

Can the minister tell us if she intends to use her passport a great deal in the weeks to come, to get some rest?

[Tony Valeri, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, I fail to understand how this has anything to do with the responsibilities of the minister, as the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. I would suggest to the member opposite that the minister is very focused on doing her job as the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, will continue to do that job, and will do so in a very effective way.

Infrastructure

[Alan Tonks, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of State for Infrastructure and Communities.

On November 12 the minister met with his provincial and territorial counterparts in Toronto. Would the minister please update this House on the outcome of the meeting and the continuing progress of the new deal for cities and communities?

[John Godfrey, Liberal, Minister of State (Infrastructure and Communities)]

Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to report that the meeting was a success. The ministers I met with from every province and territory want to get on with the new deal so that money can start to flow from the gas tax after budget 2005.

We shared a tremendous amount of common ground regarding respect for jurisdictions, flexibility, investments, sustainable infrastructure, transparency, accountability, and the need for predictable funding. This is a continuation of the great new deal for cities and communities.

Finance

[Judy Wasylycia-Leis, NDP, Winnipeg North, MB]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the finance minister.

If he is grumpy that people do not believe him, maybe he should have reconsidered being a Liberal finance minister because people have had enough of Liberals making numbers up as they go along. That is why we in the NDP support an independent parliamentary budget office.

Will he support such an office, yes or no?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I fully support every technique to improve the accuracy and the reliability of forecasts and projections. However, I would point out to the hon. member that the particular model that she refers to, while worthy of consideration, has generated a deficit, on an annual basis, in the United States bigger than the entire combined federal debt of the Government of Canada.