Debates of March 12th, 2004

National Defence

[Jay Hill, Canadian Alliance, Prince George—Peace River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday this government said the theft was, and I quote, “a very sophisticated criminal scheme”, and that is why it went undetected by the Liberals for years.

When it comes to keeping track of tax dollars, it seems that this Prime Minister is so incompetent he makes Inspector Clouseau look like Sherlock Holmes. Why did someone, anyone, not get suspicious when DND employee Paul Champagne was living in a mansion, with a gym, an indoor pool and a tennis court, on billionaires' row? Did anyone think to ask him how he could afford all that on a director's salary?

[David Pratt, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, as I have already indicated, a forensic audit is going on. The RCMP is looking into this matter. There are a lot of details that will be forthcoming, in terms of the actions that are taken subsequently. I fully expect that this matter will end up in the courts. At that point, a lot of information will come forward.

However, I go back to the point that we cannot jump to any sort of conclusions, with respect to the final outcome of this. Let us let the process work.

[Jay Hill, Canadian Alliance, Prince George—Peace River, BC]

Well, thank you, Inspector Clouseau. Paul Champagne was a director--

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh.

[The Speaker]

I think the hon. member meant to address the Chair. I do not see the inspector in the room. I am sure he would want to address his remarks to the Chair. I hope he was not suggesting that I am somehow Inspector Clouseau.

[Jay Hill, Canadian Alliance, Prince George—Peace River, BC]

Thank you, Inspector Speaker.

Paul Champagne was a director at the Department of National Defence, a middle-management position. It is incomprehensible, even I might add unbelievable for an incompetent Liberal government, that any bureaucrat could single-handedly sign off on $160 million of taxpayer money.

Why did no one take the time to investigate whether Paul Champagne had won a lottery or made a killing on the stock market, as he claimed? Was it because there were so many Liberals at the trough that they did not notice Paul Champagne living high on the hog?

[David Pratt, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member may be prepared to jump to all sorts of conclusions here, but there is some fairly serious work being done with respect to this, his joking aside. I would urge the hon. member, and the opposition as a whole, to wait for the results. This thing will be settled.

From the standpoint of the government's position, we feel very confident that the eventual outcome will support our version of the facts.

Public Works and Government Services

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Beauséjour—Petitcodiac, NB]

Mr. Speaker, the superannuation directorate of PWGSC is located in Shediac, New Brunswick. For over 20 years, these dedicated and hard-working public servants have managed public service pension benefits.

In recent weeks, concern about possible privatization, outsourcing or public-private partnerships has worried these great government employees.

What assurances can the minister give us about the future of the superannuation directorate and its future modernization?

[Stephen Owen, Liberal, Minister of Public Works and Government Services]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for the excellent question. I would also like to thank the employees of the superannuation directorate in Shediac for their continued hard work in ensuring that the pension system runs smoothly.

I can tell the hon. member that there are no plans for the privatization or outsourcing of those dedicated employees in Shediac. In fact it is quite the opposite. The superannuation directorate is being confronted with excellent training opportunities as part of the modernization of the public service.

Child Benefits

[Wendy Lill, NDP, Dartmouth, NS]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Social Development. Nova Scotia has the lowest number of subsidized day care spaces in the country. Two non-profit day cares have closed in Halifax and Dartmouth in the last month, leaving 100 families scrambling for child care. The situation in B.C. and Ontario and Quebec is no better.

There is no accountability for the federal dollars that have been transferred to the provinces. In Halifax and Dartmouth, subsidized day cares will see an increase of only $11 a month instead of the $11 a day that they need.

Today's families want to know this. When will this government commit to a national day care program and enforce national standards to help families in need?

[John McCallum, Liberal, Minister of Veterans Affairs]

Mr. Speak, the Government of Nova Scotia, like all provinces and territories, has jurisdiction over how it invests in child care. I understand that Nova Scotia officials are willing to meet with the child care operators to discuss their concerns.

Nova Scotia currently receives $15 million annually for early childhood development and $25 million for early learning in child care. I understand the minister will be speaking soon to her Nova Scotia counterparts on this matter.

Post-Secondary Education

[Peter Stoffer, NDP, Sackville—Musquodoboit Valley—Eastern Shore, NS]

Mr. Speaker, under previous Conservative and now current Liberal governments, post-secondary tuition in this country has more than tripled and students and their families are suffering under an increasing debt load.

My question for the finance minister is quite clear. Will the next budget offer significant relief for our students and their families or will this government continue to pull a “Bertuzzi” on our students?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I had the opportunity to travel across the country in January and I consulted with Canadians about their prebudget expectations. I can tell the hon. gentleman that in every one of those round table sessions, education was indicated as a major concern and priority for Canadians. They also emphasized that the critical issue was access. While I cannot scoop myself, I think I will leave the answer right there.

Sponsorship Program

[Brian Pallister, Canadian Alliance, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister claims he did not know about ad scam. That is the old ignorance defence. Everybody else seemed to know. Treasury Board officials knew, Privy Council officers knew and certainly his Liberal friends on the gravy train knew. His most trusted senior staff, we have learned knew, and they do not act on their own. Perhaps he just did not want to know. The Prime Minister is on the wrong side of common sense here.

When will he realize that the Canadian public is just not buying this?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, everything the Prime Minister has said and done, both as Prime Minister and in his previous capacities, indicates complete honour and probity in public life. Any allegation to the contrary is totally malicious.

[Brian Pallister, Canadian Alliance, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the list of subjects that the Prime Minister claims not to know anything about grows longer by the day. The billion dollar HRDC boondoggle, “I did not know”. The billion dollar gun registry, “Who me?” Now we have the hundred million dollar ad scam scandal and $160 million in DND contracts. It just keeps going.

Billions of dollars have been thrown away under his watch, which begs the question, how can the Prime Minister really expect Canadians to believe that anyone could know so little about so much?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. gentleman reminds me of the adage that one is taught in law school. When one is weak on both the law and the facts, all one can do is pound the table. There is a lot of table pounding going on here.

Again, I refer to the documents to which the people across the floor are referring. The memo from Ms. O'Leary was about more competition, not less competition. The memo with respect to Mr. Littler was to him, not from him. They have inverted all of the evidence completely on its head and have come up with a mismatch.

Justice

[Chuck Cadman, Canadian Alliance, Surrey North, BC]

Mr. Speaker, today's Vancouver Province newspaper states:

We say it's time politicians passed Surrey North MP['s]...bill to make street racing an aggravating factor in sentencing.

The media and the public want Parliament to act on Bill C-338. The House has shown support by sending the bill to the justice committee, but we all know time is running out on this Parliament. It is time to deter this irresponsible criminal behaviour.

Will the minister show some leadership by supporting Bill C-338 so it can become law before an election is called?

[Irwin Cotler, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, the matter has been referred to the committee, as my hon. colleague has mentioned, and that matter is now before the committee for examination.

[Chuck Cadman, Canadian Alliance, Surrey North, BC]

Mr. Speaker, this week in Surrey an 18 year old who has already had his licence suspended twice lost control of his car at 140 kilometres per hour. He smashed a bus shelter, injuring 71 year old Sarjeet Dhillon. Everything points to yet another tragic result of a street race. Spring will bring an increase in racing with nothing more than house arrest for those who injure or kill.

Bill C-338 sends a message to the courts to treat these crimes more seriously. The minister could pass it in a day. Why will he not support it?

[Irwin Cotler, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, because this minister respects the approach to the democratic process and parliamentary review legislation, to which it has been referred.

Airline Industry

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

Mr. Speaker, Air Canada is preparing to cancel the purchase of 15 Bombardier regional jets and go with Embraer instead.

Can the government assure us that the Minister of Industry will intervene with Air Canada so that its choice will produce the maximum possible benefit for Quebec's aeronautics industry?

[Gurbax Malhi, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, Air Canada has indicated that it may change its strategy regarding the purchase of Bombardier regional aircraft. The government recognizes how important the Air Canada purchase is to Bombardier and the Canadian aerospace industry.

We are continuing to review the request for the sales financing support. Any decisions will be made with consideration to the Government of Canada priorities and with the utmost respect for public funds.

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

Mr. Speaker, can the government assure us that it will act quickly and not give Air Canada any excuse to buy elsewhere? Is it going to let Embraer boast that it outsmarted Bombardier even with Air Canada?

[Gurbax Malhi, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, as I mentioned earlier, we are continuing to review the request for the sales financing support. Any decision will be made with consideration to all Government of Canada priorities and with the utmost respect for public funds.