House of Commons Hansard #60 of the 38th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was federal.
Yves Lessard Bloc Chambly—Borduas, QC
Mr. Speaker, that is a rather questionable answer. What is at stake here is the establishment of the parental leave system on January 1, 2006. On the eve of the last election campaign, there was supposedly an agreement. And yet things are still dragging on.
Can the minister tell the House how many Quebec ministers it will take before the government's representatives keep their promises?
Peter Adams LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development
Mr. Speaker, as I said, we are very conscious of the fact that these negotiations have reached a very important stage. They have been conducted in good faith. Our offer has been an excellent one. We believe there is a solution that will be good for the Government of Canada and, in particular, good for the parents of the province of Quebec.
Jean Crowder NDP Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Health.
As he will know, his predecessor encouraged experiments with credit card medicine, such as Ralph Klein's credit card hospitals in Alberta and now the $2,000-a-knee operation in Montreal. During the election, the Prime Minister asked people to vote Liberal to stop credit card medicine.
What does the health minister intend to do to stop credit card medicine in Montreal?
Ujjal Dosanjh LiberalMinister of Health
Mr. Speaker, first, we will be providing $41 billion over the next 10 years in additional money to all of the provinces to ensure there is public health care and public delivery.
Second, we shall be enforcing the Canada Health Act evenly right across the country, without exception.
Jean Crowder NDP Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC
That is another non-answer, Mr. Speaker.
When he was a New Democrat, he could make up his mind about privatization. Now he has caught the dithers. I asked a very simple question and want a simple answer.
For two elections the Liberals have pretended to oppose credit card medicine. We have credit card medicine all over the place. Will the minister either finally admit that the Liberals will do nothing to stop credit card medicine or announce what action they will take in Montreal to protect patients' pocketbooks?
Ujjal Dosanjh LiberalMinister of Health
Mr. Speaker, perhaps the hon. member needs a better hearing aid. I did answer the question.
I said that we support public health. We will be supporting it with $41 billion over the next 10 years in additional money. We shall enforce the Canada Health Act right across the country, without exception.
Jeff Watson Conservative Essex, ON
Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Prime Minister embarrassed Canada by saying that the illegal Syrian occupation of Lebanon is necessary “to keep the peace”. This strange statement is actually consistent with the government's track record.
Five years ago, Prime Minister Chrétien said that Syrian troops were welcome in Lebanon. He met Hezbollah leader, Sheik Nasrallah, defended a Syrian backed terrorist organization and the government shovelled $26 million in aid to Syria.
Is it not true that the Prime Minister's statement yesterday actually reflects longstanding Liberal policy to tolerate Syrian occupation in Lebanon?
Anne McLellan LiberalDeputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
Mr. Speaker, it was made absolutely clear yesterday by both the Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs that Canada supports the United Nations resolution 1559. We have supported that resolution since its passage by the UN. That resolution indicates that Syria should withdraw from Lebanon. That is the Canadian government's position. It always has been and it continues to be.
Rahim Jaffer Conservative Edmonton Strathcona, AB
Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Prime Minister embarrassed Canada by saying that Syria's illegal occupation of Lebanon was necessary for keeping the peace. Such bizarre comments are par for the course in the Liberal camp. Five years ago, Jean Chrétien said that the Syrian troops were welcome in Lebanon. He had met with Sheikh Nasrallah from Hezbollah, a terrorist organization.
In his statement yesterday, why did the Prime Minister uphold the Liberal tradition of tolerance toward the Syrian occupation of Lebanon?
Dan McTeague LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs
Mr. Speaker, the House has heard the comments by the member for Edmonton—Strathcona, but it has also heard the comments and the response by the Prime Minister, as well as the Minister of Foreign Affairs, to the questions asked.
It seems that the hon. member does not understand the response, and yet it is simple. We, as a Parliament, as a government, support Resolution 1559. We call for the withdrawal of Syria from Lebanon. Period.
Mark Warawa Conservative Langley, BC
Mr. Speaker, the environment ministry has had eight years to come up with a plan for Kyoto and yet it has done nothing. There is no plan, just empty rhetoric.
Canadian air pollution levels have dramatically increased while the Liberal government does nothing. Four months ago I met with the minister about air pollution levels in the Fraser Valley. He had a chance to stand up against a proposed U.S. polluter 500 metres from the Canadian border but again did nothing.
When will he secure a cross-border agreement on air pollution and when will we see the Kyoto plan?
Stéphane Dion LiberalMinister of the Environment
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member may easily have the Kyoto plan: it is public. It was done in 2002. But we will improve it. We will have an improved plan so compelling that I will be very pleased to hear the reaction of the opposition. I will be very pleased to discuss the Kyoto plan with them. Then we will see how much they do not care about the environment.
The opposition has not been able to come forward with one request in this budget for the environment. The opposition does not give a damn about it, and the last ones who would like to see negotiations with the United States would be the members of that party.
Brian Jean Conservative Athabasca, AB
Mr. Speaker, in English we say dithering is a contagious Liberal minister disease. Yesterday, Mr. John Bennett, a director of the Sierra Club, testified that Canada cannot possibly meet its international legal obligations without giving billions of tax dollars to developing countries to purchase clean air credits under Kyoto.
How can Canadians have any trust in the Liberal government as it takes our taxes and burns them up in the smokestacks in overseas factories that we paid for as Canadian taxpayers? If the biggest proponents of Kyoto do not buy the Liberal snake oil any longer, why should other Canadians?
Stéphane Dion LiberalMinister of the Environment
Mr. Speaker, it would be a terrible mistake if Canada was not doing its best to become the leader of this growing market that exists about trading emissions. All the other countries would be there and we would not be there. Most of our friends will be, and Canada, when we do something abroad, it will be to help the planet. It will be to have a strong showcase for Canadian technology and Canadian services for the environment.
We will do it despite the opposition, which does not understand the link between the environment and the economy. The opposition does not understand that in global warming there is the word “global”.
Michel Guimond Bloc Charlevoix—Montmorency, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of the Environment is trying to sound reassuring, saying that Quebec will not have to assume more than its share in achieving the Kyoto objectives, since a large part of the effort will focus on hydrocarbons and there are not many of those in Quebec.
How can the minister state so categorically that everyone will do their part, when there is no plan on which the targets to be met by major polluters can be based? The minister has no plan or objectives, but swears that everyone will do their part. When will the minister stop indulging in wishful thinking?
Stéphane Dion LiberalMinister of the Environment
Mr. Speaker, the toughened plan to be announced will clearly state that everyone is expected to do their part. I will be able to discuss it with the hon. member at that time. I am sure that he will come, very politely and positively, to the conclusion that this is a plan that Quebeckers and Canadians in general can work with to help the planet face a serious problem where petty politics has no place.
Michel Guimond Bloc Charlevoix—Montmorency, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of the Environment may improvise all he wants and make one reassuring statement after the other, he still cannot deny that his plan for implementing the Kyoto protocol is a virtual plan with no substance.
Will the minister face the facts and admit that, without a plan, his promises are nothing more than hot air?
Stéphane Dion LiberalMinister of the Environment
Mr. Speaker, speaking of air, I can promise that we will do a lot in the area of wind energy. That is for sure. We will be more than ever champions in that area.
I can also tell the hon. member that the rest of the world does not view Canada as hot air. Pressure has been put on us to agree to host in Montreal one of the biggest conferences on climate ever held. We shall see, then, how much other countries rely on Canada, a united Canada. Because, when they are united, Canadians accomplish great things.
Stéphane Bergeron Bloc Verchères—Les Patriotes, QC
Mr. Speaker, last Wednesday, the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development exhibited, not inconsistency, but definite confusion, in stating that a foundation was required in order to transfer the funding for child care to Quebec with no strings attached.
How can the government sanction such a statement from the minister, when we are well aware that there have been transfers of funds in the past, for manpower for instance, without any need of a foundation?
Ralph Goodale LiberalMinister of Finance
Mr. Speaker, I am very proud that in the budget to follow next week as promised we will deal with the issues related to child care. We will do so in a way that helps parents and children across this country. I think the hon. gentleman should wait for next week to see the exact mechanism we choose to deliver.
Stéphane Bergeron Bloc Verchères—Les Patriotes, QC
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Social Development, the one who wanted to answer the previous question. The one who claims to have children's interests at heart.
Is the one who claims to want to avoid bureaucratic wrangling prepared to sign an agreement quickly, like the one signed for health, which would allow the funding to be transferred to Quebec for child care, with no strings attached?
Ken Dryden LiberalMinister of Social Development
Mr. Speaker, the comments that the hon. member made are comments that I did not make. That is all I can say to the hon. member.
Gary Goodyear Conservative Cambridge, ON
Mr. Speaker, there is another dire warning, this time from the Health Council of Canada, that unless this government actually does something to fix the doctor shortage and wait times, we will have a crisis.
It is too late. Recently a 21 year old student died after waiting. Too ill to sit and wait for nine hours to see a doctor, she went home and died.
Last year the health minister said he was making progress. He is confusing process with progress. When can Canadians expect results on accreditation and on the reduction of wait times in this country?
Ujjal Dosanjh LiberalMinister of Health
Mr. Speaker, perhaps the member forgets that we just provided, six months ago, an additional $41 billion over the next 10 years to the provincial jurisdictions and to the territories so that they can deal with all of the issues. Included in that money is money for training doctors and nurses and other health care providers. The opposition is always asking for tax cuts. That is where money needs to go: it needs to go to health care. We have done that.
Loyola Hearn Conservative St. John's South, NL
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Finance. The government has been talking about unloading its 8.5% share in Hibernia for some time. Speculation is that it might be done soon. The Minister of Natural Resources, however, says that shares are “not on the table” and that “there are no plans to sell the shares and the topic hasn't even been discussed”. Is the minister's statement correct or is he still as confused as he was at the Atlantic accord?