House of Commons Hansard #64 of the 38th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was million.
Anne McLellan LiberalDeputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
Mr. Speaker, I am not able to speak about individual cases that will be before the Parole Board.
The hon. member knows that statutory release is available in certain circumstances. The Parole Board determines whether the criteria for stat release are met and if so, certain actions follow.
I will point out to the hon. member that I have asked the subcommittee of the justice and human rights committee to take up the whole question of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act and parole.
Guy Lauzon Conservative Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry, ON
Mr. Speaker, this is incredible. When Clinton Suzack was sent to a club fed prison after serving only six years for the murder of a police officer, the government did nothing. Now, Claude Forget will return to society after serving only half of his sentence. He attempted to murder two police officers, and the government did nothing.
If the Liberals want to protect Canadians, why do they not change the Corrections and Conditional Release Act?
Anne McLellan LiberalDeputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
Mr. Speaker, I have asked the subcommittee of the justice committee to look at both the Corrections and Conditional Release Act and the whole question of parole. In fact, I look forward to the subcommittee taking up this issue and making recommendations to the government. But the law exists; statutory release is there. There are criteria that have to be met. The Parole Board will determine whether those criteria have been met.
Alan Tonks Liberal York South—Weston, ON
Mr. Speaker, on Tuesday the House Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development had an opportunity to engage in a green dialogue with the Minister of Public Works and Government Services.
Would the minister share with members of the House his comments regarding this committee appearance, particularly the role his department plays with respect to the greening of government operations?
Scott Brison LiberalMinister of Public Works and Government Services
Mr. Speaker, Public Works and Government Services is at the forefront of the greening of government and yesterday's budget clearly demonstrated that it is a very serious priority for this government.
We have reduced our greenhouse gas emissions from our buildings by 24%. Further, we are establishing an office of green procurement and sustainable development. We are leaders in sustainable building design and construction. We are leading the cleanup of toxic sites across Canada including, and I am proud to say, the Sydney tar ponds projects. At public works, we are helping to build a cleaner, greener Canada.
Judy Wasylycia-Leis NDP Winnipeg North, MB
Mr. Speaker, in the last election the Prime Minister ran around this country urging Canadians to vote Liberal to stop Conservatives. Now that we have a budget, the only people happy are the Conservatives.
Why did the Prime Minister not tell Canadians he was going to spend almost $5 billion on corporate tax cuts and not a penny on education, tuition cuts or housing? Why did he perpetrate this fraud on the Canadian people?
Ralph Goodale LiberalMinister of Finance
Mr. Speaker, there was about $1 billion of investment in yesterday's budget with respect to research and post-secondary education, and the indirect costs that universities have to bear. The government also invests somewhere between $4.5 billion and $5 billion every year in various forms of student assistance and university support, on top of the Canada social transfer which puts about $15 billion per year into the hands of the provinces to help deal with issues related to post-secondary education and other concerns. Education is, and will continue to be, a priority of the government.
Judy Wasylycia-Leis NDP Winnipeg North, MB
Mr. Speaker, let us remind the finance minister: zero for tuition cuts, zero for housing, zero for aboriginal people, and zero for agriculture. Canadian voters who were conned into voting Liberal last election want a refund. They want to take their vote back.
The Prime Minister in the last election said he shares NDP values, but the only person smiling today is Stephen Harper. Why?
Ralph Goodale LiberalMinister of Finance
Mr. Speaker, that is most unparliamentary to comment on the demeanour and the countenance of the Leader of the Opposition.
I would rather refer to another issue that the NDP is very fond of and that is the environment. I note the news releases issued by a variety of organizations. The Canadian Wind Energy Association supports the budget. The Canadian Urban Transit Association supports the budget. The Canada Green Building Council supports the budget. The Forest Products Association of Canada supports the budget.
This budget is so green, it should have been announced on St. Patrick's Day, so that clean air and renewable energy will--
The BudgetOral Question Period
The Speaker
Order. I would remind hon. members once again not to use the names of other members in their questions or in their answers. It seems to be spreading like a disease. The hon. member for St. John's East now has the floor.
Norman Doyle Conservative St. John's North, NL
Mr. Speaker, flight training at Goose Bay has continually declined under the watch of this government. The government has talked a lot about Goose Bay, but it has not delivered.
Byelection rhetoric is starting to heat up, but the people of Goose Bay want to know if they have a future at 5 Wing Goose Bay. Will the people of Goose Bay have to live on by election rhetoric or is there actually a plan to ensure the future of their region?
Bill Graham LiberalMinister of National Defence
Mr. Speaker, I was here last week when the representatives from the community came and met with the Prime Minister and representatives of our government.
We are working closely with that community. I can assure the hon. member that the Department of National Defence is continuing its activities there. We will continue the helicopter program there as I announced when I was there. We will work with the community to ensure that we get the best use out of that airfield.
When I was at NATO, I spoke to every single minister I could speak to about ensuring that there were NATO members coming and using Goose Bay as an appropriate place to train. We will work with the community. We will work with our allies. We will make Goose Bay a success and it will not be a political football the way it has been used by the opposition.
Myron Thompson Conservative Wild Rose, AB
Mr. Speaker, Donald Armstrong sexually assaulted and murdered Linda Bright in 1980 leaving her dead body on the back road. Donald Armstrong was convicted of first degree murder and remains incarcerated. Armstrong also has several convictions for vicious attacks on other women, including attempted murder but no convictions for sexual assault. He is eligible for parole in May of this year.
Will the minister explain why his government does not believe Donald Armstrong should be in the DNA databank?
Irwin Cotler LiberalMinister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada
Mr. Speaker, I cannot comment on the particulars of that case. The whole issue with respect to policy regarding databanks is right now before the justice and human rights committee where the hon. member sits. The committee members can address that issue as a matter of principle and policy.
Ed Komarnicki Conservative Souris—Moose Mountain, SK
Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of National Revenue.
Post offices in my riding have informed me that Canada Post has 18 rural post offices under consideration for closure. Yesterday the minister said that there is no plan to close rural post offices. Yet, in a letter, Canada Post vice-president for field operations said that continuing to support small rural post offices are a heavy burden on the bottom line.
Will the minister categorically tell the residents of Souris--Moose Mountain that small rural post offices in their constituency are not under consideration for closure and will not be closed?
Reg Alcock LiberalPresident of the Treasury Board and Minister responsible for the Canadian Wheat Board
Mr. Speaker, I will simply repeat what the minister said yesterday. There is no policy regarding the closure of post offices.
Brian Pallister Conservative Portage—Lisgar, MB
Mr. Speaker, that kind of dismissive city boy response does an injustice to the rural Canadians who have a serious concern about rural post office closures.
Yesterday the minister said that there is no plan to close post offices, but his incompetence is showing as it often does. Post offices are being closed. They are being closed in the Maritimes, they are being closed in British Columbia, they are being closed in Saskatchewan, and we learned today six more have closed in Alberta. The government says there is a moratorium on post office closures. Canada Post says it is going to close post offices.
Who is telling the truth or does the government even know?
Reg Alcock LiberalPresident of the Treasury Board and Minister responsible for the Canadian Wheat Board
Mr. Speaker, in the case of the post office that was closed in British Columbia, there was no one in the town who wished to operate it. It is a town with 27 homes in it and an operator could not be found for it. Therefore, it was not a lack of willingness on the part of Canada Post to keep it open, there was no one to run it.
Christian Simard Bloc Beauport, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance may boast all he wants, but he has to recognize that there is nothing for social housing in his budget. In the last election, the Liberals promised up to $1.5 billion for housing.
Given that there is nothing in the budget, will the minister responsible for housing admit that he reneged on his word after recently promising, on two occasions, to invest in social housing?
Ralph Goodale LiberalMinister of Finance
Mr. Speaker, there is no more aggressive advocate for social housing and affordable housing in Canada than the current minister responsible for CMHC.
There is $1 billion at the present moment within the fiscal framework that we are working on very closely with the provinces to distribute it across the country for new affordable housing. We have $2 billion a year that we are putting into the ongoing sustaining of social housing. We have committed that in the future we will invest an additional $1.5 billion in housing issues in the country, as soon as we get the initial--
Christian Simard Bloc Beauport, QC
Mr. Speaker, there is nothing in this budget for social housing, not one red cent. The CMHC is sitting on $3 billion in accumulated surplus, while, in Quebec alone, 200,000 households spend more than half of their income on housing.
How could the Minister of Finance not include anything for housing in his budget, when it is well known that the Liberal Party is the reason these households are in such a bind?
Joe Fontana LiberalMinister of Labour and Housing
Mr. Speaker, as the Minister of Finance has indicated, no other government in the history of this country has done more for housing than this one: $2 billion a year to support 600,000; $1 billion in affordable housing; $1 billion to help the homeless; $500 million to help renovate the homes.
We will continue to do more in this country and in the province of Quebec as we move to a housing consultation and as we spend the $800 million that we presently have and want to spend.
Rob Merrifield Conservative Yellowhead, AB
Mr. Speaker, last week a declaration to ban all forms of human cloning was passed at the United Nations. How did Canada vote? It voted against the motion.
Two years ago the former health minister assured the House that Canada would support a comprehensive ban. Even in October the new health minister said, “We are committed to opposing all forms of human cloning”.
Why has the government gone back on its word?