House of Commons Hansard #121 of the 38th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was c-48.

Topics

TaxationOral Question Period

3:05 p.m.

Wascana Saskatchewan

Liberal

Ralph Goodale LiberalMinister of Finance

Mr. Speaker, as I have indicated, the methods chosen by the Government of Canada to offer support to provinces to cover the costs of education follow a different route than the one suggested by the hon. gentleman. However, the Government of Canada tries to be as helpful as it possibly can, while maintaining the integrity of our tax base.

Inquiry relating to Member for Newton--North DeltaRoutine Proceedings

3:05 p.m.

The Speaker

Pursuant to section 28 of the Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons, it is my duty to present to the House the report of the Ethics Commissioner on an inquiry in relation to the hon. member for Newton—North Delta.

Democratic ReformRoutine Proceedings

3:05 p.m.

Hamilton East—Stoney Creek Ontario

Liberal

Tony Valeri LiberalLeader of the Government in the House of Commons

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to table, in both official languages, a copy of the government's first annual report on democratic reform.

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:05 p.m.

Beauséjour New Brunswick

Liberal

Dominic LeBlanc LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to 32 petitions.

Canada Marine ActRoutine Proceedings

3:05 p.m.

Outremont Québec

Liberal

Jean Lapierre LiberalMinister of Transport

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-61, an act to amend the Canada Marine Act and other Acts.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

Committees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:05 p.m.

Liberal

Don Boudria Liberal Glengarry—Prescott—Russell, ON

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present the 44th report of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs concerning a question of privilege relating to mailings sent to various ridings.

Also, the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs presented its 43rd report last Thursday. Since then, the committee has decided, pursuant to Standing Order 109, to request that the government table a response to this report.

I would therefore seek the unanimous consent of the House to table a revised copy of this report requesting that the government table a response, and for this revised copy to be substituted for the report presented last week. The committee agreed to this unanimously yesterday.

Agriculture and Agri-FoodRoutine Proceedings

3:10 p.m.

Liberal

Paul Steckle Liberal Huron—Bruce, ON

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present the sixth report of the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food.

In accordance with its order of reference of Friday, December 10, 2004, your committee has considered Bill C-27, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency Act, and agreed on Tuesday, June 21 to report it with amendments.

Agriculture and Agri-FoodRoutine Proceedings

3:10 p.m.

Liberal

Bernard Patry Liberal Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 14th report of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade on mining in developing countries, entitled “Corporate Social Responsibility.”

Pursuant to Standing Order 109, the committee requests a comprehensive government response to the report.

I also have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 15th report of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade on the “Elements of an Emerging Market Strategy for Canada.”

Pursuant to Standing Order 109, the committee requests a comprehensive government response to the report.

Agriculture and Agri-FoodRoutine Proceedings

3:10 p.m.

The Speaker

The hon. member for Glengarry—Prescott—Russell. I misunderstood what he said and regret my mistake.

Agriculture and Agri-FoodRoutine Proceedings

3:10 p.m.

Liberal

Don Boudria Liberal Glengarry—Prescott—Russell, ON

Mr. Speaker, I would like to seek unanimous consent, as I indicated a while ago, to present the revised copy of the 43rd report that I referred to a moment ago. I would like to substitute that report for the one already tabled in the House.

Agriculture and Agri-FoodRoutine Proceedings

3:10 p.m.

The Speaker

Is there unanimous consent for the proposal of the hon. member for Glengarry--Prescott--Russell?

Agriculture and Agri-FoodRoutine Proceedings

3:10 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

Agriculture and Agri-FoodRoutine Proceedings

3:10 p.m.

The Speaker

The report is therefore substituted.

Electoral Boundaries Readjustment ActRoutine Proceedings

3:10 p.m.

Liberal

Raymond Bonin Liberal Nickel Belt, ON

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-416, An Act to change the name of the electoral district of Nickel Belt.

Mr. Speaker, it is with great honour that I introduce this private member's bill, an act to change the name of the electoral district of Nickel Belt.

This bill will substitute the name Sudbury--Nipissing for the name Nickel Belt, which will geographically reflect the constituents that I represent and will realistically illustrate certain community factors in terms of how the communities wish to be identified.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

Public Service Employment ActRoutine Proceedings

3:10 p.m.

Conservative

Bill Casey Conservative North Nova, NS

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-417, An Act to amend the Public Service Employment Act and the Public Service Employment Act enacted by section 12 of chapter 22 of the Statutes of Canada, 2003 (area of selection).

Mr. Speaker, I want to introduce my private member's bill, which is seconded by the member for Blackstrap. We want to stop the offensive practice of the Government of Canada's only hiring people for Ottawa jobs from people with postal codes in the immediate area of Ottawa. This restricts hundreds of people across the country, everywhere from Truro, Nova Scotia to Coquitlam, B.C. from applying for these jobs, even though they are fully qualified.

It sounds like a third world policy when a country says that the citizens of the country cannot even apply for a job in their own national capital.

If this bill passes, we will resolve that problem once and for all, that practice of discrimination by postal code.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

Highway 30 Completion Bridges ActRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Liberal

Jean Lapierre Liberal Outremont, QC

moved for leave to introduce Bill S-31, an act to authorize the construction and maintenance of a bridge over the St. Lawrence River and a bridge over the Beauharnois Canal for the purpose of completing Highway 30

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Liberal

Bernard Patry Liberal Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36 I have the honour to table a petition signed by people from the island of Montreal on the rights of Palestinians.

PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Conservative

Jason Kenney Conservative Calgary Southeast, AB

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition signed by some 150 residents of Calgary Southeast calling upon Parliament to protect freedom of choice for consumers of non-drug medicinal products such as health foods. They essentially want to ensure that these products are not overly regulated by the government, and that they are free to choose to use these naturopathic remedies and natural health products.

PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Conservative

Bradley Trost Conservative Saskatoon—Humboldt, SK

Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure for me to present a petition on behalf of my constituents, in particular, constituents from the towns of Munster, Middle Lake, St. Benedict and particularly the town of St. Brieux. It appears almost that whole town has signed this petition.

The petitioners are requesting that Parliament consider that marriage is exclusively heterosexual in nature, a truth respected by every major culture throughout all recorded history. Therefore, the petitioners humbly call upon Parliament to pass legislation that will protect the traditional definition of marriage as it has before affirmed.

PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Liberal

Robert Thibault Liberal West Nova, NS

Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure of presenting, in both official languages, a petition signed by over 100 residents of West Nova calling upon all members of Parliament to support Bill C-38, an act respecting civil marriage.

PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Conservative

Leon Benoit Conservative Vegreville—Wainwright, AB

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to present on behalf of the people of Tofield in my constituency a petition regarding the community access program, which provides Internet and computer service for people who otherwise would not have it available. They are calling for that program not to end this year as scheduled.

PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Conservative

Bill Casey Conservative North Nova, NS

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a very substantial petition with 2,667 names on it. The signatures were gathered by the Cumberland County Federation of Agriculture in support of keeping the Nappan Experimental Farm open. The petition is signed by 30 MLAs, including Premier Hamm, many MPs, including the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development, Warden Keith Hunter, and many other concerned people.

It demands that the government keep the Nappan farm open and for once support agriculture in Nova Scotia, keep the beef research and maintain this as a federal operation.

PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:20 p.m.

Liberal

Bryon Wilfert Liberal Richmond Hill, ON

Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure to present a petition to the House from residents in the greater Toronto area who support the spiritually gifted Bryan Farnum on issues such as foreign ownership. They would like a restriction of 20% on oil and gas, also control of Canada's natural water resources. They state that issues such as family values and general health care should be put to a national referendum. They promote peace and obviously are interested in the issue of nuclear disarmament.

PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:20 p.m.

Conservative

Nina Grewal Conservative Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to rise on behalf of the constituents of Fleetwood—Port Kells to present a petition calling upon Parliament to use all possible legislative and administrative measures to preserve and protect the current definition of marriage as being a lifelong union of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others, and to recognize that marriage is the best foundation for families and for the raising of children.

Questions Passed as Orders for ReturnsRoutine Proceedings

3:20 p.m.

Beauséjour New Brunswick

Liberal

Dominic LeBlanc LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons

Mr. Speaker, if Question No. 78 could be made an order for return, the return would be tabled immediately.