House of Commons Hansard #61 of the 39th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was deal.
The EnvironmentOral Questions
St. John's South—Mount Pearl Newfoundland & Labrador
Conservative
Loyola Hearn ConservativeMinister of Fisheries and Oceans
Mr. Speaker, I fully understand that and we all fully understand that. There is certainly no need at all for the Liberals to buy hot air because they have plenty of it as it is.
Roy Cullen Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
Mr. Speaker, we have heard the Minister of the Environment repeatedly single out the auto sector in Ontario as the bad guys on climate change. The minister has also said that she does not really care what goes on in Quebec.
There is no mention of a cross-Canada approach or what part other sectors or regions will have to play in the fight to reduce greenhouse gases. It is no secret that one of the biggest areas for greenhouse gas emissions are the oil sands.
What will the minister do to ensure that Canada adopts a balanced and fair approach across all regions of the country to address climate change?
The EnvironmentOral Questions
St. John's South—Mount Pearl Newfoundland & Labrador
Conservative
Loyola Hearn ConservativeMinister of Fisheries and Oceans
Mr. Speaker, the hon. members have been complaining all morning about nothing happening in relation to climate change. They know full well that in order to change this country in relation to our environmental structures, after having taken over from the party opposite, it takes time, it takes planning and, most of all, it takes consultation with the stakeholders involved.
The minister has met with several of them and is continuing to meet with them. That is the how we put together a long term plan that is supported by the partners in this country.
Roy Cullen Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
Mr. Speaker, I am glad to hear there are a lot of meetings.
The Minister of the Environment says that Quebec is not a concern to her.
The minister has said that apparently the economy of Ontario is not a concern for her either.
For months the Conservatives promised a plan. Now they admit there is no plan, just an approach. When will the minister approach having a plan that is fair to all regions of the country?
The EnvironmentOral Questions
St. John's South—Mount Pearl Newfoundland & Labrador
Conservative
Loyola Hearn ConservativeMinister of Fisheries and Oceans
Mr. Speaker, the commitments of this government were quite clear. We have lived up to every commitment we have made.
When the time comes, I will say for my hon. colleagues, they will see legislation tabled of which all of them should be very proud, because instead of reacting and spending billions of dollars to get nowhere, we are developing a plan, an approach and an agenda with the stakeholders in this country which will be legitimate, which will be solid and which will deliver results.
Luc Harvey Conservative Louis-Hébert, QC
Mr. Speaker, following the discovery of the cyst nematode on a Quebec farm, the United States has banned imports of potatoes and other edible plants from the whole province. The entire Quebec industry is seriously affected.
Could the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food tell us what is being done to reopen the border and help this important Quebec industry?
Jacques Gourde ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board
Mr. Speaker, this morning I spoke to the Quebec agriculture minister, Mr. Yvon Vallières, to advise him that Canada and the United States had reached an agreement to lift the temporary restrictions that the United States had placed on certain Quebec products.
On January 23, Canadians voted for change, including change for agriculture, and for the betterment of Quebec agriculture. Once again, it is this Conservative government that has obtained concrete results for Quebec farmers.
Charlie Angus NDP Timmins—James Bay, ON
Mr. Speaker, this past week emergency response teams from Ontario were shocked to learn that the Minister of National Defence had axed support for the search and rescue initiative in Ontario. This program is vital for providing our emergency teams the tools they need.
Get this: he axed the funds for Ontario because the submission was a single day late even though the defence department knew that Ontario's Queen's Park had been shut down by a virus on that day.
What a parsimonious, pinheaded, paltry excuse for leadership. Why is this minister playing games with the health and safety of Ontario residents?
Gordon O'Connor ConservativeMinister of National Defence
Mr. Speaker, I will ignore all those personal attacks. I had better watch what I say on my opinion of that member.
There is no cut in search and rescue. Search and rescue carries on in Ontario. What we are talking about is a small fund of $8 million nationally that is allocated each year to provinces that have worthwhile projects that can improve search and rescue.
The issue for Ontario is still open. I am waiting for a meeting with the Ontario officials to resolve this. The member from the party opposite should get his facts straight.
Charlie Angus NDP Timmins—James Bay, ON
Mr. Speaker, far be it from me to expect the minister to take my word for it. I will quote Mr. Julian Fantino, who wrote the minister two days ago. I ask members to listen to what Mr. Fantino says about this program under this minister's watch. He talks about “the lack of flexibility and understanding” and the “conflicting directions”. The fact is that under this program emergency measures is so fed up that it is thinking of “withdrawing” from the program altogether.
I ask the minister, what has happened under his watch? Has the minister simply botched it? Or is he allowing this to go down in Ontario, risking the health and safety of Ontario residents?
Gordon O'Connor ConservativeMinister of National Defence
Mr. Speaker, that member is making outrageous claims. There is no danger with respect to search and rescue. The search and rescue programs are going on efficiently throughout the country. Many citizens have been saved by our search and rescue organizations.
David McGuinty Liberal Ottawa South, ON
Mr. Speaker, after two and a half years of negotiations and due diligence on the O-Train project here in Ottawa, the President of the Treasury Board has improperly summonsed and met with Siemens Corporation to “ask questions”.
The federal government has no contract with Siemens. Eight federal departments have signed off on the deal. Yet the minister demands details of a contract which he is not privy to and further demands of Siemens how best to delay a $654 million project.
Will the minister please now explain this improper intrusion into municipal affairs?
John Baird ConservativePresident of the Treasury Board
Mr. Speaker, I look to Ottawa South for great wisdom. The wisdom from Ottawa South comes from a letter to the editor in today's Ottawa Sun. It states:
Mayor Chiarelli's...commented on how it is weird that the federal government would want to study the LRT document. That's business...Whether it is a personal or business deal, all information has to be disclosed before a cheque is drawn up or refused. The old boys from the old days are not in power now, sir.
That is from a constituent of Ottawa South, Ronald Hughes.
David McGuinty Liberal Ottawa South, ON
Mr. Speaker, the minister has clearly crossed the line. As regional minister for Mike Harris, he fired the Ottawa Hospital board of directors and fired the school board trustees and then stacked the boards with well-known Conservatives who left massive deficits in both places.
A Liberal government ensured that O-Train federal funding be capped and the entire contract be delivered at a fixed price. The contract does not allow for cost overruns and it does not allow for political interference.
Can the minister now reveal what new liabilities he has exposed the federal government to by breaking Treasury Board rules?
John Baird ConservativePresident of the Treasury Board
Mr. Speaker, I always find it interesting to get a lesson on management and economic management from a Liberal named McGuinty. A Liberal named McGuinty is normally a synonym for broken promises.
That member opposite was part of a regime with no accountability. That Liberal member opposite was part of regime that had to repay the taxpayers a million dollars because it was stolen from hard-working taxpayers.
I do not apologize for seeking greater accountability. That is the new regime in town. We will be an accountable government. Maybe the member opposite--
Marcel Proulx Liberal Hull—Aylmer, QC
Mr. Speaker, our sawmills are shutting down on a daily basis, but this government continues to pat itself on the back for its softwood lumber agreement with the United States.
Because of sawmill closures in the upper Gatineau region, lumber from there will soon be sent to Abitibi. In Abitibi, even companies such as Tembec are announcing closures and layoffs. What is the government doing about this?
Is the Forest Industry Competitiveness Strategy put forward by the former government also going to be axed by the president of the Treasury Board?
Peter MacKay ConservativeMinister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
Mr. Speaker, on September 19 the Parliament of Canada overwhelmingly supported the ways and means motion to implement the Canada-U.S. softwood lumber agreement.
Time and time again, we have seen the Minister of Industry consulting broadly across the country, being extremely inclusive and consultative when it came to the softwood lumber industry, bringing the companies aboard, bringing the unions aboard, and speaking broadly about the long term lasting benefits to having this deal finally settled after this was botched for years by the party opposite.
That is what is happening. It is going to be in the best interests of industry. It will save billions of dollars and promote softwood in the United States and around the country.
Marcel Proulx Liberal Hull—Aylmer, QC
Mr. Speaker, this government will not help the people who depend on the forest industry by swinging its chainsaw and slashing indiscriminately. The previous government's strategy involved allocating $1.5 billion to communities that depend heavily on the forest industry, as well as loans and repayable contributions. Even with that $1.5 billion, the government was running a surplus.
When will forestry communities begin to see some of this money? The minister must tell us.
Colin Carrie ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry
Mr. Speaker, the change in the implementation date to November 1 will not delay the return of money to exporters. For those companies who have signed on the EDC mechanism for return of deposits, the schedule to put cash in their hands remains within six to eight weeks of the original implementation date, which is October 1.
For the Liberals to suggest otherwise is irresponsible fearmongering. They should know that the return of these moneys is not affected by the extension.
France Bonsant Bloc Compton—Stanstead, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development stated yesterday that the plan proposed by the Bloc Québécois to assist older workers who are victims of massive layoffs would result in all older workers being taken out of the workforce. The Bloc Québécois is not proposing an early retirement scheme but rather a program to help workers who have difficulty re-entering the workforce in order to bridge the time between the layoffs and retirement.
Given the new reality in the work world, does the Minister agree that such a program has become a necessity?
Diane Finley ConservativeMinister of Human Resources and Social Development
Mr. Speaker, we as a government do value older workers in this country. That is why, unlike those others, we are trying to help them get back to work. We committed to conducting a feasibility study that would look at long term solutions for people affected wherever they are in this country if they are of a certain age.
We do, however, unlike the party opposite, believe that we need to try to take advantage of this tremendous talent pool. That is our primary objective.
France Bonsant Bloc Compton—Stanstead, QC
Mr. Speaker, after leading us to believe that her department was working on an income support program for older workers, the minister has not delivered the goods and has confirmed, with this delay, that the workers' expectations will not be met.
When will the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development realize that what is needed is a program that would apply immediately to all regions and all sectors—particularly the forestry, clothing and textile sectors—and that this is urgent.
Diane Finley ConservativeMinister of Human Resources and Social Development
Mr. Speaker, we are about to launch a feasibility study that will help look at long term solutions. We are also evaluating alternatives for the short term in the meantime.
Todd Russell Liberal Labrador, NL
Mr. Speaker, with the latest program cuts, the minority Conservative government has targeted some of the most disadvantaged people in Labrador. What was the latest casualty in its right-wing ideological war on progress? It was an organization called Partners in Learning that has helped countless adults improve their literacy skills.
Coincidentally, this is the very same organization the Prime Minister praised during his Labrador byelection photo op merely a year ago, but today this organization's meagre $40,000 budget is on the chopping block.
How can the government possibly justify this cut on the same day that it announced a $13.2 billion federal surplus? Will it now reverse these senseless cuts?
