Debates of Nov. 10th, 2006

Federal Accountability Act

[Pat Martin, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the undemocratic and unelected Senate has not just amended the federal accountability act, it has taken it hostage. Yesterday the senators sent us their outrageous ransom demands threatening to kill Bill C-2 unless we gave in. The rudderless Liberal Party is letting the Liberal Senate run amok. Who is going to rein in these rogue senators before this whole project crashes and burns?

Bob Rae has 11 Liberal senators in his pocket. Does he condone the unelected Senate undermining and sabotaging the federal accountability act? The member for Etobicoke—Lakeshore has 10 Liberal senators. Does he support reform or is he trying to defend the status quo of Liberal corruption? The member for Saint-Laurent—Cartierville's Senate supporters say that Bill C-2 is leading to fascism. Mr. Kennedy's supporters tried to delete whole sections of the bill.

Which one of these future Liberal leaders wants to show some leadership and tell the senators to smarten up, know their place and stop sabotaging this important piece of legislation?

No. 2 Construction Battalion

[Raymonde Folco, Liberal, Laval—Les Îles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, today I honour the men and women whose legacy dates back to the First World War and Canada's best kept military secret, the only all black military No. 2 Construction Battalion formed on July 5, 1916. This year celebrates its 90th anniversary.

Men like Joseph Madden and James Aaron Jacobs were among the 605 men who eventually got permission to serve their country. Despite segregation and lack of basic health care, the battalion served with honour and dignity in France.

We honour their memory today by including their names in the roll call of Canadians who have served this country. On behalf of my constituents in Laval—Les Îles, I would like to thank their descendants who served in the second world war.

Former Lieutenant-Colonel Kenneth B. Jacobs, Lieutenant-Colonel Wally Peters accompanied by his daughter, Lieutenant-Colonel Shelley Carey, Mr. Robert Dorsey and Mr. Edwin Sayles.

Veterans

[Richard Nadeau, Bloc, Gatineau, QC]

Mr. Speaker, today we honour all the men and women in uniform who have bravely served, both in times of war and in peace, as well as their families.

On the eve of November 11, let us remember their sacrifices and their achievements. Freedom, democracy, justice, truth and peace are some of the values for which these men and women risked their lives and, all too often, made the ultimate sacrifice.

We can easily understand why they chose to fight for peace and liberty, and we are now in an even better position to appreciate the impact of their actions on today's world.

We owe a tremendous debt to our veterans and the only way we can repay it is by never forgetting and by passing on their stories to future generations.

Foreign Affairs

[Omar Alghabra, Liberal, Mississauga—Erindale, ON]

Mr. Speaker, while it appears that the Prime Minister's biggest international preoccupation is to avoid questions about his neglect of Kyoto, dozens of innocent civilians are dying on a daily basis in various parts of the world and he is not even flinching.

Women and children are dying in Gaza, students are being bombed in Sri Lanka, villages are being destroyed in Darfur, madness is rampant in Iraq and the Prime Minister has done nothing.

Is this the heavy lifting he wants Canada to perform on the international arena? Where are the so-called principles that he proclaims to champion?

Canadians expect their government to promote calm abroad, not to exacerbate division, to facilitate negotiated peaceful resolutions, not to fuel tensions.

Canadians want their government to act for the protection of innocent civilians. I urge the Prime Minister to demonstrate real leadership and to act now.

The Environment

[Luc Harvey, Conservative, Louis-Hébert, QC]

Mr. Speaker, after the Liberals failed to take any action on the environment for 13 years, with full support from the Bloc Québécois, and considering the Bloc's recent speeches on the environment, I have to wonder if the federal Bloc members wish to defend the environment or are simply seeking opportunities to play partisan politics. I question the Bloc's genuine desire to fight climate change.

Can someone explain to me how the leader of the Bloc Québécois proposes to legislate air quality, yet he refuses to support our bill on air quality, which puts some teeth into our environmental policy?

The new Conservative government will be the first to regulate emissions, and not just impose voluntary restrictions, like the Liberals.

We are tackling a major problem. What we do not need are empty promises that simply look good. Rather, we need realistic timelines.

It is unrealistic and illusory to think that shorter timelines will be practical and give results. The new regulations that will take effect in 2010 and the financial penalties imposed on violators are proof of the effectiveness of our commitment.

It is deplorable that the Bloc Québécois is playing partisan politics on an issue that is the most—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

I regret that the hon. member's time has expired.

Presence in Gallery

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

I would like to draw to the attention of hon. members the presence in the gallery of a number of veterans who are celebrating the 90th anniversary of the legacy of the No. 2 Construction Battalion of World War I. We have with us Mr. Robert Dorsey, Lieutenant-Colonel Kenneth Jacobs, Lieutenant-Colonel Wally Peters, Lieutenant-Colonel Shelley Carey and Edwin Sayles.

[Some hon. members]

Hear, hear!

The Environment

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Wascana, SK]

Mr. Speaker, as the Minister of the Environment leaves for Nairobi for a meeting on implementing the Kyoto protocol, she is burdened by her own pattern of deception and disinformation here in Canada.

Obsessed with partisan games and laying blame, she told Canadians that hundreds of millions of dollars had been spent by the previous government to buy international carbon credits.

The minister's officials, the environmental auditor and the news media have all confirmed that it just was not true.

Why did the Conservatives tell such a deliberate, barefaced falsehood?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister for Democratic Reform]

Mr. Speaker, I categorically reject the premise of the hon. member's question. He talks about being burdened. I certainly know what the Liberal Party is burdened with.

That is the record of the Liberals over 12.2 years when they did absolutely nothing on the environmental file. I am sure they are quite embarrassed about their record on that.

I can assure the hon. member that the hon. environment minister will do an outstanding job at home and abroad for Canada and he should celebrate that.

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Wascana, SK]

Mr. Speaker, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister also has his pants on fire. He was caught misleading the House about a memo on access to information. On Challenger aircraft, he was dead wrong. The Conservatives do not disclose the same information as their predecessors. On the agenda for the Helsinki summit, the diplomatic corps exposed his falsehood. However, he never lets the truth get in the way of a good smear.

Why did the parliamentary secretary give false information about the government's time frame on climate change, making it sound 13 years more favourable than it really is?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister for Democratic Reform]

Mr. Speaker, again I reject the premise of the hon. member's question. If he wants to talk about what happened during those 13 years, it was absolutely nothing.

In terms of targets, I would ask the hon. member why the Liberals would sign on to the Kyoto accord when they had no intention whatsoever of meeting those targets. The proof of it is that the greenhouse gas emissions went up every single year under a Liberal administration.

Why would the Liberals do that? Why would they sign on when they had no intention of meeting those targets?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Wascana, SK]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservative pattern of deceit continues. The government is following blindly the advice it got from its now discredited Republican pollster, that if one tells a big enough falsehood long enough and loud enough, one just might get away with it.

However, the Conservatives keep dragging others into their tangled web. They blame the Urban Transit Association for erroneous numbers on transportation emissions but that association contradicts the government. They blame private sector consultants for erroneous numbers on electricity costs but those consultants contradict the government.

Why can the government not just tell the truth?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister for Democratic Reform]

Mr. Speaker, I can assure the hon. member that the only people we blame on the environment file is the Liberal Party of Canada for doing nothing. The Liberals are the only people we blame.

As a matter of fact, when we look at the record, it is only under a Conservative administration that anything gets done on the environment. Whether it was the Canadian Environmental Protection Act or the acid rain treaty, these things get done under Conservative administrations, which is why Canadians welcome the clean air act.

[Raymonde Folco, Liberal, Laval—Les Îles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, there is another broken promise.

The Government of Quebec adopted a plan to fight climate change, a plan praised by everyone. Everyone, except the minority Conservative government.

And here is proof of the Conservatives' lack of respect: they have reneged on the $328 million that would have permitted Quebec to respect the Kyoto protocol.

Is that how they protect the environment?

In Nairobi, with her Quebec colleague, will the minister change her position and guarantee the $328 million to fight climate change?

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, talking about money, all Canadians know that for 13 years the Liberals did nothing and they wasted $1.6 billion.

I would ask that member to stand up right now because we have been waiting a long time for an apology for wasting money and not doing anything on the environment.

[Raymonde Folco, Liberal, Laval—Les Îles, QC]

Quite frankly, Mr. Speaker, this gives me a wonderful opportunity to ask the other side of the House, in power for almost one year, when will you start governing? Furthermore, that is not the first time this minister has broken a promise made to Quebec.

On May 25, the newspaper Le Soleil reported that, after meeting with her provincial counterpart, the Minister of the Environment indicated that she was open to providing money for the plan to fight climate change being prepared by Quebec. The Government of Quebec is still waiting for this money.

Does the minister enjoy continually breaking the promises made to Quebec? Is that the way to govern Canada?

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, I think what the hon. member is having problems with is that this is a government of action. This is the government that tabled the clean air act. We are moving from voluntary to mandatory.

That member was part of a government that did nothing. Will she finally do the right thing and support a government that is a government of action on the environment?

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in an interview yesterday, the Minister of the Environment said that Canada, not Quebec, would be represented in Nairobi. Despite the fact that Quebec is recognized as a leader in environmental issues, it is being relegated to the role of bit player.

Does the government acknowledge that it missed a perfect opportunity to demonstrate the open federalism it promised Quebec on December 19 of last year—a promise that, among other things, was supposed to give Quebec a voice on the world stage?

[Lawrence Cannon, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, this gives me the opportunity to state that this government is an open government. That is why we invited Quebec's environment minister to accompany our Minister of the Environment, so that Quebec's position on this important issue could also be heard.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, they invited the minister, then turned around and muzzled him. That is just great.

Given that the environment is a shared responsibility, that Quebec has a realistic green plan, and that we are leading Canada in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, how can the government justify muzzling Quebec like that?

[Lawrence Cannon, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, clearly, the Government of Quebec's objectives are not the same as the federal government's.

We know that the Government of Quebec has a plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 2% below 1990 levels, but everyone knows the target is 6% below those levels. That said, what really matters here is that both ministers continue to work together harmoniously, and that is what we are doing.

I would invite the Bloc Québécois to reach out and work with us to pass Canada's clean air act.

[Claude DeBellefeuille, Bloc, Beauharnois—Salaberry, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of the Environment recognized some merit in the four-point plan presented yesterday, which provides suggestions to bolster Canada's position in Nairobi. However, the minister refused to identify which of the four points she favours and prevents Quebec from speaking, even though Quebec has some positive things to say.

Does the minister realize that it is not too late to inform us of her objectives for phase one of Kyoto and could she tell us what was of interest to her in yesterday's proposal?

[Lawrence Cannon, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, what is always interesting about these matters is that they always require a bit of background.

If Quebec has come this far in environmental matters, it is thanks to decisions made by the government of Robert Bourassa in 1970, when the supporters of separatism talked about and favoured the use of nuclear power, which, as you know, probably causes the most damage to the environment.

Quebec made some choices and today I am pleased to see that these choices are supported.

[Claude DeBellefeuille, Bloc, Beauharnois—Salaberry, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would ask the minister to speak to the Minister of Natural Resources who, this week, said that nuclear energy is a clean energy. Minister Béchard underscored the fact that the Canadian government is not in a hurry to advise him of its position. Consequently, the minister decided that Quebec would speak for itself in Nairobi.

By refusing to explain her plan to her Quebec counterpart is the minister not admitting that the Canadian position on the Kyoto protocol contradicts Quebec's position?