Debates of Nov. 22nd, 2006

Health

[Ruby Dhalla, Liberal, Brampton—Springdale, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservative government has dropped the ball on wait times. Yesterday the minister admitted that he had no details on his pilot project for aboriginal Canadians. The fact is he only has band-aid solutions and no concrete plans to reduce wait times. The minister has given nothing but lip service, and has failed to fight for health care on behalf of all Canadians at the cabinet table.

How does he expect to reduce wait times for all Canadians without any money and without a real plan?

[Tony Clement, Conservative, Minister of Health and Minister for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is quite mistaken. The announcement that I made earlier this week to help some of the most vulnerable Canadians in our society is very specific. It has the support of the first nations. They are excited about being the first place in our country to have a wait times guarantee, thereby fulfilling our promise to Canadians that we would move forward with this.

This is being funded because under our 2006 budget funding for health care has gone up by $1.1 billion to the provinces. It has gone up for Health Canada. It is another promise kept.

[Ruby Dhalla, Liberal, Brampton—Springdale, ON]

Mr. Speaker, let me remind the member that as Liberals we signed the health care accord. We had a 10 year plan to strengthen health care in Canada and we invested $41 billion; the Conservatives--

[Some hon. members]

Nothing.

[Ruby Dhalla, Liberal, Brampton—Springdale, ON]

The Liberal 2005 budget increased transfer payments by $32 billion; the Conservatives--

[Some hon. members]

Nothing.

[Ruby Dhalla, Liberal, Brampton—Springdale, ON]

The Liberals invested $5.5 billion to reduce wait times; the Conservatives--

[Some hon. members]

Nothing.

[Ruby Dhalla, Liberal, Brampton—Springdale, ON]

When will the Conservatives show some leadership, take some action and get to work on Canada's health care?

[Tony Clement, Conservative, Minister of Health and Minister for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario]

Mr. Speaker, at the risk of being part of some sort of theatrical element, Canadians know that under this government they can expect more and they get more. When it comes to health care funding, Canadians are getting--

[Some hon. members]

More.

[Tony Clement, Conservative, Parry Sound—Muskoka, ON]

When it comes to getting the job done when it comes to reducing wait times, we are doing--

[Some hon. members]

More.

[Tony Clement, Conservative, Parry Sound—Muskoka, ON]

When it comes to keeping our promises and making sure we move ahead on health care, we are doing--

[Some hon. members]

More.

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

Perhaps we could have nothing more of that. Let us have a little order in the House.

We will now have a question with some order, please. The hon. member for Thunder Bay—Rainy River.

Income Trusts

[Ken Boshcoff, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Rainy River, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the government's income trust double-cross has cost Canadians over $25 billion. However, do not tell that to Conservative Senate leader Marjory LeBreton. She actually said yesterday, “I have not seen any evidence that people have individually lost large sums of money”. Apparently, the outcry of Canadians who lost their shirts has not been heard.

Could the Minister of Finance tell the House how many emails his office has received just on the income trust disaster alone?

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I assume the member opposite is referring to his party's handling of this issue last year in terms of a disaster, of emails, of RCMP investigations, of half measures, of market fluctuations. We dealt with the issue clearly, decisively and without public disclosure, which is the way it had to be dealt with.

There have been a lot of concerns expressed. John Manley, for example, who used to be the minister of finance, acknowledges that this was the right thing to do.

[Ken Boshcoff, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Rainy River, ON]

Mr. Speaker, there must be something wrong with the sound system here. I asked a very straightforward question. Conservatives promised never to tax income trusts. Canadians invested based on that promise. The government broke the promise. How can a cabinet member be so unsympathetic and so callous?

The finance minister has received tens of thousands of emails from Canadians telling him the income trust double-cross was wrong. Will he at least forward those tens of thousands of emails to Senator LeBreton?

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I have received lots of emails, as the department has. I have meetings planned with people. I have discussed the issue of income trusts with people.

I welcome the member opposite to think about the best interests of Canada: to think about who is going to pay the taxes next year and the year after that; to think about tax fairness; to think about the duty of corporations to pay their fair share of taxes in Canada; and to think about Canada's place in the world and our economy being competitive with other economies in the world. This is the Canadian duty, the duty of a Canadian government that dealt with the issue fairly--

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The hon. member for Saint-Bruno—Saint-Hubert.

Wage Earner Protection Program Act

[Carole Lavallée, Bloc, Saint-Bruno—Saint-Hubert, QC]

Mr. Speaker, even though Bill C-55, which seeks to protect employees' wages in the event a company goes bankrupt, received royal assent last year, it still has not taken effect. The Minister of Labour tells us that it is coming. In June, the minister said, “It is coming”. In committee last month, he again said, “It is coming”. And last weekend, the Minister of Labour even boasted in his riding that “it is coming”.

Could the Minister of Labour be more specific and just give us a date, just a date, and meet that date?

[Jean-Pierre Blackburn, Conservative, Minister of Labour and Minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec]

Mr. Speaker, it is coming.

Manufacturing Industry

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

Mr. Speaker, the Gildan clothing company in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield has permanently laid off 155 workers. Sixteen of those workers are over 55. They have nothing to look forward to, and the recently announced retraining program is not going to be of any great assistance to them.

Does the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development not realize that implementing a program for older worker adjustment would have been, once again, by far the best, most effective way to financially support these 16 older workers?

[Maxime Bernier, Conservative, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to tell this House that the program we have established for older workers is one that we created after consulting the provinces. It is a program that the Bloc Québécois could have never delivered, because it is destined to remain an opposition party forever. We have a program that is adapted to the workers. We are helping them rise to the challenges of the future.