Debates of Nov. 27th, 2006

The Economy

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member has his facts wrong. When I was finance minister provincially, we had a surplus and we ensured that we had a surplus, just as we do federally.

I do say to the member opposite--

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

Order, please. I am sure the Minister of Finance appreciates all the help with his answer, but he seems to be managing and we have to be able to hear him.

The Minister of Finance has the floor.

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Whitby—Oshawa, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite should look at the document we produced on Thursday and see that it is better to have more information for the people of Canada than less. We published the four private sector forecasters and we set out clearly what they said. In addition, for the first time, we gave the view of the Government of Canada. That is more information, not less.

Natural Resources

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

Mr. Speaker, the Department of Natural Resources must once again prepare for additional cuts to climate change programs, while emails from the Privy Council and Department of Natural Resources are calling on public servants to withdraw all references to the Kyoto protocol and to dismantle the climate change website.

Will the government finally admit that, contrary to what the Prime Minister and the Minister of the Environment are saying about respecting the Kyoto protocol, those decisions speak for themselves and prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the government completely rejects Kyoto?

[Gary Lunn, Conservative, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, that is just utter nonsense. I cannot believe Bloc members are getting down to which websites are referring to what.

If they would go to climatechange.gc.ca, they would see it states, “We appreciate your interest in the important issue of climate change”, and it redirects them to an Environment Canada website or a Natural Resources Canada website.

This is getting beyond pathetic.

After 13 years of inaction by the previous government, when greenhouse gases skyrocketed to 35%, this government is looking to make changes. It will bring in real reductions, help Canadians and make a meaningful difference.

The Environment

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

Mr. Speaker, the United Nations Environment Program chairman stated that the Canadian government's sudden about-face regarding the Kyoto protocol could prevent Quebec and Canadian companies from accessing a carbon credit trading market that is expected to total $100 billion dollars within 10 years.

Does the Prime Minister not realize that his stubborn insistence on pulling back from the Kyoto protocol could seriously harm the Quebec and Canadian economies, as well as marginalize us on the world stage when it comes to the environment?

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

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is absolutely wrong. The government is totally committed to the Kyoto protocol.

The problem is, after 13 years of Liberal inaction, we had a target that would have taken us 47% above the Kyoto target and sent $20 billion out of Canada.

Why would the members of the Bloc support that philosophy? It makes absolutely no sense. Either they do not know what they are talking about or they really do not support environmental issues.

Agriculture and Agri-Food

[Robert Bouchard, Bloc, Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, grain producers from Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean met this morning with the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food in order to show him that the farm income support program is not suitable for Quebec, which the minister acknowledged. Despite the existence of a subsidy program, the money is not getting to the producers in Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean.

Will the minister admit that he has to implement a specific and more flexible program that is better suited to Quebec's producers, in order to allow them to also benefit from the federal subsidies?

[Chuck Strahl, Conservative, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board]

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased that grain prices seem to be on the rebound. This is good news for farmers from coast to coast.

However, federal and provincial ministers, at their last federal-provincial meeting in Calgary two weeks ago, acknowledged that there were gaps in the current BRM funding. We are working with the province of Quebec and the rest of our provincial counterparts to ensure we fill those gaps.

We are meeting with farmers in 25 open meetings this January to ensure that we get it right.

[Robert Bouchard, Bloc, Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister's determination to implement a program coast to coast heavily penalizes grain producers in Quebec. Their situation has nothing to do with that of western Canada. The minister has a duty to also help the grain producers in Quebec.

Does he intend to do so by attending the next UPA conference, which will be held in Quebec City in early December, and making an announcement there?

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind my dear colleague that the Bloc Québécois will never create a program to help producers in Quebec. Currently, over $280 million has been put into Quebec's coffers and, by the end of the year, there will be over $400 million in total.

The Economy

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Wascana, SK]

Mr. Speaker, experts are using words like “flim-flam” and “skulduggery” to describe last week's economic statement.

By using total government net debt as their primary measurement, the Conservatives lump all governments together, federal, provincial, municipal, to obscure $481 billion in accumulated federal deficits, and they are counting the assets of the CPP as if they could be liquidated to pay down those deficits.

Will the minister confirm that federal debt, a generation from now, will still total $436 billion?

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the net debt will be eliminated by 2021. That is exactly the same measure the member for Wascana used last year in his fiscal update. He should be careful about calling himself names.

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Wascana, SK]

Mr. Speaker, the minister has just told a barefaced falsehood. The measure used last year was federal debt.

Last year we also announced $25 billion in personal income tax reductions. In the minister's document, he claims $5.6 billion in personal tax reductions over the next five years. He takes away $25 billion and gives back $5.6 billion. That is 400% worse. Why?

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the member, I am sure, has forgotten, and that must be why. He should look at page 67 of his fiscal update last year to see how he used net debt at that time.

On tax reduction, we will guarantee tax reductions each and every year going forward. About his purported tax reductions, I do not know if that was budget number one, or the budget that was done in the hotel room in Toronto with the NDP, or the wish list of last November.

The member should relax. He is going to hurt himself.

[Jean Lapierre, Liberal, Outremont, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we know how this government has already spoiled our relations with China. In the past few days, the Minister of Finance has put out feelers about wanting to use harsh measures against certain foreign investment.

What legislative measures does he intend to introduce in this House to control certain foreign investment, and what type of investment?

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, we are a trading nation. We are one of the great trading nations of the world and we intend to continue that practice. There are foreign investment reviews as the member opposite knows. There is concern from time to time, were it to happen, that a state controlled enterprise would be interested in acquiring assets in Canada. That is something that we would review in the normal course.

[Jean Lapierre, Liberal, Outremont, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister cannot act on impulse and decide on foreign investment to suit his mood.

Will he ask the House for certain specific power? He does not at this time have the power to use this type of control. Will he ask this House for such power?

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, as I am sure the member opposite knows, the Minister of Industry has that power under the Foreign Investment Review Act to ensure the best interests of Canada and the net interests of Canada. It is important that we protect Canada and we protect Canada's assets in certain circumstances where foreign state controlled interests might be involved.

Health

[Harold Albrecht, Conservative, Kitchener—Conestoga, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister and the Minister of Health made a major announcement on Friday in regard to the fight against cancer in Canada. Pat Kelly, the national program director of the Campaign to Control Cancer, praised this announcement saying that the creation of the Canadian partnership against cancer was a good thing because the federal government had been missing in action in the war on cancer.

Could the Minister of Health share some details on why it was important to take action?

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

Mr. Speaker, on Friday the Prime Minister indicated that there would be $260 million over the next five years to help coordinate the efforts of the cancer community to fight this terrible disease and save hundreds of thousands of Canadian lives over the next 30 years.

Here is what others have said about this particular proposal. Dr. Barbara Whylie, CEO of the Canadian Cancer Society, said, “Canada is taking action against cancer and we're excited”. The Prostate Cancer Research Foundation of Canada, along with more than 55 other leading cancer organizations, applaud the federal government announcement. We are delivering and we are proud of it.

Broadcasting Industry

[Brian Masse, NDP, Windsor West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the CRTC is currently reviewing a proposal by Canadian private broadcasters to create a new viewer tax on television. This is unacceptable. This can slap an additional $7 to every cable bill in this country. Canadians will not get better service, will not get better choice, and will not get better Canadian content. They will just have an extra bill at the end of the day. In fact, they are going to get nothing, zilch.

Will the minister kill this crazy TV tax right now?

[Bev Oda, Conservative, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Status of Women]

Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member knows, the CRTC's deliberations are independent of the government. This minister will be monitoring those proceedings and we will act accordingly.

[Brian Masse, NDP, Windsor West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, when it is a bad idea, it does not have to be monitored, it can be stopped. This TV tax is another Conservative cash grab from ordinary Canadians.

Speaking of letting working people down, when will the government announce a new CRTC chair? We know that it has met and interviewed candidates and I know one of those candidates, Mr. Perrin Beatty, seems like the perfect partisan match. This is the same Perrin Beatty who opposes the federal accountability act and the same Perrin Beatty who did nothing for our public broadcasters as Liberals removed millions from their coffers.

Will the minister admit that Mr. Beatty is going to be the new czar of the Conservative TV tax?