Debates of Dec. 13th, 2006

Furniture Industry

[Guy André, Bloc, Berthier—Maskinongé, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the rising Canadian dollar and strong competition from developing countries have caused major job losses in the furniture industry over the past few years.

For some years now, the Bloc Québécois has been asking the federal government to implement an assistance plan to help the furniture industry adapt.

Will the Minister of Industry release an action plan soon to help this industry face the new reality?

[Maxime Bernier, Conservative, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, it appears my hon. colleague has not read the latest budget we tabled in the House. We reduced taxes and income taxes for all Canadians and for businesses to help them become more competitive.

I am currently in talks with the textile industry.

This government cares about the textile industry and will see what it can do to help in the near future.

Literacy

[Mark Eyking, Liberal, Sydney—Victoria, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservative government's recent cuts to literacy are no way to build a country. In Cape Breton and across Canada the Liberal government invested to tackle low literacy rates, supporting groups like the Adult Learning Association of Cape Breton.

Will the minister of cuts to human resources and social development apologize to the 6,000 adult Nova Scotians currently in literacy programs and reinstate the money she took away?

[Diane Finley, Conservative, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development]

Mr. Speaker, it is the former Liberal government that owes the apologies to Canadians. The Liberals are the ones who paid groups $750 a day to program a website. They are the ones who paid $150,000 to an executive director. They are the ones who paid one group $34,000 to design a logo when we are trying to help adults read letters, not pictures.

Canada Post

[David Tilson, Conservative, Dufferin—Caledon, ON]

Mr. Speaker, rural constituents in my riding have told me that their mail delivery is a mess. Canadians depend upon reliable, timely delivery of their mail regardless of where they live. Rural Canadians are worried about changes to rural mail delivery being undertaken by Canada Post.

Could the minister responsible for Canada Post update the House on rural mail delivery and remailers?

[Lawrence Cannon, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, that is an excellent question from my colleague. Both rural mail delivery and international remailers are very important issues. Canada's new government is issuing a directive today to Canada Post.

First, the government has determined and decided to maintain traditional rural mail delivery for all Canadians from coast to coast. Second, in terms of the international remailers, I will review the span and the scope of the problem, and we will examine options, legislative options--

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The hon. member for Acadie—Bathurst.

Court Challenges Program

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Mr. Speaker, on September 25, the Conservative government announced that it was doing away with the court challenges program, a decision made without debate or consultation and which violates the Official Languages Act.

Members of francophone communities from St. John's to Vancouver came to testify before the Standing Committee on Official Languages. The development of their communities is at stake.

Will the President of the Treasury Board finally listen to French Canadians and reinstate the court challenges program, yes or no?

[John Baird, Conservative, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, it is very important to emphasize the support of this party and of this government for the Official Languages Act. We respect its regulations and it is very important to provide services in each province. It is very important and we will continue to support the official languages.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Mr. Speaker, if we have French schools throughout Canada it is not because of the Liberals but because of court challenges. The Conservative government has eliminated the tools used by francophones in Canada to ensure that there are infrastructures in place permitting them to live in French.

Will the Conservative government reinstate the court challenges program to provide the tools and the infrastructure? Yes or no?

[John Baird, Conservative, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservative government will continue to support and is a strong supporter of the vitality of our linguistic communities in all regions of Canada. We are strong supporters of the Official Languages Act. It is of great importance to all members of this caucus.

Government Response to Petitions

[Tom Lukiwski, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister for Democratic Reform]

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

Senate Appointment Consultations Act

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

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-43, An Act to provide for consultations with electors on their preferences for appointments to the Senate.

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

Canadian Human Rights Act

[Jim Prentice, Conservative, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Federal Interlocutor for Métis and Non-Status Indians]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-44, An Act to amend the Canadian Human Rights Act.

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

Fisheries Act, 2007

[Loyola Hearn, Conservative, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-45, An Act respecting the sustainable development of Canada's seacoast and inland fisheries.

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

Interparliamentary Delegations

[Tom Wappel, Liberal, Scarborough Southwest, ON]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1), I have the honour to present to the House, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian delegation of the Canada-China Legislative Association respecting its participation in the ninth bilateral consultations held in Beijing, Guangzhou, Macau and Hong Kong, from October 7 to 15, 2006.

I encourage the government to review this report of one of our major and important trading partners so that we have an excellent relationship with the People's Republic of China.

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake, MB]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1), I have the honour to present to the House, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian interparliamentary delegation to the Inter-Parliamentary Forum of the Americas, Canadian Section, respecting its participation in the fifth plenary meeting of the Inter-Parliamentary Forum of the Americas held in Bogota, Colombia, from November 19 to 21, 2006.

[Mauril Bélanger, Liberal, Ottawa—Vanier, ON]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1), I have the honour to present to the House, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian parliamentary delegation of the Canada-Africa Parliamentary Association respecting its participation in the election observation mission held in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, from July 28 to August 1, 2006.

Justice and Human Rights

[Art Hanger, Conservative, Calgary Northeast, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the sixth report of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights which deals with the issue of solicitation laws.

I would like to thank the members of the subcommittee, the chairman and all the clerks and analysts for their very hard work on finalizing this report.

Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics

[Tom Wappel, Liberal, Scarborough Southwest, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the third report of the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics.

The committee examined the qualifications and competence of the nominee and agreed that the nomination of Robert Marleau as Information Commissioner of Canada be concurred in. It was unanimous.

Finance

[Massimo Pacetti, Liberal, Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the ninth report of the Standing Committee on Finance entitled “Parliamentary Review of the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency Act: A Value Proposition or a Failed Experiment”.

Pursuant to its mandate under Standing Order 108(2) and Section 89 of the Canada Revenue Agency Act, your committee has undertaken the statutory review in the first five years of the Canada Revenue Agency Act.

In closing, I would just like to thank all the people who made this possible, because we have been working on this for the last two parliamentary sessions. I want to thank the research staff and of course the clerks and the translator for getting the report out in 24 hours.

Citizenship and Immigration

[Norman Doyle, Conservative, St. John's East, NL]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the ninth report of the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration. I want to thank all members of the committee for their cooperation.

Government Operations and Estimates

[Diane Marleau, Liberal, Sudbury, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present the sixth report of the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates.

The committee has considered the matter of implementation of accrual budgeting and appropriations in the federal government. This report was passed unanimously by all parties who worked on it. I want to thank everyone for doing such great work.

International Trade

[Leon Benoit, Conservative, Vegreville—Wainwright, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I have the duty to present, in both official languages, the fifth report of the Standing Committee on International Trade. Pursuant to Standing Order 108(2), your committee considered the subject of the textile and clothing industry in Canada and agreed to present this report to the House.

Procedure and House Affairs

[Gary Goodyear, Conservative, Cambridge, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the twenty-sixth report of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs.

This report concerns the committee's order of reference of Tuesday, November 8, 2006, Bill C-31, An Act to amend the Canada Elections Act and the Public Service Employment Act.

The committee has considered Bill C-31 and has agreed to report it with amendments.