House of Commons Hansard #3 of the 39th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was quebec.

Topics

Resumption of debate on Address in ReplySpeech from the Throne

5:50 p.m.

NDP

Jack Layton NDP Toronto—Danforth, ON

Mr. Speaker, we were, like all members, of course concerned about issues involving the safety of children and the safety of anyone in our society.

I want to draw particular attention of members to the issue of violence against women and children. We saw in this very city, as was raised in discussions with our representative, our member of Parliament for Ottawa Centre, the terrible events that took place where a woman and her children were killed, followed by the suicide of a man.

This has happened far too many times before and governments at all levels have been told what needs to be done. Inquests have been held on the countless acts of violence against women and children, and recommendations have been put in place and have been called for by juries. Yet, right across the land, we see the vast majority of these recommendations never acted upon.

It is time that governments stopped turning their backs on the issue of violence against women and violence against children. It is time that the recommendations of these inquests, particularly ones that point out that there are instances of this kind of violence that are known to the authorities and known to the society. The dangerous conditions are known and yet nonetheless, we see these kinds of consequences.

Our party is committed to addressing the issue of violence against women. Our members are bringing forward initiatives dealing with many different kinds of violence against children and against women.

In my conversation with the Prime Minister concerning the Speech from the Throne, I emphasized that it was very important when dealing with crime involving communities and young people that we must invest in the community to prevent the conditions within which vulnerable communities and individuals, youth at risk, can be drawn in to criminal activity.

I was pleased to see a reference to the importance of that kind of initiative in the Speech from the Throne delivered by Her Excellency yesterday. The question will be whether we see action more than words. Will we see investment, such as the one proposed by the New Democratic Party in the election campaign of $100 million per year for youth at risk initiatives? Will we see those in the budget? That will tell us whether or not the Speech from the Throne and its fine words will actually be transformed into action, action that is desperately needed.

Resumption of debate on Address in ReplySpeech from the Throne

5:55 p.m.

Liberal

Michael Savage Liberal Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS

Mr. Speaker, let me say how nice it is to see you back in the seat in which I have become accustomed to seeing you.

I would like to congratulate the member for Toronto—Danforth on his speech, on his re-election, and on the modest gains he achieved for his party. I am glad those gains did not reach Nova Scotia and specifically Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, in spite of his many visits and best efforts, and the efforts of a very strong New Democratic Party candidate who did serve in the House before.

The member spoke of the achievements of Bill C-48 in last year's budget where the Liberal government and the New Democrats reached agreement on investing in some important priority areas, one of those areas being post-secondary education, specifically the issue of access for Canadians.

In the last seven or eight years we have made huge strides in investing in university infrastructure through research, development and innovation. The challenge now, I would suggest and I would agree with most members of his party, is student access.

Bill C-48 was an important piece of legislation. Unfortunately, when we came forward to implement that $1.5 billion, in fact it was more than $2 billion, for those Canadians who most needed assistance: aboriginal Canadians, low income Canadians, persons with disabilities, the hon. member chose to go to an election.

My colleague speaks of inaction. That was action. I say very sincerely, that was an unparalleled historical investment in students, but forces were joined to have an election. That was his choice. I am not here to debate the past, but we had an opportunity to achieve results.

Now we have a government that believes students can tax cut their way to an education at university, at community college, and maybe through apprenticeship training.

Following yesterday's pamphlet from the throne, which was pretty thin on education, how confident is my hon. colleague that the government will actually improve access, will actually make life better for Canadian students, particularly those in the margins who need assistance and who would have received help through our legislation last year?

Resumption of debate on Address in ReplySpeech from the Throne

5:55 p.m.

NDP

Jack Layton NDP Toronto—Danforth, ON

Mr. Speaker, if the member considers a 50% increase in seats to be a modest gain, I am not quite sure what he would describe as the accomplishment of his party in the last election. One could also note the 30% NDP vote in Nova Scotia which was the highest we had anywhere. If Canadians had proportional representation I might be addressing another member from Dartmouth—Cole Harbour.

However let us recall a parallel between the Speech from the Throne we just heard and another document that was tabled in the House in February of last year known as the federal budget. Neither document, one authored by the hon. member's party and the other one authored by the new government, talked about investing in post-secondary education or training and reducing the cost of education to young people.

Thankfully, teetering on a precipitous collapse, the former government decided to accept the NDP's recommendation to cancel the corporate tax cut that it had preferred to pursue and instead to bring forward $1.5 billion in Bill C-48, the NDP budget bill, precisely to address this situation.

We can try to rewrite history on many different fronts here as the member is attempting to do but I would simply remind him that there were millions of Canadians who decided that there should be a change in government. This had nothing to do with the actions of one party or another.

Second, the money provided for in Bill C-48 was protected and will be going to students, no thanks to the efforts of the Liberal Party.

Resumption of debate on Address in ReplySpeech from the Throne

6 p.m.

Beauport—Limoilou Québec

Conservative

Sylvie Boucher ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister

Mr. Speaker, thank you for the opportunity to participate in the debate on the Speech from the Throne delivered yesterday by Her Excellency the Governor General.

I will be sharing my time with the member for Essex.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank my two daughters, Mélynda and Marie-Catherine, for the support they have shown for me through this adventure, which continues in this House. I thank the Right Hon. Prime Minister for giving me the chance to speak today in this House. Special thanks to all the citizens of Beauport—Limoilou who believed in me and in our government.

I am particularly glad to be able to speak because it gives me an opportunity to address some of the commitments we made for strengthening communities and families, which are, after all, the cornerstones of this country.

As the proud mother of two marvellous teenagers, I am very familiar with the challenges that parents have to meet if they are to raise happy, well-balanced, healthy children who will one day be able to make a special contribution to the communities they live in, and in doing so, strengthen our country.

Among the challenges facing parents, some are financial. Many families have trouble making ends meet, even when the parents are living together and both are working. For those families, there are too many bills. They cannot manage to pay them all. This situation is exacerbated by high income taxes and sales taxes, which cut into paycheques and raise the cost of everything they buy.

That is why I am glad that the speech called for a reduction in the GST, from 7% to 6% and eventually to 5%. That kind of reduction will produce annual savings amounting to hundreds of dollars per family. It will translate into more money for basic needs like food and clothing; more money for school supplies; more money for rent and bills; maybe also a bit more money for starting to save for the children’s post-secondary education.

What is even better is that this reduction will benefit everyone, no matter where they live and regardless of what their situation is, because we all pay GST on nearly all the products we buy. To put it simply, everyone will benefit from this, just like Canada itself.

In many families, both parents have to work in order to make ends meet. Many single parents have to work as well. Parents must be able to find suitable child care. Too often in the past, the government unfortunately did nothing. It came up with theories that called for one-size child care, on the assumption that everyone has exactly the same needs. As a result, only public day care centres received federal funding. The problem is that families are not all the same. They have different needs.

We have to allow parents to choose the option that best suits them. The present government is proposing to do just that by paying parents $1,200 for each child under six. Parents will be able to use this money to pay for the child care that is best for them. This is a real plan that will produce tangible results for parents. It is better than a child care theory. But our plan will go ever further. It commits the country to create more child care spaces, not by asking politicians to transfer money to other politicians, but by offering certain measures to encourage companies and organizations to create more spaces.

Let us turn now to the waiting time guarantees for patients. Families face another difficulty: they need quality health care in a reasonable time frame. This is especially important for young children and older people, who often need more care.

Here too, the government has listened, as can be seen in the promise it made to implement a waiting time guarantee. As a result, when essential medical services cannot be provided in public hospitals, people may seek treatment in a private clinic or public hospital in another region at government expense.

Here too, we are providing Canadians and Quebeckers with the health care that they need and have paid for when they need it.

I would like to turn now to youth at risk. We must recognize that some young people do not always make the right choices, as can be seen in the acts of violence that have occurred recently in our country. We can punish crime more severely by giving the dedicated officers in our criminal justice system the tools they need to protect our communities. This was also in the Speech from the Throne.

We must work as well with our partners to help put young people who have had problems with the law back on the right track. We must attack the root causes of the problem to prevent our young people from finding themselves in difficulty.

These measures can be found in the Speech from the Throne under the promise that the government made to strengthen families and communities.

So these are some of the commitments in the Speech from the Throne that should go a long way toward helping to create strong families and communities, which are, after all, the foundation of all that is best in this country.

They include: a cut in the GST so parents have more money in their pockets to pay for the necessities of life; more choice in child care so parents can find the option that best suits their situation; a medical wait time guarantee so family members can get the treatment they need when they need it; and measures aimed at making our communities safer and helping young people stay out of trouble and get their lives back on track when they do get into trouble.

Taken together, they represent a powerful agenda for change that will strengthen families and communities and ensure that Canadians can continue to enjoy a quality of life that has made us the envy of the world.

It is for those reasons that I support the measures contained in this document.

Yes, that is why I support the measures in this document.

I urge all members to work with the government to ensure that we provide families and communities with the assistance they need to be even stronger.

Resumption of debate on Address in ReplySpeech from the Throne

6:05 p.m.

Liberal

Scott Simms Liberal Bonavista—Gander—Grand Falls—Windsor, NL

Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate the hon. member opposite.

I have a question concerning the issue of our smaller communities. She seems to be quite a strong advocate for our communities and I commend her for that.

In my home province of Newfoundland and Labrador we have a problem in our smaller communities when it comes to sustaining employment. What we need is, yes, more money into post-secondary education but also EI reforms. I am sure this issue is not a stranger to her or her riding. Employment insurance reforms help sustain our smaller communities and we have seen little compassion from the current government for this. It is necessary for small communities that rely so heavily on seasonal employment.

This is not just for the benefit of Newfoundland and Labrador, but also for Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, and—this is important—for Quebec as well.

Could the member tell me about seasonal work in her riding and her province, and how EI reforms are so necessary?

Resumption of debate on Address in ReplySpeech from the Throne

6:10 p.m.

Conservative

Sylvie Boucher Conservative Beauport—Limoilou, QC

Mr. Speaker, as for employment insurance, I am familiar with small communities. I come from an area where many people receive employment benefits.

As we have always said, we the government will work together with all levels of government in order to reach a consensus and to find the best approach, especially with regard to seasonal employment.

I am not very familiar with seasonal employment in my riding, as my riding is urban rather than rural. However, I do know that there are ways of dealing with it. We will work cooperatively with everyone to find the best solution.

Resumption of debate on Address in ReplySpeech from the Throne

6:10 p.m.

NDP

Jean Crowder NDP Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC

Mr. Speaker, I too need to ask a question about employment insurance. In my riding we have approximately 11% unemployment. We are a riding that has been hit hard by the softwood lumber dispute. We have a sawmill that closed a number of years ago, the Youbou sawmill, and we now have the Youbou Timberless Society. A lot of older workers had been displaced.

Earlier the member from the Bloc proposed an amendment to the throne speech. I would like the member to comment specifically on plans that might be in the works around reforms to the employment insurance legislation which might consider what we could do for older workers and for communities that do have transitional issues with their industries.

Resumption of debate on Address in ReplySpeech from the Throne

6:10 p.m.

Conservative

Sylvie Boucher Conservative Beauport—Limoilou, QC

Mr. Speaker, I will repeat what I just said to our colleague. We are trying to find the best solution by working closely with all levels of government. We must work very hard to ensure that employment insurance is the best option for everyone. For 13 years, the party now in opposition did nothing about employment insurance. Thus, we will work with everyone, with all levels of government to find the best elements and to find a solution that works for all Canadians.

Resumption of debate on Address in ReplySpeech from the Throne

6:10 p.m.

Bloc

Yves Lessard Bloc Chambly—Borduas, QC

Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate my hon. colleague from Beauport—Limoilou on her maiden speech in this House. The question that I am going to ask her applies as well to her colleagues. This was the first time she addressed the House and she cannot know everything, I realize that. It was the same with all of us. In short, what I have to say applies to her colleagues as well. When they got themselves elected, especially in Quebec, basically it meant they would be in a position to make decisions.

Now that these people are in a decision-making position, what will they decide about employment insurance? First, if I may, I would like to add a few wrinkles to what I have to say since the answer will be the one that the hon. member gave earlier. At least, I suppose so. I mean to say that we will expect a fuller answer, which may even come at another time from other speakers for the Conservative Party.

To finish my question and getting into the subject, I would just like to remind the Liberal member who asked her a question earlier and was still in power very recently that we had these debates and demands in the House and that he opposed them. Can we say today that it is the beaten carpet phenomenon that we are witnessing? It is only when a government is beaten that it comes clean.

I wanted to have him benefit from this occasion at the same time. Here is another question.

First, during the election campaign, the Conservative Party promised an independent fund, but there was no mention of it in the throne speech.

Second, when we held the debate on repatriating the $48 billion that the Liberals diverted from the employment insurance fund, the Conservatives were with us in the debate while in the opposition.

Third, when we demanded that the employment insurance account be restored in order to help the two-thirds of unemployed people who do not receive any employment insurance benefits—as the NDP leader mentioned earlier—the member’s party participated in that debate as well.

It is important for us to know, now that the Conservative Party is in power, what it will do in this regard.

Resumption of debate on Address in ReplySpeech from the Throne

6:15 p.m.

NDP

The Deputy Speaker NDP Bill Blaikie

I would ask the hon. member to be very brief as the time for questions and comments has already expired.

Resumption of debate on Address in ReplySpeech from the Throne

6:15 p.m.

Conservative

Sylvie Boucher Conservative Beauport—Limoilou, QC

Mr. Speaker, we will work together with everyone. Yes, during the election campaign, we said that we wanted to give a voice to those who have none, especially in Quebec. We will be that voice here in Ottawa. We plan to talk with all levels of government and with all stakeholders. This will enable us to find the best solution for everyone and to give Canadians and Quebeckers an answer that will make them proud of a new Canada.

Resumption of debate on Address in ReplySpeech from the Throne

6:15 p.m.

Conservative

Jeff Watson Conservative Essex, ON

Mr. Speaker, first allow me to congratulate you on your new appointment, a well-deserved and certainly a well-earned position for you. Let me also congratulate my colleague the hon. Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister on her maiden speech. I say a job well done, bravo.

I want to contribute a few thoughts on the throne speech debate today. I am certainly privileged to the people of Essex for returning me once again to this chamber to continue fighting for them. The throne speech speaks to a number of the issues that my constituents were talking about during the last election campaign. I would like to take a few moments to discuss some of the things that ordinary Canadians expect from us and how the throne speech answers their concerns.

To begin with, all of us in the House would have to agree that historically from time to time some of our deliberations are a little bit arcane, somewhat removed from the day to day realities facing our constituents. Drawing on my experience as an auto worker, someone from the shop floor and not from the corporate headquarters, and drawing on literally thousands of conversations I have had with my constituents over the last two years, I will try to convey to members in the House what it is that ordinary Canadians want, what ordinary people in Essex want, and how the Speech from the Throne is going to take us there.

If my constituents were asked what their main concerns are, many of them would reply that they are concerned about making ends meet and making sure their children get the best start in life. For many people who work in Canada's industrial heartland where I live, one of their concerns is whether Canada will remain a country that has good, well-paying industrial jobs. That is exactly what the throne speech seeks to do.

For example, it is no secret that our government does not like high taxes; it never has and it never will. The reason is simple. High taxes kill jobs by hurting our international competitiveness, which makes it hard for companies such as our auto companies, our auto parts suppliers, our machine tool and die and mould shops to create high paying employment in this country.

High taxes also skim off people's pay and pension cheques that are too small to begin with. It skims it right off the top. That is why I welcome the commitment made in the Speech from the Throne to start work right away on reducing the GST from 7% to 6% and eventually down to 5%.

Cutting the GST makes sense. It helps to purchase, for example, Grand Caravans and Pacificas which I used to help build on the line at Chrysler. It helps families afford these types of vehicles and by doing that, it also keeps auto workers in our communities working.

It is estimated that GST relief would save ordinary Canadian families hundreds of dollars a year. This will help Canadians' paycheques go a bit further. It will make it a little easier to make ends meet. Best of all, this will be a tax cut that benefits everyone, not just those lucky people who are in a high enough salary range to get serious help from a reduction in the personal income tax rate. The reality is everyone pays the GST, even those with modest incomes. We all win when the GST is reduced. Everyone, including those living on fixed and modest incomes will see a bit more money in their pockets at the end of the week. That is money for family needs, money for food, housing and utilities. In other words, it is money for the necessities of life.

People I meet back home also tell me they want stronger and safer communities. Seniors I have talked with want to feel secure in their homes. Young women say they want to feel safe walking the streets at night. Parents worry about the safety of their children. They want to enjoy the basic human right to be safe in their own community. Once again, the Speech from the Throne has a great deal to say on this subject and getting tough on crime, particularly violent crime by giving police and the legal system the tools they need to do their jobs. It calls on the government to start tackling the roots of youth crime by working with our partners to help young people in trouble with the law to get back on track and also to encourage young people to make good choices so they do not get in trouble in the first place.

People in my riding have told me that they want to be safe from threats outside the country, such as criminals smuggling guns and drugs into Canada or from terrorists who might try to unleash fear and death in this country. This is particularly important for me as I represent a border community with valuable economic targets, such as the Ambassador Bridge, the busiest border crossing in the world.

The fine people of Essex love all of Canada, not just our particular region, and that is why they want us to protect our nation's sovereignty even in areas such as the high Arctic. All of these elements are contained in the throne speech which calls for both improved border security and a Canada first defence strategy aimed at repairing the damage to our military resulting from 13 years of Liberal neglect.

People have told me that they want us to clean up the mess in Ottawa where in the past political hacks and cronies traded favours and dipped their noses into the patronage trough time and time again. In the past contracts were based on who you knew and not what you knew. This is what Canadians have been saying and what the people of Essex have been saying, and that is what we are going to give them through the introduction of a new federal accountability act.

A federal accountability act will, among other things, toughen rules governing lobbying, give more power to the independent officers of Parliament, such as the Auditor General and the Ethics Commissioner, and provide real protection for whistleblowers.

In other words, Canadians will get the good, clean government that they both expect and deserve. Their taxpayer dollars will be used well and wisely, rather than wasted under the old system where government funds were all too often used by insiders as a sort of political slush fund to advance their party's fortunes. That is a bit of what Canadians have been telling us and that is what we in this government intend to give them.

Of course there will be naysayers who will scoff, probably at least a hundred of them on the other side, at these commitments claiming that we will break our promises just as previous Liberal governments did time and time again. I would reply quite simply that they should just watch us. Our commitments are laid out in black and white in the Speech from the Throne and they are promises we fully intend to keep.

I would urge my colleagues from all parties to put their partisan swords back in their scabbards and instead work with us as Canadians expect them to do on the commitments contained in the throne speech, so that working together we can build a better Canada for ourselves and our children.

Resumption of debate on Address in ReplySpeech from the Throne

6:25 p.m.

Liberal

Keith Martin Liberal Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca, BC

Mr. Speaker, I congratulate you on your new posting. I also congratulate my colleague from the other side on his re-election.

We could not agree more in putting our partisan swords aside and trying to work continually for the benefit of all Canadians. I think that is a common theme that we have all heard today.

Let us talk about some of the facts with respect to the Speech from the Throne and delve into them. Those will be the basis of the questions that I have for the hon. member. My first remark relates to a common theme that we all have and that is how we manage to reduce the tax base and the tax burden on the poor and the working poor.

The government has said very clearly that it feels that the best way of doing that is to reduce the GST. Members from the other side have said that hundreds of dollars will be saved by Canadians. Is that actually the truth?

If the hon. member were to look at the facts he would find that 43% of Canadians make less than $40,000 a year. The savings for those people would be about $190 per year. If that amount were compared to a reduction in the basic personal exemption, with the lowest base going from 16% down to 15%, an increase in the basic personal exemption by $500 and a reduction in the lowest tax bracket from 16% to 15%, we would find in the same group that they would save about $390 per year.

Does my hon. colleague believe that a reduction in the GST by one percentage point will put more money in the hands of the poor and the working poor than an increase in the basic personal exemption of $500, as the Liberals did the last time, and reducing the lowest tax bracket from 16% to 15%?

Resumption of debate on Address in ReplySpeech from the Throne

6:25 p.m.

Conservative

Jeff Watson Conservative Essex, ON

Mr. Speaker, it was interesting to hear the sentiments from members opposite about their willingness to put partisanship aside. I heard the amendment to the Speech from the Throne earlier and it sounds to me like those sentiments are more of the failed direction that Canadians rejected on January 23 and the reason they have asked us to lead the change.

It is clear that the member opposite believes that only the top two-thirds of Canadian income earners deserve a tax break. That is the direction the previous government pursued. We think all Canadians deserve a tax break and that is why we are pursuing a reduction in the GST from 7% to 6% and ultimately down to 5%. That will be felt even more by those who make less income. Every penny, every dime, every dollar, every $10, every $100 makes a difference to somebody who has to pay for food, utilities and all of those things.

If we were to follow the way those members want us to go, those folks would continue to pay more in tax. We do not think that is fair. We think the people at the lowest income levels deserve a tax break too. That is the compassionate thing to do and that is what our GST reduction would achieve. I cannot wait to get the budget out so that we can go from 7% to 6%. I look forward to working with the government to get it down to 5%.

Resumption of debate on Address in ReplySpeech from the Throne

6:25 p.m.

NDP

The Deputy Speaker NDP Bill Blaikie

It being 6:30 p.m., the House stands adjourned until tomorrow at 10 a.m. pursuant to Standing Order 24(1).

(The House adjourned at 6:30 p.m.)