Debates of April 5th, 2006

Agriculture

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Lambton—Kent—Middlesex for arranging meetings with producers from his area. I have been down there to meet with them. They gave us a shopping list that we are going right to work on. One is that they need some immediate help and that help is going out the door now and there is more on the way.

They also want a replacement for the CAIS program, a program that was designed by the previous government. It simply does not get the job done and we are going to create separate support programs and disaster relief for farmers.

In the long term, farmers need some assurance that what they will have from this government is the support they need both at home and abroad to ensure they are profitable on their farms and we will do that.

Chief Electoral Officer of Canada

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

I have the honour to lay upon the table the report of the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada on the administration of the Labrador byelection held on May 24, 2005.

This document is deemed permanently referred to the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs.

Canadian Human Rights Tribunal

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

I have the honour to lay upon the table the 2005 Canadian Human Rights Tribunal annual report.

Amendment to Standing Orders

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

Mr. Speaker, there have been consultations and I think you would find unanimous consent to adopt the government motion on the notice paper today regarding amendments to the Standing Orders that will establish new committees of the House of Commons. I move:

That the Standing Orders be amended as follows:

1. By replacing Standing Order 104(2) with the following:

104. (2) The standing committees, which shall consist of twelve Members, and for which the lists of members are to be prepared, except as provided in section (1) of this Standing Order, shall be on:

(a) Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development;

(b) Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics;

(c) Agriculture and Agri-Food;

(d) Canadian Heritage;

(e) Citizenship and Immigration;

(f) Environment and Sustainable Development;

(g) Finance;

(h) Fisheries and Oceans;

(i) Foreign Affairs and International Development;

(j) Government Operations and Estimates;

(k) Health;

(l) Human Resources, Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities;

(m) Industry, Science and Technology;

(n) International Trade;

(o) Justice and Human Rights;

(p) National Defence;

(q) Natural Resources;

(r) Official Languages;

(s) Procedure and House Affairs;

(t) Public Accounts;

(u) Public Safety and National Security;

(v) Status of Women;

(w) Transport, Infrastructure and Communities; and,

(x) Veterans Affairs.

2. By replacing Standing Order 106(2) with the following:

106. (2) At the commencement of every session and, if necessary, during the course of a session, each standing or special committee shall elect a Chair and two Vice-Chairs, of whom the Chair shall be a Member of the government party, the first Vice-Chair shall be a Member of the Official Opposition, and the second Vice-Chair shall be a Member of an opposition party other than the Official Opposition party. In the case of the Standing Committees on Public Accounts, on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics, on Government Operations and Estimates and on the Status of Women, the Chair shall be a Member of the Official Opposition, the first Vice-Chair shall be a Member of the government party and the second Vice-Chair shall be a Member of an opposition party other than the Official Opposition. In the case of the Standing Joint Committee on Scrutiny of Regulations, the Joint-Chair acting on behalf of the House shall be a Member of the Official Opposition, the first Vice-Chair shall be a Member of the government party and the second Vice-Chair shall be a Member of an opposition party other than the Official Opposition.

3. By replacing Standing Order 108(3)(d) and 108(3)(e) with the following:

(d) Human Resources, Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities shall include, among other matters, the proposing, promoting, monitoring and assessing of initiatives aimed at the integration and equality of disabled persons in all sectors of Canadian society;

(e) Justice and Human Rights shall include, among other matters, the review and report on reports of the Canadian Human Rights Commission, which shall be deemed permanently referred to the Committee immediately after they are laid upon the Table;.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

Does the hon. government House leader have unanimous consent to propose the motion on the order paper to the House now?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

(Motion agreed to)

Child Care

[Michael Savage, Liberal, Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS]

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to table a petition from residents of my community who want to voice their concerns about the government plan, or lack of plan, for child care. Among other things, they indicate that 84% of parents with children are both in the workforce, that 70% of women with children under the age of six are employed, that a taxable $100 a month allowance amounts to a child benefit and will not establish new child care spaces, and that child care is an everyday necessity. They call upon the Prime Minister and the government to honour the early learning and child care agreement in principle and commit to fund it for a full five years.

Citizenship and Immigration

[Mario Silva, Liberal, Davenport, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have a petition signed by many people which states that undocumented workers play a vital role in Canada's economy, they are usually employed in highly skilled and professional jobs, and their removal would significantly damage Canada's economy. Therefore, the petitioners call upon Parliament to immediately halt the deportation of undocumented workers and to find a humane and logical solution to their situation.

Appointment of Chair

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

Following my election as Speaker, I have consulted with the leaders of the recognized parties regarding the nomination of the other chair occupants. I am now prepared to propose for the ratification of the House a candidate for the position of Deputy Speaker and Chair of Committees of the Whole House.

Pursuant to Standing Order 7, I propose Mr. Bill Blaikie for the position of Deputy Speaker and Chair of Committees of the Whole.

The motion is deemed moved and seconded. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

(Motion agreed to)

Appointment of Deputy Chair

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

I am now prepared to propose, for the ratification of the House, a candidate for the position of Deputy Chair of Committees of the Whole.

Pursuant to Standing Order 8, I propose Mr. Royal Galipeau for the position of Deputy Chair of Committees of the Whole.

The motion is deemed moved and seconded.

Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

(Motion agreed to)

Appointment of Assistant Deputy Chair

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

I am now prepared to propose for the ratification of the House a candidate for the position of Assistant Deputy Chair of Committees of the Whole.

Pursuant to Standing Order 8, I propose Mr. Andrew Scheer for the position of Assistant Deputy Chair of Committees of the Whole.

The motion is deemed moved and seconded. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

(Motion agreed to)

Congratulations.

National Defence

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

Order, please. The Chair has notice for two applications for emergency debates that I will now deal with. The first is from the hon. member for New Westminster—Coquitlam. She will now wish to address the House.

[Dawn Black, NDP, New Westminster—Coquitlam, BC]

Mr. Speaker, in accordance with Standing Order 52, I seek leave to adjourn the House to discuss the agreement signed during dissolution by the Chief of the Defence Staff and the Afghan military. I have reviewed this document and strongly believe it raises very serious concerns about the issue of transference of detainees and Canadian compliance with Geneva conventions.

Your predecessors have granted emergency debates during consideration of the Speech from the Throne. You may well remember Speaker Fraser granting an emergency debate to discuss the Exxon Valdez oil spill on April 4, 1989. He cited the caution by Speaker Lamoureux, from February 18, 1972, that for a matter to be considered for an emergency, there must not be “the possibility of the matter being brought to the House within a reasonable time by other means”.

The agreement with the Afghan government is an unclassified document, the full contents of which are kept from the public by the government. It has not been mentioned in the throne speech. I therefore believe that this matter meets the test of Standing Order 52(6).

Speaker's Ruling

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The Chair received a letter from the hon. member some time ago now, early last week, and has certainly considered the matter with some care. While I appreciate the fact that this matter is of considerable importance, in the view of the Chair it does not meet the exigencies of the standing order in terms of urgency, and accordingly I am going to decline the hon. member's request at this time.

The Chair has a second request, from the hon. member for Malpeque. I will now hear from him.

Agriculture

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

Mr. Speaker, under Standing Order 52, I am seeking to call for an emergency debate in order to discuss the growing farm crisis across this country. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada itself has confirmed a further decline in farm incomes of 16% this year.

The uncertainty in the farming community is only increased by the government's announced intention of scrapping the CAIS program in spite of provincial government support and by the government's failure to provide the necessary resources for this spring.

The matter of the collapse of farm incomes and the need for federal government action is urgent. Farmers on the Hill today are further evidence of the serious crisis facing the farm community. I am therefore seeking under Standing Order 52 to call for an emergency debate to discuss this farm income crisis and the government's position on it.

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. On this issue that is now before the House, I would suggest to the hon. member that the whole question of agriculture and some of the problems associated with it have certainly been well addressed in question period, and as we know, the whole question of agriculture was addressed in the Speech from the Throne. All hon. members have had the opportunity to raise any matter they want with respect to agriculture and indeed any other issue.

In terms of whether there is adequate time or whether a forum has been presented, I would suggest to hon. members that they use their time during debate on the Speech from the Throne. They can make whatever points they want. I can tell hon. members as well that we can take under consideration and schedule at some time in the future, of course, a take note debate. That can also be a part of it.

We try to accommodate those requests within the government, so I would suggest to hon. members that within the debate today on the Speech from the Throne they can raise these issues. Of course these issues are important. The Minister of Agriculture said that. Everything to do with agriculture is important to all members of the new government. We want to get on and help the farmers of this country.