Debates of June 9th, 2006

Stephen Leacock Association

[Bruce Stanton, Conservative, Simcoe North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the great Canadian author Stephen Leacock once wrote:

A man will freely confess that he has no ear for music, or no taste for fiction, or even no interest in religion. But I have yet to see the man who announces that he has no sense of humour.

Since 1946, the Stephen Leacock Association of the city of Orillia in my riding has awarded the Leacock Medal for Humour to the Canadian citizen who authors the best book of humour in the current year. Winners of this medal include such literary icons as Robertson Davies, W.O. Mitchell, Farley Mowat and Mordecai Richler.

This year the associates have awarded the medal and its $10,000 cash award, courtesy of the TD Bank Financial Group, to British Columbia's Arthur Black for his book Pitch Black.

I congratulate Mr. Black for winning this award for the third time, and I commend the Stephen Leacock Association for its continuing promotion of humorous Canadian literature.

Rose Drummond

[Pauline Picard, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to pay tribute today to a family business in my riding that is celebrating its 10-year anniversary. Rose Drummond employs some 50 people and produces approximately 3 million roses a year.

This family rose business is very well known. It is one of the biggest businesses in Drummondville and is the largest rose producer in eastern Canada.

The owners of the business, Jean-Denis Lampron and Diane Lampron, are very humanitarian and extremely generous. In addition to working with Development and Peace for many years to help people in developing countries, they are dedicated to several causes such as the Breast Cancer Foundation and the Fondation du Centre hospitalier universitaire de Sherbrooke.

Congratulations to Mr. and Mrs. Lampron and the entire Rose Drummond team for 10 great years. So much passion and success deserves to be celebrated.

CUPE Ontario

[Dave Van Kesteren, Conservative, Chatham-Kent—Essex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I condemn the recent decision by CUPE Ontario to boycott the state of Israel. In abruptly deciding to speak for its hundreds of thousands of members, on the Jewish Sabbath no less, CUPE Ontario has decided to take a one-sided, biased and wrong view on the Middle East conflict.

Israel is a modern, progressive society, with freedom for men and women, and tolerance for religions and all cultures. It is the Israeli people and the Israeli government that have been actively pursuing peace in the face of constant terror. Now they are forced to do so with the terror group Hamas that wishes to end Israel's existence.

The hypocrisy of CUPE Ontario is stunning, condemning Israel while in effect endorsing terrorism and terrorists who seek to restrict all freedom-loving people through violence.

I stand with Israel, and ask CUPE Ontario to rethink its decision and do the same.

Development Assistance

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

Mr. Speaker, we are fortunate to live in Canada, a wealthy country. Most of the world's population is not so lucky and much of the world suffers from extreme poverty. Well over one billion people live in absolute poverty. Half of the world lives on less than $2 a day and 50,000 people a day die from poverty-related causes.

It is hard not to believe that we value the lives of the comfortable more than we value the lives of the poor when we allow this to continue.

I have spoken in the House before about my support for reaching the millennium development goals of 0.7% of GNI for international development. I believe it is a reasonable target for a rich country.

We can take a positive step by supporting Bill C-293 introduced by the member for Scarborough—Guildwood on Wednesday, which would ensure that Canadian development assistance is focused on poverty reduction, and send it to committee as soon as possible.

Canada has increased its development assistance, but we need to recognize the daily crisis of poverty in much of the world and our responsibility as a wealthy nation to work toward its eradication.

West Coast Express

[James Moore, Conservative, Port Moody—Westwood—Port Coquitlam, BC]

Mr. Speaker, West Coast Express is a popular and efficient commuter rail service linking Mission, Port Haney, Maple Ridge, Pitt Meadows, Port Coquitlam, Coquitlam and Port Moody with downtown Vancouver.

Over 18 million riders have used West Coast Express since its opening. My constituents want it supported and expanded.

I have listened to my constituents, and our government is taking action. In our budget we fulfilled our campaign commitment to offer a tax credit for the purchase of monthly public transit passes. This new measure, effective on July 1, will mean real savings for West Coast Express riders.

As an example, riders purchasing the monthly Port Moodie-Waterfront pass will save $283.65 a year and seniors and students will save $157.77 a year. On top of this tax credit, we have also tabled legislation, Bill C-11, that will allow for the expansion and growth of West Coast Express in the future.

Tri-City residents have told me that they like and support West Coast Express, and I and the Conservative government have listened and are delivering for the Tri-Cities.

The Environment

[David Christopherson, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, how would one like to be told that one's children cannot go out for nine days to play or that one's elderly parents have to stay inside and cannot leave their home.

That was the situation in Hamilton last year where we had nine days of severe smog. This year we have already had three smog days and summer has barely begun. Hamilton is not alone. Cities like Halifax, Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver are all suffering smog days too.

Studies show that more 5,000 premature deaths across Canada can be attributed to air pollution each year, but the Conservatives are ignoring this environmental crisis, refuting Canada's Kyoto obligations and pretending that global warming is not a global threat.

We need to encourage use of public transit and establish a clean car strategy. We need to find better energy sources so we can close operations like the Nanticoke coal burning plant that is responsible for so much of Hamilton's smog. We need to reinstate the popular and effective EnerGuide program that the Conservative government killed.

The people of Hamilton call upon the government to act now so that once again it is safe for our kids to go out and play.

City of Toronto French Committee

[Mario Silva, Liberal, Davenport, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in 1981, the City of Toronto French Committee was created in order to meet the needs of Toronto's Francophone population.

Over the course of my nine years on the Toronto City Council, I had the honour of sitting on that committee.

I am proud to have contributed to making the Toronto French Committee a valuable, active organization dedicated to improving the quality of French-language services in Toronto.

As a committee member, I fought to obtain more services in French, more funding and bilingual signage, as well as more publications provided in French.

I am proud of my work with the French Committee. I ask all members to join me in paying tribute to its 25th anniversary. I wish the committee every success.

Huntingdon Textile Workers

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

Mr. Speaker, on May 18, hundreds of textile workers from Huntingdon came to Parliament Hill to voice their distress.

After being victims of international treaties that led to massive plant closures in their industry, these workers saw the federal government terminate the Program for Older Worker Adjustment without replacing it.

Most of these workers spent their whole lives working in factories that are now closed. A few years away from what they hoped would be a happy retirement, many are left with nothing. After contributing to our collective wealth for their whole lives, these people feel betrayed.

Many of them are watching the time slip away, waiting for the day they have to go on welfare. That day is fast approaching.

The Bloc Québécois hears this cry from the heart and urges the government to immediately put in place a support program for workers who are victims of mass layoffs.

Zimbabwe

[Keith Martin, Liberal, Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca, BC]

Mr. Speaker, today we once again call upon the Government of Canada to indict Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe for crimes against humanity. Why?

Mr. Mugabe is killing his people in slow motion. He has forced children into youth gangs and has had his thugs rape, torture and murder innocent civilians. He has given farms to his cronies, including his wife. He has crushed basic social services, causing inflation to run at over 1,000% per month. A staggering 3,000 people a week are dying of AIDS and 25% of the population is HIV positive. He has even used food as a weapon, withholding food from the poorest of the poor and has bulldozed 700,000 of the poorest homes in the country. He has even compared himself to Hitler.

Crimes against humanity are occurring in Zimbabwe. I call upon the Prime Minister to seize the day, use our court system, use our justice system and indict Robert Mugabe for crimes against humanity.

The Environment

[Christian Paradis, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to inform the House today about Canada's newest coal-fired steam turbine generator located in Wetaskiwin, Alberta.

The Genesee 3 power plant cuts greenhouse gas emissions of carbon dioxide by up to 52% compared to older coal plants through the use of new technology. Genesee 3's environmental performance matches power stations that burn natural gas, but does so for a fraction of the price and shows that coal, with the right technology, can be clean.

Not only does this Alberta plant reduce greenhouse gases, but, like the Conservative plan to increase the ethanol content of gasoline, it helps to keep clean the air that we breathe, keeping harmful pollutants out of the atmosphere.

The Genesee 3 power plant is an example of a technologically-based plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions without any adverse effect on the economy. This technology is ready to be used as part of a made in Canada plan to keep our air clean.

Water Safety Week

[Mario Laframboise, Bloc, Argenteuil—Papineau—Mirabel, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we cannot stress enough the need to be careful in, on or near water.

We would do well to remember some facts about drowning. It is the third most common cause of accidental death in Canada among people under 60; 83% of drowning victims are men; 55% of victims are between 18 and 49 years of age; 62% of victims drown while taking part in recreational activities. The most common such activities are swimming, fishing and boating. More than half of drownings in Quebec and Canada occur between May and August. Alcohol is a factor in 38% of boating-related drowning deaths.

The Bloc Québécois wishes Canadians a happy Water Safety Week from June 3 to 10, 2006 and a good summer. Be very careful.

Canada--U.S. Relations

[Bill Graham, Liberal, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, Congressman Hostettler, the chair of the committee studying the passport law, yesterday described Toronto as a breeding ground for terrorists, referring to south Toronto as the type of “enclave” that breeds radicalism.

We have learned how, if unchallenged, this type of misinformation can spread in the United States. For years after 9/11, congressmen and newspapers were saying that the perpetrators came from Canada.

What is the government doing to stand up to these unjustified and abusive attacks on Canada, making sure that the American media and the politicians understand and speak the truth?

[Jason Kenney, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I join with the Leader of the Opposition in repudiating those completely uninformed and ignorant remarks that we heard yesterday from one misinformed person in Washington. I am sorry to see that the Leader of the Opposition is amplifying those totally misinformed remarks.

The administration in the United States and the majority of the American media have congratulated the government and security services for protecting Canadians and for protecting Canadian and continental security with the successful arrests of earlier this week. We will continue to stand for strong Canadian security.

[Bill Graham, Liberal, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, that is just not good enough. Our very economy is at stake.

When Mr. McKenna was our ambassador, he led a vigorous campaign to thwart this type of misinformation.

When the current Prime Minister was in opposition, he went to the United States to criticize his own country on Fox News.

Why is the Prime Minister not in the United States today to defend our country or at least to do what is necessary to safeguard our reputation and our economy?

[Jason Kenney, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the government has made considerable effort to point out to the United States the success of security forces, such as the RCMP, in the security operation that took place this week.

Our ambassador, Mr. Wilson, is working extremely hard in Washington to make it very clear that Canada is a partner in national and continental security. The ambassador was here yesterday with a member of the American Congress in order to demonstrate the security of Canada.

[Bill Graham, Liberal, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, it is my privilege to represent the riding of Toronto Centre, so I am in the very enclave that is the hotbed of these “radical” discussions.

I am proud of the fact that we have a large Muslim population. They come from all over the world. They are Canadians. They are hard-working, law-respecting members of our community trying to make a better life for themselves and their children.

They do not deserve to be unjustly, improperly and viciously attacked by American lawmakers, but if they are, they expect their Prime Minister and government to stand up and defend them, not attack us for amplifying it. Where is their defence on behalf of the government that is supposed to represent them and represent Canadian values?

[Jason Kenney, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I do not think it is terribly helpful to exaggerate uninformed, ignorant and, agreeably, offensive remarks coming from one member of the American Congress. What is important is that, as the ambassador demonstrated yesterday, there are many members of the U.S. Congress who understand and appreciate the strong actions of the Canadian security forces to maintain continental security.

The government has underscored at every opportunity the importance of the contribution of people of different faith backgrounds to the Canadian mosaic. We will stand by those people and we reject utterly any suggestion that Canada or its immigration system is a haven for these kinds of actions.

[Raymonde Folco, Liberal, Laval—Les Îles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Canada's immigration system is under attack south of the border. Self-styled security experts claim that our immigration policies are the root of terrorism in North America. They have suggested that the only solution to this problem is to close our borders to new immigrants.

Can the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration tell the House what measures he took to defend Canada's immigration system against these unjustified attacks?

[Jason Kenney, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I repeat that Canada's ambassador in Washington is working hard to ensure that the U.S. respects Canada's national security. This week, our security agencies were very successful. We will continue to emphasize that Canada's immigration system is working well. We will continue to protect Canada's interests south of the border.

[Raymonde Folco, Liberal, Laval—Les Îles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I do not see why the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration cannot answer these questions, which are directly related to his portfolio.

He made racist remarks about Asians who have trouble learning French and English.

Perhaps he should focus more on his portfolio than on developing a background in linguistics, but my question is for the minister. What is the minister doing to protect Canada's reputation as a country with a first rate immigration system and to maintain our close government relations with the U.S.?

[Monte Solberg, Conservative, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, I do not know who that congressman is, but I know who Condoleezza Rice is. The president's former national security adviser and now secretary of state has praised Canada for its efforts in the war on terror. The U.S. praised us for the arrests that were made the other weekend.

When the member gets up and makes the kind of outrageous remark she just made, she undermines her credibility.

Natural Resources

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Environment Canada maintains that we have had the hottest spring since record-keeping began. This is just more proof that it is imperative to do something about global warming. Without any warning, the government axed the EnerGuide program and placed a moratorium on the WPPI program, the Wind Power Production Incentive.

How can the Minister of Natural Resources be so inconsistent by freezing the WPPI program when just yesterday he was boasting about the merits of wind energy during his testimony in committee?

[Jason Kenney, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, let us be clear. The government supports initiatives for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, for reducing pollution and for ensuring that every taxpayer dollar is spent effectively. That is why the Minister of Natural Resources is monitoring all the programs: to ensure that they are effective and that taxpayers are getting the best bang for their buck.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, they are cutting programs one after the other. What will that do to the environment?

The moratorium on the wind energy incentive causes uncertainty and holds up development of this energy system.

Can the Minister of Natural Resources promise immediately to lift the moratorium and free up the money needed to relaunch the program?

[Jason Kenney, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the government is in the process of monitoring all the relevant programs to ensure they are effective because the former government spent hundreds of millions of dollars on these programs and did not get any results. The only result they got was a 26% increase in greenhouse gas emissions. The Liberals missed their target for greenhouse gas emissions by 35%.

This government will ensure that public money is spent effectively in these programs.