Debates of Nov. 26th, 2007

International Aid

[Caroline St-Hilaire, Bloc, Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher, QC]

Mr. Speaker, despite his announcements on aid for Africa, the Prime Minister will not reach the objective set by the UN, that is 0.7% of the GDP in development assistance, by the year 2015. Documents from the Department of Finance show that, at best, Canadian aid will only be at 0.29% by 2010, roughly half of the target set to be on schedule. The aid that was announced not only puts Canada further behind, it also shows that the Prime Minister is engaging in partisanship by rehashing old news, without providing any new money.

Does the Prime Minister realize that not only is he not respecting Canada's commitments, but he is also making our country fall behind?

[Brian Pallister, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade and to the Minister of International Cooperation]

I spoke earlier, Mr. Speaker, about the tremendous difference we are making around the world, and the announcement this morning in Tanzania to assist families there. This government is committed as well to doubling the international aid envelope in Africa by 2010 from 2002 levels.

We are doing everything we can to ensure that effective aid is delivered around the world. We are not sitting on our hands, as some in the chamber are doing all too often. We are going out and making a difference, not just for the people here but for the people who need us around the world.

National Capital Commission

[Marcel Proulx, Liberal, Hull—Aylmer, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Gréber Plan gave us the greenbelt to create a green, modern and avant-garde capital. The greenbelt contains farms, forests and wetlands, which provide opportunities for recreational and outdoor activities as well as learning. The value of greenbelts in large urban areas has been appreciated in Europe for a long time. Now, the new president of the NCC, Russell Mills, wants to promote urban development in the greenbelt.

Does the government plan on letting Mr. Mills do what he wants and permanently destroy our precious greenbelt?

[John Baird, Conservative, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, as a member from the Ottawa region, from the national capital region, I am well aware that this was a very good policy. I completely agree with the member.

Health

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

Mr. Speaker, the issue of food safety and product recalls, in particular children's toys, have affected families across Canada and have led to a growing concern about the safety of products entering our country. That is why in the throne speech our government committed to introduce measures on food and product safety to ensure families would have confidence in the quality and safety of what they buy.

Could the Parliamentary Secretary for Health please update the House on what action is being taken to ensure the safety of products entering Canada?

[Steven Fletcher, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary for Health]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians deserve to have confidence in the food they eat and the products they buy to ensure they are safe for themselves and their families. That is why the Minister of Health is, right now as we speak, in Beijing meeting with the Chinese minister of health to discuss product safety in terms of sharing information, regulatory requirements and lab testing procedures.

We are taking action to ensure the health and safety of all Canadians. We are getting the job done.

Education

[Denise Savoie, NDP, Victoria, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is increasingly clear that the government is making a profit at students' expense. In fact, the government charges double what it pays the Bank of Canada. Double!

Given the growing student debt load and rising tuition fees, why is the government still planning to make more than $550 million dollars in profit at students' expense? Why not lower the interest rates on student loans?

[Monte Solberg, Conservative, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development]

Mr. Speaker, the member has her facts wrong. In fact, the Canadian student loan program does not make a profit.

However, I can tell the member that the government has undertaken to reform this program to make it more flexible, effective and easier to use. That is in the interest of everyone. We have committed to make our results known in budget 2008.

[Denise Savoie, NDP, Victoria, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I forgot. The government is generous only when it comes to the oil companies.

Struggling student borrowers need relief now. The government rejects over 10,000 applicants for interest relief per year and two-thirds applicants for permanent disability relief. Then it spends $180 million on private collection pit bulls to hunt down struggling student borrowers.

Why do big banks and big oil get billions in corporate tax cuts when young graduates, who actually drive our economy, get shafted with high interest on their student loans and a—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The hon. Minister of Human Resources and Social Development.

[Monte Solberg, Conservative, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development]

Mr. Speaker, rhetoric aside, this is a very important issue. The member is wrong on her facts.

Pretty obvious is the fact that the student loan system is very complicated. We want it to serve students better. We have invested heavily in education, with an $800 million investment in education this year, a 40% increase.

We are committed to trying to make the system more flexible, effective and easier to use. We will have results from that study very soon.

Airbus

[Robert Thibault, Liberal, West Nova, NS]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians want answers to some troubling questions in the Mulroney-Schreiber affair, but all they get from the government is deny, delay and distract.

Will Mr. Schreiber be given access to his documents so he can give informed testimony to the committee? Will the justice minister ensure that Mr. Schreiber will be able to appear before the parliamentary ethics committee this week, or is the minister still trying to shut him up?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, I guess he did not speak with the chair of the ethics committee. I received a letter from the chair of the ethics committee on Thursday. I responded with the assurances that he asked on Friday.

The Environment

[Rick Norlock, Conservative, Northumberland—Quinte West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister was recently in Uganda attending the Commonwealth heads of government meeting, where they were discussing the important issue of climate change. Canada's position on global action on climate change has been clear. Any agreement must include all major emitters like China and India.

Could the Minister of the Environment say how Canada is continuing to demonstrate its environmental leadership on the world stage?

[John Baird, Conservative, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, Canada is providing leadership by going first, by setting some aggressive and strict targets for the next 13 years, and actually acting.

The Calgary Herald quotes someone who is known as a great, wise helmsman on these issues. It says, “It makes no sense for Canada, which emits 2% of the world's greenhouse gases, to ratify a treaty forcing deep cuts unless the largest nations sign on”.

Who said that? It was the member for Wascana.

Seniors

[Louise Thibault, Independent, Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC]

Mr. Speaker, thousands of seniors who are living in poverty are being deprived of a benefit for which they qualify and are not being notified. They must be found and helped.

This government has chosen to spend millions of dollars on an advertising campaign boasting about how close Service Canada offices are, instead of solving this urgent, specific problem. This is immoral and inhuman. And to think that this money also could have been used to improve the guaranteed income supplement program.

Does the minister really think that, as his ads would have us believe, seniors who are living in poverty are going to stumble on a Service Canada office at a curling rink?

[Monte Solberg, Conservative, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development]

Mr. Speaker, this is a serious issue. This is why we have taken a number of steps to ensure that people are more aware of the benefits available to them.

In Bill C-36 we took steps. Once people have filed for GIS, as long as they continue to file their income tax, they will never have to reapply for it again. This is a very important step that will ensure that tens of thousands of people will be saved the paperwork and the hassle, which they have had to face up until now.

Oral Questions

[Robert Thibault, Liberal, West Nova, NS]

Mr. Speaker, in a question period today I raised a question for the Minister of Justice relating to the ability of Mr. Schreiber to appear at the ethics committee. The Minister of Justice indicated that a letter had been sent to the chair of the ethics committee indicating, and I paraphrase, that Mr. Schreiber would be available to appear at the committee.

Since that letter was sent to the chair and not to members of the committee and was referred to by the minister in his response, I respectfully request that he table a copy of the letter so it becomes available to all members of the committee and all members of Parliament.

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, I did not quote from the letter. Why does the hon. member not just talk to his colleague? Why does he need my help?

[Peggy Nash, NDP, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in my question this afternoon, I cited some statistics from a United Way report that was released this morning. The hon. Minister of Human Resources and Social Development challenged my statement, which was a citing from this report.

In the interests of correcting the record, I would welcome the minister to rephrase his statement to show that my facts were not wrong; my facts were taken directly from a report released this morning. I would welcome his action on that.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The hon. member knows that the Chair does not tend to get into arguments about the facts. It may be tabling of documents, but there is often dispute about facts and I do not think it is for the Chair to decide on those matters.

I am not sure the member has raised a valid point, but I am sure the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development will observe her concerns. If an appropriate remedy is at hand and necessary, he will undertake that.

[Dick Harris, Conservative, Cariboo—Prince George, BC]

Mr. Speaker, this is not the same point of order.

Last week in the questioning by the leader of the official opposition of the government, specifically the Minister of Public Safety, regarding the taser incident in British Columbia, he made a quotation, and I will table these. He quoted the B.C. government as saying the reason that it formed its own taser inquiry was because “there is a vacuum of leadership at the federal government”, and he went on with his question.

That was completely erroneous and I believe a deliberate intent to mislead the House. I will table the Hansard as well.

In fact, the exact words of the attorney general of B.C., in referring to why British Columbia formed its own inquiry into the taser, were, “There was a huge vacuum of information there”. He went on to refer to agencies in British Columbia that were in an ongoing process .

I am quite willing to table those two documents with those quotes. I think it is appropriate, considering that obviously the Leader of the Opposition would surely have known what the real statement was, that he made a deliberate attempt in his question to mislead the House as to what the attorney general of British Columbia said.

I would like to table these two documents.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

Does the hon. member have the unanimous consent of the House to table these documents?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

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 response to 22 petitions.