House of Commons Hansard #160 of the 39th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was drug.
Main Estimates 2007-08--EnvironmentRoutine Proceedings
The Speaker Peter Milliken
The following motion in the name of the hon. Leader of the Opposition is deemed adopted.
That, pursuant to Standing Order 81(4)(b), consideration by the Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development of Votes 1, 5 and 10 under ENVIRONMENT—Department, in the Main Estimates for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2008, be extended beyond May 31, 2007.
(Motion agreed to)
Gary Goodyear Conservative Cambridge, ON
Mr. Speaker, if the House gives its consent, I move that the 52nd report of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs concerning the membership of committees of the House presented to the House earlier this day be concurred in.
Procedure and House AffairsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
The Speaker Peter Milliken
Does the hon. member for Cambridge have the unanimous consent of the House to propose the motion?
Procedure and House AffairsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
Some hon. members
Agreed.
Procedure and House AffairsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
The Speaker Peter Milliken
The House has heard the terms of the motion. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?
Procedure and House AffairsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
Some hon. members
Agreed.
Procedure and House AffairsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
Leon Benoit Conservative Vegreville—Wainwright, AB
Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions to present today.
The first petition is on behalf of the people of Two Hills and area, with hundreds of signatures, asking for the assistance of their MP and the neighbouring MP to get doctors through the immigration system. The petitioners ask for the system to be improved to help foreign doctors come into rural areas.
The signatures on this petition were collected before certain changes were made which have dealt with a large part of the problem.
Leon Benoit Conservative Vegreville—Wainwright, AB
Mr. Speaker, in the second petition the petitioners point to the case of Shane Rolston who was murdered. They call upon the Government of Canada to put in place legislation which more adequately deals with crimes such as this and that the sentence match the crime committed, regardless of age, class or race.
I am pleased to present this petition, again with hundreds of signatures, on behalf of the people of my constituency and area.
Mario Silva Liberal Davenport, ON
Mr. Speaker, I would like to present a series of petitions initiated by people across Ontario which ask Parliament to immediately amend the Non-smokers' Health Act to prohibit indoor designated smoking rooms in all federal workplaces and workplaces that are federally regulated.
In regard to evidence that concluded that tobacco smoke does in fact create health hazards and since indoor smoking facilities do not adequately protect against these hazards, the amended Non-smokers' Health Act would help make Canada a healthier place to live by protecting all citizens from second-hand smoke.
I also want to thank Minister Jim Watson, the Ontario Minister of Health Promotion, who has done a lot of work to organize and start this petition. Liberals are proud to be working together to make Ontario a healthier place.
Mario Silva Liberal Davenport, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have a series of petitions signed by concerned people who are calling upon Parliament to act against the political killing in the Philippines. The petitioners state that the Government of the Philippines is in clear violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, that everyone has a right to life, liberty and security of the person.
The Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives, KAIROS, has demanded that Parliament conduct investigations on the killing to determine what we should do in response to these blatant human rights violations.
Mario Silva Liberal Davenport, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have another petition signed by concerned citizens of our country calling upon Parliament to protect the health of its citizens by acting to ban the sale of all smokeless tobacco products.
Francine Lalonde Bloc La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC
Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure of tabling three petitions, for a total of 840 signatures from Quebec, Ontario and Prince Edward Island.
These petitions ask the government to criticize the serious deterioration of human rights in the Philippines and to put pressure on the Philippine government.
Other colleagues want to table similar petitions. It is important to note that the purpose of these petitions is to force the Philippine government to stop kidnappings and extrajudicial murders, which prevent the opposition from doing its democratic work.
Tony Martin NDP Sault Ste. Marie, ON
Mr. Speaker, I would like to present a petition to the House signed by close to 100 people from the wonderful province of Alberta.
The petitioners are asking the government to move on a bill put forward by the member for Parkdale—High Park to reinstate a federal minimum wage of $10 an hour. They note in the preamble that the federal minimum wage was eliminated in 1996 by the then Liberal government. The petitioners feel that this would be a move in the right direction to give those who work in our country at least a wage that would get them to a place where their nose is just above the poverty line.
The petitioners are not suggesting for a second that this is the be all to end all, but it certainly would set a target that others could aspire to in terms of best practice for labour standards across the country and a minimum wage.
Ruby Dhalla Liberal Brampton—Springdale, ON
Mr. Speaker, I stand before the House today to present a petition calling upon the Canadian government to take action and to condemn the political killings that are taking place in the Philippines. Since 2001, over 850 individuals, activists, human rights workers, lawyers and church organizers, have been killed.
Canada has been giving over $25 million of aid. There is over $1.5 billion in a bilateral trade relationship between Canada and the Philippines.
The individuals who have signed this petition are requesting the Canadian government to ensure that our support and assistance is linked to some tangible actions to ensure that there is an end to these political killings. Canada has always been the champion of human rights, democracy and freedom, and it is imperative that we all act unanimously to ensure that there is an end to these atrocities that are occurring.
I have signatures of thousands of Canadians across this country. I hope this will encourage the government to take immediate action to once again end the human rights violations in the Philippines.
Paul Dewar NDP Ottawa Centre, ON
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition on behalf of thousands of Canadians who call upon the government to deal with the crisis in the Philippines.
The petitioners note that since 2001 there have been over 750 reported cases of politically motivated killings. They want our Parliament to conduct hearings on this. They want us to deal with the issue of mining companies that are complicit in this.
The petitioners call upon the Canadian government to immediately deal with this issue because it has been going on for too long.
Irwin Cotler Liberal Mount Royal, QC
Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present these petitions assembled by the hard work of various churches, community organizations, and human rights groups in my riding and across Canada that seek the assistance of the Canadian Parliament to end the tragic, politically motivated killings that are directed at social and human rights activists, journalists, church workers, indigent people and other innocent parties in the Philippines. Observers have noticed an alarming spike in these killings since 2001, coupled with a disturbing trend of inadequate investigation by the Government of the Philippines.
Any culture of impunity encourages further criminal conduct and the absence of accountability. The protection of human rights around the world is a core value of Canada and of our humanitarian foreign policy.
The petitions call upon the Government of Canada and the Canadian Parliament to take a leading role in the protection and support of the innocent.
Roy Cullen Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure to present a petition signed by close to 300 Canadians from Halifax to St. John's, Saint-Eustache, Vancouver, Thunder Bay and Toronto which calls upon the government to make a permanent, long term commitment to the super flow-through share program.
In Canada, our reserves of metals and minerals are declining. These incentives are needed to encourage exploration and retain and enhance jobs in these communities across Canada.
Marcel Lussier Bloc Brossard—La Prairie, QC
Mr. Speaker, I have the honour of tabling in this House a petition against GMOs, with close to 2,000 names collected by grade five students, under the supervision of their teacher, Marie-Ève Houle, at the Notre-Dame-Saint-Joseph de La Prairie school.
In addition, Thomas Drolet and James Cameron created a website. The petition can be signed electronically at www.contreogm.piczo.com.
In light of some alarming health information, the petitioners are calling on Parliament to make labelling mandatory on all products for human and animal consumption that contain GMOs.
Denise Savoie NDP Victoria, BC
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition on behalf of over 200 of my constituents who are concerned about the reported killings in the Philippines.
The petitioners are calling on Parliament to have the Subcommittee on International Human Rights conduct a hearing on these political killings and to include an investigation into the risk for Canadian mining companies operating in the Philippines of becoming complicit in these political killings.
They also ask that we consider sending a joint delegation to the Philippines to convey the concerns of Canadians and, finally, to ask the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of International Trade, and the Canadian mission at the United Nations to call for an investigation into the political killings in the Philippines by the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary and arbitrary executions.
Francis Scarpaleggia Liberal Lac-Saint-Louis, QC
Mr. Speaker, like many of my colleagues here today I am rising to present a petition dealing with the extrajudicial killings in the Philippines and I am proud to do so in the presence of the Reverend Shaun Fryday of the Beaconsfield United Church in my riding who was active in putting together this petition.
I would also like to mention that it had been hoped that my colleague from Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Lachine would have been able to present some of these petitions, but they were certified as a block so she could not do so even though she had hoped to.
As my colleagues mentioned, this petition asks that the Subcommittee on International Human Rights hold hearings into extrajudicial killings in the Philippines and that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of International Trade, and the Canadian mission at the United Nations call for an investigation into the political killings in the Philippines by the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary and arbitrary executions.
Olivia Chow NDP Trinity—Spadina, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have a petition from hundreds of Canadians across Canada. They are concerned that Canada has not publicly condemned the killings nor raised this critical human rights issue concerning the violation of people's rights in the Philippines in its annual report and statements at the United Nations.
Canadian mining companies operating in the Philippines risk becoming complicit in the political killings and other forms of human rights abuses.
The petitioners have noted that since 2001 there have been over 750 reported cases of politically motivated killings in the Philippines and to this day the killing continues.
The petitioners call on Parliament to send a joint delegation of parliamentarians and representatives of Canadian non-governmental organizations to the Philippines immediately and to ask the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of International Trade and the Canadian mission at the United Nations to call for an investigation into the political killings in the Philippines.
They also call on Parliament to conduct a hearing on the political killings in the Philippines by the Subcommittee on International Human Rights, including an investigation into the risk of Canadian mining companies operating in the Philippines, and Canada's cooperation with the Philippines government on trade, investment and the fight against terrorism and its impact on human rights. The killing must stop now and the now is the to take action.
Paul Szabo Liberal Mississauga South, ON
Mr. Speaker, I present this income trust broken promise petition on behalf of Dr. Boyd Upper from Ontario who remembers the Prime Minister boasting about his apparent commitment to accountability when he said, “the greatest fraud is a promise not kept”.
The petitioners remind the Prime Minister that he promised never to tax income trusts, but he recklessly broke that promise by imposing a 31.5% punitive tax which permanently wiped out over $25 billion of hard-earned retirement savings of over two million Canadians, particularly seniors.
The petitioners therefore call upon the Conservative minority government, first, to admit that the decision to tax income trusts was based on flawed methodology and incorrect assumptions; second, to apologize to those who were unfairly harmed by this broken promise; and, finally, to repeal the punitive 31.5% tax on income trusts.
Wayne Marston NDP Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, ON
Mr. Speaker, today I rise to join other members of this House to present the wish of over 5,000 Canadians that this Parliament do what it can, be it through committee study or sending an official delegation to the United Nations, to end the political killings in the Philippines.
In just over five years, as members have heard, 750 people have been killed in politically motivated killings in the Philippines.
As parliamentarians, we must do all in our power to ensure that freedom of speech and democracy is respected in the Philippines as in all countries.
Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings
Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre Saskatchewan
Conservative
Tom Lukiwski ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister for Democratic Reform
Mr. Speaker, I wish to inform the House that Question No. 203 will be answered today.