Debates of June 6th, 2007

The Budget

[Gary Merasty, Liberal, Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River, SK]

Mr. Speaker, the Saskatchewan people are asking, Premier Calvert is asking, I am asking, where are our Saskatchewan Conservative members? Perhaps they have all joined the member for Palliser who ran away from the tough questions reporters were asking on equalization to buy a doughnut. None of them have the clout or the influence to fight for Saskatchewan. The residents of Saskatchewan know this. They also know the budget is bad for them.

How could Canadians from any province believe, much less trust, a Conservative government and a Prime Minister whose word is not worth the price of a doughnut?

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, here is what the member for Wascana did not do for Saskatchewan that this Conservative government has done: $226 million more under equalization; $756 million under the Canada health transfer; $342 million for the Canada social transfer; and $75 million for infrastructure. It is a great budget for the province of Saskatchewan.

[Marlene Jennings, Liberal, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Lachine, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has demonstrated that he is unable to govern and manage the Canadian federation. He made written promises to premiers, then he flat out broke his word. Now he is kicking out members of his caucus for stating the obvious: the Conservatives did not tell the truth.

Their budget promised to end fighting between governments, but at least five provinces are angry. To top it off, the Prime Minister does not even have the courage to meet the provincial premiers face to face.

Will he admit his bungling has become an embarrassment for all Canada?

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, there is a member from Quebec criticizing a budget proposal that has been welcomed by Quebec. There is a member from Quebec with a leader who says that there is no fiscal imbalance.

This is an issue that had to be addressed in Canada. Once again, over 13 years the Liberals did not get the job done.

The Prime Minister and the government have done the job, restoring fiscal balance in Canada. It has not been easy, but if it had been easy, the Liberals would have done it.

[Marlene Jennings, Liberal, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Lachine, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians expect their Prime Minister to achieve consensus. With respect to the transfer, the Prime Minister ignored the positions of Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia and Saskatchewan. He has also proposed changes in the distribution of seats in Parliament and in the way senators are appointed. However, many provinces are opposed to these ideas, because they fly in the face of Canada's Constitution.

Is that why the Prime Minister is not brave enough to call a meeting of the provincial premiers?

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, this is what the Liberal Party opposite is speaking against: more money for education; more money for health care; and more money for labour training in the provinces. These are not artificial academic numbers. These are funds that matter to each constituent. These are the basic services delivered by the provinces and territories and Canada.

Because we have addressed the fiscal imbalance, which the Liberal Party does not believe exists, $2.1 billion will go to the provinces and territories this fiscal year for health care, education, infrastructure, skills training and the environment.

Government Programs

[Mike Allen, Conservative, Tobique—Mactaquac, NB]

Mr. Speaker, much was written about budget 2005 by people who desperately wanted to stay in power and appease their old friends and the NDP.

One thing did not change in three budgets. The Liberals slashed funding for the community access program by over half. This program is vital for smaller communities to ensure we are connected with Canada and the world.

Could the Minister of Industry please tell the House and all Canadians who use CAP if our government will ensure funding for 2007-08?

[Maxime Bernier, Conservative, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, it is true the Liberals drastically reduced the funding levels for the community access program.

Unlike our predecessor, Canada's new government will support smaller communities. I am pleased to tell the House that the government is funding CAP programs for the years 2007 and 2008. We are getting the job done for Canadians.

The Bloc Québécois, on the other hand, is not delivering the goods for Quebeckers because it is in opposition, where it will remain forever.

The Budget

[Peter Stoffer, NDP, Sackville—Eastern Shore, NS]

Mr. Speaker, we know the Mickey Mouse gang over there betrayed the good people of Saskatchewan. They deliberately misled the good people of Nova Scotia.

The finest people in the country come from Newfoundland and Labrador. For those people over there to betray the people of Newfoundland and Labrador is incredible.

One brave Conservative from Nova Scotia stood up for his people and showed all of us what it is like to represent our constituents.

My question is for the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans. Crosbie has said that you are not telling the truth. Danny Williams has said that you are not telling the truth. Who is telling the truth over there and will they stand up for the good people of Newfoundland and Labrador?

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Peter Milliken]

I ask the hon. member to be careful in the phrasing of his question. I am not sure who he was alleging was not telling the truth, whether it was me or some other members in the House. It is not clear and I think he should perhaps avoid that expression.

The hon. the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans.

[Loyola Hearn, Conservative, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans]

Mr. Speaker, I am glad to answer the Mickey Mouse question.

First, as it relates to John Crosbie, we value the input of John Crosbie. In fact, he along with ourselves, my caucus members and the people on this side, are trying to solve the problems of our country and the problems of Newfoundland and Labrador.

We are not sitting on our hands or running around the country complaining like the hon. member or like the Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador. We are trying to solve the problem. Working collectively, we will.

Atlantic Accord

[Bill Casey, Independent, Cumberland—Colchester—Musquodoboit Valley, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Fisheries just said that they are trying to solve the problem. It is an easy problem to solve and I would like to make it easier for him. All he has to do is say that the Government of Canada will honour the contract signed by the Government of Canada.

It is a signed, sealed and delivered contract. It is a 12 year contract. We are two years into it. Consequential amendments to the budget by the Minister of Finance change the Atlantic accord.

Will the minister now just say, “It is all over. We will honour the signature of the Government of Canada. We will honour the Atlantic accord exactly the way it was written, no amendments. We will honour the work of John Hamm”.

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member knows, he and I have had many discussions on this subject.

Budget 2007 provides Nova Scotia flexibility and more money, as well as respecting the Atlantic accords and giving the province of Nova Scotia the opportunity to make an election. In fact, the province was concerned initially, after March 19, that its budget was coming up that Friday and asked for more time to consider the matter, which we have done. The province has since elected to enter into the agreement for one year to have more opportunities to consider it.

These are worthwhile considerations and at the present benefit—

[The Speaker, Peter Milliken]

The hon. member for Bourassa.

Afghanistan

[Denis Coderre, Liberal, Bourassa, QC]

Mr. Speaker, four ministers are at committee today to answer Canadians' questions on the Afghan detainee scandal, but Canadians know the government will say anything to cover up its incompetence.

This week it is saying that releasing figures on detainees would be a “propaganda coup” for the Taliban, but access to information officials do not agree. They released some of these details weeks ago, seeing no threat to national security.

How about it? Why does the government continue its pattern of cover-up and secrecy on Afghani detainees?

[Gordon O'Connor, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, as I have said a number of times in the House, the details with respect to detainees is an operational security matter, and we will not discuss this matter in the House.

[Denis Coderre, Liberal, Bourassa, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the government is still hiding things from us. I have here a document that shows that the government has information on detainees. A number of weeks have passed, and the government does not want to disclose this information. How many detainees have been transferred? How many detainees are there? How many visits have our authorities made? What is the status of the detainees?

If the government wants to keep what little credibility it still has, it must provide some answers. Compliance with conventions goes hand in hand with transparency. What is the reason for this orchestrated silence? What are the members opposite so afraid of? What is the reason for all the stunts by the Conservatives, each one more incompetent than the last?

[Gordon O'Connor, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, the matter of details with respect to detainees is a military matter, not a political matter. The military have declared this as operational security, and we will respect it.

[Ujjal Dosanjh, Liberal, Vancouver South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, on the detainee question, there was the saga of the report of foreign affairs, which the government told us did not exist, but later produced it, heavily censored. Now in response to a motion from the foreign affairs committee for information on the numbers of detainees captured, transferred and to whom, the government has invoked, as it did just now, operational security.

Why is the government really hiding this information? Is it really operational security, or is it the political security of the government itself?

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency]

Mr. Speaker, again, as is so often the case with the hon. member, it is untrue. This government has not changed the practice with respect to the redaction of documents.

The report he has requested was made available. It followed the same standard procedures that were in place when he was in office. This has not changed.

We will continue to work, as we have, in a transparent and open fashion to deal with this issue of detainees by enhancing the agreement left in place by the previous government, which turned out to have shortcomings. We have fixed that. We are dealing straightforwardly with the Afghanistan government to improve the situation on the ground.

[Ujjal Dosanjh, Liberal, Vancouver South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, let us see how transparent the government is.

On the Pentagon website the United States government has made available entire lists of prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay. It gives names, citizenship, and other details. The Canadian government will not give us its numbers. Clearly, disclosure is not a matter of operational security for the U.S. forces.

Will the government admit that it refuses to disclose this information because it fears for its own political security, or has it lost track of those detainees?

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, once again, it is convenience with the truth by the member opposite; when he finds it convenient, he wraps his arms around the American example. Most times those members are insulting and pushing back against the Americans.

What we have done is followed the Canadian way, which is to work with the Afghanistan government to help it raise capacity to deal with an ongoing challenge in Afghanistan. We are doing that. We are building capacity every day in helping the Afghanistan people walk on their own and supporting their government and their democratic institutions.

International Cooperation

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

Mr. Speaker, during the 2005 G-8 summit in Scotland, member nations, including Canada, promised to increase development aid to Africa by $25 billion. Recently, the World Bank criticized the G-8 for failing to keep that promise.

Does the Minister of International Cooperation realize that the budget for development assistance must be increased by a lot more than the 8% per year that her government has allocated?

[Josée Verner, Conservative, Minister of International Cooperation and Minister for la Francophonie and Official Languages]

Mr. Speaker, allow me to remind the member that in our most recent budget, we reiterated our 8% commitment to international aid, and we also announced $300 million in additional funds.

Furthermore, we are committed to ensuring that our international aid meets the highest standards of transparency and effectiveness.