Debates of Jan. 29th, 2008

Industry

[Jim Prentice, Conservative, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, there is not a parliamentarian in this House who is not concerned when a Canadian worker loses his or her job.

Last week, for example, I was on the floor of factories across this country talking to Canadians who take pride in the work they have and who take pride in the opportunities they have. They know that if Canadians have the opportunity to compete we can succeed.

The government has been focused on creating a strong economy for Canadian jobs and that, frankly, is why we differentiate ourselves from some of the other countries that face difficulties as the American economy begins to slow.

[Yasmin Ratansi, Liberal, Don Valley East, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservative government is playing politics with workers' livelihoods. It threw together a half-baked measure without consulting any of the provinces or a single industry.

Now it is blackmailing Canadian workers because the promised money will flow only if the budget passes. This is a total fraud. There is no such legal or parliamentary requirement. Why will the government not introduce its legislation right now, today?

[Jim Prentice, Conservative, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, as was indicated yesterday in the House and as the Prime Minister indicated today, we will continue to work on the community trust development. We will continue to put in place the agreements across Canada with all of the premiers so that these dollars can be expended to aid workers and to aid communities that are in transition. That is the purpose of the fund. The government is listening to Canadians. It is listening to workers who need help.

I would encourage the Liberals to show up when some of these financial measures are voted on in the House.

Transport

[Raynald Blais, Bloc, Gaspésie—Îles-de-la-Madeleine, QC]

Mr. Speaker, for two months every winter, Magdalen Islanders are cut off from their ferry service. The department has known about this problem for several years now, so the current Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities cannot plead ignorance. Last week, the minister refused to act, claiming that there was no money to do anything, and yesterday, he said it was too late to do anything about it this year.

How will the minister, who has been on the job for two years, explain to the Magdalen Islanders that once again, they will have no access to a maritime link for two long winter months? He must take action now.

[Lawrence Cannon, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for his question. As a matter of fact, we have taken action. In June, I met with municipal officials from Cap-aux-Meules, and we agreed to implement a work plan. The member knows that.

Reports were completed in September, and the final report was submitted in December. In my correspondence with the mayor, Mr. Arseneau, I indicated that the government intends to go forward with this issue and to be in a position to offer a service beginning next year as a pilot project.

The Environment

[Christiane Gagnon, Bloc, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, by refusing to provide the raw data from two studies on soil contamination, in Shannon, by the noxious solvent TCE, the federal government is obstructing the class action brought against it by citizens aggrieved because of its negligence.

Will the Minister of National Defence recognize that his government's attitude to this issue is totally unacceptable and, in the name of transparency and justice, will he commit to provide the plaintiffs with the documents they need to prepare their case properly?

I hope this question is not a matter of official secrecy for the minister.

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of National Defence and Minister of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency]

First of all, Mr. Speaker, this is no laughing matter; it is a very serious issue.

Second, I have met the mayor of Shannon together with my colleague, the hon. Minister of Canadian Heritage, Status of Women and Official Languages.

Finally, we have a clear understanding of the situation. There is a plan in place, which is to continue to work with the community in Shannon and work toward a solution to this issue with the water.

[David McGuinty, Liberal, Ottawa South, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister's failure to provide national leadership on climate change is staggering. It is bad for the environment, bad for business and bad for Canadians.

Just last week the Government of Alberta said that it would allow emissions to rise until at least 2012, while Quebec, B.C. and Ontario's overtures to partner with our national government were rejected out of hand. Now Tom D'Aquino says that businesses are being badly hurt because the Conservative government is missing in action.

Is the minister now hiding, as he did in Bali, or is he intentionally dividing our country to cover up the fact that his plan is now completely discredited?

[John Baird, Conservative, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, the challenge of global warming requires action from federal and provincial governments. It requires action from all Canadians, from industry alike. We are committed to working constructively and to bringing forward national regulations to require that emissions be reduced. We want to see an absolute reduction of 20% by 2020.

We are working hard to get the job done, something that did not happen over the many years that the Liberal government was in power.

Human Rights

[James Lunney, Conservative, Nanaimo—Alberni, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Canada has already withdrawn from the conference on racism scheduled for Durban in 2009.

Unfortunately, the last conference degenerated into controversy and disappointment, with open displays of anti-Semitism and anti-western rhetoric. Sadly, Durban 2009 appears to be headed in the same direction.

Canada, meanwhile, will seek full membership on the international Holocaust task force. In the past, Liberal governments paid for NGOs to travel to the Durban conference.

Could the Secretary of State advise Parliament as to whether Canadian taxpayers will be subsidizing NGO travel to the misguided Durban initiative?

[Jason Kenney, Conservative, Secretary of State (Multiculturalism and Canadian Identity)]

Mr. Speaker, the government was proud to announce last week that Canada will not be participating in the racist Durban process. I am further pleased to confirm today that we will not subsidize NGOs to attend the Durban conference.

I want to know what the real position of the Liberal Party is on Durban because its foreign affairs critic endorsed the government's principled decision but its justice and public health critics opposed it and said that we should be at the table in Durban.

The organization formerly headed by the member for Mississauga—Erindale viciously attacked our decision to pull out of the racism conference in a news release that spoke of “the racist Israeli government”. What is the Liberal Party's real position?

Manufacturing Industry

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

Mr. Speaker, new Statistics Canada data released today confirm another hit for middle class working families. Fully one-third of the manufacturing sector is planning to reduce production while one in five employers will kill jobs. This is on top of the 200 jobs lost each day in the manufacturing sector, but the government is forcing communities to wait.

If the government cared half as much for hard-working families as it does for the banks and the oil companies, why would it not bring forward the community development trust today and let Parliament get relief into communities now?

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, thanks to the almost two years of a Conservative government led by Prime Minister Harper, Canada has very strong--

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Whitby—Oshawa, ON]

--economic fundamentals. These fundamentals are vitally important in terms of job creation in Canada. We have had solid job creation in every region of Canada over the course of the past two years.

Yes, there is an economic slowdown in the United States but we anticipated that slowdown. We were ahead of the curve last year with the accelerated capital cost allowance in March 2007, and over the course of the next two years 100% writeoff for new machinery and equipment.

Automotive Industry

[Brian Masse, NDP, Windsor West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Ford Motors is warning that the opportunity in Windsor is fleeting unless action is taken now. To get the Essex engine plant up and operating, it will need a partnership with the federal government. The Minister of Finance says no but the Minister of Industry says that the money is in the blackmail billion.

Let us get this straight. They are willing to fund the project after it is lost. I am sure that when the plant is developed in China, they will probably get an invitation to the ribbon-cutting ceremony.

It is important to note that the Conservative tax cuts have not worked. What has happened is that industry leaders and unions have called for action right now. When will the government take action to prevent these job losses and have investment in our country as opposed to losses?

[Jim Prentice, Conservative, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, the NDP, of course, is all strategy and no action.

The government has been taking action. The government has been working together with the auto industry with respect to the assembly industry and the parts industry, very serious work with respect to infrastructure, the Windsor-Detroit bridge crossing, work on regulatory harmonization, work as well on fuel consumption standards and smart fiscal policy.

Those are the kinds of initiatives that will make this industry competitive so that Canadians can continue to do what they have always done, which is to be exceptional in the assembly of automobiles.

The Environment

[Diane Marleau, Liberal, Sudbury, ON]

Mr. Speaker, all those who have reviewed the Conservatives' climate plan say that it will not achieve its targets, which are already low. Canadians are disappointed and worried. The Conservative government is showing cowardice by failing to carry out its responsibilities.

When will it listen to experts, to premiers and to Canadians? When will it show some leadership regarding the environment?

[John Baird, Conservative, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, we are committed to taking real action to fight global warming because it is tremendously important, but to do that we need to work constructively with the provinces.

One provincial premier, Gary Doer of Manitoba, said that it was significant to have a federal partner.

Another premier, in a letter to the Prime Minister, said, “I would like to thank you for the important steps you have taken to address climate change by supporting provincial efforts”. Do members know who said that? A Liberal member for Ottawa South by the name of D. McGuinty, the Premier of Ontario.

Aboriginal Affairs

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake, MB]

Mr. Speaker, in just two years our government has made significant improvements in the lives of first nations people. We are moving to reduce the backlog of specific claims. We are moving toward a fair and lasting resolution for former students of residential schools. We also are moving to ensure that first nations have the same human rights all Canadians enjoy, but sadly, that is being blocked by the opposition.

The national chief and other aboriginal leaders have told us that water is a fundamental issue that needs addressing and yet, after 13 years in government, the Liberals did not get it done.

What will the Minister of Indian Affairs do to improve drinking water conditions on first nation reserves?

[Chuck Strahl, Conservative, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and Federal Interlocutor for Métis and Non-Status Indians]

Mr. Speaker, in 2006 this government announced the plan of action for drinking water and I am pleased to say that we are seeing real results.

After 13 years of Liberal policy, we inherited, shockingly, 193 high risk drinking water systems and we have already reduced that to 85, which is more than half. We also inherited 21 priority communities that were desperate and we have already taken 15 of those communities off the list.

We have also put in place a protocol for safe drinking water with mandatory training and oversight for certified operators. In fact, even my critic, the member for Winnipeg South Centre, said that she was pleased that the government was making real progress on water. She is right. After years of neglect, we are getting it done for the first nations.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The hon. member from Mississauga—Erindale is rising on a question of privilege arising out of question period and I will hear him now.

Oral Questions

[Omar Alghabra, Liberal, Mississauga—Erindale, ON]

Mr. Speaker, we know the Conservative government has a pattern of smearing members of Parliament. We know this junior minister has a particular pattern in smearing and stereotyping communities.

In his response to a question that was directed to him in question period, he associated me with a statement. I do not know where he came to the conclusion that I had anything to do with this statement. This was a racist statement with which he associated me.

I am sure, Mr. Speaker, you do not accept such statements being said in the House without evidence or justification. I would ask you to ask the member to provide evidence why he is associating me with that statement in this House.

[Jason Kenney, Conservative, Secretary of State (Multiculturalism and Canadian Identity)]

Mr. Speaker, I am entirely certain that the blues will reflect that what I said was that the organization formerly headed by the member for Mississauga—Erindale viciously opposed this government's decision to withdraw from Durban. I went on to cite part of the press release issued by that organization. It is called the Canadian Arab Federation and the operable statement says:

We would also like to remind [the secretary of state] that he is a Minister of the Canadian government, not the racist Israeli government--

I understand that the member opposite was a president of this organization. If I am mistaken, I would be happy to withdraw my statement, but I believe it is a matter of fact and I will not retract facts.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The hon. member for St. Paul's is rising on the same point or another one?