House of Commons Hansard #5 of the 40th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was economy.

Topics

Internet Child LuringPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:10 p.m.

Conservative

Mike Allen Conservative Tobique—Mactaquac, NB

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present a petition today on behalf of the St. Mary of the Angels Parish Council of the Catholic Women's League of Canada and numerous other residents of my riding of Tobique—Mactaquac.

The petitioners draw the attention of the House to the serious concerns with respect to the safety of children from being sexually exploited over the Internet.

They call upon the Minister of Public Safety and Parliament as a whole to take whatever means necessary to halt all future occurrences of this exploitation.

Interprovincial BridgePetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:10 p.m.

Liberal

Mauril Bélanger Liberal Ottawa—Vanier, ON

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to once again present a petition on behalf of the citizens of the riding of Ottawa—Vanier and the area regarding the need to build a bridge, perhaps even two, in order to create a ring road around the national capital region and to get heavy trucks out of the downtown core for a number of reasons.

The petitioners are calling on the Government of Canada to force the National Capital Commission to conduct an in-depth study regarding a possible bridge linking the Canotek industrial park and the Gatineau Airport, namely, option number 7 of the first phase of the environmental assessment of the interprovincial crossings.

This wish is expressed with the sincere hope of effectively managing heavy truck traffic in the national capital region.

Consumer Price IndexPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:10 p.m.

NDP

Irene Mathyssen NDP London—Fanshawe, ON

Mr. Speaker, my first petition is from a number of Canadians who ask the Parliament of Canada to take responsibility for the error made in 2001 by Statistics Canada in the calculation of the Consumer Price Index. Because of this error, recipients of the Canada pension plan, old age security and guarantee income supplement have been under-compensated by a compounded half percentage point a year and have lost benefits totalling over $1 billion.

The petitioners wish the government to take the necessary steps to rectify this error and help our seniors.

Public Service Health Care PlanPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:10 p.m.

NDP

Irene Mathyssen NDP London—Fanshawe, ON

Mr. Speaker, my second petition is from members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada who wish to draw to the attention of the House of Commons the fact that federal public sector workers, retirees and their families do not have access to a health drug card under the Public Service Health Care Plan.

The petitioners ask that Parliament direct the Treasury Board of Canada to provide PSHCP members with a health drug card by December 31, 2008.

DarfurPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:10 p.m.

NDP

Irene Mathyssen NDP London—Fanshawe, ON

Mr. Speaker, my final petition is from a number of Canadians who are profoundly concerned about the 400,000 people who have lost their lives and the 2.5 million who have been displaced in the humanitarian catastrophe in Darfur.

These Canadians call upon the Government of Canada to play a leading role in ending the despair, rape and killing by engaging with the international community for the purpose of pursuing whatever action is necessary to end these atrocities.

Human TraffickingPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:10 p.m.

Conservative

Joy Smith Conservative Kildonan—St. Paul, MB

Mr. Speaker, petitions continue to come to my office from citizens all across this country drawing attention to the House of Commons the fact that the trafficking of women and children across international borders for the purpose of sexual exploitation be condemned. They draw to the attention of parliamentarians that it is the duty of Parliament to protect the most vulnerable members of society from harm, those being the victims of human trafficking. They ask parliamentarians to continue their work to combat the trafficking of persons worldwide.

These petitions continue to come in droves day after day.

DarfurPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Liberal

Larry Bagnell Liberal Yukon, YT

Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions. The first one is from a number of people from Quebec who are concerned about the crisis in Darfur.

They point out that 400,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million have been displaced since 2003. The petitioners are calling on the Government of Canada to take action, with the international community, to put an end to these atrocities.

Human RightsPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Liberal

Larry Bagnell Liberal Yukon, YT

Mr. Speaker, my second petition is from many Yukoners who have noted that for 50 years the Chinese government has oppressed the people of Tibet. The government promised to improve human rights if it were given the right to host the Olympics, but the brutality continues. Since 1950, 1.2 million Tibetans have been killed by the Chinese government.

Therefore, the petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to negotiate honestly and sincerely with the Dali Lama. They also ask that the Prime Minister openly and fearlessly confront China's tyrannical opposition to human and civil rights, freedom and dignity of the Tibetan people.

JusticePetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Conservative

Mark Warawa Conservative Langley, BC

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise in the House and present a petition from constituents from the Fraser Valley.

The petitioners say that property crime is a serious offence that affects most people and often results in huge financial losses and that a majority of property offences are committed by a minority of prolific offenders.

They ask that the government provide security and reasonable legislation to protect citizens.

Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre Saskatchewan

Conservative

Tom Lukiwski ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons

Mr. Speaker, I ask that all questions be allowed to stand.

Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Peter Milliken

Is that agreed?

Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

The House resumed consideration of the motion for an address to Her Excellency the Governor General in reply to her speech at the opening of the session, of the amendment and of the amendment to the amendment.

RESUMPTION OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS IN REPLYSpeech From The Throne

3:15 p.m.

Edmonton Centre Alberta

Conservative

Laurie Hawn ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to stand here before you and my fellow members to participate in the debate on our government's Speech from the Throne.

First, allow me to congratulate you on your re-election as Speaker, a well deserved recognition of your skills and talent.

Second, allow me to express my appreciation and gratitude to the fine folks of Edmonton Centre for giving me the opportunity to continue to represent them in this place. It is a responsibility and a privilege that I take very seriously.

I would also like to thank my wife of 40 years, Judy, and our children, Jennifer and Robb, for their love and support.

As we are all aware, the Speech from the Throne is a blueprint for our government's action to protect Canada's future. It contains a five-pronged plan to ensure that our economy remains resilient during and after this period of global economic uncertainty, but we should not forget that the Speech from the Throne also outlines how our government will help to ensure the safety of our families and the security of our country.

Safety and security are concepts that are broad in scope but speak most to the justice system, national security, and product and food safety in our great country. Addressing these areas is in the favour of all Canadians, not just a privileged few. By continuing to seek reform in these areas, we put the interests of all Canadians first.

During the last election, our government promised to act on a number of priorities to ensure a Canada that is strong and free. These priorities included defending Canada's sovereignty, rebuilding the Canadian Forces, improving food and product safety and environmental laws, and strengthening our justice system. With these actions, our government is striving to ensure a safe and secure Canada for all Canadian families.

Food, product and environmental safety, an effective justice system, and Canadian self-reliance and sovereignty are matters that most directly affect the health and well-being of all Canadians. In addition to safeguarding our economy, these matters should be top of mind for those who represent Canadians in this place.

Canada is a nation where children should be able to play safely in their own yards, where serious gun criminals should serve time in prison for their actions, where the food on the dinner table is safe to eat, and where we can assume our children will grow up to enjoy the Canada we know today, not a Canada without jurisdiction over its own Arctic lands or a Canada with weakened armed forces, unable to come to our aid in a time of real need.

In the 2007-08 United Nations human development index, Canada was ranked as the fourth most livable place in the world out of 192 countries. This is an indication that many countries in the world look up to Canada and strive to be like us. We must work together to protect the future of this truly great country, a country we all know and love.

When Canadians commute to work, eat dinner or tuck their kids in at night, they are not thinking about the government. When they elect a new government, Canadians rightly expect that government to be responsible and act in their best interests. We do this by ensuring the safety and security of our fellow Canadians, through actions such as being the first country in the world to take action on bisphenol A, by proposing to strengthen the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, and by cracking down on toxic chemicals with our chemicals management plan.

Improvements to the chemicals management plan will improve the degree of protection against hazardous chemicals. It includes a number of new proactive measures to make sure that chemical substances are managed properly and are not found in the toys of our children, the water we drink, or the baby bottles we feed our infants with on a daily basis.

Our government will bring in legislation providing better oversight of food, drug and consumer products. It will strengthen the power to recall products and increase penalties for violators. It will also move quickly to launch an independent investigation of this summer’s listeria outbreak and act quickly upon its findings

Protecting and promoting Canadians' health and safety is a top priority for the Government of Canada. Canadians need to know that the food on their dinner table, the toys they buy their children and the medicines they rely on are safe.

Budget 2008 allocated over $458 million over five years to the food and consumer safety action plan to support collaboration, strengthen safety programs, and replaced outdated laws with new ones.

In general, Canadians are well served by food and product safety measures, but we are facing new challenges as global commercial practices evolve.

Recent incidents involving hazardous food, health and consumer products have shown that we need to update our regulatory processes and the underlying legislation.

By taking action now, we will significantly reduce future costs associated with water treatment, clean-up of contaminated sites, and treating illness related to chemical exposure. We will improve our fellow Canadians' quality of life and better protect our environment.

This plan will build on Canada's position as a global leader in the safe management of chemical substances and products. It will marshal new and better science to improve the assessment and mitigation of risks, and it will provide Canadian families with better information about the safe use and disposal of a range of everyday products.

On April 8 of this year the Prime Minister announced that the government will boost protection for Canadian consumers with a tough and comprehensive overhaul of food and safety laws. The food and consumer safety action plan is a comprehensive set of new measures aimed at establishing tougher regulation of food, health and consumer products, and includes initiatives to update and redefine Canadian food content labels to better reflect the true origins of products in today's global marketplace.

In today's world, products make their way to our grocery store shelves from every corner of the earth. As a result, under the current guidelines, food marked, “Product of Canada“ or “Made in Canada” actually may not be very Canadian at all. We have tightened the definitions of these familiar labels so Canadians know exactly what they are getting, and getting exactly what they want. That way, when food contaminations happen in other areas the world, we are able to quickly identify the products that contain contaminated ingredients and isolate them.

Another example of the government placing Canadians' health and safety first is found in the many measures we have taken to ensure Canadians are protected from crime in their daily lives. In times of uncertainty, as in any other time, Canadians need to be assured that they are safe in their homes and communities. The government has and will continue to take tough action against crime and work with our law enforcement and judicial partners to ensure our law-abiding citizens are protected. Serious offences will be met with serious penalties.

We will work to strengthen the legal provisions that currently deal with youth crime, gang crime and organized crime. Additionally, we will act to end the cross-border gun smuggling and punish those who commit gun crimes, not the law-abiding long gun and general firearm owners.

The government's action on tackling crime has already responded to the collective desire of Canadians to put victims first and take a practical approach to law and order, one that is firm but fair.

We have introduced new ways to detect and investigate drug-impaired driving and are strengthening penalties for impaired driving.

We will introduce legislation to significantly strengthen the criminal law response to violence against pregnant women. Our new legislation would expand the list of aggravating factors to be considered by a sentencing judge to include the fact of a woman's pregnancy. It is important to note, however, that this bill will not open the door to fetal rights.

This legislative proposal is the next step in the government's commitment to make our streets and communities safer, particularly for women during pregnancy. The safety and security of Canadians is our utmost priority. As such, we will continue moving forward on our tackling crime agenda. Last year, after two long years of delay from the opposition parties in both this House and the other place, the government was able to see our tackling violent crime legislation become law.

This legislation brings to an end soft lenient penalities and assures dangerous criminals who threaten our communities will now get the jail time and penalties they so richly deserve.

We will protect young Canadians from sexual predators by raising the age of consent from 14 to 16.

We have also introduced new parole conditions that require individuals charged with a serious gun crime to justify their release pending trial.

Our first priority is the safety and security of Canadians. That is why we are tackling crime. Across Canada, trials are getting longer and longer, and court proceedings are being started later and later. In general, people believe that reform is needed. The government will work with its partners to ensure that justice is served swiftly and fairly.

This government will continue to take concrete action in areas that are important to Canadians because protecting society is a priority for us, not an afterthought. We are proud of the work we have done over the past two years to introduce these changes, and we will continue to tackle crime.

Now, families and communities across Canada can feel safer.

On a broader level, the government has also striven to protect Canada and its citizens as a whole. The Canada-first defence strategy is our government's comprehensive long-term plan to ensure the Canadian Forces have the people, equipment and support they need to protect our interests, to fulfill Canada's international commitments. and to keep our true north strong and free.

As the name implies, the first priority of our Canada-first defence strategy is to strengthen our ability to defend our country and to protect our people. It would improve surveillance of our land and coastal borders, and bolster our capacity to provide support for civilian authorities in the event of natural disasters or major international events.

We are also establishing a year-round arctic training station at Resolute Bay that would be an army facility, a deep-sea docking and refuelling facility, and a port in Nanisivik. We will be requiring replacements for various aircraft and also enhanced unmanned aerial vehicle surveillance of the north. By protecting our arctic sovereignty, we are protecting Canada's sovereignty.

Our government will continue to take our responsibilities on the world stage very seriously. Our men and women in uniform, and those who work alongside them, have given us all much to be proud of as they take a leading role in bringing stability in the future to Afghanistan. It is never easy and there is always sacrifice.

That is what Canada has stood for, for more than a century: being prepared to do the right thing, for the right reasons, on behalf of those who cannot do it for themselves.

My three trips to Afghanistan and my continuous contact with the Canadian Forces have given me a deep sense of appreciation and gratitude for the Canadian soldier, sailor, airman and airwoman. We ask so much of them and they always respond.

We have an obligation to ensure that our military has all the necessary equipment and training at their disposal and that we look after them and their families when the mission is completed. We made incredible progress in that area in the last two and a half years, and we intend to keep at it.

Beyond strengthening our security at home and abroad, the Canada-first defence strategy would deliver significant economic benefits for Canadians. This unprecedented commitment of stable, long-term funding would provide good jobs and new opportunities for the thousands of Canadians who work in defence industries and benefit the dozens of communities across the country that provide support for military bases.

Canada's aerospace and defence industries in all parts of the country can compete with anyone and they will continue to earn their business the old-fashioned way: by being the best.

The real measure of success in politics is not the number of times our name is in the headlines or the number of speeches we make in this chamber; it is in whether we are delivering the real, tangible results for Canadians on issues that matter to them.

On keeping families safe, the related legislation may not make the pundits' hearts flutter, but knowing our efforts are protecting children, seniors and other vulnerable Canadians from becoming victims of crime is one of the most important results any of us could strive for.

On healthy families, it may not make the nightly news that parents have more peace of mind that their children's toys are safe. But guess what? The parents themselves certainly do care.

Families do not want to spend their time focusing on the government. Nor should they. They are right to expect that their government will spend its time focusing on them. They are right to expect a government that will work together to keep Canada safe and secure.

There are unquestionably some tough times ahead for Canada and all other countries around the world. What is required is sure and steady leadership. Our government has shown that leadership at home and our Prime Minister has shown that leadership abroad, on the foreign stage at recent meetings of the G-20 and APEC.

As only 2% of the world economy, we cannot go it alone and we cannot avoid the impact of the current global economic crisis. What we can avoid is panic and overheated rhetoric, which serves no one.

I look forward to working with all hon. members in this House to protect Canada's future for Canadians at home and to preserve Canada's place in the community of nations.

RESUMPTION OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS IN REPLYSpeech From The Throne

3:30 p.m.

Liberal

Larry Bagnell Liberal Yukon, YT

Mr. Speaker, I know the government is interested in reducing crime, but what exactly does the government plan in relation to the things that have actually proven successful, that is, preventative measures, removing the root causes, new forms of training and rehabilitation, and alternative sentencing. We can talk to experts like the Chief of Police in Ottawa and the various witnesses who came to committee last time before some misguided legislation. They explained the success rate, for instance, of the aboriginal justice strategy, which I know the minister is supportive of, and I thank him for that. However, we need permanent funding for that, not just three years of funding. It has reduced recidivism and made Canada much safer in the areas it has been used, where it has been pioneered. What is the government doing to follow up on those proven methods of reducing crime?

RESUMPTION OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS IN REPLYSpeech From The Throne

3:30 p.m.

Conservative

Laurie Hawn Conservative Edmonton Centre, AB

Mr. Speaker, there were many issues in the question by my colleague, the hon. member for Yukon.

The simple fact is there is no one button we can push to end crime or to get a grip on crime. We have to attack it from all aspects, from the root causes, as the member mentioned, all the way to the other end. When the system fails, the parents fail or the person fails and a serious crime is committed, there are serious consequences for serious acts. We can no longer have people involved in the revolving door of justice. We have to attack both ends of it. We have to work with communities. Personally, I think it goes back to families. We have to somehow instill in families a better ethic for taking care of each other. Quite frankly, I think we used to do a much better job of that.

We have to look carefully at examples, as the member said, of things that do work, not just in Canada, but in other jurisdictions as well. We have to work across party lines, which we do pretty well with most committees in this place, to consider good ideas wherever they come from.

It is not as simple as we are going to do A, B and C. It will be an evolving process. We have to keep an open mind. Ultimately, at top of mind has to be what is best for Canadian citizens.

RESUMPTION OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS IN REPLYSpeech From The Throne

3:35 p.m.

Liberal

Shawn Murphy Liberal Charlottetown, PE

Mr. Speaker, the member talked about the leadership of the Prime Minister. One question I want to pose is on the whole issue of the deficit.

We just went through an election campaign, from September 2 to October 14. That question was asked of the Prime Minister almost each and every day and each and every day he said that there would be no deficit, that it would be irresponsible for the government to go into deficit and that the suggestion was ridiculous.

Now we are hearing that the suggestion is not ridiculous, that a deficit is essential. The Parliamentary Budget Officer said that it was not caused by world economic events, but by policies of the Conservative government. Obviously the Prime Minister knew.

Considering that the Prime Minister knew exactly the financial situation of the government, knew exactly we were going into deficit, why did he not tell the Canadian people?

RESUMPTION OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS IN REPLYSpeech From The Throne

3:35 p.m.

Conservative

Laurie Hawn Conservative Edmonton Centre, AB

Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for the short speech.

The fact is that the situation is changing rapidly. It is deteriorating rapidly. Anybody who has studied it knows that. The Parliamentary Budget Officer has an opinion and he is entitled to it.

The simple fact is the Prime Minister took action a year ago, the kind of action the United Kingdom government is taking today. We are ahead of the United Kingdom by about a year.

As I said in my remarks, as 2% of the world's economy, there is no way we can avoid what is going on in the rest of the world. The other 98% will take us along with it, whether we like it or not.

What we can do is take measures that will alleviate to the extent possible, and it may not be very much, the impact on Canadians. We need a government, a Prime Minister, who is not afraid to make tough decisions, who is not afraid to lead. That is something we had been missing for many years until January 23, 2006. We have it now. We will be better for it and all Canadians will be proud of us and will thank us.

RESUMPTION OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS IN REPLYSpeech From The Throne

3:35 p.m.

Liberal

John McKay Liberal Scarborough—Guildwood, ON

Mr. Speaker, that previous answer was utter nonsense. The Department of Finance tracks the government revenues daily and weekly. If the Prime Minister did not know that we were in a recession during the election campaign, he is grossly incompetent. Either the Prime Minister was economical with the truth during the election campaign, or he is grossly incompetent. Those are the two choices he has.

The irony is that the Conservatives are soliciting ideas from members on this side as to how to get out of this mess, after having spent literally millions of dollars trashing the Leader of the Opposition, ridiculing him, destroying him in public. They ridiculed whatever ideas he put forward, and then a few weeks later they adopted them as their own.

I wonder whether the hon. member thinks that before the Conservatives ask for help from the opposition, possibly an apology might be in order.

RESUMPTION OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS IN REPLYSpeech From The Throne

3:35 p.m.

Conservative

Laurie Hawn Conservative Edmonton Centre, AB

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my hon. colleague for the incredibly non-partisan question. It is incredible. We talked about less partisanship in this place. We talked about working together to face the challenge that Canada has which is not of Canada's making at all. We are 2% of the world's economy. The other 98% is going to drag us down. The government has taken leadership. The Prime Minister has taken leadership. Canadians obviously recognize that with the results of the last election.

It would be nice if we could come to this place and work through a problem that is facing all Canadians. Whether they are Liberal, Conservative, Bloc, NDP or independent, it does not matter; we need to work together with each other in a non-partisan way. It would be really refreshing if that hon. member and some of his colleagues would take that to heart.

RESUMPTION OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS IN REPLYSpeech From The Throne

3:35 p.m.

Liberal

Larry Bagnell Liberal Yukon, YT

Mr. Speaker, as the member suggested, I am going to make the effort to be non-partisan while working on a problem.

I would not expect him to be familiar with this issue because it is a local issue, but the Minister of Justice and the Minister of Indian Affairs are working with the Teslin Tlingit Council on an innovative justice strategy. The government should be proud of this process because it is going to create something very new that is definitely going to reduce crime. I compliment the Minister of Justice and the Minister of Indian Affairs for working on it.

I would like assurance from the member that he will help to make sure this continues to move along as quickly as possible. It has been worked on for a number of years now and it is getting near the finalization date.

I would like the member, as he said, to work in a cooperative and non-partisan way with the ministers and staff of those departments who need to be in a few final meetings to conclude this excellent new system. It could be a pilot project for the rest of the country.

RESUMPTION OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS IN REPLYSpeech From The Throne

3:40 p.m.

Conservative

Laurie Hawn Conservative Edmonton Centre, AB

Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague from Yukon for that information. I am not particularly familiar with that specific program. I am very supportive of anything that will make life better for aboriginal members of Canada's society.

Edmonton Centre has a very large aboriginal population and they have some tremendous disadvantages of which we are all well aware. We are all trying our best to work on resolving these issues. We can have different ideas about the road we are on, but we are all focused on the same destination.

I am quite happy to promise my personal support for anything that works, for anything that will make life better for that segment of Canadians, because that will ultimately make life better for all of us.

RESUMPTION OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS IN REPLYSpeech From The Throne

3:40 p.m.

Liberal

John McKay Liberal Scarborough—Guildwood, ON

Mr. Speaker, for months the Liberal Party had been warning the Government of Canada that it was running perilously close to a deficit. Its spending was out of control at an unsustainable rate and it had reduced its revenues and was running itself toward a deficit. These are simple facts and our warnings were ignored. In fact, our warnings were ridiculed.

When the Leader of the Opposition put forward several ideas as to how the government could right its ship of state, he too was ridiculed and literally millions of dollars were spent on destroying the man's reputation.

Now apparently the Conservatives want some help. First, our warnings have been ignored. Second, we have been ridiculed. Third, we have been asked for help. Fourth, the Prime Minister was economical with the truth during the election.

Can the member give me any kind of coherent reason as to why the Liberal Party of Canada should help bail out the Conservative Party because--

RESUMPTION OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS IN REPLYSpeech From The Throne

3:40 p.m.

Conservative

The Deputy Speaker Conservative Andrew Scheer

The hon. parliamentary secretary has just 30 seconds left.

RESUMPTION OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS IN REPLYSpeech From The Throne

3:40 p.m.

Conservative

Laurie Hawn Conservative Edmonton Centre, AB

Mr. Speaker, it would take much longer than 30 seconds to answer.

We certainly are not looking for a bailout from that party, the party that did a lot in terms of spending. In talking about out of control spending, during the last two years of that party's government, spending was out of control. We have been spending money on the things the Liberals neglected for years. For 13 long years they neglected many programs. When we became government and looked at the files, there was nothing in them because nothing had been done.

It is a matter of picking up the ball and taking care of the neglect of the Liberal government. That is also not being economical with the truth. It is a fact.