House of Commons Hansard #7 of the 40th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was riding.
Denis Coderre Liberal Bourassa, QC
Mr. Speaker, with all due respect, he can try to wriggle out of this but one cannot do indirectly what is not allowed directly. Hansard is clear. My name did appear and I would ask my colleague not to try this again. I would simply ask him to say he withdraws his words. I would also like a ruling from you on this.
Lawrence Cannon Conservative Pontiac, QC
Mr. Speaker, I have no intention whatsoever of withdrawing my words, but I shall do so reluctantly if you oblige me to.
The Speaker Liberal Peter Milliken
In my opinion, the problem here is that the minister did not use the member's name with the intent of naming him. I am afraid that I did not hear the other members' comments at the time, but he responded to something someone else said. That is why I did not say anything. He also said “I did not say 'one name', I said 'another name'”. Therefore, he did not mention the member's name in his capacity as a member of Parliament or as a member of this House. He was simply clarifying the pronunciation of what he did say.
I do not think it is necessary for him to retract his words. He explained himself. I hope that this explanation is acceptable for all hon. members. I think that the situation has been adequately explained and that the hon. member for Bourassa was not really named in the reply. It was to clarify something that another member had said. I consider that this situation has been resolved, and I think we can move forward.
Denis Coderre Liberal Bourassa, QC
What I understand is that there are double standards in the House.
Stockwell Day ConservativeMinister of International Trade and Minister for the Asia-Pacific Gateway
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, a report entitled, “Canada's Engagement in Afghanistan”. This report is further to the recommendations of the independent panel on Afghanistan, also known as the Manley panel.
I might just add at this time that we continue to be indebted to our men and women in uniform who are making a difference in Afghanistan, saving lives and protecting freedoms of everybody. We appreciate that.
Peter MacKay ConservativeMinister of National Defence and Minister for the Atlantic Gateway
Mr. Speaker, I want to correct the record. Yesterday in question period I responded to a question from my critic, the member for Vancouver South, where I referenced 35,000 documents when in fact it was 3,500. I wanted the record to be clear and pristine, in keeping with your efforts, Mr. Speaker.
Yasmin Ratansi Liberal Don Valley East, ON
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1), I have the honour to present to the House, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian delegation of the Canadian group of the Interparliamentary Union concerning its participation at the 116th IPU Assembly and related meetings in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia from April 29 to May 4, 2007.
Bernard Patry Liberal Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian delegation of the Canadian branch of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie respecting its participation at the APF Network of Women Parliamentarians Seminar on the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, held in Nouakchott, Mauritania, on May 21 and 22, 2008.
Leon Benoit Conservative Vegreville—Wainwright, AB
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1) I have the honour to present to the House, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian NATO Parliamentary Association respecting its participation in the visit to the United States by the defence and security committee held in Washington, D.C., the United States of America, January 28 to February 2.
Also, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1) I have the honour to present to the House, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian NATO Parliamentary Association respecting its participation in the visit to Turkey by the sub-committee on democratic governance held in Ankara and Istanbul, Turkey, March 24 to 27.
Mark Holland Liberal Ajax—Pickering, ON
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-229, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (cruelty to animals).
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce, yet again, a bill dealing with animal cruelty. It is my hope that this will be the session when we finally pass laws that modernize our antiquated animal cruelty laws.
The bill I am presenting is the result of more than 10 years of compromise among the animal welfare groups, the animal use industries, this House and the other place, and has been passed by the House of Commons on two separate occasions, which gives me hope that it will be swiftly passed now that it has been introduced.
It is also my pleasure to introduce a bill that would amend the Criminal Code to add new sections for animal cruelty offences.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
Mark Holland Liberal Ajax—Pickering, ON
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-230, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (cruelty to animals).
Mr. Speaker, as I said earlier, the House has passed very similar legislation. In this instance, I referenced earlier that I was bringing forward a bill to close loopholes that exist within our current Criminal Code.
With so many SPCA officers coming forward to say that they see horrific abuse against animals that is not acted upon, that people get away with it all the time, that those same places have later reports of domestic abuse or abuse against children and when we know this is a precursor to other types of activities of violence against human beings, it is something that is long overdue. These laws have not been properly modernized since Victorian times, over 100 years ago.
It is my hope that both this bill and the one I introduced just moments ago can be passed swiftly.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
Albina Guarnieri Liberal Mississauga East—Cooksville, ON
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-231, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Corrections and Conditional Release Act (consecutive sentences).
Mr. Speaker, volume discounts for rapists and murderers, that is the law in Canada today. It is called concurrent sentencing that cheapens life. The life of the second, the third or the eleventh victim does not count in the sentencing equation. The lowest price is the law every day in our courts.
This was true when this bill passed third reading in the House by a 4:1 margin in 1999. It was true last month when the premier of Saskatchewan called for consecutive sentencing when a child killer who confessed to sexually assaulting 40 women was freed without serving one day for any of those 40 victims.
Consecutive sentences for multiple murderers and rapists remain the only way to bring proportionality to sentencing and bring a measure of justice to victims of immeasurable crimes.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-232, An Act to amend the Supreme Court Act (understanding the official languages).
Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the seconder for this bill, the member for Nickel Belt. This bill would amend the Supreme Court Act (understanding the official languages). Canada has two official languages. To ensure the equality of both official languages, the bill amends the Supreme Court Act and introduces a new requirement for judges appointed to the Supreme Court to understand English and French without the assistance of an interpreter.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-233, An Act to amend the Employment Insurance Act (benefit period increase for regional rate of unemployment).
Mr. Speaker, this is a very important bill. Once again, I would like to thank my colleague from Nickel Belt for seconding this bill.
This bill would amend the Employment Insurance Act. This bill would increase benefit periods under the Employment Insurance Act based on regional rates of unemployment. Now, more than ever, in light of the economic slowdown, we need an employment insurance system that belongs to workers.This bill will help Canadian workers who lose their jobs, particularly given current economic conditions. The program belongs to the workers and businesses that contribute to it.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
moved for leave to introduce C-234, An Act to amend the Employment Insurance Act (length of benefit period).
Mr. Speaker, as I am sure you have noticed, I have many excellent bills that this House could pass—and hopefully will. This bill would increase the duration of benefits, first by providing that a week in which at least 15 hours were worked counts as a week of insurable employment, and second by providing that every 30 hours of the total hours worked counts as a week of insurable employment.
Once again, the bill would improve the employment insurance system. Perhaps I am repeating myself, but this employment insurance system belongs to the workers and to the companies who contributed to it, and not to the government, which would like to use it to balance the budget and not run a deficit, to the detriment of workers.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
Tony Martin NDP Sault Ste. Marie, ON
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-235, An Act to amend the Canada Labour Code (occupational disease registry).
Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to present this bill for the consideration of the House and I thank the member for Hamilton Mountain for seconding this important legislation. She would understand, as the labour critic for our caucus, that the steelworkers in Sault Ste. Marie at Local 2251 are in the midst of a very aggressive and active campaign to bring forward people who have been hurt or became sick and can trace that back to the workplace.
The registry would make it a lot easier for them to gather that information. It would make it a lot easier for workers across the country to gather the information they would need to go before insurance boards and other kinds of compensation boards to get recompense for their sickness or their injury. It would also give workers information that they sometimes would want in terms of industries and their record for occupational health and diseases concern. This is really important in the world we now live in where labour is so mobile.
I am happy today to table this and I hope that at some point the House will deem to pass it into law.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
Tony Martin NDP Sault Ste. Marie, ON
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-236, An Act to change the name of the electoral district of Sault Ste. Marie.
Mr. Speaker, this comes from my community. There is an interest in having the district Algoma recognized in the name of my riding. Historically we have had Algoma attached to many of our major industries, Algoma Steel, Algoma Central Railroad and other important institutions in Sault Ste. Marie, the Algoma District School Board, for example.
A poll of my constituents has been done across the riding, giving them three options. They think this one would be appropriate to the cause.
My riding of Sault Ste. Marie is situated between three of the major Great Lakes. It is a wonderful place in the country, and I am very pleased to be its representative. Today ask the House for its support in this effort to change its name so it would more adequately reflect the nature and breadth of that wonderful riding.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
Mauril Bélanger Liberal Ottawa—Vanier, ON
Mr. Speaker, today, for the fifth consecutive day, I wish to present a petition not only from the people of Ottawa—Vanier, the riding I have the honour of representing, but from both sides of the national capital region, Quebec and Ontario.
The petitioners call upon the NCC, as the representative of the Government of Canada involved in the file of building a bridge across the river to remove the heavy truck traffic from the of the nation's capital, to do so in an appropriate location and not to move the trucks from one neighbourhood of established communities to another such community.
They call upon the Government of Canada to instruct the National Capital Commission to proceed with a detailed assessment of an interprovincial bridge linking Canotek Industrial Park to the Gatineau airport, which is option 7 of the first phase of the interprovincial crossings environmental assessment.
Ron Cannan Conservative Kelowna—Lake Country, BC
Mr. Speaker, I rise to table a petition on behalf of numerous Canadians. The petitioners state that Canada must act to stop the humanitarian catastrophe in Darfur.
Sukh Dhaliwal Liberal Newton—North Delta, BC
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today to present a petition by residents of British Columbia on the conflict in Darfur, forwarded by Simon Child. He, along with these concerned citizens, have said that the conflict has killed 300,000 people and displaced 2 million more.
The petitioners call upon the government to increase humanitarian assistance to relieve the suffering and to press for peace talks. As they have said, it is our duty as citizens of a fortunate nation to help those who are desperately in need.
Dan McTeague Liberal Pickering—Scarborough East, ON
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present two petitions signed by Canadians across my riding and across Ontario and Canada who seek in the first instance and, most important, that consideration be given and international aid efforts renewed to help increase our aid to the victims of conflict in Darfur.
Dan McTeague Liberal Pickering—Scarborough East, ON
Mr. Speaker, the second petition is from the same Canadian groups and individuals.
The petitioners call upon the Canadian government and Parliament to amend the Health of Animals Act with regard to long distance transportation of farm animals consistent with welfare norms usually established for husbandry.
Hedy Fry Liberal Vancouver Centre, BC
Mr. Speaker, I wish to present a petition to the House from the people of the city of White Rock and the residents of British Columbia.
The petitioners wish to draw to the attention of the House that genocide has taken place in the Darfur region of Sudan and that approximately 300,000 people have been killed and 2 million more have been displaced. The Sudanese government has delayed the deployment of a 26,000-troop peacekeeping force in the region.
Therefore, they call upon Parliament to pressure the Sudanese government to allow the full 26,000 UNAMID peacekeeping force in the region, to pressure the Sudanese government to begin peace talks and accords with the Janjaweed, the Sudan Liberation Movement and the Justice and Equality Movement, to increase land-based humanitarian relief efforts, to pressure the United States and Canadian governments and other world leaders to increase land-based humanitarian relief efforts, to offer helicopters to the UNAMID peacekeeping force, to persuade the Sudanese government to comply with the jurisdiction of the ICC and the United Nations Security Council resolution 1593 and to encourage surrounding governments to allow refugees sanctuary.
Jean Crowder NDP Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC
Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions to present. One of them is very timely. It is about the recent job losses in the forestry industry of British Columbia which has caused tremendous financial hardship for forestry workers. It has to do specifically with the processing times for applications for employment insurance. Some workers have had to wait up to four weeks.
Unemployed forestry workers have paid a significant portion of their income over the years into the EI fund and the federal government has collected $57 billion more in EI premiums than it has paid out in EI benefits since restricting eligibility in 1996.
The petitioners specifically call for action on the several initiatives put forward by the member for Acadie—Bathurst in a number of private members' bills. They have asked for a just transition fund as well as for changes to EI.