Debates of Nov. 27th, 2008

Red Cross Young Humanitarian Award

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The hon. member for Sarnia--Lambton.

Violence Against Women

[Patricia Davidson, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, December 6 is Canada's National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. December 6, 2008, marks 19 years since 14 young women were murdered at l'École Polytechnique in Montreal, targeted because of their gender.

To address the problem of violence against aboriginal women and girls, the Government of Canada is partnering with the Native Women's Association of Canada on the Sisters in Spirit initiative.

In budget 2008, the government announced the development of an action plan and it will include further work on violence against women, including in the aboriginal communities.

The government is also investing $2.2 million for up to five new shelters for aboriginal women to use to escape family violence. The government co-sponsored the National Aboriginal Women's Summits which focused on violence and other quality of life issues.

As we commemorate December 6, 1989, let us resolve to work even harder for change, for peace and for an end to violence in all its forms.

Governor General's Persons Award

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Mr. Speaker, recently, one of my constituents, Ms. Shelagh Day, received the prestigious Governor General's Persons Award.

This honour recognizes a lifetime of work on equality, social and economic rights for all Canadian women. I rise to offer my congratulations and thanks on behalf of my constituents and our entire caucus.

Vancouver Kingsway is home to many outstanding women such as Ms. Day. Dorothy Inglis, a past recipient of the Persons Award, was instrumental in securing equality rights in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and also hails from Vancouver Kingsway.

We applaud these two women, especially Ms. Day on her recent impressive honour. I do so today because this week we celebrate the White Ribbon campaign, an initiative that urges men to speak out against violence against women. Because she has devoted her life to improving respect for women, it is particularly apt to applaud her efforts when we are remembering that we still have a long way to go.

Terrorism

[Nina Grewal, Conservative, Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I wish to condemn the acts of terror yesterday that occurred in Mumbai.

Reports of over 100 dead and hundreds more wounded have shocked people around the world. Many Canadians, particularly those of Indian descent, are deeply troubled by the Mumbai attacks yesterday and earlier today.

The bombings this week and in recent months are not the answer and democracies must stand together in opposition to such heinous and cowardly attacks.

I hope peace and order are soon restored in Mumbai. Many of us have travelled to Mumbai and India and see its great potential as an emerging partner for Canada in an ever more interconnected world.

Our thoughts today are with the people of India at this troubling time.

Mumbai Attacks

[Jean Dorion, Bloc, Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher, QC]

Mr. Speaker, horror and indignation. These words express our sentiments as the attacks continue in India's financial capital, Mumbai.

Last night, a terrorist group calling itself the Deccan Mujahedeen simultaneously carried out ten attacks in nine public places. Busy places were targeted. These men, armed with grenades and Kalashnikovs, opened fire gratuitously on passersby and foreigners were targeted as hostages. Canadians may be among the large and growing list of victims. So far 125 people have been reported dead and more than 327 injured.

The Bloc Québécois urges the Canadian government to bring home as quickly as possible all Canadian citizens in the affected area who wish to return. We also would like to extend our most sincere condolences to the families of victims.

Terrorism

[Navdeep Bains, Liberal, Mississauga—Brampton South, ON]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday we watched in horror as terrorists attacked targets throughout the Indian city of Mumbai. The terrorists killed indiscriminately and, according to recent reports, have taken Canadian hostages.

Canada has strong personal links to India and there are many Canadian families, including many of my constituents who are at home right now trying to call loved ones to ensure they are safe and sound.

These attacks only serve to remind us that there are still those who use fear, hatred and terror to subvert democracy. They cannot and will not succeed.

I am confident that our government is doing everything it can to assist Canadians and the Indian government in dealing with this crisis.

I am sure all parliamentarians would join me in condemning this cowardly act. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the people of Mumbai who are suffering so much right now.

[Deepak Obhrai, Conservative, Calgary East, AB]

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the government and the people of Canada, I stand today to condemn, in the strongest terms, the deplorable terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India. The use of violence and terror against innocent civilians is appalling and must not be tolerated.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs spoke this morning with the Indian Foreign Minister Mukherjee to express Canada's sincere condolences for those injured and killed in these cowardly attacks.

Canada stands united with India against all forms of terrorism. The ties that bind our two countries are strong and these attacks have only strengthened our resolve to continue working together for the mutual security and prosperity of our peoples.

We continue to work closely with the Indian authorities to assist any Canadians who may be directly affected by these attacks.

Bay of Fundy

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

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the Bay of Fundy Tourism Partnership for nominating the Bay of Fundy as one of the seven wonders of nature.

This international contest will recognize the most spectacular nature spots in the whole world, and the Bay of Fundy is certainly one of those.

It is the only place in the world where we can see tides go up and down 50 feet, twice a day.

It is the only place in the world where we can see islands, such as Isle Haute and Spencers Island, that have been undisturbed for thousands of years.

It is the only place in the world where we can see 12 species of whales, seals and endangered species all the time.

It is the only place in the world with great villages, with seafaring history, such as Parrsboro, Port Greville, Advocate and Spencers Island where the Mary Celeste was first launched and sailed off into history.

I ask all members to consider voting to support the Bay of Fundy as one of the seven wonders of nature at www.new7wonders.com.

Foreign Affairs

[Stéphane Dion, Liberal, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, let me give the Prime Minister the opportunity to inform the House and all Canadians about the status of Canadians at risk in the Mumbai situation.

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the Leader of the Opposition.

I telephoned the Indian High Commissioner today and the Minister of Foreign Affairs telephoned his counterpart to express our condolences and our solidarity with their country against the terrorist attacks in Mumbai.

We would obviously like to extend all our sympathies to anyone from any country and their families who have been affected by loss of life or injury in this terrible tragedy. The ministry of foreign affairs is doing all it can to contact and help Canadian citizens who are affected by this.

Let me be very clear. We join with the entire world in expressing our outrage against this kind of unforgivable hatred, brutality and violence, and we will always stand with our friends in the democratic world against this.

The Economy

[Stéphane Dion, Liberal, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, on February 24, 1998, Paul Martin rose in this House to announce to Canadians that the Liberals had brought them through to the other side of the $42 billion Conservative deficit. For the next 10 years, Canadians enjoyed surpluses, even in difficult times. During the election, the Prime Minister said that talk of the possibility of a deficit in Canada was ridiculous.

Why did the Prime Minister mislead Canadians?

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, as I have said many times, Canada is not currently running a deficit and this is thanks to the good management of the Minister of Finance, who will present his economic and fiscal update later today. The Leader of the Opposition knows that, in Washington, the leaders of the G20 agreed on the need for a global economic stimulus. We will do this along with the other countries, if need be. We have the strongest economic outlook in the G7.

[Stéphane Dion, Liberal, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, this is truly a dark day for Canada. We are facing an out-of-touch Prime Minister who has driven Canada into deficit, a Prime Minister who is paralyzed in the face of an economic crisis, and a Prime Minister with no plan to get our economy back on track.

Is the Prime Minister even able to move beyond cheap political games to do anything about what matters to Canadians: the economy and their jobs?

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, due to the strong and early actions of the government, this country has the strongest fiscal and economic position in the G-7. It is recognized by every country in the world at the international events that I have been at.

This country is virtually alone at this moment in continuing to run a surplus. We will not go into structural deficit. We will continue to have the best fiscal position in the industrialized world, and that is a strength all Canadians want.

Automotive Industry

[Gerard Kennedy, Liberal, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Mr. Speaker, from vehicle assembly plants to parts suppliers, dealers and researchers, every community in Canada is exposed to a major company failure in the auto sector. A week ago it was 70 layoffs in Cape Breton, yesterday 855 layoffs at Magna plants in Aurora and Newmarket, and today it is 200 more at Linamar in Guelph.

The fact is that the Conservatives have known for months that major car manufacturers were in serious trouble, and yet they have done nothing except send their minister to sit in the waiting room of the U.S. Congress.

Why is it this minister has not even gotten off the starting blocks in doing something for hard-working families?

[Tony Clement, Conservative, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, nothing could be further from the truth. One of my first actions as industry minister was to meet with the Canadian CEOs to get their picture on the situation. I then went to meet the American senior executives and senior policy-makers in Washington. I did so not only alone, on behalf of the Government of Canada, but I had with me the Government of Ontario. We are working in partnership.

Members may know the Premier of Ontario, Dalton McGuinty. He said that we need to be really thoughtful and make sure we get this right, we are talking about what could be a very expensive support package, and if we are going to do this, taxpayers in particular want us to do it right. We are with Dalton.

[Gerard Kennedy, Liberal, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Mr. Speaker, as much as the Conservatives try to avoid it, there is one federal government in this country that is not acting and it is the one across the way.

Hard-working families deserve better. In the past two years, the Conservatives have already lost 45,000 jobs related to the automotive sector. The Conference Board of Canada is saying that we will lose 100,000 more. In other words, the Canadian workforce will decrease by an amount equivalent to the population of a city the size of Sherbrooke.

According to John Gray, the mayor of Oshawa, dithering would be catastrophic, yet we have a supposed Minister of Industry who is now--

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The hon. Minister of Industry.

[Tony Clement, Conservative, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, right now we are gathering the facts that will allow us to make the right decision.

We believe in doing the right thing for the taxpayers. That means making sure that whatever decision we make on any issue affecting economic policy, we have all of the facts on the table. I know that is alien to the shoot, fire, aim gang over there, but on this side of the House, we care about the decisions we make. We want to make sure they are the right decisions for the people of Canada and that they are the right decisions, incidentally, for the auto sector as well.

Political Party Funding

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, according to today's newspapers, the Prime Minister will use the economic update as an opportunity to make cuts to political party financing. Instead of tackling the economic crisis, the Prime Minister is actually manufacturing a democratic crisis

Instead of slashing funding to political parties for reasons that are purely partisan, why does the Prime Minister not tackle the real problem, the economic crisis rocking the entire world for the past few weeks?

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance will deliver his economic and fiscal statement a little later today and I ask the leader of the Bloc to wait for that statement. However, I can assure this House that we will take measures, just as we took measures last year, to address this crisis based on how it develops.

Canada is in the strongest position of any G-7 country and we intend to maintain that position.

The Economy

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, a few days ago, the Bloc Québécois proposed some 20 measures to stimulate the economy. The government thanked us in the House, even going so far as to say that it appreciated our suggestions.

Will the Prime Minister finally move from words to deeds and implement today—not in three months—a real recovery plan to help the economy and the public?

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the government did many things last year. A year ago, for example, we cut the GST. The British government finally decided just this week to do the same in view of the economic crisis.

We are going to act today and will take more action in the weeks to come, especially in cooperation with the provinces. I am planning on meeting the premiers in January to discuss joint measures.

[Robert Bouchard, Bloc, Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, instead of manufacturing a democratic crisis, the Prime Minister would be well advised to do something about the economic crisis. The Bloc Québécois has proposed measures to help the unemployed, older workers, seniors, young people and families.

Will the Prime Minister quit trying to distract us, assume his responsibilities, and introduce a recovery plan incorporating the Bloc’s proposals?

[Ted Menzies, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, there was not much talk about jobs in that question. I am not sure if it was an economic question or not.

I rose in this House the other day and I thanked the hon. members from the Bloc Québécois for their suggestions. The finance minister, again the next day, thanked those members as well. We would encourage other members in this House to do the same thing.

The finance minister advised the Bloc that he would take those suggestions under advisement and will be dealing with that when it comes time for our 2009 budget.