House of Commons Hansard #101 of the 40th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was internet.

Topics

InfrastructureOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Peter Milliken

Order. The hon. Minister of Transport.

InfrastructureOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Ottawa West—Nepean Ontario

Conservative

John Baird ConservativeMinister of Transport

Mr. Speaker, while those of us on this side of the House are focused on jobs, are focused on the economy, are focused on the plight of the unemployed and on what we can do to make this country a brighter and better place, we have crossed political lines.

Look what the Liberal deputy premier of Ontario said:

I think overall when we see how all the infrastructure dollars that are stimulus related have been allocated, I am pretty confident that there is going to be a very, very equitable regional distribution.

I agree with Mr. Smitherman.

The bottom line is that the member does not like us working with the Province of Ontario. If he cannot get along with Dalton McGuinty, then thank goodness there are those of us on this side of the House who--

InfrastructureOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Peter Milliken

The hon. member for Saint-Jean.

AfghanistanOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Bloc

Claude Bachand Bloc Saint-Jean, QC

Mr. Speaker, Richard Colvin, who informed the government of possible cases of torture in Afghanistan, was told by the Conservative government that his lawyer's fees would not be covered even though he had obtained preliminary approval.

The only explanation for the government's reversal is that it does not want the truth to come out about the Afghan prisoners who were tortured in Afghanistan.

AfghanistanOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Pontiac Québec

Conservative

Lawrence Cannon ConservativeMinister of Foreign Affairs

Mr. Speaker, in reply to the direct question of whether or not the fees of Mr. Colvin's lawyer will be paid, the answer is yes. There are procedures to be followed and the government will ensure that his fees are paid under the appropriate circumstances.

AfghanistanOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Bloc

Claude Bachand Bloc Saint-Jean, QC

Mr. Speaker, the government is asking to see the notes and the names of the people consulted by the lawyer for the individual in question before making a decision on payment.

Is this not a government attempt to breach client-solicitor privilege? Furthermore, it is engaging in shameless blackmail by threatening Mr. Colvin in this way.

Are the Conservatives not showing, once again, that all their gobbledygook about transparency is sheer hypocrisy?

AfghanistanOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Pontiac Québec

Conservative

Lawrence Cannon ConservativeMinister of Foreign Affairs

Mr. Speaker, the gobbledygook champion in this House does not sit on this side but on the other side.

I just said that these bills will be paid. There are procedures to be followed; everyone follows them.

I hope that the member will acknowledge the importance of following procedures. At that point, we will be in a position to defray the expenses associated with the individual's defence.

The EnvironmentOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Bloc

Bernard Bigras Bloc Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC

Mr. Speaker, despite his promise in September, the Minister of the Environment has acknowledged that the Conservative government will not table a regulatory framework before the Copenhagen conference on climate change. This is the third postponement in three years.

Does the minister of oil companies realize that Canada, through its lack of leadership, is sabotaging the negotiations leading to a follow-up agreement on the Kyoto protocol?

The EnvironmentOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Calgary Centre-North Alberta

Conservative

Jim Prentice ConservativeMinister of the Environment

Mr. Speaker, our plan is clear: we will reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by 20% by 2020. That is the North American target and we are using a North American approach.

I might add, about the Copenhagen conference, that it is important to have a national approach that can fit into an international agreement. We have to maintain a flexible approach at the negotiating table in order to increase our chances for success.

The EnvironmentOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Bloc

Bernard Bigras Bloc Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC

Mr. Speaker, the minister has just shown that he is not a minister of the environment; he is a minister of the oil companies. That is the reality.

By refusing to table this regulatory framework and by requiring Canada to have less stringent reduction targets than Europe and Japan, the Conservatives are showing that they do not intend to negotiate in good faith at the Copenhagen conference.

Will the minister admit that Canada has no credibility when it comes to global warming? That is Canada's international reputation.

The EnvironmentOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Calgary Centre-North Alberta

Conservative

Jim Prentice ConservativeMinister of the Environment

Mr. Speaker, Bloc members are going to have to decide if they want to continue to support NDP publicity stunts or if they want to be supportive of real environmental policy.

Reductions that have been put forward by the NDP and the Bloc are not achievable in a Canadian context considering our geography, our climate, the nature of our industrial base, and our population and economic growth since 1990.

This government will press forward with a continental approach, a suggested North American cap and trade approach, the clean energy dialogue, tailpipe emissions standards, aviation marine standards, all the good things that the Bloc should support.

HealthOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Liberal

Carolyn Bennett Liberal St. Paul's, ON

Mr. Speaker, first the minister ordered 50.4 million doses of adjuvanted vaccine and told the people of Canada that it was safe for everyone. Suddenly, the government put in a special order for non-adjuvanted vaccine for pregnant women. Then it said the order was going to be late. Then it said not to worry, that they could take the first vaccine. Now it has ordered 200,000 more doses of non-adjuvanted vaccine from Australia so pregnant women do not have to wait for the non-adjuvanted. At the same time, the government is saying the adjuvanted vaccine is safe for them. This is dizzying.

What are the pregnant women of Canada supposed to believe?

HealthOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Nunavut Nunavut

Conservative

Leona Aglukkaq ConservativeMinister of Health

Mr. Speaker, the Chief Public Health Officer and the medical officers of provinces and territories have all said that both vaccines are safe for pregnant women. We take their advice very seriously and every Canadian who wants a vaccine will receive it.

We are urging Canadians to get the vaccine because this is the best way to protect themselves and their families.

HealthOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Liberal

Carolyn Bennett Liberal St. Paul's, ON

Mr. Speaker, MPs' offices across the country are inundated with people who do not know what to do. One woman who has previously worked in a--

HealthOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

An hon. member

That's not true.

HealthOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

An hon. member

Nonsense.

HealthOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Some hon. members

Oh, oh!

HealthOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Liberal

Carolyn Bennett Liberal St. Paul's, ON

This is not funny.

Mr. Speaker, one woman--

HealthOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Some hon. members

Oh, oh!

HealthOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Peter Milliken

Order, please. The hon. member for St. Paul's has the floor. She will want to address her question to the chair.

The hon. member for St. Paul's.

HealthOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Liberal

Carolyn Bennett Liberal St. Paul's, ON

Mr. Speaker, my colleagues may laugh.

This woman has worked in pandemic preparedness her whole life. She is 21 weeks pregnant and is agonizing over her decision whether to the take the adjuvant vaccine or wait for the non-adjuvant. She has done her research, she has spoken to six obstetricians, and she still does not know what to do.

How can it be that, at this late stage, the government has created such confusion?

HealthOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Nunavut Nunavut

Conservative

Leona Aglukkaq ConservativeMinister of Health

Mr. Speaker, we continue to work with the provinces and territories on the rollout and we take the matter very seriously. Both the Chief Public Health Officer of this country and medical officers of this country have stated both non-adjuvanted and adjuvanted are safe for pregnant women.

As well, the Canadian Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists says that it is safe.

Why can the member not accept the advice of experts?

HealthOral Questions

2:45 p.m.

Liberal

Justin Trudeau Liberal Papineau, QC

Mr. Speaker, last July, two thirds of Canadians were planning to get vaccinated against H1N1, but now only half of them are planning to get vaccinated. And the figures are worse with respect to youth. A mere 36% of young adults are considering getting vaccinated, and that percentage is even lower in Quebec. That virus is targeting young Canadians, and this government is not getting the message across to them.

How do these Conservatives think they can justify once again not looking after our youth?

HealthOral Questions

2:45 p.m.

Nunavut Nunavut

Conservative

Leona Aglukkaq ConservativeMinister of Health

Mr. Speaker, again, we continue to work with the provinces and territories in the rollout. Our government has demonstrated leadership when it comes to communicating with Canadians on the H1N1. We have held weekly conferences with the provinces and territories, as well as weekly conferences and weekly updates with the opposition critics, and a public education campaign, which includes print, radio and so on.

Our government is ensuring that we inform as many Canadians as possible about ways to protect themselves and their families, and we encourage the opposition members to do the same.

HealthOral Questions

2:45 p.m.

Liberal

Justin Trudeau Liberal Papineau, QC

Mr. Speaker, my question was about youth. The figures clearly show that this government has once again let them down. In addition, had this government done its job, there would not be this much confusion about the H1N1 vaccination. Instead of informing the public about this virus, the government preferred to spend $100 million on Conservative propaganda.

When will this government realize that the health and safety of Canadians has to take precedence over partisanship?