Debates of Oct. 28th, 2009

Supply Management

[André Bellavance, Bloc, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, for the first time, the federal government is putting supply management up for negotiation in the context of free trade talks with the European Union. The Minister of International Trade has even said that this is a good strategy. Now he finds himself in the absurd position of having to negotiate something that he says he does not want to negotiate. Clearly, these negotiations are off to a bad start.

Will the minister do what he should have done at the very beginning and make it clear to the European Union that supply management is non-negotiable?

[Stockwell Day, Conservative, Minister of International Trade and Minister for the Asia-Pacific Gateway]

Mr. Speaker, negotiations are going well. We have wrapped up our initial meetings with European Union officials, and we have set dates for future meetings. Both sides expect negotiations to progress swiftly. We hope to finalize negotiations within two years.

[André Bellavance, Bloc, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, whether they negotiate swiftly or not, supply management is in danger. The director of the Canada Europe Roundtable on Business claims that defending supply management is an obstacle and a source of frustration, and a government representative has stated that supply managed producers are holding the rest of the agricultural industry hostage.

Will the government stand by supply management and take it off the table in talks with the European Union?

[Stockwell Day, Conservative, Minister of International Trade and Minister for the Asia-Pacific Gateway]

Mr. Speaker, it is disappointing to see those members following other scare tactics, quite frankly, that they try to use on other issues.

These meetings are going very well. All the dates have been mapped out for the end of this year and into next year. In fact, we have been very clear about the supply managed sector. It is not up for negotiation. We have been clear on that and discussions continue.

I wish those members would at least make a small attempt to get their facts right so they do not cause confusion on what is going to be, we hope, a very good conclusion for both Canada and the European Union.

Port of Montreal

[Marcel Proulx, Liberal, Hull—Aylmer, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I notice that Senator Housakos chose just the right time to accompany the Governor General overseas.

For quite some time now, we have been puzzled by the Conservatives' interference in the management of the Port of Montreal. The Conservatives have been dodging our questions since March 2009.

Why did the Prime Minister's advisor, Dimitri Soudas, try to pressure the Port of Montreal into appointing Robert Abdallah?

[John Baird, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, we made an appointment at the port of Montreal that we are very proud of. We think the individual in question is accepting his responsibilities and working incredibly hard on behalf of taxpayers from coast to coast to coast.

We are going to continue to work hard to ensure that the port and the bridges in the area are managed properly.

If the member opposite has any facts that he would like to put on the table, I would encourage him to do so. If he has any allegations he would like to make, I would also encourage him to make them outside of this place.

Political Party Funding

[Marcel Proulx, Liberal, Hull—Aylmer, QC]

Mr. Speaker, can the Prime Minister tell us if he has ever attended a political meeting at Onyx restaurant at the Tops entertainment complex, owned by Tony Accurso, as reported by a Montreal news source this afternoon? Would such a practice comply with his government's directives?

[John Baird, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal Party of Canada has its own research bureau; it is called media reports.

The member opposite is clearly on a fishing expedition. This government has always acted ethically in this regard. We have ensured that there has been an open and transparent process with respect to the awarding of contracts.

If the member opposite has any allegations that he specifically would like to make, I would encourage him to do so outside.

Vale Inco

[Claude Gravelle, NDP, Nickel Belt, ON]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, we learned that 24 positions from Vale Inco's Sudbury operation would be transferred to Brazil and Toronto. With the layoffs in July and March, this brings us to a total of 342 good jobs lost from my community.

When Vale acquired Inco in 2006, it committed to no layoffs for a period of three years. This was a condition under the so-called review of the takeover by the federal government.

Would the Minister of Industry stand up for Canada and for northern Ontario and hold Vale Inco to account?

[Tony Clement, Conservative, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member is surely aware, the layoffs that he mentioned were actually announced several months ago. They are not actually new layoffs; they merely are taking place. It is unfortunate that this is occurring, of course.

We have reviewed the matter quite diligently to ensure that Vale Inco is meeting its commitments to Canada and to Canadians. We will continue to do so in the future as well, so long as the agreement lasts.

Again, the facts on the ground are that there are still more employees in Sudbury as a result of Vale Inco's investments than there were in Sudbury before those investments actually took place.

Foreign Takeovers

[Charlie Angus, NDP, Timmins—James Bay, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it is clear the government completely abandoned northern Ontario when it allowed Vale to walk away with Inco.

Now we learn that Grant Forest Products is in danger of being picked up by U.S. multinational Georgia-Pacific. This takeover is being engineered without public scrutiny, behind closed doors, in a bankruptcy process.

The federal government has an obligation to review any takeovers in the nature of $400 million.

Will the government commit to a full review of any attempted takeover of a Canadian resource company by a U.S. multinational before that takeover is allowed to go ahead?

[Tony Clement, Conservative, Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his advice. I certainly commit that should a review be appropriate, I will make the diligent review that is part of my role and responsibility.

While I have the floor, though, I would like to ask the hon. member whether he is going to vote for or against the continuation of the long gun registry. If he is voting for its continuation, that is against what his constituents think is the right thing to do.

Will he stand in his place and vote for the discontinuation of the long gun registry?

Firearms Registry

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, my private member's bill, Bill C-391, which would end the long gun registry, will be before the House tonight for debate, and on November 4, members will vote on second reading. These are important steps in bringing an end to the wasteful and ineffective boondoggle of the long gun registry.

I hope that members of the opposition who say in their ridings that they are against the long gun registry will be part of this debate and on November 4 will stand up for their constituents.

I ask the Minister of Public Safety, why should opposition members be supporting Bill C-391?

[Peter Van Loan, Conservative, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, the bureaucratic long gun registry does nothing to stop criminals with illegal handguns. It is, however, very effective at wasting money and harassing farmers and law-abiding outdoors enthusiasts. Soon they will be watching closely as we in this House have the opportunity to stand up and vote to abolish that wasteful and ineffective registry.

The Liberal leader once said, “I want to be in a party that respects the rights of legitimate gun owners. It's an issue of freedom”.

I urge the opposition members to answer their leader's call for freedom. Stand in this place and vote to abolish the wasteful long gun registry.

Iran

[Irwin Cotler, Liberal, Mount Royal, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the minister avoided my questions on Canadian action to counter the Iranian threats.

My questions are: Will Canada seek sanctions in support of our United Nations resolution, including sanctioning the Iranian revolutionary guards? Will Canada, as a state party to the genocide convention, implement our legal obligations to combat state-sanctioned incitement to genocide? Will Canada support the Interpol arrest warrant against Iran's defence minister for the 1994 terrorist bombing in Argentina?

We need action, not just words, to protect human rights.

[Lawrence Cannon, Conservative, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday I made it clear that Canada is leading the way in the world to make clear that we stand up at the United Nations, that we table and co-sponsor a resolution against Iran's outrageous handling of human rights. We hope that that side of the House supports our actions against Iran.

Afghanistan

[Claude Bachand, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Foreign Affairs said yesterday that the fees of Richard Colvin's lawyer would be paid, but that there are procedures to be followed.

Can the minister assure us that the procedures he is referring to do not mean that in order for Mr. Colvin's lawyer to get paid, she would have to become an informant and disclose the names of the people she spoke to in this affair?

[Lawrence Cannon, Conservative, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, at no time did I say that the defence would have to disclose any type of information that would breach client-solicitor privilege. There are procedures to be followed and the parties are being asked to follow those procedures just like everyone else does when the government covers legal fees.

Fisheries

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, last Wednesday 40,000 Atlantic salmon escaped from a B.C. fish farm.

With this year's salmon stock facing a devastating collapse and as it is eight months since the B.C. Supreme Court ruled that the DFO and the minister must regulate fish farms, will the minister step up and protect our west coast fisheries?

The minister has the power to fine the polluting farms up to $500,000. Will she enforce the rules, or will she remain silent and be complicit in the crisis? Will she finally wake up to this disaster in the making and do her job?

[Gail Shea, Conservative, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans]

Mr. Speaker, the aquaculture company in question responsibly reported the escape to federal and provincial authorities as soon as it was aware of the loss of fish. My department provided the necessary authorization to have the company recapture the fish. While the provincial government does maintain jurisdiction over escape from fish farms, the provincial authorities will conduct an investigation along with my department.

Justice

[Steven Blaney, Conservative, Lévis—Bellechasse, QC]

Mr. Speaker, organized crime keeps up with advances in technology and that poses a threat to society. That is why, two years ago, our Conservative government introduced a bill giving police officers the tools needed to fight the mob and identity theft. After two long years of obstruction and a smear campaign by the opposition, the bill finally received royal assent.

Can my hon. colleague from Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles and the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice explain the benefits of this bill for our constituents?

[Daniel Petit, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague from Lévis—Bellechasse has indicated his great interest in protecting his voters.

Two years ago, our government—yes, our government—introduced Bill C-27. It was our first attempt to protect citizens from organized crime and identity theft. This bill has finally been adopted. This long journey, despite the many obstacles put up by the opposition, shows that Quebeckers can only rely on the Conservative Party and our Prime Minister to ensure their protection.

Presence in Gallery

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

I would like to draw to the attention of hon. members the presence in the gallery of four individuals who are both Nobel Prize laureates for physiology or medicine and winners of the Gairdner International Awards given for outstanding discoveries or contributions to medical science.

They are: Dr. Peter Doherty from Australia; Dr. Rolf Zinkernagel from Switzerland; Dr. Harald zur Hausen from Germany; and Dr. Bengt Samuelsson from Sweden.

[Some hon. members]

Hear, hear!

Oral Questions

[Gail Shea, Conservative, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday in question period, I indicated that the Liberal government changed the allowed bycatch of small herring by herring seiners in 1998.

In fact, I want to clarify that it was raised to 35% in 2003. The Liberal government began systematically increasing it from the regulations in 1998. In 1998, it went up to 20%. In 2001, it went up to 30%. In 2003, the threshold was raised again to 35%. In 2009, we have lowered it to 25%.

While I am on my feet, I would like to withdraw the word “intentional” from my response to the question from the member for Cardigan during question period yesterday.