Debates of Nov. 18th, 2009

Infrastructure

[Alex Atamanenko, NDP, British Columbia Southern Interior, BC]

Mr. Speaker, a large road sign in my riding describes the federal and provincial governments partnership with the title “Canada's Economic Action Plan”.

According to the federal government, infrastructure projects are supposed to provide work opportunities for small and medium size B.C. businesses. A million dollars of B.C. taxpayer money has gone to a Washington State company, giving us another example of the government's continuous outsourcing of contracts and jobs, work that could have been done in B.C.

Is the Prime Minister aware of this practice and if so, is this his response to the buy American policy of the U.S. government?

[John Baird, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, we are making investments in infrastructure in every corner of the country. We think it would be disastrous if we reverted to protectionism, something that would kill jobs around the world and lower the standard of living for everyone.

We have had a particularly strong partnership with the province of British Columbia, making investments in the Southern Interior, on Vancouver Island, in metro Vancouver and in the north.

We are very proud of the infrastructure investments we are making. We are so proud of these infrastructure investments, we have even put a sign up in front of each one of them, showing how transparent and accountable we are to the taxpayers in British Columbia.

Fisheries and Oceans

[Rodney Weston, Conservative, Saint John, NB]

Mr. Speaker, our Prime Minister is travelling abroad, enhancing Canada's profile on the world stage and opening many doors for Canadians. Meanwhile the opposition parties are attempting to undermine Canadian fishers' interests in international waters off the east coast by rejecting a modernized and widely supported fisheries convention.

Could the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans tell the House why these political games are so off the mark?

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

Mr. Speaker, this government has cleaned up NAFO.

The Atlantic offshore fishing industry supports the new NAFO convention. So do inshore fishers, so do union leaders and so do independent international legal experts, but the opposition parties are playing political games. The Liberals completely ignore Newfoundland and Labrador industry calls to protect its interests and then they claim a moral victory.

First it was the sealers. Now it is the fishers. It proves, once again, that the Liberal leader does not understand the Atlantic Canadian fishery.

House of Commons Procedure and Practice

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

It is my great pleasure to table today, in both official languages, the second edition of the House of Commons Procedure and Practice—La procédure et les usages de la Chambre des communes.

As many hon. members know, the first edition was released in 2000 by my predecessor, the hon. Gilbert Parent, and quickly became an indispensable tool for all those who work on Parliament Hill.

This second edition, edited by the Clerk of the House, Audrey O'Brien, and the Deputy Clerk, Marc Bosc, reflects current practices and procedures and contains 6,952 footnotes and about 1,500 pages in each English and French volume.

Members will be interested to hear that the second edition includes references and precedents to the end of the first session, 40th Parliament, which is December 2008, as well as many new and revised tables and figures, a bibliography and an expanded index.

For those hon. members who prefer their consultations done electronically, an HTML version of the text will be launched at the same time.

I would like to thank the more than 150 dedicated individuals who contributed to the drafting, revision, layout and publication of this book.

I encourage all hon. members not only to consult this work but, indeed, to read it from cover to cover. It is great bedtime reading. I assure them they will find it quite engrossing, as well as informative.

I invite all hon. members to join me in Room 216 for a reception to mark this very special occasion.

Oral Questions

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

Mr. Speaker, during question period, as we were talking about a very important issue regarding the detainees in Afghanistan, the President of the Treasury Board made a gun-like gesture, something along this nature.

I found that to be completely inappropriate, wrong and disturbing. I would ask the minister to apologize.

[Vic Toews, Conservative, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, let us put on the record what happened. The member for Toronto Centre said that there were no Afghan prisoners transferred by Canadian soldiers to Afghanis prior to 2006. It is a ridiculous suggestion that Canadians did not transfer. What did they do with these prisoners? They did not hold them.

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

Mr. Speaker, it is very clear that the fact that the President of the Treasury Board is unwilling reflects some sort of guilt there. He made the gesture. It was wrong. He should apologize. That is the issue.

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, I was surprised to see that member making those gestures of which he is now accusing the member. If you would check the blues and check the cameras, you will see that member making the gesture.

It is not appropriate for him to be attacking a member over here when he is doing that.

[Vic Toews, Conservative, Provencher, MB]

Mr. Speaker, Canadian soldiers had these prisoners. They transferred them to the Afghanis. The suggestion made by the member opposite was there was something untoward done by Canadian soldiers to Afghani prisoners. If he has any evidence in that respect, he should stand and give that evidence. The fact is Canadian soldiers do not mistreat their prisoners.

[Bob Rae, Liberal, Toronto Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am going to mark my words carefully. The President of the Treasury Board has made a statement about my views, about what I have said and what I have ever suggested, which is completely and utterly false. He should know that and he should know better.

He has made a statement today in the House, which is completely and categorically untrue with respect to what I have ever suggested or has been suggested on this side with respect to the conduct of Canadian soldiers. It is absolutely ridiculous for the minister to have made such a statement. He has simply compounded the error, in which he got himself involved.

For him to point his fingers over here and suggest that anyone on this side has said anything with respect to how Canadian soldiers have treated Afghan detainees is completely and utterly false. That is not the issue before the House.

The issue before the House is the question of the conduct of the Conservative government with respect to how it has treated information received with respect to the treatment by the Afghan authorities of Afghan detainees. To make any other suggestion is completely and utterly preposterous.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

It sounds like a continuation of perhaps the debate that might have arisen during question period had it been debate instead of questions and responses.

In the circumstances, the Chair saw none of the alleged gestures, and nothing that I have seen since has indicated there was something unparliamentary that occurred. Accordingly I do not think this is appropriate for further discussion at this time.

Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics

[Paul Szabo, Liberal, Mississauga South, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Standing Order 18 states in part, “No Member shall speak disrespectfully...nor use offensive words against either House, or against any Member thereof”.

Yesterday, on page 6864 of Hansard, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage said:

This morning, in the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics, I had to put up with the abhorrent behaviour of a partisan chair, who pays no attention to the rules governing parliamentary committees whatsoever. However, during that meeting, I provided the respect that each member is due.

These words, I submit, are not only offensive, but they are without foundation and if I do not defend myself there may be some who will take those statements as being fact.

Mr. Speaker, accordingly, I would respectfully request that you review the transcript of the November 17 meeting of the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics to determine whether or not there is a foundation for the member's statements. Should you find that they are without foundation and that certain words in fact are offensive, I would be pleased to rise on a question of privilege and to move the appropriate motion.

[Dean Del Mastro, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, I actually thought referring to the member as a partisan chair would be something he would be proud of because that is how he conducts himself.

Yesterday, I brought a motion before that committee and the member did not even allow me the opportunity to introduce or speak to the motion. I thought that was abuse of my privilege as a member, but he did not much care about that because that is how he operates.

He also interjected into my allotted question time because he objected to a word that I used, a word that perhaps he is a little touchy about, a word that prompted the member for Scarborough Southwest to tweet that she thought that apparently I should lose some weight, which I also thought was inappropriate. I used the word “crime” when talking about Liberal actions related to the sponsorship scandal. He insisted before the witness that I could not use that word. I will read directly--

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

Order. All these matters are ones that in my view should be taken up in the committee.

I would suggest that the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage and the member for Mississauga South have a meeting of the committee and discuss the matter of chairing of the meetings, what things are allowed and what are not in the committee, at the committee. It is not for the Speaker or for the House to get involved in that debate. It is, respectfully, a matter for the committee. I suggest that both members raise the matter there and attempt to get a resolution in the committee. If necessary, we will hear something here, but I am not going to proceed with that now.

[Paul Szabo, Liberal, Mississauga South, ON]

A question of privilege.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

If there is a question of privilege, the member has to give notice in writing of the question and raise it an hour later. I will hear from him when I have received the notice.

[Paul Szabo, Liberal, Mississauga South, ON]

The same one.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

I do not have a written notice of this one.

[An hon. member]

Point of order.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

If it is a different point of order. I am not going to hear more argument on the same point. I have indicated it is for the committee.

[Paul Szabo, Liberal, Mississauga South, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it is different from the standpoint that this does not refer to the committee. It refers to a statement the member made in the House, this chamber, yesterday, in which he described my behaviour as being offensive. That is disrespectful--

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

It may be, but the dispute between the members here is relating to what is going on in the committee. That is what we are hearing. The matter should be resolved there. As I say, if it cannot be, the committee can do a report and we will deal with that in the House. As far as I am concerned, that is that.

The hon. Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons is rising on a point of order.

Information Contained in Ten Percenter

[Tom Lukiwski, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, it has come to my attention this morning that a ten percenter has been sent by our caucus into the riding of the member for Yukon that contained incorrect information about the member's voting record. This was clearly an error. It should not have happened. Therefore, I would like to apologize to the member and to his constituents.

For the record, unlike the majority of his fellow Liberal caucus members, the member for Yukon did vote against an opposition motion in April that called to maintain the long gun registry and end the amnesty, and two weeks ago he voted in favour of private member's Bill C-391 that would end the long gun registry.

To be fair, it can be confusing to determine which Liberal members support the registry and which do not. After all, it was the Liberal Party that invented the wasteful long gun registry, and it is the same Liberal Party today that is fighting to keep it in existence.

In any case, I encourage the member and those opposition colleagues from all parties who support Bill C-391 to continue to do so through the committee process.

Finally, I appreciate the opportunity to set the record straight, and once again apologize to the member.

Interparliamentary Delegations

[Russ Hiebert, Conservative, South Surrey—White Rock—Cloverdale, BC]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing 34, I have the honour to present to the House reports from the Canadian branch of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association concerning three visits: one, a bilateral visit to Cyprus and Malta; two, the 40th conference of the British Isles; and three, the 34th Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Regional Conference in Guyana.