Debates of Dec. 7th, 2009

Canada Act

[Claude Gravelle, NDP, Nickel Belt, ON]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-488, An Act to amend the Investment Canada Act (disclosure of undertakings and demands).

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce in the House private member's Bill C-488, An Act to amend the Investment Canada Act (disclosure of undertakings and demands). When a foreign company takes over a Canadian company, it often must first make undertakings to Industry Canada to ensure that the acquisition will be a net benefit to the country. Currently, these undertakings are confidential under the Investment Canada Act. I believe Canadians have the right to know what commitments a foreign company has made when it takes over a Canadian company, especially when it concerns our natural resources.

The bill would allow any Canadian citizen the right to request that these undertakings be made public. With recent events with Xstrata, Vale Inco and U.S. Steel, it is time for Parliament to introduce transparency and accountability to foreign takeover agreements.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

Inco Limited Acquisition Act

[Claude Gravelle, NDP, Nickel Belt, ON]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-489, An Act respecting the acquisition of Inco Limited by CVRD Canada Inc.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce in the House a private member's bill, an act respecting the acquisition of Inco Limited by CVRD Canada Inc. Vale, formerly CVRD, acquired Canada-owned mining company Inco in October 2006. At that time, the company made a commitment to Industry Canada to not lay off any of its Canadian workers for a period of three years.

Despite this commitment, Vale Inco has made a series of layoff announcements this year. I have made requests to have these undertakings made public by the Minister of Industry, Vale Inco and the House of Commons and through the Access to Information Act and have repeatedly been denied.

I therefore present this legislation, which would release the details of the Vale Inco agreement along with any correspondence between the minister and the company and its enforcement.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

Falconbridge Limited Acquisition Act

[Claude Gravelle, NDP, Nickel Belt, ON]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-490, An Act respecting the acquisition of Falconbridge Limited by Xstrata PLC.

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to introduce a private member's bill respecting the acquisition of Falconbridge by Xstrata PLC.

Xstrata acquired Canadian mining company Falconbridge in July 2006. At the time, Xstrata promised Industry Canada that it would not lay off any Canadian workers for three years, but that did not prevent it from firing 686 employees. In the House of Commons, I asked the Minister of Industry to make the agreements in question public, and I also asked the government under the Access to Information Act, but have so far received no response.

I am therefore introducing this bill to publish the details of the agreement signed with Xstrata and all correspondence exchanged between the minister and the company about enforcement of that agreement.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

Olympic Flame Torchbearers

[Jay Hill, Conservative, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, there have been extensive consultations among all parties and if you were to seek it, I think you would find unanimous consent for the following motion. I move:

That, notwithstanding any Standing Order or usual practice of the House, at 2 p.m. on Thursday, December 10, 2009, the House resolve itself into committee of the whole in order to welcome torchbearers carrying the Olympic flame; that the Speaker be permitted to preside over the committee of the whole and make welcoming remarks on behalf of the House; and, when the proceedings of the committee have concluded or at 2:20 p.m., whichever comes first, the committee shall rise and the House shall resume its business as though it were 2 p.m., provided that the time taken for the proceedings be added to the time provided for government orders on that day.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

Does the hon. government House leader have the unanimous consent of the House to propose this motion?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The House has heard the terms of the motion. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

(Motion agreed to)

Darfur

[Frank Valeriote, Liberal, Guelph, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise in the House today to present a petition signed by numerous residents of my constituency in Guelph.

The petitioners seek federal action to expedite the end of the atrocities in Darfur. Specifically, they call upon the Government of Canada to help end the attacks by militias on the ethnic Darfur people and continue humanitarian aid to the Darfur-Chad refugee camps.

I present this petition on behalf of my constituents.

International Aid

[Dennis Bevington, NDP, Western Arctic, NT]

Mr. Speaker, I rise to present a petition entitled Canadian Grandmothers for Africa, a national advocacy network, undersigned by many Canadians across the country.

The residents of Canada petition the House of Commons to ensure that Canada sets a timetable to meet by 2015 its 40 year old promise to contribute 0.7% of our gross national product to development assistance, as well as to contribute its fair share to the global fight against AIDS, TB and malaria, that is 5% of the funding needed for the next five years, and make legislative changes necessary for Canada's Access to Medicine Regime to facilitate the immediate and sustainable flow of lower cost generic medicines to developing countries.

Climate Change

[Christiane Gagnon, Bloc, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, with the Copenhagen climate change conference opening today, I have the honour to present a petition signed by 10,000 people from the Quebec City and Chaudière-Appalaches regions. The petitioners are calling for Canada to implement significant greenhouse gas reductions of at least 25% by 2020, using 1990 as the reference year. They also want concrete solutions before an ambitious agreement is signed in Copenhagen.

I thank all of the individuals and groups who helped make this extensive operation possible, including Équiterre, the Conseil régional de l'environnement de la Capitale nationale, and Nature Québec.

The Conservative government reminded us once again this morning that it does not plan to make any new concessions during negotiations in Copenhagen, and that it will adopt a take it or leave it approach. This petition urges the Prime Minister to change his climate change policy and to consider the disastrous economic, social, human and environmental consequences climate change can have.

Animal Welfare

[Rob Oliphant, Liberal, Don Valley West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to table a number of petitions.

The first petition calls for the Government of Canada to support a universal declaration on animal welfare. This petition, signed by a number of Ontario residents, acknowledges that animals often feel pain and suffer. It also acknowledges the significant role animals play in our lives. This effort would help prevent animal cruelty and reduce animal suffering.

Pensions

[Rob Oliphant, Liberal, Don Valley West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am also pleased to present 10 petitions from Canadians.

The petitioners call upon the House of Commons to make changes to the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act and the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act. These changes will help to protect the rights of all Canadian employees and to ensure that employees receiving pensions or long-term disability benefits laid off by a company undergoing bankruptcy proceedings will obtain preferred creditor status over other unsecured creditors.

Canada Post Corporation

[Jean Crowder, NDP, Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions to present.

The first petition concerns rural post offices. One of the things we know about public post offices is they connect communities throughout this vast land, helping us to overcome differences and distances. Public post offices play a key role in our social and economic lives by providing the infrastructure that healthy communities need to thrive and for businesses to grow.

The petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to instruct Canada Post to maintain and improve its network of public post offices and to consult with the public, their elected representatives, postal unions and other major stakeholders to develop a uniform and democratic process for making changes to this network.

Rural post offices are very important to Nanaimo—Cowichan.

Salmon Fishery

[Jean Crowder, NDP, Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC]

Mr. Speaker, my second petition calls for the judicial inquiry on the salmon crisis. We know the judicial inquiry has been called, but we also know the length of time, up until 2011, is simply too long for interim action.

The petitioners urgently call upon the government to establish an independent judicial inquiry under the Federal Inquiry Act to fully explore all the facts, consult with scientists and stakeholders to determine what went wrong with this year's sockeye run and to present a public report with binding solutions within six months.

I would also urge the government to include first nations throughout the province in the judicial inquiry. They have an important role to play in looking at what went wrong with the fisheries.

Pensions

[Paul Szabo, Liberal, Mississauga South, ON]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36 and as certified by the Clerk of Petitions, I am pleased to present a petition on behalf of pensioners and retirees, particularly those on long-term disability benefits, pursuant to plans of companies like Nortel.

The petitioners from my riding of Mississauga South call upon Parliament to amend the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act and the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act to protect the rights of all Canadians and to ensure that employees who receive pensions or long-term disability benefits and who are laid off by a company during bankruptcy proceedings obtain preferred creditor status over other unsecured creditors. They also ask that the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act be amended to ensure that employee-related claims are paid from proceeds of Canadian asset sales before funds are permitted to leave the country.

I believe this is an important petition and I hope the government will heed the pleadings of these petitioners.

Aviation Safety

[Peter Julian, NDP, Burnaby—New Westminster, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I have here petitions that are signed by hundreds of Canadians from every province in the Confederation, from British Columbia through Ontario, Quebec, the Prairies and right through to Atlantic Canada and Newfoundland and Labrador.

The petitioners are concerned about the government's implementation of the so-called safety management systems, or self-serve safety. They are concerned about financial considerations outweighing safety. They are concerned about Canada losing its safety record and that we may no longer even be compliant with our obligations to the International Civil Aviation Organization.

On behalf of these petitioners, I would like to table this petition. They call upon the government to initiate a commission of inquiry that would conduct a judicial review into Canada's state of aviation safety. They are concerned about our safety, and they have right to be.

Salmon Fishery

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

Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure to present a petition with many hundreds of names on it, calling for the inquiry, which the federal government eventually relented to, on the collapse of the sockeye fishery on the west coast.

What is important about this petition effort is New Democrats have been receiving names and signatures from people right across British Columbia, and in fact across Canada, imploring the government to act with some sort of responsible management over our fishery. It has proven itself to be a fruitful exercise. Canadians, when they wrote this petition, signed it and talked about it with their friends. They were able to force the government to do something it said was not necessary.

I remember the Conservative candidate in the recent byelection said that it would be a witch hunt and that we did not even need it. The Conservatives were out of touch with British Columbians.

These Canadians who signed this petition calling for this inquiry saw the right path forward. Through pressure like this, they were able to make the Conservative government act like a proper government and force this inquiry to happen.

Employment Insurance

[Jim Maloway, NDP, Elmwood—Transcona, MB]

Mr. Speaker, my petition is signed by dozens of Manitobans and calls for equal employment insurance benefits for adoptive parents.

Canadians realize that adoption is important and compassionate in a just society. The current EI program provides adoptive parents with only 35 weeks of paid leave, followed by a further 15 weeks of unpaid leave. The biological mother is given both the first 35 weeks and the latter 15 weeks of paid leave.

We all know that adoptions are expensive, lengthy and stressful to the adoptive parents and their families. Recent studies have shown that the additional 15 weeks of paid leave will help these parents to support their adopted children and help them through a very difficult period.

The petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to support Bill C-413, tabled by the MP for Burnaby—New Westminster, which would amend the Employment Insurance Act and the Canada Labour Code to ensure that an adoptive parent would be entitled to the same number of weeks of paid leave as the biological mother of a newborn child.

Animal Welfare

[Dean Allison, Conservative, Niagara West—Glanbrook, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition, signed by well over 100 of my constituents. The petitioners recognize that over a billion people worldwide rely on animals for their livelihoods and for companionship.

They call upon the government to support a universal declaration of animal welfare.

Aviation Safety

[Carol Hughes, NDP, Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to table a petition that calls for a commission of inquiry into safety aviation.

The petitioners are concerned by the fact that Transport Canada is reducing traditional oversight and inspection methods and is delegating its responsibilities to aviation companies via a safety management system. They also are concerned with the fact that the Government of Canada has sought amendments to the Aeronautics Act that continue secrecy provisions and do not effectively protect whistleblowers. Other concerns are with regard to Canadian aviation regulations, financial considerations versus safety, lack of investigations from the Transport Safety Board, as well as a few other pertinent concerns.

As previously mentioned, the petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to initiate a commission of inquiry, headed by a Superior Court judge, to conduct a judicial review into Canada's state of national aviation safety and government oversight of the aviation industry.

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I have a petition to present, signed by Canadians from coast to coast to coast.

The petitioners ask the Government of Canada to initiate a commission of inquiry to conduct a judicial review into Canada's state of national aviation safety.

These are the voices of Canadians who are concerned about the government's wish to recede from the role that it should play in ensuring that our aviation systems are safe. As someone who has survived a plane crash and represents many communities where travelling by air is the only way one is going to get out, we know air safety is nothing to be played around with. These Canadians know. We want the government to act.

Transport

[Olivia Chow, NDP, Trinity—Spadina, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have three petitions.

The first petitioner is from a group of cyclists in my riding. They even ride bicycles in the winter. Right now, they are concerned that there are no side guards on trucks.

They call upon the Government of Canada to introduce a regulation under the Motor Vehicle Safety Act requiring side under run guards for large trucks and trailers to prevent cyclists and pedestrians from being pulled under the wheels of these vehicles. They note that in European countries this is already in place. They also note that, according to 1993 coroner reports on the death of cyclists, 37% of collisions resulting in cyclist fatalities involved large trucks. These side guards can save lives.

Therefore, they ask the federal government to take action.

Citizenship

[Olivia Chow, NDP, Trinity—Spadina, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have another petition regarding people who work abroad and what is going to happen to their children.

Prime ministers have been in different countries encouraging trade. We have noticed that, as of April 17, 2009, children and grandchildren of Canadian ex-pat and adoptive families have had their citizenships downgraded, or worse, stripped away. These families, which recently were able to pass on their Canadian citizenship for their born-abroad children, have had such rights stripped away.

They call upon the Government of Canada to adopt NDP Bill C-397, which would restore equality among all Canadians no matter where they are born and ensure that the citizenship status of the children and grandchildren of Canadian families that work overseas and government diplomats would not be downgraded or stripped away outright. That would cause statelessness in some born-abroad children. They ask that we remain in compliance with Canada's ratification of the 1961 convention on the reduction of statelessness, et cetera.