Debates of Feb. 6th, 2009

The Economy

[Scott Brison, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives' failure to negotiate ITAR exemptions from the U.S. government is killing Canadian defence and aerospace jobs. Their failure to advance the smart border initiative is killing Canadian manufacturing jobs. Their failure to be at the negotiating table is killing Canadian auto sector jobs.

Will the Conservatives finally admit that their failure to stand up for Canada is costing Canadians their jobs in record numbers? In fact, the job rate loss in Canada in January is worse than that of the U.S.

[Mike Lake, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry]

Mr. Speaker, this week we had a vote on the government's economic action plan. The opposition leader allowed his party, in an unheard of measure, to have a free vote. Over 90% of Liberal members voted in favour of the government plan.

We would encourage the Liberal members to support us as we try to implement this plan quickly.

Culture

[Claude DeBellefeuille, Bloc, Beauharnois—Salaberry, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Quebec's minister of culture, Christine St-Pierre, is asking for new programs to help artists tour abroad. According to the minister, the measures announced in the budget “do not compensate for the reduction in international exposure”.

Will the Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages listen to the minister's argument that we have to help our artists tour abroad because they are our best ambassadors?

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

Mr. Speaker, we are very proud that our government is the most supportive government of arts and culture in Canada's history. We have talked a lot about our economic action plan this morning during question period. I would like to outline a little of what the economic action plan includes for artists. More than $276 million in new money in support of arts and culture, which is unheard of in Canada. A grand total of almost $530 million of funding are committed in this budget to the arts. It is great news. I cannot understand why the Bloc does not support it.

[Claude DeBellefeuille, Bloc, Beauharnois—Salaberry, QC]

Mr. Speaker, according to Minister St-Pierre, an agreement allowing Quebec to decide where and how money for culture should be invested is totally doable. “It worked for health and immigration,” she added. The Government of Quebec submitted an official request for talks on this subject last April. The federal government never acknowledged the letter.

My question is simple. Will the minister give Quebec the cultural sovereignty it wants, that is, all of the powers and moneys associated with culture?

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

Mr. Speaker, I can assume by the question that the Bloc is only looking to deflect from what is really a great story. Frankly, what we should be focusing on are the outstanding investments that the government is making, under the economic action plan, into the arts and culture community for Canada. Like everything else, like EI, like the investments into infrastructure that the government will make, the Bloc will vote against these outstanding investments in arts and culture. I cannot understand it.

National Battlefields Commission

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

Mr. Speaker, we now know that the re-enactment of the battle of the Plains of Abraham is a propaganda project cooked up under the sponsorship program. From 1998 onwards, the strategic plan of the National Battlefields Commission was to counter the governing PQ and to sell Canadian unity. this plan was written up by none other than Gosselin Communications, a key player in the sponsorship scandal.

Does the government recognize that by refusing to denounce the approach taken by the National Battlefields Commission, it is accepting ownership of the propaganda brought to light by the Gomery Commission?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister and to the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I find it very ironic that he is now attacking the sponsorship party because, a month ago, the Bloc Québécois wanted to form a coalition with this very party.

With regard to this Quebec City event, it is a historical and not a political event. The honourable member does not have to attend if he does not wish to do so.

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

Mr. Speaker, he is not answering the question.

Knowing that this strategic plan was requested by the Canada Information Office, the federal government's propaganda machine overseen by Alfonso Gagliano, how can they continue to say that there is nothing there and that the re-enactment is not partisan and not politically motivated?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister and to the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, once again, given that it was the Bloc Québécois who wished to enter into a coalition with the sponsorship party, it should be explaining why it did that.

Our government is doing a good job of public administration. With regard to this event, it is a historical and not a political event.

Employment Insurance

[Rodger Cuzner, Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the inactions of the Conservatives are obvious today with the record job loss figures, and those who have lost their jobs are being ignored.

A constituent of mine, Norma Peck, lost her job December 9 and filed for benefits that same week. It is now nine weeks later and Norma and her two daughters have received no help from the Conservatives.

With today's news of the record job losses, does the minister understand the degree of urgency that is out there? I ask the minister to please help these people.

[Diane Finley, Conservative, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development]

Mr. Speaker, we want to ensure that people who are unfortunate enough to lose their jobs get the benefits they need and deserve just as quickly as possible. That is why we have taken, and are continuing to take, significant efforts to do that. We have people working overtime. We have extended our call centre hours. We are working with companies to help them process their claims faster. We want to ensure that these people get the benefits they deserve as quickly as possible.

[Rodger Cuzner, Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso, NS]

Mr. Speaker, with all due respect, regurgitating talking points is offering no help to these people.

Norma Peck phoned the call centre during all of January with a great deal of frequency. I guess a mother with no income who is trying to feed her two daughters would do that. Service Canada employees are trying their best to accommodate these people but there are not enough resources in the system.

The minister has to understand the problem and the hardship out there. When is she going to wake up, take some action, and show these people that she gives a damn?

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

Order. The chief opposition whip I think would not want to use intemperate language in the House, and the next time he asks his question he will want to refrain from such an example.

The hon. Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development.

[Diane Finley, Conservative, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development]

Mr. Speaker, we care very much about these people. That is why we are adding additional resources. We are tracking how we are performing on this on a monthly basis. In fact, we are actually tracking it weekly.

I invite the hon. member, with his very serious case, to approach me after question period so that we can deal with that specific case in as prompt a manner as possible to make sure that we are taking care of his constituent.

[Raymonde Folco, Liberal, Laval—Les Îles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister can talk about adding resources, but in January, 26,000 workers in Quebec joined the long lineups at employment insurance offices. The Conservatives are simply not prepared to address the situation. Everyone who calls to make employment insurance claims tells the same story: the phone lines are busy and there is a 40-day waiting period for processing.

How can a family whose livelihood has just disappeared make ends meet when it has no income for over a month?

[Diane Finley, Conservative, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development]

Mr. Speaker, as I just said, we want to help these people as soon as possible. That is why we have added human resources, we have extended our hours for people and we have improved our computer system, all in order to provide service and distribute money as quickly as possible. Other resources in our economic plan will be introduced today. I urge the other members to support it so we may increase our efforts and our resources.

[Raymonde Folco, Liberal, Laval—Les Îles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, that is not enough. The minister was so insensitive that she said she did not want the employment insurance system to become “too lucrative” because she wants to encourage people to go back to work. How would she feel if her income were taken away for 40 days? Would she find that situation lucrative?

Will the hundreds of families whose homes were seized in January, these Quebec families, benefit from an employment insurance system that is too lucrative? I would like to hear what the minister has to say.

[Diane Finley, Conservative, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development]

Mr. Speaker, what we want to do is prepare the people who have been laid off for the jobs of the future. That is why we will make unprecedented investments in training these people, even those who have been out of work for several years. We therefore need the support of our partners here in the House of Commons to launch these new programs aimed at helping these people get back to work.

[Ed Holder, Conservative, London West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, one of my constituents, Christina, wrote to me because her husband has just been laid off. We know that those who are unemployed are losing faith. Unemployed Canadians are worried about their ability to put food on their tables, to keep their homes and provide for their families.

Would the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development inform Canadians and assure families like Christina's, who are experiencing unemployment, what our government is doing on behalf of them in these very difficult times?

[Diane Finley, Conservative, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development]

Mr. Speaker, we do understand the hardships that people who are being laid off are facing. That is why we are proposing, in our economic action plan, to help over 400,000 people benefit from an additional five weeks of EI benefits. It will help 160,000 people, including long tenured and older workers, to get trained up so that they can continue to work, to provide food for their families. That is why we will be creating tens of thousands of jobs while we are renovating and building social housing for the most vulnerable.

Afghanistan

[Paul Dewar, NDP, Ottawa Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, according to recent reports commanders on the ground refused a NATO order to target drug traffickers in Afghanistan because they were concerned about violating international law. This NATO order is actually in violation of the spirit of the motion on Afghanistan that Parliament passed.

Does the government believe that such military action will resolve the drug problem in Afghanistan and does the government support NATO orders that potentially put our soldiers at risk of violating international law?

[Laurie Hawn, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, alliance members, including Canada, decided at the NATO defence minister's meeting in Budapest that ISAF may carry out direct operations against the narcotics industry which could include destruction of narcotics production facilities and the apprehension of drug traffickers supporting the insurgency.

Canada welcomes NATO's decision on countering narcotics. That being said, countering narcotics has not been identified as one of Canada's priorities in Afghanistan. However, let us be clear. There is a direct connection between the illicit drug trade and insurgent activity. That insurgent activity kills and wounds Canadian soldiers and Afghan civilians.

All Canadian Forces operations are carried out in accordance with our legal international obligations.

[Paul Dewar, NDP, Ottawa Centre, ON]

I am not sure we got much clarity on that issue, Mr. Speaker. We will need a little bit more because this is a very serious issue. On a related issue, Canadians are extremely concerned about accusations that one of our agents may have been involved in torture and interrogation.

Could the government confirm whether or not Sarah, the Canadian, is in fact a Canadian? Could the government confirm whether or not she was acting with the authority of the Canadian government and what actions has the government taken to ensure that Canada's reputation has not been damaged?