House of Commons Hansard #43 of the 40th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was benefits.

Topics

Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with DisabilitiesCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:50 p.m.

NDP

The Acting Speaker NDP Denise Savoie

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

Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with DisabilitiesCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:50 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with DisabilitiesCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:50 p.m.

NDP

The Acting Speaker NDP Denise Savoie

(Motion agreed to)

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:55 p.m.

Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre Saskatchewan

Conservative

Tom Lukiwski ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons

Madam Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36.8 I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to 15 petitions.

Aboriginal Healing FoundationRoutine Proceedings

3:55 p.m.

Vancouver Island North B.C.

Conservative

John Duncan ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development

Madam Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2) I am pleased to table, in both official languages, copies of the 2008 Annual Report of the Aboriginal Healing Foundation .

Yukon Land Claims and Self-Government AgreementsRoutine Proceedings

3:55 p.m.

Vancouver Island North B.C.

Conservative

John Duncan ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development

Madam Speaker, under the provisions of Standing Order 32(2) I have the honour to table, in both official languages, copies of the 2003-04 annual report of the Yukon Land Claims and Self-Government Agreements.

Interparliamentary DelegationsRoutine Proceedings

3:55 p.m.

Conservative

Leon Benoit Conservative Vegreville—Wainwright, AB

Madam Speaker, I have two reports to table today.

First, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1) I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian NATO Parliamentary Association respecting its participation in the visit to Afghanistan by committee officers, held in Afghanistan, October 23 to 26, 2008.

Second, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1) I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian NATO Parliamentary Association respecting its participation in the visit by the defence and security committee, held in Australia, September 22 to 26, 2008.

Interparliamentary DelegationsRoutine Proceedings

3:55 p.m.

Conservative

Bev Shipley Conservative Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON

Madam Speaker, I have two reports to table today.

First, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1) I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian Delegation of the Canada-Europe Parliamentary Association, OSCE, regarding the 17th annual session of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, held in Astana, Kazakhstan, June 29 to July 3, 2008.

Second, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1) I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian Delegation of the Canada-Europe Parliamentary Association, OSCE, regarding the fall meetings of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, held in Toronto, Canada, September 18 to 21, 2008.

Interparliamentary DelegationsRoutine Proceedings

3:55 p.m.

Conservative

Gord Brown Conservative Leeds—Grenville, ON

Madam Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1) I have the honour to present, in both official languages, two reports of the Canadian Delegation of the Canada-United States Interparliamentary Group respecting its participation in two conferences: first, the Pacific Northwest Economic Region Economic Leadership Forum, held in Whistler, British Columbia, November 20 and 21, 2008; and second, the Blueprint for Canada-U.S. Engagement under a new Administration conference, held in Ottawa on December 8, 2008.

Scrutiny of RegulationsCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings

3:55 p.m.

Liberal

Andrew Kania Liberal Brampton West, ON

Madam Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the second report of the Standing Joint Committee on Scrutiny of Regulations in relation to the exercise of bylaw-making powers by Indian bands pursuant to the Indian Act.

Excise Tax ActRoutine Proceedings

4 p.m.

Liberal

Joyce Murray Liberal Vancouver Quadra, BC

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-364, An Act to amend the Excise Tax Act (no GST on bicycles, adult tricycles and related goods and services).

Madam Speaker, I rise today, on Earth Day, to reintroduce a bill, An Act to amend the Excise Tax Act (no GST on bicycles, adult tricycles and related goods and services).

A powerful way to encourage a shift in behaviour is to provide incentive. By removing the GST on bicycles and bicycle-related goods, accessories and services, cycling will become more affordable. This encourages biking as one of the most environmentally sound, healthy and affordable forms of transportation and recreation.

Earth Day is a day to reflect on the challenges that face our planet and our society. Promoting healthy and environmentally sound choices for Canadians through financial incentives is a small but important step. The climate change crisis requires government leadership, but also personal action. We much each implement our own measures to address climate change.

As someone who has personally experienced the many benefits of bicycling to work regularly, I am proud to introduce this bill. I hope my hon. colleagues will join me in supporting it.

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

Canadian International Trade Tribunal ActRoutine Proceedings

4 p.m.

NDP

Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-365, An Act to amend the Canadian International Trade Tribunal Act (appointment of permanent members).

Madam Speaker, I thank my seconder, the member for Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, who has a proud history of standing up for ordinary Canadians.

The trade strategy of the government is a massive, overwhelming failure. One of the reasons is that the institutions that we have are institutions that do not provide for ordinary workers' representatives. The Canadian International Trade Tribunal essentially only represents business in that only business can start the actions that lead to anti-dumping findings and defend Canadian jobs here at home. My bill would put into place a representative from labour who would be, in a very real sense, the eyes and ears of ordinary working Canadians, the labour movement, so that the decisions of the Canadian International Trade Tribunal would be more in Canada's interests and more in the interests of ordinary working people.

I certainly hope that this adjustment to the trade tribunal will receive the support from all four corners of this House.

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

Breast Implant Registry ActRoutine Proceedings

4 p.m.

NDP

Judy Wasylycia-Leis NDP Winnipeg North, MB

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-366, An Act to establish and maintain a national Breast Implant Registry.

Madam Speaker, first I would like to thank my colleague, the member for London—Fanshawe, for seconding this bill.

I am pleased to introduce this bill to establish a national breast implant registry and safeguard women's health.

I have tried before to introduce this bill. I am reintroducing it, but I am also hoping that the government might act on it on its own, since in fact it was back in 2005 that the Health Canada expert panel actually recommended establishing a national implant registry.

What we are trying to do is establish a way to ensure that the health and well-being of women are protected. We are doing this out of the concern of the safety, health and well-being of women in Canada today. It fills a critical gap in women's health protection by collecting currently unavailable data about implant procedures and data that is needed as a base for informed health-based decisions by women and physicians.

The bill will protect individual privacy while providing an effective means of notifying women of threats to their health. I look forward to the support of all members in this House.

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

National Capital and Gatineau Park ActRoutine Proceedings

April 22nd, 2009 / 4:05 p.m.

NDP

Paul Dewar NDP Ottawa Centre, ON

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-367, An Act to amend the National Capital Act (Gatineau Park).

Madam Speaker, I want to thank my colleague from British Columbia for supporting me on this bill as a seconder.

This bill in essence would do what should have been done many years ago, and that is to make our national jewel just across the river, Gatineau Park, a protected national park. In fact many people are surprised when they hear that Gatineau Park today is not protected legislatively. This bill would provide protection for what is a crown jewel but is without protection.

I rise today to join with others who have asked for this bill to be adopted, such as Sierra Club Canada and the Friends of Gatineau Park, among others. On this day, Earth Day, they would like to see us make advancements in the protection of green space. We could do that by adopting this bill.

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

Child TraffickingPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:05 p.m.

Conservative

Joy Smith Conservative Kildonan—St. Paul, MB

Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to present petitions with over 5,000 names from all across Canada calling for Parliament to support Bill C-268, regarding mandatory minimums for people who traffic children 18 years of age and under.

Also, two boxes of petitions came to my office this morning by FedEx. I will be presenting those petitions in the weeks ahead.

Religious FreedomPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:05 p.m.

Liberal

Jim Karygiannis Liberal Scarborough—Agincourt, ON

Madam Speaker, I rise today to present multiple petitions from my riding on religious persecution in Kandhamal district in the state of Orissa in India.

In August 2008 fundamentalists burned, looted and destroyed 179 Christian churches and over 15,000 homes of Christians in the area. A nun was gang raped.

Over 40,000 Christians had to seek protection in refugee camps and many are still there to this day. All these people are suffering from persecution only for being Christians.

The petitioners request that we condemn the persecutions of religious minorities around the world and in particular, the persecution of Christians in Kandhamal district in the state of Orissa in India.

Sri LankaPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:05 p.m.

NDP

Irene Mathyssen NDP London—Fanshawe, ON

Madam Speaker, I have three petitions today. The first petition is from the Tamil community of London, Ontario who petition the Parliament of Canada as residents of Canada.

The Government of Canada must recognize the humanitarian crisis arising from the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka, facilitate emergency visas for family members, and lead the international community in initiating a peace process. These community members have asked their government as Canadians to stand with them to end this humanitarian crisis.

Unborn Victims of CrimePetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:10 p.m.

NDP

Irene Mathyssen NDP London—Fanshawe, ON

Madam Speaker, the second petition is in regard to any planned or proposed unborn victims of crime act because this conflicts with the Criminal Code and because it grants fetuses the recognition as a type of legal person, fetuses being non-persons under the law. Giving any legal recognition to fetuses would necessarily compromise women's established rights.

Violence against pregnant women is part of a larger societal problem of violence against women. Fetal homicide laws elsewhere have done nothing to reduce this because they do not address the root causes of this violence, that being inequality.

The best way to protect a fetus is to provide pregnant women with the support and resources they need for a good pregnancy outcome, including protection from domestic violence.

Goods and Services TaxPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:10 p.m.

NDP

Irene Mathyssen NDP London—Fanshawe, ON

Finally, Madam Speaker, I have a petition asking the Parliament of Canada to ensure that the GST on feminine hygiene products is eliminated because it clearly only affects women and is absolutely an unfair disadvantage to women financially. Because of their reproductive role, women have no choice but to utilize these products. A proper gender-based analysis of the GST would have ensured this discriminatory aspect of the tax would never have been implemented.

The petitioners ask that Parliament support Bill C-275, introduced by the NDP in the 39th Parliament, to drop the GST from feminine hygiene products. My constituents from London—Fanshawe ask that women be treated fairly by passing legislation to drop the GST from feminine hygiene products.

Employment InsurancePetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:10 p.m.

Liberal

Ruby Dhalla Liberal Brampton—Springdale, ON

Madam Speaker, I rise today to present a petition on behalf of many Brampton families that have been affected by the economic crisis. In particular, the members of CAW Brampton chapter Local 1285 have come together because they have been impacted by the substantial number of layoffs, foreclosures and companies that have closed. Over 380,000 people have lost their jobs over the last six months. These are not just statistics on paper, but actual individuals.

Members of CAW Brampton chapter Local 1285 and their families have come together to request that the Conservative government immediately provide reform to the employment insurance system. In particular, they are requesting that Parliament provide a better, fairer employment insurance system and that there be the following legislative reforms: to have 360 hours to qualify for entry-level EI benefits so that there is an equalization of accessibility for EI across the country; to have benefits set at 60% of normal earnings based on a worker's 12 best weeks with no allocation of severance pay; and to increase the maximum benefit duration to at least 50 weeks.

They are requesting that the government immediately provide improved benefits for EI so that those who are struggling with the loss of their job can actually get the resources, tools and support they need.

Volunteer Service MedalPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:10 p.m.

Conservative

Randy Kamp Conservative Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge—Mission, BC

Madam Speaker, I present a petition in which the petitioners, who are residents of British Columbia. They point out that there is a Canadian Volunteer Service Medal for those who served their country from 1939 to March 1947, and there is also a Canadian Volunteer Service Medal for Korea for those who served from 1950-54.

The petitioners call upon the government to recognize, by means of the issuance of a new Canadian volunteer service medal to be designated the “Governor General's Volunteer Service Medal”, for volunteer service by Canadians in the regular and reserve military forces and cadet corps support staff who are not eligible for the other medals and who have completed 365 days of uninterrupted duty in the service of their country since March 1947.

Nuclear Non-Proliferation TreatyPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:10 p.m.

Liberal

Joe Volpe Liberal Eglinton—Lawrence, ON

Madam Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36, I am presenting a petition signed by many Canadians, some from the great riding of Eglinton—Lawrence.

The petitioners are urging NATO to review its nuclear policy for the following reasons: first, the continued existence of some 25,000 nuclear weapons risks their accidental or intentional use, posing a constant threat to all life and our climate; second, Canada has already signed and ratified the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, in which article 6 commits each of the parties to the treaty to work for the elimination of nuclear weapons; third, the International Court of Justice ruled as long ago as July 18, 1996 that the aforementioned treaty commits a legal obligation under international law and for all practical purposes the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons is illegal; and finally, NATO's stated position that nuclear weapons are essential runs counter to that treaty's goal of eliminating nuclear weapons.

As a result, the petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to press publicly for an urgent review of NATO's nuclear weapons policy to ensure that all NATO states fulfill their international obligations and to negotiate and conclude an agreement for the elimination of nuclear weapons, and to eliminate reliance on nuclear weapons with NATO's strategic concept. The petitioners thank the House for its attention.

Gatineau ParkPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:15 p.m.

NDP

Paul Dewar NDP Ottawa Centre, ON

Madam Speaker, I stand today to present a petition from constituents of Ottawa Centre and from other ridings including from the province of Quebec. They are petitioning Parliament and the government to adopt a private member's bill that I just introduced to protect Gatineau Park. These petitioners want Gatineau Park to have federal protections.

Canada-Colombia Free Trade AgreementPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:15 p.m.

NDP

Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC

Madam Speaker, I am pleased to present today in the House petitions from hundreds of Canadians from Conservative ridings, including Kelowna, Vernon, Okanagan North, North Shore Vancouver, Coquitlam; in Alberta, in various non-NDP, at least for now, ridings in Edmonton; in areas of Saskatchewan; in Brampton, Ontario; and right across the country. All these Conservative constituents ask the Conservative government to stop the process around the Canada-Colombia free trade agreement.

As members know, we have had thousands upon thousands of Canadians write to this Parliament saying with regard to signing a trade agreement with Colombia, which is the worse place in the world to be a trade unionist, where there are ongoing massacres, killings, disappearances of peasants and people who are involved as human rights advocates and trade union leaders, that the government should take a step back from pushing ahead with the deal.

It is interesting to note the constituents in Conservative-held ridings agree with the NDP. The Canada-Colombia free trade agreement should be rejected.

Canada-Colombia Free Trade AgreementPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:15 p.m.

NDP

Judy Wasylycia-Leis NDP Winnipeg North, MB

Madam Speaker, I also would like to table a petition dealing with the Canada-Colombia trade deal. This petition actually has been signed by a number of Canadians from various parts of the country, including Whitehorse, Yukon; Halifax, Nova Scotia; Newfoundland; and other places.

These Canadians are very concerned about the impact of the Canada-Colombia trade deal on working families and on creating circumstances that would be detrimental to working people. In fact, they point out that this is not built on the principle of fair trade and it ought to be.

The petitioners call on Parliament to reject the Canada-Colombia trade deal until an independent human rights impact assessment is carried out, and that the agreement be renegotiated along the principles of fair trade, which would take environmental and social impacts fully into account while genuinely respecting labour rights and the rights of all affected parties.