House of Commons Hansard #52 of the 40th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was efficiency.

Topics

Promoting Seal ProductsRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

Promoting Seal ProductsRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Liberal

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?

Promoting Seal ProductsRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

Promoting Seal ProductsRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Peter Milliken

(Motion agreed to)

International TradePetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:15 p.m.

Bloc

Francine Lalonde Bloc La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present to this House 140 petitions from across Quebec. These petitions, initiated by the Association québécoise des organismes de coopération internationale, or AQOCI, are calling on the Prime Minister of Canada to bring pressure to bear internationally in order to establish fair and equitable trading rules, to support the principle of food sovereignty, to increase resources and promote peasant agriculture in Canada's developmental assistance program, to increase Canadian aid and quickly announce a schedule to gradually increase the amount of Canadian aid to 0.7% of gross national income by 2015.

Sri LankaPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:20 p.m.

Liberal

John McKay Liberal Scarborough—Guildwood, ON

Mr. Speaker, as you are well aware, there is an increasing and very disturbing conflict going on in Sri Lanka. These constituents, residents of Canada, are very concerned about that conflict.

The petitioners call upon the government to demand that the government of Sri Lanka immediately initiate a ceasefire. The petitioners also call upon the government to request that the United Nations negotiate a permanent cessation of hostilities and provide immediate humanitarian relief. The petitioners also demand that the government of Sri Lanka provide full and free access to the conflict zone by non-governmental organizations and international media.

I have four of these petitions, which I have the honour to present on behalf of these very concerned Canadians.

Opposition CoalitionPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:20 p.m.

Conservative

Leon Benoit Conservative Vegreville—Wainwright, AB

Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to present a petition wherein the petitioners note that on October 14, 2008, Canadian voters provided the Conservative Party with a clear and strengthened mandate to lead Canada through the current economic crisis.

The petitioners note that the opposition was looking to impose an unstable, unelected Liberal-NDP-separatist coalition. During the said election, they promised that in fact they would not do that.

These Canadians note that they, as voters, have the democratic right to choose who will govern them and not have a surprise prime minister chosen through an unseemly, undemocratic backroom deal.

Sri LankaPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:20 p.m.

NDP

Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON

Mr. Speaker, I have four petitions that I would like to present to the House today.

The first petition calls attention to the situation in Sri Lanka. The petitioners note that the lives of 200,000 to 250,000 Tamils currently in the combat zone are at risk.

The petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to use every diplomatic means possible to call for a ceasefire, and to work with the international community to ensure the government of Sri Lanka stops its military attacks so the civilian population can be moved out.

The petitioners also want to make sure there is a strong UN position to end the violence.

Employment InsurancePetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

NDP

Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON

Mr. Speaker, the second petition I wish to present contains hundreds of signatures, and it relates to the crisis in employment insurance.

The petitioners call upon the Parliament of Canada to deal with the crisis affecting many industries, including the auto industry in my riding.

The petitioners are asking the Government of Canada for a qualification requirement of 360 hours for EI benefits in all regions of Canada; an increase in benefit duration to at least 50 weeks in all regions; elimination of the two-week waiting period; benefits that are at least 60% of normal earnings; use of the 12 best weeks of employment and suspension of the allocation of severance pay. The petitioners are also suggesting more flexible and innovative use of EI work sharing to keep people at work.

The present economy is costing these petitioners so much.

Organ Harvesting in ChinaPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

NDP

Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON

My next petition, Mr. Speaker, relates to the issue of Falun Gong practitioners and organ harvesting. The petitioners are protesting the fact that the Chinese government is targeting these individuals.

The petitioners are calling upon the Government of Canada to have a stronger presence to ensure these individuals will be protected.

The petitioners are calling on the Canadian government to help stop the atrocities, by condemning the Communist regime for committing these crimes against humanity; urging the Chinese regime to end the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners and releasing all Falun Gong practitioners immediately; taking active measures to help stop the mass killing and organ harvesting of Falun Gong participants; and discouraging Canadians from travelling to China for organ transplants.

PensionsPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

NDP

Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON

Mr. Speaker, the last petition I wish to present today is signed by thousands of Canadians, and it relates to Canadian pension funds. Drastic things are happening right now with respect to the economy, and Canadians are at risk.

The petitioners call upon the Parliament of Canada to protect workers' pension funds by extending to employee pension obligations super-priority preferred creditor protection in cases of bankruptcy or court mandated corporate restructuring.

The petitioners urge the government to establish a pension guarantee agency equivalent in operation to the institutes that exist in the United States of America at the federal level.

By the volume of signatures, you can see that Canadians are concerned about their protection and they want the government to act.

Energy IndustryPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

Liberal

Dan McTeague Liberal Pickering—Scarborough East, ON

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition signed by well over 120 Canadians from Mississauga, Aurora, Oshawa, Peterborough, Stayner, Whitby, Oakville, Richmond Hill, Guelph, Wasaga Beach and Prince George, B.C.

The petitioners wish to bring to the attention of the government the serious lack of competition and transparency in the energy industry that has hampered the free market to the detriment of all Canadians, and of course the wider impact of high fuel prices on the economy as a whole.

They wish to underline that during a period of economic uncertainty and difficulty the effect this has had on the Canadian economy cannot be ignored. They also wish to draw to the attention of the government and the House of Commons that many countries around the world, indeed most leading countries, have an energy market monitoring agency and that an energy superpower like Canada needs such an agency.

They therefore call upon the government to acknowledge that the high price of fuel is damaging the Canadian economy; to reinstate the office of petroleum price information, which was abolished by the Conservative government as an energy market information service in 2006, and that like the U.S. energy information agency would produce weekly reports, including all Canadian energy supply, demand, inventory and storage information; to begin hearings immediately into the energy sector to determine how the government can foster competition and provide transparency to the energy market; and to eliminate the monopolistic efficiencies defence clause of the Competition Act.

Public SafetyPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

Conservative

Rob Anders Conservative Calgary West, AB

Mr. Speaker, I stand today to present petitions and call for tougher penalties for sexual offenders. Current penalties for sexual offenders do not reflect the severity of the crime and subsequent life-altering consequences suffered by victims.

Therefore, sexual offenders must receive a minimum of 10 years' jail time with no parole; they must attend rehabilitation; and the public needs to be notified upon release of a sexual offender.

Foreign AffairsPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

NDP

Jean Crowder NDP Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC

Mr. Speaker, I am presenting thousands of signatures on a petition called “united for peace”. Many Canadians have generously supported peace-building efforts in Canada and around the world. As these efforts continue, we see the need to better understand what causes conflict and to examine what more we can do to prevent conflict, build peace and repair broken relationships.

The petitioners are requesting four things: to uphold and promote the United Nations declarations on the rights of indigenous peoples; to take leadership and resolve in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict based on respect for human rights and international law; use its influence to urge all parties in the Philippines conflict to resume the peace talks; and use its influence to promote solutions that address the root causes of conflict in Colombia.

Health of Animals ActPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

NDP

Jean Crowder NDP Nanaimo—Cowichan, BC

Mr. Speaker, I have a petition calling upon government to strengthen the animal transportation regulations.

It is calling on the House of Commons to amend the animal transport regulations under Canada's Health of Animals Act to be consistent with the findings of the EU scientific committee on animal health and welfare; to reduce transport time for pigs, poultry, horses, calves and lambs to 8 hours, and 12 hours for cattle, sheep and goats; and to ensure adequate enforcement of the regulations.

The petitioners are asking for these amendments to be implemented quickly.

Identity TheftPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

Conservative

Mark Warawa Conservative Langley, BC

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour of presenting three petitions on behalf of constituents in beautiful Langley, British Columbia.

The first one is regarding identity theft. It states that identify theft costs Canadian consumers more than $2 billion annually. They call upon the House of Commons to support and pass government legislation that will create three new offences directly targeting aspects of the identity theft problem.

Employment InsurancePetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

Conservative

Mark Warawa Conservative Langley, BC

Mr. Speaker, the second petition states there are a number of potentially life-threatening conditions that do not qualify for disability programs because they are not necessarily permanent.

They are calling upon the House of Commons to enact legislation to provide additional medical EI benefits to at least equal the maternity EI benefits.

Firearms RegistryPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

Conservative

Mark Warawa Conservative Langley, BC

Mr. Speaker, the last petition says that the long gun registry was originally budgeted to cost Canadians $2 million, but the price tag spiralled out of control and a decade later it is an estimated $2 billion.

They call upon the House of Commons to support any legislation that will cancel the Canadian long gun registry.

Fisheries and OceansPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:25 p.m.

NDP

Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC

Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to present a petition, and sitting beside me is the member for Nanaimo—Cowichan, which is signed by over 200 individuals from Nanaimo, Duncan, Cowichan, right across Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland of British Columbia.

These are citizens from British Columbia who are concerned about the federal government's inability to look at the issue of west coast halibut allocation.

The NDP has been calling for a summit on this issue of halibut allocation. We believe that the fisheries and oceans ministry has to take this into consideration and come to British Columbia to resolve this issue.

Yesterday I met with representatives from the B.C. Wildlife Federation, including Mr. Ken Franzen, who has just received the Fisheries and Oceans Canada national recreational fisheries award for his outstanding contribution to the industry through his conservation efforts and the sustainability of this important part of Canadian life.

The B.C. Wildlife Federation, which has a membership of over 100,000 and includes communities from across B.C., is extremely concerned about the negative impacts of the current allocation. They will have a flotilla of boats protesting this on Friday, in Victoria, to bring more awareness to this important issue.

Democratic Republic of CongoPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Liberal

Ujjal Dosanjh Liberal Vancouver South, BC

Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions, which I attempted to present yesterday, unsuccessfully. I am now properly certified.

The first petition is with respect to the issue of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The petitioners call upon the Government of Canada and all elected members of Parliament to take immediate action to provide relief to human suffering in the D.R.C. As Canadians, they implore us to fulfill our promise of “never again”.

DarfurPetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Liberal

Ujjal Dosanjh Liberal Vancouver South, BC

Mr. Speaker, the second petition is with respect to the genocide in Darfur. The petitioners ask us to take similar action.

Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre Saskatchewan

Conservative

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

Mr. Speaker, the following questions will answered today: Nos. 92 and 95.

Question No. 92Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

NDP

Irene Mathyssen NDP London—Fanshawe, ON

With respect to the development of an Action Plan to advance the equality of women across Canada, announced in Budget 2008: (a) what is the time frame for the development of the Action Plan; (b) what department or departments are responsible for developing the Action Plan; (c) what monetary resources are being allocated to develop an Action Plan; (d) how many full time employees are being allocated to develop an Action Plan; (e) will there be any public consultation on the development of an Action Plan; (f) what organizations have been consulted; (g) what organizations will be consulted; (h) will Canada's commitment under the 1995 Beijing Declaration serve as the basis for the Action Plan; (i) what mechanisms of accountability will be built into the Action Plan; and (j) will eliminating systemic discrimination against women be the main objective of the plan?

Question No. 92Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

Port Moody—Westwood—Port Coquitlam B.C.

Conservative

James Moore ConservativeMinister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages

Mr. Speaker, with respect to the development of an action plan to advance the equality of women across Canada, announced in budget 2008:

In regard to a) In support of the federal action plan for women, since 2008, Status of Women Canada has been developing strategic partnerships to advance women’s economic security and prosperity, to end violence against women and to increase the participation of women and girls in leadership roles across society. In 2009-2010, Status of Women Canada will be strengthening collaboration and building on partnerships with other federal departments and agencies, as well as with provincial and territorial counterparts, and with civil society partners, to continue this strategic direction.

In regard to b) Status of Women Canada is the lead departmental agency and is collaborating with other federal departments and agencies across the federal government to advance women’s participation under the following three pillars: women’s economic security and prosperity, violence against women and participation of women and girls in leadership roles across society.

In regard to c) The federal action plan for women is being developed within existing resources.

In regard to d) The work in support of the federal action plan for women that has already been undertaken and that is continuing to be developed is integrated into the work of the majority of full time employees of Status of Women Canada.

In regard to e) Status of Women Canada and the Government of Canada routinely receive ideas and suggestions from Canadian women regarding their needs and requirements. Preceding the announcement of the federal action plan for women, various roundtables and meetings will be held to identify areas of priority.

In regard to f) Discussions with various stakeholders will occur as the action plan is elaborated in 2009-2010.

In regard to g) Over the next months, additional organizations and individuals will be engaged on the federal action plan for women.

In regard to h) The 1995 Beijing platform for action, other international agreements such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women have and will continue to inform the federal action plan for women.

In regard to i) Like all government initiatives, the federal action for women will be subject to the usual accountability mechanisms and the officials responsible for its implementation will be accountable to Canadians for delivering real benefits to Canadian women and their families.

In regard to j) The federal action plan for women will be focused on key strategic directions that include: advancing women’s economic security and prosperity; ending violence against women; and increasing the participation of women and girls in leadership roles across society.

Question No. 95Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings

3:30 p.m.

NDP

Judy Wasylycia-Leis NDP Winnipeg North, MB

With respect to the government task force announced May 7, 2008 to stem the trade in illicit tobacco products, headed by the Department of Public Safety and including the RCMP, Canada Border Services Agency, Canada Revenue Agency, Finance Canada, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Health Canada and Indian Affairs and Northern Development Canada: (a) on what occasions has the task force met between May 7, 2008 and March 1, 2009; (b) what resources (personnel and budget) have been allocated to the task force’s work; (c) what concrete measures to prevent contraband tobacco has the task force recommended be implemented; and (d) what communications have taken place between the task force and First Nations communities and other organizations that have expressed concern over the contraband issue?