Debates of Sept. 18th, 2009

Fisheries and oceans

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

Mr. Speaker, for the hon. member and the House, I would like to quote the fisheries minister in Newfoundland, on July 6, 2009, who said:

The fact that Canada would have to support a NAFO measure and then request its application in the (200-mile limit) seems to provide the necessary safeguard against any unintended consequence of the amended convention.

In another letter, the fisheries minister states, ”This along with securing the Canadian shares of NAFO-managed stocks makes an acceptable package”.

Infrastructure

[Michael Chong, Conservative, Wellington—Halton Hills, ON]

Mr. Speaker, our government has made unprecedented investments in infrastructure across this country in big cities, small towns, urban areas and rural areas. Our economic action plan is getting projects moving and Canadians back to work.

The city of Toronto is a rising global centre, the country's most rapidly growing region and a critical driver of the Canadian economy. Would the Minister of Transport tell the House of our recent investment in Canada's largest city?

[John Baird, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I was very pleased to make an important announcement with the Minister of Finance and my favourite mayor of a city of more than 2.5 million people, David Miller, in the city of Toronto for more than $600 million to support 500 projects. It will create jobs, hope and opportunity in Canada's largest city. It will lead to better public transit, cleaner water and better roads and bridges.

Working together with Toronto, we are getting the job done.

Canada-U.S. Relations

[Larry Bagnell, Liberal, Yukon, YT]

Mr. Speaker, in June, the Minister of Foreign Affairs answered my question and said, “there is no existing Alaska-Yukon boundary dispute”.

This week, the Prime Minister said the exact opposite. He said, “The Beaufort Sea has been the subject of a territorial dispute...for some time”.

Meanwhile, Americans offer petroleum opportunities in Canada's sovereign waters. Will the minister continue to contradict the Prime Minister and, more important, when will he stand up for Canada and do something about the Beaufort Sea dispute that he says does not even exist?

[Lawrence Cannon, Conservative, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, in terms of Canada-U.S. relations, I want to reassure members of the House that these relations are excellent and they are working extremely well. The best evidence of that is the Prime Minister and the president's meeting earlier this week.

On that specific issue, the Minister of State, as well as myself have acknowledged the importance of continuing our work together in the Arctic and of being able to work on these issues that are obstacles. We will work together in the spirit of co-operation and manage the issues in the best interests of everyone.

However, I will be very clear on this: we will defend our sovereignty.

Quebec Bridge

[Pascal-Pierre Paillé, Bloc, Louis-Hébert, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Quebec Bridge, declared an international historic monument of civil engineering, has been neglected for far too long. Early this week, I moved a motion calling on the federal government to resume its ownership of the bridge and complete the work it needs as soon as possible.

Will the minister responsible for the Quebec City region stop hiding behind legal procedures and assume her responsibilities by resuming ownership of the Quebec Bridge?

[John Baird, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague from Louis-Hébert for his question.

That bridge is indeed of great importance to the Quebec City region. This issue is currently before the courts. Our government has a strong team from the Quebec City area working hard on this matter.

I agree with the member. This is a very important political issue.

Public Safety

[Bill Siksay, NDP, Burnaby—Douglas, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Mohammad Mahjoub has been detained without charge, trial or conviction on a security certificate for nine years. He is the only prisoner at the Kingston Immigration Holding Centre. He has been on an increasingly dangerous hunger strike for 109 days over grievances related to the conditions of his detention.

The Correctional Investigator of Canada has no jurisdiction to investigate complaints or conditions at KIHC, leaving those held there with no independent ombudsperson.

What has the Minister of Public Safety done to resolve the hunger strike? Will the government give the correctional investigator jurisdiction at KIHC?

[Peter Van Loan, Conservative, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, I believe that everyone is familiar with the fact that the individual in question has access to a wide variety of foods, yogurts, nuts and honey. Therefore, in terms of his own decisions on the actions he wishes to take, that is his decision. From our perspective as the Canadian government, our number one priority is ensuring the security and safety of Canadians, and we will continue to work to do that.

International Cooperation

[Greg Rickford, Conservative, Kenora, ON]

Mr. Speaker, providing food and nutritional needs in Africa and elsewhere is a top priority for our government.

Could the Minister of International Cooperation inform the House what this government is doing to support the hungry and malnourished people affected by drought conditions in East Africa?

[Bev Oda, Conservative, Minister of International Cooperation]

Mr. Speaker, our government knows about the devastating effect that the drought is having on the people in Africa.

Therefore, I am pleased to announce that the Government of Canada will be providing $30 million to the World Food Programme in support of its effort to meet the needs of over 17 million people in Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and Uganda.

Canada is the third largest single country donor to the World Food Programme. We have met our commitment to doubling aid to Africa. Our government is committed to Africa and to make a difference effectively.

Fisheries and Oceans

[Judy Foote, Liberal, Random—Burin—St. George's, NL]

Mr. Speaker, the sea provides thousands of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians with a livelihood, however, it can quickly become a place of disaster.

The sinking of the Sea Gypsy last week and the loss of life is the latest reminder of this. It is in the wake of this tragedy that the government is moving ahead with the decision to remove lighthouse keepers from Green Island off the south coast of Newfoundland and Labrador, despite objections from fishers and sea captains.

I ask the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, will she stop the risk of losing more lives and reconsider this decision before it is too late?

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

Mr. Speaker, the Coast Guard's number one priority is marine safety and the men and women of our Coast Guard do a very good job of that. We certainly will not compromise marine safety.

We are moving toward the automation of our lighthouses, like every developed country around the world. This is a gradual and careful process that will take place over several years. Marine safety service has not suffered where operations have been automated, and we certainly will not compromise the safety of mariners.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The Chair has notice of a number of points of order and we will commence with the hon. member for Rivière-des-Mille-Îles.

Standing Committee on Industry

[Luc Desnoyers, Bloc, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in response to the point of order raised by the member for Wellington—Halton Hills, I wish to inform the House that I am not a member of the Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Technology, that I was not present at the August 7 meeting, and that I am the Bloc Québécois labour critic.

Concerning the sale of Nortel assets, my constituency office has received numerous messages from Nortel employees—retirees and current workers, both unionized and non-unionized—and from unions. As such, I merely reported what those people told me.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

I would like to thank the hon. member for clarifying. The hon. member for Wellington—Halton Hills would like to respond to the statement.

[Michael Chong, Conservative, Wellington—Halton Hills, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member opposite for his explanation and I accept it. I would ask members of the House who are members of the committee to respect the rules of that committee and ensure that discussions in camera remain so.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The hon. member for Chambly—Borduas would also like to raise a point of order.

Bill C-308

[Yves Lessard, Bloc, Chambly—Borduas, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to raise a point of order.

On September 14, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons raised a point of order claiming that Bill C-308 required royal recommendation because, and I quote, “it would require new spending”.

According to Marleau and Montpetit, the rule about royal recommendation is this: Bills that involve the expenditure of public funds must have a royal recommendation.

Mr. Speaker, allow us to bring to your attention the fact that Bill C-308 would enable people who have lost their jobs to benefit from an insurance fund to which they contributed, an insurance regime whose funds, need I remind the House, come from contributions made by workers and their employers.

So how can they claim that a royal recommendation is needed to spend money that workers contributed to the employment insurance fund so that they could collect benefits if they lost their jobs, when the whole purpose of the bill is to use that money to improve access to benefits and the benefits themselves? That money does not belong to the government; it belongs to workers.

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

Mr. Speaker, I would point out to my hon. colleague that the time for his intervention is not today. It should have been shortly after I gave my royal recommendation argument and just prior to the introduction and debate of the bill. It is more than a buck short and a day late, in this case several dollars, too many in fact.

Mr. Speaker, I know that you will take into consideration my original argument and, of course, his intervention today. However, we stand by our original argument that this bill does require a royal recommendation.

[Yves Lessard, Bloc, Chambly—Borduas, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to respond to something my honourable colleague said. I did notify the Speaker that we intended to respond to the government's claims in due course.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

In any case, I am sure that the Chair will consider the arguments raised by both members about this issue.

The hon. member for Windsor West is rising on a point of order.

Response to Oral Question

[Brian Masse, NDP, Windsor West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in his response to my question, the Minister of Industry referred to a report and I would ask that the report be tabled in the House, as is customary.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

I am sure when the minister is available, we will hear a response to the hon. member's point.

The hon. member for Welland is rising on a point of order also.

Members' Remarks

[Malcolm Allen, NDP, Welland, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order to correct the record.

Yesterday, the hon. member for Cambridge asserted during debate on Bill C-50 that I had never come to him to ask for help to get funds for projects in the Welland riding while he also stated that others surrounding my riding had done so. He was mistaken.

I repeatedly asked him and his government for money to help the Welland riding and I am therefore asking for unanimous consent to table letters sent by me to him on January 19 and April 3 of this year, plus his response to me dated April 7 of this year. These letters deal with funding requests important to Welland riding projects, which deserve government support.