Debates of Nov. 24th, 2010

National Defence

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Westmount—Ville-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would recommend that the Minister of National Defence learn how to do his job properly.

According to the Pentagon, the economic spinoffs for Canada are two-thirds lower than what the Bloc-Conservative coalition claims. Furthermore, we are no longer talking about 5,000 planes, but rather 3,000. The Prime Minister and the Bloc Québécois are misleading Canadians and cannot guarantee any spinoffs from those contracts.

Does the coalition know that it is going to waste $3 billion of Canadian taxpayers' money and lose thousands—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The hon. Minister of National Defence.

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, we all appreciate the histrionics and the feigned indignation from the member opposite, but as I have already indicated, this is the best way to proceed for the air force.

Certainly it has great benefits for the aerospace industries. Yesterday they said this will allow them to compete for the production of roughly 3,000 to 5,000 aircraft, which represents, from their estimates, more than $12 billion in opportunities, for the partners' fleets.

Does the member, as a former astronaut, want the Canadian air force to go forward in antiquated aircraft? Would he go up in Sputnik now as an astronaut?

Oil and Gas Industry

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, on Sunday, an offshore oil production platform off the coast of Newfoundland was evacuated in secrecy. Since Thursday, toxic sour gas has been building up in the storage tanks and the platform is having ventilation problems.

Did the Prime Minister receive a report about this? If not, will he require one, knowing full well that incidents on such oil platforms off the coast of Newfoundland can have very serious consequences for the entire Gulf of St. Lawrence?

[Christian Paradis, Conservative, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, we will look into this situation with the Canada-Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Board and make decisions accordingly.

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister is therefore saying that he did not receive a report. Clearly, that is his answer.

The Prime Minister should know that oil spills know no borders.

Accordingly, does the Prime Minister agree that such incidents can have devastating repercussions on the entire Gulf of St. Lawrence, and that he should therefore join his voice to that of the National Assembly of Quebec and order a moratorium on oil and gas exploration and development in the entire Gulf of St. Lawrence?

[Christian Paradis, Conservative, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, first, there is the Canada-Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Board. An agreement has been reached with Newfoundland and Nova Scotia. Discussions are being held with Quebec as well. We have faith in our independent regulators. The National Energy Board is also addressing the matter with regard to federal lands.

The Bloc is just trying to instil fear and stop everything from moving forward; we will end up going backward when it comes to energy.

The Environment

[Bernard Bigras, Bloc, Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, here is a perfect example of a minister who does not know his own file.

We learned that in 2009, greenhouse gases reached their highest levels ever since the pre-industrial era, yet the Minister of the Environment is heading off to Cancun with no plan and no objectives. If there is no plan, we can only assume that the oil lobby will represent Canada in Cancun.

Will the government finally decide to present to the House a detailed plan to effectively fight climate change before the summit in Cancun, as the European Union and the African Union have done?

[John Baird, Conservative, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, once again, for the member for Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, we have established absolute targets to reduce greenhouse gases by 17%. We are working with the Obama administration and our United Nations partners to flesh out the Copenhagen accord. All major emitters must participate in reducing greenhouse gases.

[Bernard Bigras, Bloc, Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, since they want to head to Cancun to undermine the climate change negotiations and since the Conservatives have nothing constructive to offer, more and more observers think that the Minister of the Environment should stay home.

We want to know whether the minister will be a spokesperson for the oil companies in Cancun or whether he will defend the interests of Quebec, which wants to see an effective plan for reducing greenhouse gases.

When will we see this plan?

[John Baird, Conservative, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, we all have a great interest in coming to an agreement focused on absolute greenhouse gas reductions in the fight against climate change. Our position in Cancun will be to work with all the major emitters and to negotiate an agreement that will reduce greenhouse gases in all countries.

Afghanistan

[Jack Layton, NDP, Toronto—Danforth, ON]

Mr. Speaker, everybody used to agree that there had to be a vote in the House before there was an extension of the mission in Afghanistan. It was in the Conservative platform and it was in the throne speech.

[Gary Goodyear, Conservative, Cambridge, ON]

It is not a military mission.

[Jack Layton, NDP, Toronto—Danforth, ON]

As recently as last March, the leader of the official abdication asked—

[Gerry Ritz, Conservative, Battlefords—Lloydminster, SK]

Abdication?

[Jack Layton, NDP, Toronto—Danforth, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it is the truth.

He said:

The government did not bring this before the Canadian people. This is no way to conduct foreign policy.

Will the government commit to putting any deployment in Afghanistan past 2011 to a vote in Parliament?

That question still remains.

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, of course, the answer is the same. The government has never submitted missions that do not involve combat to the House of Commons. This is a training and technical assistance mission and that is why we are acting on executive authority.

[Jack Layton, NDP, Toronto—Danforth, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I imagine that everyone can understand why the Prime Minister is worried that his allies are again changing their position, but that is no justification for pushing Parliament aside. Our soldiers are too important. Canada has done more than its share in Afghanistan.

The Prime Minister needs to acknowledge that and bring our troops home.

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I know that the New Democratic Party has been against any involvement in Afghanistan from the outset, but the reality is that our troops have done very important work for us and the world. We very strongly support them.

[Jack Layton, NDP, Toronto—Danforth, ON]

Mr. Speaker, a study has estimated that the total cost of the war in Afghanistan, including long-term veterans' benefits, would be more than $22 billion, and that was before the extension. Let us face it, the Prime Minister has no idea when our troops are going to be coming home. He has already extended the mission twice, breaking his promise on each occasion.

There are already 3,000 Afghanistan veterans receiving disability benefits. Is 3,000 not enough? Did they not do their share? Why is our Prime Minister keeping our troops in harm's way for three more years?

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Of course, Mr. Speaker, this is a decision that is strongly supported by the Canadian military. The members of the military have done an excellent job in Afghanistan. The security that they and others provide allows for the education of children and the immunization of children. It allows for development of infrastructure such as irrigation.

Two-thirds of our soldiers will be coming home next year and the combat mission will end, but those who remain will continue to do a great job for this country and for Afghanistan.

Riding of Vaughan

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Mr. Speaker, last year a petition was circulated condemning the actions of Julian Fantino as OPP commissioner for his actions at Caledonia. The petition denounced “flawed policing” and demanded “a public inquiry into the actions and decisions made by the Commissioner of the OPP Julian Fantino”. Thousands of Canadians signed this petition, and so did the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development.

Does the Conservative government continue to support an inquiry into the actions of Julian Fantino?

[Vic Toews, Conservative, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, as has been repeatedly stated in the House, there was an agreement signed in March 2010 by Ontario Minister Rick Bartolucci, who is someone the member opposite should recognize as they are both Liberals.

I would ask again, what is Tony Genco hiding? Why will his friends at Downsview Park not release his full and complete expense reports? When will the Liberals stop the rhetoric, and more importantly, when will Tony Genco's full expense reports cease to be a secret?

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

Mr. Speaker, as a member of cabinet, the minister represents the views of the government. The petition went further. Not only did she want an inquiry, she wanted him suspended without pay, and pending the inquiry, fired altogether.

If the minister did not have confidence in the Prime Minister's hand-picked candidate then, how can she, the Prime Minister and anyone else in that cabinet have any confidence in him now?

[John Baird, Conservative, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, what we have here is an outstanding public servant, someone who has made great contributions to Canada, someone who served as chief of police in London and York Region, someone who had a great record as the chief of police in Toronto, and someone who was so good that Premier Dalton McGuinty appointed him to be commissioner of the OPP. Can anyone get any better than that for validation?