Debates of Dec. 7th, 2010

Jean-Louis Legault

[Diane Bourgeois, Bloc, Terrebonne—Blainville, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to acknowledge the support that Jean-Louis Legault brings to the community of Les Moulins. As founding president of Servtrotech in 1983, which became Daktronics in 2001, Mr. Legault made his mark in the business world. Today, he is putting his expertise to work for his community in CLDs and FIERS—which are regional economic intervention funds—and in Quebec's industrial research association, of which he is the president and CEO.

And while his professional success is impressive, his commitment as a volunteer is even more so. He has already won the National Assembly medal for his social involvement. Mr. Legault invests some of his volunteer time in the Maison Adhémar-Dion, a peaceful place full of empathy, where people are supported in their final days.

My Bloc Québécois colleagues and I want to thank Mr. Legault for his commitment to the region of Les Moulins. We are privileged to be able to count on someone of his stature.

Desjardins Movement

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Outremont, QC]

Mr. Speaker, who would have believed that 110 years after Alphonse Desjardins literally sat down at his kitchen table and came up with the idea of a savings and loan co-operative, which he then made a reality, the Desjardins Movement would be awarded the prestigious Bank of the Year 2010—Canada award by British magazine The Banker, published by the Financial Times of London?

This is a tribute to the Desjardins Movement's financial strength, but it is the credit union's presence in our communities, the fact that its members participate in managing the movement, and its involvement in sustainable development that made Desjardins so deserving of this award.

Desjardins Group has just been awarded the title of Canadian bank of the year by the international financial affairs publication, The Banker, which is owned by the Financial Times of London. This recognition is well deserved for an institution which, for 110 years, has proven the wisdom of the co-operative model.

Congratulations to the Desjardins Movement.

Great Canadian Beaver Race and Festival

[Patrick Brown, Conservative, Barrie, ON]

Mr. Speaker, this past fall my riding of Barrie in Ontario was proud to host the first ever Great Canadian Beaver Race and Festival. This was a weekend of festivities all celebrating being Canadian, with a focus on the iconic beaver.

Over the course of the festival, approximately 7,000 people participated. Ten thousand rubber beavers took to the water and floated down the river at Heritage Park. One hundred per cent of the funds raised by the Great Canadian Beaver Race and Festival went to the Rotary Club of Barrie and were used to support over 25 community projects, organizations and local initiatives. In its very first year an astounding $65,000 was raised.

I am proud to say this race and festival will continue every year. This event is truly a demonstration of people who understand what it means to be part of the community. I would like to give special thanks to the organizers, Krista LaRiviere, John Rockburne, Shea Thurlow, Mike Kinsey, Mark Campbell, Gerry Pilon, Steve Thompson and Taylor Quinn, for all their hard work.

Long-Term Disability Benefits

[Judy Sgro, Liberal, York West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, on March 25, Bill S-216 was introduced in the Senate and despite our best efforts, there it continues to languish.

Bill S-216 represents the last hope for some 400 sick, disabled and dying Canadians. These people worked hard, paid their disability insurance premiums, and now they are being cast to the wolves by a Conservative-dominated Senate that makes Ebenezer Scrooge look like Mother Teresa.

This Christmas more than 400 sick and disabled Canadians will have their medical benefits and primary income slashed without any recourse. Their only crime is they got sick.

Bill S-216 would force Nortel to do the right thing, and despite baseless Conservative claims to the contrary, experts tell us that it would actually streamline the legal process faced by the disabled during bankruptcy.

The clock is ticking. Why is the Prime Minister refusing to demand his Conservative senators do the right thing? Will the Prime Minister finally stand up and support Bill S-216, or will he continue to say humbug to all of these disabled and dying Canadians?

Organ Donations

[Peter Goldring, Conservative, Edmonton East, AB]

Mr. Speaker, there is tremendous news from my sister, Suzanne Ross. A proud and accomplished person, she has for years been dialyzing for hours daily, never complaining, always remaining upbeat.

A wonderful anonymous donor gave Sue a gift of freedom, of renewed life normality, a kidney which allows her the fullness of daily being.

This gift, a godsend to my eternally grateful sister, is also a true blessing to her loved ones and friends who have silently prayed for this day of liberation for her.

I thank the medical doctors of today that perform such miracles.

I thank the many who give of their time to engage people to consider such a legacy of continued life, that gift of living life's fullness.

I thank the donors and their families who selflessly contribute this extraordinary gift, most often in moments of deep sadness. May this generosity, this giving of life renewal, be repeated manyfold.

Nancy Guyon

[Roger Pomerleau, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Nancy Guyon, Executive Director of the Orchestre symphonique de Drummondville, was recently honoured by the Canada Council in the arts management category. She won the John Hobday Award for established arts managers.

The $10,000 award will allow her to enhance her professional skills by taking part in a recognized program. Ms. Guyon has registered in an executive MBA program with a specialization in organizational diagnostics at the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières. This degree will contribute to the enhancement of her management skills in cultural businesses and organizations.

In selecting Ms. Guyon, the jury said, “With her MBA, Ms. Guyon will reinforce her own knowledge and experience as an arts administrator. We believe that this challenging project will be invaluable not only to her career but will also greatly benefit the arts community.”

Congratulations to—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

The hon. member for Kitchener—Conestoga.

Youth Violence Prevention

[Harold Albrecht, Conservative, Kitchener—Conestoga, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in the wake of three recent deaths by suicide among Waterloo region youth, I salute WAYVE, Working Against Youth Violence Everywhere, which is an innovative violence prevention program founded in response to a brutal murder in 2001.

Students challenge bullying, harassment, racism and discrimination, youth suicide, self-harm, and gang violence. They provide information and support to their peers in classrooms and assemblies, and act as positive role models.

WAYVE is currently active in nine secondary schools and six elementary schools. Over 300 students are leading and more than 10,000 students benefit.

Today WAYVE volunteers across Waterloo region are gathering to share best practices and brainstorm new approaches. I have met with members of the WAYVE team, and they are selfless, motivated and up to the task.

On behalf of Canada's government and the citizens of Kitchener—Conestoga, I thank members of the WAYVE team for their good work. I encourage their continuing efforts and salute their initiative.

Mark Dailey

[Bonnie Crombie, Liberal, Mississauga—Streetsville, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the people of Toronto watched Citytv change the pace and the face of the news in Toronto. No journalist is more closely associated with the brash and bold presence of that station than Mark Dailey.

Always the steady anchor in the newsroom with a keen sense of the changing life of the city, we shall associate his name always with the simple expression “Citytv, everywhere”.

Mark Dailey was a reporter who was happiest when he was at the centre of the action. He had no ideological or political axe to grind, only to report the news as he saw it.

Tragically, Mark lost his battle with cancer this week at the age of 57, and all of Toronto is the poorer for his loss and the better for his strong character and presence.

All members of Parliament join together in saluting Mark's memory and wishing the best to his family and saying, well done, true and trusty servant of the people, well done. May he rest in peace.

Desjardins Group

[Steven Blaney, Conservative, Lévis—Bellechasse, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I have a passage to read.

You might say you have only a few pennies. I say that is just fine because with pennies we can work wonders.

Those prophetic words by Alphonse Desjardins, seconded by his loving wife Dorimène, eventually led to Canada's largest financial co-operative movement.

This week, we are celebrating the 110th anniversary of the founding of the first caisse populaire in Lévis.

Today, the Desjardins Group's fame has spread well beyond its headquarters in Lévis with almost 6 million members and assets worth over $175 billion. It is not surprising that the British magazine The Banker gave the Desjardins Group the prestigious title of “Bank of the Year 2010 - Canada”

As the member for Lévis—Bellechasse, I join my voice to that of all the political parties and all hon. members of the House to offer the members of Desjardins, its staff, its talented president Monique Leroux, and the president of the Lévis branch, that great Lévis citizen Clément Samson, my best wishes and my most sincere congratulations.

New Democratic Party of British Columbia

[Peter Julian, NDP, Burnaby—New Westminster, BC]

Mr. Speaker, sadly, Carole James, leader of the B.C. New Democrats, announced her resignation yesterday.

I first came to know Carole when she was running for the leadership of the provincial NDP in 2003. At that time there were just two NDP seats in the provincial legislature as the party had reached its lowest level in three-quarters of a century.

We were all impressed with her energy, her poise and endurance as she tirelessly set to work to rebuild the party. Through her determination, calm and quiet confidence, Carole rallied broad support from the grassroots. She travelled throughout B.C., small towns to big cities, and she brought the party from two seats to three dozen seats and came within a few thousand votes of victory in 2005 and 2009.

We honour Carole as a friend. We thank her for re-establishing a vigorous agenda for social justice with a strong and vibrant NDP presence in every region of British Columbia. We thank her for her dedication to this worthy course.

New Democrats owe her so very much.

Violence against Women

[Cathy McLeod, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo, BC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday we remembered an act of violence against women that shocked the nation and left 14 young women dead.

The scope of those murders was unprecedented. Our statistics remain unacceptable. Girls and young women consistently experience the highest rates of gender-based violence in Canada. Between 1997 and 2006, young women between the ages of 15 and 24 were killed at a rate nearly three times that for all female victims of spousal homicide. Girls also experience higher rates of physical and sexual assault by family members than boys.

Our government has funded initiatives to promote equality and violence-free behaviour in dating relationships and to improve self-esteem, self-confidence and safety. One such project in Quebec is receiving funding from Status of Women Canada to deliver workshops on sexual assault to 3,000 girls and boys.

Today, let us solidify our commitment to protecting and empowering girls and young women against all forms of violence.

Farm Family of the Year

[André Bellavance, Bloc, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, on December 2, the family of Robert Fortier and Marie-Paule Provencher from Saint-Pierre-Baptiste in the Érable region were named farm family of the year by the Fondation de la famille terrienne as part of the 86th UPA conference.

This award is given out each year to a family that, from generation to generation, has preserved and inspired values unique to farming in Quebec.

Robert Fortier and Marie-Paule Provencher have been married for 67 years and have 15 children, all of whom have helped with the work on the farm. The couple's sons started farms on neighbouring land and the seven family farms now cover 1,950 acres and have 9,700 maple taps, 360 beef cows, 121 dairy cows and some horses. Approximately 4,300 hogs are also raised each year. Working in a spirit of co-operation, the family members share the labour and machinery to ensure that their respective farms operate smoothly.

I would like to sincerely congratulate the family of Robert Fortier and Marie-Paule Provencher for their remarkable contribution to the development and sustainability of Quebec agriculture.

Status of Women

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

Mr. Speaker, 40 years ago today, the historic Royal Commission on the Status of Women paved the way for greater equality for Canadian women with the tabling of its groundbreaking recommendations on everything from pay equity to prohibiting gender and marital status as grounds for discrimination by employers.

Formed by former Liberal Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson, the commission played a major role in defining the status of women as a legitimate social issue. Most of the 167 recommendations tabled under the Trudeau government have been implemented.

Today, despite the progress made by women over the past decades, there are still significant barriers to equality in Canada.

Unfortunately, women’s equality has taken a step back under the Conservative government’s regressive policies, which have led to a growing gender gap in this country.

Equality will only be achieved when we all, including the Conservative government, uphold our responsibilities to the women of Canada.

Trade with Turkey

[Maurice Vellacott, Conservative, Saskatoon—Wanuskewin, SK]

Mr. Speaker, we are a trading nation. Our prosperity depends on our ability to sell our goods to other countries. That is why our government is pursuing an ambitious trade agenda to expand trade, open doors for Canadian exporters, encourage economic growth and create jobs for Canadians.

This week, the Minister of International Trade is on a trade mission with Canadian business to Turkey. While in Turkey, the minister has opened a new office of Free Breeze, a Canadian wind energy company, as well as a promotional office for Centennial College to recruit students from Turkey to study in Canada. As a sign of Canada's continued efforts to engage Turkey in a productive commercial relationship, the minister also opened a new Canadian consulate in Istanbul.

Turkey represents an important market for Canada, with trade between our two countries at over $1.5 billion in 2009.

As chair of the Canada-Turkey parliamentary friendship group, I encourage all members of this place to support our Canadian businesses as they engage with Turkey. I applaud the minister's efforts in these days.

Government Priorities

[Michael Ignatieff, Liberal, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, in Canadian households, three-quarters of family caregivers are women. It is women who take care of sick children and women who take care of aging parents.

These women have a question for the Prime Minister: why spend billions of dollars on prisons, fighter jets and corporate handouts, but nothing on family caregivers?

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, women, like all Canadians, benefit from this government's policies. We are not spending only in the areas mentioned by the Leader of the Opposition; we are also spending on health and education. We are also spending to reduce taxes and to provide benefits to families. All of these programs are important to Canadian women.

[Michael Ignatieff, Liberal, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, but there is nothing for family caregivers.

What we are hearing across the country is that emergency rooms are jammed, hospital waiting lists are growing longer and families cannot get care in the home. Home care can relieve the pressure on hospital waiting lists, but instead of acting, the government is investing in prisons, planes and corporate tax breaks.

Why does the Prime Minister not understand that these priorities are actively hurting the Canadian health care system?

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, nothing could be further from the truth. Having a strong criminal justice system and a strong national defence certainly does not hurt the health care system.

What hurts the health care system and what hurt the health care system historically was the deep cuts made to health care transfers to the provinces by the previous Liberal government. That is why, as this government has looked at its budgetary priorities, maintaining the growth of those transfers for our health care system has been the number one priority of this government.

[Michael Ignatieff, Liberal, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, if we want to help Canadian families, they need help with home care. The Liberal home care plan would provide home care for 600,000 Canadian families. It would reduce pressure on hospital waiting lists. Instead, the government's priorities are clear: prisons, planes and corporate tax breaks.

Why can the government not understand that these priorities are not the priorities of Canadian families?

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the priorities of this government, beyond national defence and criminal justice, are pretty obvious. It is preserving jobs; it is making sure Canadian families do not pay taxes that are too high; and it is making sure that we fully fund transfers for health and education to the provinces, so that unlike in the previous government, the health care system of this country can move forward.

The Environment

[Lise Zarac, Liberal, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in Cancun, as in Copenhagen, there is no leadership from this government. The report by the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development confirms this: the Conservatives' environmental record is terrible. Meanwhile, the provinces are working proactively to repair the damage the Conservatives have done to our international reputation.

Why should Quebec and the other provinces have to do the federal government's work? Why are the Conservatives abandoning their role and holding Canada back, when the rest of the world is moving forward?

[Chuck Strahl, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, of course, nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, we are working closely together across a whole of government approach on addressing environmental issues.

We welcome the commissioner's report. We of course are working to address those concerns that were raised. We welcome his suggestions. In fact, we are already taking action on preventing and preparing for environmental emergencies, which is something that he highlighted, as well as strengthening our water monitoring program and investing in climate change adaptation. Those recommendations are welcome and they are consistent with what the government is already doing.

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Vancouver Quadra, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the government's measly words on climate change mean nothing. Its messaging is all to distract Canadians from a woeful lack of leadership. It is all part of a climate change con job.

Today the environment commissioner confirmed that the Conservatives have no plan. They weakened their emissions targets, but they have no plan to achieve even that. The part-time minister scolds other countries making real reductions, to hide that he has no plan.

Why is the Prime Minister trying to con Canadians? When will he stop the deceit on climate change?

[Chuck Strahl, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I do not know where the member is coming from. In fact, it was our government that helped to negotiate the Copenhagen accord.

We have been working closely with the Obama administration. We have harmonized our targets with the United States. We have introduced continental tailpipe emission standards for vehicles. We have established biofuel content regulations. We have introduced national waste water regulations. We have introduced regulations to phase out coal-fired electrical plants. We have expanded our national parks, and yesterday we created the Lancaster Sound park.

We continue to work for the environment on behalf of all Canadians.