Debates of Dec. 9th, 2010

Employment Insurance

[David Christopherson, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

Madam Speaker, the government recently announced that the EI extended benefit program will continue in 21 regions across the country, yet once again Ontario is being left out in the cold.

Ontarians pay into the EI system the same as everyone else, but they do not qualify for benefits the same as everyone else. In fact, less than one-third of Ontarians qualify for EI benefits as it is and now they are being treated as second-class citizens simply because of where they live. Not only is this unfair, it is downright un-Canadian.

The people of Ontario have just as much need and just as much right to the extended EI benefits as their fellow Canadians in Newfoundland, Atlantic Canada and rural Quebec. It is high time this regional discrimination came to an end.

The Harper government needs to stop ignoring the unemployment crisis in Ontario and provide extended EI benefits to all Canadians equally.

[The Acting Speaker, NDP, Denise Savoie]

I remind the hon. member that it is not permitted to state the name of a sitting member of Parliament.

The hon. member for Wetaskiwin.

Wilma Helen Hunley

[Blaine Calkins, Conservative, Wetaskiwin, AB]

Madam Speaker, on October 22 of this year, Canada lost one of its great women. The Hon. Wilma Helen Hunley, a distinguished Albertan, passed away at the age of 90 in her hometown of Rocky Mountain House.

Helen began her political career as a town councillor from 1960 to 1966 before moving on to become the mayor of Rocky Mountain House from 1966 to 1971. In 1971, she was elected to Alberta's legislative assembly where she served as solicitor general from 1973 to 1975 and then minister of social services and community health until she resigned in 1979.

In June 1980, Helen was appointed chair of the Alberta Mental Health Advisory Council, before becoming the president of the Progressive Conservative Party of Alberta in 1984.

In 1985, under the advice of Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, Helen was the first woman ever to be appointed to the position of Lieutenant Governor of Alberta, a post she held until 1991. In 1992, she was made an officer of the Order of Canada.

I know all members will join me in honouring the life of the Hon. Wilma Helen Hunley, a great Albertan and a great woman. She will be dearly missed.

Keir Clark

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Cardigan, PE]

Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House today to pay tribute to a great Prince Edward Islander. Keir Clark passed away at the age of 100 years and six months.

The son of a provincial politician, Keir followed in his father's footsteps and was elected to the Prince Edward Island legislature, representing the district of 3rd Kings as a Liberal and sat for a time in the House with his father. He was also the mayor of the town of Montague for two terms. Keir was not only a politician, but a very successful businessman who operated Clark Bros.

From provincial cabinet minister, to mayor of Montague, to successful businessman, Keir was community minded up until his death. Because of Keir's dedication to his community, Montague and surrounding area is better off today.

To his daughters, Marion, Gwen and Marjorie, on behalf of all members of the House of Commons, I would like to extend our sincerest condolences. We thank Keir.

Governor General's Award for Excellence in Teaching Canadian History

[Maxime Bernier, Conservative, Beauce, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to pay tribute in the House to three remarkable women from my riding. Paule Labbé, Lucie Labbé and Marcelle Thibodeau were awarded the Governor General’s Award for Excellence in Teaching Canadian History.

These three teachers at the Monseigneur-Fortier school in Saint-Georges were chosen for their innovative and interactive teaching concepts. Their project, entitled “Le monde des autochtones” or “the world of aboriginal people”, was geared toward grade four students to help them learn about the first nations.

These women are exceptional teachers. Their passion, imagination and creativity channel the students' intelligence. They succeed in motivating their students and piquing their curiosity about the history of our country.

Congratulations to each of these dedicated teachers who nourish the intellect of our young people and better prepare the adults of tomorrow.

Louise Lahaie

[Roger Pomerleau, Bloc, Drummond, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Louise Lahaie has become the 33rd person to join Drummondville's sports hall of fame, known as Les grands du sport. She has been recognized by her peers for her commitment to youth sports.

Louise Lahaie has been volunteering for the Les Requins swimming club in Drummondville for over 20 years and has been officiating in this sport for many years. Because of her vast experience, she was asked to oversee the officials of the regional swimming association and won the title of official of the year in 2004 from the Fédération de natation du Québec.

She was also president of the Les Requins swimming club in Drummondville and a member of the board of directors of the Drummondville Olympique for nearly 15 years. This latest honour is yet one more achievement to add to her long list. Louise Lahaie will be officially inducted at a gala next April.

We offer our heartfelt congratulations to Ms. Lahaie.

Radioactive Waste

[Rick Norlock, Conservative, Northumberland—Quinte West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, over the past few weeks, anti-nuclear activist Helen Caldicott has been touring eastern Ontario and speaking out about the danger that low-level radioactive waste poses to the community of Port Hope.

In these difficult economic times, unsubstantiated and sensationalist comments are wholly irresponsible. The hard-working people of Port Hope deserve more respect than Caldicott has given them in the past month.

The reality is that Port Hope remains a safe and healthy community in which to live, raise a family and work. The reckless comments of one individual will never change this reality, nor will it deter the hard-working people of Port Hope.

I am committed to standing up for the citizens of Port Hope and to speaking out against the irresponsible negative media coverage this story has received, both locally and nationally.

Guy Thériault

[Mauril Bélanger, Liberal, Ottawa—Vanier, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to pay tribute to Ottawa—Vanier resident Guy Thériault, who was named employee of the year by the Tourism Industry Association of Canada. This award is given to an employee whose professionalism, commitment, attitude and service quality are held up as examples of excellence.

Guy Thériault has worked at Parks Canada for more than 20 years, where he has held positions ranging from lockmaster to travel trade specialist. Guy has customer service and attention to detail in his veins. More than 700,000 Canadians work directly in the tourism industry, and he was the one chosen as employee of the year.

I wish to acknowledge Guy's work in promoting our national parks and congratulate him on his success.

Violence against Women

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Speaker, our government condemns all forms of violence against women, including so-called honour crimes.

In certain communities, some may use violence against women and girls as a method of avenging their honour. Honour crimes are an emerging challenge in Canada. Such crimes are atrocious abuses of power and human rights punishable under our laws.

In November 2009, our government introduced a new citizenship guide that makes clear that women and men are equal under Canadian law. It conveys that Canada does not tolerate violence against women, including honour crimes.

Our country benefits from the contributions of our diverse cultural communities. For well over a century, Canada has been a place where newcomers can embrace the rights and opportunities that are every citizen's due.

Our government will continue to explore and advance measures that protect vulnerable women and girls. Working together in the light of knowledge and understanding we will end all forms of violence against women, including those that are culturally driven.

Asbestos

[Pat Martin, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, asbestos is the greatest industrial killer the world has ever known. In fact, more Canadians now die from asbestos disease than all other occupational industrial diseases combined, yet Canada remains one of the largest exporters and producers of asbestos in the world.

Asbestos is not only not banned in Canada, we actively promote it and subsidize its manufacture and export. I call it corporate welfare for corporate serial killers.

Without exaggeration, we are exporting human misery on a monumental scale. We are exporting a made in Canada epidemic and sending it into third world and underdeveloped nations.

Today we are joined by two representatives, Omana George of India and Kazumi Yoshizaki of Japan, who are both here to urge Canada to stop this irrational affinity for asbestos, stop promoting and subsidizing asbestos, and stop the export of asbestos.

Aerospace Industry

[Gerald Keddy, Conservative, South Shore—St. Margaret's, NS]

Mr. Speaker, our Conservative government is committed to protecting the 80,000 high-quality and well-paying jobs in the Canadian aerospace industry.

That is why we joined the Canadian aerospace companies as they sought to expand Canada's role in the global F-35 program. Canadian industry has shown that it can provide best value and excellent quality which has already resulted in more than $350 million in contracts for production work with much more to come.

Communities across Canada will see job-creating economic benefits thanks to the F-35 program. Every dollar invested in this program has the potential to gain $1.33 in return. These benefits will translate into direct investment in the Canadian economy and create Canadian jobs.

If it were up to the Liberal-NDP-Bloc Québécois coalition, it would cancel the joint strike fighter program which would cost thousands of jobs in our aerospace sector.

The Environment

[Christiane Gagnon, Bloc, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this Conservative government lacks leadership on the environment. We already knew this. It was confirmed by the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development in his report tabled this week.

This disturbing report concludes that the government does not have a climate change adaptation strategy, in spite of a commitment to that end made 18 years ago; that the government does not adequately monitor freshwater resources on federal lands and as a result cannot even guarantee the quality of the water; that if an oil spill were to occur on federal lands, the government would not be able to respond; and that it actually is unaware of its response capacity and does not even know how many spills occur every year.

This appalling assessment of the situation comes as the Cancun conference is under way, where the Conservatives are a laughingstock for attempting to torpedo the Kyoto protocol.

It is not surprising that with this attitude, the Conservatives are amassing Fossil of the Day awards.

Doris McCarthy

[John McKay, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the renowned artist, Doris McCarthy, a native of my home, Scarborough, Ontario. Sadly, she passed away on November 25 at the age of 100.

Great art can define a nation and define its image of itself. A painter of the Canadian landscape, McCarthy possessed more than mere brilliance at her craft, but also a deep insight into the profound connection that attaches Canadians to our solemn land.

She continued the artistic traditions of Tom Thomson and the Group of Seven, building on their legacy and imprinting her vision of our natural world on the Canadian psyche.

As Pierre Trudeau once wrote, “I know a man whose school could never teach him patriotism, but who acquired that virtue when he felt in his bones the vastness of his land”.

This is the spirit that moved Doris McCarthy, and it is a spirit which moves us still. She will be missed.

Sponsorship Program

[LaVar Payne, Conservative, Medicine Hat, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind the House of one of the worst disgraces in the history of the Liberal Party, the sponsorship scandal.

From 1996 to 2004 the Liberals instituted a program of corruption, the likes of which Canada has never seen. Illicit behaviour by Liberal officials misused public funds intended for government advertising in Quebec. The scandal made the Gomery commission, adscam, Groupaction, Alfonso Gagliano and a briefcase full of Jean Chrétien's golf balls front page news.

Eventually after 13 lost years, Canadians booted the Liberals and their scandal-plagued government from office. They are gone and so are millions in Canadian taxpayer dollars.

The Liberal leader was not back in Canada yet from his 34 years abroad, but let me tell him that the sponsorship scandal was a disgrace for Quebec, Canada and the Liberals.

Canadians still want to know. Where is the forty million bucks?

New Member

[The Speaker, Liberal, Peter Milliken]

I have the honour to inform the House that the Clerk of the House has received from the Chief Electoral Officer a certificate of the election and return of Mr. Kevin Lamoureux, member for the electoral district of Winnipeg North

Kevin Lamoureux, member for the electoral district of Winnipeg North, introduced by the Hon. Michael Ignatieff, Leader of the Opposition, and the Hon. Anita Neville.

Canada-U.S. border

[Michael Ignatieff, Liberal, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives gave in to the Americans on the softwood lumber dispute. They asked permission from Washington before taking action on the environment. They purchased American fighter planes without a bidding process here in Canada.

With this track record, how can Canadians trust that the Conservative government will protect Canada's sovereignty and the freedom of its citizens during its secret perimeter negotiations with the Americans?

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, whether it is on jets or the environment, the Liberals just do not get it.

Canada is down at COP16. Our government seeks an outcome that reflects commitments from all major emitters and reflects the balance of the Copenhagen accord. The Copenhagen accord has the support of 139 signatory countries representing 85% of global greenhouse emissions.

What do the Liberals not get about that?

[Michael Ignatieff, Liberal, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, I am wondering whether the opposite side could inform the hon. member that the question was about the secret perimeter negotiations with the Americans, not Cancun. Will the member wake up and treat this House with respect?

The government has already surrendered energy policy and climate policy to the Americans. The question is: What is next?

How can the government be trusted with the sovereignty and civil rights of Canadians in secret negotiations with the Americans? That is the question.

[Vic Toews, Conservative, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, I thought it was a secret, so that was the appropriate response.

The member opposite wants me to comment on media speculation and hearsay. I can only speak to the facts, and that is that all Canadians win from increased co-operation, national safety and protection with the Leader of the Opposition's homeland.

[Michael Ignatieff, Liberal, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, there is a basic issue of competence here.

The Conservative government gave us the fiasco of the G8 and G20. The Conservative government lost us a seat on the Security Council. The Conservative government lost our troops the rear base at Camp Mirage. Now the government is asking the Canadian people to trust it in secret negotiations that put in question the sovereignty and liberty of Canadians.

Everybody wants to thin down this border, but the question here is about trust. Can the Conservative government be trusted with the sovereignty and freedom of Canadians?

[Vic Toews, Conservative, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, we do in fact work in harmony and co-operation with the Americans. The Conservative government believes it is essential that our borders with the United States be bridges between us and not barriers. We have already taken important steps forward to ensure our borders are closed to crime and open for business.

I am wondering what the member opposite has against ensuring that there is a legitimate flow of traffic, goods and people across our borders.

Tobacco Products

[Ujjal Dosanjh, Liberal, Vancouver South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, regarding the new warnings on cigarette packages, the government had a choice to tell big tobacco to get lost. It had a choice to put the health of Canadians ahead of the commercial interests of big tobacco. The Conservatives spent $4 million to create new warnings for cigarettes, then buckled under the pressure of big tobacco and killed them.

How can the Conservatives justify promising new warnings, spending $4 million on them, and then killing them?

[Leona Aglukkaq, Conservative, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, when it comes to standing up to big tobacco and curbing smoking, we have no lessons to take from those members. We have no lessons to take from the former health minister who did nothing on this file.

The CBC story is simply wrong. While additional health information on labels is still under review, an announcement will be made soon.

[Ujjal Dosanjh, Liberal, Vancouver South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, records show that Conservatives were heavily lobbied by big tobacco, so the government scrapped the new warning labels. Like Ezra Levant, who ran the Conservatives' 2008 election campaign, many of the big tobacco lobbyists have very close ties to the Conservative government.

Why did the government ignore the recommendations of Health Canada? What does it not understand about cigarettes, cancer and the health of Canadians?