Debates of April 14th, 2010

Middle East

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Nepean—Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition on behalf of Canadian citizens who call upon the House of Commons to urge the release of Gilad Shalit, the Israeli soldier kidnapped by Hamas on sovereign Israeli territory on June 25, 2006.

They respectfully ask that Mr. Shalit's situation be raised whenever possible and also that the House of Commons work to help secure the release of other Israeli soldiers, such as Zachary Baumel, Tzvi Feldman, Yehudah Katz, Ron Arad and Guy Hever, all of whom have been victims of the terrorist kidnapping operations that occur around and even inside Israeli borders.

This government has stood strongly against Hezbollah, Hamas and other terrorist groups and in favour of our friends and democratic allies in Israel.

Fisheries

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise to present a petition signed by people all over British Columbia to establish an independent judicial inquiry on the salmon crisis, which we know by now the government has done, for which I congratulate it, but the petitions keep coming in. I think this shows just how critically important and profound this issue is to British Columbians and to all Canadians.

Last summer, 9 million sockeye salmon disappeared during the summer's migration to the Fraser River, the lowest return in 50 years. Millions of dollars in economic activity are at stake. The aboriginal culture and fisheries are at stake as well as people's intimate connection with a species on the west coast that is so important, not only to Canadians but to all life forms on the west coast.

I am proud to present this petition and hope the judicial inquiry will get to the bottom of this so we can have sound, prudent and responsible management of this wonderful resource for generations to come.

Haiti

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

Mr. Speaker, I have a petition signed by Canadians from eastern Ontario and western Quebec, all of whom have either family ties or interest in the situation in Haiti. It has now been more than three months since the earthquake.

These Canadian citizens are calling upon the government to be more flexible with the eligibility requirements for family class sponsorships and, in particular, to create a special immigration measure allowing Canadian citizens and permanent residents to sponsor members of their family in Haiti who have been personally and directly affected by the earthquake of January 12, 2010, regardless of their age.

Trafficking of persons under the age of eighteen years)

[Joy Smith, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I have with me 1,500 signatures or more regarding my Bill C-268. People are encouraging the bill to become a law very soon. Many people are waiting for it so they have sent those petitions in.

Assisted suicide

[Joy Smith, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I also have a petition here on Bill C-384 calling upon the House of Commons to reject this bill that deals with euthanasia. Many people in my riding do not want to support this bill and I feel the same way.

Firearms Registry

[Joy Smith, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I also have petitions here from my riding on Bill C-391, An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Firearms Act (repeal of long-gun registry). Many people in my riding want to see that happen.

Investment Canada Act

[Charlie Angus, NDP, Timmins—James Bay, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am bringing forward the concerns of hundreds of residents of Timmins—James Bay from Peawanuck, Moosonee and down through Timmins, who are very concerned that the federal government rubber-stamped the sale of the key base metal industries in our country, Falconbridge and Inco, to the corporate raiders Xstrata and Vale without any oversight.

What we are seeing in Sudbury right now is brutal: nine months into a lockout strike, where they are trying to turn our workforce into third-world Brazilian-style workers. In Timmins, we are seeing the shutdown of Ontario's only copper refining capacities. Xstrata will probably start to move toward refining in China.

People are asking for action because they saw the government's response to the crisis in the auto sector when the government said that this was the public good. However, when it comes to the future of Canada's base metal mines and the future of northern Ontario, we see a government that is more than willing to let foreign capitalist interests dictate the future of our communities.

The petitioners are asking for the government to come clean with the Canadian people, open up section 36 of the Investment Canada Act and show us the secret deals that were signed with Xstrata and Vale.

Limousine Service

[Devinder Shory, Conservative, Calgary Northeast, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present another petition on behalf of more than 300 of my constituents and other residents of Calgary.

The petitioners call upon this House to protect the livelihood of hundreds of families and the choice of consumers against the Calgary Airport Authority's exclusive contract for limousine services awarded to a single company, which takes away employment from hundreds of limo operators in Calgary, and also kills healthy competition in the market.

I am pleased to present this petition with signatures affixed on the back.

Nuclear Weapons

[Denise Savoie, NDP, Victoria, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to present several petitions on behalf of my Victoria constituents which reflect their engagement in a wide variety of issues.

In the first petition, they ask for a review of NATO and its nuclear weapons policy. That policy states that nuclear weapons are essential. This runs counter to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty's goal of eliminating nuclear weapons. They want Canada to move toward being, once again, a global voice for disarmament.

Climate Change

[Denise Savoie, NDP, Victoria, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions in support of Bill C-311, the New Democratic Party's bill on climate change accountability. It is based on science-based targets, not politically watered-down ones, and they ask, in this petition, for a national plan to achieve them.

Housing

[Denise Savoie, NDP, Victoria, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the last petition from Victoria is in support of Bill C-304, calling for a national housing strategy, for secure, adequate, accessible, affordable housing for all of us.

Child Pornography

[Dean Allison, Conservative, Niagara West—Glanbrook, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition signed by over 1,000 Canadians asking Parliament to take all the necessary steps to stop the Internet from being used as a medium for the distribution of child pornography.

Canadians Addressing Sexual Exploitation, or CASE, reminds us that the production and distribution of child pornography is a serious crime that has devastating consequences on its young victims.

Credit and debit Card Industry

[Jim Maloway, NDP, Elmwood—Transcona, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions to present today.

The first is from dozens of Canadians who signed a petition, calling upon the government to bring greater accountability and transparency to the credit card industry.

Debit card transactions are currently handled by Interac, which is a non-profit organization made up of Canadian national banks. The debit card fees are currently flat fees. There is no review process for increases to credit card or debit card fee increases. In addition, there is no requirement that credit card and debit card fees be disclosed at the point of sale to the final customer. As well, debit card and credit card fees can be increased without justification.

Credit card fees are a percentage of a total sale and the federal government is prepared to allow Visa and MasterCard to enter the debit card business, effectively allowing Visa and MasterCard to change from small flat fees to a fee which will greatly increase the cost of all purchases.

The petitioners demand that the Conservative government enshrine in legislation that debit card fees be kept at a flat fee, and that credit card fees be made transparent and accountable.

Afghanistan

[Jim Maloway, NDP, Elmwood—Transcona, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition is also signed by dozens of Canadians and it is a call to end the war in Afghanistan.

Canadian soldiers and Afghan citizens continue to die in a never-ending war that gets worse with each new deployment of troops. There has been a 40% increase in civilians killed in 2008, with more than 100 tons of bombs dropped by NATO each month.

Clearly, women's rights are not on the agenda of the Afghan government and therefore the petitioners call upon the government to withdraw now, not wait until 2011.

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

There are about four minutes left in presenting petitions, so I am going to ask members to be a little more brief in their summaries so we can try to accommodate everyone.

The hon. member for Winnipeg North.

Canada Post

[Judy Wasylycia-Leis, NDP, Winnipeg North, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition on behalf of constituents who are very concerned about the decision by Canada Post to arbitrarily remove street letter mailboxes from the community I represent, Winnipeg North.

In fact, they know the importance of speaking up on this issue because four of the five mailboxes that were arbitrarily removed by Canada Post in recent months have been returned to the community. There is one remaining at the corner of McAdam Street and Scotia Street in Winnipeg. They urge the government to require Canada Post to return the mailbox to this neighbourhood and to the people that Canada Post is supposed to be serving.

Animal Welfare

[Carol Hughes, NDP, Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to table this petition about strengthening the animal transportation regulations.

The petitioners state that the regulations for the transport of animals under the Health of Animals Act are outdated and they ask that they be reviewed. Some of the animals, cattle, sheep and goats, have to be legally transported up to 52 hours and for pigs, poultry and horses it is 36 hours.

In addition, the petitioners indicate that the allowable times are among the longest in the industrial world and that this affects injuries and diseases. Living in northern Ontario, where it is really cold, I know how these transports come through, so I am pleased to table this petition.

Aboriginal Healing Foundation

[Claude Gravelle, NDP, Nickel Belt, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to present this petition in the House of Commons today.

The petitioners are calling on the Government of Canada to extend the funding for healing programs under the Aboriginal Healing Foundation. Residential schools caused extensive physical and mental trauma experienced by the survivors that was also passed on to future generations. Healing from the impacts of residential schools is far from complete after 10 years, which is the length of time that the Aboriginal Healing Foundation has existed

The petitioners are asking the Government of Canada to leave a true legacy of action to residential school survivors and support the process of healing through an extension of funding for the Aboriginal Healing Foundation.

Questions on the Order Paper

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

Mr. Speaker, the following questions will be answered today: Nos. 19 and 49.

Question No. 19

[Larry Bagnell, Liberal, Yukon, YT]

With regard to the proposed new Arctic Research Station: (a) what has been done to date in the creation of this research station; (b) where will it be located; (c) what is the cost for this new facility; (d) who is doing the design, architectural and construction work; (e) what will be the annual operating and research budget for the facility; (f) how many people will staff the facility with regard to (i) operating, (ii) research; (g) when will the facility open; and (h) who will head up the facility?

[Chuck Strahl, Conservative, Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development]

Mr. Speaker, the answer is as follows:

a) Canada’s economic action plan provided Indian and Northern Affairs Canada, INAC, with $2 million to undertake a feasibility study for the proposed High Arctic Research Station, which will lever existing research infrastructure by serving as the hub for scientific activity in Canada's vast and diverse Arctic region. The feasibility study will be led by INAC with support from Public Works and Government Services Canada and private contractors. Contracting opportunities will be publicly advertised. The feasibility study will establish the functions of the facility; outline the preliminary project costs and schedule to build it; and, provide an analysis of the location options. It will also set out the operational requirements necessary for the facility to become a hub of research activities in Canada's North. The feasibility study is the first phase in the realization of the High Arctic Research Station and is expected to be completed by the fall of 2010. This study will provide information and analysis necessary to inform the next stages of the process, namely, the designing, building and then operation of the station.

As part of the process for developing the feasibility study, INAC will be engaging stakeholders through a variety of means. INAC initiated community consultations and the analysis of stakeholder needs in the spring of 2009. This has included consultations with each of the three candidate communities and the creation of the High Arctic Research Station experts and users group composed of representatives from the North, academia, the private sector as well as the federal and territorial governments. Through this engagement, components of the feasibility study are being developed.

Budget 2010 is taking a further step by providing $18 million over five years to INAC to commence the pre-construction design phase for the station. This phase will produce an initial design concept for the platform, including green building options and how the station fits into the community. Upon concept approval, the design firm will develop detailed design and material specifications, floor plans, telecommunication strategies, and detailed cost and scheduling estimates for both the construction and operation phases. They will develop all required construction tender documents. The outcomes of the pre-construction design phase will form the basis for the construction and operation phases of the new station.

b) On February 20, 2009, INAC announced the three locations being considered for Canada's new High Arctic Research Station. Communities being considered are: Cambridge Bay, Pond Inlet and Resolute Bay, all of which are in Nunavut. As part of the feasibility study, INAC has been engaged in community consultations with each of the three candidate communities since the summer of 2009.

c) As part of the feasibility study, work currently being carried out will help to determine preliminary costs for the High Arctic Research Station. No decisions have been taken on the costs of the facility.

d) As the High Arctic Research Station project is currently in the feasibility study phase, no decisions have been taken on who will be engaged in the design, architectural or construction work associated with the station. The contracting opportunities for such work will be publicly advertised.

e) Part of the current analysis being undertaken within the feasibility study is to determine preliminary estimates for the ongoing costs associated with operating the High Arctic Research Station.

f) No decisions have been taken regarding the size of the staff for the facility.

g) Analysis being undertaken as part of the feasibility study with regard to the building and designing of the High Arctic Research Station will help to determine the possible date for when the facility will open. No decisions have been taken on the expected date that the station will open.

h) Governance options for the High Arctic Research Station are being considered as part of the feasibility study. No decisions have been taken on who will head the High Arctic Research Station

Question No. 49

[Siobhan Coady, Liberal, St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL]

With regard to Canada’s Economic Action plan signs the government has purchased: (a) how many signs were purchased; (b) what was the cost of each sign; and (c) what was the total cost to the government?

[Sylvie Boucher, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary for Status of Women]

Mr. Speaker, in regard to part a) of the question, the Privy Council Office, PCO, coordinates communications for the implementation of the economic action plan, EAP. However, departments and agencies are responsible for the execution and funding of EAP projects, including signage. As part of this role, PCO monitors progress on the installation of signage. As of the week ending March 5, 2010, 5,337 signs have been installed across Canada.

In regard to parts (b) and (c) of the question, the costs for signs vary widely depending on a number of factors, including the type, size, location for installation or the availability of bulk purchasing. For the majority of EAP projects, signage is part of the agreements negotiated by the Government of Canada with its partners—the provinces, territories and municipalities. The costs for signs are also covered by the same agreements, where project partners share the cost of the signs. Moreover, signage costs are often included in overall project costs in the same way as engineering, construction supplies, fencing and other expenses. A separate budget is not identified for such signs, and so, determining costs for signage would be a difficult and lengthy exercise. This work would also require federal-provincial-municipal discussions and would result in incomplete and unreliable information given that total costs will not be available until all invoices are received. Detailed accounting for all Government of Canada expenditures will be available through the Public Accounts of Canada.

Questions Passed as Orders for Returns

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

Mr. Speaker, if Questions Nos. 6, 28 and 50 could be made orders for returns, these returns would be tabled immediately.

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

Is that agreed?