Debates of June 7th, 2010

Ministerial Responsibility

[Chris Warkentin, Conservative, Peace River, AB]

Mr. Speaker, we believe that cabinet ministers are responsible for what happens in their names and responsible to Parliament. This is called ministerial responsibility and it is one of the oldest traditions here in our country.

The Liberal leader wants to do away with this tradition. Instead, he wants to import a foreign U.S. committee system that is used as a political weapon to bully, to intimidate, and to humiliate opponents, something that I believe should never happen.

Ministerial accountability is the reason why cabinet ministers answer questions in question period and it is why they appear before committees to answer for their offices.

We hope that all opposition committee chairs will follow the rules and procedures, rather than continue to conduct the kangaroo courts that they have been doing.

Maternal and Child Health

[Nicole Demers, Bloc, Laval, QC]

Mr. Speaker, while the largest summit on maternal health in the world is going on in Washington as a prelude to the G20 summit, the Prime Minister did not even bother to respond to the invitation. This is even more disturbing because the Conservative government claims that maternal and child health is one of its priorities for the G20.

When the time comes to lobby for the banks, and strongly speak out against plans to impose a bank tax, the Prime Minister does not hesitate to fly all over the world, but he cannot be bothered to take a short, one-hour plane trip for women.

This is just one of a long series of misogynistic decisions made by this Conservative government: refusing to fund abortions in developing countries; making cuts to funding for women's groups; supporting bills that limit access to abortion.

This Reform-Conservative government, led by the Prime Minister, must stop trying to score political points at the expense of women, and must start promoting a maternal and child health policy that includes abortion.

G8 and G20 Summits

[Rodger Cuzner, Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso, NS]

Mr. Speaker, whether we are talking about a $100,000 gazebo, a $200,000 welcome sign, a $300,000 toilet, a $400,000 steamboat refit, $20 million for fiddlers and flowers, or a sidewalk to nowhere that is 84 kilometres away, the wasteful spending of taxpayers' money by the government for 18 hours of meetings is seemingly endless, but now, la pièce de résistance, there is a $2 million phony Muskoka lake for journalists.

When will it end?

As Canadians continue to tighten their belts to deal with rising interest rates, as thousands remain unemployed, the Conservative government is blowing money on projects that in most cases have nothing to do with the G8 or G20.

World leaders will not be anywhere near these expensive enhancements in the industry minister's riding, but for goodness' sake, the government's half-baked fake lake takes the cake. What a mistake.

Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada

[Jim Abbott, Conservative, Kootenay—Columbia, BC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Liberal leader admitted that he would form a coalition government. Last time the Liberal strategy was hidden, but now we know the Liberals will ignore the wishes of Canadians and join forces with the NDP and Bloc Québécois to ignore an election result.

Canadians remember his statement the last time the Liberals tried to form a coalition with the Bloc Québécois and the NDP when the leader said, “I am prepared to form a coalition government and to lead that government”.

However, the Liberal leader's plan is not acceptable. If Canadians reject his party, he cannot ignore the election result and install a coalition rejected by the voters. It is not acceptable to give the NDP co-management of the economy. It is not acceptable to share power with a political party committed to the breakup of our country.

Regrettably the coalition plan is more proof that the Liberal leader is not in it for Canadians. He is just in it for himself.

G8 and G20 Summits

[Michael Ignatieff, Liberal, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians have seen a version of the proposed G8 communiqué, but it is void of substance: there is no commitment on maternal health and nothing on climate change or the environment. In fact, it would seem that the meetings in Canada are just a warm-up for the real summit in Korea at the end of the year.

Why have Canadian taxpayers paid so much for so little?

[John Baird, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, Canada is tremendously proud to be hosting both the G8 and the G20. One of the great priorities this past year has been the economy and to stop an economic decline that began around the world and ended here in Canada. We are excited about the G8 and G20 to welcome the world's leaders to discuss jobs, hope and opportunity.

The G20 has been absolutely essential at getting the world economy on track, so much so that Canada's finance minister has been named Finance Minister of the Year. We are proud of that. We are proud of the jobs that have been created. We are proud to be welcoming these leaders of the world.

[Michael Ignatieff, Liberal, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the member mentioned the finance minister, who has just said that the failure to institute global banking reform is adding to global economic uncertainty. The Prime Minister promised action on global financial reform. There has been no action at the G20. It appears that all decisions will actually be made in Korea at the end of the year.

Canadians are asking themselves, we paid for the world's most expensive photo op, we did not even get banking reform. What was the Prime Minister thinking?

[John Baird, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, John Kirton, head of the G8 expert group from the University of Toronto said, “The cost for each of the two Canada summits are more or less within range of what G8 and even G20 summits have been costing”.

We are focusing on jobs and the economy. We are pleased to see, because of Canada's economic action plan, more than 300,000 net new jobs created over the past year in our country. We are proud of that.

We are proud to see the beginnings of some positive financial numbers coming out of the United States and out of Europe, but the job is not done. We remain focused on jobs, wealth creation, the economy, ensuring that we pull this world out of the economic recession. We are achieving real results.

[Michael Ignatieff, Liberal, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, it is not just the cost of this photo op. It is the content of the photo op that is so empty when we look at the G8 communiqué: no progress on climate change; nothing on the environment; no progress on maternal health, because Conservatives will not defend the rights overseas that they claim to defend at home; no action on banking reform either.

Canadians read the full text of the proposed G8 communiqué and they ask, what did we get for this, what did we get for $1 billion? What was the Prime Minister thinking?

[John Baird, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, this government has a strong commitment to working multilaterally with our partners. Only the leader of the Liberal Party would think it would be a waste of time getting the G8 leaders together and the G20 leaders together to plan what we could do to revive economic growth in this country.

The leaders are going to be coming. They are going to be supported by some 8,000 delegates and 3,000 members of the media from around the world are going to all be focused on Canada. We are proud of our government's efforts to showcase our great country so it can be a magnet for jobs, investment and opportunity.

[Mark Holland, Liberal, Ajax—Pickering, ON]

Mr. Speaker, we now learn that the billion dollar security price tag for the 72 hours of G8 and G20 meetings is just the beginning. For the use of media only, the government is splurging on a $2 million fake lake in downtown Toronto. Complete with a sprawling dock, bar, canoes and a giant Jumbotron, the government is literally going to flush it down the drain when the 72 hour spendfest is over.

Having run up the biggest deficit in Canadian history, did someone not, anyone in government think that $2 million, 72 hour fake lake to host a meeting on fiscal restraint was a bad idea?

[Lawrence Cannon, Conservative, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, Canada is very proud of hosting the world. It is a normal practice for the host country of an international summit to use the opportunity to showcase all its country has to offer to the world. That is exactly what we are doing. We are going to be proud to showcase Canada to the world, contrary to what the Liberals want to do.

[Mark Holland, Liberal, Ajax—Pickering, ON]

Mr. Speaker, is the member really going to defend this? There is nothing normal about it. The government has already blown $23 million for a media centre in the industry minister's riding, which the media will now never use. Instead, it will be sitting around a fake lake, in Toronto. If that is not enough, the government is blowing a further $20 million on dancers, singers, fiddlers and flowers.

Instead of hosting world leaders, maybe the government should consider party planning for Lady Gaga.

How can the government look at people whose EI has just run out and justify this billion dollar spendfest?

[Lawrence Cannon, Conservative, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, the Government of Canada and the Government of Ontario have been working very closely together with the business community to capitalize on the exposure that comes from hosting the G8 and the G20 summits.

Over 3,000 international media persons will be in Canada. We will be very proud to showcase Canada to them all.

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

Mr. Speaker, the Conservative government is planning to use the G8 summit to push its agenda, particularly with respect to the environment. A draft communiqué for the G8 clearly states that fighting climate change must not hurt the economy. The thing is, fighting climate change represents an economic plus for Quebec.

Will the Prime Minister admit that this is further proof that his government is working for western oil companies and against Quebec's interests, even at the G8 summit?

[Christian Paradis, Conservative, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, the G8 summit is yet another exceptional opportunity to demonstrate our leadership by boosting tourism and securing commercial investment for all Canadians. We have one of the world's strongest economies. We are a model to the rest of the world. We are going to talk about business opportunities.

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

Mr. Speaker, that is incredible. He just said that the G8 summit is a tourist event.

Other countries are moving ahead with greenhouse gas reduction, but Canada is moving backward. Quebec Premier Jean Charest expressed disappointment at Canada's results and pointed out that Quebec's economy is focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Does the Prime Minister realize that his political position is so bad for Quebec that Jean Charest himself was forced to take him to task?

[Christian Paradis, Conservative, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, we have made global commitments. This is a singular opportunity for us to show leadership. We are an economic model to the rest of the world. We were the last country to experience recession and the first to emerge from it. Our debt-to-GDP ratio is one of the lowest in the world. Ridiculing us because we did not do what the Bloc wanted is one thing, but as I said, we transferred $350 million to the Province of Quebec to help it fight climate change. That was under a Conservative government.

International Co-operation

[Christiane Gagnon, Bloc, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the press has obtained the communiqué that the Conservative government intends to present to the G8 at the end of the month. Abortion will not be one of the options offered to women in developing countries.

Are we to surmise that the government has chosen to ignore recommendations on abortion from public health experts and that it is determined to export its ideological agenda?

[Bev Oda, Conservative, Minister of International Cooperation]

Mr. Speaker, as has been very clear, Canada wants to ensure that its G8 will save the lives of mothers and children. We know what interventions will be effective. In fact, these interventions have been endorsed by the University of Waterloo, John Hopkins University, the micronutrients Initiative. We know what the tools are.

In fact, it also been endorsed by the private sector and the Melinda and Bill Gates Foundation. These are experts, these are people, these are organizations seeing real results in saving the lives of mothers and children.

Banks

[Christiane Gagnon, Bloc, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the IMF is proposing a coordinated international effort to tap the banks, but the Conservative government is rejecting such a measure out of hand even before discussing its merits at the G8 and G20.

Why is the Prime Minister, the lobbyist for the banks, so bent on going it alone?

[Denis Lebel, Conservative, Minister of State (Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec)]

Mr. Speaker, as you know, our Minister of Finance and our Prime Minister talk year-round about the economy with the leading countries of the world. We are a world leader, and we will continue acting as a world leader.

G8 and G20 Summits

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

Mr. Speaker, incredibly, the Prime Minister said that everything at the G8 and G20 was a sideshow if it did not have to do with the economy. It is not a sideshow to deal with maternal health and well-being. In fact, it deserves a lot better than being relegated to a debate about abortion.

Does he think that the oil spill in the gulf is a sideshow? The fact is that the climate change crisis is one of the most serious crises we have ever faced and the gulf oil spill demonstrates that.

Could the Prime Minister tell us whether he made any progress on these two issues when he was talking to world leaders? It looks like he did not.

[John Baird, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has shown great leadership, particularly on the issue of maternal health and the health of young children in the developing world. He has had great meetings, as has the Minister of International Cooperation, with our partners in the G8 and the G20. Thanks to that leadership, we hope to see progress made at the upcoming G20 summit.

Obviously, all Canadians, and all citizens of the world, are deeply concerned about what they see going on in the Gulf of Mexico. Thank goodness we have a stronger regulatory regime that does not allow anything like that to happen in Canada.

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

Mr. Speaker, the fact is that we are weakening our environmental regulations right here and the vote is coming up later today in this House. It is shameful.

Mr. Speaker, the G20 summit is turning into a farce. It was supposed to focus on improving maternal health, but the Prime Minister is campaigning to save banks, which do not need our help.

The money could be invested to help women and children, but he is wasting more than $1 billion on sound cannons and a fake lake. How can the Prime Minister justify that?