House of Commons Hansard #39 of the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was firearms.
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport
Mr. Speaker, in fact, it is the New Democrats who tried to extend a work stoppage at Canada Post. They are the ones who contributed to the interruption of service to Quebeckers and all Canadians.
It is our government that took action to ensure that Canada Post's services are available to all Canadians across the country.
Bruce Hyer NDP Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON
Mr. Speaker, the Canada Post office in Dorion, Ontario, is also about to close, forcing families to drive up to 75 kilometres just to pick up a package, despite the fact that Canada Post has claimed that there is a moratorium on the closure of rural post offices.
Postal service is vital for rural families and especially seniors in communities like Dorion. They should not need to drive almost an hour just to get to the post office.
Would the minister stand up and assure Dorion families that post offices will not close?
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport
Mr. Speaker, Canada Post is a crown corporation, independent from the government. It does provide services to Canadians coast to coast. Those services are provided regardless of region and without discrimination. We will not interfere in the daily operations and management of an independent crown corporation.
Bruce Hyer NDP Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON
Mr. Speaker, what kind of leadership is that?
Rural Canadian communities, like Dorion, are being left out in the cold by Canada Post. Last year alone, despite its promised moratorium on such closures, Canada Post padlocked postal outlets in 37 different towns. Thousands of families are cut off from the rest of the country, even while Canada Post raked in $233 million in profit.
When will the minister and the government stand up for rural communities? When will they stop robbing them of their needed postal services?
Pierre Poilievre ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport
Mr. Speaker, obviously, we are standing up for rural communities. That is why the government is working to eliminate the wasteful long gun registry that has harassed farmers and hunters for far too long. That is why we are giving freedom to western farmers.
On the subject of Canada Post service, it is a little rich for the NDP, which attempted to prolong the work stoppage at Canada Post, to now stand in the House of Commons and claim that it wants to extend the services. It wanted to prevent Canadians from any region of the country from having Canada Post service by prolonging that work stoppage. Thank goodness our government stepped in and ordered it back to work.
John McKay Liberal Scarborough—Guildwood, ON
Mr. Speaker, another week goes by with yet another story about the F-35 procurement unraveling before our very own eyes.
Having bought into the program hook, line and sinker, the Minister of National Defence is isolated within his own cabinet. Indeed, it is so bad that the minister now has his own personal babysitter. In short, it is a mess.
What is it that the Minister of National Defence is doing to pull the plug on this program, which is in its own death spiral?
Julian Fantino ConservativeAssociate Minister of National Defence
Mr. Speaker, there is no intent to pull the plug on an asset that is so critical to Canadian sovereignty and provides our men and women the assets they need well into the future to fulfill their missions and return home safe at the end of those missions to their families.
As well, we are now into cutting steel. This is not a reversal item. This is the right plane, the right aircraft for the right time and well into the future. We made that decision. In fact, the Liberal government of the day in 1997 embarked on this very same project.
John McKay Liberal Scarborough—Guildwood, ON
Mr. Speaker, now even the babysitting minister whistles past the graveyard.
Serious countries explore alternative procurement strategies. Indeed, some of them have already pulled out of the program altogether.
What kind of a minister sticks with a program where he does not even know the final cost? Open procurement is the only answer. Why will the minister not pull out of this program before he crash lands us all?
Julian Fantino ConservativeAssociate Minister of National Defence
Mr. Speaker, the hypocrisy here is beyond belief.
That is the same government—
Julian Fantino Conservative Vaughan, ON
Mr. Speaker, that is the same government of the day that embarked on this very same project, and now it has cold feet. That is the same government of the day that sent its men and women into battle in danger zones in Afghanistan, in a desert setting, wearing green uniforms.
Dan Harris NDP Scarborough Southwest, ON
Mr. Speaker, this week the Privacy Commissioner sounded alarm bells again, raising serious concerns about the Conservative government's lawful access legislation. The Privacy Commissioner said that Conservatives had not justified the sweeping search and seizure powers they plan to foist on commercial ISPs.
Will the Minister of Public Safety accept the Privacy Commissioner's recommendations and fix the legislation before it is reintroduced?
Candice Bergen ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety
Mr. Speaker, I will be perfectly clear. No legislation proposed in the past, present or future by a Conservative government would allow for police to read emails without a warrant. As technology evolves, many criminal activities, such as the distribution of child pornography, becomes easier, and we are proposing measures to bring our laws into the 21st century.
I find it remarkable that the same party that wants to look at the private records of law-abiding gun owners wants to protect potential child pornographers.
Dan Harris NDP Scarborough Southwest, ON
Mr. Speaker, that was an answer, but not to my question.
This is again about the Privacy Commissioner. The commissioner said that this proposal to hugely expand surveillance and weaken judicial scrutiny went far beyond what is needed. According to the commissioner, better alternatives exist to give police the investigative tools they need while still preserving the privacy of Canadians.
When will the government finally acknowledge these serious privacy concerns and agree to fix the bill?
Candice Bergen ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety
Mr. Speaker, our proposal will not allow for access to private communications without a warrant. What we are proposing is a balanced approach between checking on those who may be distributing child pornography and the right of individuals to have their information remain private.
We ask the NDP to support this good legislation to get it to the 21st century, but also to support the private records of law-abiding long gun owners in this country.
John Carmichael Conservative Don Valley West, ON
Mr. Speaker, this past Sunday, a large earthquake struck eastern Turkey. Over 600 aftershocks followed the devastating earthquake and reports say that thousands of people have been left homeless.
Under the leadership of our Prime Minister, Canada took a leadership role on the international stage. We are often quick to respond to humanitarian crises around the world.
Could the parliamentary secretary tell the House what Canada's response is to this recent disaster?
Lois Brown ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Cooperation
Mr. Speaker, I am proud that this morning the Minister of International Cooperation announced Canada's response to this disaster. Canada stands by the people of Turkey, and we offer our support and sympathy to the families and loved ones affected by the tragic earthquake.
We are sending 500 winterized tents to Turkey. The tents will ensure urgently needed emergency shelter for 500 families, and we will continue to monitor the situation there.
Scott Andrews Liberal Avalon, NL
Mr. Speaker, some time ago, the Government of Canada and the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador signed an MOU for a loan guarantee covering the Muskrat Falls electrical project. Since then, we have heard nothing.
In our province, commitments from the government are often taken with some degree of skepticism. We wonder if this is really a commitment, or is it a scheme to keep the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador in line?
My question is for the minister responsible for Newfoundland and Labrador. Has the government completed its due diligence analysis and is it on time for final approval, or is this just another tactic it is using to keep the provinces in line?
Peter Van Loan ConservativeLeader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, we are very proud of the commitment we made to Muskrat Falls. We will continue to show support. This is a very important economic development project for the people of Newfoundland and Labrador and, in fact, for all the people of Atlantic Canada. It offers the prospect of clean energy at low cost and economic development and growth and jobs.That is the focus of our government: economic growth and job creation.
Peter Julian NDP Burnaby—New Westminster, BC
Mr. Speaker, for 14 years, Canada's firefighters have been coming to Parliament Hill to ask that their families be taken care of through a public safety officer compensation fund if they die in the line of duty or if they die saving others.
Five years ago, the NDP delivered, and we passed legislation through the House directing the government to do this. Since that time, dozens of Canada's firefighters and police officers have passed away, and their families are often left destitute. The United States has a fund, but Canada does not.
Why will the government not establish a public safety officer compensation fund and why is it showing such profound disrespect to Canada's firefighters and police officers?
Public Safety Officers Compensation FundOral Questions
Portage—Lisgar Manitoba
Conservative
Candice Bergen ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety
Mr. Speaker, this is a government that is listening to firefighters and police officers across the country. Not only are we giving police officers the tools they need to do their job, but we also introduced a firefighters volunteer tax credit which has been supported across the country. It is something firefighters asked for. It is helping them. We respect and appreciate the work they do. We will continue to support them.
We ask the opposition to do the same thing. We ask the opposition members to vote for measures that will keep criminals in jail and not out on the street.
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Mr. Speaker, our government's top priority is to complete the economic recovery and protect and create Canadian jobs. Broadening and expanding access to more markets, particularly Asia, is a key part of our government's job creating pro-trade plan. Canadians get the jobs, the prosperity and consumer benefits that come from increased trade.
Could the parliamentary secretary explain why the Asia-Pacific gateway is so critical to our job-creating pro-trade plan? What is happening to ensure that happens?
Randy Kamp ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans and for the Asia-Pacific Gateway
Mr. Speaker, our government's focus is to create jobs and increase prosperity for hard-working Canadians. As part of the Asia-Pacific gateway, our government announced strategic infrastructure projects worth over $3.5 billion, including federal contributions of over $1.4 billion.
Our approach is winning praise. For example, Linda Styrk, the Port of Seattle's managing director, said: “Canada has done a fabulous job putting together a national strategy to increase the flow of trade and create more jobs”. We agree with her.
We will continue to support the Asia-Pacific gateway because it increases trade, creates jobs and boosts overall transportation--
