House of Commons Hansard #50 of the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was pension.
Jasbir Sandhu NDP Surrey North, BC
Mr. Speaker, the RCMP has received a gag order from the Minister of Public Safety. Now all RCMP public comments must be vetted first by the minister's office. This will interfere with the independence of the RCMP and their ability to comment on anything the minister thinks is controversial. The government's answer to future RCMP scandal is to muzzle their ability to talk to Canadians.
Why the gag order? Does the minister have something to hide?
Candice Bergen ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety
Mr. Speaker, as a government it is our responsibility to communicate with Canadians. Co-operation between departments and agencies is standard procedure and practice. This is another sad attempt by the NDP to have a drive-by smear of the RCMP and it is a shame. It shows the NDP is not fit to govern.
Sylvain Chicoine NDP Châteauguay—Saint-Constant, QC
Mr. Speaker, the comments by the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety are shocking. The last thing the RCMP needs is political interference. The RCMP must be allowed to do its job. Canadians expect the RCMP to provide accurate information, not engage in public relations. Once again, by trying to muzzle the RCMP, the government has gone too far. It is clearly intervening in the work of an independent body.
Will the minister respect the RCMP's independence and put an end to this new protocol?
Candice Bergen ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety
Mr. Speaker, Canadians respect and appreciate the work that is done by the RCMP. It would be good if the NDP would do the same thing. This kind of co-operation between departments and agencies is standard procedure. It is normal protocol.
Let us stand behind our law enforcement and not do these kinds of shameful drive-by slurs.
Jack Harris NDP St. John's East, NL
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister continues to thumb his nose at the provinces with his sledgehammer approach to justice. Quebec has had to plead with the justice minister just to get a meeting before the government forces its prisons agenda through committee this week.
Paying lip service is not enough. Will the government actually listen to the provinces that want to bring changes about in Bill C-10? Will it be a partner with the provinces or will it continue to turn its back on them?
Rob Nicholson ConservativeMinister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada
Mr. Speaker, I will point out what one justice minister said just in the last week or so. He said:
The point I would make to everybody is these are things that were asked for by most provinces when we went through federal-provincial-territorial ministers meetings earlier. When we had the discussions, you know, nobody came and said, well, don’t do it unless you agree to pay for it. Everybody said these are things that we need to make our communities safe--
This was by Don Morgan, minister of justice and attorney general for Saskatchewan. It is a part of Canada as well.
Françoise Boivin NDP Gatineau, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Quebec justice minister is returning to Ottawa tomorrow to ask the government, for the umpteenth time, for a positive response to the amendments to Bill C-10 that Quebec is seeking. Quebec refuses to pay the costs associated with this Conservative ideology, which is mocking Quebec's 40 years of experience when it comes to long-term protection of the public. For months now we have been telling this government repeatedly that its crime agenda is misguided, particularly when it comes to young offenders. Will the minister finally listen to the provinces, the experts and the official opposition, thereby practising real open federalism?
Robert Goguen ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice
Mr. Speaker, this is not the first time we have welcomed Minister Fournier to discuss the important steps we are taking to protect the public. The provinces, including Quebec, made many recommendations that we took into consideration when drafting this bill to protect the public.
Our approach is balanced. It strikes a balance between prevention and enforcement, and it emphasizes rehabilitation. Nothing in this bill undermines Quebec's ability to enforce the law as it sees fit. The goal is to protect the public. As we know, that phrase is not in the NDP's vocabulary.
Kirsty Duncan Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
Mr. Speaker, an access to information request has uncovered a government briefing note titled “Ozone monitoring cuts”. The brief says that there is no duplication in the ozone measurement network.
Why then did the assistant deputy minister tell the public the networks will be consolidated and streamlined? Why has the government said that there are no cuts to ozone monitoring when its briefing note reveals the truth?
Peter Kent ConservativeMinister of the Environment
Mr. Speaker, I would once again encourage my colleague to use better sources in the research of her questions in the House. The quotation in question was taken out of context. It was taken completely out of context.
Environment Canada will continue to monitor the ozone. As I have said many times before, the World Ozone and Ultraviolet Data Centre will continue to deliver world-class services.
Justin Trudeau Liberal Papineau, QC
Mr. Speaker, I had prepared a question for the Minister of the Environment about this troubling memo and the contradictions in his responses. These political non-answers lead me to ask a basic question on the minister's knowledge of this important issue.
Could the minister explain to the House what ozone is and what is the difference between its impact at low altitude and high altitude? I just need to know that he understands the issues.
Peter Kent ConservativeMinister of the Environment
Mr. Speaker, if there are any shortcomings in this House, it is in the quality of the questions from the Liberal opposition.
This government would gladly compare our record on the environment, in all its dimensions, to--
The Speaker Conservative Andrew Scheer
Order. The Minister of the Environment has the floor. We will have a little bit of order.
The hon. Minister of the Environment.
Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON
Mr. Speaker, to complete my answer, again, the opposition is using a questionable media source quotation of one of my staff that has been taken out of context.
Ryan Cleary NDP St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans has finally admitted what the rest of us already know, that the fishery is broken.
The five years of Conservative mismanagement after a decade of Liberal negligence cannot be reversed. By tearing up the Fisheries Act, firing scientists, laying off fisheries staff and turning out the lights will not put fish back in the sea or food on fishermen's tables.
The fishery is broken. Will the Conservative government finally support our fishing communities and put forward a concrete plan to fix it?
Keith Ashfield ConservativeMinister of Fisheries and Oceans and Minister for the Atlantic Gateway
Mr. Speaker, we know that the average age of our fishers is increasing, the same for our plant workers and a declining number of new entrants into the fishery.
It is a serious situation, one that we can change through modernization and efficiencies in the Department of Fisheries and in the fishery itself. If we are to make any difference in the future of the fishery, we need to make changes today.
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member for Madawaska—Restigouche and Minister for ACOA is basically calling seasonal workers in the Atlantic provinces lazy by saying that they work only the minimum number of hours required to receive employment insurance benefits. And, despite all the job losses, the government has no concrete plan to help workers.
Rather than insulting workers, will the minister withdraw his statement and force the Conservative government to adopt concrete measures to create employment? What the minister said was shameful.
Diane Finley ConservativeMinister of Human Resources and Skills Development
Mr. Speaker, that is completely untrue.
During the global recession and as a result of that recession, the workers and skills required by the industry were still in short supply. That is why, in our economic action plan, we introduced training for workers who have lost their jobs. Through this training, we have helped over 1,000 workers to acquire the skills they need today and in the future. The NDP voted against these initiatives. We also extended the initiative for older workers to help them to return to the labour market. The NDP voted against this as well. Why is the NDP voting against workers?
Tilly O'Neill-Gordon Conservative Miramichi, NB
Mr. Speaker, our government has placed unprecedented focus on the health of mothers, newborns and children.
A major partner of the government in improving the lives of some of the world's most vulnerable people has been the World Health Organization.
At the request of the WHO, our Prime Minister agreed to co-chair the UN Commission on Information and Accountability for Women and Children's Health, which recently released a series of recommendations.
Could the Minister of International Cooperation please update the House on progress being made?
Bev Oda ConservativeMinister of International Cooperation
Mr. Speaker, Canada continues its leadership on maternal, newborn and child health under the Prime Minister's leadership and the head of the WHO, who we are pleased to host here in Canada today, along with the top health experts in the field of maternal and child health.
We are about accountability. We are about getting results. We are about better health for children and saving more lives.
Canadians can be proud of our continued leadership to ensure that every MNCH dollar counts.
Hedy Fry Liberal Vancouver Centre, BC
Mr. Speaker, the critical shortage of prescription drugs worldwide has now become a real problem.
In the U.S., the FDA set up a special committee to deal with the problem. Congress has held hearings. President Obama ordered an investigation into the pharmaceutical industry.
The Liberals have been trying to get the health committee to hold similar hearings but the government blocks it, preferring to let the pharmaceutical industry warn us as shortages arise.
This information will do nothing to get drugs to patients. Already certain cancer patients cannot get the drugs they need.
Why is the government so complacent--
Leona Aglukkaq ConservativeMinister of Health and Minister of the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency
Mr. Speaker, our government is taking a leadership role when it comes to dealing with drug shortages.
This summer, I told the drug companies that if they did not take action our government would look at regulations to require action. I am pleased to report to the House that these companies have responded positively to my request.
Glenn Thibeault NDP Sudbury, ON
Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure that we will all get to watch Canada's Sidney Crosby get back on the ice tonight. It took Crosby 320 days to recover from a concussion he suffered during a hockey game.
While the NHL, NFL, CFL and other leagues are getting serious about concussions, experts say that the government could do a lot more to protect our children playing sports.
When will the government finally agree to work with the New Democrats on a national strategy to reduce serious injuries in amateur sports?