Debates of Nov. 20th, 2012

Intergovernmental Affairs

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, now we know where the opposition sets the bar for its fiscal performance. It is to try to catch up with Greece. We aim higher on this side of the House.

We are a leading economy in the G7, as acknowledged throughout industrialized societies. We are looking forward to the economic growth that we have in Canada and in the United States, being aware always of the turbulence that is out there in the U.S. and in Europe.

Infrastructure

[Bob Rae, Liberal, Toronto Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the finance minister's statement last week showed that the economy is slowing, that revenues are slower and less than before, and that it is affecting all levels of government, the provinces as well as municipalities.

In light of the request from municipalities that there be a clear statement from the government with respect to future plans on infrastructure, I wonder if the Prime Minister would consider giving the municipalities the full flow of the gas tax so that they in fact will be able to plan their own capital investments as time goes on.

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, obviously those matters are the subject of some consultation, but I am a bit surprised by the question. Our government is the one that made the gas tax transfer to our municipalities permanent so that they can indeed borrow against those revenues and plan for the future. Obviously, that is a policy that we will continue to keep in place.

[Bob Rae, Liberal, Toronto Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the government can take credit for the policy of Mr. Chrétien and Mr. Martin, but the problem remains. The problem is that the economy is slowing down. We see this everywhere. We see it in all the economic figures. The municipalities are responsible for 60% of the country's infrastructure.

I ask the question again: can the government assure us that budget 2013 will include an important announcement about a partnership between the federal government and municipalities concerning infrastructure?

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, once again, with regard to the gas tax for funding infrastructure, it was our party that proposed that measure, it was our party that increased that measure, and it was our party that made that measure a permanent part of Canada's budget. This policy is greatly appreciated by the municipalities and we intend to maintain it.

[Bob Rae, Liberal, Toronto Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I always thought that the Liberal Party, from what I was told, was in power in 2005 when that measure was in fact brought in. We are not resting on our laurels; we are looking forward to the future. What we see in the future is an economy that is slowing down.

Now I know that the Prime Minister is getting his advice from the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who is leaning over with his comments, but I want to ask him: Does he not recognize that the economy is in fact slowing down and that the municipalities need a clear commitment on infrastructure?

There would be no clearer way of doing that than doubling the gas tax flow to the provinces and letting the—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

Order. The Right Hon. Prime Minister.

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, if the Liberal Party were merely resting on its laurels, it would be doing much better than it is today.

This is a fascinating proposition coming from the Liberal Party when in fact it has opposed this government's moves on the gas tax transfer and has opposed making that a permanent measure for the municipalities. The Liberal Party voted against those very measures when we brought them forward as part of our budgets. We are proud of them and we will continue in that direction.

Foreign Investment

[Peter Julian, NDP, Burnaby—New Westminster, BC]

Mr. Speaker, today Canadians found out through anonymous leaks that CNOOC has agreed to meet the federal government's request. What request? This is the first time Canadians have heard of any request coming from the federal government on CNOOC.

The government refuses to be transparent, refuses to be accountable, refuses to have respect for Canadians, so what is the government respecting of CNOOC and why is it doing it in secret? Why is it doing it behind closed doors?

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, let me just address that very briefly. The Minister of Industry has been very clear. The government's policy on these matters, while we welcome foreign investment, is to scrutinize every individual foreign investment to ensure they are in the bests interests of our country.

On the one hand, the position of the NDP, as we know, is to be against all of these investments. The position of the Liberal Party, as reiterated yesterday, is to rubber-stamp every one of them.

We think Canadians expect us to examine these investments carefully and ensure they are in the best interests of Canada.

[Peter Julian, NDP, Burnaby—New Westminster, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the problem is the Prime Minister and the Conservatives are not credible on this issue.

The Conservatives allowed Falconbridge to—

[Peter Van Loan, Conservative, York—Simcoe, ON]

Credible and foreign investment.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

Order, please. There is already far too much noise going back and forth. The members are putting the questions and answering, so let us try to get a bit more order for the rest of question period.

The hon. member for Burnaby—New Westminster.

[Peter Julian, NDP, Burnaby—New Westminster, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the truth certainly does hurt.

The Conservatives allowed Falconbridge to be taken over by Xstrata with the promise that there would be no job losses. The result was that hundreds of jobs were lost, with zero consequence and no action from the government.

It was the same thing when Inco was taken over by Vale. Hundreds of jobs were lost. U.S. Steel took over Stelco and hundreds of jobs were lost. Rio Tinto took over Alcan and hundreds of jobs were lost.

Why do the Conservatives consistently fail to stand up for Canadians on these takeovers?

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we know the NDP is opposed to every actual or potential foreign investment. The reality is that we have strengthened the Investment Canada Act to be able to secure the undertakings that are made as part of those transactions.

However, the reality of this government's record is absolutely clear. As a consequence of this government's measures, over 800,000 net new jobs have been created.

[Hélène LeBlanc, NDP, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives' culture of secrecy and their mismanagement have angered investors and are hurting the economy.

The Vale and U.S. Steel investments were approved, but we still do not know why those companies were not penalized when jobs were lost.

There has been no explanation as to why BHP's offer for PotashCorp was rejected. We have received no explanation as to why Petronas’ offer was rejected in the middle of the night. As a result of well-orchestrated leaks, we are learning that some requirements were not met, but which ones?

Why not simply explain what we are demanding of foreign corporations?

[Christian Paradis, Conservative, Minister of Industry and Minister of State (Agriculture)]

Mr. Speaker, it is unbelievable that the opposition is trying to politicize the reviews and the process so that it can impose its radical, anti-trade program, which would make foreign investors flee, whereas foreign investment can make our businesses part of the global value chain and create employment.

Under our economic action plan, 820,000 net new jobs have been created in Canada.

The legislation is clear. Certain factors are considered in our reviews. We will look at whether the deal provides a net benefit for Canada, in the best interests of Canadians. That is how we always proceed.

[Hélène LeBlanc, NDP, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we just want to know what requirements and conditions are being set.

Canadians can no longer trust this government. Since the Conservatives came to power, Canada's trade deficit has exploded and they have caused 500,000 good manufacturing jobs to be lost.

Given their record, we are not surprised they want to do this in secret. However, Canadians do not want a secret deal with CNOOC.

Will the minister explain to us under what conditions Chinese state-owned corporations will be able to take control of our natural resources?

[Christian Paradis, Conservative, Minister of Industry and Minister of State (Agriculture)]

Mr. Speaker, let us be clear. We have repeatedly said that all foreign investment decisions are made in the same best interests of Canada. That is how our government has always acted. Since 2006, we have created guidelines for foreign state-owned corporations, and we have established additional provisions for national security issues.

This transaction will be carefully scrutinized. However, we will not use a trade or manufacturing policy like that of the NDP, which would like to impose a $21.5 billion carbon tax on the backs of Canadians.

That kills jobs, but that is not what we do: we create them.

[Peter Julian, NDP, Burnaby—New Westminster, BC]

Mr. Speaker, that is no answer. That is no transparency, no accountability, no respect for Canadians. Canadians deserve better because Canadian jobs are on the line, including jobs in downtown Calgary. Conservatives and Liberals are all in favour of letting CNOOC and Chinese state-owned companies buy a controlling interest in our oil industry. Why do they not actually talk to Canadians before they agree to this deal?

Thousands of jobs have been lost in the past on these takeovers. Why is the government not pushing for job guarantees? Why are the Conservatives approving this takeover behind closed doors?

[Christian Paradis, Conservative, Minister of Industry and Minister of State (Agriculture)]

Mr. Speaker, what is not credible is the opposition trying to politicize these reviews. With those members' anti-trade, job-killing agenda, this is what we will not do. What we will do is to evaluate whether these transactions are likely to provide a net benefit for Canada, always in the best interests of Canadians. We will not politicize this stuff, we will do it properly. With our economic action plan, we created 820,000 net new jobs. This is results.

41st General Election

[Alexandre Boulerice, NDP, Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we in the NDP are in favour of trade, but trade that protects our jobs, that protects our resources, that protects our energy, and is in the interests of Canadians. The official opposition is not going to let this happen.

This is not the only issue where there are problems when it comes to the Conservatives. In the election fraud case, the evidence is mounting. Elections Canada is saying it: there were fraudulent calls. Employees of call centres have signed affidavits confirming that it was the Conservatives who were making those calls. The Internet is full of complaints from voters who say they received fraudulent calls from telephone numbers associated with the Conservatives. Their fingerprints are all over this tale.

Instead of covering up for the cheats and fraud artists, are they going to support our bill to strengthen the election rules?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, the specific concern that the hon. member is raising was addressed by the Conservative Party over a year ago. The allegation he is making is false.

With regard to the riding of Guelph, we are working proactively with Elections Canada to find out what happened there.

Speaking of transparency, I would like to ask the member to stand in the House and state whether or not, after all the donations he made to the separatists, he is federalist.