Debates of May 11th, 2012

Aerospace Industry

[Paul Dewar, NDP, Ottawa Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, two years ago RADARSAT-2 was vulnerable and was going to be shut down. The government said it was going to be saved. The government said it would put finances to ensure we saved this important technology. Now we hear it is going to be cut. Will the government stand behind our technology and our sovereignty and finance RADARSAT-2 and -3, yes or no?

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

Mr. Speaker, it is quite clear we are committed to the RADARSAT project, and this is the bottom line. This is a very important project that we will deliver in the most cost-effective way.

[Hélène Laverdière, NDP, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister loves to go to the far north for his annual photo shoot. However, Canadians want concrete action.

With every passing day, the RADARSAT Arctic surveillance project is falling behind. While the minister dithers, MDA Corporation will have to lay off its scientists.

Why not honour these funding commitments? Why encourage the brain drain?

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

Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, measures have been taken to ensure that massive investments were made in the area of science and technology and that there is a brain gain rather than a brain drain. The figures show this to be true.

To come back to RADARSAT, we have been very clear. We are committed to this project. This project is very large and important but it has to be delivered to Canadians in a cost-effective way. That is what Canadians expect: good management by their government.

Old Port of Montreal Corporation

[Denis Coderre, Liberal, Bourassa, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to take advantage of the presence of the Minister of Industry, who is also the minister responsible for Montreal, to ask him a question about the Old Port of Montreal Corporation.

In light of what was said yesterday by the corporation's chairman, former minister Gerry Weiner, who is also a friend of Leo Housakos, it seems a consultant has already evaluated the Old Port of Montreal Corporation. I also heard that Old Port of Montreal Corporation could likely be put under the management of the Canada Lands Company.

Can the minister confirm whether such is the case? This is a 40-acre jewel and we do not want it to be subject to real estate speculation for the building of condos. We are opposed to that.

What can the minister tell me?

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Works and Government Services]

Mr. Speaker, we are concerned by the reports about this departure from the board.

The Minister of Public Works has asked the Auditor General to conduct an independent audit to get to the bottom of any undue expenses.

The Budget

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Wascana, SK]

Mr. Speaker, here is an example of why the massive budget bill needs fixing.

To be eligible for a registered disability savings plan, people must first qualify for the disability tax credit, meaning that they have to have a severe disability right now. However, if they suffer from a debilitating condition like multiple sclerosis that leads to serious future problems, but not right now, they are not eligible for the DTC and therefore they cannot have a savings plan now when they could really use it. That is just wrong. For the second time, will the government correct that flaw?

[Gail Shea, Conservative, Minister of National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, it has been common practice to include various measures in the budget and the subsequent budget implementation bill. This is nothing groundbreaking. It simply reflects the central and important role of the budget to the government's agenda. There will be seven full days of debate on the budget bill at second reading alone, before being referred to a committee. This is longer than the average time of debate for a budget bill in at least the last 20 years.

[Rosane Doré Lefebvre, NDP, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the government just keeps hiding from accountability. With its massive budget bill it wants to get rid of the oversight of CSIS. The former senior chief counsel to CSIS put it simply in saying that the CSIS Inspector General makes sure that CSIS is accountable to the minister and to Canadians.

What do the Conservatives have against being accountable?

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, I reject the premise of the opposition's question.

The Security Intelligence Review Committee provides comprehensive, vigorous and independent oversight for CSIS. We are able to eliminate duplication, save the taxpayers' dollar and actually provide better oversight for CSIS.

It is time for the NDP to realize that these are measures that Canadians have asked us to take: to be more efficient and to be rigorous in what we are providing.

[Rosane Doré Lefebvre, NDP, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Mr. Speaker, considering what the government opposite is doing, it is as though all oversight mechanisms automatically create obstacles, so they had to be eliminated as soon as possible.

The reality is that the Inspector General found some major weaknesses at CSIS concerning the agency's operational mechanisms here in Canada. The problem is that if the government goes ahead with these extremely irresponsible changes, Canadians will never hear about this again.

Will the minister reverse this dangerous decision and finally show some transparency?

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite is wrong and unfortunately does not understand the different bodies that have overseen CSIS.

Unfortunately, duplication sometimes can actually be a problem, so instead we are providing is comprehensive, vigorous, independent review by the Security Intelligence Review Committee. It is going to save dollars for taxpayers. It will continue with the oversight of CSIS.

We ask the NDP to look at what we are doing. We are creating jobs. In the last month we have created 58,000 jobs. The NDP needs to get on board with our tax-saving measures and job creation measures.

Natural Resources

[Blaine Calkins, Conservative, Wetaskiwin, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition has some explaining to do. Instead of praising the importance of the resource sector, he would rather call it a disease, pitting one region of the country against another. The Leader of the Opposition needs to explain to the hundreds of thousands of Canadians employed throughout our resource sector just what his NDP cure is for this supposed disease.

Could the always lucid Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister explain just how important the resource sector is to Canada?

[Dean Del Mastro, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister and to the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I have been pleased to work with the member for Wetaskiwin since 2006 on building a stronger Canadian economy together. That is what the government is focused on. We do not work with one region, pitting one region against the other. We want to make all regions in the country as strong as we possibly can.

What I can say to the member from Alberta is that the value-added sector in Ontario is strong and is getting stronger, especially in oil and gas and natural resources. It is the number two economy in Ontario, and it is strong because the Alberta economy is strong and because the Saskatchewan economy is strong. The Ontario economy is getting stronger, as is the Quebec economy. I know 58,000 net new jobs--

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

Order, please.

The hon. member for Halifax West.

Health

[Geoff Regan, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Health has her head in the sand and continues to say that the voluntary reporting system for drug shortages is working. Right.

When patients show up at pharmacies to refill their prescriptions for the epilepsy drug Epival and its generic forms, it is not available. There is no information about this on the drug reporting sites.

If the voluntary reporting system is working, could the minister explain why doctors, pharmacists and patients cannot find out when Epival will be available?

Could she tell us when it will be available?

[Leona Aglukkaq, Conservative, Minister of Health and Minister of the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency]

Mr. Speaker, as we have said all along, the shortage resulted from decisions by the provinces and the territories to sole-source their drug contracts.

Our role is to ensure that drugs are safe before they enter the market. We are working around the clock to address this issue by identifying new suppliers for the provinces and the territories, fast-tracking approvals and providing access to the national emergency stockpiles system. In fact, we have approved 16 replacement drugs and approved more than 120 drugs through the special access program since the drug shortage occurred.

Finance

[François Lapointe, NDP, Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives and credit card companies are hiding behind a code of conduct that is clearly unacceptable. Of course, consumers and SMEs are the ones to pay the price. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business and the Competition Bureau agree that the obligation to accept certain cards and absorb the additional fees binds SMEs.

Will the government finally listen and respond to the legitimate demands of a pillar of the Canadian economy: owners of small and medium-sized businesses?

[Gail Shea, Conservative, Minister of National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, we heard the concerns that small businesses raised and we introduced our code of conduct. The code has been welcomed by consumers and business groups, especially small business.

The opposition voted against the code and against supporting small business and consumers. We continually monitor compliance. Any possible violation will be investigated, and we have the power and ability to make the code involuntary if necessary.

I will offer this quote from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, which said that “...the code has served merchants extremely well” and “...has done an excellent job in ensuring some fair ground rules and maintaining Canada's”--

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

The hon. member for Brandon—Souris.

National Defence

[Merv Tweed, Conservative, Brandon—Souris, MB]

Mr. Speaker, after the Liberal decade of darkness, our Conservative government has re-equipped the Canadian armed forces. After years of Liberal neglect and NDP indifference, our military is finally getting the tools it needs. I am proud of our government's record, and we do tell Canadians about these investments.

Today there is a media report on the new armoured engineer vehicles that suggests the government should have communicated its intentions to Canadians. Can the minister confirm that this was done, and when?

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, yes I can.

I want to thank the member for Brandon—Souris, home to the great Canadian Forces Base Shilo. As he said, the media and opposition criticism on this defence project and on the Libya costing are baseless, incorrect, and the result of poor research and blind partisanship.

The MERX posting clearly describes these projects. It is a detailed project description, and summaries appear in both the Public Works and Government Services and the Department of National Defence websites. We can table them. For almost three years that information has been publicly available. It was provided to the media and the general public July 8, 2009.

This will add to the great job numbers that are out there today and continue to support the Canadian--

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

The hon. member for Repentigny.

Manufacturing Industry

[Jean-François Larose, NDP, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Speaker, May 1 was International Workers' Day. To celebrate the day in a symbolic way, employees of the Mabe, Aveos and Electrolux plants got together and marched in the town of L'Assomption. These workers have one thing in common: this past year, they were given the bad news that the plants where they work are closing and they are losing their jobs.

My constituents' question is clear: what will the government do to stop the hemorrhaging and ensure that the plants stay here, where we have the best workforce?

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

Mr. Speaker, we must not increase the tax burden on businesses, as the NDP is proposing. More regulation has the exact opposite effect. Canada is now considered the best place to do business. In Quebec, 23,000 net new jobs have been created. In the manufacturing sector, 24,000 net new jobs have been created. We are seeing results.

Doing the opposite, as the NDP is proposing, would kill the economy. I can assure Canadians that we will never go down that road.