Debates of Sept. 18th, 2012

Employment

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Westmount—Ville-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister himself has said that the global fragile economy is really the new normal and that it will be with us for years to come. Those are very serious words but what is he doing about it apart from vacuous sentences? Growth is slowing. Unemployment is seriously stubborn. Our trade balance is getting worse. Canadians are worried about their jobs and their financial stability.

I have some suggestions: roll back the payroll tax increases; give low-income Canadians refundable tax credits; and give low-income Canadians help to get their kids into university.

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, it is interesting that when we brought in these various tax credits and tax reductions for Canadians and Canadian families the Liberal Party voted against every one of them.

What we are doing to keep the Canadian economy creating jobs and ensuring it continues to have a superior job creation performance is by ensuring we keep taxes low, ensuring we free up our labour markets, ensuring we keep our deficit down and falling, ensuring we are investing in science and education and ensuring that we are expanding our trade. These are actions the government is taking across the board and we will have hundreds of pages of new proposals for the member very shortly.

Foreign Investment

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

Mr. Speaker, it is 25 days until the review deadline for the proposed takeover of Nexen by CNOOC. Yesterday, when we asked the minister what steps he would be taking to clarify the net benefit to us there was no answer. We asked what they would be doing for public consultations but there was dead silence and no answer at all. Now, even the Conservative MPs are raising concerns about this inaction.

With only a few weeks left for the review, will the minister stop stonewalling and agree to hold public consultations on the Nexen takeover deal?

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

Mr. Speaker, this transaction will be scrutinized very closely. I must remind my colleague that we have targeted amendments to the Canada Investment Act that provide greater transparency to the public, more flexibility in enforcement and an alternative to costly and time consuming litigation.

However, we do not need to take lessons from the NDP. Its policy would deter any form of investment here in Canada. It would impact jobs. It would kill the jobs and impact Canadian families. We will not go down that path.

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

Mr. Speaker, Conservative ministers and backbenchers are worried about the takeover of Nexen.

The Minister of State for Finance said that he had heard many concerns: concerns about the resource industry and concerns about a foreign company investing in Canada.

This is an important strategic issue, but the Conservatives have yet to define what is a net benefit for Canada.

Why are the Conservatives consulting CNOOC and Nexen lobbyists, but refusing to consult the public?

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

Mr. Speaker, there is a process for examining this transaction, which will be given the attention it deserves. We will then see whether the transaction provides a net benefit for Canada.

I remind members that there are targeted investments in the Investment Canada Act that will make its enforcement more transparent to the public and more flexible, in order to avoid complex litigation.

We will not take lessons from the NDP. Its policy would eliminate all forms of investment in the country, which would have a negative impact on jobs and Canadian families. That is not the direction we will take.

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

Mr. Speaker, a lesson we can give them is that instead of making stuff up in the House they should be consulting with Canadians outside of the House of Commons.

Today, the Minister of State for Finance said this about the Nexen takeover, “I've heard many concerns, varying concerns, from my constituents”. The government is even ignoring Conservative members.

This takeover opens up serious questions about ownership of Canada's energy resources. We know the minister is consulting thoroughly with lobbyists from CNOOC and Nexen. Why will he not agree to consult the Canadian public?

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

Mr. Speaker, there is a process in place to review this transaction and determine whether it provides a net benefit for Canada. This transaction will be scrutinized very closely.

I must remind my colleagues that we all know the NDP is against all trade. It is even opposed to free trade with the United States. We will not go down that path. We are a responsible government and we will do whatever we need to do to ensure we have economic growth and job creation in the country.

International Trade

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the New Democrats and Canadians believe that we should strengthen our trade relations with the European Union. This week, European negotiators are back in Ottawa for another round of talks. However, because these negotiations are shrouded in secrecy, Canadians in local communities are worried about what the Conservatives may be trading away, like making prescription drugs more expensive by keeping generic drugs off the market for longer.

Could the minister assure the House that any agreement with Europe will not increase the price of prescription drugs for Canadians?

[Ed Fast, Conservative, Minister of International Trade and Minister for the Asia-Pacific Gateway]

Mr. Speaker, the negotiations with the European Union on a free trade agreement have been the most open, transparent and consultative in our history. Each step along the way we have kept Canadians involved. We consulted with stakeholders such as business, industry, civil society and municipalities. In fact, the Canadian Federation of Municipalities has applauded our government for its consultation.

As in all of our negotiations, the standard that we will set is that we will only sign an agreement that is in the best interests of Canadians.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Mr. Speaker, leaked documents is not a way to conduct transparency.

Under the Conservative watch, our trade deficit has skyrocketed. Canada hit a record $2.3 billion trade deficit in July alone and Canadian exports keep falling. This trade deal could hit Canadians hard. Some studies have estimated that it will cost Canadian drug plans and provinces, employers and citizens almost $3 billion a year.

Will the minister come clean and tell us if he plans to cave in to European drug companies?

[Ed Fast, Conservative, Minister of International Trade and Minister for the Asia-Pacific Gateway]

Mr. Speaker, it is this Conservative government that has embarked upon the most ambitious free trade plan in Canada's history.

Why have the NDP members opposed our free trade agenda almost every step along the way? They have opposed free trade agreements with countries such as Norway, Iceland and Switzerland. They have opposed a free trade agreement with Lichtenstein. The NDP is anti-trade.

On this side of the House, we will continue to represent the interests of Canadians, not just special interests represented by the NDP.

National Defence

[Jack Harris, NDP, St. John's East, NL]

Mr. Speaker, the Department of National Defence ombudsman released a damning report yesterday on how the Conservatives are failing to take care of members of our Canadian Forces suffering from mental health injuries. There are chronic problems. An extreme example is the case of Stuart Langridge. It was revealed last week that military superiors edited and cut the report on Corporal Langridge's death. Shades of Somalia indeed.

Why is the minister still refusing to hand over documents after the Military Police Complaints Commission repeatedly asked for them?

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, the case of Corporal Langridge's death is very much a tragedy. That has been expressed numerous times. I have met with his mother to express those sentiments.

The Military Police Complaints Commission is investigating the matter. It has sat for some 40 days and heard from some 80 witnesses. We have made additional funds available to the commission to do this important work. I wish the hon. member would respect that process and let the commission complete that work.

[Jack Harris, NDP, St. John's East, NL]

Mr. Speaker, the minister has already commented many times on matters before the Military Police Complaints Commission.

Last June, I asked about how Corporal Langridge self-admitted to hospital and how he needed to be on suicide watch but was not given that protection. The response by the Minister of National Defence in the House was, “none of that is actually true”. Of course, it was true.

Will the minister at least commit to fixing the problems that have been identified in the ombudsman report that was released yesterday?

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, as I have said a number of times, including just now, our government continues to support and work with the Military Police Complaints Commission. We do so within its mandate. We do so within the law. We do so respecting solicitor-client privilege. We do so with respect to working within its mandate.

The hon. member is a lawyer and he should know the law. What the hon. member is doing is trying to re-argue the case on the floor of the House of Commons, which is totally inappropriate.

[Djaouida Sellah, NDP, Saint-Bruno—Saint-Hubert, QC]

Mr. Speaker, when will the government stop sticking its head in the sand when it comes to health care for our Canadian Forces?

The ombudsman's report is clear. The Canadian Forces do not have an adequate number of mental health professionals. They have a very heavy workload and work in a very difficult environment. Some information even shows a chronic shortage in Petawawa.

Why has there been no increase in the number of mental health professionals within the Canadian Forces since 2010?

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, giving the member opposite the benefit of the doubt, she may have missed the fact that last week we invested an additional $11.4 million specific to the issue of increasing the number of mental health professionals in the country. In so doing, we will almost reach our goal of doubling the number of mental health professionals within the employment of the Canadian Forces and made available to those in need of counselling and of support for mental health injuries. We have received praise from psychiatric associations across the country, as well as in the ombudsman's report, recognizing there is more to do. There is always more to do given the shortage of mental health professionals in the country available to the civilian population.

[Matthew Kellway, NDP, Beaches—East York, ON]

Mr. Speaker, there is a lot more to do and we on this side of the House believe that supporting our troops means, above everything else, caring for the men and women who serve in our forces, especially those harmed in that service. It is not measured by how many billions the government is prepared to waste on the F-35. Even the Americans have said that enough is enough to this trillion dollar project. The Pentagon has made it clear that there are no more handouts for Lockheed Martin.

When will the Conservative government finally hold an open competition?

[Rona Ambrose, Conservative, Minister of Public Works and Government Services and Minister for Status of Women]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member knows full well that we have accepted the recommendations of the Auditor General and have created a procurement secretariat to ensure that there is due diligence and transparency when we make the decision to replace our CF-18s. No money, at this point, has been spent and no money will be spent until the secretariat independently verifies the costs of the F-35s, and also the requirements necessary to replace the CF-18s.

Employment Insurance

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

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, I asked the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development about the clawback disincentives she has recently introduced to the working while on claim provisions. Predictably, we got talking points that everyone was going to benefit.

Gordon Arsenault from Cheticamp in my riding works twice weekly as a cleaner and makes $79. Under the new rules, he will lose $38.

I have his phone number here if the minister would like to call him and explain to him how losing half of the income from his minimum wage job will actually be of benefit to him and his family.

[Diane Finley, Conservative, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development]

Mr. Speaker, what we have heard across this country is that our government is working to create jobs and grow the economy, and employers are telling us that they need workers.

We are also hearing from employees who say they want to work but that the EI system is getting in the way.

That is why we changed the rules, so that when someone works two or three days a week while they are on EI, they will now get to keep 50% of every dollar they make, instead of having every dollar clawed back on their EI.

Aboriginal Affairs

[Carolyn Bennett, Liberal, St. Paul's, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians believe in equality of opportunity. They know that education is the key to success. Appallingly, only one in three first nation students graduates high school, and under the current government the rate is getting worse.

First nations receive only two-thirds of the per student per year funding as non-aboriginal students in the provincial systems do. School is back and not one penny of the government's new funding is targeted to close this $3,500 gap.

Why does the government think that an aboriginal student is worth less than a non-aboriginal student?

[Peter Van Loan, Conservative, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, our government has been consistently delivering concrete results for first nation students. In fact, since 2006 we have built 33 new schools in first nations communities across Canada and carried out renovations in 22 more. We are not only building schools in first nation communities, we are laying the groundwork for healthier and more self-sufficient first nations communities.

The Environment

[Kirsty Duncan, Liberal, Etobicoke North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the environment minister misled Canadians when he stated that the World Ozone and Ultraviolet Radiation Data Centre would continue to provide world-class services.

Scientists are telling me that it is in disarray.

An Environment Canada representative has informed international authorities that the centre cannot continue to provide scientific oversight, despite a commitment to Parliament by the assistant deputy minister that the data centre will continue.

Why did the minister kill the ozone science group?