House of Commons Hansard #153 of the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was support.
Alex Atamanenko NDP British Columbia Southern Interior, BC
Mr. Speaker, I will change the channel. I have two sets of petitions.
The first one has over 200 signatures from the folks from Castlegar and the Slocan Valley who would like Parliament to impose a moratorium on the release of genetically modified alfalfa because of the economic hit that organic farmers could take.
Alex Atamanenko NDP British Columbia Southern Interior, BC
Mr. Speaker, I have over 1,000 names supporting my Bill C-322, An Act to amend the Health of Animals Act and the Meat Inspection Act. The signatures are from people right across Canada who want this act, which would prohibit the importation or exportation of horses for slaughter for human consumption, as well as horse meat products for human consumption.
Guy Lauzon Conservative Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have a petition signed by 658 people from the riding of Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry in support of Motion No. 312.
Niki Ashton NDP Churchill, MB
Mr. Speaker, I stand with petitions from thousands of Canadians, women and men, who have called on the government to oppose Motion No. 312 and recognize that it is about a woman's right to choose, a fundamental human right, a right that we as Canadians are proud to uphold. We certainly hope that all government members and members of all parties will stand with these Canadians and move ahead on equality rather than turning the clock back.
Leon Benoit Conservative Vegreville—Wainwright, AB
Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions today.
The petitioners note that section 223 of the Criminal Code is from 400-year-old British common law and stipulates that a child only becomes a human being once he or she proceeds from the womb. The petitioners say that advances in medical science say otherwise. One petition calls for the House to support Motion No. 312 and the other calls for the change in section 223 to reflect the reality of the new science.
Patricia Davidson Conservative Sarnia—Lambton, ON
Mr. Speaker, I rise to present a petition in support of Motion No. 312.
Mike Sullivan NDP York South—Weston, ON
Mr. Speaker, I am going to change the channel again.
I rise in support of a petition from many of my constituents, calling upon the government to impose a moratorium on the erection of cellphone towers and to call for immediate implementation of unbiased, non-industry-funded scientific research on the short-term and long-term biological and health effects of human exposure to microwave radiation.
Alexandrine Latendresse NDP Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC
Mr. Speaker, today, I am pleased to present a petition signed by hundreds of Canadians who are opposed to Motion No. 312, which is an attempt to reopen the debate on abortion. These many people want to express their opposition to this motion and are hoping that all members will support women's right to choose by voting against this motion.
David Sweet Conservative Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions from citizens who have serious concerns about the 400-year-old definition of when life begins and they ask the Parliament of Canada to take action to protect all human beings.
David Sweet Conservative Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have one petition from citizens who are calling upon the Government of Canada to issue an invitation for all states to gather in Canada to begin discussions needed for a global legal ban on nuclear weapons.
Pierre Nantel NDP Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher, QC
Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to rise to table a petition signed by many Quebeckers who are against the elimination of three jobs at the Saint-Lambert train station. VIA Rail is a essential transportation service on the south shore.
Pierre Nantel NDP Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher, QC
Mr. Speaker, I am tabling two more petitions related to Motion No. 312 signed by many men and women who see this motion as an affront to women's rights.
Harold Albrecht Conservative Kitchener—Conestoga, ON
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present some petitions from hundreds of Canadians from Parkdale—High Park, Trinity—Spadina and other places across Canada who are calling on the government to amend section 223 of our Criminal Code in such a way as to reflect 21st century medical evidence.
Harold Albrecht Conservative Kitchener—Conestoga, ON
Mr. Speaker, I also have a petition from people from my riding calling on the Government of Canada to provide leadership and support for child and youth nutrition programs through the ministries of health and agriculture.
Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings
Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre Saskatchewan
Conservative
Tom Lukiwski ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, I ask that all questions be allowed to stand.
Tom Lukiwski ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, I ask that all notices of motions for the production of papers be allowed to stand.
The Speaker Conservative Andrew Scheer
The Chair has notice of a request for an emergency debate from the hon. member for Halifax.
Megan Leslie NDP Halifax, NS
Mr. Speaker, thank you for giving me the floor to speak about the extremely urgent situation in the Arctic.
Canadians and people around the world were shocked when the U.S.-based National Snow and Ice Data Center reported last week on the dramatic melting of summer ice levels in the Arctic this year. Those levels fell to 50% of the average levels reported between 1979 and 2000. Based on the latest numbers, some scientists are even predicting that the Arctic might be ice-free during the summer of 2030.
As you know, Mr. Speaker, I am asking today for an emergency debate on this issue and the reasons for this are significant and wide-ranging. The melting is expected to have a domino effect on our environment, creating further warming of our climate as uncovered Arctic waters warm more quickly. This will, in turn, affect all regions of Canada with more extreme weather, in part because of the effect warmer Arctic waters will have to change the speed and path of the jet stream. It will affect all communities and all industries.
NASA climate scientist James Hansen is calling the degradation of the Arctic sea ice a “planetary emergency”.
Mark Serreze, NSIDC director, told the media that “[w]e are now in “uncharted territory.”
The situation is clear and it is worrying. The extreme melting that happened this summer goes beyond being a warning of potential terrifying global environmental consequences.
Since the report was released last week, I have talked to people around the country and realized this is not just an environmental issue, it touches all aspects of our society from international relations to national security, agriculture, natural resources and more. It is a harbinger of massive socio-political and economic change that parliamentarians have a duty to address for reasons of national security. There is no time to waste. Our country needs a plan.
With Canada taking on the chair of the Arctic Council in 2013, a comprehensive debate on Arctic issues is already overdue. We must prepare our domestic plan and prepare for multilateral partnerships on Arctic issues.
This issue simply cannot wait. We have to discuss it in the House in order to find solutions and make a plan for the future.
We need to discuss next steps and Canadians must be given a voice on this issue. It concerns us all, including future generations.
I await your decision, Mr. Speaker.
The Speaker Conservative Andrew Scheer
I thank the hon. member for Halifax for both the letter and the explanation of the issue. While I am sure it is an important issue to her, I do not think it meets the test for an emergency debate.
I do know in coming weeks there will undoubtedly be supply days allotted and perhaps the House will have an opportunity to discuss it at that time.
Dennis Bevington NDP Western Arctic, NT
Mr. Speaker, this summer Canadians experienced weather extremes like none in history causing droughts in eastern Ontario and the failure of fruit crops in southwestern Ontario.
In the United States, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported the highest August temperature since 1885, resulting in drought in the Midwestern states and devastating the corn crop. A report by Jennifer Francis of Rutgers University and Stephen Vavrus of the University of Wisconsin showed that the extreme weather is directly related to the loss of Arctic summer ice cover. This month, Arctic sea ice declined to its lowest level ever, beating the previous record set in 2007. The North Pole's ice cap is now 50% below what it was in 1979 to 2000.
Francis and Vavrus have shown that the increased loss of Arctic summer ice cover is adding enough heat to the ocean and atmosphere to redirect the jet stream, the fast-moving high-altitude river of air that steers weather systems across the northern hemisphere. The sixth lowest Arctic sea ice extents have occurred during the past six years. As a result of such extensive sea ice melt, the study says that the jet stream is behaving differently. It is becoming slower with bigger troughs and ridges.
As more ice melts, the dark ocean is revealed, absorbing more solar energy and heating the water. The heat is released back into the atmosphere in the fall and winter increasing the air temperatures over the Arctic, which in turn reduces the temperature differential between the air in the Arctic and the air further south.
Historically, this temperature differential has driven the jet stream, which circles the earth from west to east and forms a barrier between the atmospheres in the Arctic and elsewhere. However, as the temperature difference has declined between the north and the south, the speed of the jet stream has slowed by about 20% in the last few decades. Additionally, as the jet stream has slowed and its north-south movements have become more pronounced, generally moving further north. When it does move south, these intrusions are heading further than previously.
The changing jet stream is the main culprit behind the increasingly extreme weather events. The known negative impacts of these extreme weather events are crop failures across North America and higher food prices. For example, it has been estimated that as much as 70% of the U.S. corn crop failed this year because of drought in the Midwestern states. The apple crop in southwestern Ontario failed due to a period of unusually high temperature in March and farmers in eastern Ontario are paying as much as $140 for a bale of hay due to drought this July.
The failure of the U.S. corn crop alone will result in food costs as high as 80% to 90% for food on grocery shelves containing corn. Meanwhile, beef, pork and dairy farmers are now reporting that they will have to decrease the size of their herds as they cannot afford the fodder, which will result in more shortage and drive costs up.
Potential negative impacts from higher food prices include increased unemployment, criminality and civil unrest. Lower crop and animal yields will likely increase unemployment in the food processing industry as fewer people will be required to prepare the food. People in southwestern Ontario who work in the fruit industry will have no jobs while cattle, pork and dairy farmers will lay off hands in order to afford fodder for their animals. These job losses will have a ripple effect across all sectors. Demands for goods and services will be reduced.
Further, as we have seen increased theft of gas due to higher prices, so will increased food prices result in theft. As history has shown, increased food costs or shortages have resulted in civil unrest—
The Speaker Conservative Andrew Scheer
Order. I would ask the hon. member to quickly wrap-up. He has had the floor for quite some time now.