Debates of Sept. 27th, 2012

Aboriginal Affairs

[Jonathan Genest-Jourdain, NDP, Manicouagan, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I have visited these communities, and I can attest to the fact that the Nutrition North Canada program is not working properly.

Local food acquired through hunting is the best option for many families that live in isolated communities. However, the Nutrition North Canada program will only provide funding for meat that comes from a processing plant and has been inspected by a government inspector. There is still no federal inspector nearby to inspect food.

In the last quarter, only $218 was devoted to the funding of traditional food.

Will the minister make the changes necessary to promote the sharing of local, traditional food among communities?

[John Duncan, Conservative, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development]

Mr. Speaker, we have put in place arrangements whereby the nutrition north program will deal with traditional foods. Yes, there is a break-in period, but there are some good things happening.

We now have a local market that has been set up in Iqaluit through local initiatives. We have some of the retailers now very interested in trying to make some arrangements for traditional foods.

This is going to take a while, but it is something that we have very much promoted.

Sport

[John Carmichael, Conservative, Don Valley West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in 2015 Canada will again play host as Toronto welcomes the Americas to the Pan American and Parapan American Games.

Can the Minister of Natural Resources please tell the House how our government plans to ensure that our world-class athletes have access to state-of-the-art facilities both during and after these games in Toronto?

[Joe Oliver, Conservative, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, our government is making a significant investment in the 2015 Pan American and Parapan American Games, with facilities that will benefit Canadians for years to come.

Today I am pleased to announce that our government will also provide $115 million for the construction of the aquatic centre and field house at the University of Toronto campus in Scarborough.

This significant investment will create a lasting legacy and generate economic activity throughout the GTA.

The Environment

[Megan Leslie, NDP, Halifax, NS]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians can no longer follow the Conservative rhetoric on environmental assessments. Even the minister is confused. Yesterday he said that “until the legislation was tabled it would have been inappropriate for us to consult”. Except that he did consult industry last January, to find out how to give priority to the development of pipelines.

Why did the Conservatives consult the oil and gas industry before consulting Canadians?

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, to recap my colleague's talking points fresh off her party leader's mini-lectern, the NDP has disdain for our natural resources sector and love for ineffective government.

What we have been doing over the last year is reviewing our environmental assessment process to ensure that we have a balance between rigour and process efficiencies. We feel we have achieved that balance.

We had a very strong working group on that in our sub-committee, which my colleague rarely attended. We feel that we have this balance right and are doing great things for this country.

[Megan Leslie, NDP, Halifax, NS]

Mr. Speaker, I suggest that we get some notes because yesterday the minister told the House one thing and a few months ago told industry something entirely different.

The Conservative budget bill gutted environmental protection and scrapped environmental assessments for 200 pipeline projects. Is that a coincidence?

Canadians were not consulted, our committee was kept in the dark, and yet the minister went out of his way to reassure industry that he had its interests at heart before the legislation was even tabled. Why did he tell the House otherwise yesterday?

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, during the hours and hours of committee study last year, where both the finance and environment committees looked at our environmental assessment laws, we heard over and over again the need to streamline and make the process more efficient.

The commissioner for the environment himself said that 99% of the environmental assessments conducted in this country have little to no environmental impact and that the resources dedicated to those screenings could be more effectively used for larger screenings.

This is getting things done for Canadians.

Science and Technology

[Kennedy Stewart, NDP, Burnaby—Douglas, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives' disregard for environmental science is hurting Canada's global standing and reputation in science and technology. A new study commissioned by the Conservatives themselves shows that under their watch Canada has moved from leader to laggard in environmental and natural resource sciences.

I know that the government dislikes it when evidence gets in the way of its political agenda, but is the minister really satisfied to play catch-up with the rest of the world on scientific research?

[Gary Goodyear, Conservative, Minister of State (Science and Technology) (Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario)]

Mr. Speaker, the member really needs to read the report. I do not understand why the NDP members are always bashing Canada. The report said that environmental and natural sciences “maintain considerable strength, with Canadian research in Agriculture, Fisheries, and Forestry ranked second in the world...and Earth and Environmental Sciences ranked fourth”.

I do not know why the NDP members are constantly bashing Canada and scientists. We are doing very well.

[Laurin Liu, NDP, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the parliamentary secretary can say what he likes, but the numbers do not lie.

While other countries are giving priority to environmental science, the Canadian government is closing laboratories, eliminating jobs and taking essential tools away from researchers. For Canada, this means fewer jobs, fewer patents and lower profits. One thing is clear: we are lagging behind other OECD countries.

Will the Conservatives stop using science only when it suits them?

[Gary Goodyear, Conservative, Minister of State (Science and Technology) (Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario)]

Mr. Speaker, the members should read the report before they make comments on it.

The fact is that in the last five years this report was done, Canada increased its publications 60%, and it was the only country in the G7 to do that.

We made a decision to support science, which included about $135 million for environmental research, water research, and climate change research. The NDP members voted against it. They need to get their facts right and get on board with supporting scientists because we are moving in on number one in the world.

[Kirsty Duncan, Liberal, Etobicoke North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Experimental Lakes Area, Canada's world-renowned facility for freshwater research and education, is in danger of extinction by the Conservative government.

The research conducted at the ELA must continue. It must be public and it must be owned by the public.

Can the government honestly answer the following question for Canadians? Does it plan to mothball or decommission the ELA, or will it ensure its independence?

[Gary Goodyear, Conservative, Minister of State (Science and Technology) (Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario)]

Mr. Speaker, we did in fact make a decision, and that was to end the Experimental Lakes Area as a federal facility. We made another decision, and that is to fund science and technology in this country like never before in the history of the country, including $8 billion, in new dollars, since 2006.

What did the Liberals do when they were in power? They cut science and technology. What will the NDP do? It will bring in a carbon tax that will hurt scientists, hurt universities and make it harder on students.

Aboriginal Affairs

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

Mr. Speaker, nutrition north was supposed to make feeding families in the north cheaper, but it has failed miserably. On Monday, the government will stubbornly persist with the devastating cuts to the list of essentials that will be subsidized.

Will the government listen to the desperate northerners, who never protested before, to the poignant Feeding My Family movement, and go back to the drawing board and work with northerners to fix this international disgrace?

[John Duncan, Conservative, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development]

Mr. Speaker, the changes that are being made on October 1 are for products that are stable, non-perishable products that can go by sealift instead of by air. That is the reason we are making these changes. That allows for the subsidy to go to perishable products. Those are products like milk, for example. We have a drop of as much as 37% in the price of milk, based on the nutrition north program. The program is working.

National Defence

[Christine Moore, NDP, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, apparently the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command has lost some top secret equipment valued at somewhere between $8 million and $10 million.

This equipment is so secret that the department has not even disclosed what kind of equipment it is. We know that the special forces are experts in the art of disappearing, but when the government lets equipment disappear, that is another matter.

How could the Conservatives fail to do something about the disappearance of such important and costly equipment?

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, the reality is that three years ago, on their own initiative, the commander of the special forces brought in DND's internal auditor to review their financial management practices and to look to identify areas of improvement. Guess what that audit found? The audit found that appropriate financial controls were in place but that additional work had to be done, particularly when it came to tracing and keeping track of all equipment within the special forces systems, and that other financial statements had to be put in place.

We have taken that audit very seriously. I have assurances from the commander that those steps will be taken.

I want to take the opportunity to acknowledge and thank our special forces for their remarkable work.

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

Mr. Speaker, it is not just the rising costs of the F-35 that the government cannot keep track of. It is also the equipment to be used by the special forces. The chief of review services has said that in one unit alone, between $8 million and $10 million in equipment has gone missing. The government has known about this for years, but no action was taken.

Could the minister tell us if this equipment has been found and how many millions of dollars in other equipment has also gone missing?

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, ignoring the prattle, the irresponsible remarks from the member's preamble, I will repeat again that in fact the special forces commander brought in the auditor. That was done at their request. The auditor looked at their practices, found in fact that there was a good system but further work had to be done in tracing and tracking all equipment. Those practices are improving, I am assured by the commander.

What we do know is that, given the record and the comments by members opposite from the NDP, if it were up to them they would have no new equipment in the special forces, or the Canadian Forces.

Science and Technology

[Peter Braid, Conservative, Kitchener—Waterloo, ON]

Mr. Speaker, our government has made historic investments in science and technology to create jobs, strengthen our economy and improve the quality of life for all Canadians. This commitment has created very positive results in Kitchener—Waterloo and has made Canada a world leader in science and innovation and a destination of choice for the brightest international researchers.

Could the minister of state please update us, once again, on Canada's progress in these important areas?

[Gary Goodyear, Conservative, Minister of State (Science and Technology) (Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario)]

Mr. Speaker, you will find it the correct interpretation of scientific results. I thank the Council of Canadian Academies, an expert panel that did indeed determine that Canada's S and T sector is healthy, growing and the fourth-best in the world.

The study is a resounding endorsement of our government's strong commitment for science and technology, and frankly a stinging indictment of the parties opposite who voted against our record support, which has clearly made our country a global science leader.

By the way, fisheries research is number one.

Citizenship and Immigration

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Winnipeg North, MB]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday at the citizenship and immigration committee, we saw an appalling display of Conservative ignorance and insensitivity when all six of its members voted down my motion to study the devastating effects of the cuts to refugee health care.

Front-line doctors who treat refugees wrote to the committee members, asking for the opportunity to come to the committee to detail proof of the adverse outcomes of the reckless policy decision.

My question to the minister is: What is the government afraid to hear?

[Jason Kenney, Conservative, Minister of Citizenship]

Mr. Speaker, apparently the member opposite is afraid to hear common sense.

In fact there are no cuts to refugee health care. Resettled refugees will continue to receive what they have in the past. Bona fide asylum claimants will be landed as permanent residents and receive health care, like all Canadians.

These changes affect asylum claimants about two-thirds of whom turn out not to be well founded, particularly asylum claimants coming from countries in which virtually all claims are rejected.

Of course, the greatest savings are derived from no longer providing taxpayer-funded health insurance to rejected asylum claimants who are no longer welcome to stay in Canada. What does the member not understand about that?

Children's Rights

[Wayne Marston, NDP, Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, ON]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Canadian government was hauled on the carpet by a UN committee for its poor record on child rights.

The committee found too many children in Canada were falling through the cracks. Poverty amongst aboriginal, immigrant and disabled children is not just significant but is growing.

The UN is challenging Canada, as one of the top economies in the world, to rise to the occasion. When will the government step up to that challenge? What will it take for the Canadian government to make Canadian children a true priority?