Debates of Oct. 25th, 2013

Ethics

[Geoff Regan, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the member is not speaking of Hugh Segal or Don Plett, is he?

No one believed the Prime Minister when he said that Nigel Wright was the only person who knew about the cheque to Mike Duffy. No one believes him today when he says that very few people were aware of this deal. His senior staff were more than aware. They devised the plan to cover up the bribe.

When will the Prime Minister commit to testifying under oath?

[Paul Calandra, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister and for Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has been very clear on this matter.

Mr. Duffy approached the Prime Minister on February 13 and tried to justify these expenses. The Prime Minister said to Mr. Duffy, “Repay those expenses”. That is what he said.

Right now before the Senate we have a motion that will suspend these senators without pay. The Liberals are defending the status quo. They are doing everything in their power to obstruct the motion. They need to get on board, and as the Prime Minister said and as we all believe, pass the motion to get these three senators out of the Senate, because that is what Canadians expect, respect for their tax dollars. Get out of the way and let us do that.

[Geoff Regan, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

Mr. Speaker, no one believed the Prime Minister when he said in June that only Nigel Wright knew of the $90,000 cheque to Mike Duffy. No one believes him now that he has changed his story to “very few people knew”.

We now know the Prime Minister's entire senior staff not only knew, they devised the plan to cover up the bribe, extortion and corruption.

The Prime Minister refuses to tell the truth to Parliament. When will he commit to testifying under oath so Canadians will finally hear the truth?

[Paul Calandra, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister and for Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I wonder if this member would like to come outside of the House with me right now and repeat those exact same words in front of a TV camera. We will wait for the press gallery to go outside, then he can repeat those same words outside.

The Liberals will do anything to try to avoid the fact that it is their senators who are obstructing the motion in the Senate that would strip these three of their pay. That is the standard that Canadians expect, not the Liberal standard of hiding $40 million from the taxpayers, and not the Liberal standard of slinging mud with no options. Come outside of the House and say that.

The Environment

[Claude Gravelle, NDP, Nickel Belt, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the last report from Environment Canada confirms what Canadians have known for years. Under the Conservatives, serious action on climate change is a fantasy. In fact, the Conservatives are further than ever from meeting their own weakened emissions targets. In other words, even after they moved the goalposts, they still cannot score.

Does the government intend to take immediate corrective action or does the minister still doubt climate change?

[Leona Aglukkaq, Conservative, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to achieving Canada's targets, and our leadership and actions prove this.

We introduced new emissions regulations for vehicles and we are the first major coal user to ban construction of traditional coal-fired plants. Thanks to our actions, carbon emissions will go down close to 130 megatonnes from what they would have been under the Liberals.

We are accomplishing this without the NDP carbon tax, which would raise the price of everything.

[François Choquette, NDP, Drummond, QC]

Mr. Speaker, “not even close” is what Environment Canada's report says about the Conservatives' prospects of reaching their 2020 greenhouse gas reduction targets. What is worse is that we are taking a step backward. At this rate, by 2015 their record will be just as bad as the Liberals. Enough with the nonsense.

When will the minister announce reduction targets for the oil and gas sector to get the polluters to start doing their part?

[Leona Aglukkaq, Conservative, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, we introduced new emission regulations for vehicles, and we are the first major country to reduce coal-fired power plants. Thanks to our actions, carbon emissions will go down close to 130 megatonnes, unlike what they would have been under the Liberal government.

Unlike the NDP who thinks we can tax our way out of every problem, we are getting results without having to impose a carbon tax.

[François Choquette, NDP, Drummond, QC]

Mr. Speaker, one day the minister might understand the consequences of the government's inaction when it comes to fighting climate change. I think one of the saddest examples is the gradual disappearance of beluga whales from the St. Lawrence. Climate change has caused the population of this marine mammal to drop by 12% in the past decade. This emblem of Quebec could even be put on the list of endangered species in the next few months. What concrete measures is the minister going to take to fight climate change and save the belugas?

[Leona Aglukkaq, Conservative, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, our government has taken action to address climate change. We are a founding member of an international coalition taking action to reduce pollutants like black carbon, and we have made it a priority under the Arctic Council.

These actions are seeing real results for Canadians without killing the economy, like the opposition wants to do.

[Ruth Ellen Brosseau, NDP, Berthier—Maskinongé, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister does not get it. The Conservatives' attacks on science are preventing us from properly monitoring changes in the beluga population in the St. Lawrence. Are the belugas victims of an epidemic? Are toxic algae responsible for the population's decline? We do not know, and because of the Conservatives' cuts to the St. Lawrence research program, we will likely never know. Will the Conservatives restore the funding and the beluga research station that they cut?

[Gail Shea, Conservative, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans]

Mr. Speaker, researchers from DFO have been working with partners to study the beluga whales in the St. Lawrence. A scientific peer review meeting was held to review the knowledge on the state of the population, and that peer-reviewed science advice will be published in the coming months.

We will continue to conduct research on marine mammals in co-operation with all of our partners.

Consumer Protection

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

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the CRTC launched an initiative to consult with Canadians on the future of television. According to Jean-Pierre Blais, the chair of CRTC, this is an opportunity for all Canadians to provide feedback on what they think of their television system and how they would like to see it changed.

Could the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage please tell the House what our government is doing to ensure Canadians have greater consumer choice in television services?

[Rick Dykstra, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, the member has a lot of concern about this issue and a lot of constituents from his riding will participate in the dialogue.

When it comes to television service, Canadian consumers have told us that they want choice. It is consistent with our Speech from the Throne, where we committed to unbundling TV channels while also protecting Canadian jobs.

Consistent with that commitment, yesterday the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission launched a dialogue with Canadians on the future of television. That dialogue will play a part in fulfilling our Speech from the Throne commitment to ensure that consumers do have a choice when it comes to TV and their selection of channels.

The Budget

[Mathieu Ravignat, NDP, Pontiac, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, I asked the President of the Treasury Board what public service jobs will be affected by the changes in the budget implementation act. His answer is an incredible example of stupidity, and I quote: “that is utterly false”. What a flop. I ask him who will be affected and he says that is false. That is not an answer.

Let me try to ask the question again. Which public servants will be affected?

[Dan Albas, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, we will not speculate on a potential designation. These changes are still before the House.

Unlike the opposition, our Conservative government cares about the safety of Canadians and not lining the pockets of big union bosses.

[Mathieu Ravignat, NDP, Pontiac, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the President of the Treasury Board said “We do need to have a bureaucracy that works for Canadians, that is competent, that is serving the public interest..”. Yet, the minister did not display any level of competence when trying to answer simple questions about his own legislation.

When will the minister practise what he preaches, stop attacking the public service, and start taking care of the public interest?

[Dan Albas, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, I find it incredulous that the member raises this. The NDP has never been on the side of taxpayers because it is in the pockets of big unions. Not believable? Its constitution uses the word “labour” and “union” 18 times, but does not say anything about fiscal accountability, not even once.

The Public Service Labour Relations Act will be amended to ensure that the public service is affordable, modern and high performing, as taxpayers expect. We will sit at the bargaining table on behalf of taxpayers to make sure they are represented, and where the rules are fair and balanced.

[Paul Dewar, NDP, Ottawa Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the President of the Treasury Board is having a very hard time explaining changes he is making to the public service. He failed to provide examples of essential services that are affected. He failed to provide timelines for when details would actually be made public, and he failed to consult those affected. He launched a terrible diatribe against public service workers. How can Canadians trust the minister to manage the public service when he cannot even be trusted to explain his own legislation?

[Dan Albas, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, the budget clearly stated that the Government of Canada's intent is to set public service pay and benefit levels that are reasonable, responsible and in the public interest. The Public Service Labour Relations Act will be amended to ensure that the public service is affordable, modern and high performing, as taxpayers expect. The proposed amendments will bring savings, streamline practices and bring them in line with other jurisdictions. We will sit at the bargaining table on behalf of the taxpayer where the rules are fair and balanced.

[Françoise Boivin, NDP, Gatineau, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we do not know about that, especially coming from the President of the Treasury Board, who has been described as bargaining in bad faith. That did not come from me or the NDP, but the labour relations board.

What is most shocking is that the President of the Treasury Board does not even know himself who will be targeted by the budget implementation act. That reeks of amateurism. I will give him a second chance by asking a simple question. Which essential services and which public servants will see their fundamental right to strike violated?

[Dan Albas, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, we will not speculate on a potential designation. These changes are still before the House.

Unlike the opposition, our Conservative government cares about the safety of Canadians and not lining the pockets of public sector unions and their bosses. I look across the aisle, and a great many of the NDP caucus are former union leaders who continue to put those interests forward rather than the people who put them in office and who they are supposed to represent: the Canadian taxpayers. I hope they will look at the changes and agree that they are reasonable.

The Economy

[Scott Brison, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the Bank of Canada has joined with the IMF in downgrading Canada's growth numbers, which are now an anemic 1.6%. This year, in fact, U.K. and U.S. growth numbers are 50% higher than Canada's.

Canadians, especially young Canadians, are being left behind. There are 224,000 fewer jobs for young Canadians today than back in 2008. Why are the Conservatives more interested in helping find the Franklin expedition than in helping find jobs and opportunities for young Canadians? Why are the Conservatives so out of touch with middle-class Canadian families?

[Andrew Saxton, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, Canada has the best jobs record in the entire G7, with over one million net new jobs created since July of 2009. Both the IMF and the OECD forecast that we will have among the strongest economic growth in the years ahead.

However, as we have always said, we are not immune to the ongoing global economic turbulence. That is why we are working hard to implement the pro-growth measures in economic action plan 2013, including extending and expanding the hiring credit for small business, increasing and indexing the lifetime capital gains exemption, and much more.

Taxation

[Scott Brison, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, credit unions, like the Victory Credit Union in Kings—Hants, are important economic drivers for rural and small town Canada. It makes no sense for the Conservatives to raise taxes on credit unions by $75 million. In Manitoba alone, this will be a loss of $5 million to credit union owner-members. In Steinbach, it is going to cost citizens there over a million dollars.

Why are the tax and waste Conservatives ripping off the credit union owner-members of Steinbach for over a million dollars? Why the attack on rural and small-town Canadians?