Debates of Oct. 30th, 2013

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

It being Wednesday, we will now have the singing of the national anthem led by the hon. member for St. Paul's.

[Members sang the national anthem]

Supreme Court

[André Bellavance, Bloc, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, once again, Conservatives, Liberals and New Democrats have failed to show respect for Quebeckers.

By appointing a judge to the Supreme Court who is supposed to be from Quebec but does not meet the basic criteria or even live in Quebec, the federal government failed in its duty to respect Quebec's separate legal system.

By including Justice Nadon in the list of the top three candidates, Liberals and New Democrats also participated in this pathetic ploy. Considering they once recommended a unilingual anglophone judge, we should not have been surprised. Furthermore, none of them stood up for Quebec's historical position that Quebec judges on the Supreme Court should be appointed from a list submitted by Quebec.

Yesterday, the Quebec National Assembly unanimously denounced the federal government's unilateral actions in appointing Justice Nadon and condemned the fact that this decision is depriving Quebec of one-third of its representation on the Supreme Court, just as important cases are being considered.

The Quebec nation's civil code and fundamental rights deserve respect. The federalist parties here in this House have still not figured this out, unfortunately.

Aerospace Industry

[Joyce Bateman, Conservative, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, in September, I was honoured to host an all-party aerospace caucus tour in Manitoba during Aerospace Week, celebrating over 75 years of industry excellence.

The aerospace industry is very important to the economy and to the people in my riding of Winnipeg South Centre. In fact, key employees from Magellan and Boeing live just down the street from my home.

The industry is near and dear to my heart, because it has created partnerships with educational institutions, delivering training to students, who become immediately employable. I know a number of the 5,500 people who are employed by Manitoba's more than 40 aerospace related businesses. I have had a chance to speak with many of these hard-working Canadians, and they appreciate the investments our government is making in the industry.

I commend the work being done by the aerospace industry in Manitoba. I am thrilled that the industry is creating jobs, growth, and long-term prosperity for my constituents.

Disarmament Week

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

Mr. Speaker, this is Disarmament Week.

Canada was once a leader in disarmament issues. Take, for example, the motion that was unanimously adopted by the House in 2010 regarding nuclear disarmament and the Ottawa Convention on anti-personnel mines.

Unfortunately, that is no longer the case. With Bill C-6, the Conservatives are undermining the Convention on Cluster Munitions. Cluster munitions primarily kill civilians.

Canada is withdrawing from the Arms Trade Treaty, which 114 countries, including the United States, have signed. What is more, last week we learned that this government is easing controls on Canadian military equipment exports. I could go on.

Unlike the Conservatives, the NDP wants to build a safer world through multilateralism and conflict prevention.

Have a good Disarmament Week.

David Earnest Hornell

[Bernard Trottier, Conservative, Etobicoke—Lakeshore, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House to recognize the valour of David Ernest Hornell, a native son from Mimico in my constituency of Etobicoke—Lakeshore.

Flight Lieutenant Hornell was a brave leader who successfully completed 60 missions with the RCAF around Iceland, Scotland, and Canada's east coast during World War II. In 1944 he was aircraft captain on a patrol near the Faroe Islands when his plane was attacked and badly damaged by a German U-boat. Nevertheless, he succeeded in delivering his depth charges on target, sinking the submarine, and then brought his plane down, ablaze, on the heavy seas.

There was only one serviceable dinghy, which could not hold all eight members of his crew, so they took turns in the water. At one point, Hornell had to be restrained by his comrades when, though at the end of his own strength, he proposed to swim to a distant lifeboat that had been dropped from the air. When the survivors were rescued after 21 hours, Hornell was weak from exposure. He died shortly thereafter. He was awarded posthumously the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to Commonwealth forces.

This Remembrance Day, let us remember all those who, like David Hornell, died in the name of freedom.

David Ling

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to David Ling, who recently passed away.

Losing his own dad at a young age, he helped his mother keep the family together and kept the original farm operating to provide.

David and his wife Edith built their farm in North Winsloe, originally as commercial farmers and later specializing in beef as pioneers of Prince Edward Island's organic farming industry. He and his wife created a successful organic farming operation. They became a mainstay, selling beef, pork, and produce at the Charlottetown Farmers' Market, with hundreds of happy customers.

He saw himself as a steward of the land and never stopped trying to find new ways to improve organic farming practices. A long-term member of the NFU, he stood up consistently for the rights of farmers. His legacy is “how to nurture and treasure the land, water, and environment”, and his drive was “to share what he learned with other farmers in the hope that they would catch the visions too“”

We give our regards to his wife Edith, daughters Lisa and Kathy, and special granddaughter Ella. We thank David.

Mississauga Legends Row

[Bob Dechert, Conservative, Mississauga—Erindale, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the creation of Legends Row, Mississauga's walk of fame, where we have paid tribute to the achievements of the many distinguished Mississaugans, past and present.

It was a pleasure to recently attend the Legends Row inaugural induction ceremony, where ten accomplished residents of Mississauga were honoured. This year's inductees included Bruce McLaughlin, Johnny Bower, Chuck Jackson, Oscar Peterson, Silken Laumann, members of the Canadian rock band, Triumph, Lata Pata, Paul Henderson, Dr. Joseph Wong, and Tommy Hunter. Through their actions and accomplishments, these individuals, such as Triumph band member and founder of Mississauga's Metalworks Studios and Metalworks Institute, Gil Moore, have contributed to the economic and cultural success of Mississauga and Canada.

Congratulations to Mississauga's legends.

Jobs

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to show my support for the 90 workers in Baie-Comeau who lost their jobs, as well as the members of the Unifor local who were forced to accept the cuts imposed by their employer, Resolute Forest Products.

The Conservatives can boast all they like about how they have championed job creation and economic growth, but all evidence points to the contrary. More and more jobs are being lost, and workers like those at the Baie-Comeau paper mill are being forced to accept inferior working conditions.

Over the past five years, over 1,000 high-quality jobs have been lost at the two largest private employers in Baie-Comeau alone. Furthermore, this morning we learned that Alcoa, the city's largest employer, is threatening to shut down its plant and lay off 1,000 workers as early as November 2014.

I would also like to reiterate the NDP's commitment to helping businesses across Canada remain competitive and to ensuring high-paying, sustainable, high-quality jobs for Canadian workers, including young Canadians. The very survival of our regions is at stake.

Canadian Forces

[Rick Dykstra, Conservative, St. Catharines, ON]

Mr. Speaker, on November 11, I would like to invite the people of St. Catharines to join me at the newly restored downtown cenotaph to honour the wartime sacrifices of veterans, like the soldiers of the local Lincoln and Welland Regiment , who liberated the strategically vital Dutch city of Bergen-op-Zoom in October, 1944.

Throughout wars in Europe, Korea and Afghanistan, Canadian soldiers have fought for freedom and justice, and their service allows Canada to be one of the most peaceful and prosperous nations in the world. On Remembrance Day, we owe it to them, ordinary men and women like any of us, who left their homes and families behind to face extraordinary risks so that they could protect us from some of the most dangerous threats in our history, to honour those sacrifices.

We appreciate their courage, their commitment, and their love of country. Canadians will always and forever remember their sacrifice.

China and Mongolia

[Earl Dreeshen, Conservative, Red Deer, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it was an honour to accompany the Governor General on his state visit to China and Mongolia. His Excellency has always been a strong advocate for academic excellence. We were able to expand upon the person-to-person collaborations not only with political figures but with educators and students.

Having been an educator for 34 years, I was proud to see the enthusiasm shown by our hosts regarding the use of the Canadian curriculum at all levels of education. The same sense of pride was evident when discussing economic issues and how central Alberta businesses, as well as organizations such as Access Prosperity and Alberta's post-secondary institutions, can benefit from this renewed co-operation.

Our numerous round table discussions allowed us to expand and strengthen our economic, cultural, and knowledge-based collaboration. Our discussions with Canadian businesses and NGO leaders helped to enforce just how well Canada is perceived in China, Mongolia, and throughout the world.

Windsor Rotarians

[Joe Comartin, NDP, Windsor—Tecumseh, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to offer my best wishes to a group of Windsor Rotarians who are preparing for a 13-day November visit to Africa. They are to assist in numerous development and humanitarian projects designed to help Ghana's most vulnerable and impoverished citizens.

Led by a doctor and a group of nurses, a dozen Windsorites are about to change the lives of hundreds of Ghanaians by digging water wells and building schools, libraries, and in particular, an intensive care unit for newborns. They will be distributing mosquito nets, providing eye exams and prescription glasses, and handing out soccer balls and uniforms, which were donated by Windsor's youth.

The Rotarians remind us that our lives need not be dominated by bad news all day. Good news and good deeds are still very much part of the Canadian fabric. Pride in community and a willingness to serve still resonate across our country.

On behalf of all parliamentarians, we wish them safe travel and a safe return.

Persons Case Awards

[Susan Truppe, Conservative, London North Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, this week the Governor General presented the 2013 Persons Case Awards to five outstanding individuals who had advanced equality for women in our country.

This year's recipients are: Constance Backhouse and Julie Lalonde from Ottawa, Nahanni Fontaine from Winnipeg, Susan Shiner from St. John's and Cherry Smiley from Vancouver.

These women's scholarly work has contributed to ending violence against aboriginal women, ending sexual assault and harassment and supporting safety for women and girls in Canada.

I join with all Canadians to congratulate this year's Persons Case Award winners and I thank all of those who, like them, work in their own community to support equality for women across our great country.

Violence Against Women

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill, MB]

Mr. Speaker, a few days ago we heard the news that Canada ranked 20th in the world for gender equality. While some may have been shocked, too many Canadian women know this to be their reality.

One way women experience inequality is through violence perpetrated against them because they are women.

Today I had the honour of announcing our national tour to listen and consult Canadian women with my Motion No. 444, which calls on the federal government to enact a national action plan to address violence against women.

In speaking of gender-based violence, we must remember two things: one, ending violence against women is possible; and two, Canadian women have the absolute right to live in dignity without violence.

Today I had the honour of standing with some of the strongest advocates for women's rights in the country. We heard from Kate McInturff from the CCPA who said that the problem of violence in women's lives came at too great a cost of all Canadians to bear. Intimate partner violence costs us $7.4 billion a year and sexual assault, $546 million.

Indigenous women, racialized women, all women in Canada know that an end to violence against women is needed. We need an action plan to end violence against women.

Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada

[Chungsen Leung, Conservative, Willowdale, ON]

Mr. Speaker, families in my riding of Willowdale want safer streets for their children. That is why they are shocked by the Liberal leader's priority to legalize marijuana.

He claims that making pot legal would make it more difficult for children to access drugs, pointing to the regulation of alcohol as an example. Parents in my community see through the Liberal leader's rhetoric.

We know that, according to the Canadian Centre for Substance Abuse, teens are twice as likely to have consumed alcohol in the last year than pot. Regulated rules for alcohol do not prevent teens from getting access to it, just like the Liberal's plan to legalize marijuana will not make it tougher for our kids to access drugs. In fact, it will do just the opposite.

By sending the message that recreational drug use is acceptable, the leader of the Liberal Party is once again showing us that he lacks the judgment to lead. Clearly he is in over his head.

Co-op Week

[Mark Eyking, Liberal, Sydney—Victoria, NS]

Mr. speaker, Reverend Moses Coady started the co-operative movement many years ago during the depression in Cape Breton. This effort helped rural communities across the Maritimes to improve their economic and social circumstances.

Mr. Coady led a movement that spread across Canada and around the world. Today, co-operatives in Cape Breton are thriving.

Two weeks ago, our co-operatives' advocate, the member for Ottawa—Vanier, travelled around my riding in celebrating Co-op Week. My colleague accompanied me to credit unions, co-op grocery stores, the United Farmers Co-op country store, the Bras d'Or Farmers Vegetable Co-op and the Victoria Fisheries Co-op in Neil's Harbour.

There are 9,000 co-ops across the country, with 14 in Cape Breton.

As rural Canada continues to struggle with economic hardships and out-migration, the co-operative movement, with more assistance from the federal government, could help them prosper.

I support my colleague's efforts to create a special parliamentary committee to determine the needs of Canada's co-operatives so we can help build on this model for many years to come.

Middle East

[Larry Miller, Conservative, Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON]

Mr. Speaker, once again, the UN Special Rapporteur Richard Falk has shown his biased, ill-informed and, frankly, anti-Semitic views regarding the Middle East peace talks. His recent comments threatening the state of Israel with sanction at the International Court of Justice are totally unhelpful and do nothing to help the Middle East peace process. Those comments actually poison the environment for peace.

Canada has been clear on this issue. We believe in a two-state solution where final status issues are to be resolved directly between the two parties without preconditions, but which also recognizes right of the state of Israel to live in peace and security.

Richard Falk's latest rantings come from the same man who implied that the Boston terrorist attacks this past spring were somehow the fault of the U.S. and of Israel.

Mr. Falk must resign from his role at the UN because his continued service damages the Israeli-Palestinian peace process and damages what little credibility Mr. Falk and the UN still have.

I also call on the leaders of the NDP, the Liberal Party, the Bloc Québécois and the Green Party to make their views on Richard Falk public. Do they stand with our government or do they accept Mr. Falk's remarks?

Ethics

[Dan Harris, NDP, Scarborough Southwest, ON]

Mr. Speaker, with a tip of the hat to Aaron Wherry, I would like to tell a story about the world's most intriguing pizza shop.

Mr. Prime was selected to manage the shop by Mr. and Mrs. Canuck, the owners. Let us call him the prime manager. He had been having trouble with his drivers Mike, Pam and Patrick, apparently caught stealing from the cash register, right under the nose of his night manager, Nigel. Nigel even gave one of them money to pay back what he stole.

Nigel was an honourable man who resigned, except when he was fired. Nigel acted alone, except when he was helped by a few, like Chris the cashier and Art the accountant. Dave, Marj and Carol all know they are the prime manager's buddies. They sit in the corner and eat pizza all day.

Now Mr. and Mrs. Canuck are fed up with these changing stories. Fortunately for them, they can trust honest Tom to hold the prime manager to account and take over the shop in 2015.

Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada

[Colin Mayes, Conservative, Okanagan—Shuswap, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it has been six months since the member for Papineau became Liberal leader. In that time he has announced only one concrete policy he has for Canada, his plan to legalize marijuana.

In contrast, our Conservative government has been getting things done for Canadians. We have signed the biggest free trade deal since NAFTA, begun efforts to provide more fairness in competition for consumers and maintain our laser-like focus on jobs, growth and long-term prosperity. We are opening the market to 500 million new consumers.

While we have been focused on the economy, the leader of the Liberal Party has been focused on legalizing drugs. His plan will make marijuana easily available to our children and will increase risk of disruption in our communities.

Our Prime Minister will keep illegal drugs off our streets. Clearly, the leader of the Liberal Party is out of touch with law-abiding Canadians.

Ethics

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to give the Prime Minister a chance to be crystal clear and to give a straight answer. Did his chief of staff, Nigel Wright, resign or was he dismissed by the Prime Minister?

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Wright and I both agreed that his actions were completely inappropriate. That is why he is no longer working for us. He has accepted the responsibility for his actions. He is being held accountable. Obviously when things like this happen, we would expect the other side of the transaction, Mr. Duffy, to do the same. That has not been done and that is why he should be removed from the public payroll.

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, why is the Prime Minister so afraid to answer such a simple question?

The question was crystal clear. Did Nigel Wright resign or was he dismissed by the Prime Minister? The Prime Minister has told us two versions of the same story. It is impossible for both to be true.

Which is it? Why does the Prime Minister not tell us what really happened? Why does he not tell Canadians the truth for once?

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

I would urge all members, certain statements like that which have an implication that a minister or member is not telling the truth have been found to be unparliamentary.

The right hon. Prime Minister.

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the facts are very clear. Mr. Wright's actions are unacceptable and that is why he is no longer working for me. He is no longer on the public payroll and, for that reason, Mr. Duffy should not be either.

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, how many cheques were issued by the Prime Minister's lawyers to buy Mike Duffy's silence?

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, that allegation is false. I said that it is not unusual for political parties to provide legal assistance to caucus members from time to time.

It is the case, as I said yesterday, that all political parties do provide legal assistance to their members. I believe that is done in his party as well.