Debates of April 24th, 2013

Transport Canada

[Carol Hughes, NDP, Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing, ON]

Mr. Speaker, water levels in Lake Huron are dropping and could take tourism jobs with them. Federal port facilities in Tobermory and South Baymouth need maintenance, and the harbour for the Manitoulin terminal needs to be dredged so the Chi-Cheemaun ferry can carry 36,000 passengers and their cars this May and June. The cost for repairs is less than $300,000. The cost to tourism without a ferry is unimaginable.

When will the government perform this affordable maintenance and protect Great Lakes tourism jobs?

[Denis Lebel, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, Transport Canada recognizes the role this ferry plays in serving the local communities and in providing a transportation link between Manitoulin Island and Tobermory.

Transport Canada is aware that the Great Lakes water levels are at a significantly low level across the entire Great Lakes system. The department is currently in discussion with the province and will continue to work on this issue.

1982 Repatriation of the Constitution

[Jean-François Fortin, Bloc, Haute-Gaspésie—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, QC]

Mr. Speaker, everyone in Quebec agrees: we must get to the bottom of the events that led to the 1982 repatriation of the Constitution and the serious allegations of political interference by Supreme Court justices.

Since Ottawa has not responded to the unanimous motion of the National Assembly of Quebec, this morning, the Government of Quebec had to submit three access to information requests in order to have all the relevant documents made public.

Rather than hiding behind the Supreme Court's internal review and making the Government of Quebec submit access to information requests, will the Prime Minister order the release of all relevant documents?

[Denis Lebel, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, we have said it before: we have no interest in revisiting old constitutional squabbles.

The Supreme Court of Canada will determine what happened during the time of Trudeau's Liberal government.

The hon. member should know that lawyers and public servants are responsible for making decisions regarding access to information for federal documents, in accordance with the law. Public servants will do their work.

Oral Questions

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. I would like to point out that my voting record while in opposition was against motions that did not provide enough money for the—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

Order, please. No doubt, tomorrow the hon. minister may have that opportunity to point it out. There are also statements by ministers in the routine proceedings, if he would like to avail himself of that rubric, but I do not think that is a point of order.

Interparliamentary Delegations

[David Tilson, Conservative, Dufferin—Caledon, ON]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1) I have the honour to present to the House, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian delegation of the Canada-Europe Parliamentary Association respecting its participation to the first part of the 2013 ordinary session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe held in Strasbourg, France from January 21-25, 2013.

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1) I have the honour to present to the House, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian NATO Parliamentary Association respecting its participation in the 58th Annual Session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly held in Prague, Czech Republic from November 9-12, 2012.

Justice and Human Rights

[Mike Wallace, Conservative, Burlington, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 23rd report of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights in relation to Bill C-444, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (personating peace officer or public officer).

The committee has studied the bill and has decided to report the bill back to the House without amendment.

Natural Resources

[Leon Benoit, Conservative, Vegreville—Wainwright, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present today, in both official languages, the fifth report of the Standing Committee on Natural Resources in relation to the main estimates for fiscal year ending March 31, 2014. The committee has studied the main estimates and reports the same.

Genetically Modified Alfalfa

[Kevin Sorenson, Conservative, Crowfoot, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present two petitions this afternoon, signed by over 400 Canadians, calling for a moratorium on the release of genetically modified alfalfa. They want to ensure a proper review of the impact on farmers in Canada. They showed me the courtesy of visiting me at my constituency office in Camrose to personally deliver this petition. I appreciate very much meeting with them and the discussion we had that day.

Prairie Shelterbelt Program

[Malcolm Allen, NDP, Welland, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure of presenting a petition today signed by hundreds of folks across Manitoba and primarily Saskatchewan. It talks about the shelterbelt program and how unique it is to Saskatchewan, especially, and that it needs to be protected. They call upon the minister to reverse the decision to do away with the shelterbelt and to keep it in place to help all of those farmers and all of those great Saskatchewan residents by making sure that this program continues.

Genetically Modified Organisms

[Frank Valeriote, Liberal, Guelph, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have a petition signed by hundreds of Canadians from Guelph, southwestern Ontario and the rest of Canada who wish to register their concerns regarding the impacts of genetically modified organisms on Canadian agriculture and on the health of all Canadians. They request evidence-based decision-making and a moratorium on the licensing and release of new GMOs and request an independent review of existing GMOs currently in the Canadian marketplace.

Justice

[Roxanne James, Conservative, Scarborough Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have three sets of petitions from Canadians across the country, including the provinces of Ontario, Alberta and Quebec. Each of the petitions calls on the Government of Canada to try Omar Khadr for treason, under the laws of Canada, for his actions against coalition forces in Afghanistan.

Human Trafficking

[Raymond Côté, NDP, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I have a petition signed by a large number of people from the Quebec City region, in support of Bill C-452, which is designed to combat human trafficking and sexual exploitation.

Canada Post

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

Mr. Speaker, it is my honour to present a petition from a large number of residents in my riding of Westmount—Ville-Marie who ask that the post office known as the Montreal Victoria post office be allowed to remain open. It is extremely important to the community from an economic and a social perspective.

I am therefore asking the government to reconsider its decision to close that post office.

Falun Gong

[Mark Strahl, Conservative, Chilliwack—Fraser Canyon, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise and present two different petitions from the people of Chilliwack—Fraser Canyon.

The first calls on the House to condemn atrocities against Falun Gong practitioners.

Sex Selection

[Mark Strahl, Conservative, Chilliwack—Fraser Canyon, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition calls on the House to condemn discrimination against females occurring through sex-selective pregnancy termination.

Shark Finning

[Fin Donnelly, NDP, New Westminster—Coquitlam, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present two separate petitions.

The first is from thousands of Canadians calling that measures be taken to stop the global practice of shark finning and to ensure the responsible conservation and management of sharks.

They call upon the government to immediately legislate a ban on the importation of shark fins into Canada.

Search and Rescue

[Fin Donnelly, NDP, New Westminster—Coquitlam, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I also rise to present a petition that calls the recent decision by the federal government to close the Kitsilano Coast Guard station a grave mistake that will undoubtedly cost lives and put people in peril along the shores near Vancouver harbour.

They call on the government to rescind this decision and reinstate full funding for the Kitsilano Coast Guard station.

Human Trafficking

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise to present a petition on behalf of 32 constituents in my riding calling on the government to support Bill C-452, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (exploitation and trafficking in persons).

Chief Firearms Officers

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Speaker, this petition is mainly from people in the Mississauga-Burlington area. They are calling on the government to replace the CFOs, the chief firearms officers for the provinces and territories, with a civilian agency, because the chief firearms officers are inconsistently applying the laws across the lands.

Employment Insurance

[Tarik Brahmi, NDP, Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the constituents in my riding, I have the honour to present a petition that opposes the changes to employment insurance, including the changes with regard to suitable employment and reasonable and customary efforts to obtain suitable employment.

Parks Canada

[Anne Minh-Thu Quach, NDP, Beauharnois—Salaberry, QC]

Mr. Speaker, today I have the honour to present a petition, signed mostly by people in Ontario, denouncing the cuts made to Parks Canada. Those cuts amount to nearly $30 million, and a number of people have lost their jobs.

The petitioners are asking the government to restore the funding necessary to provide service to the public and to cancel the downsizing.