Debates of May 9th, 2013

Indian Affairs and Northern Development—Main Estimates, 2013–14

[Bernard Valcourt, Conservative, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Chair, I am convinced that if the New Democratic Party supports the bill concerning waste water and drinking water on reserves, we could, together with first nations, implement regulations that would address the concerns that some aboriginal peoples may have. We could also ensure that first nations across the country and all our investments are protected by a solid, structurally well-established system to ensure that they have safe water.

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

Mr. Chair, how much money was allocated in the budget to help aboriginal communities adapt to this challenge?

[Bernard Valcourt, Conservative, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Chair, as I indicated earlier, by the end of 2014, more than a billion dollars will have been invested in first nations infrastructure, such water and waste water systems. What is more, we want these investments to be backed by legislation allowing regulations to be adopted so that we can continue to build. We established that unsafe water resulted from lack of training on the reserves 60% of the time. Training is something that has already been implemented and is producing very positive results.

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

Mr. Chair, does the minister agree that substandard housing can have repercussions for the health, education and socio-economic conditions of members of first nations?

[Bernard Valcourt, Conservative, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Chair, that goes without saying.

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

Mr. Chair, does the minister agree that the number of housing units being built and renovated is not keeping up with demand?

[Bernard Valcourt, Conservative, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Chair, as I said earlier, responsibility for housing lies with the first nations. The Canadian government must give them support, which we have been. We have implemented programs that allow us to work with the first nations to deal with housing on first nation reserves across the country, which is a major issue.

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

Mr. Chair, how many new housing units will be built over the next two years?

[Bernard Valcourt, Conservative, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Chair, as I was saying earlier, the members seem to be asking the same questions.

From 2006 to 2007, and in 2012-13, my department will have spent roughly $1.2 billion on housing on first nation reserves. According to reports submitted by first nations, the Government of Canada's investments have allowed 1,750 new housing units to be built and 3,100 more to be renovated per year over the past five years. We will continue in the same vein.

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

Mr. Chair, how many existing homes will be renovated over the next two years?

[Bernard Valcourt, Conservative, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Chair, if the past is any indication, I just said that we will continue in the same vein, so I expect the same results.

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

Mr. Chair, how many aboriginals in Canada have inadequate housing?

[Bernard Valcourt, Conservative, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Far too many, Mr. Chair.

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

Mr. Chair, can the minister break that number down according to group, namely Inuit, Metis and first nations? He did not offer a number, but can he divide it by group?

[Bernard Valcourt, Conservative, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Chair, this is no laughing matter. It is a very important issue. We have budget estimates to deal with serious matters such as housing and health. We need to give young aboriginals the opportunity to gain the skills and education they need to participate in the Canadian economy.

However, the member is taking pleasure in disregarding the serious questions and asking questions that have nothing to do with the real challenge of safety—

[The Chair, NDP, Joe Comartin]

The hon. member for Manicouagan.

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

Mr. Chair, what sort of reference guidelines does the government use to measure progress in improving housing on reserve?

[Bernard Valcourt, Conservative, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Chair, as the member knows, depending on the region, some reserves have adopted building codes that they enforce on the reserve. We hope that all first nations will eventually be subject to building standards in order to protect the massive investments that taxpayers make in housing. That is our goal.

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

Mr. Chair, has the department allocated additional funds to address the problem of mould growing in houses on reserve?

[Bernard Valcourt, Conservative, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Chair, the issue of mould is affecting many first nations across the country. In fact, concerted efforts have been made to address this problem. Thousands of houses have been renovated. Many of the 3,100 renovations a year that I mentioned earlier were necessary because of mould.

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

Mr. Chair, is the department following up on remediation measures in order to address the problem of mould growing in houses on reserve?

[Bernard Valcourt, Conservative, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Chair, the government and the department are working with first nations to ensure that housing investments made by first nations are protected so that measures can be taken locally to ensure that those investments are not wasted and that housing does not deteriorate because it is not cared for properly. I have spoken with many chiefs and band councils across the country. They are concerned about the situation and are working in their communities to prevent such situations as much as possible.

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

Mr. Chair, the 2011 national household survey tells us that only 17.2% of aboriginal people speak a native language, a drop of over 10% compared to the 2006 survey.

Is that an error in the data or rather the result of your department's policies regarding the promotion of aboriginal languages?

[The Chair, NDP, Joe Comartin]

It is not my department, but perhaps the minister can answer that.

[Bernard Valcourt, Conservative, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Chair, I can say that I have visited many first nations across the country. When I compare what I am seeing today with what I saw 20 or so years ago, I can say that tremendous progress has been made in terms of preserving aboriginal languages and culture in various first nations in Canada, and I am very proud of them for that.