House of Commons Hansard #272 of the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was victims.
Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings
Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre Saskatchewan
Conservative
Tom Lukiwski ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8) I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to three petitions.
Environment and Sustainable DevelopmentCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
Conservative
Harold Albrecht Conservative Kitchener—Conestoga, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the eighth report of the Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development.
In accordance with its order of reference of Monday, June 10, 2013, your committee has considered Bill S-15, an act to amend the Canada National Parks Act and the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Resources Accord Implementation Act and to make consequential amendments to the Canada Shipping Act, 2001, and agreed on Monday, June 17, 2013 to report it without amendment.
Environment and Sustainable DevelopmentCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
Conservative
Peter Van Loan Conservative York—Simcoe, ON
Mr. Speaker, there have been consultations among the parties and I am hopeful that you could find unanimous consent for the following motion:
That Bill S-15, an act to amend the Canada National Parks Act and the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Resources Accord Implementation Act and to make consequential amendments to the Canada Shipping Act, 2001 may be taken up at report stage later this day.
Environment and Sustainable DevelopmentCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
Conservative
The Speaker Conservative Andrew Scheer
Does the hon. government House leader have the unanimous consent of the House to propose this motion?
Environment and Sustainable DevelopmentCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
Some hon. members
Agreed.
No.
Environment and Sustainable DevelopmentCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
Michelle Rempel
Mr. Speaker, the bill has the unprecedented support of parties across this House. It has the support of the environmental non-governmental organizational community, and it has the support of the Nova Scotia government. However, one of my colleagues, who purports to support the environment, is blocking the passage of the bill. I am outraged.
Environment and Sustainable DevelopmentCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
Conservative
Joy Smith Conservative Kildonan—St. Paul, MB
Mr. Speaker, I have a petition from several hundred people across Canada, calling on the government to request that Parliament amend the Criminal Code to decriminalize the selling of sexual services and criminalize the purchasing of sexual services, and provide support to those who desire to leave prostitution.
The petitioners have said that the demand for commercial sex with women and children is the root cause of prostitution, and that trafficking, child prostitution and violence toward women have increased in countries where prostitution has been legalized.
Olivia Chow NDP Trinity—Spadina, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have four petitions.
The first one is from people, mostly seniors, who are very concerned about the Conservative government making changes to the old age security program and changing the age of eligibility from 65 years to 67 years. They are calling on the government to reverse that measure.
Olivia Chow NDP Trinity—Spadina, ON
Mr. Speaker, the second petition is from people who are very concerned about animal rights. They note that animals are sentient beings capable of feeling pain, that they are not property and that stray and wild animals are not sufficiently protected by animal cruelty laws under the property section of the Criminal Code.
Therefore, they are calling on the federal government to recognize animals as beings that can feel pain, to move animal cruelty crimes from the property section of the Criminal Code and to strengthen the language of federal animal cruelty laws in order to close loopholes that allow abusers to escape penalty.
Olivia Chow NDP Trinity—Spadina, ON
Mr. Speaker, the third petition is from people in Oshawa who note that the Oshawa Port Authority is ruining the city's waterfront with a 12-storey ethanol plant that was rubber-stamped behind closed doors, and that the Oshawa Port Authority is ignoring the will of local residents, Oshawa city council, the mayor, and Durham regional council.
They are calling on the government to cancel the approved FarmTech ethanol plant, halt all construction, publish all documents pertaining to the FarmTech long-term lease and other Oshawa Port Authority lease agreements, and start negotiating with the City of Oshawa for the divestment of the port to the municipality.
Olivia Chow NDP Trinity—Spadina, ON
Mr. Speaker, the fourth petition is from constituents in Toronto who note that a year and a half ago Jenna Morrison, a pregnant mom, died under the wheels of a heavy truck and that perhaps her death could have been prevented had the truck had side guards installed.
They are asking the Government of Canada to introduce regulations under the Motor Vehicle Safety Act requiring side underrun guards for large trucks and trailers, to prevent cyclists and pedestrians from being pulled under the wheels of these vehicles.
Ted Hsu Liberal Kingston and the Islands, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have a number of petitions today. The first one is from my constituents of Kingston and the Islands, and it concerns Bills C-38 and C-45, which gutted protection for ecosystems, especially around bodies of water.
The petitioners call on the government to recognize the importance of ecosystems to our well-being and prosperity, and they call on the federal government to restore federal statutory protections for fish and other natural habitats.
Ted Hsu Liberal Kingston and the Islands, ON
Mr. Speaker, the second petition from my constituents of Kingston and the Islands concerns climate change. The House might know that climate change is partially responsible for the low water levels in the upper Great Lakes and that Canada has shown a lack of international leadership.
The petitioners are calling on the Government of Canada to show international leadership in reaching agreements to keep the rise in average global temperatures to under two degrees, to take action domestically, to do its fair share and to measure progress through an independent validator.
Ted Hsu Liberal Kingston and the Islands, ON
Mr. Speaker, there are two petitions from my constituents of Kingston and the Islands concerning genetically modified alfalfa. The petitioners are concerned that the introduction of commercial genetically modified alfalfa will affect non-GM farmers, organic farmers and may affect international trade.
They are calling on the government to have a moratorium on genetically modified alfalfa until its study on farmers can be properly done.
Ted Hsu Liberal Kingston and the Islands, ON
Mr. Speaker, the last petition I have is from my constituents from Kingston and the Islands regarding corrections.
They are calling on the federal government to adopt rational best practices, including the avoidance of double-bunking in order to reduce recidivism, to improve the rehabilitation of offenders, to improve public safety and to avoid wasting money.
Cheryl Gallant Conservative Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON
Mr. Speaker, the signatories on this petition range from Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario, to Quebec. They are calling upon the federal government to replace the chief firearms officers from the provinces and territories with a single civilian agency that is service oriented, so that federal law is applied evenly from coast to coast to coast.
Kennedy Stewart NDP Burnaby—Douglas, BC
Mr. Speaker, I am presenting a petition today regarding bringing online petitions to the House of Commons. The constituents who have signed this petition say they believe the current paper petitioning system is antiquated and inefficient.
The petitioners would like the House of Commons to recognize online petitions as it recognizes paper petitions. This is similar to a motion that I brought forward in the House of Commons, and I hope the government will take it seriously.
Wladyslaw Lizon Conservative Mississauga East—Cooksville, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have a petition signed by many Canadians residing in Ontario, many of them Venezuelan Canadians. They would like to bring to the attention of this House the fact that since the last presidential election in Venezuela, democratic, human and electoral rights have been shamefully violated.
The petitioners are asking our government to take a strong stand and help to peacefully resolve the current crisis in Venezuela.
Anne Minh-Thu Quach NDP Beauharnois—Salaberry, QC
Mr. Speaker, I have a petition signed by people from my riding, Beauharnois—Salaberry. Bill C-45, which is now law, made changes to the Navigable Waters Protection Act. As a result, only 62 rivers, 97 lakes and three oceans will remain protected, while previously, that legislation protected all of Canada's waterways.
Bill C-45 shifts the burden of responsibility onto citizens, groups and municipalities, who now have to take project proponents to court themselves if their navigation rights are breached. The government made it impossible for anyone to comment on the minister's decisions or to hold public consultations on any projects proposed by proponents.
The petitioners are calling on the Government of Canada to take responsibility for protecting navigation rights, reverse its decision compelling citizens to take project proponents to court themselves, and guarantee that the right to navigate on all waterways and lakes in Canada will be maintained and that an environmental assessment will be conducted for all projects near any bodies of water.
Ron Cannan Conservative Kelowna—Lake Country, BC
Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise on behalf of numerous British Columbians who are calling upon the government to implement the new mandatory minimum sentencing for those persons convicted of impaired driving causing death and get tougher on impaired drivers.
The petitioners request that the Criminal Code be changed to redefine the offence of impaired driving causing death to vehicular manslaughter.
Also, as the summer is upon us, I would like to remind all Canadians to drink responsibly and to not drink and drive.
Libby Davies NDP Vancouver East, BC
Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to rise in the House today to introduce more petitions. I have been introducing these petitions throughout the session. I would like to thank the thousands of Canadians who have been signing this particular petition, as it deals with dogs and cats that are brutally slaughtered for their fur in a number of Asian regions.
Today's petitions come from Saskatoon, Vancouver, Windsor, Kitchener and right across the country. As I have said, I have been introducing these petitions now for a number of months, and obviously it is an issue that people are very concerned about.
The petitioners request that Canada join the U.S.A., Australia and the European Union in banning the import and sale of dog and cat fur. They support the private member's legislation that is before Parliament to make sure that this comes about.
I would like to thank the people across the country, who have been organizing this petition, for their hard and diligent on this very important issue.
Elizabeth May Green Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC
Mr. Speaker, I rise this morning to present three petitions.
The first petition deals with the proposed northern gateway project, which increasingly has the people of British Columbia, the government of British Columbia and the first nations of British Columbia standing against it. These petitions are signed by residents of the Montreal area.
Elizabeth May Green Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC
Mr. Speaker, the second petition is from residents of the Toronto area who are calling upon the government to refuse to ratify the Canada-China investment treaty. This treaty would lock Canada in, and future governments, for a period of not less than 31 years after ratification. It is time to step back from ratification and actually study that treaty.
Elizabeth May Green Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC
Mr. Speaker, the last petition, and I am encouraged by its support from across the aisles, is primarily from petitioners in the Surrey area who are in support of my private member's Bill C-442, which calls for a national strategy to deal with the dreadful human tragedy that is Lyme disease.