Debates of June 3rd, 2013

Peace

[David McGuinty, Liberal, Ottawa South, ON]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36, I rise today to table a petition signed by hundreds of local residents who are urging the government to establish a department of peace, headed by a minister of peace as a senior cabinet position, and that this department should reinvigorate Canada's role as a global peace builder. I am pleased to table this petition and I look forward to the government's response.

Animal Transportation

[Rosane Doré Lefebvre, NDP, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I will be presenting two petitions today.

The first petition is from one of my constituents, who calls on the government to strengthen animal transportation regulations.

Development and Peace

[Rosane Doré Lefebvre, NDP, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition concerns Development and Peace.

This petition is presented by people in Saint-Noël-Chabanel and the parish of St-François-de-Sales in my riding. For the sake of international solidarity, they want the government to fully restore the $49.2 million in funding sought by Development and Peace for the next five years.

Search and Rescue

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise to present two petitions.

The first is to save the Kitsilano Coast Guard station. The petitioners say that the recent decision by the federal government to close the Kitsilano station is a grave mistake that will undoubtedly cost lives of those in peril on the shores and waters near Vancouver harbour. They call on the Government of Canada to rescind this decision and reinstate funding to maintain the Kitsilano Coast Guard station.

Shark Finning

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

Mr. Speaker, I also submit a petition calling on the House to ban the import of shark fins. The petitioners say measures must be taken to stop the global practice of shark finning and ensure the responsible conservation and management of sharks. They call on the Government of Canada to immediately legislate a ban on the importation of shark fins to Canada.

The Environment

[Kirsty Duncan, Liberal, Etobicoke North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the students and staff at David Suzuki Secondary School in Brampton, Ontario, wish to protest the Canadian government's lack of concern for the environment, including the dismantling of environmental protection through omnibus bills, the withdrawal from the Kyoto accord, the continued pollution of our waters and the continued rise of carbon emissions and other greenhouse gases in our atmosphere.

The petitioners request that the government take immediate action to protect our future and the future of the planet.

International Co-operation

[Linda Duncan, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions to table from Canadians from White Rock, B.C.; from Esterhazy, Regina, North Battleford and Saskatoon in Saskatchewan; from Leduc, Calgary, Grimshaw, Pincher Creek and Red Deer in Alberta; from Brandon, Manitoba; and from Hay River, Northwest Territories.

The petitioners call on Parliament to address its failure to deliver on Parliament's commitment in 2005 to increase development assistance to 0.7% of GDP, to end the freeze on foreign aid and to restore the NGO partnerships in aid.

The Environment

[Elizabeth May, Green, Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House today with a happier spring in my step with a petition from residents of Sooke, Duncan and Salt Spring Island calling on the government to take a different look at the Enbridge northern gateway pipeline.

It certainly is encouraging that the Government of British Columbia has said that the current proposal does not meet its standards because the proponent, Enbridge, has failed to provide evidence that would assure the B.C. government it has any capability to deal with spills along the pipeline route.

Lyme Disease

[Elizabeth May, Green, Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition is on the subject of the private member's bill I put forward, Bill C-442, calling for a national Lyme disease strategy. These petitioners from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and Brampton, Ontario, join with many thousands of others across Canada hoping the House can be united in seeking help for those who are suffering from Lyme disease and in providing greater prevention and information so that we will reduce the spread of this terrible disease.

Parks Canada

[Olivia Chow, NDP, Trinity—Spadina, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions. One is from Canadians from coast to coast to coast asking the Government of Canada to not reduce the hours of operation of the Rideau Canal and the Trent-Severn Waterway. They note that they are both national historic sites and represent a significant part of our Canadian heritage, are renowned all over the world for their natural beauty and as engineering marvels and are a vital part of the economies in their respective regions.

Motor Vehicle Safety

[Olivia Chow, NDP, Trinity—Spadina, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition is from folks in Toronto. Petitioners are asking the Government of Canada to introduce a regulation under the Motor Vehicle Safety Act requiring aerodynamic side guards for trucks and trailers to prevent cyclists and pedestrians from being pulled under the wheels of these vehicles. They note that side guards on trucks have been a legal requirement in the U.K. and the European Union for many years, and there has been a significant drop in pedestrian and cyclist fatalities in these countries. They point out it is in fact a key recommendation by the Chief Coroner for Ontario in his study on how to keep cyclists and pedestrians safe.

Impaired Driving

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Langley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to present petitions from constituents from the Fraser Valley. The first is a petition that highlights the sad fact that last year 22-year-old Kassandra Kaulius was killed by a drunk driver. A group of people called Families for Justice, who have also lost loved ones to impaired drivers, is asking for new mandatory minimum sentencing for those people convicted of impaired driving causing death.

Sex Selection

[Mark Warawa, Conservative, Langley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition relates to gendercide. Petitioners highlight that sex selection is happening in Canada. All the national parties in Parliament have condemned this practice, and 92% of Canadians condemn sex selection. They are asking Parliament to condemn discrimination against females occurring through sex-selective pregnancy termination.

Pensions

[Irene Mathyssen, NDP, London—Fanshawe, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I have a petition from many Canadians who are very concerned about the changes that the government has made to old age security by increasing the age of eligibility from 65 to 67. They point out that this change has a profoundly negative impact on the poorest seniors and that in fact those two extra years of waiting for OAS and GIS would take about $12,000 out of the pockets of the average senior. This creates profound instability in households where there is not enough money.

In that regard, petitioners are asking the Government of Canada to return the age of eligibility of old age security to age 65 and increase the investment in the guaranteed income supplement in order to lift every Canadian senior out of poverty,

Questions on the Order Paper

[Tom Lukiwski, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, the following questions will be answered today: Nos. 1311, 1312, 1313 and 1315.

Question No. 1311

[Malcolm Allen, NDP, Welland, ON]

With regard to the horse meat contamination of imported goods: (a) what is the policy of the government in dealing with these products; (b) what percentage of imported meat is tested for horse meat contamination; (c) how many incidents of horse meat contamination have been discovered in the last 12 months, listed by product type, including all pertinent designations, port of discovery, date of discovery, total weight of contaminated goods, percentage of horse meat discovered in each case of contamination, all details about handling and packaging of each case of contamination, country of origin, shipper, receiver, distributor, intended destination, intended final product; (d) what action was taken upon discovery of each case of contamination; (e) how many cases of horse meat contaminated products were (i) sent back to the shipper, (ii) ordered destroyed, (iii) allowed to continue to their destination, (iv) made their way or were presumed to have made their way into the food system for human consumption; and (f) what are the brand names of products contaminated with horse meat sold to Canadians?

[Gerry Ritz, Conservative, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board]

Mr. Speaker, with regard to (a), unidentified mixing of meat from different species is not permitted in Canada. Under the authority of the Meat Inspection Act and Regulations, the Food and Drugs Act and Regulations, and the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act and Regulations, meat cuts, organs, and other carcass parts must be identified on labels with proper common names, including species names. This applies to meat from any species, including equine. The meat import program is designed to ensure imported meat products are equivalent to Canadian standards. The competent authority of the country of origin as well as any plant within that country must be CFIA approved before Canada will permit export of meat products into Canada. CFIA approval is only granted after an in depth and lengthy review to ensure that equivalency with Canadian standards can be achieved.

In addition, all types of imported meat products, including processed products, are subject to random testing to verify compliance with Canadian law. Random samples of all imported meat products are tested and, should a violation be identified, the shipment is rejected for entry into Canada. In such a case, the competent authority of the exporting country as well as the exporting plant must isolate the source of the problem, develop and implement a corrective plan and demonstrate that the appropriate corrective action has been taken. Once these steps have been satisfactorily completed, export of meat products to Canada may resume under intensified CFIA testing. Sampling and testing return to the normal frequency only once compliance with Canadian standards has been established through a series of consecutive acceptable test results.

With regard to (b), species verification testing is based upon risk and varies year to year. This testing is not carried out to ensure safety. This testing is primarily aimed at the detection of fraudulent practices. As Canada does not import a significant percentage of the meat consumed domestically, the sampling and testing is carried out in a prescriptive manner when shipments are received or when CFIA inspection staff feel there is a potential issue.

With regard to (c), (d), (e) and (f), no positive samples were identified with horsemeat in any products.

Question No. 1312

[Dennis Bevington, NDP, Western Arctic, NT]

With regard to Giant Mine in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, from the time the mine entered production in 1948 until ceasing operations in 2004, what was the total amount (not adjusted for inflation) paid to Canada in royalties for the over seven million ounces of gold produced by the mine?

[Bernard Valcourt, Conservative, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development]

Mr. Speaker, based on an assessment of historical documents going back into the 1940s, the total royalties paid to the Government of Canada from all of the mines located on the Giant claim block, including Giant, Lolor and Supercrest, is approximately $4 million, based on the 4%-5% royalties in effect at the time.

Question No. 1313

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Wascana, SK]

With regard to the Agroforestry Development Centre: (a) have any studies been conducted, either internally within the government or by external consultants or advisors, to identify the costs or benefits of the proposed divestiture of the Agroforestry Development Centre at Indian Head, Saskatchewan, including any possible continuation of any science or research activity at the existing site or elsewhere; (b) who prepared the studies; (c) when were those studies completed; and (d) what were the detailed results of any such study?

[Gerry Ritz, Conservative, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board]

Mr. Speaker, with regard to (a), the answer is yes.

With regard to (b), the study was prepared by SEPW Architecture Inc. through a specific service agreement with Public Works and Government Services Canada on behalf of AAFC.

With regard to (c), the study was completed December 21, 2012.

With regard to (d), the report detailed options regarding the Agroforestry Development Centre.

AAFC is currently considering options for the agroforestry science and research activities at the Agroforestry Development Centre in the context of future requirements for research in agroforestry at AAFC while ensuring prudent stewardship of public funds.

Question No. 1315

[Pierre-Luc Dusseault, NDP, Sherbrooke, QC]

With regard to the letter sent by Service Canada concerning changes to the Employment Insurance program entitled “Changes to Employment Insurance”: (a) how many letters were sent, broken down by (i) province, (ii) date sent; (b) on what date was the decision made to issue this letter; (c) on what date was the final draft of the letter approved by the office of the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development; (d) how much did it cost to write, review and mail out these letters; and (e) how many other mass mailings have been conducted over the past 15 years regarding Employment Insurance and how large were they?

[Diane Finley, Conservative, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development]

Mr. Speaker, with regard to the letter entitled “Changes to Employment Insurance” sent by Service Canada concerning changes to the employment insurance program and in regard to (a)(i), in Newfoundland and Labrador, there were 212,572 addressees; in Nova Scotia, 396,159 addressees; in Prince Edward Island, 60,720 addressees; in New Brunswick, 328,564 addressees; and in Quebec, 3,552,488 addressees.

With regard to (a)(ii), a total of 4,550,503 letters were sent. These letters were mailed on March 19, March 20 and March 25, 2013.

With regard to (b), the final decision to move forward with this project was taken on March 7, 2013. An assessment on cost of the mailing and discussions on the letter’s content and design took place prior to a decision being taken.

With regard to (c), the final draft was approved by the minister’s office on March 8, 2013.

With regard to (d), the letter was drafted internally by departmental staff. Therefore, there is no cost associated to the development of the letter. The total cost of mailing out the letters was $823,493.24 which includes printing and postage costs, excluding taxes.

With regard to (e), it is important that policy changes to our programs be communicated to Canadians as clearly as possible. While no other similar mailings have been conducted in the past six years on employment insurance, there have been mail-outs for other programs. An example is the future change in the age of eligibility for old age security last year. Financial records are only kept by the department for six years. Contracts or procurement conducted prior to the past six years require specific details for archive retrieval such as contractor name, contract number or financial codes.

Questions Passed as Orders for Return

[Tom Lukiwski, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, if Questions Nos. 1314 and 1316 could be made orders for return, these returns would be tabled immediately.

[The Deputy Speaker]

Is that agreed?