House of Commons Hansard #120 of the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was c-13.
Thomas Mulcair NDPLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Prime Minister said that he has no clue how long this war in Iraq will last. His foreign affairs minister, however, said that the fight against ISIS and groups like it could last a generation.
The United States has already been fighting ISIS under one name or another for over a decade. Is the Prime Minister really telling Canadians that he is ready for that kind of open-ended war in Iraq?
Stephen Harper ConservativePrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, of course, the preamble to the question is false. In fact, the American military had entirely left the country of Iraq for the past couple of years.
The reality is that what has arisen, as we know, in Iraq and Syria is the establishment of a large terrorist caliphate dedicated to the spread of global jihad, and terrorist training and financing around the world.
President Obama has rightly judged this as not merely a threat to the region but a threat to all countries, including the United States and Canada. That is why, obviously, we are assisting to deal with it.
Justin Trudeau Liberal Papineau, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is intent on going to war in Iraq. It is up to him to make that case to Canadians, but he has not even begun, nor has he been open about the 30-day combat role.
To start, exactly how many soldiers were deployed in the first week and how many soldiers will there be on Saturday, the last day of this mission for Canada?
Stephen Harper ConservativePrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I am not sure what the question was there.
As we all know, the government, and I think most Canadians, have judged that the situation in that part of the world is very serious. If it is allowed to continue to fester, it represents a very serious danger to the national security of this country and to Canadians.
This government, and Canadians, will work with our partners around the world to make sure that we minimize those threats to Canadians.
Justin Trudeau Liberal Papineau, QC
Mr. Speaker, if the Prime Minister wants Canada to join a war in Iraq, he first needs to make that case to Canadians. He can start by being open and transparent about the 30-day mission that is about to come to an end.
Saturday is the last day of the mission. We may have a debate on the issue next week. What will Canadian soldiers be doing in the meantime?
Stephen Harper ConservativePrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I think that we have been clear about our government's position, as have other governments around the world. A terrorist caliphate has been established in that region, and it is a threat to the security of our country and the international community. That is why President Obama and the international community have responded.
We have been clear on that. It is the Liberal Party's position that is unclear.
Justin Trudeau Liberal Papineau, QC
This is unbelievable, Mr. Speaker. We still do not have clear answers.
How does the Prime Minister expect Canadians to support a new mission if he continues his secrecy and evasiveness about the mission in which we are currently engaged?
Stephen Harper ConservativePrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, Canadians know exactly what steps this government has taken. Canadians are also aware the government is contemplating further steps on which it will soon make a decisions.
Canadians do not know the position of the Liberal Party. However, what Canadians can be sure of is that we do not make decisions based on what happened 10 or 20 years ago. We make decisions based on what we have to do to protect the security of Canadians today and into the future, and that is what we will do.
Thomas Mulcair NDPLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, is the Prime Minister considering air strikes in Syria?
Stephen Harper ConservativePrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, the government has not made a decision. Once the government makes such a decision regarding air combat, we will have a debate and a vote in the House of Commons.
Thomas Mulcair NDPLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister told the Wall Street Journal that he had not “ruled anything out”.
Will the Prime Minister confirm that this means that he has not ruled out large-scale Canadian ground deployment in Iraq?
Stephen Harper ConservativePrime Minister
What I said, Mr. Speaker, was that we had not ruled out any requests made of us by our allies. All of our allies have ruled out large-scale ground deployment in Iraq and Syria, so obviously that is not something we are considering.
Thomas Mulcair NDPLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, what is the total budget the Prime Minister has planned for Canada's involvement in Iraq? How much is this going to cost?
Stephen Harper ConservativePrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, any decisions made to date fall within the current National Defence budget. Our top priority when it comes to public safety is keeping Canadians safe. The government will spend what is needed to keep Canadians safe.
Thomas Mulcair NDPLeader of the Opposition
Mr. Speaker, is the Prime Minister really telling Canadians that he has no idea at all how much it will cost? Ballpark? Nothing?
What kind of budget are we talking about? How much will Canadians pay for the Prime Minister's war in Iraq? How much will it cost for this war in Iraq?
Stephen Harper ConservativePrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, this is a very serious issue to throw around terms like the member just threw around.
This is a counterterrorism military operation undertaken by the United States in close consultation with our NATO allies, with Arab allies and with the international community.
This is being done because ISIL represents an extremely serious threat to the globe. It represents a serious threat to this country. That is why we take appropriate actions.
Hélène Laverdière NDP Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC
Mr. Speaker, war is not the only way to combat terrorism. There are many ways Canada could play an important role in Iraq and help save lives now. Just think—if my colleagues care to listen—of the 1.8 million Iraqis who have been displaced and are waiting for aid. Clearly, the members across the aisle have very little respect for them.
A month ago, the minister admitted that Canadian humanitarian aid in Iraq was insufficient. What has the minister done since then to increase that aid?
John Baird ConservativeMinister of Foreign Affairs
Mr. Speaker, with the human tragedies going on, first and foremost we have to look at what can do to stop this humanitarian crisis from growing. We see journalists being beheaded. We see women being sold into slavery. We see mass atrocities. We see genocide and attempts at ethnic cleansing.
Our first and foremost responsibility must be to work with President Obama, to work with President Hollande and to work with the civilized world to stop these barbaric activities from spreading.
Guy Caron NDP Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Parliamentary Budget Officer confirmed that the federal government downloaded all of the financial pressure related to the aging population onto the provinces by unilaterally modifying the health transfer indexing formula, even though the federal government has the means to shoulder its share of the burden in terms of health care for Canadians. Under the circumstances, why are the Conservatives determined to deprive the provinces of $36 billion in health care funding?
Kevin Sorenson ConservativeMinister of State (Finance)
Mr. Speaker, no government in Canadian history has provided more funding to the provinces for health care, and it continues to grow.
Unlike the old Liberal government that cut funding, we have increased health care transfers to the provinces and territories by nearly 60% to all-time record levels. Under our government, health care transfers have risen from over $20 billion when we formed government to $32 billion this year. It continues to grow.
Libby Davies NDP Vancouver East, BC
Mr. Speaker, the federal government should not be balancing the books on the backs of provinces. The Parliamentary Budget Officer's report clearly shows the government's fiscal sustainability has come at cost. Cuts to services and downloading the fiscal burden to provinces are going on.
If the federal government had not cut health care transfers by $36 billion, the fiscal gap faced by the provinces and municipalities would be essentially eliminated. How does cutting federal funding improve health care for Canadians?
Kevin Sorenson ConservativeMinister of State (Finance)
Mr. Speaker, again, Canadians know they are better off with this Conservative government. No government in Canadian history has provided more funding to the provinces for health care, and it continues to grow.
We are committed to a publicly funded, universally accessible health care system. We all use the health care system. We want to see a strong, sustainable health care system that is there for Canadians when they need it.
Libby Davies NDP Vancouver East, BC
Mr. Speaker, maybe the minister should read the Parliamentary Budget Officer's report and find out that they are downloading to the provinces.
I am glad to see that the government has finally listened to the NDP on drug safety and taken action to ban imports from two Apotex factories. The ban comes after Health Canada received information from the Food and Drug Administration in the U.S.
However, the Auditor General warned three years ago that Health Canada was slow to react. Why does Health Canada have to rely on information from the U.S. before it takes action to protect the health and safety of Canadians?
Eve Adams ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health
Mr. Speaker, our government will not tolerate drug safety risks. As soon as Health Canada was made aware of this information, it acted immediately to quarantine the medication. Additional safety testing took place, and all medication from all three plants will not be entering Canada. It has been fully quarantined.
Additionally, Vanessa's law is just making its way through the Senate right now. This is legislation that the opposition completely dragged its feet on all of last summer, forcing us into late night sittings. That legislation would allow Health Canada to enact hefty fines against pharmaceutical companies.
Dany Morin NDP Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, QC
Mr. Speaker, the U.S. FDA targeted Apotex in 2009 for unsafe drugs. Here, the government did nothing. It neglected Canadians' health. For months now, the NDP has been asking the minister to take action based on scientific data obtained by the Americans. The minister finally realized that she had to take action and stop the import of drugs from three Apotex factories. Well done. Stopping imports is good, but a mandatory recall would be better.
When will the minister impose a mandatory recall of the Apotex products she singled out yesterday?