House of Commons Hansard #122 of the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was prostitution.
Rob Nicholson ConservativeMinister of National Defence
Mr. Speaker, I do not agree, obviously, with the analysis of the hon. member. The mission that we are a part of right now is to provide strategic and tactical advice to the Iraqis at this particular time. This is in co-operation with our other allies.
I would urge the hon. member to keep an open mind and listen carefully to what the Prime Minister has to say today.
Sadia Groguhé NDP Saint-Lambert, QC
Mr. Speaker, the role of the government is to guarantee fair treatment for everyone who lives in Canada. However, this Conservative government does not think that refugees are worthy of being treated humanely. That is shameful.
The Federal Court ruled that refugees, and in particular children, were being subjected to cruel and unusual treatment by being denied access to health care. True to form, the Conservative government is appealing this decision to try to save some money at refugees' expense.
Will the government finally act humanely and withdraw its appeal of that decision?
Chris Alexander ConservativeMinister of Citizenship and Immigration
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member should be ashamed of suggesting that a single refugee in Canada is not benefiting from generous health care programs, because that is the truth. We believe that the Federal Court ruling was flawed, which is why we will appeal it. We announced our intention to do so, and in the meantime we will continue to protect refugees and Canadian taxpayers.
Sadia Groguhé NDP Saint-Lambert, QC
Mr. Speaker, because of the Conservatives, refugees no longer have access to health care. That is an inhumane decision that has an impact on the health of the least fortunate. What will happen to pregnant women, sick children and seniors who cannot pay for the care they need?
Why does the government not admit its mistake? Why does it not withdraw its appeal of the decision?
Chris Alexander ConservativeMinister of Citizenship and Immigration
Mr. Speaker, once again, the hon. member is misleading the House.
There is not a single refugee in Canada who does not benefit from generous health care programs. Even the Federal Court ruling did not say that there were no refugees receiving health care. This is about other categories of asylum seekers.
We will appeal the decision, and we will continue to protect the interests of refugees and Canadian taxpayers.
Peggy Nash NDP Parkdale—High Park, ON
Mr. Speaker, he should actually talk to some refugees, like people on this side of the House do.
It fell to the Federal Court to defend Canadian values, and the court found the Conservatives' policy with respect to refugees “cruel and unusual”. Instead of respecting our shared values and instead of showing compassion for refugees, the government is appealing the decision.
It is unbelievable. The result of the government's intransigence is that desperate parents will put off help for their kids until they are very sick. Pregnant women will go without prenatal care.
Why will the government not show some humanity and drop the appeal?
Chris Alexander ConservativeMinister of Citizenship and Immigration
Mr. Speaker, the member should know better. Refugees in this country continue to benefit from very generous health care programs.
This was a flawed decision. We are appealing it. We are standing up for refugees. We are standing up for taxpayers.
One way that all members of the House could stand up for refugees in Iraq and elsewhere is agreeing to do more to face down the menace of ISIL. Why does the NDP refuse to consider the revocation of passports and the revocation of citizenship for those who take up arms against refugees and kill innocent minorities in cold blood? Why does it exclude all military options to help to protect—
Peggy Nash NDP Parkdale—High Park, ON
Mr. Speaker, back to the topic at hand, we already know that the consequence of their appeal will be more kids being hospitalized for serious illnesses.
The Federal Court said that the impact of the government's policy on vulnerable and innocent children “shocks the conscience and outrages [Canadian] standards of decency”.
Yet, the Conservatives have the gall to stand there and say it is about saving money. No Canadian parent thinks that saving money by making children suffer is a good thing.
Will the Conservatives instead do the right thing and withdraw their appeal?
Chris Alexander ConservativeMinister of Citizenship and Immigration
Mr. Speaker, this is a flawed decision. We are going to appeal it. I am not going to comment in any detail any further on matters that are before a court.
However, what I will comment on is that Canada has opened its doors to 18,500 Iraqi refugees since 2009. They are benefiting from health care. They are benefiting from Canada's generosity. They come from areas where people want the international community to act with humanitarian action, with military action to end the menace ISIL, which has created one of the biggest displacements of humanity and humanitarian crises in our lifetime.
Why does the NDP refuse to do anything to help millions of people in Iraq—
Bryan Hayes Conservative Sault Ste. Marie, ON
Mr. Speaker, like their comrades in the NDP, the Liberals continue to aimlessly attack the government's overhaul of the temporary foreign worker program, which includes tougher penalties for abusers and reduces the use of the program.
Would the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Employment and Social Development update this House on why the government overhauled the program and how this position differs from the Liberals'?
EmploymentOral Questions
Cumberland—Colchester—Musquodoboit Valley Nova Scotia
Conservative
Scott Armstrong ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Employment and Social Development
Mr. Speaker, we have overhauled the program to ensure that employers have to give Canadians first crack at all available jobs. We have had a consistent position on this. That is not the case for the Liberal Party. Yesterday, the Liberal candidate in Edmonton Centre publicly asked for a regional relaxation of the rules so they could bring more temporary foreign workers into Canada. Yet, in the Toronto Star, the Liberal leader argued that the temporary foreign worker program needs to be scaled back dramatically. Which way do they want it?
The Liberals are shamelessly saying one thing in western Canada and the exact opposite in eastern Canada.
Our position is consistent: Canadians must always come first, for every available job.
Anne-Marie Day NDP Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC
Mr. Speaker, since the Lac-Mégantic tragedy, there have been three other major rail explosions in the United States. That proves that when it comes to rail safety, we can always do better.
Yesterday, the president of Canadian National said that the Lac-Mégantic accident was one person's fault and that additional regulations were unnecessary.
Does the Minister of Transport agree with that, or does she intend to improve safety measures?
Jeff Watson ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport
Mr. Speaker, Mr. Harrison's comments that the government somehow overreacted are disappointing. Of course, our government disagrees with them. We take the health and safety of Canadians as a top priority.
That is why we have taken a number of very important measures to strengthen rail safety since 2006, especially with respect to the transportation of dangerous goods. We have information sharing with municipalities, which is a first; tough action on DOT-111 tankers; improving regulations on testing and classification; hiring more inspectors for the oversight; a $100-million investment over the last number of years in rail safety; stiff penalities for those who break the rules, and if they break the rules, we will not hesitate to enforce them.
Claude Gravelle NDP Nickel Belt, ON
Mr. Speaker, freight trains roll through my riding of Nickel Belt day and night. Residents want to know that their safety is put first when it comes to the shipment of hazardous materials.
The Transportation Safety Board's report condemns the Conservatives' failure to monitor and enforce safety practices of railway companies.
How will the minister fix these serious gaps and ensure the safety of northern Ontario residents?
Jeff Watson ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport
Mr. Speaker, what the Transportation Safety Board in fact concluded is that the rules were not followed.
Immediately following this tragedy, though, our government took additional actions, decisive actions, to ensure the safety and integrity of Canada's rail system, and it will implement every recommendation made by the Transportation Safety Board.
Irene Mathyssen NDP London—Fanshawe, ON
Mr. Speaker, more than 260,000 seniors across the country are living below the poverty line. As more Canadians retire, that number will rise, but the government seems to content to sit back and watch.
New Democrats are calling for action. We have proposed a workable and effective national seniors strategy, a plan that calls for government investment in affordable housing so that all seniors can age in dignity.
Will the minister support our intelligent plan?
Scott Armstrong ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Employment and Social Development
Mr. Speaker, no government in the history of this country has done more for seniors in Canada than the Conservative Party of Canada.
We have introduced income splitting. We have doubled the pension income credit. We have increased the maximum GIS earnings exemption to $3,500; automatic GIS renewal when the filed annual income tax was 96% last year. We have increased the age credit twice. There have been tax savings of $2.2 million. There are many other things that we have done.
We stand behind the seniors in this country.
Laurin Liu NDP Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, QC
Mr. Speaker, he did not answer the question. Shame.
The fact that the federal government has announced that it will be pulling out of and no longer investing in social housing means that low-income households will have less access to this type of housing. In some cases, rent can go up by as much as $200 to $500.
Much like the NDP, the Association de promotion et d'éducation en logement de Saint-Eustache is calling for renewed subsidies. Housing is a right. Why is the government turning its back on those with inadequate housing?
Scott Armstrong ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Employment and Social Development
Mr. Speaker, in terms of housing, we have initiated a new program: housing first. This is an evidenced-based program, which delivers for low-income Canadians who need housing.
Just think how difficult it must be to try to apply for a job when an individual has no address that they can fill in on the form.
Housing first gives someone a place to live that allows them to participate in employment and get a job. That is what we are doing. It is evidenced-based. It is working. The opposition should get behind it.
Chrystia Freeland Liberal Toronto Centre, ON
Mr. Speaker, an IMF report this week confirms what Liberals have been saying for months, “in countries with infrastructure needs, the time is right for an infrastructure push”.
My constituents in Toronto Centre do not need the IMF to tell them that Canada has an urgent infrastructure deficit.
The good news is that IMF has confirmed that thanks to our low interest rates, infrastructure investments are an excellent way to deliver growth without “increasing the debt-to-GDP ratio”.
When will the government take this sound advice and invest more in infrastructure?
Jacques Gourde ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister
Mr. Speaker, since we came to power, we have tripled investments in infrastructure. The new building Canada plan, with an envelope of $53 billion over 10 years, is operational. Numerous projects have been announced, and we are working with the provinces and territories on their priorities.
Kirsty Duncan Liberal Etobicoke North, ON
Mr. Speaker, the Ebola outbreak ravaging West Africa is the most severe and acute public health emergency in modern times. Never in recent history has such a dangerous pathogen infected so many people so quickly over such a wide geographical area for so long.
With Ebola cases and deaths tripling since August, West Africa needs personal protective equipment urgently, but Canada has failed to fulfill its September pledge.
I will ask again: What is the minister doing to ensure that the promised supplies get to where they are needed now?
Eve Adams ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health
Mr. Speaker, we are examining our options to get the protective gear there as efficiently as possible.
As I have indicated, Canada has been showing international leadership when it comes to helping the West African countries deal with this mass Ebola crisis. We have invested $35 million to help on general humanitarian assistance, provide nutrition, provide resources on the ground, and to provide much-needed expertise.
Canada is showing international leadership.
