House of Commons Hansard #151 of the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was bills.

Topics

Justice for Animals in Service Act (Quanto's Law)Government Orders

11 a.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Barry Devolin

The time for government orders has expired. Consequently, the hon. member for Hamilton East—Stoney Creek will have five minutes remaining for his remarks when this matter returns before the House.

Roy HendersonStatements By Members

11 a.m.

Conservative

Scott Armstrong Conservative Cumberland—Colchester—Musquodoboit Valley, NS

Mr. Speaker, today, I am proud to rise in the House in celebration of the life of a true Canadian hero. Roy Henderson, who was a proud World War II veteran and a member of the Royal Canadian Navy, passed away this week.

Roy was a true community volunteer and stalwart. Following service in World War II, he joined the Canadian Legion. He was a volunteer fireman. He had a great career as an insurance salesman for Metropolitan Life.

Roy was always a strong supporter and loyal member of the Progressive Conservative Party of Nova Scotia and the Conservative Party of Canada. He was a key organizer for our party during the Stanfield years in my hometown of Truro, but what is more, he was a close family friend and someone I truly respected.

Tammy and I would like to give our condolences to the entire Henderson family on the passing of Roy. He had a tremendous life. He contributed to our entire community. God bless you, Roy.

March for PeaceStatements By Members

11 a.m.

NDP

Hoang Mai NDP Brossard—La Prairie, QC

Mr. Speaker, last Sunday I took part in the march for peace in Brossard—La Prairie.

I wish to congratulate the Brossard Islamic centre, Mohamed Yacoub and all the organizers on a very successful event. Hundreds of people from all walks of life came together in solidarity with our Muslim brothers and sisters. We were all shocked by the terrible events that took place in Saint-Jean and here in Parliament.

To quote the Leader of the Opposition:

...whether talking about protecting civilians in the Middle East, fighting racism and Islamophobia or ensuring rights are respected here at home, New Democrats can be counted on to stand up for human rights....

Moving forward, we will continue doing the hard of work of ensuring Canadians’ safety while guarding our shared values of freedom, tolerance and an inclusive democracy.

Jewish RefugeesStatements By Members

11 a.m.

Conservative

Mark Adler Conservative York Centre, ON

Mr. Speaker, for 2,500 years Jews lived in Arab lands, but in the 20th century many Arab regimes expropriated the property of Jews, stripped them of their citizenship, and expelled, arrested, tortured, and murdered scores in some of the most vicious pogroms ever perpetrated against the Jewish people.

Some 850,000 Jews were displaced. It is imperative that under international law, these people be determined to be refugees. Our own House of Commons standing committee on foreign affairs agrees. In its report from 2013, it recommended that:

...Canada officially recognize the experience of Jewish refugees who were displaced from states in the Middle East and North Africa after 1948.

In Israel, a law has been enacted marking November 30 as the national day for commemorating the flight of Jewish refugees from Arab lands. Across Canada and around the world, there will be events to mark this day.

In 2013, Canada became the first country in the world to formally recognize Jewish refugees from Arab countries. I encourage nations around the world to follow our lead and recognize this injustice. Under the Prime Minister's principled leadership, our country will stand proud and tall for the values that make Canada great, which are freedom, democracy, human rights, and the—

Jewish RefugeesStatements By Members

11 a.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Barry Devolin

The hon. member for Cape Breton—Canso.

Tourism AwardsStatements By Members

11 a.m.

Liberal

Rodger Cuzner Liberal Cape Breton—Canso, NS

Mr. Speaker, this week, I was pleased to attend the Tourism Industry Association of Canada's annual awards night, where three organizations from my riding received nominations, including Cabot Links golf course, the Fortress of Louisbourg, and the Celtic Heart of North America marketing group.

Congratulations to Cabot Links for winning the Visa Canada Traveller Experience of the Year Award. Cabot Links is recognized as one of Canada's top golf courses and is ranked as the 82nd-best golf course in the world by Golf Digest magazine. Cabot Links runs along the breathtaking shoreline of Cape Breton and provides golfers with a true links experience, with panoramic views, fabulous accommodations, and a five-star menu.

To the incredible Ben Cowan-Dewar, his wife Allie, and their staff of almost 200, congratulations on this prestigious national award. Congratulations as well to the people of Inverness, and particularly to those members of the Inverness Development Association whose vision and determination were the impetus for this world-class project.

Stuwix ResourcesStatements By Members

11:05 a.m.

Conservative

Dan Albas Conservative Okanagan—Coquihalla, BC

Mr. Speaker, I have some exciting news to share with the House today. Stuwix Resources is a tenure holder and forest management company owned jointly by eight first nations in my riding of Okanagan—Coquihalla.

This is a company that employs close to half a dozen aboriginal staff full time and works with 89 different local businesses, of which 23 are local aboriginal entrepreneurs. The company has replanted over eight million seedlings in the past five years, and 65% of the forest harvest is completed by first nations contractors.

In summary, Stuwix Resources has become a leader in first nations forest resource management. I hope that the House will join with me in recognizing Stuwix Resources, which has won the Aboriginal Business Leadership Award, presented by the Forest Products Association of Canada and the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business.

This is an exciting award recognizing the leadership of first nations communities and the creation of employment through responsible resource development.

Citizenship and ImmigrationStatements By Members

11:05 a.m.

NDP

Alexandre Boulerice NDP Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC

Mr. Speaker, many new citizens come to my office in Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie and say that they want to invite members of their family to come visit them in Canada.

These individuals want to share milestones in their lives, such as a marriage, a birth or other more tragic events, with the members of their family who are still living in their country of origin. Unfortunately, when those family members are citizens of a country for which a visa is required, the whole process becomes an administrative nightmare.

Many of these new Canadian citizens find the process confusing, which shows that there is a blatant lack of resources available to them. The process is not transparent, applications are systematically denied and the applicants are left disappointed.

Vague and ridiculous criteria are used to discriminate against certain cases, such as the family's travel outside the country prior to the application, for example. These people feel that they are being discriminated against, and that the Conservatives consider them second-class citizens.

I therefore join them in calling for change to ensure that from now on all citizens are treated equally.

Calgary StampedersStatements By Members

11:05 a.m.

Conservative

Deepak Obhrai Conservative Calgary East, AB

Mr. Speaker, this Sunday two teams will go head to head in Vancouver. After a strong season, the Calgary Stampeders will face the Hamilton Tiger-Cats for Canadian football's greatest prize, the Grey Cup.

With the award-winning coaching of John Hufnagel and strong performances by players like Bo Levi Mitchell and Jon Cornish, Calgary finished its season after winning an impressive 83% of its games. However, Calgary's grit and determination mean that our team will not rest until the job is done. Even beating Edmonton to prove that they were the best in the west is not enough.

To my dear friend and seatmate here, I can tell him that we will beat his team.

Go, Stamps, go!

Hamilton Tiger-CatsStatements By Members

11:05 a.m.

Conservative

Rick Dykstra Conservative St. Catharines, ON

Mr. Speaker, I am sure we will all be watching and cheering in celebration of the 102nd Grey Cup, hosted at B.C. Place, where the Hamilton Tiger-Cats will satisfy their fans and forever mark their spots in Canadian football history by capping off a Cinderellaesque year with a victory against the Calgary Stampeders.

Despite pundits writing off the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, including the member for Calgary East, there is no denying that history will, as it always does, repeat itself. The last Ticats Grey Cup victory was against the Stampeders at B.C. Place in a comparable underdog manner.

Regardless of any personal bias, I am sure we can all look forward to an epic battle between two great teams. If nothing else, the 102nd Grey Cup will test the timely football law of offence sells seats, defence wins championships, as Calgary's top offence will try their luck and fail against Hamilton's top defence

Oskee Wee Wee, Oskee 102!

Quebec AgenciesStatements By Members

11:05 a.m.

NDP

Jean Rousseau NDP Compton—Stanstead, QC

Mr. Speaker, I want to draw your attention to little-known agencies that work tirelessly in Quebec.

With the help of volunteers or workers who are often underpaid, these groups improve people's lives and work on unifying issues and projects: the Eastern Townships housing co-operatives that provide social housing for low-income families; volunteer centres where the sense of giving far exceeds political action; AmiEs de la Terre, a proud proponent of and window to organic farming; Union paysanne, an advocate of traditional farming and family farms; COGESAF, a guardian of watersheds and a great protector of our water; and Solidarité rurale du Québec, a community builder that raises awareness about the reality of rural life and that suffered greatly from the austerity agenda.

Of course, there is the Townshippers' Association, protector of the Anglophone minority, and its tradition of building bridges throughout our community.

Their voices and missions deserve our attention because their many initiatives are vital to all Quebeckers.

TaxationStatements By Members

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

Stephen Woodworth Conservative Kitchener Centre, ON

Mr. Speaker, under the Conservative government's family tax cut, every family with children will have more money to spend on their priorities as a family.

The majority of the benefits will go to low- and middle-income families. For instance, a single mother with two children earning $30,000 per annum will benefit by a whopping $1,500 very year.

However, the Liberal leader is promising to reverse this tax relief and force hard-working middle-class families to pay more. We reject the Liberal leader's high-tax policies.

Our Conservative government has kept our promise to families, and we continue to stand with them. After all, we all know that there are only two people who really know what is best for their kids: mom and dad.

Affordable HousingStatements By Members

11:10 a.m.

NDP

Libby Davies NDP Vancouver East, BC

Mr. Speaker, the co-op housing sector is in dire need of sustainable funding from the federal government because agreements between co-ops and CMHC are coming to an end.

In my riding of Vancouver East there are 30 housing co-ops. Approximately one-third of co-op households will be at risk of homelessness when these agreements expire. Thousands of vulnerable citizens will be burdened with severe financial difficulty.

In an expensive city like Vancouver, securing affordable and stable housing is incredibly difficult, and many people are already spending so much on rent they are just one paycheque away from homelessness.

Co-op housing occupies a vital and unique position because it is secure and affordable. The government has an obligation to ensure the ongoing success of the co-op housing sector by renewing federal housing assistance to low-income households and by building more co-op housing.

I call on the government to recognize that affordable, adequate, accessible, and secure housing like co-ops is a fundamental right for all Canadians.

The EconomyStatements By Members

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

Bryan Hayes Conservative Sault Ste. Marie, ON

Mr. Speaker, today StatsCan announced that our economy grew by 2.8% in the third quarter of 2014, well above market expectations. This is further evidence that our unprecedented focus on the economy is working.

In September Canada exceeded economists' expectations by creating a whopping 74,000 jobs, and in October we surpassed forecasts again by adding another 43,000 jobs.

Canada has created over 1.2 million jobs since the depths of the recession, but in an uncertain and dangerous global environment, many international risks and global market forces remain a threat to the prosperity of Canadians. Now is not the time for the Liberal Party's risky tax-and-spend experiments.

By contrast, our government's economic action plan is a proven success. We remain steadfast with our low-tax plan, which is growing our economy and will bring us back to balance in 2015.

Go, Ticats!

Warden Full Gospel AssemblyStatements By Members

11:10 a.m.

Liberal

Arnold Chan Liberal Scarborough—Agincourt, ON

Mr. Speaker, my spouse Jean and I recently had the pleasure of joining Warden Full Gospel Assembly in celebrating its 60th anniversary. As the church reflects on its past, present, and future, Warden Full Gospel Assembly represents the best of Canada.

Dating back 60 years, the church was founded by a group of German immigrants who desired a spiritual home and a place of worship in their own language. Today the church's open doors welcome people from across the world. The church embraces and cares for a diverse group that is both multicultural and intergenerational.

The church's commitment and dedication to the community enrich the local neighbourhoods of Scarborough—Agincourt, whether it means running weekly sports programs for young individuals or supporting the local food bank.

I want to thank Warden Full Gospel Assembly, Pastor Trevor Moss, and the entire congregation for their ongoing commitment to our community. I wish them continued success in the years to come.

Sri LankaStatements By Members

11:10 a.m.

Conservative

Costas Menegakis Conservative Richmond Hill, ON

Mr. Speaker, our Conservative government is committed to combatting terrorism. Despite the objections of the NDP, we have taken strong action to keep Canadians safe from those who wish to harm us. We thank our men and women in uniform serving Canada.

That is why I am concerned that the member for Scarborough—Rouge River has made ridiculous statements equating Remembrance Day, which honours Canadian veterans, with Tamil Heroes Day, which honours members of the terrorist organization known as the Tamil Tigers who have been killed. The NDP member should apologize immediately to veterans and to all Canadians.

The NDP should start standing up with our government to protect Canadians.

Government AccountabilityStatements By Members

11:15 a.m.

NDP

Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives have systematically and deliberately undermined and eroded the notion of ministerial accountability until it is only a facsimile of what it was intended to be.

One graphic illustration is the refusal of the President of the Treasury Board to appear before the Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates to defend hundreds of millions of dollars of proposed spending in the supplementary estimates.

It is a fundamental principle of our parliamentary democracy that the government has to seek the consent of Parliament to spend money, and the notion of accountability dictates that the minister appears before the appropriate committee to make the case for any such spending, subject to scrutiny, oversight, due diligence, and thorough examination by its members.

Members well know that kings have lost their heads for failing to respect the supremacy of Parliament.

The stubborn intransigence of the minister in refusing to attend before a parliamentary committee shows an appalling disrespect for the institution, its members, and the Canadians they represent.

TaxationStatements By Members

11:15 a.m.

Conservative

Royal Galipeau Conservative Ottawa—Orléans, ON

Mr. Speaker, 100% of families with children in Ottawa—Orléans and across Canada will have more money in their pockets because of our family tax cut and enhanced universal child care benefit. That includes two-income families, one-income families, and single parents.

The vast majority of benefits will go to low-income and middle-class families.

Tax professionals agree. Caroline Battista, of H&R Block, says, “it's a great thing for families”. Parents do not want the leader of the third party splurging their hard-earned dollars on risky Liberal spending sprees, and we are right there with them.

We want to make life easier for the parents, not the government.

Hard-working parents in Orleans know best how to spend their money for their children, and I am honoured to be standing up for them in this place and in the community.

Veterans AffairsOral Questions

11:15 a.m.

NDP

Libby Davies NDP Vancouver East, BC

Mr. Speaker, earlier this week, the Auditor General blew the whistle on the Conservatives' pitiful record when it came to helping injured veterans. Adding insult to injury, we now learn the money they promised to veterans in a face-saving measure will actually be spread over not 5 years but over 50 years.

The Conservatives misled the House, they misled the public and they misled veterans. Why will the Conservatives not own up to their mistakes and be honest with Canada's veterans?

Veterans AffairsOral Questions

11:15 a.m.

Brampton—Springdale Ontario

Conservative

Parm Gill ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs

Mr. Speaker, the investment announced by our government will not only help today's veterans, but will also help veterans of the future.

When our government took office, there were only four operational stress clinics. We have already added 13 specialized military care facilities and our latest investment will add eight additional operational stress injury clinics.

Across the country, we will continue to respond to today's veterans' needs as we move forward.

Veterans AffairsOral Questions

11:15 a.m.

NDP

Libby Davies NDP Vancouver East, BC

Mr. Speaker, that answer is simply not accurate. While the minister is failing to stand and answer questions, his office confirmed yesterday that $159 million of the money announced would be spread over 50 years.

The Minister of Veterans Affairs ignored the Auditor General's recommendations from 2009, closed the offices of veterans and targeted veterans who criticized him. After all that, did the minister really think that misleading the public over this funding announcement would help him out?

Veterans AffairsOral Questions

11:15 a.m.

Brampton—Springdale Ontario

Conservative

Parm Gill ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs

Mr. Speaker, I am not sure why the opposition is criticizing the investment we are making to help Canada's veterans in mental health care cases.

We take veterans' mental health care very seriously. That is exactly why we are introducing more clinics and health care professionals across the country, and more places for veterans to get help. We are expanding the access to treatment right across the country, and we will continue to do that.

Aboriginal AffairsOral Questions

11:15 a.m.

NDP

Libby Davies NDP Vancouver East, BC

Mr. Speaker, he said nothing about the 50 years.

The Minister of the Environment, the member for Nunavut, said in the House that stories about her constituents eating out of a garbage dump were “untrue”. However, it did happen as anyone who watches APTN can see.

Could the minister confirm that her office contacted Rankin Inlet and demanded an apology for making public the fact that people in her riding were eating out of a landfill?

Aboriginal AffairsOral Questions

11:20 a.m.

Oshawa Ontario

Conservative

Colin Carrie ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment

Mr. Speaker, the allegations are completely false. The Minister of the Environment was born and raised in the Arctic, and she knows how important access to healthy food is for our children and our families.

The minister was troubled when she heard these reports about families struggling to find food. As the member of Parliament for Nunavut, it is her responsibility to listen to the concerns of her constituents and to act on their behalf. That is why she called her constituents to get the facts.

Aboriginal AffairsOral Questions

11:20 a.m.

NDP

Romeo Saganash NDP Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou, QC

Mr. Speaker, because the Conservative government's program failed to lower the cost of food, there is a food crisis in northern Canada. While residents of Rankin Inlet are reduced to scavenging in dumps to feed themselves, all the Minister of the Environment cares about is managing public relations and demanding apologies from the local authorities who spoke out about the situation. It is appalling.

Does the minister realize that the only thing she should be concerned about right now is that people in her riding are eating out of dumps and that she needs to help them?