Debates of Nov. 5th, 2014

Taxation

[Peggy Nash, NDP, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Mr. Speaker, a report from TD Bank shows that the female labour participation rate is at its lowest since 2002. This decrease could even jeopardize our economic growth. We proposed a plan for affordable day care, which would make it possible for thousands of women to return to the labour market. Why are the Conservatives introducing regressive measures like income splitting?

[Jason Kenney, Conservative, Minister of Employment and Social Development and Minister for Multiculturalism]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is implying that mothers and fathers who stay at home are not workers. We disagree. On the contrary, we know that fathers and mothers who work with their young children at home are important and productive workers who help future generations grow. That is why we fully support the parents of four million families with children with the large number of reforms we announced last week.

[Peggy Nash, NDP, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the impact of child care on women's workforce participation is clear. Quebec's child care program allowed 70,000 women to return to the workforce, but the Conservatives' wasteful income-splitting plan would have the exact opposite effect and discourage women from working at a time when women's workforce participation is already sliding.

Why put up more barriers? Why are they so opposed to policies like child care, which help women enter and remain in the workforce?

[Jason Kenney, Conservative, Minister of Employment and Social Development and Minister for Multiculturalism]

Mr. Speaker, Canada has the highest rate of female participation in the labour force in the G20.

What the member is suggesting really describes the NDP mentality. The NDP does not believe that dads and moms who spend some time at home with their young kids to raise them are in the workforce. We could not disagree more profoundly. They are working. They are working to raise their children and they are making sacrifices very often to do it.

This is the problem with the NDP approach. It denigrates those families and their choices. It says that they are not working. It says that they do not deserve support. It wants to attack those families and force them to take only one option, and it is wrong.

Champlain Bridge

[Sean Casey, Liberal, Charlottetown, PE]

Mr. Speaker, can you imagine if the Americans decided to change the name of the George Washington Bridge to the Babe Ruth Bridge? Every Canadian admires Maurice Richard, who has Acadian roots. There are many ways to honour the Rocket but not by changing the name of the Champlain Bridge.

Does the Prime Minister need to be reminded that Samuel de Champlain is a key figure in our history, that he was the founder of Canada and that, without him, Canada as we know it would not exist?

[Denis Lebel, Conservative, Minister of Infrastructure]

Mr. Speaker, our government would never jeopardize anyone's historical recognition. It is wrong to pit historical figures against each other, and our government would never do that.

That being said, what we will do is build a bridge, a bridge that was not maintained while the Liberals were in power. We made that announcement on October 5, 2011. We will have the bridge built on time and it will be ready for the greater Montreal area in 2018.

Co-operatives

[Mauril Bélanger, Liberal, Ottawa—Vanier, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in 2012, the government ended the $4 million co-operative development initiative, the only national program for co-ops.

In January 2013, the government announced a $400 million venture capital action plan. To date, the investment funds that have received contributions under this program have not made any investments in co-ops.

Also, Futurpreneur Canada receives $10 million annually to fund business ventures by young entrepreneurs; however, it cannot provide capital to young co-operators.

Why is the playing field so uneven? Why are these two federal programs not allowed to provide funds to help create co-operative businesses?

[Ed Holder, Conservative, Minister of State (Science and Technology)]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to acknowledge that member along with the member for Elgin—Middlesex—London for the strong work they have done over the years on co-operatives. I think that leadership was important.

As that member would know very well, for 100 years co-operatives have been a fundamental part of communities across the country in creating jobs and promoting growth.

Let me say with regard to our action plan that our government has launched a four-point action plan to support the growth and innovation of co-operatives across Canada. That is a review of Industry Canada's programs to identify obstructions that any co-operative would have. We think that is great news for co-operatives and we would like to celebrate them.

Champlain Bridge

[Hoang Mai, NDP, Brossard—La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister just said that he deplores the debate about the name of the Champlain Bridge, but the problem is that he is the one who started the debate. He is the one who wants to find a new name when all the government is doing is replacing the Champlain Bridge.

Will the minister focus on his actual responsibilities—ensuring that the tendering process is transparent—and avoid bogging down greater Montreal with his toll?

[Denis Lebel, Conservative, Minister of Infrastructure]

Mr. Speaker, the premise of that question is false. The current Champlain Bridge is being properly maintained in partnership with The Jacques Cartier and Champlain Bridges Incorporated. The NDP voted against the hundreds of millions of dollars we are putting into maintaining the bridge, and then they say that Champlain is important to them. They have stood back and done nothing but complain. We will continue our work on the new bridge over the St. Lawrence.

[Hoang Mai, NDP, Brossard—La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we forced the government to commit to replacing the Champlain Bridge, which is quite significant in and of itself.

Everyone in Quebec agrees: as much as people love Maurice Richard, they think it is ridiculous to change the name of the Champlain Bridge. The minister should stop stirring up fake debates and get back to the topic at hand.

Can he tell us if he will finally sit down with representatives of greater Montreal to talk about the toll that he plans on charging on the Champlain Bridge?

[Denis Lebel, Conservative, Minister of Infrastructure]

Mr. Speaker, on October 5, 2011, we announced that a new bridge would be built over the St. Lawrence. It is a new bridge, an expenditure, a construction investment of $3 billion to $5 billion. It will create 30,000 jobs in the Montreal area while it is being built.

When we made the announcement, we also said that there would be a toll and public transit and that the bridge would be built through a public-private partnership. We are following through on that.

Employment

[Bradley Trost, Conservative, Saskatoon—Humboldt, SK]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday Skills Canada launched National Skilled Trades and Technology Week.

Now in its tenth year, this event creates awareness for young Canadians about good career opportunities in skilled trades and technologies across Canada.

With a growing demand for workers in the skilled trades, would the Minister of Employment and Social Development update this House on what the government is doing to help young Canadians who want to pursue these careers?

[Jason Kenney, Conservative, Minister of Employment and Social Development and Minister for Multiculturalism]

Mr. Speaker, this government has made record investments in encouraging young Canadians to pursue great vocations in lifetime careers in the trades. That is why we created the apprenticeship incentive grant of $2,000 a year for those who enter the trades and the apprenticeship completion grant, which provides another $2,000 when they complete their training. We have provided these grants to thousands of young Canadians.

We have also provided the employer tax credit for hiring apprentices, the tool tax credit, and most recently, the Canada apprenticeship loan that provides interest-free financing to apprenticed students, because we believe that apprentices are worth every bit as much as—

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

The hon. member for Lac-Saint-Louis.

Foreign Affairs

[Francis Scarpaleggia, Liberal, Lac-Saint-Louis, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this past August the UN Convention on the Law of the Non-navigational Uses of International Watercourses came into force after Vietnam ratified the convention. Why has Canada not ratified the convention? Why did Canada, a water nation, leave it to Vietnam to trigger the convention's coming into force?

Canada should be an international leader on water issues. Why are we not?

[Deepak Obhrai, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and for International Human Rights]

Mr. Speaker, Canada has always fulfilled its international obligations. We will continue to work with the United Nations and with other countries to ensure that we are a responsible world citizen.

As to answering the member's question, I will get back to him in due course.

Taxation

[Murray Rankin, NDP, Victoria, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are all talk and no action when it comes to tackling tax evasion.

Most Canadians pay their fair share, but the Canada Revenue Agency acknowledged that last year alone it collected just 1% of the $220 million it lost to tax cheats. This comes amid reports that Canada is backing down on the commitment it made to the OECD to go after international corporations that avoid paying their fair share.

Why does the minister show so little commitment to tackling international tax cheats?

[Kerry-Lynne Findlay, Conservative, Minister of National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, through successive budgets we have continued to invest heavily in CRA's tax collection programs, including a $30 million investment made in budget 2013.

From 2006 to March 31 of this year, CRA audited over 8,600 international tax cases. It identified, and is in the process of collecting, $5.6 billion of additional taxes.

As a result of our aggressive action on this file, Canada now has one of the most extensive tax treaty networks in the world, with 92 tax treaties and 21 tax information exchange agreements.

Veterans Affairs

[Corneliu Chisu, Conservative, Pickering—Scarborough East, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today, in a fitting tribute to Remembrance Day, the Minister of Veterans Affairs and a representative from each party will make their Remembrance Day addresses in Parliament. Shortly thereafter, veterans and stakeholders will meet in Toronto for the annual True Patriot Love Foundation dinner.

Will the Minister of Veterans Affairs take a moment to speak about this important organization and how it supports Canadian veterans?

[Julian Fantino, Conservative, Minister of Veterans Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, tonight I will join veterans and serving members of the Canadian Armed Forces and many leading Canadian corporations and other Canadians at the True Patriot Love Foundation event in Toronto.

Started by Shaun Francis and our very own member of Parliament from Durham, the True Patriot Love Foundation has gone on to support veterans and their families through numerous efforts, including championing improved employment opportunities, research, and much more.

On behalf of a grateful nation, we give our thanks. We will not forget.

Canadian Heritage

[Annick Papillon, NDP, Québec, QC]

Mr. Speaker, as part of the celebration of the 150th anniversary of Confederation, Quebec City would like to host about 40 tall ships. This is a wonderful opportunity to promote tourism and highlight the beauty of the St. Lawrence.

Quebec City submitted its proposal to the government in May 2013. If the Conservatives do not commit funding by February 2015, the event may not go ahead. When will the government get on board with this major tourism proposal and provide financial support to the Quebec City tall ships? We want a date.

[Shelly Glover, Conservative, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages]

Mr. Speaker, the 150th anniversary of Confederation is an event that will be celebrated across the country. We are still waiting for an announcement, and we encourage all municipalities and provinces, as well as all organizations, to plan their events in order to celebrate this occasion with tremendous pride.

Since we are talking about this event, I should say that we are on our way to 2017. We are celebrating a number of events now.

Foreign Affairs

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

Mr. Speaker, earlier today a number of us parliamentarians gathered to call on the Prime Minister in his upcoming visit to China to take action on the particularly distressing and indeed appalling case of Canadian citizen, and also Chinese citizen, Dr. Wang Bingzhang, who has been in solitary confinement for 12 years. He is a political activist and dissident, and he stands for democracy. He was illegally arrested in Vietnam and taken by force to the People's Republic of China.

There are thousands and thousands of cases that call out for action from the People's Republic of China, but could the Prime Minister assure us that in this instance he will do everything possible to obtain Dr. Wang's return to Canada?

[Deepak Obhrai, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and for International Human Rights]

Mr. Speaker, we are aware of the case. The promotion of human rights is an integral part of Canadian foreign policy. These issues have been raised in the context of our open and frank relationship with China.