House of Commons Hansard #153 of the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was measures.

Topics

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

David Sweet Conservative Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale, ON

moved that the bill be concurred in at report stage.

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:30 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

(Motion agreed to)

When shall the bill be read a third time? By leave, now?

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:30 p.m.

Conservative

David Sweet Conservative Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale, ON

moved that the bill be read the third time and passed.

Mr. Speaker, it is always an honour to rise in the House to speak to all kinds of issues, but particularly today to speak to the bill in regard to Lincoln Alexander day, January 21.

I would like to thank and acknowledge Senator Don Meredith for bringing Bill S-213, an act respecting Lincoln Alexander Day, before the other place and shepherding it through to passage here.

As we conclude the third reading of Bill S-213 in this chamber, I also want to thank all of my Conservative colleagues who showed an interest in the bill and spoke in its favour. As well I would like to thank the hon. NDP members from Hamilton.

We all take pride in the fact that Lincoln Alexander was a great Hamiltonian, as well as such a great Ontarian and Canadian, so much so that designating January 21 of each year as Lincoln M. Alexander day is the very least we can do to honour his legacy and his huge contributions. Once again, as all hon. members would know, January 21 was Lincoln Alexander's birthday.

As I have mentioned before in the House and at committee, I have the honour of being the member of Parliament for a constituency that includes much of Linc's former constituency when he was a member of the House, although I have to admit there is some debate with the member for Hamilton Centre on just how much of his constituency we each had, but we will forgo that aspect of the debate tonight.

When I appeared before committee, I read into the record the highlights of over 20 pages of awards, honours, titles, and accomplishments of Lincoln M. Alexander in his lifetime. I thank Marni Alexander for that list. The length of the list, let alone the calibre of achievements on the list, affirms the appropriateness of Lincoln Alexander day.

I will not repeat all the details, but in my summation of debate in the House, please allow me once again to highlight four important accomplishments, the first two with significance to this place.

Lincoln Alexander was the first black member of Parliament, rising above barriers that he had faced all of his life. He was also the first black cabinet minister, in this case minister of labour in the Joe Clark government of 1979-80. Linc pulled himself up from facing discrimination as a youth to sitting at the cabinet table of our great nation. It was a true testament to his grit and determination.

Lincoln Alexander was also a deeply loved chancellor emeritus of the University of Guelph. I remember hearing representatives from the University of Guelph speak at his funeral about just how important it was to have Lincoln Alexander as their chancellor.

Lincoln Alexander was one of the best loved lieutenant governors in Ontario history. This was his finest hour. He served from 1985 to 1990 and his legacy stands to this day. He was eloquent and he focused on youth and education, the very things that made a difference in his life as he blazed the trail and overcame discrimination.

Is it any wonder why so many schools in Ontario are named after him? Is it any wonder why thousands and thousands attended his funeral in Hamilton in October 2012 and lined the overpasses of the Lincoln Alexander Parkway as the procession entered Hamilton with the casket en route back from lying in state at Queen's Park?

Lincoln Alexander knew that if a society did not take care of its youth, then it would have no future. It is why he championed youth. He also knew that education and awareness were the essential tools for changing society's prejudices, and that's why he always championed education as well.

Let us recognize January 21 each year across this land to honour Lincoln Alexander, to celebrate youth, and to advocate for education and awareness. Colleagues, join me in passing Bill S-213 so that we can cement forever in Canadian history the great legacy of Lincoln MacCauley Alexander of Hamilton, the 24th lieutenant governor of Ontario, who is forever in our hearts.

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:35 p.m.

Conservative

Dean Allison Conservative Niagara West—Glanbrook, ON

Mr. Speaker, we knew about Linc's professional life, but I wonder if the member would talk a bit about how he was around town and the kind of guy he was as he interacted with people on the street.

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:35 p.m.

Conservative

David Sweet Conservative Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale, ON

Mr. Speaker, Lincoln Alexander was an extraordinary man. I have already mentioned his admiration for youth and the time that he spent dialoguing with them and encouraging them to aspire to a greater vision than they had when they first met him.

He was not only a very classy man, but a very casual man as well. When he dressed up in his honorary chief of police uniform, I am certain that chiefs of police across the country were jealous because he looked handsome and pristine in that uniform.

If we were doing an event in Hamilton, I remember him coming down on his red scooter and a block away he would be yelling, “Sweet, what's going on?” That was okay. It was never meant as an insult. It was because we had the kind of relationship that he could address me that way. In fact, if he called me “David Sweet” or “Mr. Sweet”, I thought something was wrong.

Linc seemed to be one of those mystical, magical, extraordinary characters that could fit into any situation, whether at a black tie fundraising event, an official duty that he was doing as the honorary chief of police, or calling out “Hey, Sweet” to a member of Parliament to find out what was going on as far as what the government was investing in.

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

December 2nd, 2014 / 5:35 p.m.

NDP

Tyrone Benskin NDP Jeanne-Le Ber, QC

Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask my hon. colleague if he would share his thoughts a little further on why this bill and recognizing January 21 as Lincoln Alexander Day is an important thing for the House to do.

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:35 p.m.

Conservative

David Sweet Conservative Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale, ON

Mr. Speaker, as I have said in the past, he had this extraordinary capability to face the prejudices that were held against him, and he did so in a way that was very respectful and dignified, yet strong and forceful, because it was wrong.

Through his entire career, from the time he was a lawyer to when he was a member of Parliament—and I hazard to say that it was probably the same when he was serving in the Canadian Forces—he always made time for youth. I never asked him this, but we can intuit from his behaviour that he felt that he had an obligation to pay it forward. He had some great opportunities that he capitalized on and wanted to make sure that every young person had the necessary ability, if he could encourage them and make a way for them.

He did that throughout his career and he carried it on right until the time he was lieutenant-governor. He certainly continued that practice even in his retirement years, when I interacted with him mostly on the streets of Hamilton, Ontario.

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:40 p.m.

NDP

Tyrone Benskin NDP Jeanne-Le Ber, QC

Mr. Speaker, as always, it is with pride that I stand in the House today to speak to my colleagues and the Canadian people, particularly on this day, on this bill.

I would like to thank the member for Hamilton Mountain. A year ago, the member put forward Bill C-563 which, in effect, is this bill. It is good to see that even though it has changed its title, it has come to this place to be heard for the third time. I do believe it will pass.

We all have dreams. We all have individuals in our life who we look to and say “I want to be just like that person”. Following up on the question I asked my colleague, this is an important aspect of why we should support the bill. It is why I and my colleagues support this bill moving forward, making January 21 Lincoln Alexander day in recognition of the fine work he did.

All of my colleagues who have spoken to this bill in the past have spoken to the dedication and passion of Lincoln Alexander, former Lieutenant Governor, and of the contributions he has made to our country, to Canadians and Ontarians.

I would like to highlight the contribution that he has made in terms of being a focal point, or a beacon to the black community in Canada. As I said, we all have dreams. When I was about seven years old, I saw Sidney Poitier in To Sir, with Love. In seeing that, it solidified in mind that, yes, I would be an actor but not only that, this is how I would do it. That was the beginning of my road. I had, like so many of us, individuals who helped guide me in that direction.

The importance of this bill is that it allows for the story of Lincoln Alexander to represent the same kind of beacon, the same kind of guidance, the same kind of pride to the community of communities; that is the black community in Canada.

Lincoln Alexander, indeed, overcame the barriers and walls that existed in his time to become the first on many levels. We do look at firsts in our community as being significant. There are times where in areas of the world or in certain activities, it is expected that people of African descent will participate, to excel. There are areas of the world or activities where that is not so open.

Before there were the Williams sisters, Althea Gibson and Arthur Ashe in the world of tennis, which was a very closed world. Before there was Tiger Woods, there was Charlie Sifford, who became the first person of African descent to play in the PGA tour.

Like these trailblazers, Lincoln Alexander holds that very proud distinction in the world of Canadian politics. In a world where history has forgotten many of the stories that have been forged in Canadian history and in world history, recognizing the accomplishments of Lincoln Alexander on January 21 each year will give a focus to young people.

As my colleague has pointed out many times, the importance of young people to Mr. Lincoln Alexander goes unsaid. Like so many individuals who care about the future, Lincoln Alexander did what he had to do, not only because it was his time to do it, but to blaze a trail forward for those who came after him, including myself. We all stand on the shoulders of those who came before, and I count myself as one who stands on the shoulders of Lincoln Alexander.

The bill is important because it sends a very clear message to those who have a vision. It sends the message that it can be done and should be done. It sends a message that underlines the continuing march towards inherent inclusion and the further distancing from the hard-fought merits of inclusion. It solidifies the history, place, life, times and works of Lincoln Alexander. Therefore, it cannot be lost in the history of our country.

It becomes a beacon, much like the beacons I have followed, for future generations. It becomes a point for young people sitting at their desk thinking they would like to be a part of change in our country, a part of contributing to our country. Lincoln Alexander is a beacon in how that can be done and the fact that it could be done.

My support, and all of our support, for this bill means that we are participating in the making of dreams; the dreams of those who are just beginning to dream as well as those who are well on the road to achieving their dreams. It allows those dreams to be attained. It allows those dreams to become a reality.

Above all else in his accomplishments, if he were with us today, I think Lincoln Alexander would be quite proud to be a beacon for those young people and their dreams.

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:45 p.m.

Liberal

Adam Vaughan Liberal Trinity—Spadina, ON

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise in the House today to speak with respect to Lincoln Alexander. While Hamilton may claim him as a son, I know that on Draper Street, in the riding I represent of Trinity—Spadina, there is a historic row of houses, one in which he was both born and raised when his family came to Toronto and he started his amazing life.

Draper Street has an annual event when the guards of Fort York march up to commemorate an old stand of houses that used to be military homes, but later became homes to Canada's railway workers. It was in this industry that many of Canada's early black settlers and early African-Canadians found work in Canada and in Toronto.

We have a proud history in the riding of leading a civil rights conversation with strong leaders. Lincoln Alexander's voice, his presence and his accomplishments are celebrated among a group of Torontonians we all remember. In holding this day for Lincoln Alexander and recognizing it nationally, we also stand and recognize the amazing contribution of people like Wilson Head and Bev Mascoll, one of the early black entrepreneurs in Toronto.

We talk about Stanley Grizzle, the first black judge who also came out of this neighbourhood in the Bathurst Street corrido that linked the railway workers' homes to the rail yards in the south end of the city, and in the riding that I represent.

We know that Harry Gairey, Sonny Atkinson, the Ellis family and the Padmore family were all part of this collection of one of the oldest communities in Toronto, a community that at one time produced a mayor of the city back in the 1890s and that has produced significant folks.

However, Lincoln Alexander holds a special spot in the city of Toronto. Although he represented and worked in Hamilton, his time in Toronto was also well celebrated and his presence in the city was one that made all of us better as citizens, as politicians and as actors in public life.

During his time at the legislature, I was a young reporter covering Queen's Park. I remember when his name was announced. I remember when he was invested in the Office of the Lieutenant Governor. I remember the focus he brought at a critical time in our city's history. When racial relations and tensions with police were running high, not only did he bring a strong and clear voice with respect to equity, inclusion and civil rights injustice, he also managed to build a bridge between the communities and the police service in our city. That was recognized with the honour that was bestowed upon him when he became an honorary police officer and fulfilled those duties. He was present while I was a member of the police services board in Toronto, and was present at many of our events.

He brought history to life. He brought the achievements of a community in Canada that can call itself black, that can refer to itself as African-Canadian and that can draw its roots from Nova Scotia, the United States, the Caribbean and from Africa. Lincoln was a leader among all of those men and women.

To honour him today, to stand and to recognize it nationally, is to do a service to what our country has always done well, which is to find a way to open the door to the next community coming in, the next person arriving, the next person looking for a job, and to ensure they get the dignity and the opportunity in the future that all of us deserve and that our families hope will be realized for all our children.

Lincoln Alexander was a strong voice in the civil rights movement of Toronto, of Hamilton and of our country. He was a strong presence in this chamber, in the legislature of Ontario, in the police service of Ontario and in the city of Hamilton. However, most important, for those of us who call Trinity—Spadina home, he was one of the early voices, one of the early leaders, and one of the great contributors to a much better Toronto on the way to becoming a much better Ontario and ultimately a much better Canada.

For that, we thank the member who has brought this motion forward. We look to the support of the House to celebrate this in solidarity with Lincoln Alexander.

I remember the last time we celebrated his presence on Draper Street. He pointed at the house where he was raised and then pointed across the street and said, “but that's the house I had my most fun in”. We never heard the end of that story but if we did, we might not be honouring him today.

Lincoln Alexander is missed and he is celebrated. His gentle smile, his gentle ways and his fight for a better Canada will always be remembered fondly for those of us who call Toronto home and Canada home as well.

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:55 p.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

It is my understanding that the hon. member for Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale, having spoken moments ago, does not see the need for a right of reply, so we will go directly to the question.

The question is on the motion. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:55 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

No.

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:55 p.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

All those in favour of the motion will please say yea.

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:55 p.m.

Some hon. members

Yea.

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:55 p.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

All those opposed will please say nay.

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:55 p.m.

Some hon. members

Nay.

Lincoln Alexander DayPrivate Members' Business

5:55 p.m.

Conservative

The Acting Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

In my opinion the yeas have it.

And five or more members having risen:

Pursuant to Standing Order 98, the recorded division stands deferred until tomorrow, Wednesday, December 3, immediately before the time provided for private members' business.

Pursuant to Standing Order 30(7), the House will now proceed to the consideration of Bill C-628 under private members' business.

Canada Shipping ActPrivate Members' Business

5:55 p.m.

NDP

Nathan Cullen NDP Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC

moved that Bill C-628, An Act to amend the Canada Shipping Act, 2001 and the National Energy Board Act (oil transportation and pipeline certificate), be read the second time and referred to a committee.

Mr. Speaker, I represent northwestern British Columbia. It is an incredibly beautiful and powerful part of our country, not only in the make-up of the geography, the stunning mountains, the coastal communities, the ocean, the rivers, but as much in the people who live and have lived there since time immemorial. They are some of the proudest first nation cultures the continent has ever known, the Haida, the Haisla, the Taku River Tlingit, Tsimshian, Gitxsan, and on down the line. These are people living with and from the land.

There is an expression we use in the northwest. We say that “the land makes the people, the people don't make the land”. The bill that I bring to Parliament today for debate is born directly from that love of home, that defence of land, and the aspiration to be able to continue to hand it down to future generations in better condition than we found it, while creating the type of prosperity we all hope for.

I represent the northwest of B.C. It is has been one of the greatest honours and pride of my life. The stunning land has informed my very way of being. I hope every day I am in this place, the House of Commons, to do it some credit.

Over the last decade or so we have been facing a crisis, a crisis that has in fact borne out to be an opportunity. This has been the threat of an 1,100 kilometre pipeline running from Bruderheim, Alberta to the port in Kitimat, containing upwards of 525,000 barrels of diluted bitumen a day, then transported in supertankers three football fields long and a football field wide through the narrow passage of the Douglas Channel through three hairpin turns and out through the inside passage and the Hecate Strait by Haida Gwaii and on to China.

This threat is to our very core, our very being, as a people in the northwest, because our culture and our economy rely on the natural environment. We rely on the rivers, on the salmon, on the place that has sustained people for millennia. While this has been a direct threat to all of those things, it has also helped bring us together across the northwest, first nations and non-first nations, conservatives and progressives, people who find their love of the land in many different ways but are unified in the defence of that land.

It has also been born out of the crisis of a federal government that, rather than to work with us as a people, has chosen to use terms like “enemies of the state” and “foreign funded radicals” when we had the audacity to raise our voices about the proposed pipeline and the supertankers that threaten so much. Rather than silence our voices, which I suspect the government and the minister at the time had hoped to do, it strengthened our passions in defence of our home. We have been seeing municipalities, first nation communities, and groups across the political spectrum come together in opposing the plans, not only of this particular oil company with its Enbridge northern gateway pipeline, but also the plans of any government that hopes to bulldoze its way through the people it claims to represent.

It does not make us an enemy of the state to raise our voice in our country. It makes us Canadian. It is not to be an enemy of the state to join together with neighbours in common cause. It makes us Canadian. Any government that suggests otherwise is unfit to govern our great country.

This act defending the north coast does three principal things. It bans the export of raw bitumen and oil products from the north coast of British Columbia, period. It says that and recognizes what we all know to be true, that there are some things that we cannot risk. There are some places that are deserving of our concern and our protection.

The legislation also goes further. It seeks to deepen and broaden community consultations whenever the Government of Canada addresses the Canadian people about important projects like pipelines and mines and anything that might have an impact on our communities and our homes.

One would think the government would learn from the mistakes it has been making time and time again. The Conservatives have gutted the environmental assessment act. They have utterly destroyed the Navigable Waters Protection Act. They have gutted key parts of the Fisheries Act. This is all in an attempt to speed up and ram through various oil pipelines right across Canada.

However, the reaction from Canadians is most Canadian. It has been to oppose such actions, because when the government is not playing a fair and balanced role in a discussion of something as important as the transportation of energy, Canadians notice. Perhaps Canadians are smarter than the Conservatives think because they pay attention to these things, to all of these omnibus bills the Conservatives have been pushing through.

The third component of the bill is finally to ask the question in this place that has not been asked, that we should have an opinion and take some sort of position about the proposed raw export of our natural resources, in this case bitumen out of northern Alberta, with no value-added whatsoever. Not only is it environmentally risky when we move diluted bitumen because it sinks and cannot be cleaned up, it is also economically risky, in fact, economic suicide to export raw resources of such value, leaving behind all the jobs to some other country to pick up, with our resting just with the costs of production alone.

Those three components—to protect the north coast, to encourage and honour public consultation for once, and to finally talk about value added to our natural resources—are the core principles of this bill, borne out of the crisis, borne out of the threat the Enbridge northern gateway pipeline posed to my home, to the people I represent, but allowing us to take it for what it is, which is an opportunity to do something better in this country.

This in fact been a generational debate. Many in this place will not know that we have been debating supertanker bans off the north coast of British Columbia for 42 years in the House of Commons. The House passed a motion by one of my predecessors, Frank Howard, 42 years ago, to do this very thing. The then Liberal government later brought in voluntary prevention of shipping oil in this manner, and just four years ago, the House passed the New Democratic motion to protect the northwest, protect the north coast, and to say no to Enbridge northern gateway.

It has been 42 years. It is time to have a definitive declaration by the House of Commons and to find out, particularly from my B.C. colleagues across the way, who exactly they work for. I say this because I have been touring British Columbia from edge to edge and north to south, talking to hundreds and thousands of British Columbians at over 20 town halls, in Vancouver Island, Vancouver itself, up through the north and into the interior, packing rooms, church basements, community centres, town halls, with British Columbians from right across the political spectrum turning out, signing thousands upon thousands of pages of petitions that had been flooding into my office, participating online through Leadnow, Avaaz, and the Dogwood Initiative, raising their voices because they cannot seem to get the attention of their members of Parliament on this issue, if they happen to be Conservative

This should know no partisan bounds. This is not about right and left; this is about right and wrong. We know that in defence of home, we are always in the right. When we try to take an opportunity to improve the way we do things in this country, that is right. Anyone who thinks in 2014 that we can simply fire up the bulldozers and ram these projects through communities against their will, against the will of first nations that have right and title to the land, is someone living in a fantasy world. In 2006, the current Prime Minister declared for all the world to hear that Canada would become an energy superpower. We remember that.

Well, all these years on, how are they doing? Every major energy transportation project is mired in controversy, the latest being on Burnaby Mountain just outside Vancouver, where a company that wants to build a multibillion dollar pipeline cannot even get its GPS coordinates right when seeking an injunction through the courts.

The people stand up. Of course they stand up. This is a tradition in Canada. This is a welcome tradition in Canada. When a government refuses to listen, the people come together and join their voices one to the other that there is a better way to do things.

Up north, we call it the “Skeena model”, where first nations sit down with industry and industry recognizes their right and title to that land and works from values up, incorporating who we are as a people, as opposed to the top down Ottawa knows best Conservative model, which says, “We're just going to tell you what's going to happen to you. If you have the audacity to raise your voice, if you have the temerity to suggest that this Prime Minister and his oil executive friends do not know better than those of you who live with the resources, those of you who live in the communities that will be impacted and affected, well, then, we're going to try to silence you. We're going to change the laws of the whole country to silence you. We'll push people out of the conversation rather than welcome them in, rather than use their intelligence”.

What has the reaction been? Twice now the Union of B.C. Municipalities has passed resolutions against this pipeline. Twice it has done that. With the Save the Fraser Declaration, more than 130 first nations across British Columbia came together, put their differences aside, and said that this way of doing business is wrong, that the pipeline is wrong for first nations in that province and in this country.

Municipalities right across the northwest, towns that are based on resource development and have been for generations, understand the extractive economy but know that the risks of what Enbridge is proposing, which is supported by the Conservative government, is wrong. From Prince Rupert and Haida Gwaii, to Terrace, to the site in Kitimat where this pipeline is supposed to land, to Smithers, Hazelton, and on down the line, communities have passed resolutions at the municipal level against this project.

One would think all this would matter to the Conservatives across the way, but not as yet. They have not quite been able to hear their constituents. They have not quite been able to hear the people of British Columbia, who just last year were polled on supertankers off the north coast, and 80% said no. A small indication to my Conservative colleagues is that one in five British Columbians who voted Conservative in the last election said they would switch their vote.

If we cannot make an economic argument the Conservatives are willing to listen to, which is that raw exports are bad for the Canadian resource economy, if we cannot make a moral argument about standing against people who have presented their voices in calm and peaceful ways, if we cannot make the legal argument that this thing is not going to go through the objections of first nations, who just recently proved their case at the Supreme Court through the Tsilhqot’in decision that rights and title must be honoured, if we cannot convince the Conservatives on any of those fronts, then certainly we can convince them of the politics, because that is something the Prime Minister claims to pay a lot of attention to.

I can remember the day the Conservatives gave their tacit approval to this pipeline. Lord help the media who were out there trying to get one Conservative MP from British Columbia to make one comment about how enthusiastic he or she was about this pipeline. They could not find a one. They did find one, actually, after a few days of hunting, and his message was, “Do not worry, this pipeline will not be built anyway”. What kind of government operates this way? What kind of integrity is this? What happened to standing up for Canada?

The threat is real when a government has so lost its way that it feels it does not derive its power, authority, and legitimacy from the people of this country.

The threat to the wild salmon economy just in the northwest alone is $140 million per year. Across British Columbia, it is $1.7 billion from the seafood industry and recreation. It is $1.5 billion from tourism, which is almost wholly based on the appreciation of what British Columbia is, which is a magnificent and beautiful place, a place all Canadians treasure, certainly those of us who live there, in their imaginations, hearts, and minds.

Through all of this, we launched the campaign takebackourcoast.ca. Thousands upon thousands of average, ordinary, everyday British Columbians have been signing on and joining, encouraging their friends to participate. They believe in one hopeful idea: that we still have something akin to representative government that seeks to represent the people rather than some narrow interests, a government that if pleaded with at the moral, legal, ethical, and economic level, and ultimately, I suppose, at the political level, we can sway, even the current government when it comes to oil and the oil industry, to do the right thing.

I believe in my heart of hearts that there are friends across the way. I appreciate the support we have heard from the Liberal Party and the Green Party. I believe in my heart of hearts that there are members across the way who understand the importance of getting this right, of having an energy policy that actually fits with Canadian values, and that in this day and age, we can do better than what we have seen so far. In this day and age, we can learn to respect first nations and respect citizens when they come forward. We can understand that this project, as designed by northern gateway, is not in the interest of this country and certainly not in the interest of the people I represent. There is a better way, one that seeks to respect those who send us here, one that seeks to respect rights and title, one that seeks to respect, finally, the balance and harmony we seek with the environment in which we live.

Canada Shipping ActPrivate Members' Business

6:10 p.m.

Conservative

Mike Wallace Conservative Burlington, ON

Mr. Speaker, our government has been building an outstanding safety record with world-class, world-leading liability regimes and preparedness for a response to all modes of transportation of energy in this country.

From my reading of this bill, which the member is presenting, it would prohibit oil tankers on the Dixon Entrance, the Hecate Strait, and the Queen Charlotte Sound. It is very specific in a geographical way.

Is the member opposed to all tanker traffic in Canada?

Canada Shipping ActPrivate Members' Business

6:10 p.m.

NDP

Nathan Cullen NDP Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC

Mr. Speaker, I suppose if I were, I would have put it in the bill, which I did not. What we put in the bill is a very specific reaction to a government that seems to be either unwilling or incapable of hearing both the science and the voices of the people who live there.

Ultimately, we have to respect the people who do know best, and those are the people who are on the ground, in the communities, taking their living from the ocean and rivers, and who understand how to work in harmony. They have looked at the risks posed by this, which are an 8% to 14% chance of a major oil spill over the course of its life. It would be a spill that cannot be cleaned up, because even now, the federal government admits that diluted bitumen sinks when it hits water, and when it sinks, we cannot clean it up. I would dare the Conservatives to offer any evidence, which they have not to this point.

What we know is that people have consistently raised their voices on a sound and democratic principle that they need to participate in the conversations that happen in this country, and they will not be bullied out. They will bring their principles and voices to this debate, whether the Conservative government likes it or not.

Canada Shipping ActPrivate Members' Business

6:10 p.m.

Liberal

Joyce Murray Liberal Vancouver Quadra, BC

Mr. Speaker, as the member for Skeena—Bulkley Valley knows, I support the bill that he has brought forward. It is an important one for British Columbians, and it is an important bill respecting the kind of voices that have been heard over the years to protect the coast.

The bill has a substantive part, which is the amendments to the Canada Shipping Act, and then two aspirational ideas that are incorporated in changes to the National Energy Board Act. Could the member tell me what, if any, are the differences between his bill on this section of the Canada Shipping Act and the bill that I had on the order paper, Bill C-437, formerly Bill C-606 in a previous Parliament?

Canada Shipping ActPrivate Members' Business

6:10 p.m.

NDP

Nathan Cullen NDP Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC

Mr. Speaker, I would like to address that quickly and then get to my friend's other points. There have been many iterations of this conversation in legislation put forward by her, myself, and others.

This is very specific, based on the recommendations and advice we got from the people who live in the northwest. They are my friends, my neighbours, and the municipal and first nations leaders, and they prescribed it very specifically. The elders also spoke to me from the first nations communities about the importance of having some connectivity, some basic connection between the values that first nations people hold in the stewardship of the land.

To the other points about the aspirational, we have seen the Conservative government shrink and greatly limit the amount of consultation that can happen on any of the pipelines going across Canada, rather than welcoming Canadians into the debate and hearing the wisdom, intelligence and passion of people who live along the proposed routes of any of these pipelines. It could be the west-east pipeline, Kinder Morgan into Vancouver, or gateway. This bill seeks to open up the conversation, bring people in, and show them some respect.

The last piece is to finally say that value added should be a component of any consideration of any resource project that the government faces. Why a government would be so infatuated and content with raw export, leaving the cost of clean-up behind while sending the jobs off to some other country, is beyond me. It is certainly not in Canadian interests. It may be in the Chinese government's and other governments' interests, but it is certainly not in our own.

That is what the three components of the bill would do, and that is what it seeks to accomplish, finally, through legislation.

Canada Shipping ActPrivate Members' Business

6:15 p.m.

Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar Saskatchewan

Conservative

Kelly Block ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources

Mr. Speaker, I am thankful for this chance to speak on Bill C-628, and specifically on the significant accomplishments of this government with regard to aboriginal and community consultations.

We are proud of the fact that the natural resources sector is the largest private employer of first nations people in Canada. First nations have made and will continue to make important contributions to the development of our natural resources.

Significant improvements have been made to the review process through the government's plan for responsible resource development. This has resulted in Canada having a more robust, evidenced-based regulatory review process for major natural resource projects.

Included in these improvements is the requirement for enhanced consultation with aboriginal groups. Aboriginal groups who are potentially affected by a project can participate in all phases of the review process. They are also given the opportunity to present their own evidence and test or challenge the evidence submitted by project proponents.

We recognize the necessity of working together with first nations communities to build relationships that are respectful of first nations and treaty rights. We want to ensure that they have the opportunity to share in the benefits of energy resource development in the years ahead.

Through this engagement, we are listening to all the views being expressed, so that we can promote energy resource development that works for each community, not a one-size-fits-all approach.

Our government has taken significant action to strengthen Canada's world-class energy transportation system. Our tanker safety system, which is built around the pillars of prevention, preparedness and response, and liability and compensation, is just one example.

We have also announced our intention to introduce legislation to enhance pipeline safety. However, I find it a bit ironic that the member is proposing the bill after he and his party voted against our increased safety measures for pipelines.

Let us look at what the NDP has done.

The NDP has proposed a bill that would ban tanker traffic, which would hurt Canada's effort to diversify our markets and the Canadian economy. NDP members consistently oppose every single form of resource development, and finally, ironically enough, they vote against increasing safety measures for pipelines.

Canadians know that the NDP cannot be trusted to protect their safety or the safety of the environment. However, Canadians can trust our government to grow the economy while protecting the environment. We know that working with first nations is crucial to doing this.

Having local first nations involved in the development and operation of Canada's world-class tanker and pipeline safety systems is pivotal to gaining their confidence in these systems. It is also essential to benefit from their traditional knowledge of the land and its resources.

Building on this momentum, last May, we announced the launch of the Major Projects Management Office-West in Vancouver. MPMO-West addresses Mr. Eyford's recommendations and serves as a single window for the government to coordinate extensive engagement with aboriginal peoples and industry, and identifies ways to support participation in energy projects. This includes everything from employment and business opportunities to environmental stewardship and safety.

The energy sector is already making a dramatic difference in people's lives in British Columbia. Look at the Pacific trail pipeline. To date, more than half of the 366,000 construction hours worked on the pipeline have involved aboriginal peoples, and about 85% of the construction spending on the LNG plant so far has been awarded to Haisla First Nation businesses.

Budget 2014 sets aside $28 million over two years for the National Energy Board to ensure aboriginal peoples have a strong voice in decisions regarding energy projects. The NEB requires the project proponents to consult with all parties potentially affected by those projects.

The board considers the views of industry, provincial and territorial governments, first nations, and affected communities to determine whether a project is in the national interest. The renewed contribution to the participant funding program will strengthen the ability of aboriginal communities to be heard during consultations on major projects.

We understand that one key concern of British Columbians and all Canadians is ensuring environmental protection. That is why we have said time and time again that no project will proceed unless it is deemed safe for Canadians and safe for the environment, based on scientific evidence.

It is also why we have taken a whole-of-government approach to working with aboriginal peoples and first nations to ensure their meaningful participation in assessing and managing the environmental safety of projects. We know these projects can only proceed with the active participation of aboriginal peoples, and the assurance that public and environmental protection are the top priority.

Taken together, these measures I have outlined today make it clear that we have taken significant action to ensure all parties potentially affected by projects have not only a voice, but a meaningful opportunity to play an active part in these projects. Unlike the NDP, our government understands the economic benefits of responsible resource development for Canadians and recognizes the tremendous opportunity first nations can play in the future of Canada's energy development. We are building on an outstanding safety record with world-class world-leading liability regimes, preparedness and response for all modes of transport in Canada's energy products. That is what Canadians expect from their government.

While that member voted against our safety measures, including voting against increasing the number of comprehensive inspections and audits and voting against implementing fines against companies that broke our strict environmental regulations, our government will continue to focus on what matters to Canadians.

Given our government's significant efforts to increase consultations with first nations and communities, as well as the actions we will continue to take, Bill C-628 is redundant and we cannot support it.

Canada Shipping ActPrivate Members' Business

6:20 p.m.

Liberal

Joyce Murray Liberal Vancouver Quadra, BC

Mr. Speaker, I am also pleased to rise today to speak in support of Bill C-628, introduced by the member for Skeena—Bulkley Valley.

Bill C-628 would exclude supertankers from the inland waters around Haida Gwaii, an area of significance to our whole province and an area that I know well from having been an environment minister who travelled up and down the coast in boats and small planes and from having been a tree planter and reforestation contractor who worked in these areas.

I have seen first-hand the teeming wildlife and the quality and fragility of the ecosystems in that area. As the House well knows, Canada's quality of life is closely connected with the health of our oceans and our ecosystems. Those ecosystems and that coast are integral not only to our livelihood and way of life but also to Canada's economy. Nowhere is this relationship more important than on British Columbia's north coast.

I join the vast majority of British Columbians, including dozens of first nations communities on the coast and in the interior, who are of the view that transporting oil by pipeline through the proposed route to the head of Douglas Channel and transporting oil by supertankers in turbulent and hazardous waters pose unacceptable risks to the environment, the communities, and the businesses that depend on that environment and to all Canadians who share pride in the common heritage of this very special place.

I am pleased to support the bill, which is modelled after my own bills, both Bill C-437 as well as Bill C-606 from a previous Parliament. I had the privilege of being in the order of precedence in 2011, after having travelled the area a number of years earlier, as the member for Skeena—Bulkley Valley has described having done.

In 2010, I had the privilege of travelling from the southern tip of Vancouver Island up to Kitimat and to communities from one end to the other on our north coast, consulting with people and hearing their views and the strong support that inspired me to put this bill in the order of precedence. Unfortunately, it died an early death because of the early election call in 2011, just short of the fixed election dates that are in law in our country.

I am happy to see the House have the opportunity to address this bill again. I think I mentioned in my question earlier in this debate that the bill is substantially based on mine and consists essentially of Canada Shipping Act changes. I did not hear that there were any differences from my previous bill in the substantive part of this bill.

Then there are two aspirational sections in the National Energy Board Act, both of which are eminently reasonable. They ask the National Energy Board to ensure that consultations have taken place and to report on them in their consideration of a project. They also set out that the National Energy Board should consider the impact on employment in upgraders and refineries and in the petrochemical industry. Of course the Liberal Party is very supportive of the idea of consultation and is supportive of having local employment from our natural resources, so those are instructions to consider important issues.

I appreciate that the member for Skeena—Bulkley Valley has built on the work that I and many others before me have done to protect this area. In fact, it was a long-standing policy of Liberal governments from the time of Pierre Elliott Trudeau not to allow tanker traffic in the inside passage between Haida Gwaii and the central and north coast of Canada. That long-standing policy put the environment into the centre of the consideration, and our economy flourished notwithstanding, so it is not essential to risk oil spills in this area in order to have a thriving economy.

In fact, our contention is that the economy of the coast is important as well, and that would be at risk. There is a strongly expressed consensus among the communities of the province of British Columbia, and especially first nations and coastal first nations—like the Haisla, the Haida, the Heiltsuk, the Gitga’at, the Lax Kw'alaams—whose heritage is tied into the ecology of shellfish collection, of salmon, of an abundance of sea products, and simply the ability to be able to continue having some of their traditional practices. It is so important for coastal first nations, and I want to acknowledge them for having been strong voices for many years in support of banning tanker traffic in those inland waters.

The Conservative government has unfortunately undermined a very fundamental principle of our country's and our government's ability to balance the various interests and activities that come before it. What the Conservatives have done is undermine the environmental regulatory framework. What that has accomplished for the current government is to block many of the projects that it aspired to complete, because of the erosion of trust by the public in anything that the Conservatives have to say.

I heard the member for Saskatoon—Rosetown—Biggar talk about public trust in the current government. I want to point out that every time a member from the Conservative Party says that a member did not vote for this, that, and the other, the public should remember that the omnibus bills and many of the other bills are designed exactly to put some positive changes into some very political, ideological legislation. We call them poison-pill changes; they make it impossible for opposition members to support them, just for the very purpose of the Conservative members being able to later say that they did not vote for this, that, and the other. That is actually code for the Conservatives undermining our democracy with the way they put forward legislation, especially these omnibus bills. I want any members of the public reading this to recognize that code the next time they hear it, because they will hear it every day in the House, used as a tool, which undermines the public's trust in the Conservatives because of their anti-democratic processes.

Turning back to the bill, I want to note that B.C.'s north coast is the home to the Great Bear rainforest and some of the world's most diverse ecosystems, which include 27 species of marine mammals, 120 species of coastal birds, and 2,500 individual salmon runs. This also is an area of the coast of British Columbia that is home to 55,000 coastal jobs, and many of these jobs would be at risk should there be an oil spill. Oil spills happen, whether due to technological or human failure. We know that they happen. Should that happen, our coast would never be the same.

Regarding this particular pipeline project that this bill is addressing, which is the pipeline to Kitimat, rather than having learned the lesson of their failures of consultation and their failures in undermining the regulatory process, the Conservatives have compounded them since then by making changes to the National Energy Board to further limit consultation, further squeeze the time that people are being given to have comment, and further de-legitimize any of the projects in British Columbia that the National Energy Board is contemplating. That will then live on in public mistrust of other projects that the Conservative government is trying to put forward.

My hope, in closing, is that the Conservative Party members of Parliament from British Columbia will join us to vote for this bill because their constituents want them to do that. Their constituents are solidly behind this kind of protection of the area around Haida Gwaii from the potential for oil spill, and the Conservatives' constituents in British Columbia are for proper environmental regulation, for communities granting permission for these major invasive projects before they push them through with the National Energy Board.

I invite the Conservative members to consider that and join us in supporting this bill so it will pass. I would like to congratulate the member for Skeena—Bulkley Valley for his initiative in putting this forward.