House of Commons Hansard #157 of the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was csis.

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The EnvironmentAdjournment Proceedings

7:10 p.m.

NDP

François Choquette NDP Drummond, QC

Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House once again to talk about the fight against climate change.

As we know, the UN climate change conference is currently going on in Lima, Peru. On the weekend, Ban Ki-moon, the secretary general of the United Nations, admonished the Conservative government for its poor record on combatting climate change.

On December 2, I asked the Minister of the Environment about what is going on in Lima. As we know, Canada already has a bad reputation when it comes to international negotiations. It has received a number of fossil awards—not exactly something to be proud of.

Our partners are wondering whether the Conservatives will finally do something, now that China and the United States have come to an agreement about enforcing concrete measures to combat climate change. There have already been calls for more ambitious commitments on climate change. I asked the Conservatives whether they were finally going to come up with a credible plan to combat climate change.

As I said, this weekend Ban Ki-moon mentioned that Canada will fail to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions based on 2005 data. He was the one who told us. We knew it already, but Ban Ki-moon said it as well, as did the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development, civil servants at Environment Canada and other stakeholders. Now, Ban Ki-moon is again telling us that we will fail to reduce our greenhouse gas emission by 17% in 2020, based on 2005 data. He is calling out the Conservative government, urging it to do much more. He said that oil producing countries, such as Saudi Arabia, are moving away from the use of fossil fuels. He is calling on Canada to immediately do the same. Ban Ki-moon also said that the government needs to become ambitious and visionary when it comes to climate change. In addition, he said that the federal government needs to look beyond the country's borders to give more support to developing countries in their efforts to fight climate change.

We are also concerned about something really unfortunate going on in Canada: the Conservatives are still subsidizing fossil fuels—oil and gas—to the tune of more than $1.3 billion per year. Canada's subsidies to the fossil fuel industry are among the highest in the world, but we should be using that money to advance green energy and transition to those sources. However, despite all of the stakeholders who have appealed to the government and despite the fact that Canada promised to end those subsidies, the government is only taking baby steps. Those subsidies should be gone already. When the NDP is in power, it will put an end to that $1.3 billion in subsidies and spend that money on transitioning to green energy instead.

When will the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment announce his plan to eliminate fossil energy subsidies and transition to green energy?

The EnvironmentAdjournment Proceedings

7:15 p.m.

Oshawa Ontario

Conservative

Colin Carrie ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the Environment

Mr. Speaker, our government is working with its international partners to reach a fair and effective climate change agreement.

In fact, this evening, in Lima, Peru, the Minister of the Environment is hosting an event to highlight the importance of incorporating traditional knowledge in environmental decision-making. Key countries and international organizations will discuss how traditional knowledge can support the development of successful environmental policies and programs.

Canada has worked to promote traditional knowledge through its chairmanship of the Arctic Council. The Minister of the Environment has seen first-hand how traditional knowledge improves our understanding of the world around us. It is our hope that the discussion will promote the use of this knowledge in environmental decision-making at the domestic and international levels.

The EnvironmentAdjournment Proceedings

7:15 p.m.

NDP

François Choquette NDP Drummond, QC

Mr. Speaker, that answer was rather short. I expect a lot more from my colleague, the parliamentary secretary, who works very hard. I was hoping for a more complete answer.

I did not actually get an answer to my question, so I do not know if there are any plans to eliminate fossil fuel subsidies and make the shift towards green energy. It is too bad, because the Minister of the Environment, as my colleague mentioned, is currently in Peru. This would be the perfect time to announce some ambitious targets. We are going to miss the 17% target. We just need to look at the Conservative government's record. It withdrew from the Kyoto protocol. Since 2012, environment commissioners have been saying that we will not meet even our weak target. Canada is one of the worst countries in the world when it comes to per capita greenhouse gas emissions.

One thing is certain: we need firm and sustained commitments. Last week my colleague asked about the $300 million for foreign aid. Where is it? It is not in the budget. How is it possible that the $300 million promised for foreign aid is not in the budget? When will it be in the budget, next year? And over how many years will that money be spread? Over 50 years? We want to know. We want answers.

The EnvironmentAdjournment Proceedings

7:20 p.m.

Conservative

Colin Carrie Conservative Oshawa, ON

Mr. Speaker, our government's record is clear. We have taken decisive action on the environment while protecting our economy. We believe that any international climate agreement must include meaningful and transparent commitments by all major emitters.

The EnvironmentAdjournment Proceedings

7:20 p.m.

NDP

The Deputy Speaker NDP Joe Comartin

The motion to adjourn the House is now deemed to have been adopted. Accordingly, this House stands adjourned until tomorrow at 10 a.m., pursuant to Standing Order 24(1).

(The House adjourned at 7:21 p.m.)