Debates of Feb. 25th, 2014

Agriculture and Agri-Food

[Gerry Ritz, Conservative, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, we have been doing far more than strongly worded letters. We have actually been acting, working with all of the players in the supply chain. Of course, it is well documented that the underperformance of the railways is the weak link in that chain. We are moving forward collaboratively with my colleague the Minister of Transport to put in place whatever needs to be done to ensure that grain gets to port in a timely way.

The president of the Grain Growers of Canada stated:

We want to thank [the minister] for bringing all parties together at this meeting as a chance to engage directly with the railways and [we've begun] an ongoing dialogue for the future.

That is what we have been doing: facilitating the future.

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill, MB]

Mr. Speaker, it seems the one thing that minister excels at is making up excuses for the reasons for his inaction.

Saskatchewan and Alberta are demanding immediate action. They are asking the minister to intervene and help ease the grain backlog. Saskatchewan's minister of the economy pointed out that the lack of service agreements means “there's no obligation, there's no accountability...”. When will this minister stop with the excuses and act to get the transport system moving for western Canadian producers?

[Gerry Ritz, Conservative, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, it is well known, through the media accounts, that we have been having meetings directly with the railways with all the members of the supply chain. I welcome the input from my good friend and colleague Minister Bill Boyd, from Saskatchewan, a long-time farmer. He understands the reasons that we are doing what we are doing.

I was able to point out to Bill the other day that under the fair rail freight legislation that we put in last spring, the provision is already there. There is nothing stopping the grain and railways companies from sitting down and working out contractual agreements, with reciprocal penalties, if they should decide to do so.

Rail Transportation

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

Mr. Speaker, there was another train derailment this past weekend. This time it happened in Saint-Henri, where 3,500 litres of diesel fuel were spilled. Since Lac-Mégantic, it has been one accident after another, and yet the government does nothing. There was nothing in the most recent budget for rail safety: still no deadline for the phase-out of the old DOT-111 cars and a lack of transparency regarding the transportation of explosive goods through our communities.

Does the minister realize that her inaction is putting lives at risk with each passing day?

[Lisa Raitt, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, we are aware of the derailment that happened this weekend in Saint-Henri, and I can tell you that the appropriate agencies are investigating. They will come forward with their analysis and recommendations.

With respect to the assertion made by the opposition that we are not doing anything on that, I strongly reject that, completely, and so does somebody like Claude Dauphin, who is the president of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. He applauds the federal government's response to the tragedy in Lac-Mégantic and the rail safety recommendations that emerged from it.

[Olivia Chow, NDP, Trinity—Spadina, ON]

Mr. Speaker, people's lives and safety are at stake, and the minister continues to do nothing, just a lot of talking. After the Lac-Mégantic tragedy, we have seen many other derailments, including another one just two days ago. Yet another report has recommended that dangerous goods should not be transported on dangerous DOT-111 tank cars.

Canadians want to know how many more experts, how many more reports, and how many more derailments, before the minister takes concrete action to stop transporting dangerous goods in these dangerous DOT-111 cars.

[Lisa Raitt, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, our government has already taken great action with respect to that, consulting with the appropriate people in industry. More importantly, though, we have published regulations that absolutely strengthen the type of car that is able to transport these goods going forward. We are working with our counterparts in the United States to ensure we can do whatever we can to have the transportation of crude oil in our nation and our continent as safe as possible.

The Economy

[Joe Daniel, Conservative, Don Valley East, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today Stats Canada released its survey of financial security, which confirmed that Canadian families are better off today under our Conservative government than under the previous Liberal government. We believe in a low tax plan to make life more affordable for Canadian families, which is a stark contrast to the Liberal leader, who would massively increase federal government spending.

Would the Minister of Employment and Social Development please update the House on how our low tax plan is delivering results for Canadian families?

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for Don Valley East for the good question and his hard work.

I am delighted that Statistics Canada revealed today, as the Prime Minister said, that since 2005 the average Canadian family's net worth has increased by 44.5%. It is no coincidence, because with the more than 160 tax cuts by this government, Canadian families, on average, have seen their after-tax disposable income increase by 10% across all income categories. We are continuing to lead the world on economic growth and opportunity for working families.

Veterans Affairs

[Sylvain Chicoine, NDP, Châteauguay—Saint-Constant, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in light of the Conservatives' devastating decision to close veterans offices, the Charlottetown municipal council has called a meeting with the minister responsible. Nonetheless, the minister is refusing to meet with the council.

Why is the minister refusing to get out of the Ottawa bubble to go listen to what people in the community have to say? Why is he refusing to listen to those who are affected by these cuts? What is he afraid of?

[Julian Fantino, Conservative, Minister of Veterans Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, it was a pleasure to meet with Mayor Clifford Lee and city councillor Cecil Villard. I also corresponded with the mayor, during which I commented that our government has and will continue to ensure that veterans and their families have access to the information and support they need. To that end, I am pleased to report that we have recently expanded our service across Canada to include nearly 600 Service Canada locations, six of which are located on Prince Edward Island.

[Jack Harris, NDP, St. John's East, NL]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians have a right to know why the veterans affairs minister refused to meet with the Charlottetown city council. A letter is not enough. He refused to talk to them about the impact of the decision to close the office. These men and women who serve Canadians bravely in our armed forces deserve a minister who does not run away from accountability.

Does he really think he is safe writing letters here in his office in the Ottawa bubble? Will he now agree to go to Charlottetown and meet with the veterans and the communities affected by these short-sighted cuts, yes or no?

[Julian Fantino, Conservative, Minister of Veterans Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, with all due respect, it is obvious that the member was not listening. I did meet with the mayor and a councillor. I did meet with the mayor, at the Legion, the night before the meeting with the mayor at Veterans Affairs headquarters.

Will that party support economic action plan 2014 and our proposed investment of $108 million to improve the funeral and burial program fund for our veterans? That is the real issue, not this rhetoric.

Employment Insurance

[Robert Chisholm, NDP, Dartmouth—Cole Harbour, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the EI fund is realizing an increasing surplus. Access to EI, though, is at an all-time record low. The Minister of Fisheries and Oceans has recognized that there are serious problems with the changes that the government has made, and the minister has made changes within her constituency.

What I want to ask the government is, why does it not recognize that the unemployed across the region, Atlantic Canada and Quebec, are hurting as a result of these changes?

Scrap the changes and come to this House with some real reform.

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

Mr. Speaker, employment insurance continues to be there for people who lose their jobs through no fault of their own. There has been no change in that regard.

Of course, we are encouraging folks to actively seek available work at their skill level in their local areas. The good news is that employers are finding more people available for work outside of the typical season. That is good for them. It is good for the economy. The recent change we announced for Prince Edward Island, thanks to the leadership of the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, is also good. P.E.I. was the only province that did not recognize the difference between the urban and rural economies. Now we will have fairness for Prince Edward Islanders when it comes to EI.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Mr. Speaker, I do not understand. The only thing that bothered the minister about the reform was that he thought people were off vacationing in Cuba. Now the Conservatives are prepared to make changes to EI in Prince Edward Island, where the fisheries minister is from.

Is the minister prepared to make changes in all the regions in Canada where workers are having problems, or will he continue to insult the workers by suggesting that the problem is that they are going off on vacation to Cuba?

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

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member who just asked that question told his constituents a year ago that the modest changes to the EI program would mark the end of seasonal benefits and the end of communities in his region. That was totally irresponsible fearmongering. The data are clear: not one person in New Brunswick lost his or her EI benefits because of the changes we made.

Agriculture and Agri-Food

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Wascana, SK]

Mr. Speaker, the colossal failure in grain handling and transportation is hitting farmers with billions of dollars in higher costs, lower prices, and lost sales. There is not enough capacity; no one is coordinating what capacity there is among grain companies, railways, terminals, and ships; and no one in the system puts farmers first.

The system is five million tonnes behind. Fifty ships are waiting. Japan is buying from the U.S., not Canada.

Will farmers get liquidated damages for the massive losses caused by the way the current government has designed this failing system?

[Gerry Ritz, Conservative, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, that really is code that the Liberal government would reinstate the Canadian Wheat Board, that mandatory monopoly system that everybody has moved beyond, except for the Liberal government. It is mired in the past. Its idea of agriculture is to continue to make serfs out of western Canadian farmers. We will not do that.

Certainly, everybody recognizes the underperformance of the railways. We are working to mitigate that. They have promised many more cars moving forward toward spring to get that valuable crop to the marketplace. We will continue to work with them and put in place any types of regulations that may be required.

Democratic Reform

[Carolyn Bennett, Liberal, St. Paul's, ON]

Mr. Speaker, two years after the government promised to restore the confidence of Canadians in the electoral process, it has instead proposed a bill that would attack Elections Canada and gut its ability to enforce the law.

Canadians are now asking if the new election act was deliberately designed to keep Elections Canada from reporting on its investigation into fraudulent Conservative robocalls.

Will the minister guarantee that nothing in the bill would impede the robocall investigation or the publication of its findings?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Minister of State (Democratic Reform)]

Mr. Speaker, I would refer to the section of the bill in question and proposed paragraph 510.1(2), which reads:

(2) The Commissioner may disclose or may authorize any person acting under his or her direction to disclose...(b) information that, in the Commissioner’s opinion, is necessary to carry out an investigation;

Additionally, court filings, compliance agreements, charges, and annual reports from the commissioner will all be made public.

As I said earlier, that is open, that is fair, and that is the fair elections act.

Canada Post

[Mike Sullivan, NDP, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday Toronto's city council passed a motion declaring its opposition to the end of door-to-door mail delivery. It was particularly concerned about the impact on seniors and persons living with disabilities. It recognized the important role that mail plays in helping persons living with disabilities overcome barriers and exclusion.

What is the minister responsible for persons living with disabilities doing to ensure that these Canadians are not hurt by Canada Post's deplorable decision?

[Lisa Raitt, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, the member brings up a good point that it was Canada Post's decision to move forward to ensure that it had the ability to be around in the long term. It has a responsibility to be self-sufficient. It understands that its revenues are dropping and it has taken this action.

With respect to the problem of having mail delivery for those who are disabled, I understand that Canada Post is working with national councils with respect to the disabled and disadvantaged to ensure that it can appropriately provide service.

[Manon Perreault, NDP, Montcalm, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the end of door-to-door mail delivery is another barrier to the integration and independence of people in wheelchairs. Canada Post is not taking the situation seriously. Its solution is to provide an extra key so that these people's friends and neighbours can pick up their mail for them. Quite frankly, that is ridiculous.

When will the minister leave the Ottawa bubble to listen to what people living with functional limitations have to say about her plan?

[Lisa Raitt, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, as I just indicated, Canada Post has developed a five-point plan. One of the points of the plan is to have delivery to community mailboxes. Indeed, that already happens in two-thirds of this country, and so there are areas where it has expertise. It has been dealing with this issue since the 1980s. In fact, many constituents in my riding have had nothing but delivery to community mailboxes and there are a number of people who have disabilities and are disadvantaged in that area as well.

I think Canada Post will continue to work with the groups it is working with and continue to ensure proper delivery of the mail.