Debates of Feb. 27th, 2014

Government Advertising

[Brent Rathgeber, Independent, Edmonton—St. Albert, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate the government, specifically Employment and Social Development Canada on winning yet another prestigious Teddy Waste Award yesterday. The Canadian Taxpayers Federation holds this annual black-tie event to celebrate the best of the worst in government waste.

Employment and Social Development Canada was awarded the federal Teddy for its $2.5 million wasted during the 2013 Stanley Cup playoffs, advertising its non-existent Canada jobs grant. If it is going to advertise a non-existent government program, why not do so during the most expensive advertising time that taxpayers' money can buy?

Despite assurances of progress from the Minister of Employment and Social Development, the Canada jobs grant program still does not exist, and I eagerly await the 2014 hockey playoffs to see if this Teddy will be successfully defended.

Seriously, I would like to thank the Canadian Taxpayers Federation for its commitment to protecting hard-working taxpayers, an important function that the Conservative government abandoned long ago.

Brandon—Souris

[Larry Maguire, Conservative, Brandon—Souris, MB]

Mr. Speaker, last week I took a whirlwind tour of my constituency of Brandon—Souris. I engaged in meetings with local veterans, farmers, seniors, small-business owners, NGOs, municipal officials, and many more to hear their feedback on the budget and the new building Canada plan.

I can report that the people of southwestern Manitoba are pleased that we are returning to balanced budgets without cutting transfers to the provinces for services like health care, the way the Liberals did in the 1990s.

As an MLA for 14 years, I know that staying closely connected to the people we represent is the most important job of an elected official. That is why I continue to be open and accessible to the people of Brandon—Souris. To all of my constituents, my office is there to serve them, to deliver exceptional constituent services, and to connect them to the federal government. I look forward to working together so we can ensure that the communities of Brandon—Souris reach their fullest potential.

I would also like to welcome KAP executive and staff members who are here working on behalf of their farm members today in relation to the CFA convention that just finished.

Canada Post

[Ève Péclet, NDP, La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives forced Canada Post workers to accept a collective agreement that reduced their benefits and worsened their working conditions, all in the name of the country's economic security. They also claimed that the postal service was an essential service that could not be disrupted. Now they are changing their tune and saying that Canada Post can no longer afford to provide services in urban centres.

What happened to essential and the economy? The Conservatives like to twist the facts to suit their own purposes. Several cities have already opposed the measure, and the most vulnerable people, those who will suffer because of the changes, feel that the government has abandoned them once again. This is yet more evidence that the Conservatives do not know how to govern this country in a way that promotes unity. They would rather divide people than get them onside.

Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games

[Bob Zimmer, Conservative, Prince George—Peace River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, today I rise in the House to recognize and congratulate my constituent Denny Morrison. As we all know, Denny captured silver and bronze in speed skating at the Sochi winter Olympics, as northeastern B.C. and the rest of Canada woke up early to cheer him on.

I would also like to recognize Denny's teammate Gilmore Junio, who gave up his spot in the 1,000-metre race, which gave Denny the opportunity to capture silver for Canada. This was a wonderful demonstration of teamwork and the Canadian Olympic spirit. Congratulations to Denny, Gilmore, and all of our Olympians. They have done Canada proud.

I would also like to wish our best to our Paralympic athletes, who will compete in Sochi starting March 7.

Go, Canada, Go.

Community Volunteers

[Mark Eyking, Liberal, Sydney—Victoria, NS]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize two generous volunteers in my riding, Emmett and Mae O'Connor. The couple resides in Sydney Mines and has been offering community service since they both retired in the early 1990s.

Unsettled by the prospect of retirement, they set out to find a way to better occupy their time and decided to start volunteering in their community. Both at the age of 80, Emmett and Mae spend their days assisting at the Harbour View Hospital in Sydney Mines, doing everything from watering plants to helping with exercise programs and reminiscing with the patients. The O'Connors play an integral part in the hospital's day-to-day operations, having volunteered more than 20 years now.

Emmett also volunteers for Meals on Wheels, the Kiwanis Golden K, and the Red Rowe housing project. The O'Connors also generously host hospital residents and staff at their cabin in Cape Breton every summer.

Emmett and Mae are two of our community's longest serving and most celebrated volunteers. They have set a true example for all Canadians, and it is my great pleasure to recognize their contribution before all members today.

Ukraine

[Peter Goldring, Conservative, Edmonton East, AB]

Mr. Speaker, twice in 10 years I stood on stage in Ukraine's Independence Square speaking to hundreds of thousands gathered in revolt against, ironically, the very same president, Yanukovych, for the same reason: cheating Ukrainians of their democratic rights. This revolution, though, had one important difference: linguistic inclusivity. Russian-speaking and Ukrainian-speaking people all gathered together with one voice of protest at Euromaidan, representing eastern Ukraine, western Ukraine, the Crimea, representing linguistic national unity.

As Ukraine's parliament guides the path of the nation's future, may they project a positive message of national consultation to address all concerns of linguistic inclusion to forge a common agreement. Language is the heart and soul of the person, of the family, of the community, and of well-being. Excluding a community or region's first spoken language in governance would needlessly divide. Linguistic fairness is essential as Ukrainians journey together through the national challenges that lie ahead.

Slava Ukraini.

Canada Post

[Libby Davies, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I and my colleague from Vancouver Kingsway recently hosted a community forum, where we heard from hundreds of constituents and concerned citizens about how upset they are about Canada Post ending home delivery. They wanted to know why the Conservative government is not standing up for them.

They applauded that Vancouver City Council has unanimously called on Canada Post to suspend the cancellation of home delivery. We heard loud and clear about the safety concerns and the impact on small businesses, seniors, and people with disabilities. People expressed strong support for their letter carriers, who play a critical role in keeping our neighbourhoods safe. My 93-year-old mother Margaret, who lives alone, supports her letter carrier. Margaret knows there is no evidence to eliminate this important service. It is a further erosion of public services driven by a political agenda.

Our community has joined with many others across Canada who say no to the elimination of home delivery.

Winter Olympic Games

[Larry Miller, Conservative, Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House today to congratulate Larisa Yurkiw on her recent performance at the Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia. Larisa is a Canadian skier from Owen Sound who specializes in women's downhill alpine skiing and women's super-G races.

Following a devastating knee injury in 2010, she was cut from the Canadian team and was on her own to fundraise her way to Sochi. Larisa worked hard and qualified for the Olympics with a career-best run. She fundraised on her own, just so she could don the red and white and represent Canada in Sochi.

At the games, Larisa raced hard and in the women's downhill race finished only 1.86 seconds off the gold medal winning time. What an effort. Larisa's performance at the games was incredible. She worked so hard to even be there and has shown all Canadians that anything is possible when one sets one's mind to it.

I speak for all Canadians in saying that we are truly proud of all she has accomplished.

Pickering Airport

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to quote the Mayor of Pickering, Dave Ryan, who stated:

We thank the Government of Canada for bringing 40 years of indecision to an end; and providing clear direction on the Pickering airport.

Moving forward, the City of Pickering and its residents ask that the Government of Canada employ an open and transparent process with opportunities to share, analyze and comment on relevant documents and decision-making on the use of the federal airport lands.

The City of Pickering and Durham Region have constructed their infrastructure to support the development of the Seaton lands, which will see housing for 60,000 people and some 30,000 jobs materialize over the next 10 years. With this in place, infrastructure for Seaton is sized to accommodate the future Pickering airport.

There is a desire in the city of Pickering to move ahead with this project.

Internships

[Andrew Cash, NDP, Davenport, ON]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday in Toronto, a group of students made their voices heard around the issue of unpaid internships, and I would like to applaud their engagement and courage. Their intervention underlines a disturbing reality for many young people across the country.

These days, the chips are stacked against them. They graduate with record student debt, only to find that those jobs that a generation ago were entry level positions are now unpaid internships; unpaid. Today, we are asking young people to work for free. There are many excellent internship programs out there, but due to a lack of clear rules in some parts of the country and a lack of enforcement in other parts of the country, large and very profitable corporations at times exploit young people's desperation for jobs and do not pay them anything.

It is why I am proud to stand with my NDP colleagues here in the House of Commons and the NDP provincial member for Davenport, Jonah Schein, to call on the federal government and governments across the country to tighten and enforce the rules for unpaid internships. Making a young person work for free is not fair and it is oftentimes illegal.

The Budget

[Jeff Watson, Conservative, Essex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, with last night's budget vote only our Conservative government stands with Windsor and Essex: $631 million for DRIC, $500 million more for the auto industry, $305 million for rural broadband, help for apprenticeships and youth internships, and priority public service hiring and enhanced benefits for our veterans.

Now, while Windsor's mayor praised this budget, the NDP MP for Windsor West called these measures bad for Canada. Reports have it this MP was recently in D.C.

Did he tell Congress members he voted against funding a new bridge to the U.S., against helping Michigan with the DRIC, against a project to deliver thousands of U.S. and Canadian jobs, using U.S. and Canadian steel? I think not.

This record is an offence to America and a disgrace in Windsor. Windsor residents deserve more than just lip service. While Windsor's two NDP MPs serve their leader, our leader and this government are serving the people of Windsor and Essex.

Pierre Elliott Trudeau Airport

[Isabelle Morin, NDP, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Lachine, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the financial performance of the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Airport is worrisome.

Over the past four years, it has fallen to fourth on the list of Canada's busiest airports, behind Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary. There are currently no direct flights between Montreal and large cities in South America or Asia, even though those are growing markets.

The federal government has not paid enough attention to Trudeau airport in the last few years. Trudeau airport should not be just another transit airport. An economic decision based on the value of opening up connections to these markets must be made.

This means more people flying out of Trudeau airport directly to destinations such as Shanghai, Seoul, Rio de Janeiro, and Buenos Aires.

An increase in the number of such direct flights is absolutely necessary. We can do this while respecting the health of those citizens surrounding the airport.

The Government of Canada must act now.

Justice

[Robert Goguen, Conservative, Moncton—Riverview—Dieppe, NB]

Mr. Speaker, every day in Canada, children are the victims of sexual abuse.

Sexual abuse of children causes unimaginable harm and may have serious consequences that affect victims into adulthood and throughout their lives.

Yesterday, the Minister of Justice introduced comprehensive legislation to crack down on predators who exploit and abuse children.

The tougher penalties for child predators act will ensure that offenders receive prison sentences that better reflect the serious nature of these crimes.

A key aspect of this legislation is not only mandatory sentencing but consecutive sentencing for those who victimize more than one child. This means no more discounts for those who are convicted of multiple offences.

This is in stark contrast to the Liberal leader, who said that he would not rule out repealing mandatory sentences for anyone.

On this side of the House, we believe that people who sexually abuse a child should go to jail. I call upon all members, and especially the Liberal leader to support this vital piece of legislation, and further protect our children and communities.

His Highness the Aga Khan

[Frank Valeriote, Liberal, Guelph, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today we were truly fortunate to welcome and hear a moving speech from His Highness the Aga Khan, a man whose great example of compassion, tolerance, inclusiveness, and respect for human dignity inspires not only the thousands of Ismaili Muslims here in Canada and millions more around the world, but all people across the globe, myself proudly among them.

In his 57 years as the Aga Khan, he has sought to highlight the importance of humanitarianism, the necessity for education and development far and wide, and the absolute need for understanding that different cultures, religions, and languages are not a threat but a gift.

Here in Canada, we strive to meet his example. It is a sign of his deep esteem for Canada that the Aga Khan established his Global Centre for Pluralism here in Canada. That he was awarded honorary Canadian citizenship in 2010 is a sign of our deep esteem for him.

On behalf of the Liberal caucus and all members of this House, I wish to extend my sincerest thanks to His Holiness the Aga Khan for honouring us today.

The Senate

[Rick Norlock, Conservative, Northumberland—Quinte West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, back in early November, just before the Liberal leader praised China's basic dictatorship, he publicly stated that his unelected and unaccountable senators voted freely.

Then, in another unbelievable twist, the Liberal leader stated the Liberal senators were no more. They were booted from the party, no longer welcome to fundraise or engage in Liberal political activities. Thus the independent Liberal senators became Senate Liberals, and now apparently Liberal senators again.

Just yesterday, as the Liberal senators turned Senate Liberals announced, in an apparent contradiction, that they would no longer have whipped votes, Liberal senator Mobina Jaffer was hitting the fundraising circuit at a new Bay of Quinte Liberal EDA.

Of course, this comes just after senators were spotted at the Liberal convention teaching their leader how to duck-and-cover out the back door. The Liberal leader's half-baked senatorial ploy is not fooling Canadians.

Ethics

[Pierre Nantel, NDP, Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are giving us a pretty good idea of what things were like during the final years of the Liberals' reign.

Conservative Party cronies such as Duffy, Brazeau, Housakos, Wallin and Gerstein filled their pockets with taxpayers' money, while fundraising for the party that appointed them.

Some will say that Liberal Party cronies are still fundraising for the party that appointed them, despite their leader's promises, but that is another story.

Let us get back to the issue at hand, our senators.

Two words: Colin Kenny. Is that not reason enough to abolish the Senate?

Seriously, why should Canadians have to put up with the Conservatives wasting public funds after everything they went through with the sponsorship scandal?

Just think of the PMO staffers who eat pizza on the taxpayers' dime instead of making a sandwich, or the former president of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation who wastes millions of dollars in taxpayers' money to promote an employment program that does not exist. Enough is enough.

Canadians deserve better than a Conservative government that disregards the provinces' wishes and uses taxpayers' money as if it were its own.

Leader of the New Democratic Party of Canada

[David Anderson, Conservative, Cypress Hills—Grasslands, SK]

Mr. Speaker, the next federal election is over a year away and the NDP is already waving the white flag.

This week, the anti-trade leader of the official opposition passed the pipe, trying to make a deal with the pro-drug trade, high on smiles, low on substance, leader of the third party. He was toking the flames of the coalition fire.

Everyone knows what a Liberal-led NDP high-tax coalition would mean for Canadians. It means massive spending increases, budget deficits paid for by tax hikes on hardworking families, and a reckless plan to legalize marijuana, making it easier for children to smoke.

When the high-tempered leader of the NDP is more willing to shed his party than his beard—

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

I think we have veered into a personal attack toward the end of that statement and we will move on to oral questions.

The hon. Leader of the Opposition.

Democratic Reform

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, in order to vouch for someone at the polls, one has to show a valid ID that provides his or her name and address. If there is any evidence of fraud being committed, then one can simply contact anyone who vouched for another voter. It is quite simple. If there is fraud, investigate it. Why eliminate vouching altogether?

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

Mr. Speaker, the leader of the NDP is factually wrong. We cannot contact the voucher because, according to page 68 of Elections Canada's own compliance review, in 45,868 cases there was no record kept of who the voucher or the voter was. That is roughly 40% of the cases where vouching is used; in other words, 45,000–plus cases where there are no records kept of the voucher or the voter. That is not fair and with the fair elections act it will be gone.

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, if we need to renovate our home we do not have to demolish it.

Fix the problem. Do not eliminate something that helps Canadians vote.

Exactly how many people have been prosecuted for voting illegally?

Yesterday, at the minister's suggestion, the Prime Minister claimed that there were cases. Well then, exactly how many are there?

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

Mr. Speaker, before I do, let me point to the second factual error of the day for the leader of the NDP. If he thinks it can just be fixed, why does he not read in the Neufeld report where that was tried. It states:

During two of these elections, quality assurance programs involving Onsite Conformity Advisors...were applied. However, vouching irregularities still averaged 21 percent during [these] monitored elections. This indicates that overly complex procedures cannot be remedied simply by improved quality assurance.

That is a fact.

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, we have all noticed that the person who yesterday told the Prime Minister that there were cases is refusing to answer the question.

The minister cannot answer the question because his claim that there is a massive problem with fraudulent voting is completely unfounded. That is false.

Is the minister saying that the government is going to prevent hundreds of thousands of Canadians from voting because it is incapable of properly training people? Is that their policy?

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

Mr. Speaker, in the case of voters who have someone vouch for them, more than 50,000 errors were documented in an Elections Canada report.

Speaking of cases of fraud, according to Elections Canada, which signed a compliance agreement, there were people who used the voter information card to vote more than once in highly publicized cases that happened in the leader of the NDP's own hometown.

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the fact that the only case he can cite was a comedy stunt on a TV show shows his total lack of ability to prove there is systematic fraud. That is the government's evidence for getting rid of a system that helps Canadians vote.

Millions of Canadians vote using vouching or Elections Canada voter cards. If the minister cannot say how many cases have been prosecuted, why take these options away and make it more difficult for millions to vote? Is it not because the minister wants to make it more difficult to vote for people who do not vote Conservative?