House of Commons Hansard #54 of the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was qalipu.
Patricia Davidson Conservative Sarnia—Lambton, ON
Mr. Speaker, there are few criminal offences that are more horrific than sexual offences against children. While the overall crime rate is going down, sexual offences against children are going up. Shockingly, parents have no way of knowing where dangerous pedophiles are in this country.
Could the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety please tell the House what the government is doing to crack down on high-risk child sex offenders?
Roxanne James ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
Mr. Speaker, children are our most vulnerable and precious members of our society, and this government will do absolutely everything possible to protect them. Not only is this government ending the two-for-one specials for child sex offenders by introducing consecutive sentencing for these crimes, we will also introduce a publicly accessible registry of high-risk child sex offenders.
On this side of the House, we believe that parents have the right to know where these dangerous pedophiles are. I call on all members of the House, including the NDP and the Liberals, to support our tougher penalties for child predators act.
Sean Casey Liberal Charlottetown, PE
Mr. Speaker, the EI cuts imposed by the Conservatives have pummelled the seasonal economy in Prince Edward Island and have united Islanders against the Conservatives and the political minister from Egmont. In a blatant attempt to save her job, Conservatives have created two EI zones, granting favourable treatment to the minister's riding while further penalizing those in urban and rural Prince Edward Island.
Why has the government pitted Islanders against Islanders in a desperate move to salvage the minister's seat?
Candice Bergen ConservativeMinister of State (Social Development)
Mr. Speaker, with these changes, the EI system in every province and territory reflects the reality of the local labour market. EI benefits continue to be there for Canadians, including in areas where jobs simply do not exist outside seasonal or specialized industries. The unemployment rate in Charlottetown has been consistently lower than in the rest of the province. This change was made to better reflect the reality of the labour market in P.E.I.
Paul Dewar NDP Ottawa Centre, ON
Mr. Speaker, the President of the Treasury Board has a very strange idea of negotiation.
After unilaterally announcing that federal retirees and former RCMP and Canadian Forces members will have to pay double for a more limited health care plan, he now wants them to negotiate.
Negotiation actually means exchange and agreement, not dictating major concessions. I have a very simple question. Will the President of the Treasury Board sit down and negotiate in good faith?
Tony Clement ConservativePresident of the Treasury Board
Mr. Speaker, I can assure this chamber that negotiations are ongoing. The hon. member may have been briefed by one side, but I can assure him that we have been negotiating for eight months.
What we have now is the preference of this government to continue those negotiations and to arrive at a fair and reasonable solution to the matter, which of course involves a voluntary supplemental plan that is still an excellent plan for our retirees, former public servants across the country.
The hon. member seems to be a mouthpiece for the union. I am going to be a mouthpiece for the taxpayer and for good common sense.
LaVar Payne Conservative Medicine Hat, AB
Mr. Speaker, it was only two weeks ago in Stouffville that the Prime Minister announced the largest infrastructure spending program in Canada's history.
That means it only took the Liberal leader two weeks to spin some classic Liberal arithmetic, repeatedly stating that our government has foregone thousands of billions of dollars in infrastructure funding, numbers straight from the mouth of a part-time teacher.
Can the Parliamentary Secretary for Infrastructure and Communities correct the record?
Peter Braid ConservativeParliamentary Secretary for Infrastructure and Communities
Mr. Speaker, indeed, our infrastructure plan is the largest and the longest in Canada's history, delivering $53 billion in new money for Canadian communities.
Unlike what the leader of the Liberal Party has said, it certainly does not remove thousands of billions in infrastructure funding.
We would expect a former teacher to know that thousands of billions are normally referred to as trillions. Thousands of billions and budgets that balance themselves are typical Liberal accounting.
André Bellavance Bloc Richmond—Arthabaska, QC
Mr. Speaker, the cat is out of the bag. Yesterday, the Minister of Infrastructure put together a hasty announcement about funding to build an ice oval in Quebec City.
When asked where the money would come from, the minister stated that it was money left over from the infrastructure fund. What he did not say was that Quebec and the municipalities were already planning to spend those millions of dollars on other projects, such as widening highway 185 and the drinking water projects in Quebec City, Lévis and Trois-Rivières. Now they are worried that the federal government will cross those major projects off its list.
Can the minister guarantee that the money set aside for those other projects and for the Quebec City ice oval will definitely be available?
Peter Braid ConservativeParliamentary Secretary for Infrastructure and Communities
Mr. Speaker, again, it is important to point out that it was the Province of Quebec, in its recent budget, that identified this particular ice oval project in Quebec City as a priority.
We have announced support for this project through uncommitted funds from the 2007 building Canada fund.
With respect to Highway 185, we have not yet received a specific request from the province for the third phase of this project. This project would be eligible under the new building Canada plan.
Brent Rathgeber Independent Edmonton—St. Albert, AB
Mr. Speaker, last fall's Speech from the Throne made a vague reference to the government's commitment to balanced budget legislation.
On October 22, the Minister of Finance assured me and this House that the government intended to introduce balanced budget legislation, although his explanation as to what that might look like was somewhat perplexing.
On Wednesday I supported budget 2014, and I congratulate the government on its commitment to balancing the budget. However, I remain concerned about future budgets and future governments.
Why is there no mention of balanced budget legislation in the government's budget plan?
Andrew Saxton ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance
Mr. Speaker, in fact we will be balancing the budget in 2015. I am happy to say that we will not be balancing the budget on the backs of the provinces and individual Canadians.
I do not know why the member opposite does not like our budget, because so many Canadians across this country are actually praising the budget.
For example, the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada, the Alzheimer Society of Canada, the Heart and Stroke Foundation, Grand Challenges Canada, Canadian Digital Media Network, the Canadian Council of Chief Executives, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, Moody's, et cetera. We are getting praise from across the country on our budget 2014.
Maria Mourani Independent Ahuntsic, QC
Mr. Speaker, during the 2006 crisis in Lebanon and after the 2009 earthquake in Haiti, the government issued guidelines allowing non-Canadian parents to accompany their Canadian minor children to Canada. Again last week, two Canadian children—Gabriel, 3 and Laya, 4—were unable to come to Canada because their Syrian mother was denied a visa. The only reasons provided were the war in Syria and the possibility that they may not be able to return home. I should add that this file was followed by the minister's office.
What has happened to the government since 2006? Why is it now asking a father and mother to abandon their children?
Chungsen Leung ConservativeParliamentary Secretary for Multiculturalism
Mr. Speaker, in the immigration file, we do have a process for adoptions to come through and these are going through a normal process and we will have the department look into it.
Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings
Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre Saskatchewan
Conservative
Tom Lukiwski ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 38(6) I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to 655 petitions.
Paul Dewar NDP Ottawa Centre, ON
Mr. Speaker, if you seek it I believe you would find unanimous consent for the following motion. I move:
That the House express its deep concern at the escalation of violence in Venezuela; convey its condolences to the families of those killed or injured during the ongoing public protests; ask the Government of Canada to urge Venezuelan authorities to proactively de-escalate the conflict, protect the human and democratic freedoms of Venezuelan citizens, release all those detained during the protests, immediately cease all government interference with peaceful protesters, and ensure that those people who perpetrated the violence be brought to justice and bear the full weight of the law; encourage the Government of Canada to play a leading role in supporting a political dialogue in Venezuela that respects legitimate grievances and differences of opinion; and call for an end to divisive rhetoric and actions that only delay and jeopardize the inclusive political solution that the Venezuelan people deserve.
The Deputy Speaker NDP Joe Comartin
Does the hon. member have the unanimous consent of the House to move the motion?
The Deputy Speaker NDP Joe Comartin
The House has heard the terms of the motion. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?
Tarik Brahmi NDP Saint-Jean, QC
Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present a petition signed by several hundred people in my riding of Saint-Jean and neighbouring ridings. The petitioners are calling for the creation of a legal ombudsman mechanism for responsible mining that would ensure compliance with international standards regarding social responsibility, labour and environmental practices and respect for human rights.
Alex Atamanenko NDP British Columbia Southern Interior, BC
Mr. Speaker, I have here close to 100 names of citizens from Kaslo, Ainsworth, Trail, Meadow Creek, and Nelson, who are concerned about Bill C-18, especially the changes to the Seeds Act or plant breeders' rights. They do not want further restrictions of farmers' rights or addition to farmers' costs, and they call upon Parliament to enshrine in legislation the inalienable rights of farmers and other Canadians to save, reuse, select, exchange, and sell seeds.
Alex Atamanenko NDP British Columbia Southern Interior, BC
Mr. Speaker, in my second petition there are hundreds of names from B.C., Ontario, and Quebec in support of my Bill C-322, an act to prohibit the exportation of horses for slaughter for human consumption, as well as horse meat products for human consumption, mainly because horses are commonly administered drugs that are strictly prohibited in the food chain and, thus, people would like us to support this bill.
Malcolm Allen NDP Welland, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions to present.
The first is on the ability of tradespeople who have to travel for work to be allowed deductions when it comes to income tax.