Debates of March 3rd, 2014

Agriculture and Agri-food

[Malcolm Allen, NDP, Welland, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the grain backlog plaguing western farmers is costing them billions of dollars. On the weekend, former Conservative minister Chuck Strahl said that he warned rail companies years ago that their excuses were not fooling anyone and that he had told them to shape up and stop abusing their duopoly or face regulation, but here we are again: farmers are suffering while the rail companies offer up the same old excuses.

What is the minister going to do? Hopefully it will not be to have another meeting. Will the minister now commit to the House that he will take action so that the rail companies will move that grain to port and get our farmers paid?

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

Mr. Speaker, we are working on exactly that. We are exploring all options. Everything that can be done will be done in a timely way.

However, let me quote Dennis Thiessen, a farmer and a director of Grain Growers of Canada:

We want to thank [the Minister of Agriculture] for continuing to recognize the rail capacity needs of grain farmers and the urgency of the current situation.

I could not have said it better myself.

[Linda Duncan, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Speaker, perhaps the minister should listen to the Alberta grain growers instead of making the same old tired excuses.

Canadian grains are simply not getting to market. As the weeks go by, grain prices plummet and our farmers face greater losses. The fact, and I know it is hard for those members to take it, is that the rail companies have had ample opportunity to provide fair rail service to farmers. It is clear they will not change without government intervention.

Farmers have been clear in their demand for enforceable performance standards, accountability, and penalties. Why the delay in the regulations?

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

Mr. Speaker, this government takes these types of situations very seriously. These challenges create opportunities to get the job done, but done in the right way.

Those consultations continue on with everyone involved in the grain logistics situation in western Canada predominantly. At the right time and the right place those answers will be unveiled.

Public Safety

[Garry Breitkreuz, Conservative, Yorkton—Melville, SK]

Mr. Speaker, in the last few days unelected bureaucrats in the RCMP Canadian firearms program have turned thousands of Canadians into criminals. At the stroke of a pen and without any oversight by Parliament, individuals who owned a number of popular sport shooting firearms had their previously non-restricted firearms reclassified as prohibited. This means that there is a chance that law-abiding gun owners, through no fault of their own, could be charged with unauthorized possession of a prohibited firearm.

What will the Minister of Public Safety do to ensure that no Canadian faces consequences as a result of this unacceptable decision?

[Steven Blaney, Conservative, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, let me first pay tribute to the member for Yorkton—Melville for standing up for the long Canadian opinion of this country.

I will bring forward an amnesty to ensure that individuals in possession of these firearms can continue to possess their property without threat of criminal charges.

Our Conservative government will continue to ensure that Canada is one of the safest countries in the world without penalizing honest citizens.

Rail Transportation

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Winnipeg North, MB]

Mr. Speaker, farmers out west know that the Minister of Agriculture has failed miserably at getting prairie wheat out to the west coast.

My question is for the Minister of Transport. When will the government force the railways into service level agreements that would meet the needs of farmers or force them to pay farmers directly? Will the Minister of Transport stand up and answer the question?

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

Mr. Speaker, I am happy to answer that on behalf of my good friend and colleague, the Minister of Transport.

We are unlike the former Liberal government, which studied this issue for years and years with the Estey report and the Kroeger report. They went on and on about studies. All of those manuals of study are stored in the basement of Transport Canada.

Having said that, we have been consulting directly with industry and directly with the railways. At the right time and place, the results will be revealed, to the benefit of Canadian farmers.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Andrew Scheer]

Order, please. It is getting noisy once again. I am going to ask members one last time to refrain from heckling each other while either members are asking the question or the ministers are answering.

The hon. member for Chicoutimi—Le Fjord.

National Defence

[Dany Morin, NDP, Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, two weeks ago, we obtained information that the Conservative budget would result in significant cuts at the Bagotville military base, which is in my riding. Although questions have been raised in the House, the Conservatives have refused to confirm or deny this information.

Could the Minister of National Defence show at least a minimum of transparency and tell me whether the Conservatives' budget will actually result in a 19.2% reduction in the operating budget of the Bagotville base? What impact will this have on jobs and the economy in my region?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member has not got it right at all with respect to this budget. This government has made unprecedented investments in its defence budget, to the support of the men and women in uniform, and in its procurement and bases across this country.

That will continue under this government.

Status of Women

[Terence Young, Conservative, Oakville, ON]

Mr. Speaker, all Canadians are invited to celebrate International Women's Week, this year from March 2 until March 8, with the theme, “Strong women. Strong Canada. Canadian women—Creating Jobs One Business at a Time”. This theme recognizes the contribution of women entrepreneurs to our economy and allows Canadians to consider the challenges women face when starting and growing their business.

Would the Parliamentary Secretary for Status of Women please inform the House of how economic action plan 2014 would benefit women?

[Susan Truppe, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary for Status of Women]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Oakville for his question and for his work on the status of women committee.

Our government is proud to support Canadian women in the workforce and encourage them to lead successful careers. That is why, since 2007, Status of Women Canada has provided more than $53 million for projects that focus on improving women's economic security and prosperity, including over $9 million to address women's entrepreneurship. In economic action plan 2014, we would commit $150,000 to Status of Women Canada to increase mentorship among women entrepreneurs.

This government knows that, when women prosper, Canada prospers.

Canada Post

[Alain Giguère, NDP, Marc-Aurèle-Fortin, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Canada is the only G7 nation that will not have home mail delivery. In Rosemère, Lorraine, Bois-des-Filion, Charlemagne and Repentigny, the Conservatives are abandoning seniors, people with reduced mobility and small businesses without consulting anyone, be it the municipalities, experts or even the public.

Instead of slashing services to the public, why are the Conservatives not looking at options that would save home mail delivery? I would really like an answer.

[Lisa Raitt, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, in 2012, Canada Post delivered 1 billion fewer pieces of mail than it did in 2006. It clearly has a problem with respect to dropping revenue levels. It recognized it and it developed a five-point plan. This is part of its five-point plan that it will be implementing to make sure there is not going to be a burden on the taxpayer.

Champlain Bridge

[Jean-François Fortin, Bloc, Haute-Gaspésie—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the federal government was not fooling anyone with the pseudo business plan it revealed today, especially since the plan did not contain any numbers. The Government of Quebec, the mayor of Montreal and the mayor of Longueuil have every reason to be disappointed.

The federal government continues to refuse to create a joint office for the project and to guarantee that Quebec will receive its share of infrastructure funding based on merit—$1 billion—to finance the light rail project that all the partners have requested.

How did the minister manage to present a document that is in as bad a state as the Champlain Bridge?

[Denis Lebel, Conservative, Minister of Infrastructure]

Mr. Speaker, as I said earlier, the business plan was presented in mid-January. The member has it all wrong.

The business plan contains privileged information. We will hold a competition on a multi-billion-dollar project. I understand that when people do not have a budget to manage, they can disclose privileged information and make costs go up. That is not how this government works.

We will continue to carefully manage the project to build a new bridge over the St. Lawrence and we will disclose information at the appropriate time.

Health

[Jean-François Fortin, Bloc, Haute-Gaspésie—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives, Liberals and NDP are constantly coming up with new ways for the federal government to interfere in health care. They are opting for public servants instead of doctors and nurses.

A report that was just released clearly shows that “these federal intrusions are disrupting how Quebec's health care system functions and, in particular, how it is governed”.

What is worse, Quebec is not getting its fair share and is being denied $103 million each year. That has real implications for Quebec patients.

When will the federal government stop meddling in the health care provided by Quebec and transfer all of the money that rightfully belongs to Quebec patients?

[Rona Ambrose, Conservative, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, as the member knows, we are transferring the highest reported health transfer dollars in Canadian history to the provinces and territories.

This record funding will reach $40 billion by the end of the decade and provide stability and predictability to the system, so that provinces can manage their health systems.

Health transfers in Quebec alone have increased by over $2.3 billion since 2006, and we now provide over $7.4 billion annually, so Quebec can manage its health system.

Canada-U.S. Relations

[Elizabeth May, Green, Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise to ask a question today of the Minister of Finance relating to the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, FATCA.

On the U.S. side of the border, there are concerns raised that because the treaties have not been ratified through the U.S. Senate, these may not be legally binding treaties in any case; and on the Canadian side of the border, no less a legal expert than Peter Hogg, former dean of Osgoode Hall Law School, has written the advice that this very likely will violate section 15 of the Charter by treating some Canadians differently from others.

More than 30 years ago, I learned constitutional law in a textbook he wrote.

What will the minister say to its constitutionality?

[Jim Flaherty, Conservative, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I was taught by Peter Hogg as well. I got an A in the tax course.

The question is an important one. It is important for about a million Canadians who also happen to be citizens of the United States.

The Americans initially proposed that there would be a 30% withholding tax and there would be direct reporting by Canadian banks to the IRS. We got rid of that. They have agreed that we will use our existing framework under the Canada-U.S. tax treaty, which has been successful.

No new taxes will be imposed. The CRA will not assist the IRS in collecting U.S. taxes.

Situation in Ukraine

[Ted Opitz, Conservative, Etobicoke Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, there have been consultations among all the parties, and if you seek it I believe you would find unanimous consent for the following motion, which I have here in both official languages.

I move, seconded by the member for Parkdale—High Park and by the member for Wascana:

That this House strongly condemn Russia's provocative military intervention in Ukraine; call upon Russia to withdraw its forces and respect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine, as per the commitments in the 1994 Budapest Declaration and under international law; reaffirm the legitimacy of the Government of Ukraine and Ukraine's territorial integrity; support the Government's decision to recall Canada's ambassador in Moscow for consultations and to suspend the Government's engagement in preparation for the G-8 Summit; encourage the Government to work with like-minded partners, including through multilateral forums, to de-escalate the current situation; affirm the Ukrainian people's right of self-determination, free from intervention; and stand with the Ukrainian people as they pursue a free and democratic future.

[The Speaker, Andrew Scheer]

Does the hon. member have the unanimous consent of the House to propose the motion?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.