Debates of March 5th, 2014

Ethics

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, just about every single assertion in that preamble is categorically false.

However, on the issue of Library and Archives Canada, as he will know well, these are decisions of Library and Archives Canada, and these questions should be directed to that independent organization.

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Leader of the Opposition]

Actually, Mr. Speaker, after Ben Perrin's e-mails were illegally deleted, journalists asked Library and Archives Canada to brief them on the laws that require important government documents to be preserved and protected.

The Prime Minister's staff in the Privy Council Office stepped in and halted the briefing.

On whose authority did the Prime Minister's staff prevent public servants from briefing reporters about the law?

[Stephen Harper, Conservative, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, as the RCMP made very clear, this government, this administration, has turned over all emails and all information in our possession and turned them over as soon as we had them, and the suggestions contained in the preamble of the question are completely false.

Agriculture and Agri-Food

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Wascana, SK]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Transport has no choice but to act, and fast, on the western grain transportation crisis. It is a $5-billion mess, caused by the way the current government designed the system, under the thumb of railways.

Farmers are demanding immediate action, and so are premiers Wall and Redford. The feds do have the necessary emergency powers under section 47 of the Canada Transportation Act.

Would the transport minister use them today to get prairie grain moving and to compensate farmers for their losses?

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

Mr. Speaker, as a western Canadian and former farmer, with lots of family and friends still involved in farm operations, I understand the situation they are facing out there. That is why we continue to have those discussions with a number of people in the whole supply chain. We continue to look at all options before us, and we will continue to do that until we have the right solutions that seem to please the vast majority of that supply chain.

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Wascana, SK]

Mr. Speaker, in other words: please the railways.

Beyond just today, the government's defective legislation on railway services has to be fixed.

More than a year ago, the current government was warned that its new law would not work because there was no clear definition of services, no objective way to measure success or failure, and no liquidated damages payable to farmers when the railways screw up.

The necessary amendments to fix this mess are already drafted.

Will the government bring them forward for unanimous consent before the House adjourns for two weeks, on Friday?

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

Mr. Speaker, it is a little rich taking these instructions from the member for Wascana, who did away with the crow rate without any kind of discussion at all, paid out one year of what was supposed to be a seven-year payment. For him to come forward now and somehow intimate that we are friends of the railways, I think he should look in the mirror.

The Environment

[John McKay, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood, ON]

Mr. Speaker, last week, Premier Wall said that we need those GHG regulations to come forward. Former environment minister Prentice said that “As conservatives we must believe in and establish and enforce world-class regulatory and monitoring standards.”

Would the minister tell her predecessor and Premier Wall that the Prime Minister has punted the GHG regulations so that there is no agenda, there is no interest, there is no activity, and there is no progress? Or are we going to get the minister's usual singsong answer, where she takes credit where no credit is due?

[Leona Aglukkaq, Conservative, Minister of the Environment]

Mr. Speaker, again, our government is a world leader when it comes to addressing climate change. We continue to work with the provinces and the territories on reducing emissions from the oil and gas sector, and it is premature to comment further on any future regulations, as we are in discussions.

However, what I can tell the member is that thanks to our actions, we have seen significant reductions in greenhouse gases, unlike the Liberal government that increased greenhouse gas emissions by 130 megatonnes.

Agriculture and Agri-Food

[Linda Duncan, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Speaker, Alberta and Saskatchewan are calling upon the government to intervene, to address the serious backlog of grain in the Prairies.

Alberta's agriculture minister is telling Ottawa to bring in fines against the railways that deliver inadequate service. Alberta's farmers are telling me it is long past time to impose tough cash penalties on railway companies. The rail act has no teeth without regulations that would address these bottlenecks.

Would the Minister of Transport finally stand to tell Canadian farmers when they can expect these regulations?

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

Mr. Speaker, as I have explained to the member and her party over the last days, we are working with all options that are on the table, from all of the members in that supply chain, coming forward with the right application at the right time.

I had a great meeting with the ministers, both from Saskatchewan and Alberta, along with their counterparts from British Columbia and Manitoba, where this crisis is the deepest.

They have all said we need to move forward with the right applications at the right time, and that is exactly what we are doing.

[Malcolm Allen, NDP, Welland, ON]

Mr. Speaker, farmers have had enough. They are not interested in having another meeting or another study.

Farmers do know why there is a grain backlog. It is because rail companies have a duopoly in this country, and I think the government on that side should actually understand that. It is not a competitive market. Farmers are the ones actually left paying the price.

The mystery really, truly is why the Minister of Transport will not introduce new rules that would get the grain moving. How many more millions must farmers on the Prairies lose because of the government's inaction?

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

Mr. Speaker, as I constantly say to the member opposite, this is the party that represents that area of Canada. We are proud to do that.

We continue to work with all aspects and all members of that supply chain in moving forward with concrete results that will actually change the situation.

This is not a new situation in western Canada. We have been having logistics fights with the railways and the old Canadian Wheat Board for years. We understand that movement is required, and at the right time and place that will be brought forward.

National Defence

[Élaine Michaud, NDP, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

Mr. Speaker, as long as men and women continue to join the army to defend our country and our values, it is our duty to provide them with the assistance and support they need when they return home. The Conservatives do not seem to want to hire mental health professionals. There are currently fewer mental health professionals than before the Afghan mission began. Human resources specialists at the Department of National Defence have said so themselves: there are not enough resources.

What will the minister do to fix this problem?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, that is actually not the case.

We have increased the annual health care expenditures by over $100 million to over $420 million. We have almost 400 full-time mental health professionals. We are hiring more. I can give the men and women assurance that this will continue to be a priority for this government. That will not change.

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

Mr. Speaker, over a month ago we asked the Prime Minister to make the mental health needs of the military his personal priority. However, we are still short professionals, and the government has not even met targets it set before the war in Afghanistan.

Yesterday we asked about a mother who received a cheque for one cent, after her son committed suicide following his tour of duty. The minister pledged immediate action for the family of Justin Stark.

Can the minister now tell us what action he has taken to make up for the callous treatment of this family?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, as I told the House yesterday, this bureaucratic screw-up was totally unacceptable.

Immediately after question period, I contacted the department. I received assurances that something like this will not happen again; there will be better communications. This is what this woman is owed.

We have contacted this woman, and a telephone call has been arranged for tomorrow. I will personally convey our apologies for this unacceptable incident.

Natural Resources

[Patricia Davidson, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, our government takes the safety of Canadians and the environment seriously.

That is why, through our responsible resource development plan, we implemented new safety measures for pipelines, including doubling the number of comprehensive audits, increasing the number of inspections by 50%, and implementing fines for companies that break environmental regulations.

Canada needs pipeline infrastructure to take advantage of our natural resource wealth. Can the parliamentary secretary update this House on new developments in this area?

[Kelly Block, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, I should add that while our government takes pipeline safety seriously, the NDP and the Liberals both voted against these measures.

Tomorrow, the NEB will make a final decision on the proposal to reverse the flow of Line 9 to bring oil from western Canada to the east. Our government relies on the independent National Energy Board to review pipeline projects based on the facts and scientific analysis.

Employment Insurance

[Mathieu Ravignat, NDP, Pontiac, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the President of the Treasury Board said that he could not estimate the amount he expected to spend on the employment insurance program.

That is odd because, last year, he was able to, and the year before, too. This is like the Minister of Finance saying he cannot table a budget because he does not know how much he is going to spend. For crying out loud.

Why is the minister refusing to disclose the estimates about employment insurance?

[Tony Clement, Conservative, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to make three points.

First, the information about those expenses is in budget 2014.

Second, obviously the full accounting will be in the public accounts as they are done year after year.

Third, the kinds of estimates that the hon. member is looking for should not be in the estimates because it is not a votable item.

[Mathieu Ravignat, NDP, Pontiac, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the President of the Treasury Board seems to forget what his job is. He says that only votable items should be in the main estimates, but his tabled estimates include a total of 350 non-votable items.

Minister, they are called statutory forecasts. Does the minister not even read his own estimates? Does he not understand that the estimates are the only opportunity for Parliament to provide oversight over planned government spending? Why is he hiding this information from Canadians?

[Tony Clement, Conservative, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his recommendation. I will look at all the other non-votable items in the estimates for next year, but the hon. member should know that the actual estimates for the items that he seeks are found in budget 2014, as I mentioned. I think we should focus on votable items in the estimates. If he wants a fully accurate number as to what the EI figures are, they will be found in the public accounts as they are found year after year.

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

Mr. Speaker, it certainly sounds as if the minister is either hiding information or he is not clear what his job is, because the point of the estimates is for the government to provide estimations of spending. We all know the government has projections for EI spending in the next fiscal year, and we now know that non-votable items are a part of the main estimates.

Can the minister tell us what the projections are for EI? Is it more or less $20 billion?

[Tony Clement, Conservative, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, the fact of the matter is, as the hon. member should know, being a parliamentarian, that we spend on behalf of the people of Canada the amount required for EI as the demand is there. That is what we do year after year; so the hon. member should know that.

The hon. member mentions $20 billion. I would remind him that it is his party that wants to have a $21 billion carbon tax that will raise the EI accounts across the country.