Debates of June 5th, 2014

Veterans Affairs

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Central Nova, NS]

Mr. Speaker, I hear the member opposite chirping.

This is an issue that we have taken very seriously from the moment we took office, and we continue to support veterans.

[Megan Leslie, NDP, Halifax, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives love to boast, but they are the ones who have a record of closing offices and refusing to meet with veterans.

Closing offices have left those in need seeing staff at Service Canada that have little experience on these issues. They are calling a 1-800 number or they are travelling long distances to one of the few remaining offices that is open. The Conservatives keep claiming that they are ready to act on committee recommendations, but how—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

Order, please. I want to remind members that any parliamentary secretary or minister can answer the question, but they have to wait until the question has been put. I would ask them to hold off on any kind of comments until the question has been asked. Then, if they absolutely cannot refrain from speaking, perhaps they can seek the floor for me to recognize them to answer the question, but not until the question is finished being put.

The hon. member for Halifax.

[Megan Leslie, NDP, Halifax, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives keep claiming that they are ready to act on committee recommendations, but how can they expect Canadians and veterans to trust them to help our most vulnerable vets when the minister keeps cutting basic services?

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, sadly, that is factually incorrect. We have, in fact, expanded services as recently as this week, with more services available for those who are using service animals. In terms of direct services, we now have available across the country 600 points of contact for veterans and their families. We have invested, as I mentioned before, $4.7 billion in additional funding to ensure that veterans have the in-home care and the most direct services that go to their needs. We have extended numerous compassionate efforts to see that veterans' cares are being looked after in every way.

Justice

[Megan Leslie, NDP, Halifax, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives keep playing photo-op politics when, really, they should be supporting our veterans.

The Conservatives have also been caught playing politics on their new crime bill. In less than 24 hours, the justice minister's new bill already has legal experts predicting long court battles over whether it respects the charter, the Constitution and the Bedford ruling of the Supreme Court of Canada.

Will the minister skip his divisive talking points? Will he do the sensible thing and refer this bill to the Supreme Court of Canada immediately?

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, this legislation goes to the objectives that I hope my friend and all members of Parliament would share, and that is protecting vulnerable Canadians and communities ensuring that we are not only giving police the necessary tools to support communities and the country, but also putting in place new programs in partnership with various groups across the country, in our provinces and territories, to see that we are able to help women, predominantly vulnerable women, who are in this profession through no fault of their own to exit and find a better, safer, healthier life.

[Françoise Boivin, NDP, Gatineau, QC]

Yes, Mr. Speaker, $20 million, a drop in the bucket, not even budgeted yet.

We cannot trust the Conservatives to protect women's rights. This issue is at the heart of the debate and the Supreme Court ruling in Bedford. With Bill C-36, pimps and prostitutes will be criminalized, but not drivers. Soliciting will be prohibited on the streets, but not on private premises. Private advertising will be allowed, but not public advertising. There is a very fine line, and the balance is precarious.

Will the government make public the legal opinions it received before introducing Bill C-36?

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, that of course will happen, as it always does. In all cases it will be made public.

We had a very extensive consultation, as the member knows. Some 31,000 Canadians took part in that consultation. I sat down and had a round table with a wide variety of groups expressing a wide variety of views on this issue. We have acted in response to that input, to those consultations, also in consulationt with the police, and respectful of the Supreme Court decision in Bedford.

We believe this is a better path and a more productive path for those involved in prostitution, while it protects Canadians at every level.

[Françoise Boivin, NDP, Gatineau, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I am looking forward to reading the scientific survey the minister still has in his possession and is avoiding to give to everybody.

Six months ago, the Supreme Court forced the government to review the legislation concerning prostitution in order to better protect the lives and safety of sex trade workers. Several of the provisions run counter to this objective and even seem to contravene the Supreme Court ruling. We are afraid that Bill C-36 will push prostitution further into the shadows, drive it underground and make it more violent.

Will the government refer its bill to the Supreme Court as quickly as possible to ensure that it complies with the charter and the Bedford ruling?

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, as I said, we believe that we have acted on the advice of many within the legal community in addition to policing and respecting the Bedford decision. We are moving forward in a way that we believe protects Canadians, communities, individuals and children.

At the same time, this is not as simple as passing laws, as the member would know. This will require extensive work with organizations to help vulnerable women and many young women, in this case under the age of 18, to exit a life of prostitution, to find a better path, to find a way forward that does not involve exposing themselves to violence and the inherent dangers that come with prostitution.

Employment

[Scott Brison, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, there are 260,000 fewer jobs for young Canadians than before the downturn. Now it is summer job season and many students cannot find work to pay for tuition or to get the experience they need.

Since taking office, the Conservatives have actually cut the number of jobs in the Canada summer jobs program by more than half. Will the government reverse those cuts and help young Canadians get the jobs they need this summer and help their parents who are stuck paying the bills.

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

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to say that Canada has one of the lowest rates of youth unemployment in the developed world. Since 2006, we have helped over 2.1 million youth obtain skills training and jobs.

Of course there is still more to do, which is why in this year's budget we announced support for internships in high-demand fields. It is why we launched the apprenticeship loan. For the first time, people in Red Seal apprenticeship programs will be able to get interest-free loans, just like university students do. We want to encourage young people to get the skills that will lead to bright futures.

[Scott Brison, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the government is implying that young Canadians are better off than young people in Greece.

Those internships are actually funded by the youth employment strategy, which the Conservatives have cut by $60 million since 2010. Too many Canadians are being pressured into taking unpaid internships just for the work experience. Meanwhile, parents are taking on debt and forgoing retirement in order to pick up the tab.

Will the government finally ask Statistics Canada to track unpaid internships and will it follow Ontario's lead and crack down on illegal unpaid internships, particularly in federally regulated industries?

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

Mr. Speaker, let me just make it clear for the member. One thing we will not do is kill jobs by raising taxes. One thing we will not do is ruin the economic future of young people by loading up massive increases in spending, deficit and debt, which would lead to permanent tax increases for young people.

We will not follow the example of the Government of Ontario of reckless deficits, massive and irresponsible spending, and higher taxes which end up killing jobs. We will not do that.

Justice

[Stéphane Dion, Liberal, Saint-Laurent—Cartierville, QC]

Mr. Speaker, when the minister talks about leaks that have tainted the recent Supreme Court appointment process, is he looking at himself in the mirror? Does he count among those leaks the disclosure by the Prime Minister's Office of a confidential phone call from the Chief Justice? Has he launched an investigation to expose those high-ranking Conservatives who have slandered the Chief Justice?

Does he not realize that no one has done more to undermine the process than he himself and the Prime Minister have?

[Peter MacKay, Conservative, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, if the member is somehow referencing the fact that I spoke about a confidential conversation with the Supreme Court justice, I did not comment until after her statement was made.

I am not exactly sure where the member is going with the question, but I will take the opportunity to congratulate Mr. Justice Clément Gascon, who will be joining the Supreme Court very soon from the member's province of Quebec. He came highly recommended and has been lauded in all circles, politically and legally, across the country. He will be a fine justice and a fine addition to the Supreme Court of Canada.

Privacy

[Randall Garrison, NDP, Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Wesley Wark, an intelligence specialist with the University of Ottawa, has called the latest spying ordered by the Conservatives “....a clear breach of our Charter rights”.

The Conservatives have repeatedly gone out of their way and beyond their mandate to collect data on Canadians. First nations and any Canadian exercising basic rights to freedom of assembly and protest will now become the most recent targets.

Why has the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness ordered all government departments to spy on Canadian demonstrators?

[Roxanne James, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, of course, the member opposite knows, and all Canadians know, that all our security agencies work within the confines of Canadian law.

With respect to the topic the member mentioned, we respect the right of all Canadians to peaceful protest in this country. However, Canadians expect local law enforcement to ensure that the law is respected, and the Government Operations Centre monitors any event that may be a risk to public safety.

[Randall Garrison, NDP, Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca, BC]

Mr. Speaker, no defence from the parliamentary secretary can justify this warrantless spying on Canadians. The government is clearly misusing the Government Operations Centre. This was a department set up to coordinate national responses to things like fires, floods, and other natural disasters. A few folks gathering to protest fracking or a pipeline or to demand a public inquiry are clearly not threats to national security.

Why is the government so afraid of people who do not agree with it, so afraid that it feels the need to break the law and to spy on Canadians?

[Roxanne James, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, thank goodness the Conservative government does not take any lead from the NDP with regard to public safety.

Canadians expect that public safety will be respected in all regards within Canada and expects the government to ensure that that happens. I am proud to be part of a Conservative government that makes sure it does.

[Rosane Doré Lefebvre, NDP, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Mr. Speaker, according to the Department of Public Safety, the Government Operations Centre is supposed to provide an integrated emergency response in case of events of national significance; the only thing is that the government is now using it to spy on demonstrators.

This diversion of resources is dangerous for Canadians, because while the Conservatives are using this centre to spy on demonstrators, it is not fulfilling its main mission.

How do the Conservatives justify transforming the Government Operations Centre into a super spy agency?

[Roxanne James, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, if a peaceful protest became unpeaceful, the NDP would be the first people in this House calling on the government to take more action.

Instead, we respect the privacy of all Canadians and ensure that the Government Operations Centre monitors any event that may be a risk to public safety, and I am proud of that, to ensure the safety of all Canadians.

[Rosane Doré Lefebvre, NDP, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives talk about this as if it were no big deal.

Meanwhile, an expert from the University of Ottawa tells us that this is a clear violation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Demonstrators are not events and the Government Operations Centre has absolutely no business in a protest.

Can the minister tell us the scope of the data that the Government Operations Centre will be collecting about the demonstrators? How long will the data be kept and what are they for?