Debates of Sept. 22nd, 2014

International Trade

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to welcome my friend back to the House. I remind him that in June he stood in this place and asked why the government had not moved forward on this important FIPA with China. We have, and now he is still complaining once again. On CBC on the weekend, he was spreading myths about this FIPA.

The “P” in FIPA is for protection. This is about protecting Canadian exporters who are selling into that market, and it is the 30th FIPA Canada has signed over 20 years. This is good for our exporters. It is good for jobs.

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

Mr. Speaker, these are the same Conservatives who promised to be accountable. The truth is that the Conservatives signed a bad deal for Canada and they know it.

Are they defending their decision to Canadians? No, they prefer to go on Facebook and delete negative comments. Criticism cannot be blocked in the same way friends can on Facebook. It is ridiculous.

If the minister is proud of his agreement with China, then why delete the negative comments? Why does he not face the criticism? It is simple.

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for that question. While she and her colleagues are surfing Facebook in their constituency weeks, our members are meeting with employers and meeting with the Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters association. These are job creators in our country who have been asking for legal certainty in their dealings with China. They are selling in that country, and this FIPA will give our employers certainty in dealing with China.

The NDP should get offline and get meeting our employers across the country.

[John Weston, Conservative, West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC]

Mr. Speaker, our government remains focused on creating jobs and opportunities for hard-working Canadians through trade. However, the NDP has voted against practically every free trade or investment protection agreement our Conservative government has introduced.

As for the Liberals, in their 13 years in office, they created free trade agreements with only three countries, whereas our government has created such agreements with over 40 countries in only eight years.

Having worked in Asia for over a decade, I personally observed the importance of opening trade with that continent. Can the parliamentary secretary provide insight into our Conservative government's latest accomplishment on trade?

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for that question.

Moments ago, the Prime Minister and President Park of South Korea took part in a signing ceremony for our historic free trade agreement with South Korea. It is our first in Asia, and 26,000 Canadians helped secure that democracy 60 years ago. This is about jobs, not just in B.C. but across Canada.

The NDP will likely oppose yet another trade agreement in this House. I would like to make mention that in one year, our government has signed more trade agreements than 13 years of—

Foreign Affairs

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

Mr. Speaker, this weekend former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien pointed out that Canada is already all the way in, in Iraq. He warned, “You only have to look at the way Americans got involved in Vietnam. They started with a few advisers.”

Of course, as with any credible terrorist threat, the government must take appropriate security measures, but this must not become an excuse for rubber-stamping the Conservatives' ill-defined military mission in Iraq.

Can the minister now tell the House when this 30-day military mission ends?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, we would review it after 30 days, but the mission is very clear. The fanaticism of ISIL, the terrorist group, is a threat to regional security and to millions of innocent people. As the Prime Minister has indicated, this is not a combat mission, and our role is clearly defined.

We stand united with our allies, as always.

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

Mr. Speaker, former prime minister Jean Chrétien has said that the Conservatives' decision to send troops into Iraq will pull Canada into further commitments. Contrary to the government's claims that this will be only a limited 30-day military mission, we are now engaged in what could become a combat mission. We cannot trust the Prime Minister, who wanted to go to war in Iraq in 2003. Can the Minister of National Defence at least tell us whether there will be a vote in the House, before the 30 days are up, to decide what will happen next?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, it is nice to see the NDP embracing the Liberals' decade of darkness. It does not come as much of a surprise.

As we indicated, we will help people in that area. We have deployed Canadians to provide strategic advice. If the hon. member and the NDP really want to do something, why do they not support our efforts to take Canadian passports away from terrorists who are on the ground in that part of the world?

Citizenship and Immigration

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

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives keep dragging their feet when it comes to their promise to receive more Syrian refugees. Some people have been waiting for two years because of unnecessary red tape. However, Sweden, Germany, the United Kingdom and Norway have processed thousands of refugee claims in less than a year. Lives are at stake. Why is Canada refusing to do its part and take in Syrian refugees as it promised?

[Chris Alexander, Conservative, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, Canada is still a leading donor in Syria. More than $600 million has been offered for use in all areas. We have resettled close to 1,500 refugees. We have already surpassed our targets for this year.

The hon. member asked a question about Iraq, but she forgot to mention that Canada has already welcomed more than 18,000 Iraqis. That is more than any other country.

[Paul Dewar, NDP, Ottawa Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the question was actually about Syria. Families are broken apart because of the government's delays. Canadian citizen Anya Sass and her husband are trapped in a Damascus suburb threatened by ISIS militants. After two years of delays, Mike Wise's family has had to settle in Sweden, not in Canada. While the Conservatives boast about resettling 200 refugees, Sweden, with a quarter of Canada's population, has given refuge to more than 30,000 Syrian refugees.

Why will our government not step up to the plate, do the right thing, and help save lives?

[Chris Alexander, Conservative, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member has it all wrong once again. Sweden has accepted asylum seekers, not resettled refugees. Canada remains at the forefront of efforts to resettle refugees. We have gone over our target for this year. Fifteen hundred Syrians are now enjoying Canada's protection.

As well, why do the members opposite always forget to note what Canada has done for Iraq? Well over 18,000 Iraqi refugees are resettled in Canada.

These conflicts are linked. So is Canada's humanitarian response.

National Defence

[Joyce Murray, Liberal, Vancouver Quadra, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Canadian Forces members are being forced by the government to hide their health problems to avoid being discharged and losing their pensions. In other words, if they ask for help, they get fired.

As a recently discharged corporal who knows about this said, “...if they speak up, then they lose their ability to keep food on the table.” It is unbelievable.

Conservative ministers promised that no injured service member would be released until they were ready and willing. Will the minister take responsibility for the well-being of the troops, stop breaking this promise, and fix this urgent problem?

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, members of the Canadian Armed Forces are not released until they are fully prepared. Every possible accommodation is made to ensure that soldiers are kept in the forces before any member is released. A transition plan is established, and this includes medical services. They are only released when it is appropriate for both the member and their families, and this is how it should be.

Citizenship and Immigration

[John McCallum, Liberal, Markham—Unionville, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I want to ask the immigration minister a serious question about the world's worst refugee crisis, which is Syria.

Three months ago, I presented him with a non-partisan plan on this topic. I have yet to receive a response.

Now we hear that spouses of Canadians are stranded in Syria's war zones and will have to wait there for two years or more.

Will the minister follow the lead of other countries and devote the resources needed to issue visas quickly to the relatives of Syrian Canadians who are at such extreme risk?

[Chris Alexander, Conservative, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, this is a serious crisis. It would be great if the members opposite would join us in getting serious answers and not scaremonger on these issues.

We made it a priority to reunite families at the beginning of the Syrian crisis. We have processed all of those applications. There are 1,500 Syrians who now enjoy Canada's protection, in addition to well over 18,000 Iraqis who have resettled since the beginning of our efforts there, in 2009. That is a combined effort that is second to none worldwide, and the hon. member should join us in celebrating it.

Health

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

Mr. Speaker, the government is putting Canadians' health at risk, and the minister is doing a poor job of reassuring people. We have been waiting for her to appoint a chief public health officer for 15 months now.

Meanwhile, the Ebola crisis is gaining momentum and enterovirus EV-D68 is threatening children. The Public Health Agency's budget has been cut, and the government cannot guarantee that drugs sold in Canada are safe. Time is of the essence.

Having waited 15 months, does the minister think it might be time to wake up and appoint a new head of public health?

[Rona Ambrose, Conservative, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, a search has been underway for quite some time, and an announcement is imminent.

However, let me just say that Dr. Gregory Taylor, who is our interim Chief Public Health Officer for Canada, has done a remarkable job. He has the confidence of the international community. He has the confidence of the public health officers across the provinces and territories. He has not only managed this ebola issue very well, he also managed H5N1 when it was diagnosed in Canada for the first time, and, of course, H1N1.

We thank him for his great work.

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

Mr. Speaker, the minister talks, but her actions betray a real sense of complacency here.

The public health officer is supposed to help Canadians deal with the threat of a public health crisis. However, as Canadians worry about enterovirus D68 affecting their kids, or the ebola pandemic spreading outside Africa, the Conservatives have refused to fill this important office for 15 months.

There are constant cuts to the Public Health Agency budget. There is no public health officer. Why will the minister not take public health seriously?

[Rona Ambrose, Conservative, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, the Public Health Agency of Canada is one of the leading public health organizations in the world, which is why it has been called upon many times, like in the H1N1 outbreak, the H5N1 virus here in Canada, and, of course, the ebola crisis in West Africa.

We do have a public health officer for Canada. His name is Dr. Gregory Taylor, and he has done an exceptional job. He has my confidence. He has the confidence of the international medical community. He works well with Doctors Without Borders, and, of course, he has the full confidence of the provinces and territories.

Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission

[Brad Butt, Conservative, Mississauga—Streetsville, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Liberals in my province are calling for the CRTC to regulate Internet video and impose a Netflix or a YouTube tax.

The CRTC has declined to regulate Internet video in the past, and our Prime Minister has come out against the Netflix tax that the Liberals favour.

Would the Minister of Heritage make clear that, should the CRTC reverse its historic position and begin regulating Internet video or imposing a tax on Netflix and YouTube, our government will reject that position and overturn it?

[Shelly Glover, Conservative, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages]

Mr. Speaker, our government has been very clear in our commitment to stand up for Canadian consumers.

As we have already heard, the CRTC has in the past declined to regulate such online services, and that is a position that our government firmly supports.

Of course, we know that the Liberals would like to raise prices on consumers, but our government will continue to stand up for Canadians and we will reject any move to raise prices on these services.

Canadians can count on this government to oppose any new regulations or taxes on Internet video.

Rail Transportation

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

Mr. Speaker, this past weekend I attended a rally in support of the Cape Breton rail line. The rally demonstrated the importance of keeping our rail open. Many companies with over 500 employees, generating millions of dollars in our economy, depend on it. It is essential for the future of Sydney Harbour.

The Minister of Transport stated in the House that her government will assist in keeping the rail open. Next month, the company that currently operates the rail will give notice and cease operations. Time is running out. Where is the government's promised help?

[Lisa Raitt, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, in August of this year, I did indeed host and coordinate a meeting with the parties who are interested in this particular piece of rail. I can tell the House that there is a process in place when a rail company wants to abandon its rail, which is indeed the case in this extreme. The Nova Scotia government is working with the rail company. The federal government is not involved in this piece. It is not a federally regulated railway, nor is it something that we have an interest in taking over again.