Debates of Dec. 11th, 2015

Business of the House

[Tracey Ramsey, NDP, Essex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to say to my colleague across that what was indicated in my speech around the TPP is that Canadians are expecting this issue to be brought to them as promised by the Liberal government.

We will certainly be participating in all of the discussions around the TPP because this trade deal has massive implications for working people.

Canadians and people in my own riding of Essex cannot afford to lose tens of thousands of good-paying jobs out of our economy and out of our communities. I look forward to working with the government to challenge what is in the TPP, to find out if it is good for Canadians.

Again, I encourage those across the aisle to ensure that this issue is brought to Canadians, as promised by their government.

[Alex Nuttall, Conservative, Barrie—Springwater—Oro-Medonte, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I listened intently to the member's comments. I agree with some, in terms of concerns, and I certainly have questions in terms of some of the solutions that have been outlined in the member's speech.

I want to say, in response to one of the previous questions, that it appears the Liberal Party believes that promises deliver results. They do not. Action delivers results. The government has shown through the throne speech that it is long on promises and short on action.

What is being proposed for the middle-income tax cut, which the member has spoken to, is incredibly short-sighted, leaving so many in society out of the benefits that the government has proposed and indeed has put before the House. I grew up in government housing in a place where I was surrounded by those who were earning the least in society. These people were not looking for a handout, but a way out.

In terms of job creation in manufacturing, there was not a single mention in the throne speech. What is the member's position on that and what would the NDP propose to ensure that we actually grow the number of manufacturing jobs in Ontario?

[Tracey Ramsey, NDP, Essex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I believe that the NDP has been quite clear on its desire for an auto strategy in Canada, a manufacturing strategy in Canada. Manufacturing jobs in our communities provide many spinoff jobs. There is an incredible benefit to the communities where they exist. We need a manufacturing strategy because it is an important component in our GDP. Therefore, we require the government across the aisle, as well as members on this side of the House, to seriously look at implementing a manufacturing strategy in Canada, so we can save good-paying jobs for all Canadians.

[Gord Johns, NDP, Courtenay—Alberni, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I would first like to congratulate my colleague on her maiden speech. I thank her for bringing forward her values, passion, and strong principles for the people of Essex and Canada.

As I articulated earlier, in my riding Parksville has a median age of 58. When I was door-knocking in Parksville, I met seniors who had gone to food banks for the first time in their lives. I knocked on one door and a woman said she had to make a choice between food and medicine. She could not afford to buy her own medicine.

I would ask the hon. member to talk a little more about her proposal on pharmacare and how we can make sure this woman does not have to make that horrible choice.

[Tracey Ramsey, NDP, Essex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I also experienced this at people's doors. People told me they were making very difficult choices about whether they could afford medication. It is not simply about being able to afford drugs that are necessary; it is about a path forward to health for Canadians. If Canadians are healthy, we will have a healthier and more productive society. New Democrats definitely stand behind having a pharmacare program in Canada.

[Terry Sheehan, Liberal, Sault Ste. Marie, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Labrador. Before I begin, I want to congratulate you on your election to the Speaker's role, and I want to congratulate each and every other member of this House on their election.

It is a great honour and privilege to be standing here for the first time to deliver this speech in such a great House, the House of Commons.

I want to take this moment to thank all of my supporters and volunteers, and I send a very special thanks to my wife, Lisa; my two children, Riley and Kate; my mom and dad, Mike and Linda; and all my other relatives, in-laws, and friends. I thank them all.

On December 4, I was delighted to hear the Speech from the Throne delivered by His Excellency the Governor General, David Johnston. The Governor General is an extremely intelligent and remarkable individual. It was extra special hearing the speech delivered by him because he is from northern Ontario. He was born in Sudbury but was raised and educated in Sault Ste. Marie.

Now that the Speech from the Throne has been delivered, we begin to make real change happen here for the people of Sault Ste. Marie and this great country. The riding of Sault Ste. Marie is located in the heart of the Great Lakes on the Trans-Canada Highway on the border of Michigan. It is the home to a diverse group of people, including the first nations of Garden River and Batchewana, and the communities of Goulais River, Heyden, Searchmont, Aweres, Prince Township, and Sault Ste. Marie.

It is known as a very warm and welcoming place. It is the home to Sault College, Algoma University, the Canadian Forest Institute, Searchmont Ski Resort, a number of beautiful provincial parks, and the Soo Greyhounds.

I have had an opportunity, since the October 19 election, to meet with a number of business, political, and community leaders in Sault Ste. Marie, and there is a renewed sense of optimism and hope in my riding; and I believe that is so in Canada as well. In fact yesterday, I had the opportunity to host a meeting here in Ottawa with the chief from Garden River First Nation, Paul Syrette. He was accompanied by councillors Chris Solomon, Caroline Barry, and Andy Rickard. We discussed a number of important issues for Garden River, including the need for infrastructure, economic development, and the inquiry into the murdered and missing indigenous women and girls. It was an excellent conversation, and I look forward to working with them over the next four years in a nation-to-nation discussion, along with Batchewana and a number of other first nations.

Sault Ste. Marie, though, is not just diverse because of its people. In fact, it is home to a group of diverse industries. It is the self-proclaimed alternative energy capital of North America. It partakes in a wide range of energy projects including wind energy, with the Prince Wind Farm; hydroelectricity, with five hydroelectric stations generating a total of 203 megawatts of renewable energy; solar energy; co-generation; and reverse polymerization.

During the campaign, the Prime Minister visited my riding to reaffirm this government's commitment to invest $200 million more annually to create sector-specific strategies that support innovation and clean technologies in the forestry, fisheries, mining, energy, and agricultural sectors.

That is why I was delighted to hear in the Speech from the Throne that this government continues to hold to that promise. Protecting the environment and growing the economy are not incompatible goals, and it is time that a government starts treating them as such.

The diversification of the economy is more important now than ever in Sault Ste. Marie and Canada. Sault Ste. Marie relies heavily on the steel industry. Essar Steel Algoma and Tenaris Algoma Tubes are two of the largest employers in my riding. To put things in perspective, Essar Steel Algoma is one of only three fully integrated steel mills that remain in Canada, and on an annual basis it contributes $1.2 billion to Canada's GDP. It provides 2,800 direct jobs and more than 5,000 indirect jobs.

Sault Ste. Marie was built on the steel industry, and as a representative for my community here in Ottawa, I have the job of ensuring the government does what it can to protect and ensure its continued growth. This is not going to be a simple task. Like many other industries, the steel industry is facing challenging economic times after a decade of neglect. In fact, shortly after my election to this House, Essar Steel Algoma gained CCAA creditor protection and is currently restructuring. Tenaris, a leading supplier of tubes and related services for the energy industry, has laid off hundreds of its employees from my riding. As in other areas of Canada, the steel industry in Sault Ste. Marie faces a number of challenges. It is relying on governments, including this one, to think critically and to engage with producers and other stakeholders to find suitable solutions.

For those reasons, I am glad that this government is committed, as it was in the campaign, to historic spending on infrastructure, which will help stimulate the economy both locally in Sault Ste. Marie and nationally.

As a former four-term city councillor, I know that Canadian municipalities face major infrastructure deficits. They need more support from the federal government and have suffered years of neglect. Infrastructure is crumbling. These historic investments in transit, social, and green infrastructure would go a long way to addressing these issues. They would put Canadians to work, and they would give them safer cities and homes to live in. As an added bonus, infrastructure projects use steel, which is produced in my riding.

Ridings across this country also have Canadians who are struggling to make ends meet, to find enough funds to raise their kids, and to save for their future. In Sault Ste. Marie, I know this is the case. This government's commitment to creating a larger tax-free child benefit that would raise 315,000 kids out of poverty is critical. The government showed on Wednesday that it would strengthen the middle class by providing it with a middle class tax cut, which would benefit roughly nine million Canadians every year. This is just part of the government's plan to implement real change for Canadians.

Our government is investing in the future of our children and giving families more money to save, invest, and grow the economy. It is well known that when middle-class Canadians do well, they spend their money locally. They benefit local businesses and, in turn, help to boost the economies and create jobs.

In Sault Ste. Marie, we need middle-class people to do well, but we also need to help those who are struggling or down on their luck. Not only is this government committed to creating jobs through investment in infrastructure, but it is mentioned in the Speech from the Throne that the government will strengthen the employment insurance system. We will ensure that the EI system serves the economy and Canadians. As someone who has worked hard in my community to ensure the economic success of everyone, I am particularly proud of this. People in Sault Ste. Marie and across Canada need a social safety net that is there for them so they can get back on their feet; and an effective EI system is a good initial step toward that.

I am also proud that this government will work with the provinces and territories on a number of initiatives, including, but not limited to, providing more income security when people retire, reducing post-secondary costs, developing a new health accord, and reducing carbon pollution. In short, Canadians do better when our governments work together.

We need to invest in our country and Canadians and in industries that continue to sustain us for generations to come. That is exactly what this government is committed to doing, and the Speech from the Throne is evidence of that.

Once again, I would like to thank the people of Sault Ste. Marie for electing me. I look forward to working with all members of this House to improve the economy and, in particular, the success of the steel industry in Canada. It is time we elevated the discussion around the importance of the domestic steel industry in Canada, and I look forward to working with all members.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

We have a point of order. The hon. member for Carleton.

Supplementary Estimates (B), 2015-16

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the House adopted Bill C-3, An Act for granting to Her Majesty certain sums of money for the federal public administration for the financial year ending March 31, 2016. As is our practice, I rose to place a question to the President of the Treasury Board during the committee of the whole. I asked him if he could confirm if the bill was in its usual form and the President of the Treasury Board replied, “The form of this bill is, in fact, the same as that passed in the previous supply period”.

I checked the Journals Branch this morning and the copy of the bill that was adopted by the House of Commons did not include the schedules that contain the actual amounts in the supplementary estimates. It would appear that we did not actually grant for Her Majesty certain sums of money for the federal public administration for the financial year ending March 31, because the bill was not in fact presented in its complete form, having excluded the schedule which provides for the authorization the House must actually give.

Originating with the Magna Carta, the Crown cannot spend what the people do not approve through their elected representatives in the House of Commons. That is probably the most important foundation in public finance. Therefore, if information about that spending is not properly included in the legislation adopted in the House, then the Government of Canada does not have the authorization to spend the money that it does. That is the first point.

The second point is that the President of the Treasury Board took great lengths to say that he would “surprise” me by actually answering the question. In fact, he did surprise me and he did answer the question, but then he surprised me again today by virtue of the fact that his answer was incorrect. I looked back at the schedule of the previous supply bill that was passed by the House of Commons and the schedule was in fact present, which is contrary to the words the President of the Treasury Board uttered when he said that the form of the bill was the same as that passed in the previous supply period. We now know that this is not accurate and that the President of the Treasury Board has misled the House.

This of course creates a dilemma because the schedule has not been adopted by the House and it is one for which I do not have a solution, but it is one that I am obliged, as a member of the House of Commons, to bring to your attention, Mr. Speaker, and to the attention of the House.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I thank the hon. member for Carleton for bringing this to my attention. On the same point of order, the parliamentary secretary to the government House leader.

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the member, in good faith, bringing this matter to the attention of the House. I would like to make a very brief response to it.

I rise to respond to the member's point of order respecting the statement made by the hon. President of the Treasury Board in the committee of the whole last night on the form of the bill. I wish to notify the House that there was indeed an administrative error in the print of the bill before the House. The bill did not contain the schedules that are normally contained in the bill.

I ask hon. members of the House for their understanding in this manner, and I sincerely apologize for the error and any confusion that this has caused members of the House and staff.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I wish to inform the House that a number of administrative errors occurred with respect to Bill C-3, An Act for granting to Her Majesty certain sums of money for the federal public administration for the financial year ending March 31, 2016.

Due to these administrative errors, the copy of the bill that was circulated at the opening of yesterday's session did not contain the usual schedule that reflects how the global amount of supplementary estimates is allocated among the various votes. As is the usual practice on the final supply day, the House considered and concurred in the supplementary estimates followed by the supply bill based upon these estimates.

I have instructed the Acting Clerk and his officials to take the necessary steps to ensure that a corrected copy of Bill C-3, the one that accurately reflects the will of the House, is forwarded to the other place.

I thank hon. members for their attention.

The House resumed consideration of the motion, and of the amendment.

Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the member for Sault Ste. Marie and I share the fact that we were both municipal councillors, he for four terms and myself for three, so we clearly recognize the infrastructure issues that affect cities and towns across our great country.

One of the issues that has come up since the election is the lack of a plan on behalf of the Liberals with respect to infrastructure. We have seen a lot of money, over $2.65 billion, go to developing countries, as has been announced, but there has not been any announcement for any city or town in our country.

Could the hon. member tell us what the Liberal plan is with respect to infrastructure, given the fact that our Conservative government previously made the largest infrastructure spending announcement in some time?

[Terry Sheehan, Liberal, Sault Ste. Marie, ON]

Mr. Speaker, as a former city councillor, I know the importance of infrastructure. That is why I was so pleased during the campaign when we announced the historic amount, doubling the infrastructure commitment to $125 billion for transit, for much needed social infrastructure, for green infrastructure. These things are needed.

Infrastructure in cities across Canada is crumbling and doubling the commitment is so important, because there is such a deficit. It is going to be an absolute pleasure to meet with various people to find out what their priorities are so we can get moving on this. Transit is important across cities. The Garden River First Nation that I met with has a number of priorities that it has listed for me.

It is a historic investment. It is amazing. It is going to be so beneficial not only for fixing the infrastructure deficit, but for the much needed jobs that are required, and for the construction and steelmaking industries as well.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Seeing as we are at 11 o'clock, I wish to inform the House that there will be three minutes left for questions and comments for this speech after question period.

National Day for the Independence of the People of Quebec

[Xavier Barsalou-Duval, Bloc, Pierre-Boucher—Les Patriotes—Verchères, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to announce to the House that this Sunday, December 13, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., hundreds of Quebeckers from every part of the province will come together to participate in the national day for the independence of the people of Quebec.

As the Prime Minister said on Wednesday, the people of Quebec were not consulted when the Constitution was patriated in 1982. Ever since, Quebec has been governed by laws to which it never consented.

I would like to remind him that Quebec is entitled to self-determination, just like any other people. Quebec independence would be economically beneficial to our nation. That is what we will be explaining to Quebeckers on Sunday.

I would also like to take this opportunity to invite all of the distinguished members of the House to join us if they would like to participate.

Search and Rescue

[Seamus O'Regan, Liberal, St. John's South—Mount Pearl, NL]

Mr. Speaker, this is my first time rising in the House as the member of Parliament for St. John's South—Mount Pearl, and my first duty and wish is to thank my loving family, my loyal friends, my devoted volunteers, and the people of the riding who put their faith in me. I promise to serve them all with honour and with rigour.

The government has moved swiftly in its first days on a matter of crucial importance to the people of my riding, making the announcement that the St. John's maritime rescue sub-centre, closed three years ago, shall be reopened.

I thank Minister Tootoo and my fellow MPs for their hard work and their advocacy.

This centre provides crucial search and rescue capabilities for over 900,000 square kilometres of ocean. It is the protector of those who make their lives at sea, including our fishermen, and the many who work to produce our plentiful offshore oil. Helicopters transport those workers. Beneath them as they fly are Signal Hill, the Narrows, Bay Bulls, and Witless Bay.

I invite hon. members to come and visit my beautiful riding. As our famous tourism ads say—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I want to remind all hon. members that we refer to people in the House by their title. I am sure that the member was referring to the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, and that is the title he will want to use.

It is also important that those assistants who work for MPs take note of the fact that when they are helping members to prepare members' statements or questions, they refer to the title of the person and not use their name.

The hon. member for Red Deer—Mountain View.

Red Deer—Mountain View

[Earl Dreeshen, Conservative, Red Deer—Mountain View, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I rise to thank the constituents of my wonderful riding of Red Deer—Mountain View for re-electing me to the House of Commons. I am proud to continue representing Red Deer and Red Deer county, with the addition of the county of Mountain View and the beautiful communities of Olds, Carstairs, Didsbury, Sundre, and Cremona.

Red Deer—Mountain View forms a large of the central Alberta economy. Our riding depends on agriculture, natural resource development, and manufacturing. In recent years, we have faced a number of issues, most notably low oil prices and grain shipment backlogs. This is why I was quite concerned that in the government's throne speech, there was no mention of agriculture or natural resources.

Since these issues are ones that affect our region directly, but do not seem to warrant the Liberals' attention, I have made a commitment to ensure that support for these sectors becomes a priority. It is important that the government respects and does not forget central Alberta or the thousands of Canadians who depend on the agriculture or energy sector to put food on their families' tables.

Rivière-des-Mille-Îles

[Linda Lapointe, Liberal, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this is my first intervention in this democratic chamber. It is a real privilege for me to represent the people of my riding. To my constituents, volunteers and family members, thank you so much.

I would also like to take a moment to wish all my colleagues the very best for the holiday season, a very merry Christmas, and a happy new year.

Rivière-des-Mille-Îles is fortunate to be home to a number of innovative businesses, particularly in the transportation sector. I will soon have an opportunity to visit Nova Bus, a company based in Saint-Eustache that has been working in the public transit sector since 1993.

For several years now, the company has been a leader in bringing electric vehicles to public transit. For instance, they have a hybrid bus that runs on electricity.

I would like to commend Nova Bus for its contribution to our community and for its commitment to reducing our environmental footprint.

Steel Industry

[Scott Duvall, NDP, Hamilton Mountain, ON]

Mr. Speaker, this week I asked the government when it would release details of the secret deal made between the previous government and U.S. Steel, which put the pensions and health benefits of 20,000 workers and pensioners at risk. After rubber stamping the takeover of Stelco, the Conservatives failed to stand up for Hamiltonians' jobs, signing an agreement that left thousands of workers with no jobs, pensions under threat, and medical benefits that are now cancelled.

During the election, Hamilton Liberal candidates slammed the former government for keeping the agreement's details secret. In answer to my question, the minister made it clear that the government has no intention of releasing the details of the deal requested by the workers, pensioners, United Steelworkers, and all the sitting NDP, federal, and provincial members representing Hamilton ridings.

Action must be taken now and details of the secret deal must be released. U.S. Steel must be held responsible for every obligation made under the secret deal and ensure that 20,000 vulnerable workers and pensioners are protected. Anything less is unacceptable.

Acadie—Bathurst

[Serge Cormier, Liberal, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to speak in the House of Commons today for the first time as the member for Acadie—Bathurst, in New Brunswick.

First of all, Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate you on your new role as Speaker of the House and to congratulate all members of Parliament on their recent election.

I also want to thank the people of Acadie—Bathurst from the bottom of my heart for placing their trust in me. It is an honour to represent them here in Ottawa.

The riding of Acadie—Bathurst has gone through difficult times on economic, social, and cultural fronts during the last few years.

Our plan promises better days ahead and will help us rebuild the riding of Acadie—Bathurst in all areas. I am proud to live in a riding where the francophone and anglophone communities and the Pabineau First Nation live and work together to grow our economy.

Automotive Industry

[Colin Carrie, Conservative, Oshawa, ON]

Mr. Speaker, my first order of business is to thank the constituents of Oshawa for affording me the opportunity to represent them in this place for a fifth term. I am honoured and humbled.

Oshawa's ties to the auto sector run deep. I was proud that our Conservative government invested in the auto industry after the economic downturn in 2008 and 2009 and helped save Canadian jobs, but things have changed. The Liberals are back.

This new Liberal government has abandoned the auto industry and communities like Oshawa in its throne speech. It chose to ignore the competitive challenges Oshawa is facing due to the high cost of energy and labour created by their cousins, the Ontario Liberals. To add insult to injury, the federal Liberals seemed determined to implement these failed energy and payroll tax policies across our great nation. These policies have destroyed Ontario's competitiveness compared to northern U.S. states.

I urge all members of the House to join together in creating policies that promote the creation of auto jobs, not policies like payroll and carbon taxes that will kill them.

Fredericton

[Matt DeCourcey, Liberal, Fredericton, NB]

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour for me to rise in the House today as the representative for the good people of Fredericton, Oromocto, New Maryland and the Grand Lake area. I will work hard to earn the trust of my constituents every day.

The opportunity to be in such a privileged position as to help direct the course of our great nation and to be a strong voice for my region is not just a veritable honour, but also a dream come true for this young lad from Freddy Beach.

I would also like to thank all the people who worked hard on my election campaign. Their intelligence and vision were major factors in my election win. As all members in this place know, it takes the determination and incredible passion of a team to win an election.

Cloverdale—Langley City

[John Aldag, Liberal, Cloverdale—Langley City, BC]

Mr. Speaker, as I rise in the House for the first time as the first member for Cloverdale—Langley City, I want to thank the residents of my riding and my family for their support. I also want to acknowledge that my riding falls in the traditional territory of the Coast Salish peoples.

I served our country for the last 32 years as a federal public servant with Parks Canada, living and working in many regions of the country. My new position as member of Parliament is a continuation of my extensive career in public service.

Currently, the three main issues that families of Cloverdale—Langley City face are their struggles with the high costs of living in metro Vancouver and stagnant earnings; the serious transit shortfalls in the region south of the Fraser in metro Vancouver; and poverty, homelessness, addictions, and crime.

I am excited to see that the government's plan to bring real change directly addresses the issues of my constituents. I look forward to addressing the concerns of my riding in the House and working with all members to improve our communities and our country.