Debates of Dec. 8th, 2015

Public Safety

[Alain Rayes, Conservative, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I will give the minister a second chance by asking the question again.

Canadians were very concerned to hear the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness say that the refugee screening process would not be 100% foolproof.

Could the minister clearly state for the members of the House what percentage he thinks is acceptable? I am asking for a simple percentage, a number.

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, clearly, the Conservative campaign strategy was not 100% foolproof.

The fact of the matter is that Canadians expect a strong system. They expect security to be applied in the way that it has always been applied with Canadian refugees. That is why we have robust layers of security in place, interviews, biometrics, checks against computer systems, and repeated examinations of identification to make sure that this process works.

[Alain Rayes, Conservative, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, right now, public servants from several departments are on the ground in Lebanon, Turkey and Jordan to identify and screen refugees. It has been reported that the government is using private security contractors to keep those Canadians safe.

How can the government guarantee that these Canadians are truly safe?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, the process that we have put in place in this very difficult part of the world is a process that has been designed by the immigration and refugee department, by the Canada Border Services Agency, by the RCMP, and by CSIS. The strongest, best Canadian officials have put this plan in place. They are determined to keep our officials on the ground doing the work safe, and they are absolutely determined to make sure that every proper screening and security measure is adequately followed.

Health

[Kellie Leitch, Conservative, Simcoe—Grey, ON]

Mr. Speaker, can the minister please tell us here about the immunization records of Syrian children who are about to enter school in Canada? It is important that we do not put these Syrian children at risk. It is also important that we do not put Canadian kids at risk. Moms and dads are telling me that they are concerned about a potential outbreak of measles or mumps, or another infectious disease.

Where are the records? What medical screening is being done? Can the parents in my riding be reassured that their children are going to be safe, and that the Syrian children are going to be safe?

[Jane Philpott, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to say that a thorough health examination is taking place for all of the Syrian families who are being considered for entry into Canada. That includes an international immigration exam and asking about immunization records.

I, like the hon. member opposite, am concerned with making sure that we keep Canadians safe, and all necessary measures will be undertaken to make sure that vaccination schedules are up to date.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, genocide is an intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national ethnic, racial, or religious group. In the Iraqi-Syrian region, entire Yazidi villages have been emptied and their people enslaved. Mass graves have been filled with their people, and Yazidi girls as young as six have been raped, all at the hands of the so-called Islamic State.

Will the Minister of Immigration name this genocide for what it is and tell us how many of the 1,385 permanent resident visas granted to refugees since November 4 have been issued to Yazidis?

[John McCallum, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, of course I deplore and denounce the tragic attacks on Yazidis as I do the tragic attacks by ISIS on all manner of people. Therefore, first and foremost when choosing refugees we take the names given by the United Nations and choose the most vulnerable, irrespective of religion. It is the most vulnerable who we bring to this country and welcome as permanent residents and soon to be new Canadians.

Indigenous Affairs

[Georgina Jolibois, NDP, Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River, SK]

Mr. Speaker, 36 years ago my friend Myrna disappeared from my home community of La Loche. Her sister Dora LaPrise has been one of the many voices calling for an inquiry into her murdered and missing indigenous sisters. Like Dora, there are hundreds of families who are looking for answers. The voices of these families need to be heard.

Can the minister assure the House that these families will receive the support and the funding they need to participate in the national inquiry?

[Carolyn Bennett, Liberal, Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for her ongoing commitment to this issue. I think there are many families across the country like Dora's who will indeed be heard. We also want to hear from the families during the pre-inquiry phase, the design phase to ensure that the design of the inquiry will meet their needs, that the families will be involved throughout the inquiry to ensure justice for the victims and healing for the families. We will have concrete action to ensure there is action taken after the inquiry is over.

[Sheila Malcolmson, NDP, Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC]

Mr. Speaker, we applaud the announcement of today's inquiry. In order to get it right we must learn the lessons from past inquiries, such as the Oppal commission in B.C. The scope there was so narrowly focused that the inquiry achieved little in the way of real change.

Families and communities want to see systemic issues addressed, such as poverty, racism, and violence against women. Therefore, I ask if the minister will reverse the previous government's cuts to the funding for indigenous women's organizations and provide adequate funding to families so that they can participate meaningfully in the process ahead?

[Carolyn Bennett, Liberal, Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, the organizations that have provided that voice and ability to bring people together have been essential to what disparate families and others have needed. We are looking at the funding for all of the national aboriginal organizations, and the organizations on the ground. Together with the Minister of Justice and the Minister of Status of Women, we will try to put together the kinds of resources that will allow everybody to participate in this inquiry and the concrete steps to stop this national tragedy.

Foreign Affairs

[Tony Clement, Conservative, Parry Sound—Muskoka, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the foreign affairs minister has said that our air strikes against ISIS will not be missed by our coalition allies and that the contribution to the bombing mission by our brave men and women in uniform has gone unnoticed. Instead, he should listen to Falah Mustafa Bakir, who heads the Kurdistan Department of Foreign Relations. He said that the air strikes have helped save lives and destroy the enemy.

The Kurdish people are on the front lines of the fight against ISIS. Instead of insulting our troops, why is the Liberal government not listening to our allies?

[Stéphane Dion, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate my colleague for his first question as spokesperson for foreign affairs. Indeed, we have a lot of support among our allies for a reorientation of our efforts to fight this awful terrorist group in a more efficient and effective way in order to be complementary, and also to be sure that at the end of the day the Iraqi people will have institutions in which they believe in order to help them to rebuild their country.

[James Bezan]

Name one country.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The member for Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman will want to listen to the answers.

The hon. member for Thornhill.

[Peter Kent, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Canada has been among world leaders in acting to counter Iran's nuclear adventurism and human rights abuse. Iran continues to call for the destruction of Israel and is an open sponsor of terrorism, yet the Prime Minister has said that Canada will reopen our mission in Tehran, and that he wants to re-engage with Iran.

Why would the Liberal government cosy up to Iran when it continues to sponsor terrorism, calls for the destruction of Israel, and disregards basic human rights?

[Stéphane Dion, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, it is a condition of the government that when we disagree deeply with a regime, it is not a reason to cut all the links with that regime. It will not help the people of lran. It will not help our allies, Israel or other countries. Canada needs to be engaged, to speak frankly, and to have results by frank dialogue and information and to be sure that we work with our allies, because everybody spoke to Iran except Canada until we changed the government.

Finance

[Lisa Raitt, Conservative, Milton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, here we are on day two and officials in Finance have confirmed that yes, indeed, the Liberal tax plan is not revenue neutral, that there is at least a $1.2 billion shortfall. Promise broken.

Another promise is that the government would not run deficits greater than $10 billion per year. Now I think the finance minister has admitted that this promise too will be broken, but what Canadians need to know is by much? How big will the deficit get?

[Bill Morneau, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, this is a great week for Canadians. We have come through on our plan to reduce taxes for the middle class. We made a commitment to do something that will help Canadians and we are following through on it. We also know that we need to be prudent and transparent as we move forward. We have been transparent in describing this commitment and describing where we are at. The budget will give more information on our exact situation.

[Lisa Raitt, Conservative, Milton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I think the minister just said he is transparent in breaking promises, which is what we have seen so far.

Of great concern as well is the fact that the finance minister's plan for growth so far is simply not adding up. The minister announced yesterday that the centerpiece of his growth plan is essentially to provide families a tax break of $10 per week, and that is for an average family. That is not a plan for growth. How can Canadians take the government seriously on economic growth?

[Bill Morneau, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, we are facing an era of low growth. We recognize this and we have created a plan in order to invest in infrastructure. The very first step this week is to reduce taxes. We will be coming forth in the budget with investments in infrastructure that will make a real and sustained difference in our growth in this country to help Canadians and their children and grandchildren with a fairer and better growth rate in the future.

International Trade

[Tracey Ramsey, NDP, Essex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, during the campaign the Liberals promised to consult the public on TPP before taking any position, but the Prime Minister has reportedly promised world leaders he will sign the Conservative-negotiated deal. People in southwestern Ontario whose jobs are on the line want to know when they will be consulted. They want a government that will stand up for their jobs.

Does the minister believe that a better deal is possible and will she try to negotiate a deal that protects Canadian jobs?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate the member for Essex on her election and her first question in the House.

We absolutely understand that a deal of the magnitude of the TPP requires extensive public consultation. I have been engaged in that energetically. I would like to thank my colleague, the Minister of Innovation, who when it comes to the auto sector particularly has been working with me. We have spoken already with labour. We are having a couple of labour meetings this week. We have spoken with the car parts manufacturers. We are meeting with more car companies this week. Consultation is essential and we are looking forward to hearing from Canadians.

[Ruth Ellen Brosseau, NDP, Berthier—Maskinongé, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister allegedly said that he will move forward with the trans-Pacific partnership, even though it could have a negative impact on our supply management system.

What is more, the Minister of International Trade recently called into question the compensation for the dairy industry. This industry is important for Quebec's economy, since it provides 92,000 jobs and generates over $8 billion.

Will the government commit to working with producers in Quebec and across the country to make sure that they are compensated fairly?