House of Commons Hansard #185 of the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was marriages.
Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings
Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre Saskatchewan
Conservative
Tom Lukiwski ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to 10 petitions.
Cheryl Gallant Conservative Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON
Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1) I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian delegation of the NATO Parliamentary Association respecting its participation at the Transatlantic Parliamentary Forum, held in Washington D.C., the United States of America, December 2 to 3, 2013.
Transport, Infrastructure and CommunitiesCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
Conservative
Larry Miller Conservative Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the fourth report of the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities in relation to its study of the review of the Canadian transportation safety regime, transportation of dangerous goods and safety management systems.
Pursuant to Standing Order 109, the House of Commons committee requests that the government table a comprehensive response to this report.
Mike Sullivan NDP York South—Weston, ON
Mr. Speaker, while we on the opposition side do generally support the recommendations of the report, we have provided for the House a supplementary opinion, because we believe that there are a number of recommendations that are not made or that are omitted, and that there are number of recommendations that do not go far enough.
As an example, the railway companies should conduct risk assessments and route planning, and operate their trains at lower speeds where it is of risk to the public. In addition, we believe that the government should provide greater oversight to the railway companies and greater inspections.
Transport, Infrastructure and CommunitiesCommittees of the HouseRoutine Proceedings
Conservative
Larry Miller Conservative Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON
Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to rise again to present, in both official languages, the fifth report of the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities in relation to the supplementary estimates, 2014-15.
While I am up, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the sixth report of the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities in relation to the main estimates, 2015-16.
Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the eighth report of the Standing Committee on National Defence in relation to the supplementary estimates C, 2014-15.
Matthew Dubé NDP Chambly—Borduas, QC
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-658, An Act respecting the development of a national strategy to reduce the incidence of concussions in amateur sport.
Mr. Speaker, today I am pleased to introduce a bill to reduce concussions. This bill is a major improvement over the previous version.
This bill calls on the Minister of Health to sit down with her provincial colleagues to adopt measures that will mitigate the scourge of concussions among young people.
It is important that the federal government show leadership on this file, and that the Minister of Health sit down with her provincial counterparts, which is what the bill asks, and puts into place measures that would help reduce concussions in amateur sports.
As a former coach myself and as a fan of sports, it is important for parents and for young people to continue to enjoy all of the positive benefits of sports in a safe environment. This bill goes a long way to taking the steps in the right direction.
I hope that my government colleagues will support this initiative. We all love sports, and we all want our young people to be safe.
(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)
Mark Warawa Conservative Langley, BC
Mr. Speaker, I am saddened to inform the House that 25-year-old Danille Kerpan was tragically killed by a drunk driver, a driver who chose to drive while impaired. Danille's family was devastated by this.
Families for Justice is a group of Canadians who have also lost loved ones killed by an impaired driver. They believe that Canada's impaired driving laws are much too lenient. They want the crime to be called what it is, vehicular homicide. Vehicular homicide is the number one cause of criminal death in Canada. Over 1,200 Canadians are killed every year by drunk drivers.
Families for Justice is also calling for mandatory sentencing for vehicular homicide and for Parliament to support Bill C-652.
Chris Charlton NDP Hamilton Mountain, ON
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise in the House today to give voice to the frustration, and dare I say, anger felt by many of my constituents about the Conservative government's decision to cancel door-to-door mail delivery and install community mailboxes.
Petitions continue to flood in, and I am pleased to be able to table 20 more today that were circulated at a recent public meeting organized by municipal councillors to lend their support to our campaign to save Canada Post. My federal NDP colleagues and I have been at the forefront of that fight since January of last year. We all know that we cannot save a business by cutting services and raising prices.
The petitioners are appalled that the Conservatives would allow Canada Post to eliminate home delivery for millions of customers, set up community mailboxes without taking residents' legitimate concerns into account, put thousands of employees out of work and then have the gall to raise the price of stamps.
Our postal service helps connect us, and these cuts will unfairly impact the most vulnerable in our society, including seniors and people with disabilities.
For all of those reasons, the petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to stop these devastating cuts to our postal service—
John Duncan Conservative Vancouver Island North, BC
Mr. Speaker, this is presenting petitions. This is not debate. All we heard was debate coming from the member.
The Acting Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton
I thank the chief government whip for his intervention.
Just a reminder to all hon. members when presenting petitions. I recognize the hon. member for Hamilton Mountain did put her remarks under the rubric of petitions and what the petitioners were requesting. At the same time, brevity is important given that we only have 15 minutes to get all the petitions registered in that short time.
To the degree that members can, keep remarks concise and remember that editorializing or providing one's own particular comments on the petition is usually considered out of order.
The hon. member for Hamilton Mountain.
Chris Charlton NDP Hamilton Mountain, ON
Mr. Speaker, for all of those reasons, the petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to stop these devastating cuts to our postal service and look instead for ways to modernize operations.
The Conservatives continue to find millions of dollars for their well-connected friends, it is time they found a way to keep the mail coming to our doors.
John McCallum Liberal Markham—Unionville, ON
Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to present a petition signed by many constituents who expressed strong concern regarding the remarks by the member for Willowdale on the subject of Iranian Canadians. This petition is itself backed by an online petition, which is signed by more than 2,400 Canadians.
Jinny Sims NDP Newton—North Delta, BC
Mr. Speaker, I have a three petitions to present today.
The first petition is from constituents in Surrey and Newton.
The petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to create a ministry for people with disability and mental health issues.
Of those with mental health issues, only one-third who need services in Canada actually receive them. The petitioners feel that creating a ministry for these people would build a healthier, harm-reduction solution that is much needed.
Like the petitioners, I too want to see real leadership on mental health.
Jinny Sims NDP Newton—North Delta, BC
Mr. Speaker, the second petition is from my constituents in Newton—North Delta.
The petitioners call upon the Government of Canada to change the current drinking and driving laws. They want to implement mandatory minimum sentences for persons convicted of impaired driving causing death.
Jinny Sims NDP Newton—North Delta, BC
Mr. Speaker, the third petition is also from my Newton—North Delta riding.
The petitioners call upon the government to increase the number of good quality and affordable child care spaces. Like the petitioners, I too feel that quality child care and early learning can be the foundation for lifelong success.
Canada ranks last among comparable countries when it comes to public spending on child care, which creates a shortage of space and increases child care costs by up to $2,000 per child. The question is not why we would invest in child care, but rather why we would disadvantage our children when it comes to their future opportunities.
Ted Hsu Liberal Kingston and the Islands, ON
Mr. Speaker, I have a petition to present today from constituents throughout the city of Kingston and in my riding of Kingston and the Islands.
The petitioners are asking the House of Commons to launch a national inquiry on the issue of missing and murdered aboriginal women and girls so that we can deal with the issue of protecting the safety of this vulnerable group.
Don Davies NDP Vancouver Kingsway, BC
Mr. Speaker, I have two petitions to present today. The first one has been signed by people who live in the Vancouver Kingsway area and all over Vancouver. It is a petition led by Ted and Cora Alcuitas. They have a lot of signatures from St. Mary's Parish in Vancouver, in my riding.
They are concerned and want the House of Commons to adopt international aid policies that support small family farmers, especially women, and recognize their vital role in their struggle against hunger and poverty and ensure that Canadian policies and programs are developed in consultation with small family farmers, that they protect the rights of small family farmers in the global south to preserve, use and freely exchange seeds.
Don Davies NDP Vancouver Kingsway, BC
Mr. Speaker, my second petition is one signed by people from all across the country in support of the peaceful and democratic development of Hong Kong.
Petitioners call upon our Parliament to recognize the rights of people to exercise freedom of association and speech and to participate in free, fair and regular elections. They call upon the Government of Canada to encourage the Government of the People's Republic of China to honour its commitments to achieve full and genuine government for the people of Hong Kong.
Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings
Regina—Lumsden—Lake Centre Saskatchewan
Conservative
Tom Lukiwski ConservativeParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
Mr. Speaker, the following questions will be answered today: Nos. 958, 961, 978, 996, 1001, 1002 and 1014.
Don Davies NDP Vancouver Kingsway, BC
With regard to Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) provisions under all international trade and investment agreements to which Canada is a party: (a) how many ISDS proceedings is Canada involved in (i) as a claimant, (ii) as a respondent; (b) for each year between 1994 and 2014, how much money has Canada spent (i) advancing its legal claims as a claimant, (ii) defending its legal claims as a respondent; and (c) how many ISDS claims has Canada lost as a respondent and how much money has it been ordered to pay to each successful claimant for each year between 1994 and 2014, with each claimant and award amount seperately identified?
Question No. 958Questions on the Order PaperRoutine Proceedings
Abbotsford B.C.
Conservative
Ed Fast ConservativeMinister of International Trade
Mr. Speaker, with regard to international trade, the government’s top priority is creating jobs and economic opportunities for hard-working Canadians and their families.
Investor state dispute settlement, ISDS, has been a core element of Canada’s trade policy for more than a generation.
Trade and investment agreements protect Canadian investors abroad, including against discrimination and expropriation without compensation. They provide Canadian businesses with access to impartial recourse to an independent, international body to resolve disputes. ISDS allows Canadian investors to seek remedies directly for violations of investment protection obligations.
None of Canada’s trade and investment agreements prevent any level of government in Canada from regulating in the public interest, nor do they exempt foreign companies that operate in Canada from Canadian laws and regulations.
ISDS allows Canadian investors to bring claims directly against foreign governments. Therefore it is not possible for Canada to be a claimant in an investor state dispute. Canadian investors can and have been claimants abroad.
Canada has been a respondent in 22 investor state disputes: twelve are concluded, two were submitted to arbitration but were withdrawn, and eight are ongoing. The Government of Canada is committed to transparency in ISDS and therefore posts online information about all ongoing cases. For details, see: http://www.international.gc.ca/trade-agreements-accords-commerciaux/topics-domaines/disp-diff/gov.aspx?lang=eng.
ISDS allows Canadian investors to bring claims directly against foreign governments. Therefore it is not possible for Canada to be a claimant in an investor state dispute. Canadian investors can and have been claimants abroad.
Approximately $27,350,446.22 has been spent relating to the defence of its legal claims as a respondent. In three cases, the tribunal ordered $1,650,200.55 of these expenditure amounts to be reimbursed to Canada. This amount is not reflected here.
Since 1994, Canada has lost three investor state disputes as a respondent: S.D. Myers v. Canada, Pope & Talbot v. Canada and Mobil & Murphy v. Canada. In respect of these cases, Canada has paid the following: in the S.D. Myers v. Canada dispute, $6.9 million Canadian plus interest for legal costs and damages; and in the Pope & Talbot v. Canada dispute, $581,766 U.S., or approximately $6 million Canadian plus interest for a portion of the arbitral fees and damages. No payment has been made to date to Mobil & Murphy.
To the extent that the information that has been requested is protected by litigation privilege, the federal crown asserts that privilege and, in this case, has waived that privilege only to the extent of revealing the total aggregate legal cost.