Debates of March 23rd, 2015

Public Safety

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

Mr. Speaker, the Canadian Bar Association is not the only one worried about the impact that Bill C-51 will have on our rights and freedoms.

In a letter to the Conservative ministers, the Government of Quebec denounced the fact that Bill C-51 gives CSIS “such vast powers, including the possibility to take certain actions that violate the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms”.

What does the Conservative government plan to do to address these entirely legitimate concerns?

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

Mr. Speaker, as the member knows very well, our government intends to continue to hold consultations in this parliamentary process.

This is obviously a very important bill that has far-reaching implications. This is why we are waiting for the process to conclude with regard to the ongoing testimony from experts who are appearing before this very important parliamentary committee on the bill. We will await full input, including the input of the hon. member.

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

Mr. Speaker, this is not the first time the Conservatives have alienated the provinces by trying to impose flawed, unbalanced legislation. Just think of Bill C-10, the omnibus crime bill that the Conservative government imposed on Quebec, despite the fact that the bill would lead to overcrowded prisons and cost the provinces tens of millions of dollars.

When will the Conservatives stop imposing bills on the provinces that they want no part of, without even consulting them first?

[Steven Blaney, Conservative, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, once again, as I have already said, I had the opportunity to meet with Quebec's public security minister, Lise Thériault.

The Quebec government, like the Government of Canada, recognizes the importance of adopting effective measures to confront the terrorist threat. That is why we introduced Bill C-51, a bill that has targeted, effective measures to track terrorists.

I invite my colleague to follow the committee proceedings. The sister of Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent is appearing before the committee this evening, and I invite the member to listen to her evidence.

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

Mr. Speaker, let us be clear. Bill C-51 is so problematic that even groups that normally support the Conservatives, like the National Firearms Association, are speaking out against it.

When the government has lost even some of its closest allies because it is threatening the rights and freedoms of Canadians, it is time for it to reconsider what it is fighting for.

What will it take for the minister to stop ramming this dangerous bill through Parliament, and to get him to stop and listen to Canadians?

[Steven Blaney, Conservative, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, the member forgets that the jihadi terrorists have declared war on us.

He has forgotten that, on October 20, there was a terrorist attack, although those members will not call it that. They do not want to call a cat a cat. It was a terrorist attack that took place on October 20 in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, as well as in this very place.

That is why our first duty is to take a responsible and balanced approach to protect the rights and freedoms of Canadians against the international jihadi terrorist threats.

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

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives came here to change Ottawa, but it seems like Ottawa has actually changed them.

There was a time when the Conservatives would have been the first to speak up against legislation that so profoundly threatens our rights and freedoms, but now they champion it.

Canadians have been clear. Bill C-51 needs a full study and amendments, not a rubber stamp by Conservative MPs. Will the minister do the right thing, listen to the voices of thousands of Canadians and stop this bad bill?

[Steven Blaney, Conservative, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, it is clear that there is no security, and there is no liberty without security.

Why would the NDP would oppose reasonable measures to protect Canadians from terrorists? What about cutting criminalization of terrorism, or just preventing high-risk travellers from getting on to an airplane to conduct terrorist attacks? This is not the Canadian way.

We have tabled a responsible bill, and we are eager to hear witnesses, like the sister of Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent. Why does the NDP not listen too?

Ethics

[Charlie Angus, NDP, Timmins—James Bay, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Public Works and Government Services was found guilty for interfering politically in a project to help friends of the Conservative Party, but she has not really come clean with Canadians, and a lot of questions remain unanswered.

What did happen to that letter from the MP for Thornhill? Was it really lost, or did the Conservatives deep-six it? There are also allegations that the minister interfered in other projects. I will be bringing this issue to the ethics committee.

It is a simple question. Will the Conservatives work with us to get to the bottom of these serious allegations, or will they continue to cover up for the very ethically challenged minister?

[Paul Calandra, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister and for Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, obviously the minister acted within good faith and within the discretionary authority that was available to her. The main goal was to improve accessibility for people with disabilities to a community centre.

With respect to the ethics committee, I suspect the ethics committee might also want to take a look at the inappropriate mailings of the NDP, which have cost taxpayers $2.7 million. We might also want to look at the illegal $350,000 that NDP members accepted in campaign contributions, or the fact that they were charged $40,000 for illegal robocalls. I suspect the House of Commons, which is soon going to be garnishing their wages, will help us deal with that.

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

Mr. Speaker, Canadians have the right to know the truth. The report from the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner could not answer all the questions about funding for the Markham community centre. The minister even received a letter from the Minister of the Environment asking her to fund the project. Oddly enough, that letter has disappeared.

When correspondence between two ministers disappears, that always raises suspicions. Can the minister help us find that letter and get to the bottom of this?

[Diane Finley, Conservative, Minister of Public Works and Government Services]

Mr. Speaker, I have always believed that this project to improve access to the Markham centre for people with disabilities was valid and in the public interest.

I can assure the member that I co-operated fully for the three years that the investigation was under way.

Employment

[Sadia Groguhé, NDP, Saint-Lambert, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the temporary foreign worker program is still a mess because of the Conservatives' mismanagement. The new Microsoft Canada training centre in Vancouver was supposed to provide 400 new jobs, but only 20 out of those 400 jobs will be offered to Canadians. The other positions will be filled by recruiting temporary foreign workers.

Can the minister explain why he is once again allowing the temporary foreign worker program to be used against the interests of the Canadian labour force?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Minister of Employment and Social Development and Minister for Democratic Reform]

Mr. Speaker, our reforms seek to ensure that Canadian jobs go to Canadians and that the temporary foreign worker program is used as a last resort to fill needs that Canadians are not available to meet. That is why we limited the percentage of work for which a company can find temporary foreign workers. We also put financial penalties and even prison sentences in place for those who disobey these rules.

[Jinny Sims, NDP, Newton—North Delta, BC]

Really, Mr. Speaker. When the Conservatives promised to ensure that jobs in Canada would go to Canadians first, who would have thought they meant only 5% of the jobs? They are allowing Microsoft to hire foreign workers without any scrutiny, even though Microsoft promised that only 20 of its 400 jobs would go to Canadians.

These kinds of exemptions make a joke out of the government's reforms. When are the Conservatives going to get serious about overhauling the temporary foreign worker program?

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

Mr. Speaker, the fact is that former NDP MLA Gregor Robertson was at the announcement welcoming the opening of this centre. It is a training centre. We should all be proud of the fact that Canada is now attracting investment and growth from some of the world's largest technology players. That is because our immigration system is working. That is because our training and education system is working.

Canada has a workforce in this sector, as in others, that is second to none in the world, and that is showing in Vancouver and elsewhere.

[Jinny Sims, NDP, Newton—North Delta, BC]

Mr. Speaker, that absolutely shows that the centre is being used to launder people through it, and only 5% of the jobs are going to Canadians.

In December, the former minister for Employment and Social Development announced he was hiring 400 additional public servants to deal with the lengthy delays in EI processing. This was, we were told, a result of “the important work” done by his parliamentary secretary. However, Canadians who would like to see this report are out of luck as the government has not made it public.

When will the minister table that report so Canadians can—

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

Order, please. The hon. Minister of Employment.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Minister of Employment and Social Development and Minister for Democratic Reform]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my excellent parliamentary secretary for his work on this and other important files.

Over the last 10 years, we have increased the efficiency by 42% in the EI program. Two-thirds of claims are now fully or partially automated. The result is that now the majority of EI claimants receive their pay within 28 days of making their claim, and that number is on the rise.

The reality is that our goal is to cut taxes to create more jobs so EI recipients have the opportunities that are before them to get out into the workforce.

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

Mr. Speaker, today there is yet another report showing that Canada's job market has flatlined. The report shows that annualized job growth in Canada has stayed below 1% for 15 months in a row. Outside of a full recession, that is Canada's longest stretch of low growth in jobs in almost 40 years.

Canadians are looking for a response from the government. They need action. Why does the government continue to refuse to provide Canadians with a plan for jobs and growth, and a budget?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Minister of Employment and Social Development and Minister for Democratic Reform]

Mr. Speaker, we have a plan; it is called the low-tax plan. That is precisely why the Liberals cannot recognize it, because they cannot recognize anything called low tax. Their only idea on jobs is to raise taxes on people who create them. That is the equivalent of thinking that a budget will simply balance itself.

We have lowered taxes and created $1.2 million net new jobs, 85% of them full-time and two-thirds in high wage sectors. We will continue to lower taxes and continue to increase employment.

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

Mr. Speaker, budgets do not write themselves either. It takes a government with a real plan for jobs and growth.

The report shows that in the past year most of the job growth has been in temporary work, not full-time jobs. The evidence is clear. The Bank of Canada, the PBO, the TD Bank and the CIBC all agree that Canada's job market is much weaker than our unemployment rate actually suggests. The Bank of Canada has taken action and has lowered interest rates.

When will the Conservatives stop dilly-dallying, stop dithering and actually provide Canada with a budget, with a plan for jobs and growth?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Minister of Employment and Social Development and Minister for Democratic Reform]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member should tell his leader that budgets do not balance themselves. It takes hard work and discipline to do that.

On jobs, we have a three-T plan: trade, training and tax cuts. Guess what? It is working, and 1.2 million net new jobs have resulted from lower taxes, increased trade and more training for our young people so they can realize their full potential in our economy.

Canada Revenue Agency

[Emmanuel Dubourg, Liberal, Bourassa, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are trampling on the taxpayer bill of rights.

Article 6 states that, “You have the right to complete, accurate, clear, and timely information.” A survey conducted by the Canada Revenue Agency showed that ever since all the service counters closed, a company has to call three times on average before getting a response. When companies did manage to reach someone, they were given incorrect information one out of four times.

Is that what the minister calls accurate, complete and timely information?

[Kerry-Lynne Findlay, Conservative, Minister of National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, these results are unacceptable. We agree that when Canadian individuals and businesses contact the Canada Revenue Agency, we expect them to be provided with correct information. We encourage people who believe they have received incorrect information from the CRA to make a formal complaint. We expect the CRA to continuously improve the quality and accuracy of the telephone services it is providing. We have implemented several measures to improve the quality of services offered by the Canada Revenue Agency.