Debates of March 27th, 2015

Public Safety

[Wayne Easter, Liberal, Malpeque, PE]

Mr. Speaker, of course the threat is real, but the government cut $290 million from the RCMP since 2012. That is unacceptable and it is doing it in order to give a tax break to the rich.

Beyond that, the RCMP rank and file members are now speaking out. They are mad and are feeling betrayed. They lack training. They lack equipment. The government has failed to honour the commitments it made to the Mayerthorpe recommendations, which cost RCMP lives. That comes out of the Moncton report.

Why does the minister force cutbacks, put Canadians at risk and even risks the lives of RCMP officers? Why?

[Roxanne James, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, that is similar to the rhetoric we heard in committee this past week.

Let me talk about one of the witnesses who did appear before committee. Inspector Irwin has more than 30 years of experience in law enforcement and intelligence gathering. What did this credible witness say about Bill C-51? He said that existing laws “are too restrictive” and that there was an absolute need for the new measures contained within this bill. What else did he say about the need for information sharing? He said that it was absolutely crucial. In general, with respect to the bill, contrary to what the opposition parties like to put out, he said that it provided the necessary safeguards.

In the same meeting, we heard opposition witnesses say that the bill had absolutely nothing to do with—

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

Order, please. The hon. member for Terrebonne—Blainville.

Canada Post

[Charmaine Borg, NDP, Terrebonne—Blainville, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the City of Terrebonne wants a moratorium on the installation of community mailboxes. Residents are outraged by the lack of public consultation.

Canada Post is ignoring the diversity of municipalities. More than 200 cities are shocked by Canada Post's attitude.

Will the government honour Terrebonne's request or will it plough ahead with the installation of community boxes without cities' consent?

[Jeff Watson, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, Canada Post delivered about 1.4 billion fewer pieces of letter mail in 2014 than in 2006. Two-thirds of Canadians do not receive mail at home.

Canada Post must balance its books without being a burden on Canadian taxpayers, and we would expect nothing less.

[Alain Giguère, NDP, Marc-Aurèle-Fortin, QC]

Mr. Speaker, it is not just mail that the Conservatives cannot deliver; it seems they also have a hard time with accounting.

The people in my riding of Marc-Aurèle-Fortin reject the Conservatives' decision to end home delivery at a time when Canada Post is posting record profits.

In fact, we have learned that Canada Post made a $194 million profit this year, but it is still halting door-to-door mail delivery. That is unbelievable.

Will the Conservatives finally listen to Canadians and deliver the mail?

[Jeff Watson, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I remind the member that in 2014, Canada Post delivered nearly 1.4 billion fewer pieces of letter mail than it did in 2006. That is a further and continued decline in that business.

Canada Post has decided it needs to continue to take action. That is why it has a five-point plan. For the remaining third of Canadians who do not receive mail at their mailbox, that will proceed so they will have daily mail on the same terms as two-thirds of Canadians currently receive it right now.

Manufacturing Industry

[John Carmichael, Conservative, Don Valley West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, our government remains committed to creating and maintaining jobs in Ontario's vital manufacturing sector. Earlier this morning our government announced further support for manufacturers.

Could the regional minister responsible for southwestern Ontario please update the House on this important announcement?

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

Mr. Speaker, today our government was pleased to announce that FibreCast Inc. would receive a $10 million repayable contribution under the advanced manufacturing fund. This investment will help Ontario manufacturers create high quality high paying jobs and compete globally.

While we are standing up for the manufacturing sector, the Liberal leader said that Canada needed to start, “transitioning away from manufacturing-based employment as a driver in the economy”. This is just further proof that the Liberal leader is an economic novice who is incapable of managing the Canadian economy.

Aboriginal Affairs

[Yvonne Jones, Liberal, Labrador, NL]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development and the MP for Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River stated that RCMP statistics verifying their comment that 70% of missing and murdered indigenous women were attributed to native men would be released. Today the RCMP said that no, they will not.

Why would the government members make that commitment and use the data in private meetings, only to be overturned in the public by the RCMP? Will the minister make good on the commitment?

[Bernard Valcourt, Conservative, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development]

Mr. Speaker, as I indicated earlier this week, last week I did a tour of the prairies and met with several chiefs, councillors, and stakeholders on the aboriginal file to discuss a wide range of issues. While I do not disclose specifics of closed-door meetings, I can assure the hon. members in the House that the discussions were productive, and our government will continue to work with first nations to address these issues.

Taxation

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

Mr. Speaker, many people say that the riding of West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country is the most beautiful place on earth. Families in this riding are asking what can be done to help them in terms of tax relief and direct support. What they do not need is waste and new bureaucracies.

I wonder if the Minister of Employment and Social Development can tell us what our government is doing to respond to families like those in West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country?

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

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for a challenging but thoughtful question.

We have balanced our budget, and now we are helping families balance theirs. Our low-tax plan will allow income splitting for parents to put up to $2,000 back into their pockets. We have increased the Conservative universal child care benefit to almost $2,000 for every child under six and to $720 for every child six through 17. That means we put money directly in the pockets of families.

While the NDP and Liberals would take that money away and raise taxes to fund new bureaucracies, we disagree. We are giving the dollars back to the more than eight million real child care experts who are out there, and their names are Mom and Dad.

Gun Registry

[Jean-François Larose, Forces et Démocratie, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Speaker, by a single vote, a majority of the Supreme Court has agreed to let the Conservatives destroy the gun registry data for Quebec.

Beyond the legal aspect, there is something called common sense. The federal government has the opportunity to prove that it can work with the Government of Quebec by transferring the data rather than hitting the delete button.

Why make Quebeckers pay twice for something that already exists?

[Roxanne James, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

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

As I mentioned earlier today, the Supreme Court of Canada has been very clear on this matter, and we are pleased, as a government, with the decision on this particular issue.

As I mentioned earlier, we have a strong system of gun control in Canada, and our government has toughened laws and penalties for those who commit crimes.

Natural Resources

[Jean-François Larose, Forces et Démocratie, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we can see where TransCanada's priorities lie when it comes to the energy east pipeline. First, the company refuses to be transparent by providing its documentation in French for the people in my riding. Then, it disparages an independent study commissioned by elected officials in the RCM of D'Autray who want to know more about what the risks really are.

What is the government waiting for? When will it intervene to ensure that Canadians have all the information available on the risks associated with the pipeline?

[Kelly Block, Conservative, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, the National Energy Board has fulfilled its requirements under the Official Languages Act. Any documents produced by the National Energy Board must be published in both official languages. Questions related to documents filed by an applicant should be directed toward the project proponent.

Labour

[Manon Perreault, Independent, Montcalm, QC]

Mr. Speaker, last week, we learned that the government, before reversing its position, wanted to cut 50 jobs at a federal sorting facility. Those positions were filled by people with intellectual disabilities. These jobs, which were useful to and enjoyed by these workers, were more of a symbolic gesture than an actual way to earn a living since workers were paid only $1.15 an hour.

Many people share the same concern and are wondering about this. Does the government think it is right to be paying hard-working and capable employees $1.15 an hour?

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

Mr. Speaker, there is nothing more inspiring than people who want to work, regardless of the challenges they face in life. That is the case with these 50 extraordinary workers who have been serving the government and all Canadians for over 35 years.

Their contract with the government is expiring and I am pleased to announce that we will be renewing it for another three years. We give the money directly to the organization that manages their wages to prevent them from losing any of their provincial benefits.

[Manon Perreault, Independent, Montcalm, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I was talking about the fact that these people are paid only $1.15 an hour.

That being said, is there now a labour policy adapted to the needs of this client group? It is not an impossible task. All it takes is the willingness of the government.

Will the government commit this morning to proposing a labour plan that provides for decent wages for people with intellectual disabilities?

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

Mr. Speaker, there is nothing more inspiring than people who want to work despite the obstacles life puts in their way. Such is the case with roughly 50 excellent workers who have served the government and the people of Canada for over three decades in sorting, recycling, and shredding sensitive documents at Tunney's Pasture.

Their contract was expiring. We have agreed to extend it for another three years. The salaries are set by the association for people with disabilities to avoid having provincial benefits clawed back. But we will continue to work to create jobs for people with disabilities.

Government Response to Petitions

[Tom Lukiwski, Conservative, Parliamentary 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 responses to five petitions.

Statutory Release Reform Act

[Diane Finley, Conservative, Haldimand—Norfolk, ON]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-56, An Act to amend the Corrections and Conditional Release Act and to make a consequential amendment to the International Transfer of Offenders Act.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

Support for Families Act

[Joe Oliver, Conservative, Minister of Finance]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-57, An Act to amend the Income Tax Act and the Universal Child Care Benefit Act and to make related amendments to another Act.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

Genetically Modified Foods

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

Mr. Speaker, I stand today to present a petition on behalf of over 100 Canadians, mostly located in the beautiful province of Ontario, who are concerned about apples. In fact, they are concerned about the possibility that a genetically modified apple may be approved by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. They suggest that this should not happen.