Debates of Jan. 28th, 2016

Foreign Affairs

[Omar Alghabra, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Consular Affairs)]

Mr. Speaker, this is an important matter that our government is seized with. The foreign affairs minister has been in contact with the foreign affairs minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo. We have raised this issue. We will continue to monitor the situation and we will follow it up. Any new changes will be reported to the House.

Taxation

[Michael McLeod, Liberal, Northwest Territories, NT]

Mr. Speaker, residents in my riding of Northwest Territories, as well as other northern and remote parts of Canada, live with the reality of a very high cost of living. One way to help address this challenge is through our tax system, specifically the northern residents deductions.

Could the Minister of National Revenue please advise the House of the commitment to increase the northern residents deductions?

[Diane Lebouthillier, Liberal, Minister of National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the voters of Gaspésie—Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine, who have placed their trust in me to represent them. I thank my colleague from Northwest Territories for the question.

During the election we campaigned on increasing the deduction for northern residents. It is a priority. Canada's north and the people who live there can count on our government to help families living in remote areas contribute to the economy and benefit from Canada's economic growth.

Foreign Affairs

[Joël Godin, Conservative, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

Mr. Speaker, on January 15, six Canadians from the Quebec City region lost their lives in a terrorist attack in Burkina Faso.

Since the beginning of this tragedy, the government has failed the victims. No government representative attended the vigil in memory of the victims. Yesterday, the minister from the Quebec City region refused to confirm whether he or a government representative would attend the funeral. The people in the Quebec City region are anxious to have their government take an interest in them.

While respecting the families' wishes, can the minister help his government save face and confirm that he, the Prime Minister, or one of his cabinet colleagues will attend the funeral?

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for the question. It gives me the opportunity to say how moved the Canadian government and I were by the sadness and suffering of our families in Quebec City. These deaths occurred under extremely difficult circumstances thousands of kilometres away from home. This was a tragedy for the families and friends, for the entire Quebec City region, and for the entire Canadian government.

Canada Post

[Karine Trudel, NDP, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the Prime Minister reminded the House that he promised to put a moratorium on the changes at Canada Post. That is strange, because during the election campaign, the Prime Minister stood in front of mayor Denis Coderre and promised to, and I quote, “save home mail delivery”.

Will the minister honour the Prime Minister's word and restore home delivery, or will this promise be broken?

[Judy Foote, Liberal, Minister of Public Services and Procurement]

Mr. Speaker, we are committed to carrying out an independent review of Canada Post, which will look at every entity, every aspect of Canada Post. It will be done independently. I cannot imagine that my colleague would be adverse to that.

It is important we have a Canada Post that delivers services that Canadians expect, and at a reasonable cost.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[David Graham, Liberal, Laurentides—Labelle, QC]

Mr. Speaker, during the election campaign, I was proud of our commitment to grant immediate permanent residency to spouses who have been sponsored to immigrate to Canada. A number of my constituents are waiting on these regulatory changes to be reunited with their loved ones, whom they have not seen for years in some cases. Can the Minister of Immigration share his plans on this issue?

[John McCallum, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his great question. Obviously, when spouses entering Canada have a conditional status, they are at risk of domestic violence because they have no status here. The government is determined to change that, so that all spouses who enter Canada immediately become permanent residents.

The Senate

[Scott Reid, Conservative, Lanark—Frontenac—Kingston, ON]

Mr. Speaker, when I asked the minister a couple of days ago about why the government had baked so much secrecy into its Senate appointment process, she responded by hiding behind the courts.

Her suggestion that the courts had interpreted the Constitution to require secrecy at any stage, let alone at all stages, of the appointment process is just wrong. What the Supreme Court actually says, in paragraph 50 of its Senate reference ruling, is that the practice of appointing senators on the advice of the Prime Minister is nothing more than a non-justiciable convention.

Given that the courts do not require it, what is the real reason for all the secrecy?

[Maryam Monsef, Liberal, Minister of Democratic Institutions]

Mr. Speaker, I do not share the hon. member's cynicism, and with good reason.

The new independent, non-partisan, merit-based, open and transparent process we have introduced is in the capable hands of nine of eminent Canadians who make up the advisory board, individuals like Dr. Dawn Lavell-Harvard, president of the Native Women's Association of Canada. We believe that the presence of new non-partisan senators will enhance the effectiveness of this important democratic institution.

The Environment

[Rhéal Fortin, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in Paris, the Prime Minister promised to help fight climate change. Yesterday, the government said that it wanted to consider the increase in greenhouse gas emissions related to the TransCanada pipeline project. In addition to putting more than 800 Quebec waterways at risk, this project would increase the production of oil from the oil sands and the associated greenhouse gas emissions by 40%. When will the Prime Minister realize that the construction of the energy east pipeline goes against the objectives that he set for himself in Paris?

[Catherine McKenna, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, we are really proud of the work that we accomplished in Paris and the ambitious agreement that was reached. I was there along with colleagues from all of the parties. Our government will rebuild Canadians' trust in the environmental assessment process. We are going to look at greenhouse gas emissions as part of our assessment process, and we are going to ensure that we have Canadians' trust.

CBC/Radio-Canada

[Monique Pauzé, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the CBC has suffered major funding cuts over the past few years, which are now jeopardizing the quality of programming, as well as accessibility and regional news in Quebec. The Liberals repeatedly promised during the election campaign to restore and enhance funding for the CBC, and they have continued to make that promise since they took office.

On behalf of artists and the general public in particular, I am asking the minister whether she intends to keep her promise to—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. Minister of Canadian Heritage.

[Mélanie Joly, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my hon. colleague for that important question.

I want to reassure the House that we are going to reinvest in CBC/Radio-Canada, because unlike the previous government, we believe in that corporation. That is why I am going to work with stakeholders to hold consultations on how best to support CBC/Radio-Canada in its digital transformation.

Presence in Gallery

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I would like to draw to the attention of hon. members the presence in the gallery of the Hon. Brian Kenny, Minister of Environment and Local Government for the Province of New Brunswick, and the Hon. Tom Nevakshonoff, Minister of Conservation and Water Stewardship for the Province of Manitoba.

[Some hon. members]

Hear, hear!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I would also like to draw to the attention of hon. members the presence in the gallery of the winners of the million dollar 2016 Arctic Inspiration Prize, consisting of members from the groups Tri-Territorial Training Project, Better Hearing in Education for Northern Youth, and Qaggiq: Nurturing the Arctic Performing Arts.

[Some hon. members]

Hear, hear!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I would like to take this opportunity to remind all members that as part of the members' orientation program, the Service Fair is taking place until 4:00 p.m. in the committee rooms off the Hall of Honour area. The Service Fair features more than 30 kiosks presenting key resources available to you and your employees to help you manage your offices and carry out your parliamentary work.

Business of the House

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I want to say this to the House leaders, who could pass this on to the whips, that right after question period is a good time for the whips not to leave but to stick around to make sure that members leave if they are going to be talking. Otherwise if they want to sit and listen, of course, that is to be encouraged.

Now I am happy to turn for a brief question for the opposition House leader. I trust that he and the government House leader will stick to the issues of the day, the facts, and not any embellishments.

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Mr. Speaker, I do not know if that has ever happened in this chamber before.

I have a very simple question. I know this is the part of Thursdays that members look forward to the most. I simply want to ask the government House leader if he can update the House as to the business for the rest of the week and into next week.

I know he has already informed the House that the principle of secret ballots is so offensive to Liberals that they are going to repeal that very important legislation, but I just want to know if there are other pieces of legislation that he may be bringing forward next week as well.

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, in spite of his best efforts, we just had a good example of embellishment right there. Why do I not focus on the very erudite question that comes on Thursdays that I know members look forward to all week.

This afternoon we will resume debate on the Conservative Party's opposition motion.

Tomorrow, the House will debate Bill C-2, which amends the Income Tax Act, at second reading, and we will continue that important debate on Monday.

Tuesday, February 2, will be another opposition day.

On Wednesday, we will debate Bill C-4, which repeals the Conservatives' unfair union bills. As colleagues know, this important legislation was introduced this morning.

Lastly, Thursday, February 4, will be another opposition day.

The House resumed consideration of the motion.