Debates of Oct. 17th, 2016

National Defence

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, the protection of civilians is extremely important for our government, especially the operation that we are conducting in Iraq. By actually increasing the right type of intelligence, doubling intelligence for the coalition, and tripling the intelligence, we have been able to make the Iraqi security forces more effective on the ground, and that is where the protection of civilians actually happens.

Softwood Lumber

[Karine Trudel, NDP, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals have not yet managed to sign a new softwood lumber agreement, and now the deadline has passed. This summer, the government hinted that an agreement was in sight, but the fact is that our forestry industry will be suffering because of more U.S. tariffs.

The minister refused to give any guarantees to workers who want to know what the government is going to do to protect their jobs.

Can the minister tell us today if her government has a plan B to support the industry before a trade war erupts?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, the softwood lumber agreement expired under the previous government. We are working closely with producers, workers, the provinces, and the territories, and we will continue to work with them.

Canada is prepared for every eventuality. We have a plan B, and our government will vigorously defend the interests of Canadian workers and producers. We are working toward not just any agreement, but a good agreement for Canada.

International Trade

[Tracey Ramsey, NDP, Essex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I hope that includes loan guarantees for the softwood lumber industry.

Canadians were promised transparency, yet this trade minister is still being evasive about the ongoing negotiations of CETA. Wallonia's vote against CETA highlights the many ongoing concerns, including threats to local sovereignty from investor-state provisions. Now the Prime Minister is questioning the relevance of Europe, when in fact many Canadians share similar concerns about this trade deal.

The minister is so focused on the concerns of Europeans, but when will she focus on Canadians' concerns and fix this deal once and for all?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, CETA is one of my top priorities, and I continue to be engaged actively with Canadian partners and with our European partners constantly on this issue. I want to say to the hon. member opposite that I am surprised to hear from the NDP, a party that likes to talk about how it cares about the interests of Quebec, questions about this deal, which are so essential for all of Canada, but particularly for Quebec in terms of bringing us closer to francophone Europe.

Justice

[Michael Cooper, Conservative, St. Albert—Edmonton, AB]

Mr. Speaker, serious criminal cases have been thrown out of court as a result of the failure of the Minister of Justice to fill judicial vacancies. Now, in Alberta, a case involving the most serious offence, a first degree murder, was thrown out of court.

How many more cases is the Minister of Justice prepared to see thrown out of court before she does her job and starts appointing judges?

[Jody Wilson-Raybould, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate being able to stand up and speak to the work that our government is doing with respect to ensuring a fair, relevant, and accessible criminal justice system.

We are working extremely hard. I am working with my counterparts in the provinces and territories to address the relevant factors that lead to delays, including the appointment of judges.

I was very fortunate to have appointed 15 judges back in June, and I am looking forward to making an announcement very soon with respect to additional superior court judges.

Indigenous Affairs

[Cathy McLeod, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal government should be ashamed of its approach to first nations transparency. Three hundred band members from the Samson Cree Nation are now calling for a forensic audit into how their chief and council spent federal funds. They know there was money that was supposed to be going into programs, such as suicide and gang violence prevention, but they see very little change on the ground.

When will the government respond to their plea for a forensic audit and also start to enforce the First Nations Financial Transparency Act?

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

Mr. Speaker, accountability and transparency are key tenets for all first nations as well as for this government, and we are ensuring the delivery of the historic investments in indigenous and northern communities through budget 2016.

We are engaging with first nations on the way forward on transparency and accountability. As the member well knows, any member of any first nation can ask our government to provide the audited financial statements at any time. I welcome that request.

[Cathy McLeod, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the story continues.

Band members of the Alexander and the Onion Lake first nations are calling for financial transparency. In Alexander, an investigation identified $2.1 million in unexplained payments. In Onion Lake, they have not even provided basic information.

With the First Nations Financial Transparency Act, band members for the first time ever have access to basic information that all Canadians deserve. When will the Liberals enforce the First Nations Financial Transparency Act?

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

Mr. Speaker, as the member well knows, top-down solutions do not work, and in the Kelowna accord the call for a first nations' auditor general was immediately torn up by the previous government.

We are taking very seriously any allegations of misuse of public funds and, when necessary, we do conduct forensic audits to ensure that the funds were used properly. The audit was commissioned by the Alexander First Nation and therefore we cannot comment on it, but we are reviewing the situation in order to determine whether or not a forensic audit will be required.

Regional Economic Development

[Terry Sheehan, Liberal, Sault Ste. Marie, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I was very pleased to host meetings this past week with the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development and local stakeholders in my riding of Sault Ste. Marie. I am equally proud of our government as it makes historic investments in post-secondary education.

Northern Ontario is a large land mass and has communities of all shapes and sizes scattered throughout. We face a unique challenge in promoting economic development. Can the minister responsible for promoting regional economic development share with us his plans for northern Ontario?

[Navdeep Bains, Liberal, Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Sault Ste. Marie for his question. It really is an honour and privilege to work with him and other colleagues from northern Ontario.

Our government is doing its part, and we are promoting economic development. Just last week, we invested $9 million in Confederation College, $5 million in Sault College, $5.1 million in the Shingwauk Education Trust, $2.7 million in the Oshki Education Institute, $2.5 million in Algoma University, and $1.6 million for women entrepreneurship, and there are many more investments yet to come.

Official Languages

[Sylvie Boucher, Conservative, Beauport—Côte-de-Beaupré—Île d’Orléans—Charlevoix, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Standing Committee on Official Languages recently learned that the French language test that immigrants have to take to be accepted into Canada is much more expensive than the English test. This situation is completely unacceptable.

The committee asked Citizenship and Immigration Canada to provide a copy of the test, but that request has been ignored.

Can the minister assure us that the French test will cost less than the English test for immigrants? Will he send us—

[The Speaker, Geoff Regan]

The hon. Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship.

[John McCallum, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for her question.

We take the challenges facing francophones outside Quebec very seriously. We have already announced the francophone significant benefit program. We will probably add other measures for francophones outside Quebec to help them in many ways.

As for the cost of the test, we are currently looking into the matter.

Health

[Hélène Laverdière, NDP, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, while the Prime Minister was busy posing for photo ops in Montreal and saying that Canada wants to be a world leader in the fight against HIV/AIDS, his government was quietly cutting assistance to HIV/AIDS advocacy organizations. This will have a devastating impact on the sector and directly affect very vulnerable people, particularly in indigenous and LGBT communities.

Will the minister do the right thing and restore funding to those organizations?

[Kamal Khera, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, HIV and hep C are serious but preventable diseases. The funding that the Public Health Agency of Canada provides to community-based organizations across the country to combat HIV and hep C is staying steady at $26.4 million. There are a number of new organizations that have been invited to submit full proposals. This is part of an open, objective, evidence-based, and transparent process, and decisions were made by the committee of technical experts.

Persons with Disabilities

[Julie Dabrusin, Liberal, Toronto—Danforth, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in September, Canada watched with excitement as our Paralympians made history with their performances in Rio.

Our high-level athletes are among the best in the world, but when they get home they still face accessibility challenges across the country.

Would the Minister of Sport and Persons with Disabilities share with the House some of her vision and what she hopes to achieve with Canada's accessibility legislation?

[Carla Qualtrough, Liberal, Minister of Sport and Persons with Disabilities]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague from Toronto—Danforth for her question.

Our government is determined to ensure better accessibility for Canadians with disabilities and better opportunities in their communities and their workplaces from coast to coast to coast.

This new law would proactively address barriers to inclusion and shift the conversation on disabilities in this country. This is my vision. However, we want to hear from Canadians. I encourage everyone in the House and every Canadian to participate in the consultations that are ongoing through February 2017.

We are going to make a difference with this law.

Taxation

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

Mr. Speaker, they may not want to admit it, but the job situation in Alberta is critical. Here is the real impact of the Liberal tax policy on some Alberta communities: High River minor hockey registration is down 20%; a Calgary dance studio's registration is down 100 kids; and Redwater food bank usage is up 60%.

They took away the child fitness tax credit, they took away the universal child care benefit, and they are replacing them with the job-killing carbon tax. It is only going to make a dire situation much worse.

When is the government going to realize that the tax policy decisions it is making and these schemes are only going to make lives much worse for Canadian families?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, as I said before, unlike the Conservatives, we are focused on supporting middle-class Canadians and families who are working hard to join the middle class.

Not only did the Conservatives vote against the Paris agreement and the Vancouver declaration, but they also voted against almost everything we have done to improve the lives of Canadians across the country. They voted against reducing taxes for nine million out of 10 million Canadians. They voted against a child benefit that helps nine out of 10 Canadian families and will lift 300,000 Canadian children out of poverty.

Our government is focused on protecting the environment and growing the economy in a responsible way.

Employment Insurance

[Monique Pauzé, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Speaker, mothers who lose their employment while on parental leave are not entitled to employment insurance. The minister knows it and is doing nothing about it. The government is once again hiding behind another consultation. The solution is simple and everyone knows what it is. It is just a matter of political will.

Will the minister immediately change the regulations, as we suggested she do, so that women in Quebec can stop being punished for becoming mothers?

[Terry Duguid, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, through budget 2016, the government announced changes to improve employment insurance so that more Canadians could get the help they need when they need it.

Our government is committed to improving EI. This includes making compassionate care benefits more flexible and more inclusive for those who provide care for seriously ill family members and providing more flexibility in parental benefits and leave.

As the hon. member knows, we are involved in consultations with provinces, territories, and other stakeholders, in the coming weeks in order to modernize employment insurance.

Status of Women

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

Mr. Speaker, France's prime minister, Manuel Valls, was telling it like it is when he said, “The full veil is essentially a means to undermine women, [and that] goes against...democratic values.”

It is about time that our so-called feminist and democratic Prime Minister understand this. If he truly supports gender parity, what is the prime minister waiting for to require women to take the citizenship oath with their faces uncovered?