House of Commons Hansard #90 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was cabinet.
Michael Cooper Conservative St. Albert—Edmonton, AB
Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Minister of Foreign Affairs gave a thumbs down when I called on the government to make the return of the Azer children a priority. The minister came close today to apologizing, but yesterday he doubled down, by deploying a Liberal insider to criticize Alison Azer for daring to speak up for the return of her children.
Will the minister give a sincere apology to Alison Azer, and, second, apologize for deploying a Liberal insider to criticize Alison Azer's efforts?
Stéphane Dion LiberalMinister of Foreign Affairs
Mr. Speaker, it is imperative in order to resolve heart-breaking cases as this family's that all colleagues in this House work together. The opposition is free to instead politicize this issue in an unhelpful way, as my colleague did yesterday.
Now that members know how I feel about harmful politicization, I will come back to my usual impeccable parliamentary behaviour, and again I will say that my door is open. Let us all work together to reunite this family.
Michael Cooper Conservative St. Albert—Edmonton, AB
Mr. Speaker, it is certainly interesting that the minister would say that, because it certainly was not the Liberal approach with the case of Mohamed Fahmy. Needless to say, the Minister of Foreign Affairs did not answer the question that was posed by the hon. member for Courtenay—Alberni to provide this House and all Canadians with an update on the status of the Azer children. Will he do so now?
Stéphane Dion LiberalMinister of Foreign Affairs
Mr. Speaker, I will certainly not reveal information that will hurt the case. I have no other goal than to bring these children home with their mother.
I am only saying that in order to succeed, we need to work all together and avoid politicizing this issue.
If the opposition has concrete suggestions to make on how to bring these children out of Iran, my door is open, and the door of my parliamentary secretary is open, for constructive suggestions from any of our colleagues.
Sheri Benson NDP Saskatoon West, SK
Mr. Speaker, this government has acknowledged that pay equity is a fundamental human right, so why is it asking Canadian women to wait another two years? Enough is enough.
The previous Liberal government shelved pay equity legislation in 2005. Women should not have to wait until 2018 for this Liberal government to do the right thing. The Liberals have everything they need to introduce pay equity legislation now. What are they waiting for?
MaryAnn Mihychuk LiberalMinister of Employment
Mr. Speaker, I am proud to inform the House that we have a government that will actually implement proactive pay equity legislation, not like the previous government, and not like the opposition that wishes it could.
This is a government that will actually do it.
Marjolaine Boutin-Sweet NDP Hochelaga, QC
Mr. Speaker, in a video that went viral, five-year-old Brooke Blair gets angry with the British Prime Minister because she does not understand why people are living on the street and no one is doing anything about it.
In her heartfelt appeal, she says:
They “should be out there”. They should be “building houses”.
Even a five-year-old knows that if we build more houses there will be fewer people on the street. The best investment is social housing.
When will the minister announce long-term funding for social housing?
Jean-Yves Duclos LiberalMinister of Families
Mr. Speaker, I sincerely thank my colleague for giving me this opportunity to say that this morning, just a few hours ago, I had a very productive meeting with the most important players and partners in the social community sector on the matter of housing.
We had a very fruitful discussion, on the heels of countless discussions I had the privilege of taking part in over the past few months. We look forward to working with the community to ensure that all Canadians can benefit from decent and affordable housing.
Cathay Wagantall Conservative Yorkton—Melville, SK
Mr. Speaker, the Mayor of Hudson Bay, Elvina Rumak, said the impending closure of The Pas softwood lumber mill will impact contractors in Saskatchewan who harvest softwood for Carrot River and hardwood for Hudson Bay.
Mel Cadrain, GM Hudson Bay Timberlands, said that if the mill in The Pas closes, it will put pressure on them to utilize small diameter softwood, which will increase their raw material cost and reduce mill productivity.
This means fewer jobs. Why is the current sitting Liberal government taking so long to get this badly needed agreement done?
David Lametti LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade
Mr. Speaker, I share the hon. member's concern for the softwood industry in northern Saskatchewan, and indeed across the country.
We understand how important this industry is across the whole of the country. We understand its complexity across the whole of the country. All of this has been incorporated into our negotiating position. We are working hard, in collaboration with everyone in the industry. We are working hard with our American friends to try to reach a solution to this problem that will benefit the Canadian softwood—
Jim Eglinski Conservative Yellowhead, AB
Mr. Speaker, the clock is ticking. In Alberta, the forest industry employs over 19,000 people, the majority of whom are in my riding of Yellowhead. My constituents and the forest industry deserve to know what their future will be. Albertans cannot afford another drastic hit. There is no time to waste. Too many jobs are at stake.
Why will the minister not do her job and ensure stability and predictability for Canadian forestry workers?
David Lametti LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade
Mr. Speaker, I reject the assumption of the hon. member's question. The minister has been working very hard since she came into office to resolve this issue. Indeed, Premier Christy Clark of British Columbia said, “I've got to give her [the minister] credit, she's worked day and night to try and resolve this. It's been her central focus for the last several months.”
No one is working harder on this file than the Minister for International Trade. Our negotiators are working hard. We understand its importance, and we will do our best to get a good deal done.
Todd Doherty Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Mr. Speaker, well, well, look who just woke up.
In 2006, the Conservative government brought confidence and consistency to a divided forestry industry. Through ongoing talks with our counterparts and forestry stakeholders, we set the stage for the Liberal government to finalize a new softwood lumber agreement. Unfortunately, the trade minister has only just realized that trade deals do not magically negotiate themselves.
When will the trade minister tell the almost 400,000 forestry workers that their jobs are on the line because she has mismanaged this file since the very beginning?
David Lametti LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade
Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind the hon. member what he himself said on August 18. He said, “I can appreciate there's been considerable amount of work done to this point...by both Global Affairs and the minister”. He was indeed speaking the truth at that point. The minister has worked very hard on this file from the beginning.
We understand its importance to British Columbia and to the member's riding, as well as to other ridings across Canada. We will get a deal done, and we will do it if it is in the best interests of Canadians.
Mark Gerretsen Liberal Kingston and the Islands, ON
Mr. Speaker, parental leave and maternity leave are essential for Canadian families, but our government can do more to adapt to the new realities facing families.
Can the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development tell the House what he is doing to move forward on this important issue?
Jean-Yves Duclos LiberalMinister of Families
Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate my colleague from Kingston and the Islands on his excellent French and thank him for the great work that he is doing for his riding and to make maternity benefits more flexible and easily accessible.
Our government promised to support parents and family caregivers by providing them with more flexible and inclusive benefits. Yesterday, my colleague and I had the privilege of announcing that consultations on this issue have begun.
We look forward to hearing from all Canadian families in order to ensure that the employment insurance program is useful to them and is there for them when they need it most.
Alupa Clarke Conservative Beauport—Limoilou, QC
Mr. Speaker, approximately 150 people participated in the veterans summit this week, yet one-quarter of them had never been in the Canadian Armed Forces and nearly half were not recipients of Veterans Affairs Canada programs or services.
Must I remind the minister that the point of this type of summit is to improve the benefits offered by his department, not to serve the Liberal government's own agenda?
The minister told veterans to be patient because he was still working on identifying the most pressing issues.
Why then does he not consult the veterans who are most affected by his department?
Kent Hehr LiberalMinister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence
Mr. Speaker, since I came into this position on November 4, we have had three stakeholder summits, with over 150 people in attendance at all of these summits. Various veterans from all groups and all walks of life have contributed meaningfully and deeply to policy developments, from the range of economic security to families to mental health and physical well-being. These stakeholder summits are going well, and we will continue to engage and consult veterans from coast to coast to coast.
Pat Finnigan Liberal Miramichi—Grand Lake, NB
Mr. Speaker, the striped bass population has gone from a species of concern to a high-level count never seen before in the Miramichi watershed. Striped bass is a predatory fish to salmon and other species, and salmon is at an all-time low in the river.
My question is this: will the minister tell the House whether next season's striped bass management plan will include increased allocations for first nations, to help meet their food and ceremonial needs, and increased sport fishing quotas for the public, since people can no longer keep salmon?
Dominic LeBlanc LiberalMinister of Fisheries
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague from Miramichi—Grand Lake for that excellent question, but, more importantly, for the work he has done on this issue that is so important to his community.
I share his concern with the increasing abundance of striped bass populations. I have instructed the Department of Fisheries and Oceans to update the science. I hope we will be in a position next year to further extend management measures that will allow greater retention of this fish. We know how important it is for the Atlantic salmon population. I look forward to working with the member and other colleagues on this important issue.
Arnold Viersen Conservative Peace River—Westlock, AB
Mr. Speaker, child and adult victims of sex trafficking are being sold daily on Backpage.com. In June, I raised this horrific issue in this chamber and wrote directly to the justice minister, with no response.
Yesterday, the CEO of Backpage was arrested in the U.S. on sex trafficking charges.
When will the Liberals finally take action to end Backpage.com sex trafficking ads in Canada?
Bill Blair LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member opposite for raising this important issue. This government takes very seriously the issue of sex trafficking in our country. We are working very carefully with the provinces and territories, and with law enforcement partners across the country, to address this very important issue. There is also a very significant role to play for various non-government organizations, which we are also assisting in order to respond. We are examining the issue that the member raised very carefully.
Mario Beaulieu Bloc La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC
Mr. Speaker, the International Civil Aviation Organization reached an agreement on greener aircraft yesterday in Montreal.
At the same time, the federal government is still refusing to support the development of the greenest aircraft on the market, the Bombardier C Series plane. The Liberals are still talking out of both sides of their mouths when it comes to the environment, as they do when they claim to be supporting Quebec's economy.
When will the federal government stop undermining Quebec's economy, and when will it invest our money in Bombardier?
Greg Fergus LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation
Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my hon. colleague for his question.
The Canadian government is a big backer of the aerospace industry, which generates much wealth in Canada by contributing $28 billion to the economy and maintaining over 200,000 jobs. We will definitely continue our discussions with Bombardier because we want to reach an agreement. We must ensure that we keep jobs and research and development in Montreal.
Mario Beaulieu Bloc La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC
Mr. Speaker, the federal government is cutting the increase in health transfers by half.
The minister told us that there is no point in investing more money in the health care system. I do not believe that she has visited hospital waiting rooms in Quebec, because she would have been shown that the situation is not acceptable. The Liberals have adopted the Conservatives' cuts of billions of dollars and, what is more, the NDP's standards.
Can the minister explain to Quebeckers what they will get out of this?