Debates of Nov. 18th, 2016

Official Languages

[Darrell Samson, Liberal, Sackville—Preston—Chezzetcook, NS]

Mr. Speaker, in my riding and across Canada, Canadians are concerned about the application of the official languages regulations on communicating with and providing services to the public and the loss of services provided in their language. These services are very important for the development of francophone and anglophone minorities across Canada. These groups are the cultural and economic pillars of their communities.

Can the President of the Treasury Board inform the House of the work that has been done and the measures implemented to ensure its success?

[Scott Brison, Liberal, President of the Treasury Board]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Sackville—Preston—Chezzetcook. Our government is committed to ensuring that services to Canadians are provided in the official language of their choice. Our government will be undertaking a complete review of the regulations on services to the public in both official languages.

During this review, offices currently subject to becoming unilingual, 257 of them, will continue to be bilingual. Our government is committed to improving and strengthening bilingual services for all Canadians.

Natural Resources

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, thousands of Albertans are out of work and have been for over a year, and not one additional full-time job has been created in Canada under the Liberals in that time.

Meanwhile, the U.S. president-elect said that he will approve Keystone XL within 100 days of taking office, but our Minister of Natural Resources says it is not a priority.

With the U.S. ramping up and pursuing energy independence, time is of the essence. When will the Prime Minister prioritize Canadian jobs and get this deal done, before it is too late?

[Navdeep Bains, Liberal, Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, we have been very clear that jobs are a priority for our government.

As the parliamentary secretary mentioned earlier today, we have created 139,600 jobs. These jobs are across the country, including in Alberta. To highlight some examples with respect to jobs, we supported the relocation of Bell Helicopter, which created 1,000 jobs in Quebec. GM Canada expanded its engineering and software development. Again, these help young people to find meaningful employment—a thousand jobs for them as well.

These are good jobs across the country.

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, in 2014, nine out of 10 new jobs created in all of Canada were created in Alberta. Today, Alberta's job losses are the highest in nearly 22 years.

Pipelines are lifelines for Alberta, and for hundreds of thousands of energy workers across the country. Canada's world-leading oil and gas is at risk. The biggest customer, the U.S., has become the biggest competitor. Canada must diversify export markets now. The more delays, the less competitive that Canada becomes.

When will the minister stop the roadblocks and fight for Canadian energy jobs?

[Jim Carr, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, I am a bit confused by the member's question, because this will now be the fourth time this week that I have said that the government is actually very confident in the Keystone XL pipeline.

We supported the application in the first place. All of the approvals north of the border are in place, and if the company decides to pursue the application, the government will support it. That is for the fourth time this week.

National Defence

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

Mr. Speaker, UN peacekeeping missions are among the most dangerous deployments in the world. For example, 106 UN peacekeepers have already died in the UN Mali operation.

Despite the dangers to our troops, the Liberals are still keeping Canadians in the dark about where they intend to deploy Canadian troops on the planned peacekeeping mission.

Can the minister be transparent with Canadians and tell us how this is in our national interest? Will it be a combat mission? How long will our troops be deployed? Canadians deserve to know this.

[Karen McCrimmon, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, our re-engagement with peace operations is part of our broader commitment to re-energize Canadian leadership on key international issues and multilateral institutions.

There have been multiple fact-finding trips, and the minister has had productive discussions with counterparts, with NGOs, and with organizations involved with peace support.

We are building our understanding of the situation on the ground. We are investigating how we can contribute with a whole-of-government approach. No decision has been made on those future contributions, but we will share when it has.

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

Mr. Speaker, what the parliamentary secretary just said is not very reassuring: she is consulting.

With respect to the mission in Iraq, when the Prime Minister was a member of the opposition, he stated that he could not support any mission unless he was given the reasons for it. We are still waiting to hear the reasons justifying the mission in Africa. The government is improvising and saying just about anything.

When will the Liberals finally be transparent and explain where our soldiers will be deployed, what the mission objectives will be, and, above all, what the conditions will be?

[Karen McCrimmon, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, we take very seriously the plans to employ members of the Canadian Forces around the world. Having been a member for 31 years, I can say that is indeed the case.

I am very content. I am happy with the way that the government is progressing on this particular issue. We are doing our homework. We are talking to our allies. We are planning on the ground.

No decision has been made. We will make that decision based on that whole-of-government approach so we can make a success of this mission.

Health

[Richard Cannings, NDP, South Okanagan—West Kootenay, BC]

Mr. Speaker, ANKORS is an HIV/AIDS outreach and support society in my riding of South Okanagan—West Kootenay.

For many years, ANKORS has been providing prevention and harm-reduction services to at-risk populations, in 24 communities in the B.C. interior. However, they have just been informed that their federal funding will not be renewed. This will devastate HIV/AIDS outreach services in the B.C. interior.

Will the Minister of Health reverse these cuts and ensure that the people in the Okanagan and Kootenays have access to these vital services?

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

Mr. Speaker, HIV and hep C are serious but preventable diseases, and our government is committed to addressing them, with community-based organizations being central to this.

The funding we provide is a remaining steady at $26.4 million annually. While 124 organizations were successful in the application process, some were not.

The Minister of Health has asked the Public Health Agency of Canada to assist these impacted organizations by working with them to extend transitional funding for another year.

The Environment

[Gord Johns, NDP, Courtenay—Alberni, BC]

Mr. Speaker, dangerous debris from a cargo ship is washing up on the west coast, posing serious threats to our sensitive ecosystems.

It has been almost a week since this began, and there is still no real action by the federal government. We know its response to the Bella Bella diesel spill has been shamefully inadequate.

Will the federal government take immediate action to help with this cleanup, and will it support community groups like Surfrider and local first nations to prevent any further environmental damage from this debris?

[Kate Young, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, our government remains committed to improving marine safety in Canada and ensuring the protection of our marine environment. This incident underlines the need for change, and that is why the minister announced a plan to enhance marine safety in a meaningful way. Furthermore, the minister is looking at the matter of compensation. We will take the necessary action on the findings of the department's compliance inspection and the Transportation Safety Board's investigation to enhance marine safety in Canada.

Health

[Colin Carrie, Conservative, Oshawa, ON]

Mr. Speaker, hundreds of Canadians are dying every single month from illicit opioids flooding our borders. These drugs are so powerful that a small amount, the size of a grain of salt, can kill a person. Last month, a nine-month-old was hospitalized after being exposed to carfentanil, an illegal opioid 100 times stronger than fentanyl, yet the health minister is only consulting now.

When will the minister acknowledge that China is the primary source of the problem and start cracking down on these illicit drug shipments?

[Michel Picard, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, the government is very concerned about the increase in opioid abuse and the growing number of overdoses in Canada. In 2014-15, the Canada Border Services Agency carried out over 8,000 seizures for a total value of about $400 million. The agency is currently looking at ways to improve its ability to detect and intercept illegal drugs.

We grieve alongside Canadians who have lost loved ones to fentanyl, and we are working very hard to put a stop to the scourge of this devastating drug.

[Colin Carrie, Conservative, Oshawa, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the health minister refused any organizations, such as CPMs, centres for pain management, attending her opioids summit. The Liberals have stated that doctors who prescribe opioids are a primary cause of this crisis, yet they are not invited to help find a solution that works for their patients. That is because these organizations have a different view and perspective than the government.

How can the health minister claim to be consulting on the opioids crisis when she will not even talk to pain management doctors on the ground, who she blames for being a source of the problem?

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

Mr. Speaker, as I said, we are in a national public health crisis in Canada. The growing number of overdoses and deaths caused by opioids is a complex emergency.

Today and tomorrow the Minister of Health is co-hosting a conference and summit on opioids to bring groups like the Canadian Medical Association, the College of Family Physicians of Canada, the national and provincial colleges of physicians and surgeons, and the Canadian Pain Society to discuss the current crisis and to identify a path forward. Stakeholders and members of the public who are unable to attend due to the space restrictions are invited to view the conference by following the live webcast.

Agriculture and Agri-food

[Martin Shields, Conservative, Bow River, AB]

Mr. Speaker, Alberta and Saskatchewan ranchers are reeling from a single case of bovine tuberculosis. The CFIA is quarantining and starting to test herds. Ranchers are being told they cannot sell their animals until all herds are tested, which can take many months. These producers do not have shelter or feed for these animals for the winter. The CFIA is forcing ranchers to hold their animals until they are all tested and TB-free.

Will the Liberals compensate ranchers for the feeding and housing of these quarantined animals over the winter?

[Jean-Claude Poissant, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, every time a reportable disease is suspected or confirmed, the objective is to minimize the impact on our producers while respecting Canada's domestic and international obligations.

Proper and prudent controls are essential to protecting the health of Canadian livestock. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency, the CFIA, has assigned more employees to help with the investigation, which will include on-farm testing. CFIA labs are also getting ready to analyze other samples for testing purposes.

The CFIA will provide compensation for all animals that it orders destroyed because of tuberculosis.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Peter Fonseca, Liberal, Mississauga East—Cooksville, ON]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship. In my riding of Mississauga East—Cooksville, people will find a riding that is very diverse and multicultural. Over the course of the year, I have heard my constituents express many frustrations with the problems in the immigration system that were inherited after 10 years under the Conservative government.

Can the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship update this House on recent improvements this government is making to the immigration system?

[John McCallum, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, let us begin to count the ways we are cleaning up the big fat mess left by the Conservatives in the area of immigration.

We have let in more than 33,000 Syrian refugees. We have reinstated the principle that a Canadian is a Canadian is a Canadian. We have reinstated refugee health care. We have made it much easier for international students to become permanent residents. We have set up a pilot immigration program in Atlantic Canada. We are in the process of making it much faster for spouses to be reunited. We have made it three times faster to get—

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

The hon. member for Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock.

Public Safety

[Jamie Schmale, Conservative, Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I recently toured the Central East Correctional Centre in Lindsay. This provincial maximum security institution is being used as a so-called temporary holding facility for federal immigration detainees. Officers are dealing with challenges that are beyond their scope—language barriers, dietary complications, a lack of proper holding areas—with very little support from CBSA. The Liberals must ensure that these detainees are transferred to a federal detention centre that is properly equipped to manage their needs.

When will the public safety minister take action?

[Michel Picard, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, I am sorry that I missed part of the question, but generally speaking, Correctional Services is undertaking consultations with its partners to make sure that when we have someone in detention, it is mainly for security reasons and purposes. This is looked at as the last resort possible, and we are working on alternative solutions to ease it.