House of Commons Hansard #127 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was support.

Topics

Criminal CodePrivate Members' Business

6:40 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

That has to be the best explanation I have ever heard.

The hon. member for Chatham-Kent—Leamington.

Criminal CodePrivate Members' Business

6:40 p.m.

Conservative

Dave Van Kesteren Conservative Chatham-Kent—Leamington, ON

Mr. Speaker, I too was led down the garden path. This too is the first time I have misstepped in this direction. I certainly hope this will not develop a pattern, but I intend to vote against the motion.

Criminal CodePrivate Members' Business

6:40 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

The record will be corrected accordingly.

The House resumed from December 7 consideration of the motion that Bill C-306, An Act to establish a Crimean Tatar Deportation (“Sürgünlik”) Memorial Day and to recognize the mass deportation of the Crimean Tatars in 1944 as an act of genocide, be read the second time and referred to a committee.

Crimean Tatar Deportation (“Sürgünlik”) Memorial Day ActPrivate Members' Business

6:40 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

Pursuant to an order made on Thursday, December 1, the House will now proceed to the taking of the deferred recorded division on the motion at second reading stage of Bill C-306 under private members' business.

(The House divided on the motion, which was negatived on the following division:)

Vote #181

Crimean Tatar Deportation (“Sürgünlik”) Memorial Day ActPrivate Members' Business

6:50 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

I declare the motion defeated.

The House resumed from December 9 consideration of the motion.

German Heritage MonthPrivate Members' Business

6:50 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

Pursuant to an order made on Thursday, December 1, the House will now proceed to the taking of the deferred recorded division.

(The House divided on the motion, which was agreed to on the following division:)

Vote #182

German Heritage MonthPrivate Members' Business

7 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

I declare the motion carried.

The House resumed from December 12, 2016, the motion that Bill C-301, an act to amend the Income Tax Act and to make a related amendment to another Act (registered retirement income fund), be read the second time and referred to a committee.

Income Tax ActPrivate Members' Business

7 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

Pursuant to an order made on Thursday, December 1, 2016, the House will now proceed to the taking of the deferred recorded division on the motion at second reading stage of Bill C-301 under private members' business.

(The House divided on the motion, which was negatived on the following division:)

Vote #183

Income Tax ActPrivate Members' Business

7:10 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

I declare the motion defeated.

I wish to inform the House that because of the delay there will be no private members' business hour today.

Accordingly, the order will be rescheduled for another sitting.

A motion to adjourn the House under Standing Order 38 deemed to have been moved.

Indigenous AffairsAdjournment Proceedings

7:15 p.m.

NDP

Sheila Malcolmson NDP Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC

Mr. Speaker, I am honoured once again to convey my personal hope and New Democrats' hope that the national inquiry into the issue of murdered and missing indigenous women and girls is successful and does the work for the country for healing to end violence against indigenous women and girls forever and to root out its root causes. However, we need the inquiry to work well, and we need it to do its work. I ask these questions in that context.

Last month the United Nations committee to end discrimination against women expressed serious concerns with Canada's inquiry as it is now envisioned. It says it is not taking a human rights approach. It does not have the explicit mandate to review policing or look into unresolved cases. It says specifically that the committee is concerned about the lack of an explicit assurance of adequate support and protection provided to witnesses, and about the lack of sufficient co-operation with indigenous women's organizations in the process of establishing the inquiry.

When the United Nations committee weighs in like this, we should pay attention; and so in that constructive spirit, I would like to flag that those concerns cited by the United Nations fly very much with what we heard directly from the families of murdered and missing women and girls.

Right here on the front steps of the Hill at the Sisters in Spirit vigil on October 4, we heard the great frustration of the mothers of missing daughters in particular. One Algonquin women, Bridget Tolley, said:

We're back again. We want justice. We don't want to be here anymore. We shouldn't have to be here. We shouldn't have to beg for justice.

She has been fighting to pursue the case of her mother for 15 years.

Another Mohawk woman, Beverley Jacobs, former president of the Native Women's Association of Canada, said:

I'm tired of government. I'm tired of their words.

I want to see something done for families. Something that they can feel that something is being done and their own justice is being addressed.

I have heard this repeatedly from advocates for murdered and missing indigenous women. They feel that their voices were not heard in the formation of the inquiry and in its terms of reference. They felt frustrated as the opening date of the inquiry, September 1, passed without receiving any details of how they would be included. The inquiry only provided the loved ones of the murdered and missing with contact information just last week.

We have fantastic organizations that can identify the needs of those participating in the inquiry and can really help make a difference and make it work.

I ask the government this directly. Will it follow the United Nations recommendation that the government ensure support and protection to witnesses and strengthen the inclusive partnership with indigenous women's organizations and national and international human rights institutions and bodies during the conducting of the murdered and missing indigenous women's inquiry and its implementation process?

Indigenous AffairsAdjournment Proceedings

7:15 p.m.

Labrador Newfoundland & Labrador

Liberal

Yvonne Jones LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to rise here today, on traditional Algonquin territory, to respond to the question posed by the hon. member for Nanaimo—Ladysmith.

We have followed through on our commitment as a government to launch a truly national, independent inquiry into the ongoing tragedy of missing and murdered indigenous women and girls. It is an important step in our journey of reconciliation with indigenous people in Canada.

Last winter and last spring, we listened to ideas on how the inquiry should be designed. There were 18 face-to-face meetings that involved one or more of the ministers of this government. They involved more than 2,000 survivors, and we received another 4,100 responses online.

In August, we named five members to the commission of inquiry, with Judge Marion Buller as the chief commissioner.

The independent commission is authorized to examine and report on systemic causes of all forms of violence that indigenous women and girls experience and their greater vulnerability to that violence. The commission will be looking for patterns and underlying factors that explain why the higher level of violence occurs.

The commission is also directed to examine and report on institutional policies and practices implemented in response to violence experienced by indigenous women and girls, including police conduct.

The commission is directed to make recommendations on concrete and effective action that can be taken to remove systemic causes of violence and to increase the safety of indigenous women and girls in Canada. It is also directed to make recommendations on ways to honour and commemorate the missing and murdered indigenous girls and women in our country.

The commission began its work in September 2016, as set out in the Government of Canada Order in Council.

The commission of inquiry is one step, albeit one very important step. While the commission is doing its work, we must continue to make lives better and make lives safer for indigenous women and girls. We will help first nations, Inuit, and Métis people secure the foundation of healthy and safe communities.

We took immediate action this year on root causes, with investments in women's shelters, housing, education, and child welfare. Across the country, $89.9 million will be spent over two years for the construction and renovation of shelters and transition houses for victims of violence in provinces and territories.

Our government made a commitment to launch the inquiry and ensure that it was independent. That is exactly what we are doing. The commission has a mandate to proceed with the work that is required. It is doing that. At the same time, we are investing to ensure safer communities for women and girls across Canada. We are doing everything we need to do to ensure that women and girls are safe in this country in all indigenous regions, in all indigenous communities.

When we hear from the commission of inquiry, we will have more ideas on ways to remove the systemic problems that have contributed to the loss of so many women and girls. In the meantime, we are taking action on all fronts, and we will continue to do that.

Our government this year was not only proud to meet our commitment to indigenous communities and Canadians on the inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women and girls but was proud to make investments, investments that were long overdue, for women and girls in our communities so that they can have hope for a future where they will be safer and more secure.

Indigenous AffairsAdjournment Proceedings

7:20 p.m.

NDP

Sheila Malcolmson NDP Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC

Mr. Speaker, with respect to the parliamentary secretary, we want the inquiry to work well, and we are glad that the government launched it, but building one violence-against-women shelter on reserve, one a year for the next five years, is not enough, because we are so far behind. There is nothing offered in the Far North for the Inuit. The families are not being included in this process.

Here is another quote from the vigil in October:

I'm tired; I want justice for my daughter, for Shannon, for all of these women: our sisters, our children...our loved ones. We are living through this..... Yet they throw us promises. Well, you know what? We haven't heard anything yet. Nothing from this inquiry.

That is the mother of Shannon Alexander, who went missing in 2008.

If the government does not listen to the families, it will not get this inquiry right. Last week, on Friday, the government refused to include the Native Women's Association of Canada at its first ministers' conference. We must treat these advocates, these women and mothers, with respect. We must include them in the solutions.

The government must lead on this. Will it?

Indigenous AffairsAdjournment Proceedings

7:20 p.m.

Liberal

Yvonne Jones Liberal Labrador, NL

Mr. Speaker, we understand the real concern that exists across Canada with respect to the impact on families of the missing and murdered women in Canada. Family members had been very close to them.

I, the minister, and many others in our government sat in rooms across Canada with over 2,000 families and survivors who had been impacted. We heard their strong messages. That is why we have designed an inquiry that will get to the root of the issues they have brought forward.

The inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women in our country is critical. It is critical for us to move forward with our relationship with indigenous people and to reconcile that relationship with all Canadians.

Our commitment to have an inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women in our country was a solid commitment. We made the commitment based on what we knew was the right thing to do for Canadians. We have ensured the independence of this inquiry and the commissioners will now do the job they have been mandated to do.

Hopefully, at the end of the day, we can provide not only hope for families, but a safer community for all indigenous women and girls in Canada.

Public Services and ProcurementAdjournment Proceedings

7:25 p.m.

NDP

Sheri Benson NDP Saskatoon West, SK

Mr. Speaker, as we draw ever closer to the holiday season and the end of the year, there is still no end in sight for public service workers who have been caught up in the boondoggle known as Phoenix.

The government has missed its own deadline of October 31, and 15,000 cases still have not been resolved.

On September 19, at the government operations committee, the minister said that she was confident the October 31 deadline was realistic and that her department reassured her it would be met. Now that we are quite a long way past the October 31 deadline, the government still has not given a new timeline for when it expects the remaining cases to be resolved.

According to the last update given by the deputy minister, we now know the Phoenix pay system is behind on 200,000 compensation transactions, the equivalent of two month's work.

We have heard a lot of rhetoric, or should we say wishful thinking, about getting to a steady state, but all we see is a system that continues to fall behind. New pay requests are supposed to be met within 20 days, but only 20% to 30% of this service standard is currently being met.

There is another growing concern now as we approach the end of the year and the government has to start issuing T4s to its employees. The government has given no reassurances that the T4s will be correct. This will put an additional burden on employees who will have to sort out their own T4s with no help from government. This can only add to the confusion and chaos.

This state of affairs is not only troubling and stressful for employees who are not getting paid; it is also an embarrassing fiasco for the minister and the government. They have repeatedly stated that this situation is unacceptable. However, it is unclear what unacceptable means to the minister. It certainly does not mean that thousands of employees will finally be paid properly. It does not mean that the T4s will be accurate. It does not mean that workers who still show up to work every day will be able to make ends meet, let alone celebrate the holidays.

If the minister truly finds this unacceptable, then why does she not do something about it? It clearly is not unacceptable enough, because 15,000 cases are still unresolved and new ones are still being logged.

I have a suggestion for the minister. Perhaps in solidarity with the employees who have not been paid she would defer her own salary until the debacle is finally fixed. This gesture would signal that the minister does take this problem seriously. I am sure the affected employees would appreciate the minister walking a mile in their shoes. Will the minister do this?

Public Services and ProcurementAdjournment Proceedings

7:25 p.m.

Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill Ontario

Liberal

Leona Alleslev LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Services and Procurement

Mr. Speaker, it is completely unacceptable for any employees not to receive the pay they earn. While problems still exist with the pay system, we have taken a number of steps to better support our employees.

We have taken many steps to better support our employees. We created a new call centre and a Phoenix feedback form so that employee can easily contact us and inform us of any problems with their pay. We are regularly informing employees that they can request emergency salary advances in order to get the money they are owed.

Four satellite offices were set up and staffed in Gatineau, Shawinigan, Winnipeg, and Montreal to handle employee cases, and we are committed to keeping these offices open until the backlog is eliminated and the issues are resolved.

Each month, our pay centre receives a steady stream of new pay transactions from the 46 departments it services. As a result, at any given time there are more than 80,000 pay requests in the system awaiting processing.

After rolling out Phoenix, our processing speed dropped sharply as employees adjusted to the new system. This slowdown caused our queue to expand so that we now have more than two months of additional work to process. This is over and above the new transactions that are always entering the system.

Over the next several months, we will return to normal processing times. At that point, we will be consistently meeting our service standards and employees will see transactions processed more quickly. We will also continue to work closely with all of our partners. For example, the Canada Revenue Agency website provides information and a 1-800 number for employees who have concerns about the tax implications of their pay problems.

The Treasury Board Secretariat set up a claims office for employees who have incurred expenses as a result of problems related to Phoenix, and we will continue to work with the unions on many levels, particularly on the recent agreement to have government IT experts help improve Phoenix.

Additionally, we continue to resolve the remaining cases in the backlog, which are extremely complex and require a number of time-consuming manual calculations. A dedicated group of expert compensation advisers are working as quickly as possible to resolve the approximately 11,000 employee cases that remain in the backlog. To date, we have closed pay transactions for over 86% of the employees in our backlog.

Our government recognizes the significant impact that issues stemming from the Phoenix pay system have had on the hard-working employees of the public service. These problems are totally unacceptable. With the last pay period before Christmas occurring tomorrow, we strongly encourage any employee who is not being paid or who has not been paid the proper amount and is facing financial hardship to let us know immediately and request emergency pay. No family should have its Christmas impacted irreparably by a Phoenix pay issue.

Public Services and ProcurementAdjournment Proceedings

7:30 p.m.

NDP

Sheri Benson NDP Saskatoon West, SK

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for her comments, but we still have not heard when the situation will be resolved. We have heard all of the earnest platitudes before. Fixing Phoenix was to be a top priority. However, the government's own deadline has come and gone, it is still not fixed, and we still do not know when that will happen.

In a few days, members will head home to their ridings and spend the holidays with their family and friends. What do families who are affected by Phoenix have to look forward to? More bills that they have no way of paying, and more financial headaches down the road, with T4s and a looming tax bill that may or may not be accurate. It certainly will not be a merry Christmas or a happy holiday for these families.

The minister should not rest until employees are paid properly. If that means setting aside her own salary until this fiasco is fixed, then so be it, because that would be the honourable thing to do.

Public Services and ProcurementAdjournment Proceedings

7:30 p.m.

Liberal

Leona Alleslev Liberal Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON

Mr. Speaker, obviously, the pay problems being experienced by the public service are unacceptable. We are making progress. However, there is still a lot of work to be done.

Particularly during this holiday season, we want to recognize how important the tireless work of our public service employees is, and recognize that no employees should go without the pay they have earned. We remain unwaveringly committed to resolving these pay issues as our top priority.

Automotive IndustryAdjournment Proceedings

7:30 p.m.

NDP

Brian Masse NDP Windsor West, ON

Mr. Speaker, I rise tonight to talk about the auto industry. I was in the chamber during question period and I asked the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development about our auto industry. In particular, I was calling for a recognition and support for a national auto strategy.

Canada has gone from second in the world in terms of auto manufacturing to 10th. We have slipped behind Brazil, India, China, and a series of different nations that now occupy the space that Canada used to have. It is interesting, because as we have signed more trade agreements, the current government and previous governments have used auto as basically the canary in the coal mine for many other industries.

I would point to the most recent agreement, the TPP, where the auto industry would be getting only a five-year window of transition, whereas the United States would be getting a 25-year transition, despite our having basically unified auto manufacturing and regulatory practices, and integrated industries to combine themselves to actually produce and manufacture cars, which creates an untold precedent of problems. It is sad that even Malaysia out-negotiated us. It has a 12-year exemption for integration versus Canada's five years and the United States' 25 years. Malaysia, being the powerhouse negotiator that it is versus Canada, apparently, has more than doubled its integration into this new system.

Thank goodness the TPP looks as if it is doomed because of the concerns of both the Democratic and Republican presidential candidates—and now, unfortunately, the Republican who won. However, it was a doomed trade agreement for many reasons. How could an issue like this ever take place?

I want to point toward a national auto strategy, because we know that the industry is calling for it; manufacturers are calling for it, which goes beyond the assemblers; and the unions have been calling for it for more than a decade—in fact, the CAW formerly and now Unifor. I want to thank its members and negotiators, Jerry Dias and his group, which goes all the way to my local community, for creating an opportunity for $1.3 billion of auto investment.

It is important that we recognize what the workers—the men and women who create the product and actually do the work necessary—chose at negotiations. They said they didn't want a pay increase at the expense of getting further investment into their communities. They did not ask for an immediate return. They asked for an opportunity for more Canadians and more investment for the future, and not just for themselves. They turned away an opportunity basically for self-greed, to create this $1.3 million opportunity for economics. For one auto job, we get nine other jobs. This creates a windfall for others.

Therefore, I ask that the government consider continuing the auto strategy that we used to have. We need a national auto policy for that, and the government should come along and do that, because it has been long sought as the last chapter to actually get us back in the game. We cannot get back in the game without a plan, and a national auto policy would do just that.