Debates of Feb. 2nd, 2016

Public Works and Government Services

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, obviously we have much to learn from the Auditor General's report, and indeed how we deliver services in a responsible way, including Shared Services, which is IT around the government. It is extremely important.

What we have seen through our first months is that it is not enough to do as the previous government did and simply announce things. It is actually important to follow up on them, give the tools to get things done, and execute them responsibly. That is exactly what Canadians elected us to do.

Social Development

[Brigitte Sansoucy, NDP, Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot, QC]

Mr. Speaker, now that the Auditor General's report has been released, we expect the government to be clear about the concrete actions it plans to take. The backlog at the Social Security Tribunal of Canada has more than doubled. It is a long and complicated process that takes almost 900 days. That kind of management has a direct impact on people going through a hard time.

Can the minister share his plan to end the interminable waiting?

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for reminding us that the issue the Auditor General raised in his very welcome report is an important one. I was very concerned about the findings in the report regarding the fate of the most vulnerable members of our society. I met with the Auditor General immediately, and I can assure the House that we will do whatever it takes to fix this problem.

Canada Border Services Agency

[Brigitte Sansoucy, NDP, Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Auditor General also highlighted some troubling practices at the Canada Border Services Agency. Because the agency is understaffed, high risk parcels are leaving the country without even being examined. Canada does not want to become a sieve for illegal goods. We have international commitments and we must honour them. The Conservatives gutted the agency, and now we are seeing the consequences of those cuts.

Will the government reinvest in the agency so that it can fulfill its mandate properly?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Yes, Mr. Speaker, that is exactly what we intend to do.

CBSA performs very important functions for all Canadians, as well as our international customers. We intend that this should be a first-class organization. We follow the advice of the Auditor General. There is an action plan being implemented that will implement the vast majority of the recommendations before the end of this year.

Government Appointments

[Blaine Calkins, Conservative, Red Deer—Lacombe, AB]

Mr. Speaker, in 1990, a minister had to resign for making a telephone call to a judge.

In 1996, a minister had to resign because he wrote a letter to the Immigration and Refugee Board.

In 2013, a minister resigned for writing a letter to the federal Tax Court.

All of these ministers resigned because of inappropriate contact with judges and tribunals.

Will the Prime Minister be setting the same standard for his government?

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

Mr. Speaker, colleagues will well know that when the government was sworn in, we released a very important document called “Open and Accountable Government”. It set a new standard in terms of transparency and accountability, not only for members of the cabinet but for members of their staff, for the relationship between Canadians and cabinet ministers, and for Canadians and the public service. We are very proud to have raised the bar on that important endeavour.

[Blaine Calkins, Conservative, Red Deer—Lacombe, AB]

Mr. Speaker, we will see if double standard and Liberal government are still synonymous.

The reason I asked the previous question is that the government House leader wrote on behalf of the Prime Minister to a citizenship judge. He has been busy.

The government House leader also wrote to five members of the Immigration and Refugee Board, the same board that former Liberal minister David Collenette wrote to and had to resign over.

How is the Prime Minister going to hold his House leader responsible for this clear violation of ethical guidelines?

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

Mr. Speaker, I was happy to write on behalf of the government to people whose appointments were made by that member's government to take effect after the election, with no ability to be scrutinized by Parliament.

The member well knows that there is a difference between writing to a government official about the nature of an appointment and writing to a government official about a specific case before him or her. The member should know that very well. To confuse the two is a disservice to Canadians.

[Karen Vecchio, Conservative, Elgin—Middlesex—London, ON]

Mr. Speaker, political interference is political interference.

The Liberal House leader has written a number of letters that directly interfere with operations of the immigration review board and citizenship judges.

In the past, this exact issue has required ministers to resign.

Just how low are the Liberal standards when it comes to ethical guidelines?

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

Mr. Speaker, talking about ethical guidelines, when we are talking about a previous government's decision at five minutes to midnight to appoint a series of individuals to jobs to take effect after it lost the election, with no ability for this House to scrutinize those appointments, from our perspective that was abuse of process.

The member knows absolutely well that it is appropriate for ministers to talk to people about potential appointments. That is how the Governor in Council appointment process works. She should know that very well.

[Karen Vecchio, Conservative, Elgin—Middlesex—London, ON]

Mr. Speaker, as I indicated, political interference is political interference.

This is just not about the government House leader. His own letter says that he was writing on behalf of the Prime Minister.

Why does the Prime Minister think that he has the right to openly interfere with judges and quasi-judicial board members?

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

Mr. Speaker, the logical extension of that argument would be to say that it is inappropriate for a government minister to talk to anybody about a potential appointment. For example, when the Attorney General is about to appoint somebody to the bench, she should not possibly talk to that person? We should have what? Some anonymous message sent from an account?

That is completely ridiculous.

The government has the responsibility to talk to people whose appointments we are questioning or whose appointments we are about to make. We did not talk to people about specific cases or their work with respect to any independent tribunal. The members knows that well. She is confusing the issues.

[Alex Nuttall, Conservative, Barrie—Springwater—Oro-Medonte, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the government House leader cannot answer a question on ethics because he does not know what they are.

This letter was sent on behalf of the Prime Minister of Canada. It is right there in black and white. It is not enough that the Liberal House leader appears to be breaching ethical rules, but the Prime Minister himself is involved.

Will the Prime Minister stand and tell this House how he will fix the obvious ethical breach?

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

Mr. Speaker, we will fix the obvious ethical breach of the previous government by taking a series of appointments that were made inappropriately and putting them before the standing committees of this House. That is exactly how we are proposing to clean up the ethical mess left to us by the previous government.

[Alex Nuttall, Conservative, Barrie—Springwater—Oro-Medonte, ON]

Mr. Speaker, we have seen this government fill its offices with former Dalton McGuinty staffers. McGuinty has cost Ontario taxpayers billions of dollars in higher taxes, big spending, and gas plant scandals.

After hiring every McGuinty staffer it could find, will the government at least promise that Dalton McGuinty never gets a patronage appointment, yes or no?

[Pam Goldsmith-Jones, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, we will not confirm a personal appointment for anybody, but we are very happy to share with members of the House and the country our review of the appointments processes we know will serve Canadians extremely well.

Status of Women

[Karine Trudel, NDP, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Auditor General's report is damning. Half of the departments audited had not conducted a gender-based comparative analysis, which is compulsory. This is 2016. This is unacceptable. We must do better.

Will the Liberal government commit to issuing a clear directive for all departments to honour their commitment and finally conduct gender-based analyses?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Status of Women]

Mr. Speaker, we welcome the Auditor General's report on gender-based analysis for the federal government. Our government believes strongly in being accountable for our obligations to ensure that meaningful GBA informs our policies, programs, and legislation.

I am especially proud of the leadership and tone set by our government from the very top that will ensure that this remains a focus for our government.

Social Development

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill—Keewatinook Aski, MB]

Mr. Speaker, let us move to the Social Security Tribunal. It is a complete mess, and it is the most vulnerable Canadians who are paying the price. Some are waiting 900 days for a decision to be made. The tribunal itself identified more than 60 areas of improvement, but it will require staff and resources.

Is the new government willing to reverse the Conservative cuts, yes or no?

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

Mr. Speaker, I am a little surprised that this question is coming from the party to our right and not the party across the way.

In any case, in response I would say that of course we want to see the Social Security Tribunal of Canada operating properly, because that tribunal deals with cases involving some of the most vulnerable Canadians and most disadvantaged members of our society. It is important that that tribunal work properly in terms of both efficiency and fairness.

The Economy

[Lisa Raitt, Conservative, Milton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, does the Minister of Finance have confidence in his department's officials, or will he dispute their findings that the Conservative government left them in surplus?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the only people who believe the Conservatives did not leave us with a deficit are the Conservatives themselves.

The “Fiscal Monitor” is a snapshot in time. It is looking at our bank statement before we have paid the bills. It does not tell the whole story. The economic and fiscal update clearly shows that the previous government put us on track for a $3-billion deficit for this year. That train has left the station. After 10 years of weak economic growth, this government has a chance to grow the economy and create jobs by focusing on the middle class, investing in infrastructure and—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Order please. The hon. member for Milton.

[Lisa Raitt, Conservative, Milton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, we are not the only ones. Canadians, and more important, the parliamentary budget officer, know that the Conservative government leaving a surplus has to do with bank balances.

Maybe the Liberals should check their snapshot when they came in in November, because I am pretty sure it was in the black, not in the red, where they will drag it after the end of this fiscal year.

The question is still the same. Does the Minister of Finance believe his caucus, who are the only ones saying we are in deficit, or does he believe the deputy minister of finance?