Debates of Feb. 24th, 2016

Foreign Affairs

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

Mr. Speaker, last month I urged the Prime Minister to stand up for Canadian families who have been waiting too long to bring adopted children home from the DRC by calling President Kabila and asking for 16 exit visas.

No phone call has been made, and no progress has been made, despite the fact that this past week, the DRC issued exit visas to American and European adopted children.

To the Prime Minister: Will you pick up the phone and call President Kabila?

[Omar Alghabra, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Consular Affairs)]

Mr. Speaker, our government is concerned about this file. We are aware of the visas that have been granted to American adoptees.

We have a plan to speak with the foreign minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Our minister has spoken with him in the past. We will continue to be engaged on this file. We know the file involves many Canadians, and they are interested in seeing their adopted children at home, and we will make sure that happens very quickly.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I once again remind members to direct their questions to the chair. I do not need the word “you” around here unless you are talking about me.

The hon. member for Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River.

Northern Affairs

[Georgina Jolibois, NDP, Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River, SK]

Mr. Speaker, Wollaston Lake, a northern Saskatchewan community of 1,800 people, is running out of fuel and food. Mild weather has made the ice road across Wollaston Lake unsafe, so there is no way to get supplies. The chief and council of Hatchet Lake First Nation warn that they may have to close their school and health centre, thanks to the shortage.

What will the government do to help schoolchildren, sick people, elders, and the rest of the community get the supplies they so badly need?

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for her ongoing vigilance on the files.

The Government of Canada recognizes the importance of winter roads and being able to get supplies to these remote communities. We know that a reliable network is essential. Because of climate change and because of this short season, we are really in trouble in terms of this kind of access that is no longer there. We are monitoring this and will work with the communities to find out how we can get their vital equipment there as soon as possible.

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

Mr. Speaker, northern Manitobans and people in northern Saskatchewan need action now from the federal government. Thanks to an unusually mild winter as a result of climate change, ice roads to all isolated communities in northern Manitoba opened late and some are not even open at all. It is increasingly impossible for communities to get all of the vital supplies they need, like housing materials, food, and fuel. In Manitoba, the Prime Minister campaigned on partnering to support the East Side Road, which would provide a long-term solution.

Will the Prime Minister keep his promise and work with isolated first nations so they can meet their needs this winter?

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

Mr. Speaker, the member's question demonstrates how really widespread this problem is, from Saskatchewan to Manitoba, to northern Ontario. The short season, because of the mild winter, is really crippling communities, because they cannot get essential supplies in. We are going to work together to do that, but then we know that we need long-term solutions.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Durham, ON]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the immigration minister told Canadians that less than half of the Syrian refugees are now in homes. In December, he told the House that we should look to the private sector for solutions for the Liberals' lack of planning to meet their election quotas. For Conservatives, these are people, not numbers or photo ops.

When will the minister come clean and admit that the Liberals did not have a plan in December and they do not have a plan now? How long will he continue to treat refugees as numbers rather than people?

[John McCallum, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, the member should check his facts. Yesterday I said that more than half had gone to permanent housing, not less than half. I think he should get his facts right.

It is a bit much for the Conservative side to be saying that Liberals do not treat refugees as people. I am the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, thanks to our Prime Minister's concern, and we are committed to bringing 25,000 people, who are refugees, to live and thrive in this country, by the end of the month—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. member for Richmond—Arthabaska.

Public Safety

[Alain Rayes, Conservative, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I want to say that I have complete faith in the security organizations responsible for evaluating Syrian applications.

I have been told that, during security screening, if there is the slightest concern for Canadian security, the application is rejected immediately. However, so far, nobody has been able to tell me how many applications have been rejected for national security reasons.

Can the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness tell us how many applications have been rejected? Is it one, five, 10, 200, or more?

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

Mr. Speaker, the system that is in place to protect security in relation to the Syrian refugee project has been designed by the Department of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, with the expert advice of the CBSA, the RCMP, and CSIS. They have done their job exceptionally well, and at the end of the project when we have all of the information about how successful it has been, we will be happy to share that with the House.

[Larry Miller, Conservative, Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, ON]

Mr. Speaker, we all know that the security of Canadians should be the number one priority for any government. We all know, as well, that the Liberals have been putting Canadians at risk by fast-tracking refugees into the country in order to meet their election quota.

I have a simple question for the minister. Of the total number of refugees accepted, what percentage were given extra security screening?

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

Mr. Speaker, the system we have put in place was designed with the best expertise in Canada, and I am very pleased to say that the commissioner of the RCMP, the director of CSIS, and the president of the CBSA have all said, on their own volition, that they believe the system is thorough and satisfactory and that it is accomplishing the Canadian objective, to get this humanitarian project done and get it done properly and safely. That is in fact the case.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police

[Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Liberal, Moncton—Riverview—Dieppe, NB]

Mr. Speaker, I have 23 years of experience with the Codiac Regional RCMP, and I was always proud to work with my colleagues in a respectful environment. All RCMP employees deserve a healthy, harassment-free workplace.

What is the minister doing to ensure that police officers and civilian staff have a respectful, healthy, harassment-free workplace?

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

Mr. Speaker, our election platform provided a clear mandate to ensure that the RCMP is indeed a healthy workplace. Sexual harassment is never acceptable.

On February 4, I asked the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP to undertake a comprehensive review of RCMP policies and procedures to evaluate the implementation of recommendations against harassment, which were made by that commission in 2013.

Instances of harassment must be met with comprehensive, transparent investigations, strong discipline, support for victims, and action to ensure a safe and respectful environment going forward.

Labour

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it was quite shameful to learn earlier this week that the Minister of Employment does not believe that private members' bills are important pieces of legislation. In the last Parliament, many private members' bills were brought forward on important issues on both sides of the floor.

On this side of the House, I am proud to say that we encourage our members to bring forward important issues from their constituents and private members' bills on issues important to all Canadians.

The employment minister is muzzling union members by taking away their democratic right to a secret ballot. Why is the Liberal government muzzling their own members by discrediting private members' bills?

[MaryAnn Mihychuk, Liberal, Minister of Employment]

Mr. Speaker, we want to clarify that Bill C-4 is here to reset a stage that is fair and balanced. Each individual collective bargaining unit can decide on its own system that it chooses to use, whether it is the card system or the voting system. The point of Bill C-4 is to bring fairness and balance, something that was missing because of the other side.

Foreign Affairs

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

Mr. Speaker, six months ago, my constituent, Alison Azer, experienced one of the worst nightmares a parent can ever face. Her four children were taken by her ex-husband. Alison has reason to believe that her children are now in Kurdistan in northern Iraq. Today she is here in Ottawa, urging the government to do everything it can to help bring her children safely home.

Could the minister please inform the House and Alison what actions the government is taking to ensure the safe and immediate return of her children?

[Omar Alghabra, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Consular Affairs)]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for his tireless work on this important file.

Our government remains committed and deeply concerned about the safety and well-being of the Azer children. We have been in constant and regular contact with Ms. Azer. In fact, I met with her yesterday and spoke with her again today before question period. I want to assure the House that our officials are working closely with government authorities here and abroad, including law enforcement agencies.

I want to take a moment to recognize Ms. Azer's strength and commitment. I want to assure her and the House that we are very committed to the return of her children safely at home.

Fisheries and Oceans

[Chris Bittle, Liberal, St. Catharines, ON]

Mr. Speaker, St. Catharines is home to the Port Dalhousie piers, which served as the terminus for the first Welland canal, on which St. Catharines very existence was at one time reliant. Under the previous government, this important landmark and popular tourist destination was abruptly closed due to safety concerns.

Could the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans please update the House on the Port Dalhousie piers review and his department's work with the City of St. Catharines to revitalize and maintain the piers for future generations to enjoy.

[Hunter Tootoo, Liberal, Minister of Fisheries]

Mr. Speaker, I can assure the member and the people in his riding that the department understands the significance of these piers to the community and that they are an important local tourist attraction.

Access to the piers has been restricted in order to protect public safety. We have recently received follow-up engineering reports and will work with the city on assessing short- and long-term repair options.

Telecommunications

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, House Leader of the Official Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Liberal chair of the heritage committee was awfully concerned that nobody was regulating the content of the Internet. As we speak, there is just a whole lot of Internet going on out there—what with the emails and Google and the kids twittering. She is worried that “Anyone can put anything out there”. When Al Gore invented the Internet, he did it in a way that protected free speech.

We know that the Prime Minister has great admiration for dictatorships like China. Is the current government going to take a page from the original red book and start stifling free speech?

[Mélanie Joly, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, we understand the importance of technological changes and the culture that is in line with these technological changes, and that is why our government is committed to really looking into the opportunity of—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!