Debates of Feb. 3rd, 2016

Indigenous Affairs

[Charlie Angus, NDP, Timmins—James Bay, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am not sure if the hon. minister heard the question. The question was for the justice department.

What we have learned is that 1,000 victims of sexual and physical abuse in the residential schools had their cases thrown out on a flimsy legal technicality, which is that children who were abused in institutions run by the government are not, somehow, eligible for compensation by the government.

This travesty was conjured up in the Department of Justice. I am asking the minister, as its boss, will she do the right thing? Will she tell this House that those cases will be reopened and that justice will be done? I am asking her to answer for her officials.

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

Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, the member needs to know that my department is the client. The Minister of Justice's department actually gives advice.

I have asked my department to look into this, and we are going to look into it in a very serious manner right now.

Government Appointments

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

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Liberal House leader got it wrong. He tried to justify his interference with citizenship judges on the Immigration and Refugee Board just because he did not like who was appointed.

These people were already appointed. He has no right to use his position to intimidate them. Judicial independence is paramount. These judges and tribunal members make rulings on matters between the government and Canadians. Will they now feel pressured to side with the new Liberal government in order to keep their jobs?

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

Mr. Speaker, the member knows full well that our letters to these members were about personnel matters and not about cases or files that were before them. It is an elementary thing that the Governor in Council can interact with the people we appoint to different jobs on personnel matters.

The member should resist conflating those two issues in a way that is really irresponsible.

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

Mr. Speaker, it is clear that the government House leader is getting to know the Ethics Commissioner far too well. We still remember his ethical challenges, dating back to 2003. Then this December, he was held responsible for illegal fundraising. Now he is trying to deliberately intimidate arm's-length bodies.

Why will the minister not admit that it was wrong to abuse his position by threatening judges and by trying to intimidate them? How much further is he prepared to go?

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

Mr. Speaker, let us see how far that member is prepared to go. Is he prepared to go about 25 metres outside in the foyer and repeat those exact same comments? That would be interesting--

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. member for Lévis—Lotbinière.

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Lévis—Lotbinière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, a spade is a spade. Political interference is political interference.

When the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons contacted the judges at the Immigration and Refugee Board, he knew that he was directly interfering in their work.

In the past, this type of conduct forced ministers to resign.

Just how low do the Liberals plan to go when interpreting the ethics rules?

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

Mr. Speaker, I will say exactly where we will not be going, and that is where the former government found itself after publicly and systematically attacking the chief justice of the Supreme Court of Canada. That is something we will not do.

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Lévis—Lotbinière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, as I just said, political interference is political interference. This is not just about the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons. In his letter, he indicated that he was writing on behalf of the Prime Minister.

Why does the Prime Minister believe that he has the right to openly interfere in the affairs of judges and members of quasi-judicial bodies?

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

Mr. Speaker, the government decided that the way these people were appointed to positions that they would not hold until after the election was not at all transparent and represented an abuse of the process. The former government tried to abuse a political appointment process.

That is why I wrote to these people about a personnel matter and not to raise a substantive issue, which the member knows full well.

International Trade

[Tracey Ramsey, NDP, Essex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it is outrageous that the government will not study the impact of the TPP before signing on the dotted line, but we know that the deal would have serious consequences for Canadians: tens of thousands of jobs lost, higher drug costs, stifled innovation, rising inequality.

We all know that if the minister did not support this deal, she would not sign it. Is the minister rushing to sign the deal to try to get it done before Canadians know how much it will hurt them?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, the signing of the TPP is a technical step. The real important moment is the date of ratification.

Before that decision is made, we will put this matter to Parliament. A parliamentary committee will study it, Canadians across the country will have a chance to pronounce on it, and we will undertake expert opinion. Therefore, we are doing precisely what we promised, which is to study the accord properly before ratifying it.

[Ruth Ellen Brosseau, NDP, Berthier—Maskinongé, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are concerned about the economic situation. Now is the time to make good decisions, but the government insists on signing an agreement that is going to cost us 60,000 jobs, create greater inequalities, and hurt our dairy producers.

The government did not even take the time to study the important issues related to the trans-Pacific partnership.

How can the government sign an agreement that is not good for Canadians?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, we are going to sign the agreement to give ourselves time to examine it. The agreement is very complex. Obviously, consultations have been held. Some people support this agreement and others do not.

We are going to hold consultations, including in committee, and Parliament will have the last word.

Agriculture and Agri-food

[Stephen Fuhr, Liberal, Kelowna—Lake Country, BC]

Mr. Speaker, dry conditions across the interior of British Columbia and throughout the western provinces in 2015 created significant hardship for our farmers. In my riding of Kelowna—Lake Country, and throughout western Canada, we have some of the best farmers in the world, who are focused on building a better future.

Can the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food inform the House what measures the government is taking to address the situation facing farmers affected by last year's drought?

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, extreme weather created difficulties for the western Canadian livestock industry last summer. This week our government released a list of additional regions for tax deferrals in many areas throughout the western provinces, which will help farmers focus on the future.

Since taking office, we have announced over $50 million in cost-shared funding. Our government supports our hard-working farmers and ranchers.

National Defence

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the number of terrorist attacks is growing. We have been waiting for weeks to hear the government's plan, but there has been nothing but silence.

Yesterday, reporters asked the Minister of National Defence about Canada's plans, but he referred them to his colleague, the foreign affairs minister, who is currently in Rome.

Will the Minister of National Defence face up to his responsibilities or do I need to ask someone else the question?

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, the attacks that are happening around the world are not just focused on one plan. The hon. member knows that on a daily basis, our security agencies are working in co-operation with our allies on many different attacks. Unfortunately, I cannot divulge this information due to security issues.

However, in terms of the actual plan for Operation IMPACT, it will be coming soon, and it will be a plan Canadians can be proud of.

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister indicated in the Department of National Defence's performance report that he is going to participate in coalition operations abroad.

Can the minister tell us how he is going to help our allies and fight terrorists by withdrawing our combat forces from Syria and Iraq?

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, we are not withdrawing from the fight against terrorism. Also, we are not withdrawing from the fight against ISIL. We will be enhancing our fight against ISIL.

When the plan comes out, it will be a plan Canadians can be proud of.

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

Mr. Speaker, instead of the defence minister talking about mistakes of the past, let us talk about mistakes of the present. Taking our CF-18s out of the air combat mission is a mistake. The delays are a mistake. Incoherent comments are a mistake. Undermining Canada's reputation is a mistake.

When will the Minister of National Defence quit dithering, admit his mistakes, and finally give us the plan to fight ISIS?

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, the plan will be coming out soon. I can assure the member of that.

When it comes to stopping the air strikes, yes, our government is committed to that. However, we are committed to the fight. I have done a thorough assessment by going into the region twice, meeting with commanders on the ground and speaking with my coalition partners, to my partners in Iraq, and to the northern Kurds as well.

When the plan comes out, it will be a plan Canadians can be proud of.

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the first command ordered by Chief of the Defence Staff Jonathan Vance was to establish Operation Honour to eliminate sexual misconduct in the military. General Vance explicitly stated that this would require a cultural change within the Armed Forces. However, the Minister of National Defence contradicted General Vance and said, “It's not the military culture per se that leads to [sexual misconduct]”.

Why is the minister making the mistake of brushing off the serious issue of sexual misconduct in the military?