Debates of April 21st, 2016

Foreign Affairs

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Sometimes there are partisan politics made of things around here.

The hon. member for Lac-Saint-Jean.

International Trade

[Denis Lebel, Conservative, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the situation in the aluminium industry in Quebec is troubling. The Americans are imposing an emergency tariff of 50% on all aluminium imports. Quebec produces 66% of the aluminium imported into the United States.

Meanwhile, instead of dealing with this problem, the Prime Minister prefers to work on his image, by sparring in a boxing ring in New York.

Can the Prime Minister tell us why he would rather bask in the limelight in Brooklyn than fight for the aluminium industry?

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

Mr. Speaker, we support Canada's primary metal manufacturing industry and we will defend the interests of Canadian businesses. Imposing restrictions on Canadian exports will not help resolve global overcapacity. Canada and the U.S. must resolve the overcapacity issue in a strategic, comprehensive manner in the interest of all our workers.

[Denis Lebel, Conservative, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the problem is not overcapacity. The problem is being able to export our products to the United States.

There is another unsustainable sector: dairy production. For a long time now, dairy producers have been calling on the Liberal government to solve the diafiltered milk problem. Losses are adding up to millions of dollars per week. It is getting harder and harder for dairy producers, and it is all because the processing industry has very little respect for its partners who produce milk.

Will the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food show us that he is taking this problem seriously? Instead of just talking about international trade, can he come up with solutions?

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question.

The minister and I have both been dairy producers, and my son represents the fifth generation working for the business. We are aware of what farms contribute to regional economies. We are working with the industry to come up with a long-term solution, not a short-term one.

Air Canada

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Outremont, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I have a solution to suggest to the government to help the dairy industry: enforce the law.

Dominique Anglade, the Quebec minister for economy, science and innovation, has been asking the member for Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount not to hurt the Quebec economy with his bill, Bill C-10.

Would the member for Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount be kind enough to listen to the Quebec government and give up on his ridiculous plan to let Air Canada off the hook retroactively? Will he show some respect for the Quebec economy?

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, I think the minister did not know that we had introduced time allocation yesterday at second reading of the bill, specifically because the NDP tried to kill the bill using an amendment last Friday.

The good news is that several steps remain in the parliamentary process. The bill will go to committee, where we will hear from witnesses. Then comes the report stage and third reading. After that, the Senate repeats the entire process. There are many steps left in the process.

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Outremont, QC]

Mr. Speaker, he is quite right, for once. We wanted to kill his bill, and that is what the Quebec government is calling for.

On Monday, the Liberals blamed the Conservatives for letting the Catholic Church off the hook for millions of dollars in the restitution of residential schools, but it turns out that the minister had seven days of briefings before she let the church off the hook.

Is the minister suggesting that it is not her fault, that she did not read her briefing books? Is she still going to blame the Conservatives, or is she going to stand in the House and explain why the Liberals let the church off the hook?

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

Mr. Speaker, the headline of the story was wrong, and has subsequently been corrected.

Let me be clear. The agreement of release was signed October 30, five days before the new government took office. The previous government initiated negotiations last summer and the previous government agreed to withdraw the protective notice of appeal.

The government continues to work with the Catholic entities to urge them to fulfill their financial commitments to their reconciliation with aboriginal people in our country. This is not something the Government of Canada can do.

Foreign Affairs

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Outremont, QC]

It was actually on November 10, six days after they were sworn in, that the Liberals signed those documents, Mr. Speaker. By the way, if they do not really agree with it, why did they not just reverse the decision?

Should Canada sell weapons to countries that oppress their own citizens, torture or kill their opposition, and treat women as second-class citizens? Yesterday we found out from the member of Parliament for Kenora that human rights did not matter.

Here is the question for the minister responsible. Why did he sign this deal with Saudi Arabia when he knows its human rights record?

[Stéphane Dion, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, the leader of the NDP, during the campaign, said, “You don't cancel a commercial accord retroactively.... It's just not done”. The New Democrats say something during the election to get their seats and afterward they something else. I think they have a lot to explain.

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Outremont, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we are talking about signing an export permit after Saudi Arabia proceeded to a series of executions, including religious leaders, after Saudi Arabia used its weapons in Yemen. That is the context of that minister signing the export permits. The Liberals have a real problem. They do not accept that they are the government. They keep looking at the former government. They are in charge, he signed the export permits.

When does the government plan to start defending human rights around the world? When?

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. member for Cape Breton—Canso should know that I know his voice even if he covers his mouth. He should restrain himself.

[Stéphane Dion, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, the leader of the NDP is mad because, in fact, he knows that he has double-talk on this issue.

This is what his member said, when she was elected.

Well, I have lost the quote from the member for London—Fanshawe.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[Stéphane Dion, Liberal, Saint-Laurent, QC]

What she said is, “we would honour the contract, we don’t renege on contracts. It’s a signed contract and we will honour that contract”.

Ministerial Expenses

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

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of International Trade claims that her Hollywood adventure was a trip to promote Canada and meet with trading partners, but we know—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Order. Let us have a little quiet. It is hard to hear the member's question. I know you all want to listen to the member's question.

[Rodger Cuzner, Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso, NS]

It was not me.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Apparently it was not the member for Cape Breton—Canso, he tells me.

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

Mr. Speaker, it is funny: on that side the squeaky wheel seems to be getting the grease today.

We know the minister was originally scheduled to appear on a U.S. TV program in October, but she rescheduled her appearance to November after she was sworn into cabinet.

The minister wants Canadians to believe that she was there to promote Canada, but Canadians are not buying her story, even at a cost of $20,000. The real reason she was there was to promote herself. If she was really there for government business, why did Time Warner book her stay?

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

Mr. Speaker, once again the Conservatives are trying to create a story where there is none.

Since the members opposite continue to be so interested in this non-topic, let me remind them that it was their own leader who left taxpayers on the hook for a bill for $50,000 to hire a consultant to try to secure American media interviews.

The Conservatives' accusations about the expenses are false. All the rules were followed. The details were publicly posted months ago.

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

Mr. Speaker, several times this week, the Minister of International Trade or her parliamentary secretary have risen in this place and told us that it was her department, and her department alone, that handled all of the arrangements for her fun-in-the-sun vanity trip to California.

However, documents indicate that it was Time Warner that booked the five-star Beverly Hills hotel rooms for her and her staffer. Something does not add up here.

The question is simple. Why should Canadians be paying for her vanity trip to Hollywood?

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

Mr. Speaker, once again the Conservatives are trying to create a story where there is none.

Unlike previous Conservatives, the Minister of International Trade has a justly earned international reputation as a journalist and finance writer. In California, she appeared in the media with U.S. Senator Angus King of Maine and California Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom. There, she proudly defended Canada's leadership on the Syrian refugee crisis.

The Conservatives should learn from colleagues like their former Prime Minister that even they sometimes need to appear in the media.