Debates of Feb. 1st, 2017

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Madam Speaker, in the campaign in 2015, the Prime Minister used the words that it was just a matter of “political will” for resettling 25,000 refugees in four months. Yet, when it comes to the most vulnerable population, those who are facing genocide, persecuted ethnic and religious minorities in the region, the new talking point is that they do not have enough time, that the Liberals need more time.

Why does the government refuse to prioritize genocide victims? This is two sets of criteria for two different religions. That is crazy and it is shameful. The House will hold the government to account for it.

Once again, very simply, for the love of everything that is holy, how many Yazidis will the government bring to Canada by the end of this month?

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

Madam Speaker, again, we have made the commitment to bring the Yazidis here within 120 days. I do not think the member for Calgary Nose Hill would want to put our officials in danger or would want to jeopardize the safety of any Canadians who are working hard to try to resolve this issue.

We recognize that operating in the region is complex. It is dangerous, and it poses risks, so it is imperative that we consider the next steps very carefully. That is why the department has made a third visit to the region. Officials have interviewed a large number of Syrian refugees as well as some internally displaced persons. They have met with key partners to gather more information. That is the prudent thing to do.

We will continue to explore our options and to work with our partners in the region to respond to these challenges and determine how best to extend protection to these vulnerable populations, including the Yazidis.

Indigenous Affairs

[Cathy McLeod, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo, BC]

Madam Speaker, I am standing to follow up on a question I asked in October, but I think I need to set the stage first in terms of what the actual issue is.

Residents of the city of Kamloops or the city of Kelowna can go online and see what the mayor makes and see the audited reports of the city. Residents of British Columbia or Alberta can do the same thing. That can be done, indeed, across Canada.

Our constituents can go online and see the audited financial statements of the Government of Canada, and they can look at their individual MPs and see how much they make and how much they spend on items such as travel.

Shareholders can actually go online and see a company's information. Companies are responsible for reporting audited statements and have pretty good, robust information available to shareholders.

There was a glaring omission in the transparency rules, and that was that first nations communities did not have the same obligations. When we were the government, we thought that the community members, the band members, deserved the same kind of transparency that all other Canadians expect. That is that the band posts, in a public way, audited financial statements, salaries, and expenses. Again, it is basic transparency.

I want to note that this is not about any part of the government saying that it wants to target specific groups. When this information is posted, they are held accountable. This was truly to allow community band members to hold their councils to account and to have the ability, because I think it is also important, to compare, perhaps, what their chief is making with what some others are making.

We found that we had a very good compliance rate. The measures came in in 2014, and by 2015, we had a compliance rate of over 92%. That is a very solid rate of bands, chiefs, and councils posting their statements and expenses and reporting to their band members.

What was very good about this is that it put aside some of the notions many people had about misuses of the money. Where there were misuses, it became very apparent, because the band members could actually hold their councils to account.

What this minister did was say that it did not matter. Some of the chiefs did not like it, so the government was going to get rid of transparency and not enforce the compliance measures.

It is absolutely appalling that the minister would take such an anti-democratic position and put first nations grassroots communities at such a disadvantage by not providing the transparency that all other Canadians enjoy and expect.

[Yvonne Jones, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs]

Madam Speaker, I am pleased to be here on traditional Algonquin territory. I am also pleased to speak in the House and respond to the question by the member for Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo.

I want to assure all members of the House that we take allegations of this kind seriously. What the minister did, and did cautiously, was to open a process of dialogue with indigenous people and first nations to look at what real accountability and transparency should be between first nations governments and the Government of Canada.

Our government did not buy-in to the tactics of the former administration, which was a top-down approach of dealing with indigenous people and indigenous governments. We have chosen to take a different path and in doing so, we are also ensuring full accountability and transparency for first nations and all Canadians across the country.

INAC acted quickly, and this is just one example, in 2015 to initiate a forensic audit at the request of the chief and council of the Shuswap Indian band to investigate the possible misappropriation of funds in its community. Further audit work was completed in 2016. Following the disclosure of additional financial transactions, a summary of the findings of both audits was provided to the community in July, 2016. That is openness and transparency and that is the Government of Canada acting with first nations band councils when there are issues and problems that have to be confronted.

At that point, the department then turned over the results of the audit to the Kelowna detachment of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The department has been in regular contact with the chief and with the RCMP during its investigation.

I want to be clear that members of the Shuswap nation and all Canadians can count on the Government of Canada's support for their communities. That is our job and we take that responsibility seriously.

We also understand and realize that accountability and transparency is important and therefore it is a priority. We also know we can only achieve this by working in full partnership with first nations leadership and organizations.

Before and after the election, first nations from coast to coast to coast were clear that top-down solutions did not work and they had never worked. We therefore remain committed to establishing a new fiscal relationship with first nations. That is why our government is engaging with their leadership and with communities to determine a way forward that is based on a renewed relationship and one that advances reconciliation and not top-down dictation. This means engaging first nation leadership face to face, but it also means that we are consulting on how to best support mutual transparency and accountability between first nations governments and the Government of Canada.

I would encourage and I ask all members in the House to support that process and to visit our website so they can learn more about those consultations and how they can participate in them.

I also want to assure the member, and all members, that the contribution agreements between our government and first nations are strong. We want to ensure that all funds are used as—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, Carol Hughes]

The hon. member for Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo.

[Cathy McLeod, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo, BC]

Madam Speaker, the government is very good with the word consultation but it does not follow through.

Over a year ago, the minister determined she would not enforce the compliance measures in the act. What has happened in that time? She has said that it is important, the government cares about it, and that it will work on it. It has been over a year.

What has happened with the compliance rate? It has dropped and it continues to drop every year. The last I heard is that this year so far only a bit more than 80% of the bands are reporting. They have stopped reporting to their people.

My mailbox is full. My phone rings constantly. Every day I get calls from band members who ask me for help. They want to have access to basic information and they feel they should not have to go to the minister if their chiefs and councils will not provide it. They feel it should be easily accessible.

The Liberal government needs to get on this right now.

[Yvonne Jones, Liberal, Labrador, NL]

Madam Speaker, I want to assure the member that we are very engaged with first nations in this country. We are engaged with them on a path forward on accountability and transparency. In the meantime, the member can be assured that all contribution agreements between our government and first nations contain strong reporting provisions to ensure that funds are used as intended.

As I have stated before, we take all allegations of wrongdoing seriously and investigate where necessary, as we have already done in cases that are ongoing. We know that transparency and accountability are critical. However, we want to make sure that we get it right and that we do it in partnership with first nations, not by dictating to them.

Very soon, the member will be assured that the process we have engaged in will be effective and will work for the greater good of all involved.

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, Carol Hughes]

The motion to adjourn the House is now deemed to have been adopted. Accordingly, this House stands adjourned until tomorrow at 10 a.m., pursuant to Standing Order 24(1).

(The House adjourned at 6:40 p.m.)