House of Commons Hansard #193 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was appointments.
Jean-Yves Duclos LiberalMinister of Families
Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to be given the opportunity by our colleague to say how honoured and privileged I was yesterday to sign the first-ever national agreement on child care.
I think we should all be delighted in the House, especially as this is going to be about the opportunity to work over the long term to build a system that will bring support—
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
Mr. Speaker, government officials told the Inland Refugee Society of BC that they “cannot be seen” to be supporting undocumented refugees. Really? So much for the Prime Minister's “#WelcomeToCanada”.
Inland is the only NGO in B.C. that provides immediate support for inland asylum seekers, and does it with a budget of only $180,000. A little support from the government can prevent this organization from shutting its doors. Why is the government choosing to abandon these vulnerable refugees?
Ahmed Hussen LiberalMinister of Immigration
Mr. Speaker, I am proud of our government's commitment to welcoming those who flee war, terror, and persecution.
I am proud of our government's plan to continue our robust asylum process. We have provided over $700 million this year in the settlement of refugees and the services that we need to integrate them into our country. I am proud of the fact that in budget 2017 we are providing $62.9 million for legal aid specific to refugees. We are continuing our leadership on the refugee file.
Mary Ng Liberal Markham—Thornhill, ON
Mr. Speaker, yesterday was a wonderful day for Canadian families with major progress on the government's promise to recommit to child care and early childhood services.
Could the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development update the House on the advancement of this important initiative?
Jean-Yves Duclos LiberalMinister of Families
Mr. Speaker, congratulations to our new colleague from Markham—Thornhill for her outstanding support to families. Investing in early learning and child care helps strengthen Canada's middle class and supports those working hard to join it.
Yesterday, for the first time ever, the federal government, provinces, and territories signed a national agreement on child care to better support Canadian families, to give Canadian children the best possible start in life, to increase gender equity, and to build a more inclusive society.
Rob Nicholson Conservative Niagara Falls, ON
Mr. Speaker, in June of 2015 our Conservative government passed the high-risk child sex offender registry, and since then, the RCMP have been working to implement this publicly accessible database. However, now the Liberals are telling us that they have no money to fund it. That is ridiculous. The Liberals have been telling us they have billions of dollars for anything, so no one is buying this argument.
This database would help protect the safety and well-being of children against dangerous high-risk child sex offenders living in their neighbourhood. I say to the Liberals, do the right thing. It is not that hard.
Ralph Goodale LiberalMinister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
Mr. Speaker, the critical tool in terms of public protection is the national sex offender registry, which was created and funded in 2004 by the former public safety minister, the Hon. Anne McLellan. That is a very useful instrument. When an offender is about to be released, if there is a danger, then the correctional system notifies the police and if there is any danger in the situation, the police make sure that they work with the local community to keep Canadians safe.
The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan
I ask the hon. member for Huron—Bruce to apologize for using unparliamentary language.
The hon. member for Huron—Bruce.
Ben Lobb Conservative Huron—Bruce, ON
Mr. Speaker, I apologize if the minister was offended by my comment. I apologize for that.
Luc Berthold Conservative Mégantic—L'Érable, QC
Mr. Speaker, let us talk about a specific situation that happened in Quebec recently. I am talking about a man who was found guilty of abusing children under his care and who is listed on the much-talked-about sex offender registry and will be until 2021. According to the minister, children living in the area are safe, but that man managed to become a foster parent despite the fact that he was on the registry. No one in the area knew that he was a sex offender.
The safety of our children is the Prime Minister's responsibility. When will he understand that this kind of thing must never happen again?
Ralph Goodale LiberalMinister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
Mr. Speaker, the way to ensure that families and children and communities are safe is to make certain that national institutions like Correctional Service Canada work closely with the police forces of Canada and the local communities to ensure that people have the information they need. In those circumstances, that kind of partnership and teamwork is the best way to ensure that our communities are safe.
Bob Zimmer Conservative Prince George—Peace River—Northern Rockies, BC
Mr. Speaker, according to RCMP deputy commissioner Peter Henschel's own testimony, June 4, 2015:
...the RCMP destroyed the records between October 26, 2012, and October 31, 2012, with the exception of the Quebec records, which were maintained pending the outcome of a Supreme Court decision.
When that decision was rendered on March 27, 2015, the RCMP deleted the remaining Quebec records from the Canadian firearms information system between April 10 to April 12, 2015....
Someone is not telling the truth. Can the minister explain why he is saying something different from the RCMP?
Ralph Goodale LiberalMinister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
Mr. Speaker, the previous government was deeply embroiled in an argument with the Information Commissioner because it was alleged by the Information Commissioner that, while an outstanding access to information complaint was being made, the previous government had taken steps to improperly remove and destroy that information. That was the position taken by the Information Commissioner. She took the government to court. She launched a constitutional challenge. It is that unseemly mess that we are trying now to unwind with legislation before this House.
Bob Zimmer Conservative Prince George—Peace River—Northern Rockies, BC
There is a problem with what the minister just said, Mr. Speaker.
The Quebec data was ordered destroyed after a failed appeal at the Supreme Court, and further confirmed destroyed April 2015 by the RCMP deputy commissioner, Peter Henschel. The Information Commissioner did not ask for the data until June 2015, two months after it was allegedly destroyed by the RCMP.
Someone is not being honest here, and Canadian law-abiding firearms owners deserve to know the truth. If the long gun registry data is not destroyed, the minister is saying the RCMP did not tell the truth at committee, a serious accusation. An equally serious accusation is that someone illegally preserved the data. Which is it?
Ralph Goodale LiberalMinister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
Mr. Speaker, all of those events about which the hon. gentleman complains in fact took place under the previous administration. If the member has a problem with that process, he should ask his colleagues who formerly occupied those cabinet positions.
Robert Aubin NDP Trois-Rivières, QC
Mr. Speaker, after attempting to appoint Madeleine Meilleur as the Commissioner of Official Languages, the government continues to give its friends federal appointments. The Minister of Transport appointed three new directors at the Port of Halifax. These directors do not actually seem to have the skills required for the job, but they all donated thousands of dollars to the Liberal Party.
Canadians are fed up with patronage and the Liberals doing favours for their friends, so my question is this: when will the Liberals put an end to partisan appointments?
Bardish Chagger LiberalLeader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of Small Business and Tourism
Mr. Speaker, we have implemented a new, open, transparent, and merit-based appointment process. Our aim is to identify high-quality candidates who will help to achieve gender parity and truly reflect Canada's diversity. Canadians can continue to apply for positions, which are advertised online.
Pierre Nantel NDP Longueuil—Saint-Hubert, QC
Mr. Speaker, while the Minister of Canadian Heritage has her attention on an export strategy that now will not be unveiled until September, there is an urgent need to send back the CRTC’s wrong-headed decision to reduce the visibility of our content on our screens.
The minister knows perfectly well that the entire cultural industry is calling on the CRTC to go back to the drawing board. As for artists, they still do not know whether they can count on their minister to send the matter back to the CRTC.
Can the minister tell the cultural industry that she will stand shoulder to shoulder with them to overturn the CRTC decision? Will she send the decisions back to the CRTC, yes or no?
She needs to put culture first.
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications CommissionOral Questions
Charlottetown P.E.I.
Liberal
Sean Casey LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage
Mr. Speaker, our government firmly believes in the importance of arts and culture. That is why we invested more than $1.9 billion in this area, the largest investment in the past 30 years. We did so because we know that arts and culture are key drivers in our economy. We are currently studying the repercussions of the CRTC’s decision.
James Bezan Conservative Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB
Mr. Speaker, since a trade war between Boeing and Bombardier started, it has become abundantly clear that the Liberals will not be sole-sourcing Super Hornets. This point was reaffirmed over the weekend as the Minister of National Defence stated that the government was looking at all the options to replace our CF-18s.
What options is the minister actually talking about?
Will the Liberal government walk away from the wrong-headed policy of an interim purchase and instead immediately launch an open competition to replace all of our fighter jets?
Jean Rioux LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence
Mr. Speaker, Conservative mismanagement in renewing the over-30-year-old fighter jet fleet has forced us to continue exploring the procurement of 18 new aircraft to supplement the current CF-18s until the new permanent fleet is fully operational, in order to protect Canadian sovereignty and meet our NORAD and NATO commitments.
We have not yet made a decision. Our discussions must demonstrate that the interim fleet has the appropriate capability and can be obtained at a cost, timeframe and value—
Pierre Paul-Hus Conservative Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC
Mr. Speaker, I would like to tell my colleague across the aisle that 88% of Canada's experts released a report today in which they say that Canada does not have a capability gap and does not need an interim fleet. I would suggest that my colleague do his homework.
For the past year, all they have been talking about is how buying 18 Boeing Super Hornets will miraculously save the the air force. Now that Boeing is no longer in the Liberals' good graces, they are just making things up as they go along.
Can the minister tell us which aircraft he is leaning toward now? Will he finally show some transparency on this issue?
Jean Rioux LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence
Mr. Speaker, in its new defence policy, the government made it clear that a modern fighter fleet is vital to defending Canada's airspace and sovereignty, particularly in our northern airspace, to ensuring continental security, and to supporting international peace and stability.
This acquisition will give the Royal Canadian Air Force enough aircraft to secure our vast airspace and maintain our ability to contribute to international operations.