Debates of Oct. 4th, 2018

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Glen Motz, Conservative, Medicine Hat—Cardston—Warner, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals have repeatedly misled Canadians, saying that illegal border crossings are under control and that everything is fine. However, hundreds of millions of dollars later, we still have people crossing illegally into Canada. The minister in charge of border security has clarified that less than one per cent of these illegal border crossers have been removed. Now we are learning that an asylum seeker's hearing was scheduled for 2030. What is the minister planning to do to stop illegal border crossings, and does he expect taxpayers to foot the bill for his failures until then?

[Bill Blair, Minister of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction, Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, I would point out once again that during that Harper decade the Conservatives cut $400 million from the CBSA and made significant cuts to the government's ability to deal with asylum seekers. We are restoring that capacity to deal with asylum seekers in an effective way. We have made significant investments to work through the existing backlog.

The typographical error the member referred to has already been clarified.

Sports

[Anju Dhillon, Liberal, Dorval—Lachine—LaSalle, QC]

Mr. Speaker, today marks the beginning of the torch relay for the 2019 Canada Winter Games, which will take place in Red Deer. The torch will leave Ottawa and travel to Halifax, Thunder Bay, Regina and Victoria, passing through more than 40 communiites across the country.

I am excited to see the success of our athletes in 2019. Can the Minister of Science and Sport tell us more about this great event?

[Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science and Sport, Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, today on Parliament Hill, we gather to light the Canada Games torch. In February 2019, youth from coast to coast to coast will gather in Red Deer, Alberta. They will compete in curling, hockey, speed skating and many more sports. Sport builds healthy lifestyles, self-esteem and memories that last a lifetime.

We are very proud to support the Canada Games.

Canada Post Corporation

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Speaker, rural municipalities across Ontario depend on mail-in ballots for their local elections. The latest contract offer from Canada Post has been rejected by its union. Canada Post has told election officials that it does not have to honour the contracts to have the ballots delivered before election day.

Will the Prime Minister direct Canada Post to have the ballots delivered by taxpayer-owned Purolator before the election?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Employment]

Mr. Speaker, as we have said time and again, our government, unlike the party opposite, respects the collective bargaining process and believes in the ability of parties to work together to renew their collective agreement.

I have mediators from federal mediation working closely with both parties. The talks continue. We are monitoring the labour negotiations and we continue to stand by the parties with mediation assistance.

Veterans Affairs

[Murray Rankin, NDP, Victoria, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Patricia Kidd from Victoria was married to her husband, Pete, a naval surgeon, for 31 years. They raised two sons and loved each other until the day Pete died in April 2016.

Yet, Patricia is not getting a penny of his pension, as the Liberals continue to deprive veterans' spouses of benefits if the veteran they marry is over 60. The minister keeps telling me this is a top priority, but these widows are still waiting.

Will the Liberals immediately eliminate the archaic over-60 clause, so that widows like Patricia can finally get the pension they deserve?

[Seamus O'Regan, Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence, Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, indeed, at the many town halls I have held right across this country, this is something that has come up time and time again.

I know that it is important to many veterans and many of their families. I can assure that member and the House that we are indeed working diligently on this file.

The Environment

[Francis Scarpaleggia, Liberal, Lac-Saint-Louis, QC]

Mr. Speaker, last month, members of my youth council and I went to visit the shoreline of my riding, looking for plastic debris. Fortunately, owing to the vigilance of our local municipal authorities, our clean-up effort was a light one.

However, like all Canadians, my constituents are growing more and more concerned about plastics in waterways. Can the Minister of Environment and Climate Change tell us what she is doing to implement our commitment to reduce plastic waste in federal institutions, and also generally across the country, so that we do not have to worry about plastic pollution in our waterways?

[Catherine McKenna, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Lac-Saint-Louis for his question and the members of his youth council for stepping up and tackling one of the biggest challenges of our time, plastic pollution.

Our oceans and lakes are literally choking in plastic pollution. If we do not take action now, we will have more plastics by weight in our oceans than fish. We know we need to take action. We stepped up at the G7. We have countries and businesses that have stepped up to sign our oceans plastics charter. We have also committed to eliminating single-use plastics in government operations. We are investing in innovation. We are developing a national zero waste strategy. We owe it to our kids.

[Alupa Clarke, Conservative, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

Mr. Speaker, ever since the unfortunate red dust episode at the port of Quebec in 2012, many residents have been racked with worry about the air quality in Limoilou. We will soon have some scientific evidence thanks to a study led by Quebec City municipal authorities.

On behalf of residents, I would like to know whether the Liberal government has had any discussions about this. What does it plan to do to address the concerns of the people of Limoilou?

[Catherine McKenna, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, I would be very happy to speak with the member opposite about this matter.

Rail Transportation

[Monique Pauzé, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Speaker, after a meticulous investigation, researcher Bruce Campbell confirmed that justice was not served for the victims of Lac-Mégantic. None of those responsible for the tragedy were sanctioned, and on top of it all, Mr. Campbell indicated that the original version of the Transportation Safety Board's report, which was very critical of the government, was doctored and watered down before being released, all because of political pressure from the Department of Transport, the industry and the government.

Can the government confirm whether there was political interference in the TSB's report, and will it release the original reports?

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, there was no interference. I would like to say, once again, that the Transportation Safety Board conducted an exhaustive investigation into what happened in Lac-Mégantic. It made many recommendations, some of which were addressed to the federal government and which we are currently in the process of implementing. There were trials. They lasted five years. I would also like to add that there are many people in Lac-Mégantic who do not want to relive the past five years. The report was released, and the matter is closed.

[Monique Pauzé, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Speaker, it is very serious because the people of Lac-Mégantic are calling for a public inquiry. People died, lives were ruined, but all this government thinks about is its partisan interests.

According to Mr. Campbell, the Transportation Safety Board is definitely not independent because the government and the railway industry are putting pressure on it to make sure its reports do not blame them.

If the government has even the slightest amount of compassion for the victims of Lac-Mégantic, it will start taking this seriously.

When will the government finally give the Lac-Mégantic victims real answers by launching a truly independent public inquiry?

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I regret my colleague's performance. The matter was studied extensively. I will repeat that rail safety is my top priority. I have been working on this file for five years, and we have completed all phases of this process. This was a very terrible experience for the people of Lac-Mégantic. They do not need to relive it.

International Trade

[Maxime Bernier, Independent, Beauce, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister said that farmers under supply management will be fully compensated for the increase in imports under the free trade agreement with the Americans. If I am not mistaken, the government will be compensating farmers for not producing, while at the same time preventing them from exporting.

Would this money not be better spent buying back the quotas, abolishing the supply management system, and allowing producers to innovate and export?

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

Mr. Speaker, as I have indicated clearly in this House many times, our party implemented supply management and we are the government that defended it.

Also, it is important to note that the American government wanted to make sure that the supply management system was destroyed. We made sure that would not happen.

As well, we will fully and fairly compensate farmers and make sure they continue to seed.

We have and will continue to support the supply management system in this country.

Presence in Gallery

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I would like to draw to the attention of hon. members the presence in the gallery of the Honourable Wade MacLauchlan, Premier of the province of Prince Edward Island.

[Some hon. members]

Hear, hear!

[Kelly McCauley, Conservative, Edmonton West, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order.

I would like the House's permission to table the most recent Transportation Safety Board of Canada document. Why? It is because the departmental results state the goal is to make the transportation system safer.

For three years, since the Minister of Transport has taken over the job, the document states this has not been met and our rail system is less safe. This goes against the minister's comment that it is a number one priority. It is not.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Does the hon. member have the unanimous consent of the House?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

No.

[Monique Pauzé, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I believe you will find unanimous consent for me to table Mr. Campbell's book, which offers a new perspective on the tragedy in Lac-Mégantic and will be of interest to all those involved in making decisions connected to this tragic accident.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. member knows that she is not allowed to use props. I would ask her to finish without this prop.