Debates of Oct. 5th, 2018

Foreign Affairs

[Rob Nicholson, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday we found out that the Russian military has engaged in a number of serious cyber-attacks. Not surprisingly, the World Anti-Doping Agency and the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons were targeted. These attacks were designed by the Russians to disrupt investigations into Russia's numerous violations of international law, in particular, the nerve attack in the United Kingdom.

I would like to ask the Minister of Foreign Affairs what specific action is she going to take in response to these Russian attacks on Canada, and will she introduce new sanctions and expel members of the Russian diplomatic corps from Canada?

[Andrew Leslie, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Canada-U.S. Relations)]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday we joined our allies in exposing malicious cyber operations by the Russian military, specifically the GRU. These acts form part of a broader pattern of activities by the Russian government that flout international norms, demonstrate a disregard for international law and undermine the rules-based international order. We call on all of those who value this order to come together in its defence.

Our position towards Russia remains clear and strong. We will always stand up to these cyber-threats and we will never let Russia threaten Canadian stability or security.

Public Safety

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

Mr. Speaker, one of the only Canadian firearms manufacturers has stalled production, pending confirmation of the firearms marking regulation set to come into force December 1. Twenty-five thousand people are employed by 4,500 firearms businesses in Canada and they just want to get on with their business.

Will the minister advise us when the government will announce another 11th hour deferral or if this poorly drafted regulation will come into force on December 1? Distributors, dealers and manufacturers need some clarity so they can get on with their business.

[Karen McCrimmon, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, we share Canadians' serious concerns about gun violence and will be working hard to address the problem. We have a very comprehensive review being done by Minister Blair at the present time. We will enhance background checks and will be removing the five-year limitation, allowing any history of violence, including mental illness associated with violence, to be considered when someone applies for a licence. This is a good step in the right direction.

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

I want to remind hon. members that when they are referring to someone else in the chamber, they should refer to them by their ridings or titles, not by their names.

The hon. member for Medicine Hat—Cardston—Warner.

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

Mr. Speaker, it is clear from the parliamentary secretary's response that the Liberals do not understand the question and are certainly failing on another issue.

Thousands of small businesses need clarity today on whether the government is going to move ahead with this poorly drafted regulation, or if common sense will prevail and a deferral will be issued and a new regulation drafted. Will the minister do his job, meet with industry so it can provide its expertise on firearms markings, and fix this flawed regulation to avoid further negative impacts on Canadian businesses?

[Karen McCrimmon, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, we have legislation that is currently going through Parliament that addresses some gaps and weaknesses dealing with legal weapons. We have enhanced background checks, ensuring that sellers will verify, ensuring that vendors keep records of sales to allow for tracking. We are going in the right direction and we will move forward.

Status of Women

[Yasmin Ratansi, Liberal, Don Valley East, ON]

Mr. Speaker, during Women's History Month, we celebrate women who make an impact. One way to make a significant impact is to help young women across Canada reach their leadership goals. We all remember last year when this place was filled with young women from coast to coast to coast in the first ever Daughters of the Vote program.

Can the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for the Status of Women tell the House how our government is supporting the next generation of women leaders in Canada?

[Terry Duguid, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary for Status of Women]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for Don Valley East for her tireless advocacy.

Promoting gender equality is not only the right thing to do, but the smart thing to do for our economy and the middle class. However, we need governments with more women representation if gender equality is to be truly achieved. That is why this week the Minister of Status of Women announced that we are investing $3.8 million to further the great work of the Daughters of the Vote program.

Our government is proud to support this important project that empowers young women to seek public office and helps build a more representative democracy for everyone.

Justice

[Michael Cooper, Conservative, St. Albert—Edmonton, AB]

Mr. Speaker, Constable Sarah Beckett paid the ultimate sacrifice when she was killed in the line of duty by an impaired driver.

This week her husband, Brad Aschenbrenner, spoke out against Bill C-75, which waters down sentences for impaired driving causing bodily harm.

Will the Liberals listen to Sarah's husband and other victims, and remove from Bill C-75 the watering down of sentences for this serious crime?

[Jody Wilson-Raybould, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, without question, our hearts go out to the family of Constable Beckett in this tragedy.

I will say that our government is incredibly proud to have introduced and passed legislation that is among the toughest impaired driving laws in the world. I will say, with respect to Bill C-75, that it does not in any way, shape or form change the principles of sentencing, which are proportionate to the gravity of the offence and the grave responsibility of the offender.

What Bill C-75 does is that it gives prosecutors the necessary discretion to determine—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for West Nova.

National Parks

[Colin Fraser, Liberal, West Nova, NS]

Mr. Speaker, Canada's century old national park system is unlike any other in the world, yet in 2014 the Conservative government cut funding to parks by over $29 million.

My favourite national park, Kejimkujik, is in my riding of West Nova. This beautiful park was once used for year-round hiking, camping and skiing. Can the parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change tell me and my constituents what is being done to improve our national parks and ensure year-round access?

[Sean Fraser, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for West Nova for his continued work in ensuring that Canadians get to enjoy Kejimkujik and other national parks all year round.

Unlike the Harper Conservatives, our government is ensuring meaningful experiences in parks across the country. To do this, we have made park entry for youth free forever, and made substantial investments in programs and experiences to ensure that more Canadians have access to nature and historic sites.

In Kejimkujik National Park, this means that there is $4 million in upgrades to Jeremy's Bay Campground. I look forward to working with the member to ensure that we can enhance year-round access to our national park system, including at Kejimkujik.

The Environment

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

Mr. Speaker, in 2015, our Conservative government gave its support to the Beauport 2020 project, which seeks to further develop the Port of Québec. Sixty million dollars were earmarked for the project. This support was contingent on the project clearing public consultations and a Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency assessment.

Once these legal hurdles have been cleared, the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, along with cabinet, will have to decide whether to give the project the green light.

Is the government expecting to reach a decision soon? Can it give us specific time frames?

[Sean Fraser, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, we are familiar with the project and understand there has been some developments as recently as April.

The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency is conducting the environmental assessment of this project under the CEAA 2012 rules.

Our government understands the importance of timely decisions while ensuring that those decisions are based on science, facts, the traditional knowledge of indigenous people, input from the public and, of course, evidence. I am certain that the agency will work in collaboration with the minister to make a recommendation, and a responsible decision will be taken in due course.

Rail Transportation

[Monique Pauzé, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the Minister of Transport dodged my question about a possible public inquiry into the Lac-Mégantic tragedy by claiming that the people of Lac-Mégantic were not interested.

The very same day, however, the Coalition des citoyens et organismes engagés pour la sécurité ferroviaire de Lac-Mégantic was on the Hill calling for that very commission of inquiry.

The minister is correct when he says the people of Lac-Mégantic do not want to relive the events of five years ago. They want to prevent such a tragedy from happening again.

Will the minister listen to the people of Lac-Mégantic and order a truly independent public inquiry?

[Terry Beech, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport, Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, I think we can all agree that no person, certainly no family, should have to go through what the people of Lac-Mégantic have gone through.

That is why the minister has made rail transportation his number one priority. We have investigated this issue thoroughly and taken unprecedented action. We are working with the communities of Lac-Mégantic, Frontenac, and Nantes to ensure that the rail bypass goes forward.

We will continue to take action to rebuild this beautiful community.

International Trade

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the people of Lac-Mégantic want an inquiry. Will the government give them one?

When the agreement with Europe was signed, the government promised to compensate the provinces for the increase in drug costs and the impact on health care costs. It was even included in the mandate letter for the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Three years later, there is nothing, not even a hint of a program.

Now the government is simply adding to this with the new NAFTA, which raises the cost of drugs a second time, again without compensation.

When will the government keep its promise and compensate Quebec for the agreements it signs?

[Andrew Leslie, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Canada-U.S. Relations)]

Mr. Speaker, we know how proud Canadians are of our public health care system. We will continue to work with the provinces, territories and our partners to reduce drug costs and provide timely access to drugs. This is a very important issue for our government. We look forward to attracting new medical research to Canada. Our government will always defend our public health care system.

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I take it there is no compensation, then. It is disappointing, but that is always how it goes with Ottawa. The government promises to compensate the losers in the agreement, but it forgets all about them as soon as it is done signing.

The same thing happened with the Canada-U.S. free trade agreement, the North American Free Trade Agreement, the free trade agreement between Canada and the EFTA and the Canada-Korea Free Trade Agreement. Now, we have the agreement between Canada and Europe, the new trans-Pacific partnership and the new NAFTA, in which our producers have been sacrificed. We have been through this before.

When will the government finally come up with a plan that fully compensates dairy producers for the last three agreements, which it signed at their expense?

[Andrew Leslie, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Canada-U.S. Relations)]

Mr. Speaker, our government is taking action to bring down the cost of prescription drugs for Canadians. We are working with the provinces and territories to make prescription drugs more affordable. We have joined the pan-Canadian Pharmaceutical Alliance, which has helped Canadians save over $2 billion annually. We are investing more than $140 million to improve access to health care and support innovation in that area.

[Erin Weir, Independent, Regina—Lewvan, SK]

Mr. Speaker, this morning, Statistics Canada reported that our country has lost 24,000 manufacturing jobs over the past year. Among the factors depressing Canadian manufacturing employment are American tariffs on our steel and aluminum exports. The new free trade deal with the U.S. should have ensured tariff-free access to the U.S. market.

Does the government have a plan and a timeline to remove American tariffs from Canadian metal?

[Navdeep Bains, Liberal, Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite should understand that our government fully supports steel and aluminum workers. That is why we provided a $2-billion support package to address the concerns specifically in the steel and aluminum sector. This $2-billion support package will help small and medium-sized businesses by providing them with additional financing through BDC and export financing through EDC. We are very confident that this plan in the short term will help them and we will continue to engage our American counterparts to find resolution on section 232 regarding steel and aluminum.

Supply Management

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I believe that if you seek it, you will find unanimous consent for the following motion:

That the House call on the government to implement a program that provides financial compensation to egg, poultry and dairy farmers for all the losses they sustain due to the breaches to the supply management system in CETA, the CPTPP and the USMCA, and that it do so before asking parliamentarians to vote on the USMCA.