Joe Fontana

[Housing, December 13th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to tell the leader of the Bloc that the Prime Minister and I have met with numerous organizations in Quebec, including FRAPRU. The government is committed to social and affordable housing. That is why we have initiated $1 billion worth of initiatives for affordable housing.

I am happy to say that Quebec and British Columbia are doing some remarkable things. We will continue to work with the Government of Quebec to deliver more social and affordable housing to the people of Quebec.

[Labour, December 3rd, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his hard work on this file.

As the House knows, the government wants to build the modern economy of the 21st century. In order to do that we have to modernize our labour standards which are over 40 years old. We have appointed Professor Arthurs as the commissioner. We will consult broadly. We will ask employers and employees to forge the new labour standards that this country needs to make sure that everyone is protected. At the same time, we want to continue to excel internationally and domestically and build that modern economy for workers and employers.

[Persons with Disabilities, December 3rd, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the government, the hon. member would know that within our affordable housing strategy, within our homeless strategy and within strategies for renovating people's homes, it is our commitment to ensure that people with disabilities and our seniors have all the opportunities available to them to renovate their homes. We want to ensure that they have not only good transportation, but good housing. We are committed to doing that.

[Canada Labour Code, December 2nd, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, since my appointment as Minister of Labour and Housing, I have met with workers, union leaders and business representatives. I have heard about issues that go straight to the heart of Canadians: job security, minimum wage, work-life balance, hours of work, annual vacations and maternity and compassionate care leave. All of these issues are covered by federal labour standards.

Labour standards are a key tool to ensure fairness in the workplace, to protect employees and to provide them with minimum conditions of work. For many employers, labour standards also help create a level playing field that allows them to compete on a more equal footing with other businesses.

Therefore, we have to ensure that federal legislation on labour standards is relevant and adapted to the changing needs of the Canadian workers and employers of today. This is why we are initiating a review of the federal labour standards, that is part III of the Canada Labour Code.

Part III of the code has been amended in recent years, but its overall framework is largely based on the world of work of 1965. Let us consider how dramatically our society, economy, workforce and workplaces have changed since then.

Today we think of work-life balance, flex time, and telework, where an employee can work from the car, the airport and the home. We are seeing a rise in self-employment as well as in the number of employees holding part time or term and casual jobs. The workforce is aging and is more diverse.

Also, many Canadian workers are feeling overworked and overwhelmed, especially those parts of the so-called sandwich generation. These are the workers who struggle to balance their work with their responsibilities to raise children or care for aging relatives.

Many workers also feel vulnerable and want more protection as well as a wider and more rigorous application of labour standards.

Employers today face many challenges. Canadian businesses need to be able to respond rapidly to technological change and stiff global competition. They want to boost their productivity and competitiveness. They want to attract and retain highly skilled workers and ensure that labour laws are applied in a fair and consistent way.

Today, I am pleased to announce the appointment of Professor Harry Arthurs of York University, one of Canada's leading labour law experts, to conduct the independent review of federal labour standards. He will be supported by a panel of advisory experts and business and labour representatives.

Professor Arthurs and his team will examine the needs of Canadian workers and employers through research, international comparisons and a series of nationwide public hearings. Their work will lead to recommendations for both legislative and non-legislative measures aimed at producing practical and workable solutions to the difficult questions of regulation in the modern economy.

I strongly encourage parliamentarians as well as their constituents who have a stake in the modernization of federal labour standards to participate actively in this review process. By working together, we can build quality workplaces in Canada that will assure our economic success and a high standard of living in the future.

[Housing, November 29th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, I indeed look forward to meeting with my counterparts over the next two days to talk about flexible rules, innovative and creative ideas as to how we would, in partnership with the communities and stakeholders, be able to deliver on the affordable housing.

This government has committed over $1 billion so far in terms of affordable housing. We are determined to look at all creative solutions, including looking at CMHC's retained earnings, as a way and means of being able to provide further social and affordable housing.

[Housing, November 29th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his letter with regard to his constituents.

Let me just indicate to the member that this government is serious in terms of providing affordable housing for people in Ontario and throughout the country, as well as for our seniors. In fact I am happy to report, based on the question the hon. member just asked, that I and my counterparts are meeting today and tomorrow for the purposes of making sure that the $400 million that has been earmarked for Ontario can start to roll, with the flexibilities that the province and the federal government are working on. I hope to be able to deliver on those promises which this government has committed to for affordable housing.

[Housing, November 25th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, as I indicated, we are looking at and finding out all the information that we can for those people who may have, prior to 1990, installed some insulation. I am sure that the member would want to be responsible and not suggest that every piece of insulation put into every home prior to 1990 included Zonolite. I would hope that he would not alarm people.

We are gathering the information, we will give people the information and we will then move and act as responsibly as we possibly can.

[Housing, November 25th, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the question of the hon. member and the concern expressed by him and by others. There is no doubt that we are concerned. We want to first of all ascertain the type of insulation that was used, where it is being used and whether or not it was on reserve or throughout Canada.

We have posted at CMHC any information. We are trying to gather all the information that the government would require in order to make a decision, but I would appreciate any information or any assistance that the member or other members might provide us. It would be greatly appreciated.

[Housing, November 22nd, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, first, let me thank the hon. member for his hard work with his community, in fact this past weekend at a rally in support of affordable housing for Dartmouth and the area.

I want to indicate that the federal government, with the Atlantic caucus as well as the provincial government, has made it possible to deliver something like 22,700 low income households in Nova Scotia with $70 million in support, an additional $985,000 for the creation of 47 new units of affordable housing, and a three-year allocation for the renovation program to make sure people can remain in their own homes in Nova Scotia.

[Housing, November 22nd, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, as I indicated before, the government is looking at a number of options available to it, including the retained earnings in CMHC. We are looking at more flexible tools. We are looking at working with communities and provinces to look at innovative, creative solutions. We are looking at working with the private sector and big labour to provide the funding available to ensure that all communities and the people there get affordable housing as one of their main objectives.