Michel Gauthier

[Millennium Scholarships, June 3rd, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs has just told us that the agreement signed between the federal government and the Government of British Columbia on Nanoose Bay was not valid because it was only between public servants and not between governments.

Are we to understand that this same fate could await any agreement that might be signed between the facilitator representing the Minister of Human Resources Development and the Government of Quebec relating to the millennium scholarships?

[Publishing Industry, May 31st, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, this is a rather obscure reply.

It is clear to everyone that the minister got herself into trouble once again. Contrary to what the minister claimed here on Friday, the Americans did not make any commitment regarding the subsidy program. In the WTO context, there must not be subsidy programs that benefit publishers from one area.

Did the Minister of Canadian Heritage not betray Canadian publishers not once, but twice, by giving the Americans half of the advertising market, in addition to having to share with them the program that she claims to be setting up to help Canadian publishers?

[Publishing Industry, May 31st, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, on Friday, in reply to a question, the Minister of Canadian Heritage said in this House that the Americans had made a written commitment not to react to her subsidy program for Canadian publishers who, as we know, are the big losers in the agreement reached regarding Bill C-55.

My question is for the Minister of Canadian Heritage. How could she make such a statement, considering that a spokesperson from the Canadian Department for International Trade stressed that the promise made by the Americans applies only to Bill C-55, and not to the future subsidy program for Canadian publishers?

[Publishing Industry, May 28th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, not only has the minister given up a large part of the Canadian advertising base to American publishers, but, what is more, they are now threatening to take us to the WTO if they do not get access to the Canadian subsidy program.

Has the Minister of Canadian Heritage not started singing her own praises too early in light of the weak results of her brilliant negotiation?

[Publishing Industry, May 28th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, we learned this morning that the Americans are reacting rather curiously to the allegedly extraordinary agreement the Minister of Canadian Heritage negotiated with them on magazines.

In fact, they claim, according to a senior official in the American government, that publishers will have to have access to the Canadian government's subsidy program.

How does the Minister of Canadian Heritage explain, barely two days after announcing the Americans had agreed to honour the agreement without problem and without further action, the abrupt change in the American point of view? Is it not that she and her colleague in international trade had assumed that what they wanted was reality?

[Publishing Industry, May 27th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, does the federal government not realize that, from now on, the Americans will use the precedent set in the publishing industry to open the whole cultural sector to free trade?

Is the government not worried about that, and does it not realize that it opened the door to this?

[Publishing Industry, May 27th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, the government may be proud of this agreement with the United States about American magazines, but the fact is that it puts magazines on the same footing as any other commercial good, as an adviser to President Clinton rightly pointed out.

By caving in before having exhausted all possible recourses, what signal did Canada send to the United States, just before the next round of WTO negotiations?

[Publishing Industry, May 26th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, let me now turn to the Minister of Finance.

A government cannot make a commitment of this magnitude without having at least some idea of the costs involved for taxpayers.

I am asking the Minister of Finance what provisions he included in his budget to cover the costs of the program that is supposed to be implemented by the Minister of Canadian Heritage. She does not know how much it will cost, but the Minister of Finance must have an idea of these costs, so I put the question to him.

[Publishing Industry, May 26th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, we do not disagree with the explanations provided by the Minister of Canadian Heritage.

What we want to know is whether the Minister of Canadian Heritage, or the government, signed an agreement without having any idea of the costs involved.

[Tainted Blood, May 25th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, it is never anyone's fault, on the other side, when things happen.

Through these discussions, was the Minister of Finance involved in the decision not to compensate those who became tainted blood victims before 1986? Did he take part in that decision made by cabinet? If so, does he agree that this decision was very convenient for him, since he has some responsibility in this?