Svend Robinson

[Fisheries, May 14th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, the B.C. government has said that it is not getting anything on the buy-back.

British Columbians learned from a leaked federal document this week that Liberal negotiators are prepared to surrender to the U.S. and sell out Canadian interests at the Portland salmon treaty talks.

If we are to avoid desperate fishers once again blocking ships this year, will the minister finally show some guts, denounce this document and stand for B.C. before we see a repeat of the desperate situation on the east coast cod fishery?

[Fisheries, May 14th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans.

The minister last April signed an MOU with the Government of B.C. promising full consultation on the B.C. salmon fishery. Today a group of B.C. fishers stripped and performed the full Mifflin, accusing the minister of stripping the shirts off their backs.

Why is this minister showing contempt for the Government of B.C. and B.C. fishers by failing to consult with them as he promised to do in the MOU on the proposed salmon licence buy-back?

[Petitions, May 14th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, the final petition refers to the Constitution Act of 1982 and its guarantee of freedom of conscience and religion.

It urges parliament to establish peace tax legislation by passing into law my private member's bill, the conscientious objection act, which recognizes the right of conscientious objectors to not pay for the military and within which the government would declare its commitment to apply that portion of their taxes that was to be used for military purposes toward peaceful purposes such as peace education, war relief and humanitarian and environmental aid and housing.

[Petitions, May 14th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition is signed by hundreds of residents of the four western provinces of Canada. It is co-ordinated by the Animal Defence League.

It refers to the very low penalties currently in place for deliberately causing pain and injury to an animal.

It calls on the Government of Canada to impose harsher penalties for serious offences against animals and to establish an education program for judges to help them understand society's abhorrence and condemnation of acts of cruelty to animals.

[Petitions, May 14th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present three petitions today.

The first is signed by residents of my constituency of Burnaby—Douglas and members of the Richmond riding of the New Democratic Party.

They note the multilateral agreement on investment will disproportionately expand and entrench unprecedented rights to transnational corporations and foreign investors at the expense of the Canadian government's ability to direct investment policy as a tool for the benefit of all Canadians.

They call on parliament to consider the enormous implications to Canada by the signing of the MAI and put it to open debate in the House and place it for national referendum for the people of Canada to decide.

[Nuclear Testing, May 13th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, my supplementary question is for the Deputy Prime Minister.

Cancelling talks is one thing, tough sanctions are what Canadians are demanding of this Liberal government. Canada's own credibility on nuclear disarmament is weakened by our support of NATO's policy allowing the first use of nuclear weapons.

Will Canada now speak out against NATO's first use policy and call on nuclear weapon states to commit now to timetables and conditions to rid the world once and for all of all nuclear arsenals?

[Nuclear Testing, May 13th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, my question as well is for the Deputy Prime Minister on India's nuclear weapons test.

Canada's response so far has been pathetically weak, falling far short of the tough sanctions proposed both by the U.S.A. and by Japan.

Why is the Liberal government not moving now, not after the G-8, to impose tough sanctions on India, urge it to sign the comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty and send a strong signal to Pakistan that it should not follow India's dangerous lead in this mad nuclear arms race?

[Petitions, May 5th, 1998]

The final petition, Mr. Speaker, notes that there continue to exist over 30,000 nuclear weapons on the earth and that the continuing existence of nuclear weapons poses a threat to the health and survival of human civilization in the global environment.

Therefore the petitioners urge parliament to support the immediate initiation and conclusion by the year 2000 of an international convention which will set out a binding timetable for the abolition of all nuclear weapons.

[Petitions, May 5th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition is similar to that tabled by my colleague from Winnipeg—Transcona.

It calls on parliament to reject the current framework of MAI negotiations and instructs the government to seek an entirely different agreement by which the world might achieve a rules based, global trading regime that protects workers, the environment and the ability of governments to act in the public interest.

[Petitions, May 5th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present three petitions this morning. The first petition is signed by residents of Burnaby—Douglas and other British Columbians.

It points out that the Canadian Constitution Act, 1982 guarantees freedom of conscience and religion and it urges parliament to establish peace tax legislation by passing a conscientious objection act which recognizes the right of conscientious objectors to ensure that their commitment to apply a portion of their taxes that was to be used for military purposes to instead go toward peaceful purposes such as peace education, war relief and humanitarian and environmental aid, housing and so on.