Odina Desrochers

[Ice Storm 1998, February 4th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing the time allotted to me with my colleague, the hon. member for Châteauguay.

Quebec is going through the most serious socio-economic disaster of the century. The media provided steady coverage during the worst part of the crisis to show the solidarity displayed for Quebec, Ontario and New Brunswick, the three provinces that were the hardest hit by the storm.

At this time, I would like to thank the major leaders who distinguished themselves during this crisis. First and foremost, Premier Bouchard of Quebec, who has shown outstanding leadership in co-ordinating all emergency and solidarity operations.

I also thank also Hydro-Québec chairman André Caillé, who, with his team, provided Quebeckers with hourly updates on the situation, while looking after those affected by the storm and immediately taking the necessary steps to have the Quebec hydroelectric power system repaired and rebuilt.

I thank the mayors, who, while unprepared, brilliantly rose to the challenge, those in charge of the Quebec emergency preparedness organization and the many public health workers.

I also want to mention the massive involvement of police forces—the Sûreté du Québec, the RCMP, municipal police and Canadian Armed Forces—in providing assistance and, more importantly, a sense of security to the victims.

I would like to mention the immediate response of employees of American hydroelectric companies, who did not hesitate to come and help out Hydro-Québec linemen. They were impressed by the warm welcome they received from storm victims, and especially by their great understanding in the face of the crisis.

As well, I was deeply touched by the gestures of solidarity from Quebec, whether they took the form of collecting wood or food supplies or responding to the numerous requests from the Red Cross and emergency measures organizations.

I pay tribute here to the initiative taken by the people of Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean. The images transmitted on national television showed us the great generosity that characterizes this lovely region of Quebec.

I would now like to give you a few examples of solidarity from the riding of Lotbinière. More than 1,000 cords of wood were collected in one week. And here is an interesting anecdote. On Sunday, January 18, under the direction of mayor Jean-Guy Bergeron and police officer Gérald Laganière, dozens of volunteers turned out to collect 1,200 pounds of meat in 90 minutes at Laurier-Station. Now that is something.

Another example of generosity was the 86-year-old woman who handed over the contents of her pantry to a volunteer. She said: “Tomorrow I will be going shopping again, I have the means and, above all, I have electricity in my house”. These generous actions forged new ties of solidarity. A ceremony will be held next Friday evening to thank all these volunteers from the riding of Lotbinière for their exceptional contribution.

However, although the media have focused during the last few days on the number of subscribers to whom power has been restored, we must not forget the impacts and consequences of this ice storm that have not yet all been tallied up, although we know that they could reach hundreds of millions of dollars.

If we take a more rational look at such a crisis, we can divide it into three phases. The first one is the reaction phase, which is the one we have been witnessing since the crisis began, and which hon. members have been describing since the beginning of this special debate.

We have now reached phase two, which is a more in-depth assessment of the situation. The comments we hear and the news reported by the media are just the tip of the iceberg.

In this sad assessment, we must not forget the businesses which have been paralysed since the beginning of the crisis and which are on the verge of bankruptcy, as well as the thousands of workers who are not working.

The Montérégie and central Quebec regions are currently going through harrowing times. Hundreds of people wonder whether they will still have jobs tomorrow.

Moreover, we must not forget other businesses located outside the triangle of darkness. I am referring to those businesses and their employees who, following Hydro-Quebec's requests, closed their operations for one, two and even three weeks, thus incurring major losses.

The full evaluation of this catastrophe is not yet completed, but we can already start thinking about the third phase, which has to do with the measures necessary to provide greater assistance to storm victims.

Even if negotiations are already under way, storm victims are anxious. They are eager to find out about turnaround times and, more importantly, about the new moneys to be allocated to deal with the crisis.

The ice storm is not a regional or provincial problem, but a national one. It is, therefore, time to make major decisions of solidarity which must involve both the federal government and the governments of the three provinces affected by this national crisis.

Now we come to some solutions and suggestions for the federal government. First of all, we repeat our request to the Minister of Human Resources Development that he clarify, for once and for all, his position with respect to the waiting periods for employment insurance and the payments in advance which his department has promised to make. Even after his statements this week, even here in the House, the ice storm victims still have trouble understanding the minister's logic in the situation they are experiencing.

The maple syrup producer assistance program, which will hire the unemployed for pruning and replacement of the collecting tubes in the maple trees, is not sufficient. The minister would need to make this program more flexible so that more skilled and more efficient labourers could be hired so that better work would be done in storm-ravaged areas.

In the aftermath of this third natural disaster, the federal government now needs to give more serious attention to the greenhouse effect, which constitutes one of the determining factors behind this country's climate changes.

It is time for it to respond to the insistent calls for action from the environmental groups. Experts had warned us of the dangers of these climatic changes. We have borne the brunt of them, we have experienced them.

On behalf of the population, I am therefore demanding that the government be more stringent when this entire matter of greenhouse effects is debated. The federal government must take stronger action.

In closing, I again congratulate all those who took part, at home in Quebec, and throughout the country, in the finest undertaking of solidarity of the 20th century.

[Bill C-28, February 4th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, clearly Bill C-28 will benefit only Canadian businesses with marine transportation subsidiaries located abroad in countries considered tax havens. Some ten or so businesses will likely end up enjoying hundreds of millions of dollars in tax savings thanks to taxpayers.

Can the Minister of Finance tell us whether CSL Self Unloader Investment Bermuda, in Bermuda, will benefit from the tax measure he himself introduced in Bill C-28?

[Income Tax Amendments Act, 1997, February 2nd, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, 3% or 5%, what counts is the amounts of money cut. We know that it was $42 billion.

It is easy to talk statistics and try to prove that the government is good. I think we have the figures. We have them in hand. We can see for a fact in Quebec what happened. Give us back what you owe us. We will be very happy and so will the people of Quebec.

[Income Tax Amendments Act, 1997, February 2nd, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, it is very easy to get into a war of figures. We were using the figure of $42 billion. That is something specific.

All we ask of the government opposite, given that it will be announcing a surplus in a few weeks, is that it be logical and honest and give back to the provinces, especially Quebec, what it has cut since 1993.

We will see, as health is a matter of exclusive provincial jurisdiction, when we get this money, the money coming back to us, we will provide better health care in Quebec.

[Income Tax Amendments Act, 1997, February 2nd, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, the situation of health, education, social assistance in Quebec, all of these difficult situations have been caused precisely by the drastic cuts made by the federal government.

The government of Lucien Bouchard has succeeded in doing truly amazing things despite the drastic federal cuts. All that we are asking is to get back what has been cut since 1993. It is simple: the federal government cuts, yet it maintains standards. If it cut money, but allowed us freedom, we could manage but, on top of the cuts, it established standards we have to meet.

I say that if it pays back the amounts it has cut since 1993, health, education and social assistance will be in far better shape in Quebec.

[Income Tax Amendments Act, 1997, February 2nd, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, I do not need any medicine in order to be calm. The hon. member is getting carried away.

All I have to say is that I congratulate all those who took the initiative, no matter where, municipalities, the province, the Canadian government, the Americans. This catastrophe has touched all of North America.

When the member over there accuses me of petty politics, I would like to remind him of this: at the present time his colleagues are distributing forms in order to find out what amount of money the federal government has really invested during this ice storm. That is really petty politicking.

There was solidarity among us. We worked hard, and that is how we will finally win out, and Quebec will become sovereign. We have had an example of how people can join forces. We have had an example of the pride of the people of Quebec. You can be sure that we have come out even stronger as a result of this experience and that, in the next referendum, the pride of Quebecers will be up front and we will get our country, our Quebec.

[Income Tax Amendments Act, 1997, February 2nd, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, first of all, before voicing my opinion on the numerous provisions contained in Bill C-28, I would like to congratulate and thank all my fellow citizens of the riding of Lotbinière, who rallied to the support of the regions of Quebec that were hard hit by the ice storm, and Montérégie and the central region in particular.

I was deeply touched by the generosity of the people of Lotbinière, be it in collecting firewood and foodstuffs or responding to the many calls made by the Red Cross and Quebec's emergency preparedness organization. These actions reflected the great values of mutual help, sharing and solidarity by which the Quebec society lives, values that show how much solidarity Quebecers are capable of when the need arises to meet major challenges for the Quebec community.

Now, coming back to Bill C-28, the federal government marks its return by putting up for discussion a bill to amend several umbrella acts, which could have significant implications in major sectors of the Quebec economy.

Going over the list of acts affected by Bill C-28, I note the Income Tax Act, the Children's Special Allowances Act, the Employment Insurance Act, the Federal-Provincial Fiscal Arrangements Act, the Old Age Security Act.

Once again, we can see the central government's strategy to amend a number of laws closely related to our economy. However, the real political issues are not those targeted by such omnibus legislation, but the way the government administers public finances and the partisan approach and propaganda used by an increasingly centralizing government.

Since the opening of the 36th Parliament, the Minister of Finance has been boasting that his government would have budget surpluses. It is said that these surpluses could reach $8 billion. According to the Speech from the Throne, these surpluses will be used to make an unprecedented intrusion in areas of provincial jurisdiction, without giving back what the federal government has cut since 1993.

In recent years, the Liberal government has cut $42 billion in cash social transfers to the provinces. The purpose of these transfers is to fund hospitals, higher education and social assistance.

With the money saved, the federal government is playing saviour, while the provinces have the dirty job of implementing the cuts. I would remind you that when the Liberals formed the government in 1993, social transfers amounted to $18.8 billion annually. This year they will amount to only $12.5 billion and will drop to $11.1 billion in 1999-2000. However, seeing the dissatisfaction at the time of the elections, the Prime Minister decided to cancel the latest round of cuts.

We are even more familiar with the federal strategy on the subject of transfers to the provinces, especially Quebec, which is to discredit Quebec and the administration of Lucien Bouchard's government. The federalists are trying every means possible verging on political dishonesty to destabilize the government of Quebec. However, the Bloc will again be even more on guard against underhanded attacks by the federal government, especially in 1998. It will continue to defend the interests of Quebec, criticizing even more vigorously the unfairness of this ever more centralizing government.

Back to the surplus the Minister of Finance will be announcing shortly. Where is it coming from? It is very simple; it is mathematical. He will be dipping into the surplus of the employment insurance fund, which will amount to $12 billion and which is the contribution of employers and employees alone. The federal government puts no money into the employment insurance fund.

Let us talk about employment insurance. For us, employment insurance means ensured poverty, ensured suffering. Speaking of the Minister of Human Resources Development, let me say that this minister, who is always talking about humanity, is dehumanizing his department with his actions. One need only look at the way the minister has reacted to the people directly affected by the ice storm, the total confusion between his message, clearly seen and heard on national television, and his directives to the managers of his department.

On top of having to live through a veritable nightmare, concerned about their family's future, concerned about their property, the disaster victims have not even had the comfort of the people in charge of that department. With one hand they are promising something, while with the other they are taking it away. When it comes down to it, that approach is the trademark of this government.

The ice storm is one of the worst socio-economic disasters since the war, and the Minister of Human Resources Development is still hesitant about taking concrete humanitarian action. What is more, the minister is forgetting the thousands of businesses outside what they are calling the triangle of darkness which had to close down for a week, two weeks, or even three. These people are being punished for their gesture of solidarity. Most companies and businesses had to gear down activities in order to support Hydro-Quebec's efforts to keep the hydroelectric network up and running. In Lotbinière riding, for instance, particularly in the county municipality of l'Érable, of 300 businesses, 50% had to shut down for two weeks.

If the employment insurance fund were in a deficit position, or had only a slight surplus, I would understand if the government were hesitant, but we know its surplus is going to exceed $12 billion.

If the EI fund were administered by an independent body composed of representatives of businesses and workers, as the auditor general strongly recommended in his report, these people, who are much closer to economic reality, would already have taken significant action to help all those affected by the ice storm.

But it is the Minister of Finance who decides, and he is going to continue to dip into this surplus to lower his deficit, with complete disregard for the real needs of storm victims.

The Minister of Human Resources Development is increasingly dehumanizing his services. Now, EI claimants must dial a 1-800 number for information.

Several of my constituents have been in touch with my riding office to complain about the poor quality of this service provided by public servants who are all centralized in the Prime Minister's riding of Saint-Maurice.

Faced with this unfortunate situation, those dissatisfied with the service therefore go to the regional EI office, which, you will recall, is being reorganized and is completely overwhelmed. These offices have suffered deep staff cuts and want to serve their clients any way they can, because Human Resources Development employees are on the front line and know what is really going on.

One of the Human Resources Development offices located in Drummondville is getting ready to introduce a pilot project. Unemployed workers waiting to see an agent will be invited to view videocassettes. That is treating them like people.

I need hardly tell you that there are few things worse than losing one's job. With the many changes to EI, which are increasingly limiting eligibility, it is even more distressing for these people who are living in complete insecurity.

I do not blame this office for what it is doing, given the numerous staff cutbacks imposed by the federal government. It is trying to readjust its services and maintain good contact with its clients. We will keep an eye on how it is doing.

Let us now look at the federal tax. Now, that is something concrete. This morning, the hon. member for Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot strongly criticized a provision of Bill C-28 and exposed a manoeuvre by the finance minister who, in addition to making political decisions that benefit the rich, is trying to protect his own personal interests with this legislation. But what action does the Minister of Finance take when it comes to individual or corporate taxes?

The finance minister's inaction regarding taxation perpetuates the unfairness of our tax system, which imposes a heavier tax burden on Quebec's low and middle income taxpayers.

The last major review of individual taxation was conducted by the Royal Commission on Taxation in the 1960s. This means that we now have tax provisions that are obsolete and ill-suited to the current economic context.

The Liberals should be aware of the unfairness of the current federal tax system. The Bloc Quebecois has spoken many times on tax issues. Ever since it first came to Ottawa, the Bloc has been asking for an in-depth review of individual taxes. Given the finance minister's inaction in this area, the Bloc Quebecois released a reform proposal aimed at finally putting an end to the undue privileges granted to the very rich, by advocating a tax system that is fairer to all taxpayers.

The federal corporate tax system is also ill-suited to the current economic context. Again, the Bloc Quebecois is asking for a review of the corporate tax system, so that employment will become the main objective of the new tax policies.

Again, the last major review of corporate taxation was conducted by the Royal Commission on Taxation in the 1960s. We get the impression that nothing has been done since. As a result, we still have tax measures that are outdated and ill-suited to our current economic situation. Yet, the Minister of Finance seems content with this system.

By contrast with the federal government's inaction, in the summer of 1996, the Government of Quebec established a public commission on taxation. The commission emphasized at the time the urgent need for action, while indicating that, in the present context, Quebec could not act alone without a review of the federal tax system. But this does not make these reforms any less necessary.

Let me give you a few examples of outdated or inefficient tax measures. The partial inclusion of capital gains, which means taxing benefits from capital gains at a lower rate. The eligibility rules for the research and development credit, which unduly penalize Quebec businesses as compared to Ontario businesses. At present, the federal government decreases the amount of assistance provided to businesses benefitting from a Quebec research and development credit but not to those benefitting from the major deduction granted by the Ontario government.

The Bloc Quebecois often raises tax issues. The Bloc Quebecois has been calling for an in-depth review of corporate taxation ever since it came to Ottawa.

Since the Minister of Finance has taken no action, the Bloc Quebecois made public a proposal for reform that would make the tax system equitable for businesses, while freeing up to $3 billion, which should be redirected towards the main goal: creation of full time, long term jobs.

In conclusion, I would like to say that it is time the federal government took action. It is time the federal government gave back to the provinces what it has cut in recent years. It is time it amended the Employment Insurance Act. It is time this budget surplus was used for concrete job creation measures.

[Finance, December 10th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, when I visited the maritime provinces, especially Newfoundland, despair and frustration were everywhere.

When we consider that there is only one official, we can see how serious the federal government is. There was only one official to plan this program, which is a real fiasco, a real nightmare for the people. The people were not consulted and were forced to undergo training for which they had no skills or abilities.

This is how the federal government is trying to tell Newfoundland that it wants to help. The premier of Newfoundland, who used to sit in this House, has difficulty promoting the cause of the federal government. His star is fading, like all the other federal stars across Canada.

As for that famous report, as I said, all that is missing is the cover of the Liberal red book. Everything else is the same. Everything that could help the communities, everything that could help the underprivileged was removed. The only thing on their mind is Bay Street in Toronto and the rich; they have forgotten their social conscience.

[Finance, December 10th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, I wish to inform you that I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for Bonaventure—Gaspé—Îles-de-la-Madeleine—Pabok.

On October 15 in Vancouver, the Minister of Finance presented his government's economic policies to the Canadian public. The finance committee held fifty or so meetings with socioeconomic stakeholders and members of the public in order to find out what they thought, but the democratic process ends there.

Having being rushed along on a tight timetable and having seen large extracts of the finance committee's report in the Toronto media, we realized that all that was missing from the committee's document was the cover page from the Liberals' last election campaign red book.

Once again the Liberals have shown that they have no respect for democracy and could not care less about the opposition parties, including the Bloc Quebecois.

The Liberals used the pre-budget consultations to try to show that the public was in favour of their economic policies. This Liberal report is just another step in the maple leaf marketing plan announced with great fanfare in the Speech from the Throne.

The Bloc Quebecois is familiar with the Liberals' partisan tactics and made sure to table a dissenting report so that our party's opinion would be known and not drowned out in this vast federal operation.

As we all know, we are here solely to defend Quebec's interests. We in the Bloc Quebecois again call on the Minister of Finance to pay the provinces, particularly Quebec, what he owes them. Before going ahead with other measures involving national standards that would interfere with provincial areas of jurisdiction, this government must treat its provincial partners fairly and return to them the amounts it has relieved them of since 1993, significant amounts despite what the Minister of Finance says.

For Quebec, this means that, if the Minister of Finance wanted to be generous, he would write out a nice cheque for $5 billion. Dream on. We no longer believe in Santa Claus or in the federal government's little helpers. We know that, even though this government comes dressed in the traditional red of the jolly gentleman himself, it is a Santa without a heart.

Over the last few months, this scrooge in Santa's clothing has deprived dozens of Quebec parents of their fundamental rights by slashing EI benefits. Even as the holiday season approaches, the Minister of Finance and his side-kick in human resources development are all in favour of these decisions, which I still describe as inhumane. They still refuse to budge and admit that their wonderful employment insurance scheme is a failure and that they should start calling it poverty insurance.

Instead of having compassion for the least well off in our society, this government continues to listen to Toronto's Bay Street magnates. The Minister of Finance keeps saying that his government is doing a good job and that, next year, it will have a surplus. What he does not say is that this accounting operation has been accomplished on the backs of the provinces and the most disadvantaged.

The federal government ought to stimulate job creation and to lead an all-out attack against poverty. The Bloc Quebecois and the numerous stakeholders in Quebec are demanding an in-depth reform of personal and corporate income tax.

The last major review of corporate tax dates back to the 1960s. I hardly need tell you that the tax measures are out of date and unsuited to the present economic context. The Minister of Finance, however, is content with it. The same goes for personal income tax. The minister is operating with measures that no longer meet the needs of individuals.

The Bloc Quebecois proposals, in a spirit of re-establishing social justice, would allow the majority of taxpayers to benefit from a tax reduction. For example, the creation of a reimbursable credit for child care expenses would allow a single parent with one child and an income of $20,000 to save an additional $600 plus. That is a concrete social measure.

The Reform Party is talking of decreasing income and other taxes. First of all, it shouldo do as the Bloc Quebecois has done, and demand a major reform of a federal tax system that is very ill suited to the current economic context.

Every time the auditor general tables a report, he points out to the federal government the shortcomings of its taxation system. We need only think about the scandal of the family trusts and the use of subsidiaries in tax havens, which the Minister of Finance in fact uses to reduce his taxes.

The prebudget consultations clearly show, once again, that there are two irreconcilable visions. The federal government wants to centralize everything, establish national standards and continue to infringe on the exclusive rights of the provinces. Quebec wants to fight for its independence and speaks out increasingly in an effort to force the Liberal government to respect provincial jurisdictions.

The current situation is as follows, and I will recall it for you: Canada comprises two peoples, the Canadian people and the Quebec people. However, the people of Quebec are making themselves heard increasingly, and Quebeckers are living in hope. They know that very soon they will no longer be part of this completely outmoded federal system, a Trudeauist government whose grand master never hid his disdain for the provinces. Trudeauism is personified in this House by the minister of provincial interference.

In conclusion, this government takes every opportunity to twist its own Constitution and meddle in fields under Quebec jurisdiction. It is obsessed with making its presence felt. In Quebec, however, the fleur de lys is engraved on the hearts of Quebeckers and with this symbol of pride they will fend off the underhanded attacks of the federal government saying with one voice: “Yes to a sovereign Quebec; yes to all economic powers serving Quebec”.

[Goods And Services Tax, December 10th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, the minister's attempt to avoid the issue is not fooling anyone. Why is he refusing a solution that would solve the matter once and for all without any cost to him? If it is true, who is right? What exactly is he afraid of? What does the Minister of Finance have to lose?