David Anderson

[Kyoto Protocol, November 25th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I can do better than that. It is in the House of Commons Debates of April 6, 1989. The hon. member, with his experience, should be able to find it in Hansard . Surely that is adequate. That was of course at the time--

[Kyoto Protocol, November 25th, 2002]

The hon. leader of the Conservative Party is heckling, but I hope he will think well of this quote, which is as follows:

We will play...our full part as the nations of the world come to grips, or try to, with the infinite complexity of climatic change. We will continue to provide leadership within the international community in the world-wide effort to develop international laws and legal principles to protect that atmosphere, the common heritage of all mankind.

That is a quote from the former prime minister of Canada. The hon. member who is heckling now actually served in his cabinet as the minister of foreign affairs year after year, yet he now apparently is disowning the position of his previous leader.

Let me comment about the science again. Of course there are dissenters in the science. That is expected. That is the way science works. And yes, one of those minority positions, because these minority positions in science differ one from the other as much as they differ with the consensus position, one of those might be right, but probability analysis tells us that the chances of the majority being wrong are about one in ten. That is a pretty conservative estimate.

That means the chances of one of the dissenting views being right, whichever one it might be, are also one in ten, so those who would have us depart from basing policy on the views of the great majority of experts in the field are essentially asking us to play Russian roulette with our children's future at nine to one odds. Those odds do not suggest to me that we should follow the advice of the Alliance Party or the leader of the Conservative Party, whatever might be said in certain areas of the business sector.

Then, of course, we have the science of another plan that is being put forward in Canada, the made in Alberta or the made in Houston and Alberta plan.

Here is a quote from the Calgary Herald of October 17:

Alberta's energy minister says climate science took a back seat during the creation of the province's global-warming action plan.

Murray Smith said the government didn't conduct any scientific studies of the potential environmental benefits--if any--of the “made-in-Alberta” plan during its formulation.

“We cannot tell you what the effect would be to the climate, either in Alberta or globally.”

“No, we never studied the effects on climate,” Smith said of the “made-in-Alberta” plan.

There is a science of the alternative plan being put forward as a substitute for the Canadian plan, the made in Canada plan, which has of course been worked on over five full years, in fact more than that, but at least five full years since Kyoto, by the provinces, the territories and the federal government, including of course the industry sectors that took part in the tables, and I would remind those who are once again--

[Kyoto Protocol, November 25th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I was wondering whether this moment would ever come. It is a pleasure for me to be the first speaker on this motion that is before the House and I am proud to have the honour of leading off on what I believe to be an historic debate.

In fact, it is rare that the House is asked to turn its attention to a subject of the importance of climate change. We are discussing an issue that extends well beyond the normal vision of our elected officials in their parliamentary debates. It extends beyond the range of Canada and, certainly in the issue of time, it extends for decades, indeed, for the century ahead.

We will debate how best to respond to an issue upon which scientific consensus is strong and a consensus that is supported by more and more evidence and more precise evidence all the time. So this is not an ordinary debate about an ordinary issue. It is very much an issue about a healthier and more secure planet.

Our government has devoted considerable time, financial resources and effort to leading the way. We have worked closely with our partners, at home and abroad, in a determined effort to develop a Canadian consensus on our plan and the detailed procedure.

Members are here to represent their ridings and constituents. They know that Canadians across the country appreciate the gravity of the situation and want us to take action.

So that the purpose of the debate is clear, I would like to discuss the importance of taking steps to combat climate change. I want to discuss Canada's leadership both nationally and internationally. I want to discuss our commitment to developing a consensus on the results we are looking to achieve and the means to achieve these results.

First, let me discuss the science. Science is the basis of our climate change policies, so I would like, for a few minutes, to discuss the science of climate change. The reality of climate change has been confirmed by the worldwide network of hundreds of scientists who contribute to the work of the intergovernmental panel on climate change. These are the most knowledgeable people in the world on climate science. They have arrived at a very clear consensus view on the facts of the situation and what we must do.

Indeed, the roots of this debate lie in the industrial revolution of some 200 years ago. It was in the 19th century that scientific speculation first began on this issue. It was 200 years ago with the industrial revolution that the earth began to experience a steady growth in the atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases above and beyond the background levels of the natural carbon cycle. With the steady rise in the concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, we have witnessed average temperatures in Canada alone that went up by approximately one degree Celsius during the 20th century.

The 1980s were the hottest decade that we had ever recorded until the 1990s came along. The last two decades were the hottest that we have in fact ever recorded. The unusual weather patterns of the past 20 years are entirely consistent with the predictions of the meteorological models that have been developed by the world's best established climate research centres, such as the Hadley Centre in the United Kingdom, the United States meteorological service facilities in Boulder, Colorado, or here in our own meteorological research centre, or in fact in the Japanese centre at Yokohama.

In the United Nations and at international events, we have heard from representatives of many island and low-lying countries who fear that unchecked climate change will see the disappearance of entire islands and coastal regions and more severe threats to the citizens who live on the lands that remain.

We have heard also from sub-Saharan African states that they are expected to lose some 40% of their staple food supplies before the end of the century. The same is true for South Asia.

Water is the critical issue for many parts of the world. The impact of climate change on water and in addition the impact of climate change internationally and in Canada, particularly in the province of Alberta, will be severe.

All this evidence tells us that climate change is real and it is an issue that we must face up to. It tells us that we must have a timely response. It tells us that the time is here for leadership internationally and here at home, and leadership from the federal government is expected.

[Kyoto Protocol, November 25th, 2002]

moved:

That this House call upon the government to ratify the Kyoto Protocol on climate change.

[Kyoto Protocol, November 25th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, let me repeat for the third time in the last 10 minutes, before the end of this year. Is that understandable to the hon. member, or should I go slower?

There are many things that we bring to the House for advice and consultation which are not within the purview of parliament to make a final decision. They are within the purview of the executive.

We frequently however, at the request of the opposition and of other members of the House on the government side, bring items to the House so a full debate can take place. That I think is desirable.

[Kyoto Protocol, November 25th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, in his budget, the hon. Minister of Finance has included measures to assist the renewable energy sector. If this is insufficient, I trust that the hon. member will raise the point during the debate on the ratification of the Kyoto protocol, and indicate the policy he wants. This is a good opportunity for a good debate on renewable energy, as well as on our credits for other forms of energy.

[Kyoto Protocol, November 25th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I answered this last week. I indicated clearly that, if an industry or a company has taken steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions prior to 2010, this will be taken into consideration. The position of such a company would be protected against any economic difficulties caused by its having taken steps before the deadline.

[Kyoto Protocol, November 25th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, the mention “in 2002” is not included in the motion. However, again, I can assure the hon. member that we will ratify the Kyoto protocol by the end of the year.

I would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate him on the fine interview that he did with Shelagh Rogers on his father. It was very moving.

[Kyoto Protocol, November 25th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, when a motion such as the one referred to by the hon. member is drafted, it can be short or it can be longer. We opted for a short one. Having said that, I can assure the hon. member that ratification will take place by the end of the year.

[Kyoto Protocol, November 25th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member could not be more wrong. We fully intend to ratify the accord and meet the targets that are in the plan. We have a plan which was tabled in the House last week.

I believe that if the hon. member would read it, he would see what every other country that has looked at our work says; and that is, that we have put more detailed information before our people than any other country in the world has done.