Ovid Jackson

[Supply, September 18th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I am not sure I can comment on the other place, but at the outset let me make this point clear. The government intends to make its operations very efficient and effective. It intends to be a leaner organization. When we get interventions from members of the opposition or the auditor general we will try to do the best we can to make the system better.

Earlier an hon. member of the Bloc Quebecois asked a similar question of my minister. He responded to the first part with regard to the department when he said that information will be forthcoming.

Treasury Board was established to review spending of departments and agencies in accordance with the Financial Administration Act. In the case of the institutions of Parliament such as the House of Commons and the Senate, Treasury Board does not perform a review of spending plans but agrees to table before the House for consideration their main estimates and supplementary estimates. It is a customary courtesy that we perform.

Questions regarding the detailed spending plans of the Senate which are approved annually by Parliament should be referred to the chair of the Senate committee on the internal economy.

[Supply, September 18th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I welcome the opportunity to speak to members of the House today on the subject of full supply of the estimates for fiscal year 1996-97. This year the main estimates total $157 billion, a reduction of $7.2 billion compared to the 1995-96 main estimates.

Of the $157 billion, $111.7 billion or 71 per cent represents statutory payments authorized by Parliament in previous years. The government is seeking approval to spend the remaining $45.3 billion for programs that rely on annual appropriations.

To improve the information available to parliamentarians on the main estimates and their relationships to the budget, this year the government introduced a new document entitled "Program Expenditure Detail: A Profile of Departmental Spending". This new document, while not formally constituting part of the estimates, combines federal program spending details previously presented in both part I of the estimates and the budget. Presenting spending information on a basis consistent with the expenditure plan contained in the budget provides parliamentarians with a bridge between the budget document and other estimate documents.

The government has maintained its resolve to reduce program spending. In 1996-97 program spending including public debt charges is $109 billion or $5.4 billion less than the 1995-96 main estimates. This is an important achievement. It demonstrates that the government's program review continues to have a significant impact on the level of program expenditure requirements.

If we examine the composition of spending, it is evident that most sectors of government show a decrease in planned program spending compared to the 1995-96 levels. In the estimates we categorize program spending in 10 sectors. Expenditures on social programs represent the largest component of program spending at 46 per cent.

Social sector major transfers to persons which include veterans pensions and allowances, unemployment insurance and elderly benefits constitute 34 per cent of this amount. The remaining 12 per cent is allocated to social programs directed primarily at employment, health and housing initiatives, programs that benefit aboriginal peoples, and immigration and citizenship programs.

Direct program expenditures for 1996-97 in the social sector are $13.2 billion or 2.4 per cent less than in 1995-96. Reductions in direct program expenditures in the social area have been facilitated by clarification of core mandates of the social program departments, a key element of the program review process.

I will provide the House with a few examples of adjustments departments in the social sector are making to serve Canadians better with declining resources.

Health Canada is achieving spending reductions by maximizing efficiencies, refocusing its programs and implementing cost recovery initiatives, more specifically to shift the burden of paying for some services away from the general taxpayer to industry clients that benefit most directly from them. These were introduced for some health protection services.

In addition, efficiency measures are being undertaken by consolidating food inspection services in Health Canada with those of the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans into a single food agency.

Another department in the social sector implementing innovative approaches while reducing program spending is Human Resource Development Canada. HRDC's program spending will decrease by $419 million in 1996-97. Yet HRDC will continue to develop further its services orientation with an increased emphasis on responding to the needs of specific communities and on management by results.

To illustrate this, over the next years a new service delivery network will combine offices, kiosks, electronic online services and community partnerships to integrate the department's services and improve access for our clients. Programs and services will reflect local priorities and offer more points of service through the application of new technologies.

The heritage and cultural program sector is important to all of us. It supports the growth and development of Canadian culture and life, the nation's linguistic duality, its diverse multicultural heritage, and the preservation of parks and historic sites. Expenditures in this sector amount to $2.5 billion in 1996-97 or approximately 5 per cent of the total direct program spending.

The main estimates in this sector have also decreased. For example, planned spending for the Department of Canadian Heritage in 1996-97 will decline by 4.4 per cent relative to the 1995-96 level.

Many are aware of the significant changes which are occurring in the natural resource based program sector. This sector, which accounts for 5 per cent of direct program spending, supports sustainable development to maximize economic benefits while protecting and enhancing the quality of our environment.

For example, in agricultural programs we are moving in partnership with the provinces from commodity based agricultural subsidies to a whole farm safety net focusing on income stabilization rather than income support.

Costs are also being reduced in the natural resource based programs by addressing overlap and duplication. Consolidation of activities, such as the merging of the Canadian coast guard fleet with that of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans delivers services more efficiently to clients.

In the industrial, regional and scientific technological sector program orientation has been altered significantly. Our objective in this sector is to foster economic growth and job creation through measures that stimulate private sector investment across Canada, encourage regional development and promote and a stronger science and technology capability in Canada. Program expenditures of $3.6 billion will shift from direct business subsidies to more active business support measures. The focus of federal regional agencies will be on community based economic development and improving access by small and medium sized enterprises to commercial financing. Any remaining direct contribution programs will be fully repayable.

As a result of the major restructuring initiatives which are under way in the transportation sector, transportation programs will spend $400 million less in 1996-97 than in 1995-96. Program expenditures of $1.9 billion will be redirected from operating and subsidizing specific elements of the transportation infrastructure to focusing on policy development and ensuring standards for safety and security. Furthermore, commercialization of many services is being implemented to increase effectiveness in the transportation sector and to enhance responsiveness to local needs.

The general government services sector includes departments and agencies which provide central services in support of operations of government. It also includes, under the department of finance, transfer payments to the provinces and territories which are paid pursuant to the federal-provincial transfer payment program.

Although transfer payments are not part of the direct program expenditures which have been the focus of my remarks, these transfer payments to other levels of government like social sector transfer payments to persons described earlier, are part of the total program spending.

Major transfers to all levels of government include the Canada health and social transfers, transfers to territorial governments, fiscal equalization payments and other major transfers such as statutory subsidies and grants in lieu of taxes to municipalities. In 1996-97, major transfers to other levels of government will total approximately $29.1 billion.

To return to direct program expenditures, the government services sector has rethought how it delivers services in order to increase efficiency and cost effectiveness. For example, the Department of Public Works and Government Services contains three special operation agencies: the Canada Communication Group, Consulting and Audit Canada and the Translation Bureau, which are financed on a revenue dependent basis. The net spending of the Department of Public Works and Government Services will decrease by $98 million in 1996-97 as the department continues to explore ways to streamline operations and reduce costs.

I would like to conclude my remarks in support of a full supply by noting that the government will continue to use innovative approaches, new technologies and organizational reforms because of the positive results it is achieving in all sectors. The government is improving efficiency, reducing costs and making programs more responsive to the needs of Canadians.

I trust that members will support our request for full supply in the 1996-97 main estimates. We are on the right track of fiscal responsibility combined with a better program and service delivery for Canadians.

[Petitions, September 18th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure under Standing Order 36 to table a petition on behalf of my constituents of Bruce-Grey.

This summer I received several thousand signatures with regard to gas pricing. The petitioners feel that gas pricing practices by petroleum companies rob communities of economic activity and tourism.

The operative clause in this petition states: "Be it resolved that we request the federal government to require the fuel industry to become accountable for the prices charged for their products and if price gouging or policies against the public interest are discovered, that the companies be required to roll back prices to a justifiable level".

[Olympic Games, September 16th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise in the House to offer congratulations to all our Canadian athletes who competed in the Olympic Games in Atlanta.

The poet Robert Browning said: "My business is not to remake myself, but to make the best of what God made". Our athletes fulfilled this summons.

I would like to honour one such athlete, Laryssa Biesenthal of Walkerton, Ontario. Laryssa took a bronze medal in the 2000

metre quad skulls in rowing. I was there to welcome her back to Walkerton where she shared her victory with the people.

All Canadians who participated in the games did us proud. The Olympic spirit is captured in competition and in the drive for excellence.

Our presence in the Olympics is a microcosm of our essence as a nation. Canadian athletes of different languages, different regions, even different countries of birth stood together as one people under one flag.

Again to Laryssa and all our athletes, a hearty congratulations and thank you from us to all of them.

[Questions On The Order Paper, June 19th, 1996]

(a) In the 1995 budget, cabinet instructed the President of the Treasury Board and the Minister of Justice to negotiate a settlement with the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) on terms similar to the agreement with the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC). Funds have been set aside to resolve pay equity complaints and any overlap will be offset through reallocations as per the expenditure management system regulations.

(b) The legislation does not require the government to consider the wages paid in the outside labour market for similar occupations. Equal pay for work of equal value focuses on the compensation and benefits relationship of male and female workers who are performing work of equal value within the same establishment. Pay equity is about internal equity.

[Petitions, June 19th, 1996]

Madam Speaker, it is my honour and privilege to table today, pursuant to Standing Order 36, petitions from residents of the riding of Bruce-Grey. The petitions have to do with proceeds from crime.

The petitioners pray that Parliament enact Bill C-205 introduced by the hon. member for Scarborough West at the earliest opportunity so as to provide in Canadian law that no criminal profits from committing a crime.

[National Public Service Week, June 10th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have the opportunity to announce the beginning of National Public Service Week. Every year at this time we acknowledge the work of dedicated women and men in the federal public service and make Canadians aware of the wide variety of high quality services they receive from the federal government.

Canada is reputed to have one of the finest public service organizations in the world. Our country can count on the non-partisan professional public service to help the government run efficiently and to support Canada's growing economy.

I believe National Public Service Week is an excellent time for members of Parliament to visit government offices here in the national capital region and at home to personally thank the men and women of the federal public service for a job well done.

[Yukon Quartz Mining Act, June 4th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure tonight to respond on behalf of the Minister of Foreign Affairs to my colleague from Davenport, a great environmentalist and a person who is concerned by and large about the quality of life for all human beings on the planet.

Canada was one of the most active participants in the negotiations of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which it signed in 1982. Canada's participation in the convention stemmed from its general support for the rule of law and multilateral process and its extensive coastlines and substantial continental shelf.

For many years Canada did not ratify the convention due to problems with the provisions on the exploitation of the deep sea bed. These problems were resolved by an agreement signed by Canada on July 29, 1994.

While the convention recognizes the exclusive authority of the coastal state to manage and conserve living resources in the exclusive economic zone, its provisions on the conservation and management of high seas fish stocks were vague and incomplete. From 1993 to 1995 Canada played a key role in the development of the UN agreement on straddling fish stocks and highly migratory fish stocks. This agreement, signed by Canada on December 4, 1995, strengthens and supplements the high sea fisheries provisions of the convention.

The government is committed to the ratification of the convention, which will enable Canada to continue to defend its interests in future developments in the law of the sea, in particular through participation in the institutions created by the convention.

It is a longstanding Canadian practice before proceeding with ratification to first to put in place legislation needed to implement the terms of an international agreement. This is to avoid a situation in which Canada would be in breach of its obligations under the agreement upon ratification.

On February 27, 1996 the government announced in the speech from the throne that the legislation to ratify both the convention and the agreement will be presented to Parliament.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, in consultation with the Department of Justice and other affected departments, is actively engaged in the preparation of draft legislation which will enable Canada to ratify the convention. Officials are currently working to resolve the outstanding issues. We anticipate the tabling of the bill to implement the convention in the coming months.

[Income Tax Act, May 29th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure this evening to speak to Motion No. 30. I welcome the opportunity to speak to the motion which was put forward by my hon. friend, the member for Mississauga South.

The motion asks the government to provide a caregiver tax credit for those who provide care in the home for preschool aged children, the disabled, the chronically ill and the elderly. The tax system already provides a significant amount of assistance to families that provide care in the home for their dependants.

For parents with children, the child care expense deduction helps those with modest incomes with child care expenses they incur while at work, attending school full time or taking an eligible vocational training course.

The supplement to the child tax benefit helps parents who choose to remain in the home to raise their preschool children. It provides assistance to low and middle income families that have preschool aged children but do not have deductible child care expenses.

This year the supplement is $213 for each child who is six years old or younger and is in addition to the regular benefit of $1,020 for each child.

The working income supplement, the WIS, a component of the child tax benefit, helps low income working families meet some of the extra costs related to earning employment income, such as child care and transportation to work. It is a non-taxable benefit of up to $500.

Changes introduced in the 1996 budget will double this supplement to $1,000 by 1998, increasing the benefits to more than 700,000 working families by an average of $350 a year. While the WIS is available to two-income families, it is also available to the single earner families where one spouse stays at home as a caregiver.

For people with disabilities and families caring for elderly or disabled relatives, the disability tax credit provides significant benefits to those with a severe and prolonged mental or physical impairment. The credit reduces the federal tax of claimants by about $750 and is equivalent to an exemption of $4,235 for those in the 17 per cent tax bracket. The unused amount of the credit can be transferred to the supporting relative to recognize that people with disabilities and low incomes are often supported and cared for by family members.

The medical expense tax credit provides tax relief for those with extraordinary medical expenses by providing a tax credit for medical expenses in excess of a certain percentage of a taxpayer's net income. Among the many expenses that qualify for this credit is up to $5,000 in respite, or part time attendant care expenses. This is specifically intended to help families caring for elderly or disabled relatives at home by providing tax assistance for part time or temporary attendant care. Families who care for elderly or disabled relatives can claim the unused amounts of the credit.

Individuals supporting relatives with a disability can also claim the infirm dependant credit which was significantly enriched in the 1996 budget. Depending on the income of the dependant, the credit reduces the federal tax of a supporting relative by up to $400 and is equivalent to the deduction of up to $2,353 for those with incomes in the 17 per cent bracket.

Through all these measures the federal tax system provided $1.4 billion in tax assistance in 1996 to families with preschool aged children, the disabled and the elderly.

My colleague's motion to introduce a caregiver tax credit does not indicate how much such a credit would cost taxpayers, nor are there sufficient details to estimate the proposed cost. If the proposed credits were to cost more than the current level of tax assistance, the government would have to reduce spending on other programs in order to avoid an increase in the deficit.

For these reasons the government cannot support private member's Motion M-30.

On another note, there is no question that all of us would like to have a perfect family situation. We would like to have children reared in an environment that is caring and nurturing, where they get all the tools they require to become good citizens. The government works on many fronts. There are moneys in the Department of Health. There are moneys in the HRD department. There are income tax benefits. All of these are used collectively to try to improve the situation of Canadian families.

Where children are reared properly with a lot of nurturing and caring there is certainly a good community. If we travel around this world and see an environment where people are doing well, where there are many jobs and the environment is good there is less crime. When a country is functioning properly children are treated properly. They get the correct nurturing, they get the correct education and they develop. A country's chief resource is its people. It is people and ideas. It is not physical structures.

I like the general objectives of the motion of my colleague, the member for Mississauga South but obviously there are mechanisms currently within the system. After the deficit is looked after we may be able to look in that direction in the future.

[Petitions, May 27th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to table a petition on behalf of my constituents.

The petitioners pray and request that Parliament not amend the human rights code and the Canadian Human Rights Act or the charter of rights and freedoms in any way which would tend to indicate societal approval of same sex relationships or of homosexuality, including amending the human rights code to include in the prohibited grounds of discrimination the undefined phrase sexual orientation.