Carolyn Parrish

[National Housing Act, March 11th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, it is a great honour for me to launch the debate on Bill C-66, an act to amend the National Housing Act and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation Act.

First I congratulate the Minister of Public Works and Government Services who is responsible for CMHC for providing us with such a progressive and balanced piece of legislation.

Indeed Bill C-66 will simplify the National Housing Act by removing unnecessary restrictions, enabling CMHC to respond quickly to the needs of Canadians and to opportunities in an ever changing market.

Since it was created over 50 years ago, CMHC has made an unparalleled contribution to help house Canadians. Over the years it has been involved in every aspect of housing from building units to direct financing, urban planning, mortgage insurance and now trade development.

The achievements of CMHC have benefited the country. Many of our own families and communities have been helped. Through partnerships with all levels of government, community organizations and the private sector, CMHC works to allow Canadians to obtain the shelter they need.

The government also works on a number of fronts to assist low income Canadians and the homeless. One important tool is the CMHC's renovation programs which have provided assistance to low income Canadians for over 20 years. The funds provide help to repair unhealthy and unsafe homes. They help to upgrade accommodations for the homeless, or for those at risk of becoming homeless, and to modify units for persons with disabilities.

Other CMHC initiatives such as Homegrown Solutions and the Canadian Centre for Public-Private Partnerships in Housing are fostering community based initiatives that address the problem of affordable housing, some of which are specifically directed at serving the needs of low income people.

All members will agree that we want to ensure the benefits provided to past generations of Canadians will continue to be available to future generations. Passing the legislation will help ensure that Canadians continue to have access to housing, have a choice of housing and benefit from new housing research.

The benefits of the bill are threefold. First, Canadians will benefit from these changes because CMHC will be able to respond to shifts in consumer demand and market conditions. They will also benefit from the availability of low cost funds and access to mortgage financing, no matter where they live in Canada.

Second, CMHC will be able to better promote Canadian housing products and services abroad. This will result in job opportunities for Canadians here and abroad. Third, CMHC will be able to provide better service to all Canadians.

I will illustrate how Bill C-66 reflects several of our government's priorities and what they mean to Canadians. I will begin with CMHC's mortgage loan insurance function, a key part of our efforts to provide Canadians with access to housing in all regions of the country.

In recent years CMHC has been approached to support many new and innovative products. Unfortunately under the current National Housing Act the CMHC has not been able to bring the benefits of some of these new types of home financing products to our marketplace.

With these amendments CMHC will have the flexibility to consider products such as insurance for a reverse equity mortgage enabling older homeowners to use the equity in their homes to obtain funds currently while allowing them to continue to live in their homes.

The CMHC would also be able to develop non-mortgage financing for remote areas where the land registry system does not facilitate mortgages. It would also include similar financing arrangements on Indian reserves where restrictions exist on providing land as security for mortgages.

The corporation would also be able to ensure a greater variety of financing options for the housing rental industry. Another benefit is that the CMHC will be able to respond quickly to shifts in consumer demand and market conditions with new and innovative home financing products.

With these legislative changes Canadians for generations to come will have access to the benefits of public mortgage insurance. By giving CMHC the means to better manage its business, these amendments will ensure that CMHC's mortgage insurance activities remain competitive while being managed in a financially responsible manner. With this new legislation the CMHC will be able to respond quickly to changes in domestic and international markets as well as to organizations looking to use Canadian housing expertise.

The legislation will greatly enhance the government's ability to better promote the products and services of our Canadian housing industry abroad. To illustrate this point, I will use the minister's own participation in last fall's trade mission to Chile. Thirty housing industry representatives joined him on that mission. The delegation was made up of provincial and territorial governments, builders, manufactured housing suppliers, products and services providers, and urban planners. The members for the ridings of Kelowna and Québec also participated in the trade mission. The minister was pleased to lead this group of entrepreneurs and officials, successfully opening doors to Canadian exporters in this important Latin American market.

Through CMHC's market development programs and services it is anticipated that within one year following the mission this group of exporters will have generated over $35 million in new business, which translates into direct economic benefits to all Canadians.

Two more trade missions are planned for Korea and Germany in May and October 1999. Similar public-private sector collaborations have recently been undertaken with Poland and Germany. This is what I mean when I say the legislation will help the CMHC create job opportunities for Canadians here and abroad.

Consumers in the housing industry, indeed taxpayers of Canada, all stand to benefit from these amendments which will result in a modernized and more efficient approach to housing. The corporation's greatest strength has been its ability to identify and respond to emerging needs.

Such initiatives are developed either by CMHC on its own or in partnership with other governments or the private sector. CMHC either moves once the private sector players have developed the ability to take on the challenge or becomes part of the ongoing solution.

The amendments that are presented today will build on CMHC's ability to adapt to changing circumstances and help the corporation to carry out the government's vision for the future of housing.

Earlier I mentioned that these amendments reflect our government's priorities. This is demonstrated in several ways. For example, one of our government's top priorities is its commitment to stimulating job creation and economic growth. We are proud of the fact that more than 1.6 million new jobs have been created since the government was elected in 1993.

However we want to do more. We know that the housing sector is a key component of the economy, with considerable job creation potential. For every $100 million spent on construction, 1,500 person years of employment are created both directly and indirectly. Behind every construction worker many other workers are producing the materials needed to build a home.

Clearly the objectives of the housing industry and the government's goals of expanding international trade and stimulating economic growth are one and the same.

CMHC is proud of its record in participating in team Canada trade missions to many of the emerging world markets, unlocking opportunities for the Canadian housing industry and creating jobs at home. Canada's international reputation for excellence in housing technology helps to open doors to the Canadian housing industry in many foreign markets.

The corporation has helped foster that reputation through international representation and research. Now, through the Canadian Housing Export Centre, CMHC continues to play a key role in supporting the efforts of Canadian housing firms to market their products and their expertise abroad.

CMHC has also been a leader in helping to establish and research new building practices. The result has been improved housing quality, affordability and choice for Canadians. In so doing the corporation supports research and development, another one of our government's top priorities. As we can see, CMHC is helping our government turn its commitments into action in a wide variety of areas.

The amendments proposed in the bill will enable the corporation to continue these achievements by providing it with the tools it needs to move forward with its expanded role. At the same time the corporation will be able to ensure the long term viability of its mortgage loan insurance function.

Millions of Canadian families bought their first home thanks to the insurance program. In fact, one in three Canadian homebuyers have been helped by CMHC in this way. Through the bill we want to ensure that future generations of Canadians can continue to benefit from this service.

As one of Canada's oldest crown corporations, CMHC has always been a pioneer. As such, it has introduced government to a new way of delivering services. At the same time CMHC's core mission is not all that different from what it was 10 or even 50 years ago. Through the legislation the corporation will be able to continue to do what it has always done and will be able to do it well.

The bill to amend CMHC is part of the government's broader efforts to modernize government operations and ensure the efficient use of taxpayers dollars while improving services to clients.

CMHC will continue its most important basic function which is to help provide homes for Canadians. I encourage all members of the House to support the legislation and enable the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation to carry on with its work well into the new millennium.

[Housing, February 12th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, I thank a very generous Toronto resident who made a $525,000 donation today to the United Way.

This anonymous donor's only request was that the money be directed to projects serving the homeless. Some of the money will support a project known as 30 St. Lawrence. This new construction project of 10 townhouses will house 40 people from the emergency shelter network. The city of Toronto has contributed the project site and $400,000 in cash equity.

Another project that will benefit from the donation is Dixon Hall, an established community agency. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation has stepped in to provide a zero interest project development fund loan for this group to build housing as well as mortgage insurance for a loan of over $1 million. Human Resources Development Canada has also pledged $150,000 in equity toward the project.

As a result of this partnership between the Canadian government, the non-profit sector and one very generous individual, this project will operate on a break even basis from the rents collected as the shelter component of welfare.

[House Of Commons Interpreters, February 9th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, 40 years ago, on January 16, 1959, the House of Commons took the innovative step of providing simultaneous interpretation in English and French thereby giving Canadians an opportunity to follow the debates in the language of their choice.

Today I would like to pay tribute to those individuals who have been our partners ever since.

I urge all members of the House to join with me in paying tribute to the invaluable contribution of our interpreters. They make it possible to share our ideas and everything we feel most passionate about in both official languages as well as in sign language.

Public Works and Government Services Canada and the Translation Bureau can take pride in having such professionals on their staff. Their work does parliament proud.

Congratulations to all of our interpreters. Félicitations.

[Questions On The Order Paper, February 5th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, I ask that all questions be allowed to stand.

[Government Response To Petitions, February 5th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to 19 petitions.

[Tax On Financial Transactions, February 3rd, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, this will indeed be an interesting experience for both the member for Sackville—Eastern Shore and me because the question I was given is entirely different from the question he just asked.

As far as labour negotiations, Canada Post is an arm's length corporation functioning quite separately from the government and has very little government regulation at this time. It operates within our framework.

I must apologize to the member and agree to meet with him again and respond more fully to his question.

As far as the small franchisees he alluded to, the difficulty we had over the last couple of months in negotiating with many of these small postal service outlets is Canada Post is charged with providing Canadians access to postal service. The changes have been fought through committee. Multiple changes have been put in place. The small postal outlets are being given a fee to operate with much assistance. The rural postal services or franchisees have had absolutely no changes to their revenue. That has been guaranteed at the 1997-98 levels. As far as the large services are concerned they are being given a flat rate of $25,000 a year to operate.

What we have tried to do is get rid of the gentlemen who go around with large suitcases full of stamps and sell in the small areas. I think we have done that well with this change to the postal services.

Again I come back to my abject apology of not having a prepared answer for the first part which is the most extensive part of the hon. member's question. We will meet again here sometime as dictated by the hon. Speaker.

[Poland, February 2nd, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House to congratulate the government on the success of Team Canada's recent visit to Poland, the first ever by a Canadian prime minister.

As a Canadian of Polish heritage I was honoured to accompany the Prime Minister and the Minister of International Trade as well as some of Canada's most dynamic business people to this proud and prosperous country.

Our hosts admired this government's balanced budgets and low interest rates which are powering Canada's economy and fuelling job creation.

This may go unnoticed on the opposition benches but not in Poland where the Prime Minister was awarded an honorary doctorate in economics. Polish business people are determined to strengthen the economic partnership between our two countries.

Stolat. May our two countries continue 100 years of good health.

[Energy Efficiency Strategy, December 8th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, it is interesting to listen to talk on a motion with which the government and I concur. It is an excellent motion. We will be supporting it when it comes time to vote.

I am pleased to speak to the motion brought forward by the member for Winnipeg Centre. We appreciate the opportunity to speak about the government's commitment to energy efficiency. We know we can do more. We thank the member again for bringing it to everyone's attention. My comments today will focus on the government's federal buildings initiative and specifically on the role of Public Works and Government Services Canada in this initiative.

Energy efficiency makes sense not only for government but for all Canadian homeowners, drivers, businesses and industry. Energy efficiency is a winning strategy for reducing greenhouse gases, for promoting a competitive economy and for creating skills, sustainable jobs and expertise in high tech fields as was pointed out.

The federal government must show leadership on this issue. The best way to do that is through action rather than words. The Department of Public Works and Government Services is a common service agency providing a wide range of services to federal departments and other agencies. The department's mandate provides the unique opportunity for helping client departments identify and implement best practices in the areas of procurement, fleet management, waste management, water conservation, land use management and energy efficiency.

As a major property owner in Canada with about 350 office buildings and close to 2,000 lease contracts within Public Works, it is a unique position to promote and implement energy management initiatives such as the federal buildings initiative. If the other 16 departments under the Government of Canada, such as Health Canada, National Defence and Revenue Canada, are added we either own or lease 50,468 buildings. We have downsized the government; maybe their statistics are a little older than mine. It is impressive to know that over 24 million metres square is under government control. Also we have 22,793 vehicles which should be energy efficient as well. The department has been an active player in the development of this initiative in concert with Natural Resources Canada.

The federal buildings initiative helps federal departments and agencies reduce their energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions by improving the energy efficiency of their buildings. This is achieved through partnerships with the private sector and at no upfront cost to the taxpayer.

In these times of fiscal restraint it is fair to ask where the government is finding the money to invest in energy efficiency. The member opposite talked about trade unions and various other organizations which have gone into partnership to improve energy efficiency. The answer is to get a willing third party, an energy service company to find the money for us.

The company provides the capital, implements the project and assumes any risk associated with it. Once the project begins to reduce energy consumption, the energy service company recoups its investment from the dollar savings. After the company is repaid, which may take as little as two years, the savings then go to the taxpayers. This innovative financing strategy effectively means that energy efficiency retrofits are paid for through the savings they generate. At the end of the day everyone is a winner. The federal government gets to upgrade its facilities with modern equipment and technologies at no new cost.

I must make a brief aside. I have been married to an engineer for 30 years. His idea of energy efficiency is the new shower head. He has gone around the House and put a brick in the water tank of each toilet. I asked what he was doing and he said it was a very technological advanced way of saving water.

The federal government upgrades its facilities with a little more finesse, with modern equipment and technologies at no new cost. Energy management companies generate new business and make a reasonable return on their investment. Canada increases its global competitiveness by developing high tech expertise and a skilled workforce in this field. Energy efficiency upgrades require a combination of new equipment and systems, technological expertise and labour. That means more Canadians are being put to work, as the member opposite pointed out.

Job creation is a priority of the government. The growing demand for energy efficiency retrofits is helping energy service companies prosper and generate new jobs. Federal buildings initiative projects in the federal sector alone have a potential to create some 20,000 person years of employment.

I would like to share some very impressive figures. I think the House will be interested in them, not that is it jam packed. To date the Department of Public Works has signed 27 contracts representing about $32 million in energy investment by the private sector. This generates over $5.5 million in annual energy savings, reducing CO2 emissions by 20,000 tonnes per year, 5.25% from the 1995 levels, and creating in the process 640 jobs.

By the year 2000 public works will have reduced energy consumption by approximately $12 million per year and have reduced CO2 levels by 14%. This is an important element in the government's initial response to meeting the greenhouse gas commitments made in Kyoto last year.

Through the federal buildings initiative Public Works and Government Services Canada alone will generate about $60 million of private sector investment and will create approximately 1,200 jobs in the private sector.

At the same time as the department of public works has been implementing federal building initiatives projects it has also proceeded with a unique project in a leased facility. The Place Vincent Massey building, a complex which is leased by the government, underwent an impressive $1.4 million in energy upgrades which will achieve a potential $200,000 annually in energy cost savings. As a result of this success, public works is now pursuing federal buildings initiative projects in all the leased buildings it manages. This means even more savings and more job creation.

I am pleased to report to the hon. member for Winnipeg Centre that included in the 27 projects public works has already signed, four contracts for 12 buildings were awarded in the western region. The member may also be interested to know that four of these buildings are located in Winnipeg. Overall these contracts represent an investment of close to $4 million by the private sector, generating approximately $650,000 of energy savings and creating 73 jobs.

The Department of Public Works and Government Services is not alone. Virtually every federal department that owns buildings has made a commitment to pursue this unique opportunity.

In addition to launching its own projects, public works will help other departments implement the federal buildings initiative by undertaking project management on their behalf. I think that is why the hon. minister we have now was put into his position. When we were first elected in 1993, he went through and slashed budgets. Nobody could paint offices. He was a real tough character. He has been put in charge of this initiative. With his broad expertise in energy management and wide range of property management services, public works is well suited to the task as is its minister.

What is particularly exciting about the federal buildings initiative is that it can be easily replicated by other levels of governments and other sectors of the economy. Public works has been working in partnership with other levels of government, federal, provincial, territorial and municipal. Let us not forget that businesses, hospitals, schools and universities can all use the federal buildings initiative approach too, and many are. In the end everyone benefits from the federal buildings initiative: the government, the private sector, the taxpayer and our environment.

I assure the member for Winnipeg Centre that the federal buildings initiative program is alive and well. The government is committed to seeing that the program is implemented whenever and wherever it makes sense. We welcome the hon. member's support and I encourage him to follow the federal buildings initiatives progress as we make our way through the full inventory of federal buildings.

[Royal Canadian Mint Act, November 30th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, the other member talked about having one or two companies out there doing a really good job of something and the federal government should not get involved.

I would like to hear how the member would expect the mint that produces coins to survive if those companies doing a really good job of making the raw materials decided to raise the prices, triple or quadruple what they are now. What controls would we have over that? It sounded like a fairyland over there.

[Royal Canadian Mint Act, November 30th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, in the last hour I feel like I have sat through the good, the bad and the ugly. The good is over there and the bad and the ugly are over here.

I do not understand if the corporation is being defended so severely and is being put out of business why—and perhaps the member can answer this—it can only produce about 20% of what the mint needs. In actual fact the mint has to go outside Canada to buy plated blanks to do the job. If we are shutting them out of business, perhaps the member could explain to me why the corporation cannot supply 100% of the blanks we need at this time.