Grant Hill

[Crow's Nest Pass, May 7th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, this year is the 100th anniversary of the Frank slide in Crow's Nest Pass, Alberta.

Coal mining was a huge enterprise in southwest Alberta at the end of the 19th century and still is today. The peace, however, was shattered 100 years ago, April 29, 1903, by an enormous rock slide, destroying homes, lives and transportation in the thriving town of Frank.

Turtle Mountain had a reputation among the native tribes for moving slowly. That day the mountain moved like lightening. The lives lost, the mourning of loved ones and the heroic rescue efforts still are legendary.

On this anniversary of the momentous tragedy, I salute our heroic pioneers and remember their struggles against nature, the unknown and personal fears.

Today the Crow's Nest Pass is a jewel in the Rocky Mountains. I am proud to represent that jewel here in Ottawa.

[Fisheries, May 6th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, we would be happy to take over the government and have a fishery policy that everybody could support.

Our resource management system is fundamentally flawed. The fisheries cannot be properly managed from Kent Street in Ottawa. The fishers of Shippagan, the Magdalen Islands and Placentia Bay must be able to speak up when it comes to their means of livelihood. They certainly could not do any worse than the federal Liberals.

Why is the minister doing nothing positive for the fisheries and why does he not delegate more control over resources to the provinces?

[Fisheries, May 6th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, we will wait for the quotes from the Prime Minister tomorrow.

The federal Liberal government has mismanaged the fishery for years. It is so bad that crab fishermen in New Brunswick are now talking about boycotting the season and the Liberal premier of Newfoundland and Labrador is saying he will try to protect anyone who defies the cod moratorium from legal action.

My question is for the fisheries minister. Since those involved in the industry have obviously lost confidence in his abilities, why does he not start devolving greater powers for the fishery to the provinces?

[An Act to Amend the Criminal Code (cruelty to animals and firearms) and the Firearms Act, May 6th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, just as an aside, it is interesting to note that there were 18 Tory senators who voted for Bill C-68, and without those votes we would not have the firearms registry.

My colleague down the way talked about the police and the individuals who said that they would not be enforcing this law. There is another problem for the minister opposite and that is the provinces that will not support this law and say that they want it scrapped.

My question is directed to the minister. How will the law be enforced when a number of provinces, eight of them in fact, say that they do not want the registry in their jurisdictions? What will he do about that?

[Canada-U.S. Relations, May 5th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, I guess that is why they are disagreeing so profoundly in public. It does not follow. The Canadian Alliance has pushed for cooperation on national continental missile defence for three years. In fact, the trouble for Liberals is that when they flip-flop on issues like this it affects Canadians' safety. Once again, is this not just a cynical attempt by Liberals, after insulting our allies, to kiss and make up?

[Canada-U.S. Relations, May 5th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, the problem for Canada and the U.S. is the Liberals' insults.

Here is what the heritage minister said about continental missile defence on the weekend: “To support this Star Wars scenario runs counter to everything the Liberal party has ever stood for”. It looks like not everyone in cabinet agrees on just exactly who speaks for the Liberal government on this issue today.

[Health, May 2nd, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, a dozen patients in Hong Kong have been reported now as having possibly relapsed. We have one in Canada who may be in the same position.

Surveillance of every single patient after they leave the hospital is necessary. My question is straightforward. Is that surveillance in Canada taking place?

[Health, May 2nd, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, as a medical doctor I am proud of the health professionals and the way they acted in Toronto and beyond Queen's Park.

As a politician I am disappointed with the actions of the health minister. We now have a new development in the SARS case. We have patients who are relapsing. That means they may be infectious after they have gone home from hospital.

What is the health minister doing about this new development?

[Health, May 1st, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, I guess the travel advisory would be a good indication of whether those measures were adequate or not.

SARS had a devastating effect on the tourist industry in Toronto. Now we have summer camps and wilderness resorts having exactly the same issue in relation to the West Nile virus: cancellations.

My question is, this time will the government follow every single directive from health experts rather than carrying on with its own mindless play?

[Health, May 1st, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, the health minister was profoundly slow in implementing the screening provisions, which the World Health Organization asked her to do over a month ago. We have another new infectious disease and my question to the government is, has it learned anything from the SARS epidemic? Has it learned anything so that we can avert another SARS blunder with the West Nile virus?