Elsie Wayne

[National Defence, June 19th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, the New York Times published the key facts from the final report of the American investigation into the killing of four of our Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan.

Given that the details are now in the public domain, will the minister make public the report of the Canadian investigation and, if not, will the minister at least provide the House with whatever information he has received from either General Dumais or Secretary Rumsfeld?

All Canadians, not just the U.S. and Americans, need to know the facts about this horrible situation.

[National Defence, June 13th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, never before has a defence ombudsman report been delayed and never before has a minister of defence employed these stall tactics to avoid the House of Commons.

It is clear to everyone in the House that there is something in the report that the minister does not want discussed in this House. What is the minister trying to hide?

Will the Minister of National Defence honour his commitment to transparency and public accountability and release the ombudsman report today? If may he need 60 days to read it but we only need 24 hours.

[National Defence, June 12th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, the privatization of the military supply chain is raising more questions than answers. We know it will affect 1,674 jobs. We know it will affect the economies of local communities. We know it could put at risk our national security.

Canadians need to have their say on this issue. Will the Minister of National Defence agree to delay signing any contract until the defence committee can conduct a full set of hearings on this issue? Will he agree to put the supply chain contract to a vote in the House of Commons?

[Health Care System, June 11th, 2002]

Mr. Chairman, I want to thank my hon. colleague for her presentation. I had the distinct honour of making a presentation to the Romanow commission just a week ago. Something I have noticed, and I have noticed it in the House as well, is when we discuss health care no one brings up the subject of veterans hospitals and the need for that to be addressed like never before.

We have been travelling across the country to look at our veterans hospitals. The Ste. Anne's Hospital in Montreal, which is still under the jurisdiction of the federal government, is in excellent condition. The treatment our veterans receive there is wonderful, and rightfully so. However all our veterans hospitals should be at the same standard. Instead of that, unbeknown I am sure to the majority of members sitting in the House of Commons, many of them have been closed or knocked down.

In my riding, the most beautiful DVA hospital was closed and a tiny hospital was opened to replaced it. Hundreds of veterans were in need of beds and help. The hospital was expanded by 48 beds but every one of those beds were for people with Alzheimer's.

Why does no one address that issue anymore except for us? I raised it before the Romanow commission and I noticed that the chairman started to take a lot of notes, which told me that no one had raised that before with him and his committee. What does my colleague think? Does she honestly feel as strongly as I do that money needs to be put into the health care system for veterans and for all walks of life?

[Question No. 152, June 7th, 2002]

With regard to the submarine Victoria: ( a ) when did the Minister of Defence first learn of the structural dent in the submarine; and ( b ) what structural assessments of the hull of the submarine were undertaken prior to its purchase, and by what firms?

[Main Estimates, 2002-03, June 6th, 2002]

I apologize, Mr. Speaker. A minister of this House made a statement in my riding of Saint John, New Brunswick that unless the people elected a Liberal in every riding in Canada then that riding will not receive any assistance of any kind because it did not elect a Liberal.

That is not how you, Mr. Speaker, see things. That is not how we see things. People elect the person they want to represent them. I was in absolute shock to hear a minister of this House make a statement like that publicly. What does my colleague from Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough think about that kind of a statement being made?

[Main Estimates, 2002-03, June 6th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, a statement was made by one of your ministers just two weeks ago, right in my--

[Canada Post, June 6th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, they cannot go any lower than they are, I will tell you that.

Concerned stakeholders have advised us that Canada Post has been using American based printing companies to make our 48¢ Canadian stamp, this notwithstanding that the U.S. prohibits the production of its stamps outside of its national borders. Worse still, the stamps breach the NAFTA rules as there is no indication that the stamp is made in the U.S.A.

Can the minister of public works explain to all the people of Canada and the Canadian printers that Canadian jobs were sidestepped--

[National Defence, June 6th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, Canada's defence spending amounts to 1.1% of the GDP, the second lowest in all of NATO. Maybe that is why we buy those used submarines that will not float.

Last fall the finance minister said:

You can't just sit at the G-8 table and then, when the bill comes, go to the washroom.

It is time for the minister to put the money where his mouth is.

Will the minister commit to increasing our defence spending to 1.6% of GDP as recommended by the defence committee report that was tabled in the House last week?

[Supply, June 4th, 2002]

Mr. Chairman, on June 7, 2001 the Prime Minister confirmed the existence of a cabinet committee responsible for overseeing the process to replace our Sea King helicopters. The Prime Minister further confirmed that the former Deputy Prime Minister was the chair of that committee. Can the minister inform us tonight who is the chair of the committee at this time and what are their responsibilities?

Can the minister tell us if he has been briefed on the maritime helicopter replacement program? More specifically, has he received a briefing on the costs and benefits of that contract having been split in two?

Also, the former Minister of National Defence and the minister's predecessor at public works and government services both indicated that the maritime helicopter program has been marred by delays. Could the minister now tell us the cause and nature of those delays and provide us tonight with an updated departmental timeline for the completion of the tendering process through to the delivery of the finished helicopters?