Charles Caccia

[Boreal Forest, February 3rd, 2004]

Mr. Speaker, Canada is endowed with some 520 million hectares of unique ecological value, the boreal forest. Of great alarm then is the boreal forest conservation framework proposed by four forest and mining companies and four environmental NGOs whereby half the boreal forest would be exploited for commercial purposes.

The proposed framework was concluded without public consultation, without approval by governments and without assurance that once the agreed upon first half of the boreal forest will be cut other forest companies would not come forward and claim the second half.

In addition, the framework would seriously impact Canada's Kyoto commitment and Canada's biodiversity convention obligations.

Finally, aboriginal peoples' livelihood, way of life and traditions would be affected.

For the sake of future generations, I therefore urge the federal government to protect the boreal forest and dismiss the framework.

[The Environment, November 7th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of the Environment.

Given the importance of the provinces, territories and industry in achieving the necessary reductions of greenhouse gas emissions, can the minister inform the House on the progress made so far on discussions with other levels of government and industry?

[The Right Honourable Prime Minister, November 6th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, for 35 years, it has been my good fortune and great honour to be part of this magnificent institution, our Parliament, and to make, in my own way, a contribution to public life.

For all that time, the hon. member for Saint-Maurice was also present, successfully taking on one important political function after another. The most important, of course, is that of being our Prime Minister for the last 10 years, and what a Prime Minister he has been.

Yes, what a Prime Minister he has been and what demonstration of political instincts he has displayed. He is a man of infallible political instincts who pressed forward with the clarity bill and ensured that any future referenda would be fair and understood by everyone. He is a man of infallible political instincts who knew how to keep the right divided and put the Bloc Quebecois on the ropes and on the brink of extinction. He is a man of infallible political instincts who understands Canadian values and who knows what Canadians want from their government.

He is a man of infallible political instincts on the world scene who recognized Canada's obligation to the global community in resolving the difficult problems posed by climate change by ratifying the Kyoto accord. He is a man of infallible political instincts in moving forward the G-8 agenda resulting in NEPAD, the new partnership for Africa's development, a true breakthrough for the African continent, in the improvement of the condition of people in the least developed countries, in an impressive global partnership, and in the program for the destruction of chemical, biological and nuclear weapons of mass destruction. He is a man of infallible political instincts in the United Nations Security Council, in keeping Canada, in true Pearsonian tradition, loyal to multilateralism and the United Nations' approach on Iraq which, if it had prevailed, would have saved so many innocent lives and the lives of so many soldiers.

Finally, he is a man of infallible political instincts who could have led the Liberal Party of Canada to a fourth consecutive majority victory.

If the Liberal government shows up so well in public opinion polls, it is in large part due not to deficit elimination or debt reduction, but to the courageous and timely leadership given by the Prime Minister on so many issues over the past 10 years, including his recent stand during the Iraq crisis.

Major initiatives which can be traced back to the influence of the member from Shawinigan include the national child benefit, the millennium scholarship, the creation of 10 new national parks, the federal-provincial-municipal infrastructure program, the endangered species legislation, the Romanow commission, and now the ratification of the United Nations law of the sea.

Appointments, much maligned by so many, also carry his imprint. For example, there is the recognition of 52% of Canada's population, women: the Governor General, the chief justice of the Supreme Court, the leader of the government in the Senate, the lieutenant-governors in many provinces, our whip, the improved number of women candidates at election time in Parliament and in cabinet. There is also the unprecedented number of appointments of visible minorities and aboriginal Canadians.

One should also reach back to 1982 and the fact that 20 years later the member from Shawinigan is still pursuing the ideals of the charter through his reinstatement of the court challenges program, his commitment to legislation on same sex benefits and marriage, and his longstanding efforts to improve the quality of life of aboriginal Canadians.

Throughout his long and remarkable career in Canadian politics, he has never lost sight of the fact that the role of the state is to serve citizens, not corporations or special interests. He never lost sight of the essential Liberal values of tolerance and equality of opportunity.

Canadians have been well served by the Prime Minister and he is justly deserving of the high esteem in which they hold him. This esteem does not stop at the Canadian border. Among his many friends and supporters abroad is Nelson Mandela who, in praising Canada, referred to the Prime Minister by saying, “Whenever we have needed support, he has never been found wanting”.

What a Prime Minister. What a fine record. What a fine reputation for which Canadians can be proud.

[Fisheries and Oceans, November 6th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, my question is of the Prime Minister, and it is as follows.

When can Canadians finally expect the ratification of the United Nations law of the sea to take place?

[Criminal Code, November 5th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the parliamentary secretary for his answer.

I really appreciate what he has told us this evening; naturally, the decision-making process must be respected. At the same time, I want to emphasize that consumers must at least be given the choice, when it comes to genetically modified products.

That is why I want to inform the House once again of the need to introduce mandatory labelling so that consumers can make informed decisions and identify products without genetically modified ingredients.

[Criminal Code, November 5th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, on October 21, I asked the Minister of Agriculture if he would turn down Monsanto's application to release genetically modified wheat in Canada given the growing opposition by farmers and agricultural groups.

The minister's reply was that another step in the process might be needed before any product is commercialized.

There are good reasons why Monsanto's application should be turned down.

First, three leading plant scientists at the University of Manitoba have concluded that the unconfined release of Monsanto's Roundup Ready wheat in western Canada poses a high level of environmental risk. I quote:

The unconfined release of Roundup Ready wheat will negatively affect the environment and limit farmers' ability to conserve natural resources on farms in western Canada.

The authors, Dr. Rene Van Acker, Dr. Anita Brûlé-Babel and Lyle Friesen, went on to say in their report, which I will quote:

Under current conditions, the release of Roundup Ready wheat in western Canada would be environmentally unsafe.

The three researchers are with the Department of Plant Science in the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences at the University of Manitoba. They were asked by the Canadian Wheat Board to assess the impact of unconfined release. They concluded, and I quote:

The unconfined release of this product will threaten the sustainability of reduced tillage cropping systems in western Canada and as such it will pose a risk to the environment and natural resource conservation on managed ecosystems (farms) in western Canada.

The second reason is that the Canadian Wheat Board does not favour genetically modified wheat for fear of losing exports worth about $4 billion. Apparently, 82% of wheat board customers do not want genetically modified wheat.

Third, health and scientific authorities have identified possible health risks associated with genetically modified food. We are told these possible health risks might be exacerbated with the introduction of genetically modified wheat into the food supply since wheat is so widely consumed.

Therefore, as the least precaution, all genetically modified food should be labelled so that consumers can make a choice and, if they wish, avoid food produced with genetically modified ingredients.

This evening I would like to urge the parliamentary secretary, as I did his minister, to adopt a prudent course of action and turn down Monsanto's application. In doing so, the minister will protect the economic well-being of Canadian farmers, he will take care of the economic interests of the Canadian Wheat Board and he will maintain a healthy and viable ecosystem in the public interest.

[Youth at Risk, October 31st, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, according to Statistics Canada, youth recidivism, namely the extent to which offenders reoffend, is alarmingly high. Youth represented 60% of convicted offenders. The majority of recidivists had prior convictions in youth court. Sixteen is the most common age of first conviction. Nearly two-thirds of recidivists sentenced to custody have been incarcerated before.

These statistics show that we are not doing enough for youth at risk, not enough to prevent youth at risk from becoming young offenders and not enough to prevent offenders from reoffending.

This is a big social problem which requires attention. I urge the government to improve and strengthen existing programs aimed at youth and at reducing recidivism among young offenders.

[Trade, October 23rd, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, as it stands now, the text of the free trade area of the Americas agreement incorporates investor-state rules, similar to NAFTA's chapter 11.

To ensure that private sector abuse at the expense of the public interest and in defiance of Parliament is avoided, can the Minister for International Trade assure the House that the chapter 11 experience is not repeated in the final text of the free trade area of the Americas agreement?

[Agriculture, October 21st, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, given the growing opposition to genetically modified wheat by farmers and given the Canadian Wheat Board's intention to prevent the release of Monsanto's genetically modified wheat variety because it poses an economic and environmental risk, can the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food inform the House as to whether he will reject Monsanto's application?

[The Environment, October 21st, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, Environment Canada reports that in the year 2002 an estimated 2 million TV sets, 1.1 million VCRs and 348,000 CD players were disposed of, with most of that sent to landfills. In all, Canadians threw out approximately 155,000 tonnes of so-called electronic waste.

It should be noted that each TV set can contain up to two kilograms of lead, a dangerous substance for children. Mercury, which is used in stereos, is also appearing in landfills.

The report recommends the adoption as a matter of urgency of an electronics recycling policy.

I therefore call upon the government to implement the Environment Canada report's recommendations to reduce this type of waste and the damage to land and, eventually, to groundwater.