Martin Cauchon

[Supply, November 4th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride and satisfaction that I rise today to speak about something that, in my view, has served the Canadian public very well.

Before going any further, I would simply like to respond to the earlier question from the Progressive Conservative member about the benefits of the free trade agreement put in place by the Progressive Conservative Party. I would merely remind him that the Liberal Party was the first party in Canada to support free trade. This goes all the way back to 1910 and 1911, to the time of Wilfrid Laurier.

Second, what the Conservatives did was mentioned. I feel we should also emphasize the nice job done by the Liberals, who then formed the official opposition. They ensured that some adjustments were made regarding certain definitions in the agreement, so that the opening of our borders did become a laudable initiative and a desirable thing for all Canadians. Again, the Liberal team, my team, deserves to be congratulated.

Today, I would like to do two things: first, put into perspective the importance of international trade for Canada and, second, stress the efforts being made by the government to provide greater access to international markets for our businesses.

I could go on all day about the government's efforts, but I will focus on specific points.

The first one is the importance of international trade. As Minister Responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the regions of Quebec, I see on a daily basis that Canada's current economic growth is largely dependent on our businesses' ability to face foreign competition and to find a niche on international markets.

Let us take a look at some figures. Exports account for 40% of our GDP. This is the highest rate among G-7 countries. Moreover, the percentage of domestic production that relates to exports almost doubled over the past ten years. As for exports alone, in 1998, they reached a record level of $367 billion. Based on the impressive numbers for 1999, we can already anticipate that the 1998 level will be surpassed.

The trade balance is undoubtedly a good indicator. In August, we had a trade surplus of $3.6 billion. This means that, after the first eight months of 1999, we had already exceeded the total figure for 1998.

The numbers I just referred to are pretty much eloquent. They show that international commerce is vital for Canada, vital for our exports. We as a country profit from the global marketplace. We started talking about the global marketplace in theory decades ago, but we are actually facing a real situation. It is a real challenge for Canada as a country. It is also a real challenge for our economy.

As a government we want to make sure that all corporations in Canada, of which we are proud, will be given all the necessary tools to be involved in and to join with all nations in the global marketplace. At the end of the process we want to ensure that we have our share. Having our share means that we will have economic growth on a national basis and very good quality job creation in Canada.

Another very important part of international economy and the global marketplace is foreign investment. Foreign investment in our country brought us new technology, different knowledge, and the means to support the social safety net that has been in place in the country for decades.

So we can see the importance of international trade here in Canada. Given that our market is relatively small, the fact that borders are opening now, that tariff and non tariff barriers are disappearing, enormous opportunities are arising.

The Government of Canada, especially since our government took office in 1993, has understood this fact and put certain measures in place to enable our businesses to seize every opportunity.

First, one of the factors resulting in the government's support for business is, without a doubt and not often mentioned, our country's good financial health. It is a matter of ensuring economic stability, economic growth and control over public finances.

This results in a respectable and low rate of inflation for us and respectable rates of interest, as compared with all of the other G-7 members.

As a result, our businesses have a solid base nationally and a springboard for their first international venture.

The second factor I would like to draw to the attention of the House today is the Team Canada phenomenon. I think this is one of the finest means of international promotion any member of the G-7 has come up with in this era of globalization.

I am proud that our government is the one that developed such an initiative, whose purpose is to ensure that all departments and agencies—22 in all—work together to help businesses on the international level, and work in partnership with all provinces and territories as well, and also with the private sector. That is, of course, very important. I need not review all the success stories of Team Canada.

I would also like to draw attention to the important contribution of the Export Development Corporation in our international efforts. This is a somewhat unique financial institution which allows us to open doors to a sizeable number of Canadian businesses in more than 200 countries. This is another well-known tool and one that is doing an excellent job, providing support to businesses in very specific and specialized areas. These areas are vital to businesses.

There is also a fourth element: the changes we have made in recent years to our embassies and consulates. Canada wanted to be far more aggressive on the international scene. We wanted to really support our businesses. This is why we have expanded our commercial sections abroad and have begun a process to expand the number of trade commissioners internationally.

In conclusion, a considerable number of actions have been undertaken in order to help businesses and especially to ultimately democratize exports and ensure they are also accessible to small and medium sized businesses.

I shall close with the comment that, in partnership with a government with a great deal of vision, Canadian businesses will be able to conquer the export market and to bring to this country all the prosperity we deserve.

[Revenue Canada, November 1st, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, again the number referred to with regard to the celebration is exaggerated.

We are proud of what we are doing. It took three years to build this agency. We have been working with all the employees, with the stakeholders and with the unions. We will keep working with them. We want to make sure that this government provides people with the highest standard of service when it comes to talking about revenue.

[Revenue Canada, November 1st, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, the number referred to by the hon. member is exaggerated by far. We have spent money on the transition of the agency, but most of the money has been invested in our human resources. We have been working for three years in order to achieve what we have done today in the official launching of the agency.

This government is proud of what it is doing in order to achieve its aim and goal. The aim and goal is to provide people in Canada with much better services.

[Bill C-6, October 21st, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, I think that the bill introduced by my colleague the Minister of Industry is necessary in this age of e-commerce and the Internet.

I would like to point out that my colleague has already responded to numerous requests from the Government of Quebec precisely in order to avoid any form of duplication and to ensure that, when the legislation is passed, it will respect the Government of Quebec's legislation.

I believe that the two governments can work together in order to serve the interests of the entire population well, and to protect their privacy.

[Audiovisual Productions, October 19th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Canadian Heritage has outlined the measures taken. I think that what is involved here is the fundamental relationship of trust that exists between taxpayers and National Revenue. I believe there is a strong relationship of trust.

What we are talking about here is information that is basically confidential, and it will remain so.

At the risk of repeating myself, if ever additional information is brought to our attention, we will see that the necessary action is taken.

[Audiovisual Productions, October 19th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, information involving the relationship between the department and an individual or corporate taxpayer is confidential and I may therefore not comment.

If ever additional events were brought to the attention of my department and myself, obviously we would see that the necessary action was taken, but for now the information is confidential.

[Canada Customs And Revenue Agency, October 15th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, I believe the Speech from the Throne has stated quite eloquently what the government has done and what it will do in the near future.

With regard to the new Canada Customs and Revenue Agency, I told the member that we are very proud of what we are doing. This agency will provide much better services to the population. We are providing good services now but we want to do much better in the near future.

[Canada Customs And Revenue Agency, October 15th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, obviously the amount referred to by the hon. member is wrong.

I will tell the member one more time that the November 1 event will launch the new Canada Customs and Revenue Agency. We feel it is worth proceeding with some celebration because, together with our employees and our unions, we are working toward having an agency that will be more client oriented. As a government, we are proud of this agency.

[Gm Plant In Boisbriand, October 15th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, Quebec's plan does not necessarily bother the federal government, but it should bother Quebec taxpayers.

At this stage, the important thing is to come up with a new model. It is well known that if we can, as a partnership, come up with a new model, the odds are good that GM will not need government assistance, given what happened in the other provinces. But now that the Government of Quebec has tipped its hand, there will obviously be no turning back, should a new model later be found. The $360 million is already on the table and probably ill-advisedly.

[Gm Plant In Boisbriand, October 15th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, I will not repeat what my colleague, the Minister of Industry, said, because I might not be as eloquent. What he said was that the Quebec government is jumping the gun. Together, we have decided to form a partnership so as to help GM's Boisbriand division.

At this point, I think that everyone agrees that the most important thing is to help the Boisbriand plant find a new model. This was the focus of discussions. My colleague and I also participated in the study done by the survival committee, and we went to Detroit.

We are available and will continue to support employees of GM's Boisbriand plant.