Pierrette Venne

[Public Service, March 11th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, we thought the government had learned a few lessons from the APEC scandal.

But no, yesterday the government literally let the dogs loose on the heels of the public service blue collar workers demonstrating for equal pay for work of equal value in different regions in Canada.

Will the President of the Treasury Board finally accept his responsibilities and negotiate with these employees or will he let this violence escalate on the assumption that dogs are not as bad as baseball bats?

[Petitions, March 8th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the people of Saint-Bruno—Saint-Hubert, I have the honour to table a petition asking that the government withdraw its appeal of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal decision on equal pay within the public service and that it implement that decision without further delay.

This petition goes along with those presented by my colleagues in the Bloc Quebecois.

[Canadian Forces, March 8th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, the Canadian forces have failed in their attempt to fully integrate women into their ranks, according to the Canadian Human Rights Commission. At the moment, women represent only 10.8% of the army, only 3.1% in the combat units and there is not one woman general.

My question is for the Minister of National Defence. What is he waiting for before taking action? Is he waiting for the commission to cite the officers of the Canadian forces for contempt of court in the light of his failure to rectify the situation?

[Women Parliamentarians, March 8th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, on December 6, 1921, Agnes Campbell MacPhail became the first woman elected to the House of Commons. She was the only woman in the House; the 234 other members were men.

Sixty-seven years later, in 1988, when I was elected for the first time, there were 39 women out of 295 members of parliament, or a measly 13% of the overall membership.

Today, there are 60 women out of 301 parliamentarians, which means 20% of this House's membership. This is definitely an improvement, but we still have a long way to go.

According to an inter-parliamentary union study, Canada ranks 20th in the world when it comes to women's representation in parliaments. Compared to Scandinavian countries, this is a disaster.

I wonder when the House of Commons will be representative of the overall population, that is when men will make up 49% of its membership and women 51%.

[Points Of Order, March 3rd, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, a few years ago, when Mr. Fraser was the Speaker of the House, he struck a committee which deliberated on matters of vocabulary, proper dress in the House and the importance of mutual respect among members. The committee no longer exists, but I have the strong impression that it should be re-established after what I heard today in the House.

I would mention that the member for Papineau—Saint-Denis, who, when I put a question shouted, or should I say, yelled, “That is dishonest”.

Mr. Speaker, I ask you to have the minister at least withdraw his words and I strongly suggest that the committee, which served a purpose at the time, be re-established.

[Federal Employees' Pension Fund, March 3rd, 1999]

Does the President of the Treasury Board in fact intend to engage in a new confrontation with public servants over the surplus in their pension fund, just as he is now at daggers drawn with blue collar workers, women, professionals and retired employees of the public service?

[Federal Employees' Pension Fund, March 3rd, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, the federal government's foot-dragging in the Singer affair was difficult to comprehend. But things are clearer now that we know that the government plans to treat its own employees the same way and pocket the surplus in their pension fund.

[Federal Employees' Pension Fund, February 16th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, will the President of the Treasury Board not agree that the employer's contributions to the pension fund are part of employees' overall remuneration and therefore do not belong to him?

[Federal Employees' Pension Fund, February 16th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, not content to pocket the huge surpluses in the EI fund, the federal government now wants to get its hands on its employees' pension funds.

Can the President of the Treasury Board tell us why he is now preparing to raid his own employees' pension plans, after dipping into the pockets of unemployed workers?

[Info Medic Watch Plaque, November 30th, 1998]

Mr. Speaker, there is a great deal of ingenuity at work in my riding of Saint-Bruno—Saint-Hubert.

Louise Dodier, a woman in my riding, has invented a product she calls “Info Medic Watch”. It is an alternative solution for those who need to wear an emergency alert bracelet to indicate that they have a drug allergy or a condition requiring particular precautions, such as epilepsy or diabetes.

Info Medic is a gold or silver plaque which attaches solidly to a watch bracelet. The individual's medical information is engraved on the back. More than 80 Canadian jewellers offer this Quebec invention for sale.

My congratulations, and best wishes for continuing success, to Mrs. Dodier.