Roy H. Bailey

[Petitions, May 26th, 2003]

This petition, Mr. Speaker, asks that we make use of the adult stem cell and that we should not in any way be pursuing the embryonic stem cell as a method of treatment.

[Petitions, May 26th, 2003]

I have another petition, Mr. Speaker, which asks that the government enact section 33, the notwithstanding clause, if it is necessary, to preserve and protect the current definition of marriage as between one man and one woman.

[Petitions, May 26th, 2003]

The second petition, Mr. Speaker, is from a portion of Saskatchewan whose the petitioners are asking the Government of Canada not to pass the private member's bill, Bill C-250.

[Petitions, May 26th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, I have some petitions that I would like to present.

The first petition comes mainly from people in the city of Weyburn. The petitioners are asking that the Government of Canada ensure that junior hockey league players and teams be treated like Olympic sport participants and that billeting costs and modest reasonable expenses and allowances not be treated as taxable income under the provisions of any applicable federal tax legislation.

[Supply, May 26th, 2003]

Madam Speaker, I want to thank the member for speaking in clear terms that can be understood, and should be understood, not only in the House but in the United Nations and around the world.

We in Canada sit by, as in this recent example with SARS, and let a world organization not move as it should because of the political power of mainland China. In doing so, we are putting politics way ahead of people. We did the same thing with the earthquake in Taiwan. We had to argue for months before help went in.

We, as Canadians, should sit very carefully and think about what the hon. member has just said, and the clearness of it, and put ourselves in the same position and ask, if we could act, would we ignore the people in Taiwan today because we feared something about their political identity? I do not think Canadians would but the United Nations has.

[Junior A Hockey, May 12th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, hockey fans across Saskatchewan are beaming with pride today because the National Junior A Championship was captured yesterday by the Humboldt Broncos.

Despite the difficulties the team had with Saskatchewan only audit by the CCRA, the managers, the coaches and the players overcame the setback that community suffered from what they considered to be an unfair and unjust assessment by the Government of Canada.

In true western spirit, the Humboldt Broncos persevered and in doing so took home the coveted Royal Bank Cup which they will proudly display in their hometown to denote national supremacy in junior A hockey in Canada.

Way to go Broncos. Way to go Humboldt. Let us hope that the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League continues to operate for years to come.

[Budget Implementation Act, 2003, May 12th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, whenever we deal with taxes, exemptions or whatever it may be, which come from the pockets of individuals, one thing the government should be consistent in is fairness. Fairness must prevail within a country. If there is no fairness, then the government does not last very long.

I know as a former hockey referee that a person attempts to be fair. The person may not seem to be fair but he or she attempts to be fair. If the person is judged not to be fair, then that individual's career in that occupation does not last very long.

Whenever the government is dealing with taxes and exemptions it should be fair. If we look at some of the problems that exist in our taxation, we will see there have been huge changes in the way certain things operate in Canada. For instance, at one time most of the school buses were owned, operated, controlled, repaired and so on by the school board. That has changed dramatically. Most of the school buses and the services are contracted out to a company. Therefore, we need to look at that because it has taken place across Canada.

I am absolutely amazed with the change the government wants in the disability tax credit. I cannot believe for one moment that after the tremendous problems which existed last year, when HRDC issued the forms to prove their disability, the government would come back and say that for an individual to qualify, he or she must be able to both feed and clothe themselves.

I have a sister-in-law who lives in a home for seniors and she would certainly qualify. However, there are many in that home who can get up and after many hours get themselves dressed but they cannot sit down and feed themselves or vice versa. Why should they not qualify? I think that is a terrible thing.

Let us look at fairness. The government recently gave the city of Toronto a few million dollars because of the loss which was brought about through the recent epidemic of SARS. If next month the same thing, and let us hope this never happens, another city experiences the same thing and the government chooses not to give money, that will not be viewed by the public as being fair.

I know when I sit down to pay my income tax and fill out the form, I have reason to believe that people with the same income, the same expenses and the same deductions will pay the same amount of tax.

However, in the case which I recently raised in the House about the auditing of a junior hockey league, it was obvious there was no fairness. It is so obvious that even the government is ashamed. When there are claims of unfairness in taxation what generally is done is we listen to what the complainant has to say. The government has done neither. I would beg the government in the interest of amateur sports across Canada to take another look at that action.

It might interest the House to know that an immigrant who has been here for some time now came to my office. What was the complaint of that individual? The person was complaining about the 36,000 illegal immigrants in Canada. After going through all the bookkeeping, the lawyers and all the necessary help to get into Canada, the individual was complaining about how the government sloughed off 36,000 illegal immigrants in Canada.

Indeed, this is all about fairness and I believe, with the number of older people coming into my office, that we should not limit the RRSP, not for one moment. Let them save because as costs and taxes keep going up more and more people cannot exist on their savings. Therefore when they are working, they should be allowed to have higher levels of RRSPs. That would also help the government. If they are allowed to save more now, they are least likely on their retirement to have to rely on the government for assistance with living and income. Let us look at fairness.

Two things really bother me. The first is the disability credit. It is just not good enough for those thousands of people who suffer disabilities. I would hope the government would change its mind as to who qualifies for the disability credits and disability amounts. Let us study that and listen to the people and associations for the disabled from across Canada. With an attitude of fairness, that would change overnight. I beg the government to look at that because it is now totally unfair.

If one automobile dealer could sell cars without collecting the GST, it would soon run everybody out of business. Let us be fair with those who are disabled, and with the amount of money, they have to spend so they can enjoy something in life. I believe what the government plans through this legislation is totally unfair to those with disabilities.

[Victory in Europe Day, May 8th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, today is the 58th anniversary of VE Day, Victory in Europe. I remember VE Day 1945 very well. I do not have the words to describe the tremendous feeling of joy and relief that was demonstrated across this country.

Although it was a day of great happiness, I recall some sad events following VE Day, the saddest of which was when a German U-boat surfaced in the North Sea, obviously unaware that the war was over, and shot down a Canadian reconnaissance plane killing all members, one being from the community in which I live.

VE Day came less than one year after D-Day on June 6, 1944, which some historians describe as the longest day in history. It was on this day that the largest armada of naval, army and air force ever came together under one command. Too often VE Day does not get the attention it should. However, the war was still on in Asia and would not come to an end until some few months later.

[Supply, May 8th, 2003]

Mr. Speaker, I am appalled at the representative of the party that has just spoken in the defence that has been put forth.

I have stood in many classrooms and have been called to many classrooms to see the results of a nine year old or an eight year old who has been sexually abused. Do these children have any rights? Or are we here to defend the rights of those who have done the abusing? That is the question.

I lived through a period of time that when we saw it, we did something about it. Now we get some whacky individuals who prevail on these kids and they must have rights, they must have defenders, but nobody is stepping forward and saying that an eight year old girl or a seven year old boy must be defended and their rights must supercede the rights of those who offended them.

Since the beginning of time the idea has been of a man and a woman consummating marriage. Time does not change the meaning of that nor will it ever change the meaning. When I represent a constituency that is 90% in agreement with that, I am not about to change it. One can call it a red herring if one likes. The NDP is wrong on these issues and so is anybody else who wants to defend it.

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

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are waiting for the statistic, which I doubt Canadians ever received and which the gun registry already has, on how many criminal activities, in which firearms were used, was the firearm a registered firearm.

The other thing is, as was mentioned this morning, if I have registered guns and I move to a new location, I must then inform the gun registry of my change of address, otherwise it is completely out.

Finally, I do have an air rifle. What is the test for this criminal who has an air rifle that is used about three times a year? When was the last time a criminal offence was committed with an air rifle?