Anna Terrana

[Duke Of Connaught's Own Regiment, April 24th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, the British Columbia regiment, Duke of Connaught's Own, is headquartered in my riding of Vancouver East. The armoury is over 100 years old, is a municipal and provincial heritage building and houses a spectacular museum. The regiment is very proud of having been the recipient of several Victoria Crosses and having participated in both world wars.

At present the Duke of Connaught's Own Regiment is participating in peacemaking and peacekeeping missions and in training reservists and cadets. Over 100 cadets meet every week and find an alternative to cruising the often dangerous streets of downtown Vancouver.

Last week I had the privilege of participating in the St. Julien's banquet where I met very proud people who contributed a lot to our country. Among them was Col. John Toogood, the honorary colonel of the regiment, who retired after 59 years in the military.

On behalf of all of us, I would like to congratulate the Duke of Connaught's Own Regiment for the work it does, and Col. Toogood for a brilliant career. I salute them.

[Petitions, April 24th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, I have two sets of petitions which are signed by residents of

Vancouver East and of the lower mainland regarding the high rates charged on credit cards by banks and retailers.

The petitioners ask that Parliament enact Bill C-351 as introduced by the hon. member for Davenport which would limit the interest rate charged on consumer credit cards.

[Volunteerism, April 14th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, volunteerism is very important to all organizations involved in the arts, community work and multiculturalism.

Without volunteers, the work of these organizations would be far more complex and more difficult.

During the 20 years I have done volunteer work, I have met some wonderful people who were deeply involved in their role as volunteers.

This week is national volunteer week and in Canada we have much to celebrate. Not many countries have the luxury of counting on as large a component of volunteers who are skilled, knowledgeable, generous and professional as Canada has.

Today I pay tribute to all those Canadian volunteers I have met and worked with over the years, starting with the seniors of the Italian Cultural Centre in Vancouver who look after the grounds under the leadership of Mario Gabriele, a very generous man of 84 years of age. They do it with pride and love.

To all Canadian volunteers, thank you for your work, generosity and dedication.

[Cancer, April 10th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, cancer killed almost 60,000 Canadians in 1994. April is cancer prevention month, and many individuals and organizations are looking for funds to support cancer research and to find a cure to this disease which cruelly destroys too many human lives.

Today in Ottawa, there is a young boy from British Columbia. Mike Cuccione is 12 and very talented. In his young life, he has defeated Hodgkin's disease twice.

During his tribulations, Mike wrote five songs which he recorded on a CD. The disc was launched in November and Mike has raised $100,000 since then. The money will go to cancer research and to the B.C. Children's Hospital.

Mike recently won the Vancouver Leader of Tomorrow award and was a finalist in the Terry Fox award. Mike is here to meet the Prime Minister of Canada. His dream is to make a difference and, inspired by his songs, he never gives up hope, he never gives up faith, he never gives up love.

I would like to congratulate Mike and his marvellous family for his excellent work and successes.

[Canada Elections Act, April 10th, 1997]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-400, an act to amend the Canada Elections Act (registration of political parties).

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce a bill entitled an act to amend the Canada Elections Act. The intention of this bill is threefold. First, the bill amends the Canada Elections Act to allow registration of a political party by the Chief Electoral Officer when the party nominates candidates in at least 12 electoral districts throughout the country, down from the present requirement of 50 electoral districts.

Under the present act, the Chief Electoral Officer must deregister a party that does not meet the conditions set out in section 28(2) of the act.

Second, the bill removes the obligation placed on the chief agent of a political party to liquidate the assets of that party when it is deleted from the registry of political parties by the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada.

Finally, the bill lowers the amount required for deposit with the returning officer at the same time the nomination papers are filed.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed.)

[Standing Orders Of The House, April 8th, 1997]

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of this motion because I spoke earlier on the effect of private members' bills and the need to make them votable.

I believe that the role of a member of Parliament to represent his or her constituents can be reflected in a private member's bill. As members know, a private member's bill, no matter how short or uncomplicated, takes a lot of work and it is important that a member of Parliament be recognized for this work.

Changes have occurred in the House but we must move forward and be more innovative. I tabled two private members' bills. The first one took forever to be drawn. It was deemed non-votable but it was still important. It was a question of fairness. It addressed an amendment to the Elections Act which would make parties illegal if they did not slate 50 candidates in an election and asked the parties to liquidate all assets and disband.

The 75-year old Communist Party was deemed illegal and no longer exists. However, my private member's bill eventually collapsed with the adjournment of the House.

My second private member's bill was a lucky bill. I tabled it in June at 10 a.m. and at 1 p.m. on the same day my name was drawn. This is very unusual. It became votable and, with the assistance of all parties, it was sent to committee within 45 minutes of debate. It was later adopted by the government and became law. It was the staggering of hours across the country on election day.

I would like to conclude by saying that private members' bills are extremely important. They are one of the few tools for a member of Parliament and I feel they should all be considered votable and come to the House all in the name of fairness.

[Petitions, March 12th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, I have the pleasure of submitting a petition signed by over 100 residents of the greater Vancouver.

The petitioners ask Parliament to zero rate books, magazines and newspapers under the GST because education and literacy are critical to the development of our country.

[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, March 11th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, many Canadians are very concerned about the cuts at the CBC. The issue is a very emotional one. It is a question of unity, of one message from the Atlantic to the Pacific to the Arctic.

The CBC has been with us all our lives and has become a part of our existence.

In the last year I have held three town hall meetings on the CBC. The last two meetings, held in the last two months, were very well attended. During the meetings support for the CBC was expressed very strongly.

At the time of the last meeting Nigel Peck, a constituent, had collected over 23,000 signatures. I was informed that as soon as the signatures reach the 50,000 mark they will be delivered to me. Of these, almost 13,000 signatures have already been received. The petitioners ask that the cuts to the CBC be stopped and funding restored. The minister has listened and has restored $10 million.

The main concern is the cuts to regional programming. By cutting them, you silence the voice of Canadians outside of Ontario and Quebec.

[Petitions, March 3rd, 1997]

Madam Speaker, the third petition concerns literacy.

The petitioners request that all levels of government demonstrate their support for education and literacy by eliminating the sales tax on reading materials.

[Petitions, March 3rd, 1997]

Madam Speaker, I have three sets of petitions to present. Two of the petitions concern the state of the highways and the concern demonstrated by several people of British Columbia.

The first set of petitions asks that Parliament not increase the federal excise tax on gasoline and strongly consider reallocating its current revenues to rehabilitate Canada's crumbling national highways.

The second set of petitions calls upon Parliament to urge the federal government to join with provincial governments to make the national highway system upgrading possible.