Mary Clancy

[Constable Todd Baylis, June 22nd, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, on many occasions the minister of immigration has stated in this House and outside that he has absolutely no tolerance for people who abuse the system.

Amendments to the Immigration Act were brought in last week that deal with questions of criminality. Sometimes the figures as quoted by my hon. friend could be considered a little slewed, sometimes not. The difficulty here is that there are privacy considerations.

The minister has assured this House and I assure this House for him that an investigation is under way and that it will take all the proper measures necessary to ensure the safety of Canadians.

[Constable Todd Baylis, June 22nd, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, once again we would like to express our deepest personal sympathies to the family of the police officer who was killed in the line of duty.

The minister was in Toronto on Monday and he shared the deep sense of grief felt by the community in these terrible circumstances. He asked me to assure the House that senior officials are in the process of gathering all the facts but that at this point it would be inappropriate to comment further.

[St. Georges Anglican Church, June 15th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, St. Georges Anglican Church opened its door to Haligonians in 1800. The church was built by Edward, Duke of Kent, father of Queen Victoria, then the commander of the Halifax garrison. It was architecturally a perfect circle and for almost two centuries a unique landmark in our city.

In 1917 the church was seriously damaged in the Halifax explosion. It survived and in 1983 the Prince and Princess of Wales attended the rededication ceremony which stood in testimony to the devotion of those who undertook the task of restoring it.

In 1990 it was designated a national historic site.

Unfortunately two weeks ago this magnificent building was nearly ruined as a fire gutted its walls and destroyed a third of its structure. It is estimated that the total restoration cost will far exceed the $1 million in insurance.

To date congregation members have begun a nation-wide fundraising campaign to restore this historic landmark to its original beauty.

All Haligonians, all Nova Scotians and indeed all Canadians want to stand with them and hope that they will restore this great site.

[Department Of Citizenship And Immigration Act, June 13th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I understand and sympathize with the sentiment of the hon. member. He and I have had this discussion before on other matters.

One cannot legislate for individual cases such as Charles Ng. One has to legislate in the broad spectrum for all people. We cannot create a law that says this is what we will do here because we would be omniscient. We cannot anticipate what every situation will be.

We have to pass laws within the context of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, within the context of our criminal law and its precedents, and within the context of English common law and its belief in justice and due process. We have to do the very best we can within that context. The passage of law and the philosophy behind the criminal law, the immigration law, et cetera, is not entirely driven by financial exigency.

[Department Of Citizenship And Immigration Act, June 13th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for Scarborough West, my colleague both as a member of the House and as a member of the bar. Of course the member is absolutely right. The forthcoming legislation will respect all the principles of due process.

If the hon. member for Wild Rose is suggesting that we would be saving money-heaven forbid that I should anticipate the hon. member's theories-the hon. member for Scarborough is absolutely right that we would be opening ridiculous floodgates for people who would come here and think they could do pretty much as they please: walk into any place in Canada and rob a bank and the only sanction would be deportation to the country of origin because there is no real process for these people to be tried, convicted and punished elsewhere.

The point we are concerned about is ensuring at the end of the process that these people do not abuse the immigration and citizenship system in our country.

[Department Of Citizenship And Immigration Act, June 13th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for Wild rose for his intervention and his questions. I might add that we too are delighted that he is here both as an immigrant and as an MP and I hope that at a future time the hon. member as an immigrant and as a member of Parliament will stand in this House and talk about his own success story as a new Canadian and the success stories of many other new Canadians as well.

As the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration frequently says, unfortunately it is too often the planes that crash that get coverage and get notice even here in this House as opposed to the planes that land. I look forward to the hon. member's intervention in that area.

With regard to his comments about criminals and deportation, certainly the hon. member should know that the minister has said frequently, on more than one occasion both in the House and outside, that he has zero tolerance for abusers of the system, for people who commit crimes in this country or commit certain acts that were they within this country would be considered

crimes. We do not want to see or tolerate that kind of activity within our policy levels.

I can assure the hon. member that the minister has promised legislation addressing these concerns will be forthcoming very soon in the House.

[Department Of Citizenship And Immigration Act, June 13th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I believe I have three minutes but I would like to wind up, particularly since hon. members of the third party were so anxious to hear more of my speech before we broke for Question Period. I did not want to disappoint them.

In conclusion, this bill is, as was stated by the minister and by others earlier, basically a housekeeping bill but it is a very important bill. It sets up the Department of Citizenship and Immigration as a department standing on its own, not in the realm of public security, but in the realm of nation building.

We are here in this government to fulfil our red book promises. We believe that a great way to fulfil those promises is through the method of immigration. We know that setting up this department in the manner to which the minister has alluded and in the manner the legislation sets up will be a good thing for Canada. We are in the business of building this nation to make it as strong and united from coast, to coast, to coast as we can.

I support this bill with great hopes for the future of our great country.

[Petitions, June 13th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, I rise, pursuant to Standing Order 36, to present two petitions brought forward by constituents in the riding of York South-Weston that asks the Parliament of Canada to amend the laws of Canada to prohibit the importation, distribution, sale and manufacture of killer

cards in law and to advise producers of killer cards that their products, if destined for Canada, will be seized and destroyed.

(Questions answered orally are indicated by an asterisk.)

[Immigration, June 13th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member knows, the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration has frequently stated his opposition and his deep concern over situations like this.

The situation is ongoing right now and under investigation. There will be, as the minister has promised, further legislation coming into this House.

[Immigration, June 13th, 1994]

Mr. Speaker, we have all been horrified by the atrocities and the recent reports of these atrocities in Rwanda.

As you know, Mr. Speaker, I am unable to go into the specifics of this case because of the ongoing investigation. I want to assure this House that the serious allegations against this individual are being investigated by immigration officials.

The situation in Rwanda being what it is at this moment, it is very difficult to corroborate the allegations that have been made. The individual in question also has to be given an opportunity to explain his case.