Guy Arseneault

[Copyright Act, March 13th, 1997]

Madam Speaker, has Motion No. 49 in Group No. 1 been voted on?

[Copyright Act, March 13th, 1997]

Madam Speaker, I rise on a point of order. In the spirit of co-operation and in the spirit of the rules and regulations of the House the hon. member has some flexibility. However, to openly get into a debate and criticize other hon. members of the House with respect to the process I do not believe is fair. I do not think that is called for at report stage. It is more of a political debate and I think we should address ourselves to what is on the table.

[Copyright Act, March 13th, 1997]

moved:

Motion No. 49

That Bill C-32, in Clause 45, be amended by replacing, in the English version, line 6 on page 72 with the following:

"royalties, in respect of each of the first three"

Madam Speaker, I do not plan to debate this grouping at any length because it mostly involves technical amendments by the government with regard to technical language and whether the French and English versions correspond.

I have a few remarks to make about the bill in general. Bill C-32 has gathered some publicity in the hearings and in public. The government the bill is balanced. It takes into consideration the creators and the users. It went before committee where there were many witnesses. We received almost 200 briefs. I am sure members of the committee received an equal number of letters touching on the bill.

I take this opportunity to single out the role of the committee in this regard. Considering the way the bill was handled members of all parties exhibited consistency in the committee hearings. The members showed up consistently, asked quality questions, listened to the witnesses and dealt with some issues. There was a lot of movement from the beginning of the hearings to the end. I congratulate members from all parties.

All the amendments in Group No. 1 are technical amendments. Some are consequential and result from changes made by the standing committee. We made many amendments and might have missed a little word here or there along the way. Other amendments are required to maintain consistency between the English and the French texts.

I will not discuss these amendments in detail. These amendments concern technicalities. I can assure you that the government support these amendments, and I believe that, if opposition members take a close look at them, they will see that these are only technical amendments.

[Copyright Act, March 13th, 1997]

Madam Speaker, before giving consent, I understand the hon. member for Edmonton-Strathcona is ill. We accept that point. I hope the same spirit of co-operation the government is showing will prevail. We would not be in favour of many of those amendments and by not agreeing to the consent it would be a very easy way of disposing of them.

For the sake of debate and under the circumstances we would agree. We hope the same consideration and co-operation will be shown during the debate and that there will not be any attempt to delay the bill unduly today.

[Copyright Act, March 13th, 1997]

moved:

Motion No. 1

That Bill C-32, in Clause 1, be amended by replacing, in the English version, lines 23 to 25 on page 2 with the following:

"wise include a copy made with the consent of the owner of the copyright in the country where the copy was made;"

Motion No. 8

That Bill C-32, in Clause 18, be amended by replacing, in the English version, line 5 on page 30 with the following:

"with motive of gain."

Motion No. 9

That Bill C-32, in Clause 18, be amended by replacing, in the English version, lines 25 and 26 on page 33 with the following:

"shall, in addition, mark the copy in the manner prescribed by"

Motion No. 10

That Bill C-32, in Clause 18, be amended by replacing lines 30 and 31 on page 35 with the following:

"if the newspaper or periodical was published more than one year before the copy is made."

Motion No. 11

That Bill C-32, in Clause 18, be amended by replacing, in the English version, lines 10 and 11 on page 36 with the following:

"who is one of its patrons, but the copy given to the patron must not be in digital form."

Motion No. 39

That Bill C-32, in Clause 19, be amended by replacing, in the French version, lines 18 to 21 on page 42 with the following:

"droit d'auteur le fait pour une personne agissant à la demande d'une personne ayant une déficience perceptuelle, ou pour un organisme sans but lucratif agissant dans l'intérêt de cette dernière, de se livrer à l'une des activités suivantes:"

Motion No. 42

That Bill C-32, in Clause 20, be amended by replacing line 28 on page 53 with the following:

"ferred to in section 67 may only make"

Motion No. 43

That Bill C-32, in Clause 20, be amended by replacing, in the English version, a ) lines 28 and 29 on page 54 with the following:

"has reproduced the work, a maximum" b ) line 34 on page 54 with the following: a ) under any agreement entered into with''

Motion No. 46

That Bill C-32, in Clause 45, be amended by replacing line 23 on page 69 with the following:

"in section 67 shall, on or before the"

[The Budget, February 20th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, on a point of order, the hon. member said we are using money to buy votes. First of all, that is illegal. Second, that is not allowed in the Chamber. Mr. Speaker, I would ask you to ask him to withdraw immediately.

[Public Safety Officers Compensation Fund, February 12th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, investing in our young people is an investment in Canada's future. The youth employment strategy announced today by the Minister of Human Resources Development provides us with the tools we need to help thousands of young Canadians enter today's complex and demanding labour market.

The strategy aims to reach more young Canadians and give them better access to the information services and resources they need to acquire the skills and experience for today's workforce. The strategy builds on what works, strengthening existing programs that help young Canadians bridge the gap between school and work.

For example, Youth Service Canada and Youth Internship Canada will focus on the needs of youth who face serious disadvantages entering the job market. Student Summer Job Action will receive increased funding in 1997 to help more than 60,000 young people get career related summer jobs.

The strategy will also give participants work experience in sectors that could provide long term employment. In partnership with the private sector, non profit agencies and community organizations, new internships will be created for the more than 110,000 young people in sectors like science and technology, the environment, international trade and international development.

Internship programs for the first nations and for the Inuit will be given new resources to enable young native people living on the reserve and in northern communities to acquire skills and work experience.

Young people must have access to the information they need to find job opportunities. We have set up centralized services available on the Internet and by calling 1-800-935-5555, in publications and at youth information fairs.

The youth employment strategy consolidates and builds-

[Public Safety Officers Compensation Fund, February 12th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, I know that time is running out but I would like to also lend my support to the motion of the hon. member today.

To all of the firefighters, police officers and peace officers who have active duty in my region of Restigouche-Chaleur and the region of the Madawaska, I would like to lend my support. I would like to reiterate why the fund is being proposed.

Canadians are well aware of the daily risks that face our police and firefighters as they serve our emergency needs. When one of them loses their life in the line of duty, all of us mourn their loss. This fund will be a tangible way for Canadians and parliamentarians to honour their courageous service and assist their love ones in their time of need.

Likewise, like other members, I do not foresee that this would be a burden on the taxpayer. This would be a voluntary fund that would be set up and administered outside of government. It would be voluntary and it would not be a cost to the taxpayer.

I would also like to lend my support to this motion. The time has come.

[Cbc North, February 4th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, I would first like to congratulate the member on her initiative, because I think we both believe in the value and importance of CBC northern services and we are both concerned that Canadians in remote and isolated communities in the north continue to receive the CBC television and radio services that link them to each other and to their neighbours to the south.

CBC North has a mandate to serve all Canadians living in the north, regardless of their language, their culture and their location. The northern cultural landscape is one of great wealth. The national and regional programs of CBC North bring the various peoples of northern Canada together.

The CBC northern service shares the Corporation's public mandate, which is to reflect Canada and its regions to national and regional audiences. CBC North's mission statement, drafted by its employees, provides for serving the peoples of the north by helping them understand each other and by enabling them to communicate with each other and the rest of the country.

At the moment, CBC North produces 220 hours of radio programming a week in English, French and 8 native languages. This programming is a combination of local programs and the national programs of CBC radio. CBC North's radio service had an operating budget of $9.7 million in 1995-96.

The CBC delivers its northern television service with two and a half hours of northern produced programming that is combined with CBC's national service programming. It produces four and a half hour programs over 26 weeks in Cree, Inuktitut, three Dene languages and English. It reaches 96 communities in the north with over 100 hours of television programming per week. That is, by any measure, a very impressive operation.

The budget for CBC's northern television service was $3.3 million in 1995-96. We have heard many members speak today with regard to CBC North. We have to recognize the reality of this. We must get our fiscal house in order and that means reductions in government expenditures throughout. The budget that was announced in February 1996 gave the CBC the time necessary to plan responsibly and make the appropriate decisions to manage its operations, including CBC North, in light of the new fiscal targets.

The CBC is an independent crown agency and Parliament must respect that relationship. Therefore, it would be inappropriate for the government to intervene in CBC's internal decision making process concerning budget allocations, including the budget for CBC North. These are tough decisions but the government has every confidence that CBC's board of directors and senior management will manage its resources efficiently and will treat its people and the regions fairly.

We do not yet know all the details of the announced measures to meet the budget reductions and what it means specifically for CBC North. However, I would like to assure the hon. member that CBC's obligations under the Broadcasting Act "to reflect Canada and its regions to national and regional audiences" will be fulfilled. As part of the service of our national public broadcaster, CBC North ensures that the interests of Canadians living in the farthest regions of Canada are served. This is CBC's mandate and it will not change.

Fundamental and unprecedented changes face the people of the north. In 1999, two new territories will be created through the division of the Northwest Territories. Land claim settlements are creating aboriginal governments equal in scale and resources to public governments. Economic development is poised to unfold in many areas of the north which will expand communities and build new ones. Meeting this change is a small population with a history of survival under harsh conditions.

Now, more than ever, northern Canadians need to be joined together through their public broadcasting system to share their stories and to see and to hear themselves and other Canadians. Cable and in the near future direct to home satellite and other wireless services are breaking down the north's media isolation but these new communication bridges to the north are delivering signals from the south, many of which are American.

On the other hand, the small population base in most centres make it difficult for Canadian private television services to operate economically. There are only two private radio stations serving northern centres.

There are great opportunities for broadcasting in the North, and CBC North is well placed to take advantage of them, but the CBC needs to use new technologies if it is to really take advantage of those opportunities.

Digital conversion in the North is inevitable, given the anticipated conversion of the radio and television broadcasting industry as a whole. Digitization involves a rather high initial cost for broadcasters, but it offers them the unique opportunity to consolidate their operations and to realize greater economies of scale. Conversion to digital will also make it possible to provide superior signal quality.

The broadcasting distribution infrastructure is undergoing fundamental change throughout North America and, indeed, throughout the world. Once we have gone digital, there will be opportunities for all broadcasters in the north, public and private, to share infrastructure costs and achieve greater efficiencies in distribution.

Digitization provides a common technical platform that will encourage a network of networks between CBC North, TVNC, private radio and television broadcasters in the north. Growing from the humblest of beginnings as radio stations transferred from the military, CBC North has built a pan-northern service across four million square kilometres of Canada. In the future CBC North would be a vital link in Canada's northern information highway.

As mentioned earlier by the hon. secretary of state, partnerships will be increasingly important in this complex world where we must do more with less. In particular, partnerships will be critical for building the bridges that will construct our information highway for the millennium and beyond. As a service of our national public broadcaster, CBC North will be an important partner in helping to build the north's information highway.

I thank the hon. member for bringing to our attention this very important subject today.

[National Organ Donor Day Act, December 12th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, last March in response to commercial water lot operators' concerns that insufficient consultation had occurred regarding the new rates, the Rideau and Trent-Severn canals were instructed by the Minister of Canadian Heritage to undertake further consultations with commercial operators.

Over the summer, canal staff gathered input on the proposal from operators by visiting all known commercial operations. The minister stated at that time that revised rates would be made public only after those consultations.

The minister shares the member's concerns. That is why discussion groups were formed for each canal. Their mandate was to determine fair rental rates that will allow canals to reach their revenue objectives.

Staff gathered comments from all known operators over the summer.

The groups proposed and recommended a rental structure that would set new rental rates for primary water lots at twice the old formula plus a base fee of $150 annually. The rental rate for secondary water lots would remain at the old water lot rate. The formula developed received general support throughout the business community.

The application of municipal property taxes to water lots on federal property became a very important issue, particularly on the Trent-Severn waterway. To assist in resolving a municipal taxation issue, canals staff have sought clarification from the appraisal branch of Ontario for a provincial interpretation of the Assessment Act with regard to commercial water lot licences on the canals.

Now that the consultations with the marine operators have been completed, it is the intent of the government to announce new commercial water lot rental rates effective April 1, 1997 in the very near future.