Alex Atamanenko

[PETITIONS, December 12th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, the last petition calls for the House of Commons to undertake a countrywide consultation to review the federal environmental assessment process.

[PETITIONS, December 12th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition calls on the House of Commons to adopt section 35(1) of the Fisheries Act and to keep it as it currently is to emphasize habitat protection.

[PETITIONS, December 12th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I have three petitions to present. The first petition has hundreds of signatures in support of my Bill C-322, which would prohibit the import or export of horses for slaughter for human consumption.

[Strengthening Military Justice in the Defence of Canada Act, December 6th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, as I mentioned in my speech, the idea of the bill is a good one. However, experience has shown over the last year that worthwhile amendments that were in Bill C-41 were not included in this bill.

As someone who does not sit on the defence committee, I look at this from my point of view, my experience and I ask myself what is going on. How serious is the government? How serious would it be look at those amendments if experience has shown the government has rejected them time after time in other committees?

[Strengthening Military Justice in the Defence of Canada Act, December 6th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for his service in the armed forces, which was certainly much longer than mine.

In preparation for second reading of the bill, a lot of thought has gone into it by those people, our critic and others, who have followed it very closely. In my opinion, we do not take lightly opposing a bill when we think something should happen to better it.

I will speak from my personal experience. On Bill S-11, we said to the government that we would support the bill. We said that we thought it was a good way of strengthening the Food Safety Act and that we would do what we could to make it better. At committee, we had 11 amendments, the Liberals had 4 and lo and behold all of these well-thought-out amendments were rejected, one after another.

That kind of precedence does not leave positive feelings in those of us on this side to bring a bill such as this to committee—

[Strengthening Military Justice in the Defence of Canada Act, December 6th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to be able to speak today and say a few words on Bill C-15.

As a former member of the Canadian armed forces, or the Royal Canadian Navy, my experience taught me, in the time I did spend, a lot of appreciation for the professionalism of our armed forces. I had the pleasure to serve at Canadian Forces Base Portage la Prairie. I had the thrill of going up in a Tutor jet, which my colleague understands very well. I went up only once. In the Royal Canadian Navy, I remember the professionalism when, many years ago, we were doing anti-submarine exercises. We always came out on top when it came to exercises with the U.S. Navy.

Many years after that, I went to Vladivostok in Russia as an interpreter with the Canadian Navy, the first western fleet to sail into Russia when it finally opened up the city. It was quite an experience. I saw the respect that the officers and men of the Russian navy had for the high degree of knowledge and skills of our armed forces.

I mention this because when I have a chance I speak on anything that touches on the military, in spite of the fact that at times some of us do not agree with the direction the military is going. Once people have been part of this family, as I call it, they want to make sure the current members receive the very best, whether or not we are talking about equipment, whether they agree with the mission or not, and certainly when the members come back as veterans.

We have seen some problems with people suffering from post-traumatic stress syndrome. We have seen problems with veterans' funerals. I just want to emphasize that we need to do the very best for them, and that also includes the justice system.

That brings me in a roundabout way to talking about this bill. The NDP believes that Bill C-15 is a step in the right direction to bringing the military justice system more in line with the civilian justice system.

However, it falls short on key issues when it comes to reforming the summary trial system, reforming the grievance system and strengthening the military complaints commission. I might add that amendments to that effect were brought into the last Parliament. For some reason they were not included in this particular bill.

In 2010, Bill C-41 was introduced in response to the 2003 Lamer report and the 2009 Senate committee report. It included the military justice provisions relating to sentencing reform, military judges and committees, summary trials, the court martial panel and the Canadian Forces Provost Marshal and certain provisions concerning the Military Police Complaints Commission.

In essence, Bill C-15 is similar to the version of Bill C-41 that came out of the Senate committee during the last Parliament. The amendments carried over include those respecting the composition of the court martial panel and security of tenure for military judges until their retirement.

However, I would say that other important amendments adopted at the committee stage at the end of the last parliamentary session were not included in Bill C-15. That includes the NDP's amendments concerning the authority of the Chief of Defence Staff in the grievance process, changes in the composition of the grievance board so that 60% of members are civilians and the provision that a person convicted of an offence at a summary trial should not be unfairly subjected to a criminal record.

Many important reforms are proposed in this bill. The NDP has long supported a necessary updating of the military justice system. The members of the Canadian Forces are held to extremely high standards of discipline and deserve a judicial system that is held to comparable standards.

However, as previously mentioned, the NDP will oppose the bill at second reading. This bill contains a number of deficiencies that we hope will be addressed in committee if the bill is passed at second reading.

As we have previously discussed here, and from what I have personally seen in other committees, the fact that a bill winds up in committee does not mean the Conservatives will adopt amendments. What then are the amendments that we would have liked to include in the bill before it was studied here in the House?

We say that the amendments in Bill C-15 do not adequately address the unfairness of summary trials. Currently, a conviction at a summary trial in the Canadian Forces results in a criminal record. Summary trials are held without the ability of the accused to consult counsel. There is no appeal and no transcript of the trial.

Bill C-15 would an exemption for a select number of offences. They carry a minor punishment, which is defined in the act, or a fine less than $500 to no longer result in a criminal record. This is one of the positive aspects of the bill, but it does not go far enough.

At committee stage in March of the previous year, NDP amendments to Bill C-41 were carried to expand this list of offences that could be considered minor and not worthy of a criminal record if the offence in question received a minor punishment. The amendment also extended the list of punishments that might be imposed by a tribunal without an offender incurring a criminal record, such as a severe reprimand, a reprimand, a fine equal up to one month basic pay or another minor punishment. This was a major step forward for summary trials. However, this amendment was not, for some reason, retained in Bill C-15, and we would like to see it included.

As far as serious offences and criminal records are concerned, the number is probably minor. However, a criminal record can make life after the military very difficult. Criminal records can make getting a job, renting an apartment or travelling very difficult. A lot of Canadians would be shocked to learn that the people who bravely serve our country can get a criminal record from a system that lacks the due process usually required in civilian criminal courts.

What we are asking is that people who serve our country in the military have the same access to a fair judicial system as people in civilian life have and that if they have certain reprimands, they do not result in a criminal record for the rest of their life.

[Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, December 5th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and to thank all those involved for the excellent research on social policy that it does.

Under the very capable leadership of editor, Ed Finn, each issue of the CCPA Monitor is filled with well researched and thought-provoking articles. For example, in the October issue, author John Jacobs explains how the proposed free trade agreement with Europe could potentially, in his words, “clamp Ontario in a straitjacket” by removing tariffs on goods and services, preventing buy local initiatives, threatening public services and constraining government purchasing decisions.

In last month's issue, Bruce Campbell outlined how Norway has been able to manage its oil wealth better than Canada.

In the same issue of the Monitor, Allan Gregg, a former Conservative strategist, accused the current government of waging a war on reason declaring that “it's time to gather the facts and fight back”.

I strongly urge my colleagues to read the CCPA Monitor and research papers. I thank all those at the CCPA for standing up for Canadian values.

[Agriculture and Agri-Food, November 27th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, B.C. apple growers reject any notion of a genetically engineered apple being introduced into their environment.

They are supported by a resolution of the Union of British Columbia Municipalities calling for legislation to ensure that B.C. remains a GE-free province in respect to all tree fruit products.

The introduction of the GE Arctic apple has the potential to destroy markets for both conventional and organic apple growers.

Will the minister support farmers and commit today to rejecting any application to introduce the Arctic apple into the environment?

[Petitions, November 26th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I have around 100 signatures from folks in Ontario who want to support Bill C-322, an act to amend the Health of Animals Act and the Meat Inspection Act, thus prohibiting the importation or exportation of horses for slaughter for human consumption, as well as horsemeat products for human consumption.

Horses are not raised primarily as food-processing animals and are often administered drugs that are strictly prohibited from being used at any time in all other food-producing animals destined for the human food supply.

[Canada Post Corporation, November 6th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, and then part of the profits of Canada Post goes to general revenue of the federal government.

Rural B.C. communities are experiencing a reduction in postal services. Beaverdell, a small community in my riding, will see the closure of its post office on Saturdays as of November 17. As a concerned citizen pointed out to me, “There are folk who live here but work in Kelowna or elsewhere who can only access their mail on Saturdays”. Our government should not allow Canada Post to trim its budget on the backs of rural communities.

Will the minister commit today to contact Canada Post and put a stop to these ruthless measures?