Annick Papillon

[Telecommunications, February 12th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, it is not just three-year contracts that pose a problem. Consumers are also upset about the locking of cellular telephones, exorbitant roaming charges and excessive service charges.

Even the chairman of the CRTC admitted that the market is dysfunctional and that the situation needs to be corrected. Because of the Conservatives' inaction, we are paying two to four times more for telephone services than in Europe or Asia.

When will the Conservatives protect the interests of the 27 million Canadians who own cellular telephones?

[Air Passengers’ Bill of Rights, February 7th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, as the deputy critic for consumer protection, I am very pleased to speak today about Bill C-459, which was introduced by the hon. member for Laval.

The Air Passengers' Bill of Rights proposes implementing a new regulation that will better protect the rights of air passengers when they are treated unfairly by airlines. In fact, Bill C-459 could protect Canadians from the time they purchase their plane ticket until they arrive at their destination.

To quickly summarize the provisions of Bill C-459, the new regulation would require air carriers to compensate passengers if their flight has been overbooked or delayed for a long time or if their luggage is lost. This bill is based on a European law that greatly reduces delays and problems with overbooking. The Air Passengers' Bill of Rights applies to all air carriers, including Canadian carriers that land on European soil. Why should Canadians be treated better in Europe than they are at home?

I have heard many stories about airline employees who bend over backwards to help passengers when their flights are delayed or cancelled, and I would even like to personally thank a number of Canadian airline companies for the outstanding service they provide every time I travel. Unfortunately, passengers continue to be the victims of the poor practices of certain air carriers.

Many of these stories are well known. Someone buys a plane ticket and, upon their arrival at the airport, they find out that their flight has been overbooked and that, unfortunately, it is already full. That person must then wait for hours for the next flight. Or, without any explanation, passengers are forced to wait for hours before they are able to board the plane and, because of that delay, they miss their connecting flights. Other passengers have boarded the plane, only to wait for an hour or longer without anything to eat or drink before the plane takes off. These situations are unacceptable, and it is time to change the regulations in order to ensure that passengers' patience is not pushed beyond the limit unnecessarily.

Last December, the NDP questioned the Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities to find out whether the government would agree to a law regarding the rights of air passengers. The minister's response focused on aspects that are beyond air carriers' control. This is what he said:

...it is nice to hear that the NDP has a solution for snowstorms, ice storms and all other unforeseen circumstances at airports.

I think that the Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities should take the time to carefully read Bill C-459. The minister is implying that the problem with this bill is that it makes airlines responsible for weather-related cancellations and delays. He will be happy to hear that this bill copies verbatim the exemption included in European legislation that exonerates airlines in extraordinary circumstances. This exemption has been used successfully in Europe for many years.

The Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities implied that Bill C-459 would make airlines responsible for weather-related cancellations and delays, but that is untrue. Nothing could be further from the truth. Bill C-459 does not require airlines to compensate passengers whose flights are delayed or cancelled because of the weather. A flight that was cancelled because of the weather is considered an extraordinary circumstance, and as I already explained, this is set out in the bill introduced by my colleague from Laval. He wisely thought of everything.

The European Union commissioned a study two years after it implemented its legislation. I am sure my colleagues on the other side would love to hear the results of this study. The study concluded that European airlines extensively used the extraordinary circumstances argument to avoid compensating passengers. However, all of the stakeholders agreed that the extraordinary circumstances exemption nevertheless struck a good balance between a passenger's right to compensation and fairness to the airlines.

Under Bill C-459, all that an air carrier is required to do in a case of cancellation due to weather is: reimburse or reroute each passenger, which is reasonable; offer meals and refreshments in relation to the waiting time, nothing wrong with that; and provide hotel accommodation in cases where a stay of one or more nights is required. There is nothing here that is unreasonable for an air carrier to do.

That said, it is important to recognize that many airlines already offer passengers good compensation. The purpose of this bill is not to attack the airlines, but rather to level the playing field for carriers and penalize only those companies that try to fleece customers in order to increase their profits. That is the difference.

Companies that follow the regulations will not have to pay. However, those that make a profit at the expense of passengers will have to compensate travellers for their mismanagement. It is as simple as that.

Why should customers not expect better service? Why should passengers not be informed of flight changes, delays and cancellations under penalty to the airlines? Why should the new rules not be posted at the airline counter to inform customers of their rights and the process to file for compensation? Why should the public not expect all-in-one pricing so they know the total cost of the flight before they click the “buy” button?

These are simple, obvious measures. There is no doubt that this is a good bill. I invite all of my colleagues in the House to vote in favour of Bill C-459.

[Air Passengers’ Bill of Rights, February 7th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, first of all, I would like to thank my colleague from Laval, who provided such a good explanation of this practical initiative that will help consumers. As the deputy critic for consumer protection, I am delighted with this initiative.

I think this is a simple initiative, and sometimes it is the simple things that make a difference. All members of the House have probably been in similar situations. They have probably all experienced delays or paid too much.

As my colleague from Laval explained so well, many companies already offer some compensation to passengers. Passing this bill will make this a common practice for all airlines.

I would like my colleague to talk more about the possibility of having an international standard.

[Consumer Protection, February 7th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, while the Conservatives are doing nothing to protect Canadian consumers, another large corporation has decided to start charging additional fees for paper billing. Now you have to pay in order to pay. Rogers just informed its customers that they will be charged $2 for every paper bill if they do not switch to online billing. Contrary to what the government says, the broadband program will in no way change anything for low-income individuals or for seniors.

When will this government really protect consumers?

[Search and Rescue, January 30th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservative association in Lévis—Bellechasse, the riding of the Minister of Veterans Affairs, passed a resolution calling on the government to cancel the closure of the Quebec City marine rescue sub-centre. Even Conservative supporters in Quebec City support the NDP on this issue.

The resolution, which was passed locally and regionally, was rejected at the last Conservative convention without any consideration by Conservative members from Quebec. Once again, there is division in the Conservative ranks.

Why does the member for Lévis—Bellechasse refuse to defend the interests of the Quebec City region?

[Citizenship Act, January 29th, 2013]

Mr. Speaker, I am speaking today about Bill C-425, which introduces new grounds for granting or revoking Canadian citizenship.

Under the Citizenship Act, Bill C-425 would, under certain conditions, allow the immigration minister to reduce from three years to two the required years of residence to grant citizenship to members of the Canadian Armed Forces who are permanent residents.

In addition, under this bill, an individual would be deemed to have made an application for renunciation of their Canadian citizenship if they engaged in an act of war against the Canadian Armed Forces.

The NDP is in favour of expediting the process of granting Canadian citizenship to reward the dedication of permanent residents who serve in the Canadian Armed Forces. We also want the Canadian Armed Forces to reflect Canada's diversity. However, in terms of the specifics set out in Bill C-425, there are currently very few situations in which a permanent resident would be able to enlist in the Canadian Armed Forces.

If Canada wishes to recognize the extraordinary contributions of future citizens, why not offer this same advantage to new Canadians who make remarkable contributions to Canadian society in other sectors, and not just through military service?

While Bill C-425 is meant to reduce the timeframe required to obtain citizenship for certain permanent residents, the NDP believes that the government also needs to work on reducing the exceptionally long wait times for the processing of all citizenship applications. I think it is important to point out that the sweeping changes the Conservatives have made to the Canadian immigration system in recent years have not made it any more efficient or fair.

According to Citizenship and Immigration Canada, the processing time for citizenship applications is nearly two years. Furthermore, the self-described “forgotten ones of Buffalo”, whom I saw at lunch time, actually, were on Parliament Hill today to continue to pressure the government. These immigrants, many of whom live in Quebec City, are still waiting for the federal government to settle their status. So what happened?

The Canadian visa office in Buffalo, where their applications were being processed, suddenly closed up shop in the wake of the Conservative government's budget cuts. Many of them submitted their applications two or three years ago and are still waiting to hear from Citizenship and Immigration, which is giving very little information about how long it may take to process their files. The upshot is that over 10,000 immigrants are still waiting for their application for permanent residence to be processed, and meanwhile, they are left completely in limbo.

Unfortunately, it is just the tip of the iceberg: as of last June, 285,000 people were waiting for their applications to be processed by Citizenship and Immigration Canada officials. At the same time, the department was cut by 5.3% as a result of the last federal budget. Even though waiting periods continue to grow, 285 positions were eliminated across the country.

There is a significant backlog in more than just citizenship applications. According to an article that appeared in Le Droit in November 2012, more than one million people who want to come to Canada are still waiting for a decision on their immigration file. It seems that this backlog will not be cleared before 2017, according to a report released last winter by the House of Commons Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration.

This same report recommended that Citizenship and Immigration Canada modernize several of its immigration practices as soon as possible. According to information obtained by Radio-Canada, Citizenship and Immigration Canada dismissed 75 employees at its Montreal call centre, where the department's telephone services for clients across the country are centralized.

Unfortunately, according to the same information obtained by Radio-Canada, officers could only answer 9% of the 30,000 calls received daily. David Chalk, chair of the Quebec association of immigration lawyers, says he is worried about this situation.

Mr. Chalk got his lawyer colleagues in Canada to phone the call centre in Montreal. They had to wait an average of four hours to speak to an agent. Is this normal? Citizenship and Immigration Canada defended itself by saying that it was possible to file a complaint about the abnormally long wait time. However, to get in touch with the complaints department, you have to go through the call centre.

In my Quebec City riding office, I often receive calls from claimants in distress who do not understand why the process is taking so long. These immigrants contribute to Canadian society. Most of them are permanent residents and are already participating in society. They sometimes have children who are Canadian citizens. Unfortunately, on this government's watch—

[Gender Parity, December 12th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, today I would like to bring attention to the many women who are fighting to break the glass ceiling that too often prevents competent women from reaching senior positions within professional hierarchies.

The Women On Board - Femmes Au Conseil directory helps boards of directors and recruitment agencies find and contact highly qualified candidates.

All candidates are seasoned board members who have sat on boards of various types of companies, committees, organizations and non-profits.

This program is definitely a positive step towards enabling accomplished women to contribute their expertise to the country's largest boards of directors.

A directory is set to be released in Montreal, and Quebec City can count on my support for a similar endeavour to help the YWCA, the Chambre de commerce et d'industrie de Québec and its Actions, Femmes et Leadership committee.

I hope that all women will accept the promotions they are offered, because they are well deserved.

[Search and Rescue, November 22nd, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, the decision to close the maritime search and rescue centre in Quebec City is illogical and dangerous for pleasure craft operators and commercial navigation.

The Conservatives decided that the language of work of the employees who will be transferred to Halifax will be English only, but that does not work. Francophone employees will have to translate all their communications, which will double their workload. And then, the Conservatives are surprised that they cannot find anyone to fill these positions.

Will the Conservatives review their plan and keep search and rescue services in Quebec City instead of moving them to Halifax and Trenton?

[Canada-Panama Economic Growth and Prosperity Act, November 7th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, first of all, I thank my distinguished colleague who also sits on the Standing Committee on International Trade. He was able to bring in all of these comments from experts, from people who are familiar with the situation. When tax experts are telling us to be careful with Panama, that is something we need to take seriously.

We would like this government to take the necessary precautions this time with this free trade agreement. I would like this government to listen to us and make an attempt to sign an information agreement so that there is more transparency.

[Canada-Panama Economic Growth and Prosperity Act, November 7th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, we have some questions.

What message does that send? It sends a strange message that we respect certain economic partners and not others. When a country is known for tax evasion, we have every reason to be asking questions. Are we making the right choices? Are we making the right decisions in negotiating with this country?

As I said earlier, if the Conservatives were at least open to the idea of signing an initial tax evasion information exchange agreement, the government would prove that it does not agree to any old conditions when doing business with other countries. Right now, we get the impression that it does not care and that all it wants is to sign as many free trade agreements as possible, with any country. It gives the impression that the countries do not matter, as long as we are signing agreements. That is questionable.