Bob Rae

[Public Safety, December 6th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, it is not often that I get to tell the Prime Minister that I appreciate his response. I think this represents a small step forward in the discussions.

I hope he will also consider the possibility of discussing violence against women. Once again, what can we do to ensure that the viewpoints of victims in these situations will be considered during the committee meetings held to come up with advice for the Attorney General?

[Public Safety, December 6th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I wonder if the Prime Minister could perhaps tell us if he would now consider, in light of the recommendations that have come out of this particular committee, adding the chiefs of police to the group of people who will be on the committee, as well as those who are engaged in combatting domestic violence and those who are dealing with suicide prevention.

Would the Prime Minister agree that the perspective of those groups might be helpful in reaching a more balanced approach than the one we appear to have?

[Violence Against Women, December 6th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, today, Canadians remember the terrible tragedy at the École Polytechnique in Montreal.

Our first thoughts must always be for the victims of this violence and their families, young women who were cut down in the prime of life with their lives before them, families and loved ones to this day remembering and grieving losses which are truly senseless. All of us need to reach out to the families whose hearts will never mend and for whom closure is never really there.

Beyond our memory and our grief must lie a determination to act, to do what we can to reduce violence and to limit its impact. We may differ in the House as to the most effective ways to achieve that goal but let us all agree at least on the objectives: to save lives and to end violence.

There are always reasons and excuses for arguments, but never for violence. The young women who were killed lost their lives because of a violent man with a semi-automatic weapon. Tragically, they were not the only ones and tragically, they will not be the last ones.

We remember and we are doing something about it.

[Questions Passed as Orders for Returns, December 6th, 2012]

With regard to the Canada Employment Insurance Financing Board: (a) what are the details of all costs associated with its establishment, operation and oversight, broken down by fiscal year, for each fiscal year since its establishment; and (b) what are the anticipated costs of the dissolution of the Board?

[POINTS OF ORDER, December 6th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I do not quite know when the appropriate moment would be to say something on this subject, but it is a little hard for us to carry on the normal business of the House without referring to the somewhat unusual transaction that took place on the floor of the House yesterday. I wonder if those who were involved in it would care to perhaps indicate their regret at what took place and the fact that we need to continue for the next several days in the House on the basis of a greater degree, perhaps, of civility and willingness to engage in public discourse without insulting each other.

[Points of Order, December 5th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I am sure all of us can agree that this issue is at least as important as the question of where the Minister of State for Small Business left his car keys. We have to recognize there are issues of form and there are issues of substance.

On a matter of form, there is no dispute or no debate with respect to the overall fact that none of the votes that were held last night were won by the members on this side, including members of our party. It is difficult to believe that anyone thinks that whether or not the Minister of Finance happened to be in his chair or not, the result of that vote would have been any different in any way shape or form.

On the other hand, there is a substantive issue with respect to how the Journals were changed, which is something we have to clear up. However, on a matter of substance, either the House can vote again on the same issue and reach the same conclusion and the same result, otherwise let us get on with the debate on third reading.

[Aboriginal Affairs, December 5th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, the vast majority of negotiations between the federal government and Canada's aboriginal peoples have lasted over 11 years. In some cases, they have lasted over 20 years. To date, the government has not resolved the differences of opinion or found effective and fair solutions. That is why we are seeing conditions of inequality in aboriginal communities, which are not the same in any other country or any other part of Canada.

Why does the government not understand that it must consult—

[Aboriginal Affairs, December 5th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, that is quite nonsensical because in the northern gateway situation, in fact the government has delegated to the National Energy Board the responsibility to carry out the consultation. What this effectively means is that the first nations in Alberta and British Columbia are not being given the respect that they need and deserve. It is respect and dignity for which people are looking and it is respect and dignity that leaves people demonstrating outside, instead of being consulted by the Crown and by the federal Government of Canada.

Why is the federal government not leading in this area?

[Aboriginal Affairs, December 5th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, in a recent speech, the Senior Executive Vice-President and Vice Chairman of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Jim Prentice, said that he thought the duty to consult on the part of the Crown with the first nations of Canada was a fundamental obligation that applied to the Government of Canada and could not, in fact, be subcontracted to any other agency and that the failure of the Government of Canada to recognize this threatened economic development right across northern Canada.

Would the Prime Minister care to comment on that statement?

[Health, December 4th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, earlier today, my colleagues had a press conference with the chiefs from Northern Ontario, who talked once again about the crisis with respect to OxyContin and the abuse of prescription drugs in their communities. There has been widespread interest in this question. Fully over 80% of all the prescriptions for painkillers in the world are given out to North Americans. We have a serious issue in our country with respect to this. I wonder why the minister would not delay the market sale of OxyContin by not issuing a drug ID number, which she has the full power to? Will she tell us why she will not meet with the chiefs at a time when she is prepared to—