House of Commons photoLost his last election, in 2019, with 8% of the vote.
PETITIONS December 12th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, I have a petition today from Winnipeg. Thousands of these continue to pour in. The petitioners are urging the government to reconsider and restore funding to the Experimental Lakes Area, which is an important source of research on the ecosystem of lakes.
Aboriginal Affairs December 12th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, the first nations of northwestern Ontario are concerned that their rights have been trampled by Bill C-45, the government's omnibus budget bill. Concerns include leasing of reserve land, on-reserve voting rights and scrapping the Navigable Waters Protection Act, which reduced protection of millions of our lakes and rivers to less than 200. No longer protected are northwestern Ontario rivers like the Kaministiquia, or the Nipigon River, home of the largest speckled trout in the world.
Chiefs point out the Prime Minister promised that his government would never approve unilateral changes to the Indian Act. They are right. The government has not adequately consulted with first nations. However, neither has the Prime Minister consulted with scientists, academics, small businesses, Canadian workers, NGOs, provincial premiers, or Parliament, including his own backbenchers, so first nations chiefs are in good company.
The PM does seem to consult frequently and widely with CEOs of banks, foreign oil companies and dictators of communist countries.
Increasing Offenders' Accountability for Victims Act December 11th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, I have been concerned for quite a while that even when there is legislation that most of us agree with, like this—all of us want to see adequate protection and, if necessary, compensation for victims—the members of the government virtually never vote for any amendments to any of their legislation. They apparently feel that they have it perfect. The hon. member for Saanich—Gulf Islands may want to add to my comment that I hope this is one time that they will consider a small amendment to an important piece of legislation to prevent a big error and to improve the legislation.
Increasing Offenders' Accountability for Victims Act December 11th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, as is often the case, the hon. member for Saanich—Gulf Islands has an unusual ability to integrate details that many of us miss within a much broader context of social and legal implications. I learned a lot from what she just said. It concerns me as well.
I would like her to take this a bit broader and talk not about the impact of victims within prison walls but about their families and what implications there might be for actually increasing the cost to society in a variety of ways.
Supplementary Estimates (B), 2012-13 December 10th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, Thunder Bay—Superior North votes no.
Supplementary Estimates (B), 2012-13 December 10th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, Thunder Bay—Superior North agrees to apply and votes no.
Supplementary Estimates (B), 2012-13 December 10th, 2012
Thunder Bay—Superior North will vote against, Mr. Speaker.
Regional Economic Development December 7th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, the budget slashes critical services in northwestern Ontario and throughout rural Canada. Service Canada's Thunder Bay EI staff were laid off, the citizenship and immigration office closed, the local Canada Revenue Agency service closed, Veterans Affairs is closing, the Coast Guard communication station is closing and grain inspections have been slashed.
When will Conservatives start helping northern Ontarians instead of making them fly to Toronto for services?
The Economy December 6th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, the benefits the member is talking about must be going to some of his large multinational oil companies. His economic plan is cutting the front-line services that my constituents need in order to pay for billions in wasteful corporate tax cuts, which do not create jobs here in Canada.
In my riding, seniors are being told to go online to receive services. Small businesses have to wait many hours on 1-800 lines to get simple questions answered. Veterans Affairs is being slashed, impacting the support our veterans need and that they deserve. Our Citizenship and Immigration office in Thunder Bay is now closed. Service Canada will lose staff that handle EI in Thunder Bay. Our Veterans Affairs office will close. Our Coast Guard communications station is closing under the new budget. CRA will close our service counter. The Grain Commission is seeing the loss of 40 Thunder Bay jobs and no inward inspections of grain.
Is this good management?
The Economy December 6th, 2012
Mr. Speaker, there are big problems with the Conservative government's economic plan. The government has given us the largest trade deficit in Canadian history and the largest budget deficit in Canadian history. It has stalled economic growth, stalled unemployment to way over 7%, with youth unemployment double that, and now the Communist Chinese are allowed to control our key resources.
The government is heading Canada back down the road to economic colonialism where we are the colony and the empire builders are speculation investors in multinational corporations, some of them controlled by Communist China.
The Conservatives are turning the clock back so that we are merely a source of raw materials to build value-added wealth and jobs in other countries. Some plan. We continue to be hewers of wood, drawers of water and miners of raw materials like potash, aluminum, diamonds, nickel, platinum, gold and hydrocarbons, but more and more the shots are called abroad. In the energy industry, over 40% of oil production is foreign owned and growing. Natural gas is at 46% and growing and foreign ownership of the top 20 energy companies is 50% and growing.
Some are saying that is great and others are asking why we are not optimizing and maximizing our economic and social benefits through creativity, value-added industries and real leadership that stands up for Canadian jobs, our long-term economic interests and Canadian autonomy over our natural resources.
Let us hear what some noted Canadians think. Jock Finlayson of the Business Council of British Columbia said:
Most economists would argue that at least a portion of non-renewable resource revenues should be saved. Here, Canada's record can only be described as lamentable.
“Since we cannot be a low-cost producer, we should move up the value chain”, said Kevin Lynch of BMO Financial Group.
The Canadian International Council said:
Canada is increasingly dependent on the export of raw and semi-processed materials, trading low-value-added commodities for high-value-added technology.... [We must] look beyond China so we do not repeat the error of putting all our eggs in one basket....
Alison Redford, the premier of Alberta, said:
We need to ensure that our actions are fiscally responsible and fair, not only to this generation but to those who follow and this means doing what's right for the long term, and not the next election cycle.
The Conservatives are fond of quoting, often in the House, Adam Smith, author of The Wealth of Nations. He defined the invisible hand of the marketplace. I wonder if many Conservatives have ever actually read his book. He had huge caveats for his invisible hand theory, saying that: one, it only applies if there are large numbers of small and medium-sized businesses in a sector, none of which can significantly control supply, demand or price; two, corporations are a handy but potentially evil invention that exist by government charter and that those charters should be revoked if they do not meet broad national economic and social goals; and, three, corporations should never have the same rights as citizens.
What comes first, the rights of large multinationals, including Communist Chinese ones, or the rights of Canadian companies, Canadian workers, Canadian taxpayers and Canadian families?