Gerald Keddy

[Sealing Industry, May 8th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, as a Nova Scotian and as someone from Atlantic Canada, I can tell the member that this government and the Prime Minister have stood up for sealers both on the high seas and abroad, without question.

It is entirely wrong-headed not to be in negotiations with the European Union on the free trade agreement. The very reason we are at the table is so we can continue to discuss and to advocate on behalf of the sealing industry and Atlantic Canada.

[International Trade, May 7th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, nothing could be further from the truth. The Prime Minister has spoken directly with President Obama. The Minister of International Trade is speaking directly with his counterpart in the U.S. We are protecting Canadian jobs, and we will continue to do that.

[International Trade, May 7th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, nothing could be further from the truth. The reality is that the Canadian government and the Minister of International Trade have been protecting Canadian jobs and standing up for Canadian industry in the United States.

We expect President Obama to live up to his own words and his own standards. He said that protectionism is a slippery slope, that it is the wrong thing to do in the world economy and it will only lead to more protectionism around the world. We expect fair rules, fair trade and free trade with the Americans.

[Trade, May 6th, 2009]

Again, Mr. Speaker, I can only tell the hon. member that the Minister of International Trade has his hands on this file. He continues to advance Canadian interests in the United States. We will continue to protect Canadian interests on the infrastructure projects in the U.S.

We realize the Americans are a tough trading partner. That is why it is a priority file, and the minister treats it as a priority file. We will continue to ensure that the Americans abide by the rules under NAFTA and under WTO.

[Trade, May 6th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of International Trade continues to work with his American counterpart to make sure that Canadian companies have access to American contracts, especially on infrastructure. We will continue to represent Canada's interests. We will continue to make sure that American companies abide by the rules under NAFTA and abide by the rules under the WTO.

[Trade, May 6th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker--

[Seal Hunt, May 6th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, last night, in response to the European Parliament's vote against our seal hunt, our Conservative government called for a take-note debate, where we hoped all four political parties would be able to come together and discuss this important issue as one united voice.

Unfortunately, Canada's Parliament is not one united voice. It turns out that a Liberal senator wrote a letter to every member of the European Parliament, encouraging them to vote against Canadian sealers.

Yesterday, anti-seal groups were even lauding the efforts of Liberal Mac Harb for his part in convincing the EU to vote against our sealers.

To add insult to injury, Liberal Mac Harb is now calling Canadians barbaric for supporting the seal hunt and is publicly saying Canada should not appeal to the WTO.

Canadians should know that this Conservative government will vigorously defend our seal hunt and our sealers.

[Seal Hunt, May 5th, 2009]

Mr. Chair, I have a couple specific questions for my hon. colleague.

First, there are a couple of inconsistencies in what has been said tonight by some of the opposition members. I do believe it is important to have a united front. Every once in a while we have strayed from that and some of the opposition members have tried to trivialize Ambassador Sullivan's hard work in Europe. He has done yeoman service for this House and certainly for fisheries and oceans. Would the member comment on that?

Second, there has been some discussion about the fact that since 2006 there have been fewer seal pelts sold, but no recognition of the fact that there has been a downturn in the world economy, that we have had a couple of years of very serious sea ice that has made it harder to access the pelts, and that the Russian and the Chinese markets have dried up. That somehow it is somebody else's fault.

There is no absolutely no recognition of Senator Mac Harb and his coordination and his effort to work with the Humane Society International Canada to undermine the work of this House and the work done by the fisheries committee. Worse yet, he sent a personally signed letter on his letterhead to every single member of the European Parliament.

[Seal Hunt, May 5th, 2009]

Madam Chair, the hon. member brings up a very legitimate point. Omega-3 fatty acids have been around for a long time. It is in fish and seal oils and is a valuable byproduct, a very good and healthy product.

There is a relatively new product, and that is the harvesting of the heart valves from seals, which could have tremendous implications for human health. We first need to prevent this ban from occurring so we have accessibility to the heart valves. The ban is only in the discussion stage. My honest belief is that it will come into place by the European Union and we will go to the WTO and defeat it. In the meantime, we will work during the consultation process to try to prevent it.

The member mentioned a very good point about the heart valves and omega-3 acids. As well there is the flesh of the seals. I have eaten it on the fisheries committee, in the High Arctic and in my neighbourhood in Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia. It is very healthy, tasty meat. It is simply more than skins.

For the Europeans to be culling a herd of 35,000—

[Seal Hunt, May 5th, 2009]

Madam Chair, that is an excellent point. A number of members have raised it tonight already.

The analogy and reference back to 1982 and the leghold trap is a very good one. I held a trapper's licence in 1982. What we saw happen with our aboriginal first nations and Inuit communities was absolute devastation. Proud individuals, who once had the ability to make a living and provide for themselves, suddenly had no ability to make a living and provide for themselves. The argument that only Inuit or first nations should be allowed to profit from sealing is so disingenuous that it is really quite sad.

This is the domino effect. Taking the low-hanging fruit pushes the first domino. We are the low-hanging fruit in this argument. We are the easiest to attack. European parliamentarians have been very successful in that attack. They still talk about the white coats. We have not killed a white coat since 1987. Anyone who knows anything about the seal hunt knows that.

The domino effect is they set the Inuit and first nations aside. They say, yes, that they can still profit from killing seals and their products, but what they will not say publicly is they will have no opportunity to sell those products. Therefore, the Inuit or first nations exemption is absolutely disingenuous and misleading.