Greg Thompson

[Petitions, October 6th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I have a number of petitions signed by the people of Fundy Isles, the St. Andrews area and surrounding towns as well. The petitioners are asking the Government of Canada to say no to the transport of LNG tankers through Head Harbour Passage to a proposed liquid natural gas plant on the American side of Passamoquoddy Bay. These citizens say that it is much too dangerous and we are putting our citizens, our environment and our economy at risk. They are asking the Government of Canada to say no to the transport of those tankers, as it did 30 years ago.

[Petitions, October 5th, 2005]

Madam Speaker, plans are underway to build a liquid natural gas terminal on the U.S. side of Passamoquoddy Bay. This site can only be accessed by tankers passing through internal Canadian waters, namely, Head Harbour Passage. The petitioners demand that the Government of Canada say no to the transport of LNG tankers through Head Harbour Passage as it did 30 years ago to protect our environment, our citizens and our economy.

[Points of Order, October 4th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I know we have to bring these issues to you immediately following question period and I do this reluctantly or hesitantly. I wanted approval from the member to whom it happened.

During question period I heard very distinctly a very sexist remark coming from the member for Scarborough—Agincourt when one of our younger, newer members to this House was up speaking. She is a newer member to the House and she did not completely understand the rules, but she clearly heard it herself and it basically put her off stride in question period. It was a very sexist remark and I would expect you to review the blues and demand an apology from the member for Scarborough—Agincourt who has been identified by me and another member as the member making that remark. It was wrong and he should apologize to the member and to the House.

[Petitions, October 4th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, with me today I have a number of petitions signed by literally hundreds of people in and around Passamaquoddy Bay. There is a proposal by a U.S. proponent to build an LNG, or liquid natural gas, terminal on the U.S. side of Passamaquoddy Bay. We believe that this is not a smart location and some members on the other side of the House agree.

These petitioners are asking the Government of Canada to do what it did 30 years ago and say no to the transport of tankers through Head Harbour Passage, the most dangerous passage in all of the east coast of Canada. This would stop the construction of those LNG terminals, which would endanger our citizens, our environment and our economy.

[Income Tax Act, September 28th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, the government is engaged in a public relations exercise. It is as simple as that. The medical evidence is out there in terms of the linkage between herbicide spray and exposure to that spray. That has been proven and the government of the United States recognizes that. It has compensated literally thousands of victims exposed to that type of herbicidal spray. Canada has not. We have compensated one soldier.

The government has been hiding on this issue. Pure and simple, this is a public relations exercise to get it through to the next election with doing nothing. That is what it is all about. It did the same thing on the hepatitis C file if members remember. The parliamentary secretary was on this side of the House at the time and drove that battle to the government. Now he is on that side defending the government on something that is completely indefensible. The government's position cannot be defended.

[Income Tax Act, September 28th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, in June I asked the Government of Canada to conduct a public inquiry into the herbicidal spraying program at CFB Gagetown from 1956 to 1984. About 90% of that base is in the riding I represent. I said that the public inquiry should have the authority to make recommendations for compensation of all persons affected, both civilian and military.

In typical Liberal fashion, the government went out on a public relations campaign all summer, trying to defuse the issue. The member from Pembroke who just spoke is well aware of this. She has done a lot of work on this file herself and has been very helpful to me.

These people have been abused by the government. As I said, the government is into a public relations exercise, nothing more and nothing less. How has the government responded to this issue? The government will not have a public inquiry with the authority to actually compensate the victims.

In my hand I have a copy of a government press release of August 16. The headline states, “Government Announces Approach Regarding Use of Herbicides at CFB Gagetown”. In this press release, the government came out with what it called a “fact-finding outreach coordinator” who would go around to communities, including the base itself and the surrounding villages, and talk to the people who had been exposed to herbicide spray over the years.

The Ottawa Sun , in an article done by Greg Weston on September 25, really speaks as no one else can on this issue. The headline in that story says, “Agent Orange Victims Sick of Feds' Dithering”. That is exactly what the government is doing.

There is only one good thing I can tell members about the outreach coordinator. The Liberals were very smart because they picked a person who is very capable and is well liked by me and by many other New Brunswickers, a person by the name of Vaughn Blaney. Mr. Blaney is ill tonight and I want to express my best wishes to him. In fact, he had to cancel some of the public meetings.

But the Liberals have given him powers to do absolutely nothing, Mr. Speaker, and you think your job is tough. They have given him no power. He cannot even recommend to the government who should be compensated. Despite all of this spray program over the years and the millions of litres sprayed, only one person has been compensated. In fact, in this public relations exercise that the Liberal government is going through, not once does it use the word “compensation”. To the Liberal members, it is a foreign word. They do not understand the word “compensation”.

As evidence of this, today Veterans Affairs does not recognize the link between herbicidal spray and incidents of cancer caused by that spray. That department does not recognize it as a legitimate cause of cancer, whereas the United States veterans affairs department recognizes 37 diseases with a direct linkage between the spraying of herbicides and cancer.

We are asking the Government of Canada to compensate those victims, to come up with a plan that will work, and to have a public inquiry so that Canadians can see exactly what the Government of Canada should do, could do, and will do.

[The Environment, September 28th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, the government is changing its argument and its position. For a year now the government has been saying it will only make a decision when there is a formal application to proceed with a terminal. That application is now there. The government has not made up its mind and continues to dither.

Maybe the man here who knows something about shipping should stand up and state his position. Is he prepared to allow those tankers through internal Canadian waters, yes or no?

[The Environment, September 28th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, there are a number of proposals for the construction of an LNG terminal on the U.S. side of Passamaquoddy Bay. All of these proposals would require LNG tankers to pass through internal Canadian waters. Head Harbour Passage is the most dangerous waterway to navigate on the entire east coast.

Allowing passage of these tankers would expose our citizens, our environment and our economy to a high level of risk. Is the government prepared to say no to the transport of these LNG tankers through internal Canadian waters?

[Autism, September 28th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, today along with other members of the House and parents of autistic children, I attended a rally on Parliament Hill urging the federal government to provide financial support to cover the cost of treatment for every child diagnosed with autism.

Autism rates are on the rise in Canada. This neurological disorder affects 1 in every 195 of our children.

Therapy which has been credited in helping children overcome the effects of autism can cost a family up to $60,000 a year. These families and children need our support and I urge the federal government to take the steps necessary to address this important issue.

[Question No. 167, September 26th, 2005]

With regards to the International Ship and Port Security Code (ISPS Code): ( a ) have all ports in Canada implemented the ISPS Code and if not, can the government provide the names of the ports that are not in compliance and the date that they will be in compliance; ( b ) what requirements are in place to audit the ports as required by the ISPS Code, what authority is required to do the audits and are the audits required to be done by independent sources; ( c ) have all canadian flagged vessels implemented the ISPS Code; and ( d ) have all foreign flagged vessels implemented the ISPS Code?