Guy André

[Telecommunications Act, October 24th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to start by congratulating my colleague, the hon. member for Saint-Jean, on his accurate and enlightened remarks on Bill C-37.

Naturally, like him, I am concerned about protecting my fellow citizens against telemarketing abuse. I agree with him on some of the exemptions that should be included in this bill on telemarketing, namely charities such as United Way and the Red Cross. It is important that they not be on the list that will be established.

I also share the concern of the hon. member for Saint-Jean about the abuse that has taken place in the management of the gun registry. We now know that this abuse has resulted in unconscionable costs in excess of $2 billion.

How does the hon. member for Saint-Jean suggest that the Liberal government avoid allocating excessive funding to the establishment of such a registry?

[Clothing and Textile Industries, October 20th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, the minister said he will apply safeguards.

Now that the minister has decided to take action on bicycles, does he intend to follow suit for the clothing and textile industries that are facing the same situations and are calling for the same safeguards?

[International Trade, October 20th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, in September, the Canadian International Trade Tribunal found that imports of bicycles under $400 caused serious harm to the bicycle industry and even threatened its survival. This ruling recommends that the government apply safeguards, namely 30% duties the first year, 25% the second and 20% the third.

Does the Minister of International Trade intend to follow through on these recommendations and impose the safeguards suggested by the Canadian International Trade Tribunal?

[Criminal Code, October 18th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for Gaspésie—Îles-de-la-Madeleine for his question, and will try to reply as briefly as possible.

As I said in my presentation, we can look at all the drinking and driving awareness programs as an example. Of course there are criminal measures in place to prevent people from drinking and driving, since this can cause accidents and lead to injuries and worse. That was vitally important. The whole educational aspect around drinking and driving has also been extremely important and has had a major impact on our society, on Quebec.

To give an example, today's youth have grown up in an environment of greater awareness of drinking and driving. I know a number of young people who have a designated driver when they are going out to a bar or somewhere else where there will be alcohol. There is more awareness in that age group and they are doing something about drinking and driving. This is a preventive measure that arose out of the awareness campaigns, not the punitive measures that have been adopted. These educational campaigns have also been important.

It would be worthwhile to see the street racing issue we are discussing today, because of this bill, handled in the same way, with both punitive and preventive measures aimed at reducing the problem.

[Criminal Code, October 18th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I would like the Conservative member to know that I can very much relate to what she says.

The bill could have been tougher. The hon. member may be right in that. I do, however, feel that the bill introduced today is a first step in the right direction. It imposes harsher consequences on those who indulge in street racing.

The preventive aspect I referred to is important as well. If we were more able to convince our youth, as well as older drivers, that street racing has its consequences, up to and including death or permanent disability, that would also be important.

I feel that this bill as presented is a first step. Could it have been made tougher? Perhaps. But let us make this move and begin by applying the principles contained in this bill. Let us put preventive measures and public education measures into place. Then we can assess the outcomes. I have no doubt that this is a good start.

[Criminal Code, October 18th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his comments.

Let us look at what has been done in Quebec in recent years to raise people's awareness of drinking and driving, to which I referred in my speech. Huge campaigns have been carried out to raise awareness, in the print and broadcast media, in the schools, in the community and so on. This eventually led people to think about it and to understand that drinking and driving is dangerous.

Punitive measures were taken as well, of course, but awareness campaigns reinforced the whole preventive aspect of drinking and driving. That is one example.

[Criminal Code, October 18th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, first, I want to congratulate my Bloc Québécois colleague on his pertinent remarks this morning on this bill. The member for Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie expressed some relevant thoughts about this problem, which relates to public safety and also, as he said, the environment.

I will try today to make my own contribution to this debate, which affects the people of Quebec and Canada.

I have the pleasure of speaking on Bill C-65, which was introduced by the Minister of Justice on September 28. It seeks to amend the Criminal Code with regard to street racing.

As we know, Bill C-65 is based on Bill C-230, a private member's bill introduced by Mr. Cadman on October 20, 2004. Unfortunately, Mr. Cadman died of cancer in July. This bill has become part of his legacy in the House of Commons, even if, as some Conservative colleagues claim, this bill is not as tough as his. The Bloc Québécois feels, however, that it is a step in the right direction.

The purpose of Bill C-65 is to amend the Criminal Code by clearly defining street racing, that is, operating a motor vehicle in a race with another motor vehicle on public property, and by specifically identifying the involvement in street racing as an aggravating factor during sentencing for offences involving criminal negligence and dangerous driving. I say “specifically” because when someone is found guilty of one of the four offences currently listed in the Criminal Code, namely, criminal negligence causing death, dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death, criminal negligence causing bodily harm, and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing bodily harm, the court in imposing a sentence must take the fact that the individual was involved in street racing into account as an aggravating factor in the commission of the offence.

Furthermore, this bill requires the judge to suspend for at least one year the driver's licence of anyone found guilty of such offences committed during street races. As we know, the mandatory automatic suspension of a driver's licence has applied only when a person was found guilty of impaired driving.

Now the bill provides for a mandatory driving prohibition order for a minimum of one year and a maximum of 10 years for criminal negligence causing bodily harm, dangerous driving causing bodily harm and dangerous driving causing death. When an individual is found guilty of criminal negligence causing death, the duration of the order is not limited by the legislation. In such a case, the judge could very well suspend the driver's licence of the guilty party for life.

Our party is in favour of Bill C-65. We believe it is extremely important to define and reinforce the sentences imposed on those who engage in street racing, whose numbers are unfortunately increasing. We are all affected by dangerous driving, whether by the death of a loved one, by injuries suffered or by a personal tragedy. A few years ago I lost a friend when a motorcycle race between him and some friends came to a tragic end. The whole point was to have fun and show off his driving skills, but the misadventure that took his life could have taken other lives as well.

Public roads are not racetracks, nor should they be dangerous to the lives and physical safety of adults and children. As legislators, we must pass laws that ensure the public good and help to protect people. That is what this bill does.

Like driving under the influence, street racing is dangerous and unacceptable, and the consequences must be clear and pre-determined.

This bill toughens the sentences for participating in dangerous, illegal activities. It should help to dissuade people from this practice, which all too often poses a danger to the safety of citizens and infringes on their right to move about safely on our roads.

Some of us know people, have friends, who have been victimized by this kind of behaviour on our roads. All too often, people have seen their lives turned upside down by these dangerous activities. Some people have been killed, while others have suffered traumatic experiences or been injured. Every day there are new victims.

I was speaking earlier about the dangers of impaired driving and the dissuasive legislation regarding this scourge. Over the last few years, we have passed some general dissuasive initiatives, such as legislation to convince people not to drink and drive out of fear of the negative consequences. These negative consequences, such as suspended driver's licences, are designed to prevent offenders from repeating the behaviour. The legislation has been very beneficial on the whole and has helped to reduce impaired driving considerably. However, although the negative experience of arrest, courts and sentences is enough to prevent some people from repeating this behaviour, others seem to treat the experience as just an inconvenience before they return to their old ways.

That is why it is necessary to encourage the development of responsible automobile driving and why it is important to pass preventive legislation. It is important and necessary to punish, but punishment is not enough because it is often too late. As in the case of impaired driving, preventive legislation must be passed to make drivers really think about the dangers of street racing.

I want to come back to the problem of driving. As I said, much work has been done in Quebec to make drivers of all ages more aware of the dangers associated with such behaviour. Tools have been adapted in order to decrease the likelihood of someone drinking and driving. These tools were a key component of past countermeasures, such as informing the public about the danger of this practice and increasing public awareness.

Since street racing is a threat to public safety, just as much as drinking and driving is, the state must implement legislation to cover this new phenomenon and must also conduct a comprehensive public awareness and education campaign.

When it comes to public safety, the rights of the public must always take precedence over the rights of individuals. As my colleague, the member for Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, said, it is time to give our police forces additional tools so that they can more effectively enforce the law. Prevention is essential, but we also need more appropriate deterrents and punitive measures. We believe that this bill could help counter this phenomenon. The state is responsible for defining the limits of acceptable behaviour in our society. We need to act as responsible legislators for our individual and collective safety.

[Criminal Code, October 17th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, first, I want to congratulate my colleague on his remarks on Bill C-49. He knows this subject well, and that knowledge will be an asset to the Standing Committee on Justice, Human Rights, Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness.

Like all the members of the Bloc Québécois, I support Bill C-49, which will give the justice system better tools with which to deal with the problem of human trafficking.

I want to ask my colleague two questions. First, is Bill C-49 sufficient in order to improve the human trafficking situation in this country? Could we do more to fix this problem with regard to modern slavery? Second, does this bill provide greater protection for those who are victims of trafficking and sexual exploitation, who are forced to work and provide sexual services?

[Clothing and Textile Industries, October 6th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, the Bloc motion calls for the creation of an aid program for older workers and the duty free entry of clothing made offshore with Canadian textiles. However, the parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Social Development said yesterday that the government would not apply the content of the motion in its entirety.

Can the government clear up this matter and tell us whether what the parliamentary secretary said truly reflects his intention not to apply one of these two measures?

[Clothing and Textile Industries, October 6th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance has already said he is prepared to put measures in place to help the clothing and textile industries. Yesterday the government voted in favour of a Bloc Québécois motion that proposed concrete measures on this matter.

Now that the House has agreed to implement an aid policy for the clothing and textile industries, does the minister intend to follow through promptly on this motion?