Guy Caron

[Business of Supply, January 29th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I am really glad the member mentioned infrastructure in debating this issue before the House, because this reminds us of the problems related to this government's failure to consult the provinces and municipalities.

First of all, Quebec has yet to sign an agreement with the federal government regarding the Building Canada fund. Here we are nearly a year after it was announced in budget 2014, and a funding agreement for the Building Canada fund still has not been signed with Quebec.

Second, regarding the Building Canada fund, the initial announcement was in 2013, when the budget was presented by the Minister of Infrastructure, Communities and Intergovernmental Affairs, who is also the former mayor of Roberval. For a year, he took advantage of every possible opportunity to boast that the program was finally going to allow the municipalities to seek funding for sports and cultural infrastructure, based on municipal priorities.

In 2014, however, that disappeared, even though municipalities like Rimouski—whose mayor, Éric Forest, is also a past president of the Union des municipalités du Québec and knows the Minister of Infrastructure, Communities and Intergovernmental Affairs very well—want the municipalities to be able to set their own priorities.

How can the federal government talk about good relations with the provinces, frequent meetings with the provinces and respecting the provinces' and municipalities' priorities when this same federal government imposes its will and its priorities regarding the infrastructure that the municipalities really need?

[Intergovernmental Affairs, January 28th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the Council of the Federation has been meeting for 10 years without the Prime Minister.

The federal government should work more closely with the provinces to tackle the economic and budgetary challenges we are facing, particularly those affecting innovation. Those challenges are having a negative impact on economic development and job creation in Canada.

Yesterday, our leader unveiled a plan to kickstart manufacturing and small business job creation. The plan includes a major innovation and business modernization component.

When will the government support our Canadian manufacturers, which invest in research and development and create good jobs?

[Intergovernmental Affairs, January 28th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the faltering economy presents budgetary challenges at all levels of government. At the very least, the federal government could sit down with the provinces to coordinate efforts. Instead, the Conservatives have chosen to work alone in their corner by boycotting the Council of the Federation.

Furthermore, they appear to be working on a national pharmacare program. This is a good thing, certainly, but the least they could do is work on it with the provinces.

Why do the Conservatives refuse to see the provinces as true partners?

[Manufacturing Industry, January 27th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the NDP's plan to stimulate job creation in the manufacturing sector and in SMEs is a responsible and practical plan that will boost employment and broaden the government's tax base.

Several NDP measures have the support of the Manufacturiers et exportateurs du Québec and the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. There are ways to stimulate employment.

Why is the government refusing to help the middle class?

[Manufacturing Industry, January 27th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the downturn in the oil economy puts the spotlight on the Conservatives' mismanagement and failure to diversify our economy for years.

Half a million manufacturing jobs were lost in the past decade and the government is doing nothing about it. Instead of postponing the budget until April and boycotting the Council of the Federation, the government should be showing leadership and working with the provinces on stimulating job creation in the manufacturing sector and in SMEs.

Why is it doing nothing?

[The Economy, January 26th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives insist on denying the facts. We cannot wait until April for the government to bring down a budget and take action. Thousands of jobs are at stake here.

What we need is leadership, but the government seems more disorganized than ever. The Minister of Employment is calling for a new round of cuts, while the President of the Treasury Board is telling us that is not necessary. The Minister of Finance does not know whether he will have enough revenue to balance his budget, but he knows he will have enough money to bring in his ineffective income-splitting policy.

Why does the minister not give us an economic and fiscal update right now, so that Canadians know where we stand?

[The Economy, January 26th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the government is standing idly by while Canada loses thousands of jobs and slides into economic uncertainty. It is stubbornly refusing to face reality.

During the 2008 election campaign, on the eve of a major economic crisis, the Conservatives told us that there was no problem and that everything was under control. The opposition parties had to unite to force the government to react.

Rather than dragging his feet and refusing to face the facts, why does the Minister of Finance not show some leadership and help our businesses so that they can create jobs?

[Pierre-André Fournier, January 26th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, last Sunday, over 1,500 people gathered at the Saint-Robert-Bellarmin church in Rimouski to pay their final respects to Monsignor Pierre-André Fournier, Archbishop of Rimouski and president of the Assembly of Quebec Catholic Bishops, who died suddenly on January 10.

Although he was the Archbishop of Rimouski for just six years, he loved his adoptive community and region deeply, and was so beloved in return by the people of his diocese that one would have thought he had been archbishop there for 60 years.

Humble and genuine, he was so approachable and so close to people that many of his friends called him PAF, after his initials. He had a gift for making every person he spoke to feel that he or she was the most important person in the world to him at that moment. He spent countless hours with the poor, the vulnerable and the marginalized, exemplifying his episcopal motto, “Blessed are the poor.”

He gave generously of himself. Rarely did he turn down an invitation from his community, be it to a community supper or a meeting to stand up for what mattered to the region.

As one person in the enormous crowd of people who attended the funeral called out, “Thank you, PAF”, not just for everything you did, but also for everything you were.

[CBC/Radio Canada, December 12th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, the six o'clock local news is an institution. That is the only time that the people of eastern Quebec hear anything about themselves and their community.

The cuts to CBC/Radio-Canada had so far managed to spare regional news programming. We have to be realistic: when the government slashes $115 million, we cannot expect our public broadcaster to do everything everywhere.

When will the minister finally realize the impact her misguided policies are having on the people of eastern Quebec, who love their public broadcaster?

[Victims Bill of Rights, December 11th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Joliette, and I congratulate her on her work in the House and in her riding, which is in the lovely Lanaudière region.

Those numbers do not surprise me. In my former life, I spent two years working for a group involved in youth restorative justice that focused on young offenders. I saw first-hand the impact that crimes had on victims. One element of restorative justice is setting up meetings between young offenders, in this case, and the victims of their crimes to help the young offenders understand the consequences and repercussions of their actions.

I worked with young offenders, but I was still able to see the negative psychological impact that these actions, such as breaking and entering or assault, had on their lives, their families, their personalities and their own individuality. I saw that.

As for the cost of the consequences of crime, that obviously includes the cost of psychological support, which is typically borne solely by the victim. That is not the only cost, but it is the first one that comes to mind in such situations.