James Lunney

[Points of Order, December 1st, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, I go back to where I commenced. Prominently displayed on the cover page of the document is “House of Commons/Chambre des communes”, which implies that the House has approved the report or that it has official status. In fact, it represents only the opinion of three opposition members. I am not sure it even represents the views of all of the parties; that is not clear. It certainly does not indicate the source of the document, other than “parliamentary delegation”. I would ask the Speaker to rule on those points.

[Points of Order, December 1st, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order regarding the legitimacy of a document circulated to members and referred to in a statement by the member for Vancouver East last Thursday in this chamber. The member was referring to a recent trip by her, the member for Gatineau and the member for Etobicoke Centre to the West Bank and Gaza. The document circulated has the words “House of Commons/Chambre des Communes” prominently at the top.

The members refer to themselves as a parliamentary delegation when in actuality only opposition members participated in the trip.

The members in the text of the document refer to themselves as the Canada-Palestine friendship group but it is only noted inside and not on the cover of the document.

The member for Vancouver East claimed in her statement to the House last Thursday that the report had been presented. This implies the approval of Parliament in gathering the data and that the report was tabled in Parliament. In fact, the report was neither sanctioned nor reported officially to Parliament, nor indeed can it be. In fact, it was circulated to all members from the office of the member for Gatineau.

Mr. Speaker, I would ask you to review the facts and find that the members for Vancouver East, Gatineau and Etobicoke Centre have misrepresented the mandate of their group and the approval of Parliament of their report and findings.

Mr. Speaker, I would ask you to find that the members have violated the order of the House in the misrepresenting of their report to the House. There is no indication of whether the report actually represents the Canada-Palestine friendship group. The group is not identified as the source of the document. The three members refer to themselves as “a parliamentary delegation” which also implies they were commissioned by Parliament. They refer to their Canada-Palestine friendship group as the Canada-Palestine Parliamentary Association.

Members of the House would know there are several parliamentary associations. Identification as a parliamentary association is approved on application to the Board of Internal Economy and provides access to parliamentary budget funding for travel and support.

Parliamentary friendship groups do not have such access or privilege. In fact, buried in the report is the admission that the members travelled on their own to the Middle East and paid for their own trip.

Parliamentary associations can and do report on their activities to the House by tabling reports but parliamentary friendship groups do not.

I further ask the Speaker to instruct these members to strike the words “House of Commons/Chambre des Communes” and “Parliamentary Delegation” from the cover of their document and to clearly identify themselves as the Canada-Palestine friendship group as the source of this very biased report.

I thank you for hearing my point of order, Mr. Speaker.

[Economic Recovery Act (Stimulus), November 16th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, I hear the member talking about the money going out, the stimulus funds and the economic stimulus package as being administered in an incompetent way.

We are working with our provincial partners right across the country, with the provinces, the municipalities and the universities with the knowledge infrastructure fund. Which of those partners is the member calling incompetent?

Unlike the previous government that sent money out the window to individuals for advertising purposes, we are working with responsible agencies in every area of the country to ensure that projects of high value to Canadians are delivered.

[Petitions, November 16th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, I have a petition from hundreds of Canadians from British Columbia.

The petitioners call upon Parliament to pass legislation for the protection of human life from the time of conception until natural death. They note that Canada as a country respects human rights, that in 1988 Canada struck down a law and that there is no law to protect the unborn at any stage of development.

They therefore call upon Parliament to enact legislation that would protect the unborn.

[Canadian Junior Football League, November 16th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, on Saturday, the Canadian Junior Football League championship game was hosted in Nanaimo by the Vancouver Island Raiders. The Raiders joined the CJFL just five years ago. They captured the championship in 2006 and 2008 and this year went to the championship game against the Edmonton Wildcats, undefeated.

After a season of 10 wins and no losses, the Raiders defeated the Okanagan Sun and the Surrey Rams to win the right to defend the championship game against the Edmonton Wildcats.

Sunday, before a sell-out crowd, the Raiders set new records, defeating Edmonton 51-14 to win their third national championship.

Nanaimo and Vancouver Islanders are so proud of our team. President Hadi Abassi is the man with a vision, the patron saint of the V.I. Raiders. Hadi, along with head coach Matt Blokker, have assembled a team that has proven to be second to none.

On behalf of all citizens of Nanaimo—Alberni, I salute President Abassi, coach “Snoop”, the young men who suit up as V.I. Raiders and all the support team.

I am sure all members would like to join me in saying to the three time Canadian champions, the Vancouver Island Raiders, congratulations and well done.

[Veterans' Week, November 5th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, this week Canadians across the country are marking Veterans' Week.

As we remember our Canadian veterans, we also pay tribute to the members of the Canadian Forces who serve our country today.

Let us join Canadians from coast to coast to proudly support our men and women of the Canadian Forces. We honour those who courageously put their lives on the line to bring peace and security to troubled areas around the world. These valiant men and women selflessly face danger and uncertainty to protect the rights and freedoms of others in need.

On November 11 we remember the culmination of two world wars. We celebrate the armistice that silenced the guns and ended the conflict. We remember the millions who mobilized and the 100,000 who made the ultimate sacrifice. We remember those who fought in the Korean war and in many regional conflicts.

This year, as we honour our fallen and wounded warriors, may we also remember those who are serving on the front lines in Afghanistan today along with all those who sacrificed to secure our freedoms and way of life.

Lest we forget.

[United Nations Human Rights Council, October 20th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, only weeks ago the Goldstone report was released, accusing Israel of “war crimes”. Now the UN Human Rights Council has come out with a contentious resolution endorsing the report. The resolution is entirely one-sided, accusing Israel of all kinds of atrocities. It somehow overlooks eight years of constant Hamas rocket fire and a covenant that openly calls for the destruction of the State of Israel. Even Mr. Goldstone is disappointed at the lack of condemnation against Hamas in the debate and in the resolution.

Former U.K. commander Col. Richard Kemp told the Security Council of the extraordinary measures taken by Israeli defence forces to warn Palestinian civilians ahead of impending missions. Two million leaflets were dropped; 100,000 telephone calls were placed. Col. Kemp testified he has never seen any military anywhere in the world take more precautions to protect civilians.

This is in direct contrast to Hamas, who deliberately expose civilians on both sides of the conflict to harm.

The next step for Israeli opponents is a referral to the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

The UN Human Rights Council is chaired by Cuba and dominated by countries with some of the worst human rights abuses in the world. It is time that all responsible nations repudiated this abuse of UN name and title.

[Football, October 19th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the defending national champion, Vancouver Island Raiders football team, completed another perfect season: 10 wins, 0 losses.

Hadi Abassi, Raiders' president and 2008 Nanaimo Citizen of the Year, along with head coach, Matt Blokker, a.k.a. “Snoop”, have shaped the Raiders into a three-time B.C. conference and two-time defending national champions.

The Raiders have established a winning program on and off the field, with a five year record of 54 wins and 7 losses. The Raiders was the first junior team in Canada to establish a scholarship foundation, allowing players to choose between academics or skilled trades. It is an example of how the Raiders family train its athletes for future success.

The Raiders are led by all star tailback, Andrew Harris. Andrew set a new record during last year's championship game, racking up an amazing 412 rushing yards to seal a Raiders' victory.

I would like to recognize Hadi Abassi and the entire coaching staff in preparing these young men for success. On November 14, the Raiders will host the Canadian national championships. We wish them every success in pursuing a third national victory. Go, Raiders.

[Economic Recovery Act (stimulus), October 7th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, the House has been treated to a real rant from the member opposite. He was really on a roll. We might have called him on relevance on a whole bunch of what he had to say.

The member has been here for a while. He has sat through a few budgets. He would know that passing a budget is always followed by ways and means motions and budget implementation bills that actually follow through with the details. That is a normal procedure that we are following in the House, even at this time.

When the member rails on one of his favourite topics, which is corporate tax cuts, he always likes to refer to banks. The member would know that in our part of the world we have a lot of corporations that are forest companies, such as Catalyst in my riding and Harmac in Nanaimo. They are struggling. Does the member support increased taxes for forest companies and auto companies that are struggling at this time?

Furthermore, this is the federal Parliament. If the member wants to debate the harmonized sales tax, he should quit his seat in this House and go to the provincial legislature, if he could get himself elected, where he could debate it where the decision is being made.

[Fisheries and Oceans, September 30th, 2009]

Mr. Speaker, in coastal B.C. questions are being raised about the prospect of lighthouses being destaffed. In fact, six of these lighthouses are in my riding.

B.C. Conservative MPs have personally championed the importance of these light stations in the past and in recent times. In fact, our party prevented previous Liberal attempts to close light stations in B.C. and in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Could the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans update the House on the latest status on this important issue?