James Moore

[Correctional Service Canada, November 8th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I think the Minister of Public Safety was very clear on this matter yesterday. Of course, the treatment of Ashley Smith is indeed a tragedy. That is why the coroner's inquest is ongoing. The Minister of Public Safety has instructed all those associated with the inquiry to provide all the information necessary so that we can not only get to the bottom of the Ashley Smith incident specifically, but also more broadly ensure that those who are in custody going forward are treated with respect and appropriate techniques that are greatly improved, based on the tragedy that we saw in the treatment of Ashley Smith.

[Social Services, November 8th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, that is clearly not the case. We have indeed put forward more resources to ensure that Canadians have the services when and where they need them, all across this country. We have done so in a way that is economically efficient and responsible, and reacts to the needs of communities that are diverse all across the country.

Just because things are being done differently does not mean that the NDP members have to put on their tinfoil hats and come up with conspiracy theories. The reality is that Canadians need these services, and we are providing them. We have increased services to those communities that are most in need. We will continue to do so because they are indeed the services that Canadians have come to expect.

[Canadian Heritage, November 7th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, we do not support the bill. We do support the 2012 budget, which is consistent with our election platform.

We are making record investments in Canada's culture. We created two new national museums and the Canada media fund, and we have provided unprecedented levels of funding for the Canada Council for the Arts and our heritage. Our investments in Canada's culture are at an all-time high.

For these reasons, artists from across the country came to Parliament Hill last week to tell all Canadians that the government has kept the promises it made to artists.

[Government Spending, November 6th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, frankly, this is ridiculous. What the Prime Minister announced was a consultative approach with others about these positions, which were created for and are important to our institutions.

With regard to Canada's heritage, we have certainly made investments. The hon. member forgot to indicate that we also made unprecedented investments in the 400th anniversary of Quebec City and the 375th anniversary of the city of Trois-Rivières. We are investing in every part of the country to protect Canada's heritage.

[Questions on the Order Paper, October 31st, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, with regard to (a), the CRTC can assure Canadians that they will not lose service due to this decision. One of the key policy objectives of the Telecommunications Act is to render reliable and affordable telecommunications services of high quality to all Canadians in both urban and rural areas. This includes the households served by small incumbent telephone companies in Quebec. The CRTC generally has two approaches to achieving this objective.

One approach is to rely on market forces to deliver high-quality service at a reasonable price. Where competition is strong, customers have a choice of service providers and these companies provide customers with innovative new services. In Quebec, wire line services will soon be available from competitive service providers. These will complement advanced wireless and satellite providers that already offer voice and Internet services to rural subscribers in Quebec.

With regard to (b), in areas where there is not enough competition to achieve this objective, the CRTC’s approach is to provide an annual subsidy to incumbent carriers in order to ensure access to telephone services at affordable rates. In 2011, the total amount of subsidy provided to incumbent carriers across Canada was $156 million; $6.5 million of this subsidy went to the small incumbents that provide service in Quebec.

With regard to (c), it should be noted that the CRTC monitors telecommunications markets across Canada, including the Quebec markets in question. The CRTC has broad powers under the Telecommunications Act that can be used as necessary to achieve its policy objectives, which include access to telecommunications services.

[Canadian Heritage, October 17th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, such is not the case. Library and Archives Canada will be involved in this process. However, unlike the NDP, we believe that we must celebrate Canada's history. We are proud of our heritage. We will now have an institution, the new Canadian Museum of History, that will do just that.

The executive director of the Canadian Museums Association, John McAvity, said that the renaming of the museum is essential, that it is good news and that it will give Canadians greater access to their heritage and history.

This is what we are going to do: we are going to proudly celebrate Canada's history and heritage.

[Canadian Heritage, October 16th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, that is absolutely not the case. We are working with the museum. It makes decisions about its programming independent of the government.

Marie Lalonde, a leader in Canada's museums community, said that, “in partnership with this new museum, local museums will be able to offer their visitors distinctive exhibits and initiatives that would otherwise not be available.”

Our support today for this new project will help all museums across Canada, including Quebec museums. It is unfortunate that the Bloc Québécois continues to be against Quebec.

[Library and Archives Canada, October 16th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, Library and Archives Canada will actually be an important part of the new Canadian Museum of History as we move forward, because it is the guardian of a lot of our past. It will be a very large part of this project as we move forward.

I hope that the NDP will actually decide to support this initiative, because this is in fact an effort to bring all Canadians together to talk about all of Canada's stories. Therefore, I would hope that my hon. colleague would put away the rhetoric he has used yesterday and today in the House and would work with me and other members of Parliament to make this institution what it should be, which is an institution for all Canadians.

[Official Languages, October 16th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I completely disagree with the premise of the question.

At the beginning of her question, the member said there was a lack of leadership. In reality, however, the report of the Commissioner of Official Languages reads as follows:

The Roadmap for Canada’s Linguistic Duality 2008-2013...[our investment policy for official languages] recognizes the importance of increasing the level of bilingualism among young Canadians and sets out federal investments.... These programs are working.

It is working; we are getting results. We will continue to protect and promote both of Canada's official languages.

[Canadian Heritage, October 16th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, today I was very pleased to be joined by historians and museum leaders from all across Canada to celebrate our government's decision to create the Canadian Museum of History, le Musée canadien de l'histoire.

Canada has an incredibly rich and diverse history. We have stories all across the country that deserve to be told. We are taking the largest museum in all of Canada and we are going to make it even larger, broadening its mandate to include all Canadians so we can tell all of Canada's stories.

John McAvity, who is the executive director of the Canadian Museums Association, said the renaming of this museum is essential. “This is good news.” It will give Canadians greater access to their heritage and to their history.

Supporting Canadian history is what—