John Baird

[Questions on the Order Paper, January 30th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, with regard to (a)(i), (a)(ii), (a)(iii) and (b), the promotion and the protection of human rights is an integral part of Canadian foreign policy, and the government will continue to take principled positions on important issues to ensure that freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law, values that define this country, are enjoyed around the world. The Government of Canada follows the human rights situation in Russia closely, and the promotion of Canadian values features prominently in our ongoing dialogue with the Russian authorities.

On October 28, 2011, the member for Mount Royal introduced Bill C-339, the Condemnation of Russian Corruption Act, which would require the government to take the same actions outlined in Q-245. DFAIT is still in the process of carefully reviewing the legislation, as is standard when these items are brought forward for introduction and debate.

With regard to (c) and (d), matters pertaining to visas and permanent or temporary residencies fall outside the purview of the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

[Questions on the Order Paper, January 30th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, the heads of mission accredited to Canada from the following African countries were invited to attend the joint session of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada to listen to the speech given by the Right Honourable David Cameron:

[Foreign Affairs, December 15th, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, since October, our government has been encouraging Canadians in Syria to voluntarily leave while commercial means are still available, but we are tremendously concerned about the deteriorating situation, the violence in Syria, so today we declared a voluntary evacuation of all Canadians.

As part of this declaration, we will provide facilitated services and specialized consular support. Our team in Damascus and our embassy are available to assist Canadians in Syria, their spouses and dependent children. We encourage them to get out as soon as possible.

This government, this House and the Canadian people stand behind the people of Syria at this time of need. We will do everything we can to ensure that they achieve the same democracy and freedom that is spreading around that region and that we enjoy here in Canada.

[Human Rights, December 15th, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, I share the member for Mount Royal's deep concern about this situation in Egypt.

When the member brought it to my attention, within a matter of hours we were in contact with the Egyptian ambassador. I met with him last week and expressed Canada's deep disappointment and real profound concern over the way this democracy activist had been treated. We demanded that this individual be let free and treated fairly in accordance with international standards of freedom and democracy.

As of yet, we have not had a positive response, and we will continue to look to ensure that justice is done in this case.

[Canada-U.S. Border, December 15th, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, I do not accept the premise of the question. No decisions in that regard have been made.

What is on the table is our desire, our hope, and our efforts to ensure that the border is not as thick as it has grown in recent years, so that we can have more people and more trade cross the border. That will be tremendously important to the auto worker in Windsor, so we could ensure that they will become the most competitive auto sector in the world.

Why will the member not stand up for auto workers in Windsor and stand up for our agreement with President Obama?

[Points of Order, December 14th, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to just wish everyone a merry Christmas and peace on earth.

[Democratic Republic of the Congo, December 12th, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, I share the concern with the member opposite. I also shared the concern with the member for Ottawa—Vanier who raised this issue last week.

Canada spoke out very loudly and clearly on this issue this past Friday. We are tremendously concerned about the transparency of the election results and the potential for violence. We are calling on all parties to reject violence. We would like an examination to ensure that all results are posted in a transparent way so we can ensure the vote was truly democratic and fair.

[Canada-U.S. Relations, December 12th, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, the relationship between Canada and the United States is very important to our government. It is one of the most successful relationships in the world.

Last week the Prime Minister and President Obama announced an ambitious, yet achievable, road map to help trade and to help people travel back and forth between our two countries. This would lead to better security and more jobs.

Improving the flow of people, goods and services over our shared border is a central part of our economic action plan. Let us not mince words. This agreement is the most significant step forward in Canada-U.S. co-operation since the signing of the North American Free Trade Agreement. It will help create a lot of jobs.

[Afghanistan, December 12th, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, we have a robust monitoring system. A Canadian official will be on the ground in Afghanistan to ensure that all of our international obligations are met.

I am pleased to report to the member opposite that there has not been a single corroborated allegation against any detainee transferred by the Canadian Forces. We will continue to do our very best to ensure that both outside of Kandahar and at Parwan.

[Afghanistan, December 12th, 2011]

Mr. Speaker, it was a big secret. I announced it right here in the House of Commons. Before I did that, I talked to the hon. member and offered her a full briefing which she, to her credit, took on Friday afternoon.

With the Canadian Forces combat mandate ending in Afghanistan, we have moved to a new system that builds on the two previous agreements. We are working with the Obama administration to ensure that we meet all of our international obligations.