Judy Sgro

[The Economy, November 24th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, the government has shown an incredible ability to shift the tax burdens from the rich to the poor in a mere 10 months.

The GST cut that the member referred to offers pennies on a Timex and hundreds of dollars on a Rolex, but on Canada Day, Canadians woke up to an increased tax rate at the lowest bracket. Now the government wants to further line the pockets of those who earn the most.

That party has taken the word “progressive” from its name with good reason. Why is it now doing the same thing to the tax system?

[The Economy, November 24th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday's economic understatement was a massive exercise in unfairness.

In 2005 the Liberals provided $29 billion in tax relief for all Canadians, particularly the low and middle income earners, but that is all gone and in its place a scheme that would make George W. Bush proud. The government's update laments the fact that those poor souls who are earning more than $120,000 are treated unfairly. Imagine that.

Why do the Conservatives always favour the six figure income earners over regular Canadians?

[Brizio Montinaro, November 24th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, it is with great sorrow that I rise to pay tribute to Brizio Montinaro who recently passed away. Brizio was truly a great Canadian.

He immigrated to Canada from Italy and quickly established a thriving business. He contributed greatly to Canada's success as a nation and was always the first to offer a helping hand to anyone in need.

Brizio was an adoring husband to Vittoria, a loving father to Constantino and Joseph, and a loving grandfather to Daniela and Brianna. Brizio was an inspiration to us all. He was a man of tremendous courage who will be greatly missed by all of us who knew and loved him.

On behalf of all members of the House of Commons, I want to express my deepest condolences to the Montinaro family as we honour the exceptional life of Brizio Montinaro.

[Committees of the House, November 22nd, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 10th report of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women entitled “Cuts to Status of Women Canada”.

[Petitions, November 9th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to present a petition on behalf of the constituents of St. John's, Newfoundland on the whole issue of literacy and the need for the reinstatement of funding to literacy programs that have been cut by the minority Conservative government, and to undertake a national literacy strategy to ensure that all Canadians have the opportunity to achieve this vital skill.

[Petitions, November 9th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I have several petitions. The first one is a petition containing names from residents in my riding of York West and the surrounding GTA.

The petitioners recognize that religious persecution is an international crisis affecting many religious groups in countless countries of the world and that the persecution of groups for their religious beliefs is immoral, unjust and violates an individual fundamental right to religious freedom.

The petitioners call upon the federal government to develop an automatic array of interventions that may be imposed by Canada against foreign governments, such as Iraq, when they support religious persecution or fail to prevent it, and to improve measures for refugees who have suffered religious persecution.

[Committees of the House, November 7th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, in discussions with the hon. member, as we are both on the status of women standing committee and deal with these issues, we all recognize the need for pay equity legislation in order to ensure that everybody is treated equally.

When we talk about the issue of equality, what does that really mean? That should mean that women can earn the same dollar that a man earns, rather than a woman continuing to earn only 71¢ at that point.

However, there are many people, possibly people watching and some of the members that are here with us today, who do not really understand what pay equity legislation is all about and why it is that the Standing Committee on the Status of Women and the previous Liberal government were very much committed to bringing in legislation.

Would the hon. member address the reason that she feels it is important and, more importantly, perhaps give a brief explanation for the some of the members in the House who do not understand the value and the reason for it?

[Committees of the House, November 3rd, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the eighth and ninth reports of the Standing Committee on the Status of Women. The reports deal with the main estimates for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2007, and the funding cuts and the new mandate for Status of Women Canada.

[Syed Ashar Warsi, November 3rd, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, sadly on October 5, 2006, a prominent member of our community passed away. Mr. Syed Ashar Warsi said goodbye to this world with Asma and his children Nosheen, Farheen, Zaf and Zarreen by his side.

He was an adoring husband and a devoted father. Syed was the voice for many ethnic communities, devoting countless hours to organizations which promote cultural diversity and peace.

He was a member of the board of the Asian Canadian Support Centre and CAMP Canada, an organization dedicated to young professionals. He was also committed to The Ambition newspaper, which is published by his wife Asma Warsi.

At his funeral, Syed was honoured by many friends, family members and well-known members of both the Islamic and political community. Syed was a true Canadian and an inspiration to us all. He will be dearly missed, but never forgotten.

[Infrastructure, November 2nd, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, the success of Canada's cities depends upon an effective transportation network. The Spadina subway extension will improve access to York University and to Vaughan city centre.

The city of Toronto, York region and the province all have their funding in place and the environmental assessment completed.

Since the government's clean air act will do nothing to improve air quality in our cities, will it commit today to a project which at least will improve the quality of air and as well the overall quality of life in Canada's largest city?

What is the government waiting for to deliver the cheque?