Larry Maguire

[The Economy, February 19th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, according to the recent report from the National Bank of Canada, the Liberals are on track to add $90 billion to Canada's debt.

In Manitoba, we have witnessed how runaway NDP deficits destroyed our province's credit rating while Premier Selinger raised taxes and drove away business. The tax-and-spend policies of the NDP in Manitoba did not work, so can the Minister of Finance tell us why the new Liberal government wants to burden Canadians by repeating the terrible NDP mistakes?

[Brandon Winter Festival, February 18th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I congratulate the volunteers and organizers of the 13th Annual Brandon Winter Festival. I am proud of how our winter festival has grown and thrived over the years. None of it would be possible without the volunteers and countless residents who participated and attended this end-of-January ritual in Brandon.

It was a beautiful weekend as thousands of Westman residents lined up at the eight pavilions to enjoy a snapshot of the music, art, dance, and fine cuisine of each culture. Our winter festival brings the entire community together to celebrate Canada's rich and diverse cultural heritage.

I am especially pleased to see how Westman embraces our diversity, and to see neighbours and friends come together to showcase our cultural mosaic, which makes us distinctively Canadian.

As we continue to work here in the people's Commons, let us renew our enthusiasm and strive to make Canada the most inclusive and welcoming country in the world.

[Canada Labour Code, February 16th, 2016]

Madam Speaker, again that question makes the point that when they have a 35% sign-up to have a union and 50% to decertify, what was wrong with sawing that off at 40% to have a union or to decertify it?

I am not surprised that my colleague who just asked the question from the New Democratic Party agrees with this bill brought forward by the former NDP minister in Manitoba who is now the Liberal Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour in Canada. It looks to me like the Liberal government is trying to outflank the NDP on the left with this kind of legislation. It is certainly not fair to workers seeking union certification.

[Canada Labour Code, February 16th, 2016]

Madam Speaker, that is the hub of what we are talking about here in this debate on Bill C-4, brought forward by the member for Kildonan—St. Paul.

It is very true that the intimidation that I spoke about in my own remarks here is exactly why they need to have a secret ballot. Under the old mechanisms, a 35% sign-up gave them a union, but they had to have 50% to decertify a union. My colleague brought in Bill C-525, one of the first bills that I had the opportunity to speak to in this House. We levelled it at 40% either way, and that does still not even require half. It is a very fair piece of legislation that was on the books, and that is why I make the comment and the point that the Liberals are trying to fix something that is not broken.

[Canada Labour Code, February 16th, 2016]

Madam Speaker, my colleague makes the very point that these workers are middle-class Canadian citizens and they work hard every day. Why should they not have the democratic right to a secret ballot to be in a union? I do not know what they are afraid of when 40% is all we were asking for in that bill to have a union.

However, for the mechanisms that the member is in favour of, to walk in and have a card-signing process, they may end up with over 50% of the individuals who sign up and could end up in a union while not even knowing that the unionization process was going on. That is what we see as unfair in this whole process.

[Canada Labour Code, February 16th, 2016]

Madam Speaker, I rise today to speak against Bill C-4, which would roll back the rights of hard-working union members and repeal transparency legislation that finally allowed some sunshine to be let into the financial ledgers of opaque unions.

I respect the Minister of Employment. I have had the pleasure of getting to know her over the past 16 years and enjoyed the time we spent together in the Manitoba legislature. I remember that my hon. friend and her NDP colleagues at the time introduced a similar bill in 2000 and rammed it through the Manitoba legislature, a bill that massively favoured the interests of union elites and took away the ability of union members to stop their union dues paying for their union bosses' political agendas.

I also noted her comments in the House about how Bill C-4 would improve Canada's economy. I only pray that her now Liberal government does not increase Canada's debt by over 500% as her former NDP colleagues have done in Manitoba since her days in government. It is also interesting to note that at that time, former Liberal MP Jon Gerrard and leader of the Manitoba Liberal Party not only spoke against this legislation but he voted against it as well.

Today I want to talk about three things: first, the flawed motivation the Liberals have for introducing this legislation at this time; second, the importance of a secret ballot as a pillar of our democratic institutions; and third, the principle of fairness for certification and decertification.

The timing of this legislation leads me to believe that the new Liberal government is on manoeuvres. The fact that even the Liberal minister who introduced this legislation admitted that the bill was quickly tabled leads me to believe that ulterior motives are behind it.

It is too easy to just assume that this legislation is a reward for all the unions that backed the Liberals in the last election. Not even the Liberal government would change the law to remove mandatory secret ballots for union workers as a quick “thank you” to the unions that actively and publicly supported them but also spent thousands upon thousands if not millions of workers' dollars attacking the Conservative Party.

The big issue here is not Bill C-4 itself. It is not even Bill C-5, the bill the Liberals introduced next to settle their union debts. We have to look at the big picture here. It is not just that the Liberals owe some of their election victory to the thousands of workers' dollars the union spent against us, it is that the Liberals are using the rights of workers across the country as a bargaining chip, literally.

The lightening speed of the bill's introduction can only be explained by the looming spectre of collective bargaining the Liberals have coming with their own public service unions. Quite simply, they are trading the rights of hard-working Canadians in the hope of a smoother ride at their own negotiating table. It leads me to ask: did the Liberals care about union rank and file or only about making their own lives easier? It is clear that the Liberals are introducing this legislation for their own ends and not to solve a problem that actually exists.

This leads me to my second point: the importance of the secret ballot as a democratic principle. Each hon. member in the chamber is here today because residents in their ridings chose to give them the most personal thing they possess, their vote. We have no higher duty in our role as members than to safeguard the democratic principles that hold our country together. The secret ballot is the highest pillar of this process. It seems absurd to me that a member of the House could get up and argue that we need less voter protection, that we need less transparency, that we need less democracy. It seems absurd to me that a member of the House could get up and argue that we need more secrecy, that we need more union intimidation, and that we need more power for big union bosses.

The Liberals are creating a problem that does not exist. Nobody is banging down my door, nobody is calling my office, and nobody is emailing me saying they want workers to be stripped of the right to a secret ballot. Even the national president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada Robyn Benson said so much herself when she testified in committee in 2014, “Contrary to what you may have heard, PSAC has no issue with voting by secret ballot. We do it regularly to elect our officers, ratify collective agreements, and vote for strike action, as examples.”

The old card check system allowed for a workplace to be unionized without letting all employees have their say. In fact, unionization could proceed with a significant portion of the workers having no idea unionization is even going on.

As many of my hon. colleagues will know from their experience in electoral campaigns, candidates often spend their time going door to door, asking for support of their friends and neighbours. Most say yes. Sometimes they mean it, and sometimes they just want them to get off the porch or do not feel comfortable saying no to their face. It is a good thing that candidates cannot force people to vote at the door when they are canvassing; otherwise, the potential for voter intimidation would be disturbing, indeed. It is a good thing we have a secret ballot vote later to decide who the MP will be.

The former card check system, without a mandatory secret ballot, was ripe for intimidation, intentional or not. In this system, workers could be pressured by unions or their colleagues in the signing of a union card. I ask colleagues to imagine what it feels like in a workplace full of tension, where a worker is on the fence about joining a union but is bombarded by peer pressure from all sides.

The only true way to safeguard the rights of these workers is to let them express their true wishes through a vote, and the only way to do this properly is through a secret ballot. This notion enjoys widespread support across Canada and 5 of 10 Canadian provinces have mandatory secret ballot vote legislation. The Liberals have absolutely no good reason to get rid of this vital check.

Finally, let me now turn to one specific detail in the bill, that which deals with the number of votes it takes to certify or decertify a union. Before Bill C-525, it took the signatures of 35% of the bargaining unit to trigger the process to certify a union, while it took 50% to decertify it.

Bill C-525 is grounded in the core principle of creating an equal and fair playing field for supporters and opponents of unionization. We believe that it should be up to the workers to decide, not the employers, and not the union bosses. This was achieved by setting the bar for both certification and decertification processes at 40%; a wholly reasonable number to trigger a vote that necessarily involves wide-ranging consultation.

Now, the Liberals are trying to narrow the circle of people that unions and employees need to involve to make decisions; ultimately, making the process less democratic.

The bill is all about narrowing the democratic legitimacy of unions and scaling back the rights of workers to select their representatives and to determine their own fate. It is truly an affront to democracy for elected members of this chamber to demand that other institutions in their country be made less democratic, that they be made more exclusive.

As the representative of the residents of Brandon—Souris, I cannot support the legislation. It is clearly designed to settle Liberal debts to unions from their last election campaign, to strip workers of their right to a secret ballot, and to create an uneven playing field for workers to determine their own fate.

I encourage all members of this House to vote against the bill.

[Business of Supply, December 10th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, of course we are not using the unilateral process, and I am pretty sure the member understands that. We are using all fronts. We are using humanitarian aid in Iraq as well as Syria. I have stated in the House before in debates on this very topic that I am just as concerned about making sure that the humanitarian aid gets to the front where it is required, including the training of the Kurdish soldiers by our soldiers, as I am about saving the lives of many of the women and children who are being raped and pillaged, as had been indicated here in this House and around the world, on a regular basis.

I want to emphasize that we are using all of those mechanisms, but the Liberals have now indicated that they will pull back on one of those efforts. Some say it is insignificant. I indicated here that there were 1,167 sorties up to last week in this effort. That is not insignificant support for our allies that are in there fighting so that our citizens can have freedom in their own country every day as well.

[Business of Supply, December 10th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I am enamoured by the fact that my hon. colleague has been listening to the debate that has been carried on here today and heard the words that have been said by the opposition, which is the view of most of the citizens of this country as well.

Because of the resources we have in Canada, with the minimal number of six fighter jets and the refuelling planes and reconnaissance planes, plus the people who we already have on the ground providing humanitarian aid and training Kurdish soldiers for the ground troops, we can do more. We can continue to do the very least that our allies could expect in support from a nation of our grandeur and our importance and our abilities.

We have never backed away from these types of fights and wars before. We must realize that we are in a war, and sometimes I believe that my hon. colleagues on the Liberal side of the House do not understand that we are in a terrible situation, with people being killed.

As was indicated in the House today, we have seen terrorism right here in our own country.

[Business of Supply, December 10th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to first and foremost thank the constituents of Brandon—Souris who have once again given me the great honour of representing them in this House. It's a great responsibility to be the voice of so many, and a source of immense pride to call western Manitoba home.

I will be sharing my time today with the member for Durham.

Today, this House is once again grappling with our nation's response to the terrors occurring in the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Before I begin, I want to pay homage to the brave men and women of the Canadian Armed Forces who wear our nation's uniform and keep Canada safe. Not only do the 1st Regiment, Royal Canadian Horse Artillery, and the 2nd Battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, train at CFB Shiloh, located in Brandon—Souris, but they are our friends and family. They are our neighbours and colleagues, and we are privileged to have them as part of our greater community. Their actions and courage in battle have brought glory to themselves and great distinction to Canada. They have sacrificed so much while defending our freedoms and bringing liberty to countless people around the world.

At this very moment, while we are debating this motion, they are serving and defending Canadian values at home and abroad, just as they have always done. It is with them in mind, and all of our men and women currently serving in Iraq, Syria, and the Middle East, that I speak with such conviction and confidence in their ability to destroy the evil that currently seeks to enslave women and children and brainwash millions of people around the world with its warped and wicked ideology. It is truly unfortunate that the new Liberal government refused to bring its proposed changes to the mission in Iraq and Syria to be debated on the floor of Parliament.

In recent years, thanks to Conservative openness, it has been the custom for any member of this House to have a say on the engagement of Canadian Armed Forces members on foreign soil. While Canadians in the past have had their representatives come and debate the merits of such deployments, unfortunately it seems that this practice has now ended. If it were not for the Conservative Party bringing this matter to the floor of the House today, not a word would have been said on Canada's involvement in combatting ISIS.

Colleagues, we must all admit that, regardless of our position on this critical matter, it deserves to be debated, and I am pleased that our Conservative Party has taken the lead on this issue. The crux of this debate rests in the question of Canada's role: should we continue to stand shoulder to shoulder with our allies; and do we have a moral responsibility to share the heavy lifting? As has been said before, it has never been the Canadian way to shirk our responsibility. It has never been the Canadian way to turn our backs on our allies and to only do the most praiseworthy of actions.

While the Americans, the French, the British, and others have risen to the occasion and have made the decision to combat ISIS, and most of all, risked their lives in the name of freedom and liberty for millions of people, the new Liberal government under the new Prime Minister has decided that halting and degrading ISIS with the assistance of our CF-18 fighter jets is no longer our concern.

While millions of people have been displaced and torn from their families, our new Liberal government has decided to step back. It has stepped back in the name of political expediency, rather than what needs to be done to defend and protect those living under the curtain of ISIS.

While it is true that RCAF assets will remain in the area, our new Prime Minister has asked our incredible and gifted fighter pilots to come home. While we have asked if the atrocities being carried out by the terrorists are not worthy enough of the intervention of our CF-18s, we have only been given obfuscation from the new Prime Minister. Even though our CF-18s have successfully bombed ISIS fighting positions, weapon caches, training facilities, and IED factories, the fighter pilots are now being told that their assistance is no longer welcomed by the new Liberal government. They are being told that their 1,167 sorties as of last week were not necessarily the best usage of their time, by the new Liberal government. They are now essentially being told that their efforts and the significance of their contribution to the international coalition's air bombing campaign were a mistake.

Let me say unequivocally, and as proudly and clearly as I can, that our CF-18 pilots have made a difference. Through their actions and collaborations with our allies, ISIS has lost the ability to operate freely in roughly 25% to 30% of Iraq territory that it previously controlled. They have played an important role in degrading, destabilizing, and weakening ISIS's position and operations in the region. Through their assistance, they have liberated cities and towns. They have struck the very operations and infrastructure that has propped up this jihadi regime. They have helped stop the spread of its poisonous ideology, while protecting the vulnerable and innocent civilians who have been caught up in this war.

Our fighter pilots have made Canadians proud. They have struck fear into the hearts of these so-called terrorists and are full partners in the global effort to degrade the abilities of ISIS. That is why it is incomprehensible that the new Liberal government is telling them to pack up and leave. While our allies have stepped up their efforts, the new Liberal government has yet to provide any rational or logical reason to recall our CF-18s. It has flatly declined the opportunity to outline what sort of horrific acts need to occur for our CF-18s ever to be considered part of the solution, rather than in the way.

Most worrisome, when it is Canada's time to shoulder our own burden of this renewed fight, our new Prime Minister has decided to hide behind his speech writers instead of getting into a substantial debate on the change of mission. Neither the Prime Minister nor any member of his government has explained how pulling our CF-18s out of the fight is helpful to our coalition partners, and it seems that once again they have passed on their opportunity during this important debate.

I am under no illusion that our motion will be passed. Not a single Liberal member of Parliament will break ranks. While prominent Liberals from across the nation have spoken out against the position of their new government, I call on all my hon. colleagues to stand up, be counted, and prove to not only our allies but to the women and children who have been enslaved by ISIS that Canada will not turn its back when called on. I call on my Liberal friends to join us in asking the government to continue our efforts in destroying the plague that seeks to sweep over the Middle East and Northern Africa, and the entire world if it has its way. This is their time to stand up for what is right rather than just their political party's position.

Canada has a moral responsibility to continue on all fronts, and that includes the deployment of our CF-18s in battling ISIS. No one in the House disagrees that more needs to be done, and I am encouraged to hear that countless Canadians will soon open their homes to the refugees fleeing this region. However, let us not fool ourselves. If we do not stomp out the evil that confronts us, more refugees, more families, and more communities will continue to be affected.

This battle is not for the lighthearted. It is costly and dangerous. As a nation, we are asking our brave CAF members, public servants, and NGOs to do all they can to alleviate the misery that lies in the wake of ISIS.

While we debate the merits of dealing with the consequences of ISIS, I urge all of us to recommit our efforts to destroy it. Let us think of our courageous allies who have pledged to up their commitments and think of how Canada will be viewed when our CF-18s are sent home because of some ill thought-out platform promise that got in the way of what is right and decent. Let us think of those who are being slaughtered and tortured. This is not the time for yielding. This is the time for action. I call on each and every member of the House to review the motion with great detail, think of those who are literally dying and suffering at the hands of ISIS, and ask themselves, if not now, when?

[Baldur Regals, June 18th, 2015]

Mr Speaker, it is my honour to rise today and pay tribute to the Baldur Regals senior baseball team, which earlier this month was inducted into the Manitoba Baseball Hall of Fame.

As the member of Parliament for Brandon—Souris, I wish to congratulate all of the players, coaches, and supporters on being bestowed this worthy distinction.

The Baldur Regals have been on a tear and won the Border West Senior AA Baseball League championship in six consecutive seasons, from 2007 to 2012, and they recently captured three Manitoba provincial Senior AA crowns, and in 2009, they won the Western Canadian Senior AA championship.

As in many small rural communities, baseball is a rite of passage, and in Baldur, Manitoba, and indeed all of Westman, it is no different.

So it is with great pride that we are able to celebrate the players' accomplishments in the House of Commons and to wish them success as participants and hosts of the Western Canadian Senior AA Baseball League championships this August 21 to 23 in Baldur, Manitoba.

Westman is proud of them, and I know all members of this House wish them all the best in the years to come.