Larry Miller

[History Awards for Excellence in Teaching, November 3rd, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House today to congratulate two teachers from my riding on receiving prestigious awards for teaching excellence.

I was honoured today, to join Ryan McManaman and David Alexander at Rideau Hall as they received the Governor General's History Awards for Excellence in Teaching. These gentlemen are both history teachers at OSCVI in Owen Sound and are being honoured today for their dedication to teaching Canadian history through unique programs that encourage students to learn more about residents of the Owen Sound area who were involved in the First and Second World Wars.

In typical fashion, Ryan and David both thanked veterans during the awards presentation today. These teachers have shown a true commitment and dedication to teaching Canadian history, and I commend them both on a job very well done. Their students are very fortunate.

On behalf of all residents of Bruce—Grey—Owen Sound, and indeed all Canadians, I congratulate Ryan and David on this tremendous achievement and wish them all the best in their future successes.

[Motor Vehicle Safety Act, October 28th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure today to speak to the bill.

While the government cannot support the side guard bill before us, we want to reassure all Canadians that we take the issues of vehicle and road safety very seriously. We continue to seek opportunities to improve safety on Canada's roads. Due to their size, we especially take the issue of truck and bus safety seriously.

Today I would like to share some information with members on some of the important work we have done and will be doing in the future to continue to improve the safety of heavy vehicles operating on Canadian roads.

Our government strongly believes that regulatory improvements made under the authority of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act are a key reason that progressively fewer people have been killed and injured on our roads, despite the ever-increasing number of motor vehicles on the road.

We are encouraged by the information from our national crash data that shows steady and impressive progress toward a vision of Canada having the safest roads in the world. Our most recent data show that fatal motor vehicle collisions are at their lowest since we began maintaining collision statistics some 60 years ago.

In a perfect world, we could eliminate all accidents, but unfortunately, that just is not the case. It does not matter what we do.

We must keep road safety in Canada a responsibility shared between the federal, provincial, and territorial governments.

The federal government is responsible for the regulations that govern the safety requirements for newly constructed and imported motor vehicles under the Motor Vehicle Safety Act and for operational matters for interprovincial commercial busing and trucking companies under the Motor Vehicle Transport Act. The provinces and territories are responsible for safety on Canada's roads and highways.

Transport Canada has a long history of working to improve road safety in Canada. In 1970, the very first vehicle safety regulations were developed and proposed. In 1987, the federal, provincial, and territorial ministers responsible for transportation and highway safety agreed to develop and implement a national safety code to encourage truck and bus safety, promote efficiency in the motor carrier industry, and achieve consistent safety standards in this area across Canada.

The national safety code was based on the consolidation of existing provincial and territorial legislation and regulations, supplemented with new initiatives designed to further enhance safety across the country. We are pleased that the national safety code standards have been developed to cover motor carrier safety ratings, on-road safety inspections, facility safety audits at the motor carrier's place of business, driver and motor carrier safety profile systems, commercial vehicle trip inspection reports, commercial driver hours of service, commercial vehicle maintenance, and load securement requirements.

The code's administrative standards also cover driver licensing, medical standards, driver knowledge and performance testing, and a driver-examiner training program.

The Motor Vehicle Transport Act allows the provinces and territories to act on behalf of the federal government to enforce the federal hours of service regulations for the operation of trucks and buses that operate between provinces and territories and internationally.

The hours of service regulations govern the maximum driving times and minimum off-duty times for truck and bus drivers. The regulations require drivers to keep a record of their daily driving and other work activities in a prescribed format and to make these records available to designated enforcement officials upon request. I should also note that the provinces and territories also enforce their own local hours of service regulations, which are similar to the federal regulations.

As a government, we continue to look to the future and the benefits offered by electronic logging devices. Electronic logging devices are used to track, collect, and record electronic safety data on a truck or bus driver's compliance with the hours of service regulations.

These hours of service rules are designed to limit a truck driver's driving and working hours to reduce the possibility of driver fatigue. The use of these devices could reduce the risk of record falsification and thereby improve safety.

Canada, through the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators, which includes the federal, provincial and territorial governments, is developing a national safety code technical standard for these electronic logging devices. In the interest of north-south trade, this standard will be harmonized with the American final standard, which is expected to be published in 2015.

Regulations represent a necessary and fundamental part of commercial driver fatigue management. They provide legal limits to the amount of work that can be done within specific time frames and they protect drivers' off-duty time.

Regulations, however, do not represent a complete solution to addressing the problem of driver fatigue. Regulations do not provide knowledge about fatigue. Nor do they change driver attitudes, motivations or the safety culture in a company. Today it is widely accepted that in order for a fatigue mitigation approach to be comprehensive, all of these issues should be addressed.

With partners from Quebec, Alberta and the United States, Transport Canada has developed a North American fatigue management program. This program is the result of a decade long evidence-based development process. It is a voluntary, free of charge, fully interactive, bilingual web-based education program to provide motor carriers, shippers, commercial vehicle drivers and their families with resources and tools to help them understand the science of fatigue, the importance of good sleep hygiene and healthy lifestyles. It contains various strategies to reduce fatigue, improve alertness and, in doing so, enhance the safety of the truck and bus driver, other motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians. The North American fatigue management program is an ideal complement to hours of service regulations.

When it comes to truck and bus drivers, we are specifically interested in their health and wellness. While Transport Canada has a special interest in preventing fatigue, it also has a more holistic strategy to address truck and the health and wellness of bus drivers.

Last year, it conducted the first step of a multi-year research program. It mandated a team of occupational health and safety experts to draft a discussion paper that would document the importance of the issue, the relationship between the health of drivers and road safety, industry productivity, driver shortage and health care costs. The paper also reveals the importance of conducting a study to measure the health status of our truck and bus drivers, and to identify risk factors and potential countermeasures.

Transport Canada is now beginning the second phase of the program, which is the creation of a research advisory committee that will be tasked to draft a formal research proposal. This committee will unite stakeholders from government, academia and industry for the first time around this important issue and together develop a strategy that will help promote a healthier work environment and a healthier lifestyle for this significant workforce, which plays a vital role in Canada's economy.

While side guards have not shown the benefits that warrant regulation, alternative technologies have the potential to improve safety around heavy trucks for both cyclists and pedestrians. Technology such as mirrorless commercial vehicles with side view cameras and proximity sensors may be beneficial in preventing a broader range of collision types, such as turning manoeuvres, where side guards have not shown significant benefit. New stability and advanced braking systems that are currently under development will also assist truck and bus drivers to maintain control of their vehicles in emergency situations.

It is expected that the introduction of these new technologies will continue to improve road safety. Transport Canada continues to study these promising emerging technologies for potential future regulation.

Where there is a convincing argument to mandate a new safety requirement, Transport Canada has had a strong record of taking action to save lives and prevent injuries. For example, Canada has the most stringent world requirement for rear under ride guards, a device that helps protect vehicle occupants in the event of a collision with the rear-end of a trailer. Unlike the case for side guards, rear under ride guards have clearly demonstrated a safety benefit.

I know I am running out of time so I am going to leave it at that. There is a lot more I could say, but I am pleased to have been able to comment.

[Liberal Party of Canada, October 9th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians have known for years that the NDP bows to the will of the big union bosses and their illegal political sponsorships. However, last month some big union bosses announced that they would be supporting the Liberal Party rather than their fellow travellers in the NDP.

It did not take the Liberal Party very long to start following its new union bosses' instructions. Only a few weeks ago, the member for Saint-Laurent—Cartierville was advertised on the Public Service Alliance of Canada Twitter account provocatively criticizing the government.

Unlike the Liberals, whose single policy is to legalize drugs, on this side of the House, we stand up for the interests of Canadian taxpayers. This government lowers Canadian taxes, balances budgets and puts money back in the pockets of hard-working Canadians. We will continue to stand up for them day in and day out.

[Hepworth-Shallow Lake Rotary Club, October 1st, 2014]

I rise in the House today to congratulate the Hepworth-Shallow Lake Rotary Club on their 65th anniversary and to thank them for all the work they have done over the past 65 years.

Furthermore, I would like to sincerely congratulate Mr. Ed Ruth on the 50th anniversary of his membership with this club. This is truly an outstanding achievement. In his late 20s, Ed was the victim of an unfortunate accident that resulted in the loss of one arm. He was a hard-working man with a wife and three children to support. During this difficult time, it was this local rotary club that sought out Ed and offered him any assistance they could give. It was for this reason that Ed joined the rotary club, and he has been an active member ever since.

I believe that I speak for all Canadians in congratulating Ed on his outstanding commitment and unwavering support for his community over the past 50 years. Congratulations to both Ed Ruth and the Hepworth-Shallow Lake Rotary Club on these tremendous achievements, and all the best in their future successes.

[Canada-Korea Economic Growth and Prosperity Act, September 25th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I think there was definitely a lot of support in there for this agreement. All I can ensure, as can he, is that I will, and I know this government will, do everything we can to see that this is done, and I feel confident that will happen.

I would urge him to do the same, follow with his words—and I am not going to doubt he will do that—urge all his colleagues, and urge the opposition across the way. This can be done in that time frame. I, for one, would be very disappointed if we, in the House, did not do our parts to see that this happened.

[Canada-Korea Economic Growth and Prosperity Act, September 25th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I understand that the member and his party are going to support the agreement. I certainly welcome that and would have hoped for nothing less.

When we are negotiating any deal, we all know that in negotiations—and they are exactly that, negotiations—we do not get everything we want. However, this deal would be a great improvement to the situation we have now, when it comes to trade.

If producers of Canada were not protected under this deal, simply put, this government would not sign it. Therefore, I feel quite confident, and I think he will too if he looks at the fine print, that this deal would have Canada protected and allow us to ship our products.

In my riding, I have everything from apples, to beef and pork. I have it all. In fact, it is the second-largest beef-producing riding in the country. This would be huge for our farmers across this country, and again, I thank him for his support when the time comes.

[Canada-Korea Economic Growth and Prosperity Act, September 25th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, by the sound of the heckling, they do not like the truth.

The Liberals took Canada virtually out of the game of trade negotiations, putting Canadian workers and businesses at severe risk of falling behind in this era of global markets. In fact, the last time the Liberals tried to talk seriously about trade, they campaigned to rip up the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Canada's prosperity requires expansion beyond our borders into new markets for economic opportunities that serve to grow Canada's exports and investment. As Canada's first FTA with an Asian market, the Canada-Korea free trade agreement is truly a landmark achievement.

With average Canadian exports from 2011 to 2013 of agriculture and agrifood to South Korea reaching almost $644 million, Canada is one of South Korea's largest suppliers. This agreement would further deepen our trade ties by improving market access for all of Canada's key agricultural export interests.

In general, South Korea would eliminate tariffs on around 70% of Canadian agricultural exports within five years. Within 15 years, 97% of exports would be duty free. This would lead to substantial gains for agriculture given that this sector is so heavily protected in South Korea. For example, South Korea's average applied agricultural tariff is 52.7% compared to 6.8% for non-agricultural goods.

The Canada-Korea FTA is critical to re-establishing a level playing field for Canadian agriculture and agrifood producers competing in the South Korean market, where major competitors from the United States and the European Union currently benefit from preferential access under their free trade agreements. Australia signed an FTA with South Korea in April 2014, and is expected to enter into force in the coming months.

While these are just some of the broad benefits for the overall sector, there are also significant gains for key agricultural products, including in meats, grains, pulses, oilseeds, fur skins, animal feeds, processed foods, alcoholic beverages, and fruits and vegetables.

In particular, beef and pork were Canada's two top priorities and among the most challenging areas of the negotiation. Under the Canada-Korea FTA, tariffs as high as 40% on fresh, chilled and frozen beef and pork would be eliminated over periods ranging from five to fifteen years.

Importantly, the Canada-Korea free trade agreement rules of origin reflect the integration of the North American livestock industry, which is a key result for us.

This agreement also aims to further Canada's position as a global supplier of grain and grain products by opening new markets in South Korea. Our grain exports would benefit from the immediate elimination of South Korean tariffs on some of Canada's high-quality grains and special crops, including wheat, rye, oats, mustard seed, and canary seed.

Wheat flour would benefit from tariffs eliminated over five years, while Canada's exports of barley malt to South Korea would be immediately duty-free under large commercially significant transitional quota volumes and will gain unlimited duty-free access after 15 years.

This agreement also holds tremendous potential for Canada's oilseeds and oilseed products sector. Tariffs on canola would be eliminated immediately upon implementation, while the current tariff of 5% on refined and crude canola oil would be eliminated over three to five years. Canadian exports to South Korea of identity preserved soybeans would see immediate duty-free access under permanent quota volumes. This is a product of particular interest to Ontario and Quebec.

Other key sectors that would benefit are Canada's fruits, vegetables and pulse sectors. Under the agreement, current tariffs of 30% on frozen blueberries would be eliminated within seven years, while tariffs on pulses, such as kidney beans, lentils and chickpeas, would be eliminated over five years. Tariffs on feed peas would be eliminated immediately upon entry into force.

This agreement also includes notable benefits for processed foods and alcoholic beverages. Upon entry into force, duties on icewine would be eliminated from current duties of 15%. This is significant, as icewine makes up 90% of Canada's white wine exports to South Korea. Furthermore, duties on rye whiskey would be eliminated upon entry into force.

Canada would receive immediate duty-free access on Canada's key processed food exports, including frozen french fries, maple syrup, maple sugar and golden roasted flaxseed. Other products that would see their tariffs eliminated during a phase-out period include baked goods, chocolate, sugar, confectionery, and cranberry and blueberry juices.

These are just some examples of the types of agricultural sectors and products that would benefit from the Canada-Korea free trade agreement. Given this positive outcome, a wide range of agriculture and agrifood stakeholders, such as the Canadian Cattlemen's Association, the Canadian Pork Council, the Canadian Agri-food Trade Alliance, the Canola Council of Canada and Pulse Canada, to name a few, have strongly and publicly supported this agreement.

To ensure that Canadian farmers and food processors benefit fully from this groundbreaking agreement, the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food continues to work closely with the Canadian agriculture industry to open new doors in South Korea.

I would like to take this time to thank the Minister of Agriculture and Minister of International Trade for the great work that they have done in the past number of years in getting not just the Canada-Korea free trade agreement but all the other ones that the government has signed. There are more to come.

In April, the minister led a delegation of 30 agriculture associations and companies to seize on the opportunities for agriculture trade heralded by this agreement. The visit successfully strengthened agricultural trade ties between Canadian exporters and South Korean importers. As our competitors in the European Union, the United States, Austria, Chile and other countries have already signed or implemented agreements with South Korea, Canada's farmers and food processors are currently at a major disadvantage to access this market. This disadvantage would widen further if Canada delays in ratifying this agreement.

I know that I am running out of time, but I would like to emphasize the great importance of this deal for all Canadian business, and particularly agriculture. With that, I welcome questions.

[Canada-Korea Economic Growth and Prosperity Act, September 25th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to finish the major part of my speech and would remind you that I am splitting my time with the member for Don Valley West.

As such, continued success of the agriculture and agrifood sector is heavily dependent on an ability to compete in international markets over the long term. Therefore, it is no surprise that our government continues to work tirelessly to increase access to some of the fastest growing global markets, including South Korea.

Yet despite all the evidence that trade creates jobs, economic growth and economic security for hard-working Canadian families, the NDP, together with its activist group allies, is and always will be ideologically opposed to trade. When the NDP talks trade, it is not the interests of hard-working Canadian families it has in mind; it is the interests of its core supporters, its radical activist group allies, which are of concern to it.

The Liberals are just as bad. During 13 long years in government, the Liberals completely neglected trade, completing only a paltry three—three—free trade agreements.

[Canada-Korea Economic Growth and Prosperity Act, September 25th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the hon. member for Don Valley West.

I rise today to talk about the landmark Canada-Korea free trade agreement. I will specifically concentrate on the benefits and opportunities created by this agreement for our agriculture and agri-food producers and exporters.

Canadian farmers and processors produce some of the best quality food in the world. Our products reflect Canada's dedication to excellence, safety and innovation.

In 2013, the agriculture and agri-food sector accounted for 6.7% of Canada's total GDP and contributed to one in eight jobs in Canada, employing 2.2 million people.

It is estimated that approximately half of the primary agriculture production in Canada is exported. The processed foods industry is also highly export dependent. Overall, with export sales topping a record of $46 billion in 2013, Canada is the world's fifth largest exporter of agriculture and agri-food.

[Petitions, September 24th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I have a petition to present that has been signed by a large number of people in my riding.

The petition came about due to a reclassification of firearms made by the RCMP in recent months. The petitioners are calling on the government to enforce the Firearms Act and regulations in an open, transparent, and fair manner.