Marc-André Morin

[Business of Supply, December 10th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to know what my colleague thinks about the circumstances surrounding the sale of Nexen, at a time when there is an extreme labour shortage in Alberta. In Newfoundland, the shortage of tradespeople is forcing employers to recruit workers from Ireland, Norway and all over the place.

Who is going to work on this site? Temporary Chinese workers?

In China, a well-paid tradesman earns $65 a month. In Alberta, young people who work in the oil industry earn $65 an hour. I wonder how much the Chinese workers will be paid and whether China will allow them to go back home with salaries that are equivalent to what a minister earns in their country. I wonder how this is all going to work.

[Strengthening Military Justice in the Defence of Canada Act, December 6th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, it is very easy for my colleague to say what he is saying now. I do not want to go back over all the details, but I would point out that the NDP presented amendments at the time Bill C-41 was being considered. They were excellent proposals that provided solutions to real problems that had arisen in another botched bill.

After 2015, we are going to write our own bills, they way they should be written, and we will examine them in committees. We will not come back and try to fix them later.

The opportunity to support the amendments arose in the past when the former incarnations of this bill were introduced. In its present form, these amendments were all presented and not one was adopted. That is why we do not want to go any further. In any event, the Conservatives are going to pass their bill anyway, based on the principle that nothing will go into it that they did not come up with themselves.

[Strengthening Military Justice in the Defence of Canada Act, December 6th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, the army is indeed a hierarchy, and everywhere there are hierarchies there are conflicts between the various levels. A commanding officer may not like one of his subordinates or appreciate the way he reacts. That can cause tension. I cannot see why there would not be tension in the army as there is across all society, especially since these people are pushed to their limits when it comes to professional performance. There is certainly great potential for conflict, which may result in injustices being done.

If we do not think about it now, we will have to think about it later. On the other side of the House, they always want to act later and never now.

[Strengthening Military Justice in the Defence of Canada Act, December 6th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I sit on the Standing Committee on International Trade. I have, on occasion, sat on many other committees to replace colleagues. Knocking back amendments is the Conservatives' national sport. I have almost never seen an amendment adopted, unless it was something absolutely insignificant, of no importance, and about which everybody cannot help but agree. Amendments are always systematically defeated. Members have barely taken their seats before they hear the words “defeated” ringing in their ears. It has become an automated response.

The Conservatives would now have us believe that the opposition can make a series of proposals about which they will remain open-minded. I certainly have my doubts. If people were aware of how things worked in committee, they would be even more concerned than they are right now about what is going on here.

[Strengthening Military Justice in the Defence of Canada Act, December 6th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, there definitely needs to be a difference between the two justice systems. One ought to be applicable to situations in which soldiers are doing their jobs and putting their lives and health in danger. The difference between these conditions and civilian life afterwards need to be taken into consideration. It is not the same thing, and the distinction must be made; otherwise there is a risk that they will return to society after having been through a justice system that denies them some of the rights to which they would be entitled in civilian society.

[Strengthening Military Justice in the Defence of Canada Act, December 6th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, this afternoon, I listened to the government MPs' questions. They asked us why we oppose this, that and the other thing. Simply put, as they are in the majority, they can do whatever they want. We cannot stop them, because no amendments are ever adopted in parliamentary committees, and none of our amendments are ever adopted here, ever.

They should instead ask themselves a philosophical question. The government's policy decisions are supposed to be based on human rights and on building a just society in other countries whose society is not based on law and a proper justice system. Some people volunteer to work towards this and put their lives at risk. When they return, they are denied access to an equitable and basically decent justice system. The Conservatives are unable to do what has been done in Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand. Perhaps they prefer the 19th century system of military justice, imported from Great Britain, which probably was called “the Royal something or other”.

If we want to build a lawful society in Afghanistan, we should begin by looking into the possibility of having one here.

It is clear that the armed forces need a justice system to deal with problems that occur in the field, in extreme cases where rapid action is required. However, there is no reason why this form of justice should continue to haunt soldiers in their civilian lives for years. They are already dogged by physical injuries and post-traumatic stress, and do not need to be burdened by a criminal record that will handicap them in their everyday lives for the rest of their days.

[Jobs and Growth Act, 2012, December 3rd, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I am tired of hearing the minister spout nonsense about the carbon tax. I would much rather hear him talk about the list drafted by the hon. member for Halifax.

About a dozen of the lakes she mentioned are in my riding, and I am familiar with many of the other ones, since I am familiar with many lakes across Canada, including some in Yukon and British Columbia. It is clear that the Conservatives know how to shoot their mouths off, but when it comes time to protect our waterways, they do nothing.

Are they not concerned about the fact that an entire industry depends on our lakes and rivers? If they are not protected, that industry will disappear.

[Public Safety, November 28th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, the magnificent region that I represent attracts thousands of visitors from around the world.

It could attract even more, but the Conservatives continue to neglect the Mont-Tremblant International Airport. The airport is an excellent economic driver for the region, but it is facing problems with regard to customs services.

The only thing I am asking the Minister of Public Safety is to take a few moments to meet with me to try to find solutions to these problems.

Will he finally respond to my many meeting requests?

[First Nations Financial Transparency Act, November 27th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, I come from the riding next to my colleague's. Clearly, all across Canada, there are people who are somewhat racist and a bit redneck who cannot bear to see aboriginal people driving a nice pick-up or living in a real house with running water. But the problem does not stop there. A lot of first nations' businesses work in very competitive environments, like trucking, aviation, mining or the service industry.

They often work in extremely competitive situations. If they are forced to post all the dealings they have with all their clients and partners, it will be hell for them. They will no longer be able to compete. But that does not seem to be of the slightest concern to the members opposite because they do not want to see any development among first nations.

[Canada-Panama Economic Growth and Prosperity Act, November 6th, 2012]

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite just spoke about the agreement with Japan and how important it is for Canada to show that it is serious about its international commitment.

I was part of a delegation that went to Japan last June. We have never looked more foolish in our lives. During a meeting on the last day of our visit, a former Japanese diplomat told us that the Canadian embassy in Tokyo no longer offers consular services. We learned that from a Japanese colleague.

I do not think they are taking this very seriously, because if Panama is important, Japan is probably 25 to 30 times more important to Canada. It is the best partner we could sign an agreement with. If the government starts fooling around, we will lose our opportunity to do business with this country and that would be much more serious than losing opportunities with Panama.