Marlene Jennings

[Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, October 16th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, the government says that it is not planning any privatization of the CMHC. That is great.

[Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, October 16th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, if what the minister said is right, perhaps she should advise the president of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, who believes that the government is planning to privatize or otherwise dispose of the CMHC.

While still squirrelling away surpluses inherited from the previous Liberal government, why does this government want to turn a government agency accessible to all into a private enterprise that will only benefit its shareholders?

Is this government telling everyone who benefits from the CMHC—

[Softwood Lumber Products Export Charge Act, 2006, October 6th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I am seeking clarification. When you say that the vote is deferred until Monday, October 16, did I understand you correctly to say at the end of government orders at 6:30 in the evening?

[Status of Women, October 6th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, the cuts and changes made by this minority Conservative government to the women's program also jeopardize funding for the YWCA and a project called the Table des groupes de femmes de Montréal.

Defending women's rights is not a waste of money or time, as this Conservative government would like to suggest.

Why do the Prime Minister and the Minister of Canadian Heritage, who should both be fighting for women's rights, refuse to admit this?

[Status of Women, October 6th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, Michèle Asselin of the Fédération des femmes du Québec says she fears for the future.

The federation receives funding that allows it to make changes to discriminatory bills. Now that is what I call value for money.

The minority Conservative government decided that this work was not important. It changed the women's program and might stop supporting the federation.

Unless he wants to support discriminatory bills, why is the Prime Minister penalizing women?

[Criminal Code, October 4th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, I have to admit to this House, and to anyone who is watching, how much I appreciated the comments of my colleague who just spoke.

I would like him to provide us with a bit more information about the particulars of this bill as it regards ensuring the rights of two co-accused, each one from one of our two official languages, to have a bilingual trial to ensure that each one would be able to have their trial in their language of choice.

There is first, the fact that this charter right, which we now are finding in this bill, actually comes out of court challenges which were funded under the Court Challenge Program which this new Conservative minority government has just cut. Second, there is the fact that many of the issues that are being dealt with within this bill are as a result of work that was done by the Law Commission, which again this new minority Conservative government is cutting funding for, notwithstanding that it was created by parliamentary statute.

[Literacy, October 4th, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, on September 8, the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development stated that the Government of Canada was working to help citizens enhance their literacy skills. Barely two weeks later, the government announced it was cutting $17.7 million from funding to local and regional literacy programs.

These cuts will have a serious impact on services provided to minority communities in Canada. Such cuts will destroy the minority language literacy services network, including the Pluri-elles group which will have to shut down nine literacy centres in French-speaking rural Manitoba.

That is a disgrace.

[Government Appointments, October 2nd, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are not blind. Appointments to the Canada Pension Plan Review Tribunal were based on political allegiances.

The minister rewarded friends of Conservatives, their legal partners and financial backers of Conservative Party leadership candidates for their work. Why does the minister think this important tribunal is just another way to reward her political cronies?

[Government Appointments, October 2nd, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, was it that hard to find a Conservative to fill the job with the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal? The Prime Minister said to himself, “Why not appoint the extreme right-wing Alliance-Reform candidate, Kerry-Lynne Findlay?”

We all know that the Prime Minister thinks the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal interferes with our basic freedoms. So why did he appoint Ms. Findlay, when she thinks exactly the same way he does?

[De la Concorde Overpass, October 2nd, 2006]

Mr. Speaker, it was with great sadness that we heard the news of the tragedy that took place in Laval on Saturday when the de la Concorde overpass collapsed.

We would like to offer our condolences to the families of the five people who died. Our thoughts are with you.

We also wish the six people who were injured the speediest possible recovery. Our thoughts are with you and with your families.