Mike Lake

[Petitions, May 16th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, it is my privilege to stand in the House to present five petitions on behalf of a substantial number of my constituents, including one family in particular.

On October 14, 2006, Gary and Julie Hunt lost their 16-year-old son Josh in a violent and senseless act. Lacey and Robbie Hunt lost their big brother.

I realize that the rules of the House do not allow me to state whether I agree or disagree with petitions I present. What I can do is recognize the tremendous amount of courage and emotional strength shown by Gary Hunt, as well as the families of Shane Rolston, Dylan McGillis, Nina Courtepatte and many others, who, despite their literally unimaginable pain, are sharing their stories to ensure that other families do not have to experience what they have had to endure.

As one observer noted, these families belong to a club that nobody would ever want to join and yet they have realized the importance of that club and in ensuring that it does not grow any larger.

This petition consists of approximately 3,900 signatures regarding the use of case law during court proceedings.

[International Day of Families, May 15th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, today is the 14th annual International Day of Families. This year's theme is, “Families and Persons with Disabilities”.

Canadians appreciate what our government has been getting done for families and persons with disabilities. We understand the important contribution families make to Canada. That is why we are investing more to support families' choice in child care than any federal government in our history, three times more than the Liberals did, but there is more.

Our government is helping families enjoy the benefits of a better, safer and stronger Canada. Budget 2007 introduced a new registered disability savings plan, a working families tax plan that includes the new child tax credit, a more attractive RESP for students, and initiatives for seniors. This is on top of previously announced initiatives such as the universal child care benefit and the children's fitness tax credit.

While today is a special day to pay tribute to families, Canadians now have a government that acknowledges the importance of all families every day. I invite Canadians to celebrate the International Day of Families. I encourage all Canadians to take time to appreciate the special people who enrich their lives and make up their families.

[Youth Criminal Justice Act, April 16th, 2007]

moved for leave to introduce Bill C-423, An Act to amend the Youth Criminal Justice Act (treatment for substance abuse).

Mr. Speaker, this private member's bill would amend the Youth Criminal Justice Act to offer police officers an option to refer a young person alleged to have committed an offence to a substance abuse treatment program with the possible consequence of that young offender facing judicial proceedings if the program is not completed.

The purpose of the bill is to help our young people get the help they need, sometimes when they have not yet come to a place where they realize they need it.

I encourage all members to carefully consider and support this important bill.

(Motions deemed adopted, bill read the first time and printed)

[Points of Order, April 16th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I want to clarify that no such attack was made. Perhaps the member was not listening very carefully or has not reviewed what I said.

Obviously my attack was directed toward the Liberal Party of Canada for giving $2.2 million of taxpayers' hard-earned money to an organization that created absolutely zero child care spaces.

[Child Care, March 28th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, between 1993 and 2005, the Child Care Advocacy Association of Canada received a mind-numbing $2.2 million from the previous Liberal government.

Last week, its executive director, Monica Lysack, appeared before the human resources committee and tried to defend her organization, saying that the Liberals gave her $600,000 of that windfall to “monitor whether or not government investments in child care are actually being spent on child care”. What a typical Liberal manipulation.

By Ms. Lysack's own admission, her organization has never created one single care space, but the Liberals gave it $2.2 million and then asked it to track down organizations, like its own, that received taxpayer dollars and did not create child care spaces.

Fortunately for Canadian families, the days of Liberals' big talk and zero action on child care are over. With nearly $5.6 billion invested in children and early learning for the next year, the new Conservative government is clearly getting the job done for all Canadian families.

[Liberal Party of Canada, March 19th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, last week, the Liberal leader emerged from one of his party's regular, “What can we say to get elected” meetings, and announced that his party would get tough on crime, honestly, for real this time.

The Liberal leader says that the only way to protect our homes and our rights is to “catch and convict” more criminals. This is from the same party that completely gutted Bill C-9 which would have ensured that people who commit serious crime would not go back into the community but would actually serve their time behind bars.

While the Liberal leader used the phrase “catch and convict”, I would suggest that, based on the Liberal record, what he meant was catch and release.

Time and time again during this Parliament we have seen Liberals obstruct justice legislation which they said they supported during the last election campaign.

Given their current leadership void, I have some advice for Liberal organizers if they are planning to force an early election. Perhaps they might consider printing a “dry erase” version of the red book, complete with a marker and eraser so Canadians can keep their Liberal platform up to date with each new Liberal flip-flop.

[Human Resources and Social Development, February 28th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, our government recognizes that Canada's future competitiveness depends on developing a highly skilled workforce, a flexible labour market, as well as productive and innovative work places.

We also recognize the important role that immigrants play in our labour force. This morning the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development announced an investment of almost $3 million to support employment integration for skilled immigrants.

Can the minister please share with the House the benefits this funding will provide?

[Persons with Disabilities, February 21st, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have this opportunity to speak to Motion No. 243, which proposes to study the level of financial support provided to persons with disabilities through the Canada pension plan disability benefit.

The CPP disability benefit provides basic earnings replacement for contributors who are incapable of working regularly due to a disability that is severe and prolonged.

As a $3.3 billion program that affects the lives of nearly 300,000 Canadians, it warrants regular monitoring. That is why the government is pleased to support this motion.

However, this is not to say that the CPP and the CPP disability benefit do not regularly undergo other forms of evaluation or that they are not subject to ongoing improvement.

In fact, one of the reasons the study called for in Motion No. 243 is welcome is that it will serve to complement other work in this area.

Built into CPP legislation is a requirement that every three years federal, provincial and territorial ministers of finance, as joint stewards of the CPP, review it to ensure that it is financially sound and to make necessary adjustments.

The triennial review provides an opportunity to see that the CPP, including CPP disability, evolves to meet the changing needs of Canadians throughout their lives.

The most recent review, completed in 2006, confirmed that the Canada pension plan is indeed on firm financial footing now and for the foreseeable future.

Of course, any major changes to the CPP benefits and financing require the approval of Parliament and of two-thirds of the provinces with two-thirds of the population. Working together, the provinces, territories and the federal government ensure that the CPP remains accessible to Canadians.

I would like to take this opportunity to talk about some of the other ways the government is improving the Canada pension plan disability benefit.

First, the government is working to improve services for persons with disabilities, focusing on the needs of clients so that they can access their benefits as easily and quickly as possible.

Secondly, the CPP disability now provides support for beneficiaries who return to work. For example, since early 2005, when Parliament passed an amendment to the CPP, beneficiaries have a new financial safety net to count on when trying to return to regular employment: the automatic reinstatement of CPP disability benefits.

Automatic reinstatement helps CPP disability clients take a chance on returning to the workforce. Before this provision came into effect, clients were not sure they would requalify for benefits if it turned out that they could not continue working. Automatic reinstatement reduces this uncertainty by providing extended entitlement to clients whose CPP disability benefits come to an end because they begin working again on a regular basis. These clients have a two-year period during which, if their disability recurs and prevents them from staying at work, they can ask to have benefit payments restarted using a simple process.

A survey of clients who have used this provision shows it is doing what it was intended to and is serving those clients very well.

A substantial majority, 75%, felt that automatic reinstatement would influence their future return to work plans and a third of these clients indicated that the provision offers security and improves their self-confidence in planning a return to work. Almost 80% were completely or mostly satisfied with all facets of the process, including ease of use.

I would now like to put the Canada pension plan disability benefit in the context of the many other ways in which the government supports the participation and inclusion of persons with disabilities in Canadian society.

Members of the House may be aware of Human Resources and Social Development Canada's social development partnerships program disability component.

This $11 million grants and contributions program provides funding to national non-profit disability organizations actively engaged in ensuring full inclusion of Canadians with disabilities.

We recently extended these agreements for an additional year, with an increased investment to help people with disabilities to enter and stay in the labour market.

HRSDC also administers the opportunities fund, which is designed to assist people with disabilities to prepare for, find and maintain employment. About 4,800 Canadians with disabilities benefit from this program.

Through labour market agreements for persons with disabilities, HRSDC provides federal funding to the provinces to support programs and services for Canadians with disabilities.

I would like to underscore that over its relatively short lifespan, the government has taken significant steps to address the needs of the more than 3.6 million Canadians living with a disability.

In budget 2006, our government introduced several new measures to help families deal with the costs of caring for family members with disabilities. Specifically, the annual child disability benefit maximum was increased from $2,044 to $2,300, effective July 2006.

Also effective July 2006, eligibility for the child disability benefit was extended to medium and high income families who are responsible for caring for a child who is eligible for the disability tax credit. As well, budget 2006 increased the maximum refundable medical expense supplement from $767 to $1,000.

We recognize the difficulties for families who are dealing with disabilities and all of these measures are putting hard-earned tax dollars back into their pockets.

The government strongly believes that people with disabilities deserve every opportunity to participate fully in Canadian society. We are working toward this goal by showing leadership and by working to continually improve services to all Canadians, including those with disabilities.

On December 4, in honour of the International Day of Disabled Persons, the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development released the fourth federal disability report. The report provides an overview of the activities, results and expenditures of more than 50 federal programs and initiatives that support the needs of Canadians with disabilities. I urge hon. members to read it.

Among these many programs, the CPP disability benefit will continue to be one of the Government of Canada's primary supports for people with disabilities. We therefore want to ensure on an ongoing basis that this program is soundly administered and transparent in all aspects of its operations and that it provides good value for money with demonstrable results in keeping with the program's intent.

The Department of Human Resources and Social Development itself is about to undertake a comprehensive evaluation of CPPD. As it will be much broader in scope than the study proposed by this motion, the two can serve to complement each other.

Hard-working Canadian families make responsible decisions about their own budgets every single day. They expect their government to do the same, to be prudent, to be accountable, to deliver the programs Canadians need while respecting their tax dollars.

The study proposed by the hon. member opposite is very much in keeping with our government's promise to strengthen accountability and increase transparency and oversight in all government operations, a commitment exemplified in our government's new Federal Accountability Act. This is why I urge my hon. colleagues from all parties to support this important motion.

[Autism, February 21st, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, today I need to address an issue of political gamesmanship taken too far.

My 11-year-old son, Jaden, has autism. Bill C-304 purports to help families struggling financially when a child is diagnosed with autism. However, this bill is simply a political manipulation.

The Liberal member knows full well that this is a bill he could never have supported when he was in government. If this bill were to pass, autism would be the one and only disease or disorder named in the Canada Health Act. Cancer is not named. Neither is diabetes nor cardiovascular disease.

The member knows that only the provinces can act on the provision of ABA treatment if we are to maintain the integrity of the Canada Health Act. Why in most cases are the provinces not taking urgent action? That is a question to which voters should demand an answer from their provincial governments.

What the member does not get is that this is not an appropriate wedge issue to exploit for political gain. These are real people with real challenges who are desperate for real solutions. Bill C-304 does nothing but give false hope to families who deserve more than to be treated as pawns in a political game.

[Autism Genome Project, February 20th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I want to take this opportunity to recognize a group of Canadian scientists led by Dr. Stephen Scherer from the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto and Dr. Peter Szatmari from the Offord Centre for Child Studies.

Funded in large part by the Government of Canada, Genome Canada, OGI and CIHR, these scientists have been working in a leadership role since 2002 with 137 researchers from eight other countries on the autism genome project.

On Sunday this group made a very significant announcement regarding the discovery of a previously unidentified chromosomal region containing autism-causing genes, findings which will form the foundation of autism research worldwide for years to come.

As the parent of a child with autism, I know the importance of this research to earlier diagnosis and treatment, which are crucial for achieving the best possible results for kids with autism spectrum disorders.

Canadians should be extremely proud of the leadership role our researchers have taken on this project. This is an incredibly important day for families affected by autism not only in Canada, but around the world. Well done.