Nycole Turmel

[Business of the House, March 6th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, today the Conservatives broke their own record for shutting down debate by using time allocation for the 52nd and 53rd time since the 2011 election. Add this to six closures—most recently on debate related to the fabricated evidence that the member for Mississauga—Streetsville presented to the House of Commons—and you have 59 instances of the Conservatives using the Standing Orders to shutdown debate in the House. That is quite the record and quite the legacy.

The government House leader's command of the Standing Orders is so exceptional that, today, he forced time allocation of one sitting day on a bill that was slated to pass in less time than that. We were actually in favour of the bill and we could have passed it fairly quickly. This prevented other work from being done. It is incredible what we are seeing in the House right now.

Today, in its latest stroke of parliamentary brilliance, the government tried to sabotage the testimony given by the Chief Electoral Officer in today’s committee hearings on its unfair elections act, Bill C-23. Unfortunately after stumbling out of the gates, the Conservatives were forced to abandon their plan.

The Conservatives' disdain for our democracy and its institutions would be shocking if they did not make such a regular display of it. Canadians deserve much better than a government that behaves as though it is above the law.

My question for the parliamentary leader is this: what brilliant tactics does he have in store for the House after the riding weeks that will further display his dazzling command of the procedures and practices of this place?

[Democratic Reform, March 4th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, it is sad to see the attitude of the minister, who thinks he can remain comfortably ensconced in his office in Ottawa and still know everything about democracy and what Canadians want.

The people in the communities are not saying the same thing. Not one of my constituents is complaining about the work done by the Chief Electoral Officer.

Why is the minister refusing to get out of his Ottawa bubble to reform the democratic system of all Canadians? Why is he trying to muzzle the Chief Electoral Officer and take away his investigative powers?

[Democratic Reform, March 4th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, if the minister came down from his ivory tower, he would see that his view differs from reality.

If a resident receives a voter card with the former resident's name on it, he cannot simply vote in that person's place because he needs to present another piece of identification. There is already a system in place to ensure that people do not defraud the system in this way.

Why does the minister want to impose a measure that will only make it harder for young voters to vote?

[Petitions, March 4th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition to protect Gatineau Park, signed by many constituents from the national capital region.

As I have said many times, our park is not really protected by any federal legislation. We must absolutely correct this problem for future generations. Again, I hope that all members of the House will support this bill, which will truly provide a legacy for future generations.

[Petitions, March 3rd, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I have yet another petition calling for protection for Gatineau Park. This petition has been signed by many people from my area and from outside the region as well. They support my bill.

[Democratic Reform, March 3rd, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, it has now gotten to the point that the Minister of State for Democratic Reform is sitting in his Ottawa bubble and refuses to listen to criticism from Conservatives out west.

In addition to Mr. Manning, Harry Neufeld also spoke out against the reform this weekend. Mr. Neufeld said that the bill would give an advantage to incumbents and create completely inappropriate conditions in a democracy.

Why does the minister refuse to listen to citizens, think tanks, the Chief Electoral Officer or experts—anyone who urges him to improve his reform?

[Democratic Reform, March 3rd, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, there is growing opposition to the bill to reform the Canada Elections Act. This weekend, it was Preston Manning, the founder of the Reform Party, who expressed his concerns. He said that the Conservatives should be increasing rather than decreasing the Chief Electoral Officer's role in educating people about and promoting elections.

Does the government plan on following Mr. Manning's advice?

[Democratic Reform, February 27th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, electoral reform is very controversial. Tens of thousands of Canadians have signed a petition asking for it to be amended. The Chief Electoral Officer, Marc Mayrand, pointed out numerous issues with the reform. Experts from across the country have identified certain changes that should be made.

The minister cannot deny that this reform is far from perfect. Will the minister amend his reform and integrate the concerns raised by experts and the public?

[Democratic Reform, February 27th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, the reform proposed by the Conservatives requires that Elections Canada not retain voter data for more than a year. With that type of provision in place, it is possible that the fraudulent calls would not have been investigated because the data would have been destroyed too quickly.

Why does the minister not want the data to be retained for a longer period of time?

[Democratic Reform, February 27th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives' botched reform of the Canada Elections Act will prevent the chief electoral officer from hiring technical experts or specialists without the approval of the Treasury Board. That basically means that Elections Canada could not have hired experts to investigate the Conservatives' fraudulent calls unless the Conservative minister in charge of the Treasury Board had signed off on it.

Does the minister really believe that this provision is appropriate?