Pierre Nantel

[CBC/Radio-Canada, March 27th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday CBC management announced that the corporation is cutting another 244 jobs, including 100 in French-language operations.

In Quebec and across Canada, the regions are the victims of this Conservative government's blind cuts. In a panic, management is now shedding young employees, the very people who could make Radio-Canada and the CBC leaders when it comes to reflecting our identity on new platforms.

Quebeckers love Radio-Canada, whether it is in Rimouski, Rouyn-Noranda, Trois-Rivières, Sherbrooke, Roberval or Sept-Îles.

Is the Minister of Canadian Heritage not ashamed of forcing our public broadcaster to inflict these deep cuts?

[Tougher Penalties for Child Predators Act, March 27th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I have a very serious question for the member.

There is obviously a lack of resources. In each of our ridings police forces often tell us that they are short on staff to carry out investigations, in cases of pedophilia, of course, but also those involving street gangs. Take, for example, the horrendous case of Jenique Dalcourt back home in Longueuil which is yet to be resolved. There is still a killer on the streets of Vieux-Longueuil, and a lot of people are very worried, even police officers.

What does my colleague think about the fact that with all of the Conservatives' never-ending talk of law and order, they still fail to take real action? Is it not true that we do not have the funds to help our municipal police forces?

[Business of Supply, March 24th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her speech. It is true that these issues are very important.

The member mentioned the organization GRAME in her speech. In my riding we have the Centre d'information en environnement de Longueuil, Ciel et Terre, which looks out for our waterways. What my colleague talked about today was very practical. We regularly use products that end up in the sediments in our waterways and in the food of our marine wildlife. I also heard that the beads in question heat up differently in sunlight. That would even change how eggs grow and are laid, which affects the development of our wildlife.

This seems promising. Everyone seems to want to come to an agreement on this important issue. Is it realistic to think that Canada could potentially play a key role in setting international standards?

[Canadian Heritage, March 13th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, that is irrelevant. I am sorry, but that is not what we are talking about.

By reducing the space reserved for broadcasting Canadian content, the CRTC is making a dramatic change to the public policies that were put in place to support creation here in Canada. He is talking about jobs, but we are talking about culture.

The result is that producers and creators are being put at risk. Our television programming will reflect who we are less and less.

Is the minister aware that although talking about jobs for Canadians may be part of her role, her main priority should be to protect and promote the diversity of our cultural sovereignty here in Canada?

[Canadian Heritage, March 13th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the CRTC announced that it was lowering the Canadian-content quotas for television, knowing full well the impact that that regulation has on the entire television industry.

This decision will undermine the creation of local programming. What is more, it shows the Conservatives' complete disregard for the new digital reality in the media. A report was already sounding the alarm on digital issues in 2011.

Why did this government ignore the repeated testimony of the creators of our cultural sovereignty?

[Zero Tolerance for Barbaric Cultural Practices Act, March 12th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech. I can understand why he is surprised and disappointed to see the government once again cutting short our speaking time on this sort of bill.

Does this urgency not make him think that the government wants to send another email to party members to encourage them to donate generously, by putting the word that my colleague is calling into question in the title of the bill? Does it not benefit the Conservatives to label their campaign with this type of terminology?

[Zero Tolerance for Barbaric Cultural Practices Act, March 12th, 2015]

I listened to the minister's remarks. From what he said about this Parliament, one would think we were working in a sausage factory. This is not a war room; this is a parliament. We need to discuss and take our time dealing with these bills.

The interventions from the members on this side of the House this morning have brought a different, new and constructive perspective. I cannot imagine how the minister can in good conscience continue to ignore our message and forge blindly ahead, running roughshod over anything we say.

[Zero Tolerance for Barbaric Cultural Practices Act, March 12th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I am so disappointed in what the minister has been saying this morning. At this point, everyone can see that there are good reasons the NDP has for years been calling for more funding for police forces and those working on the ground.

What we are hearing clearly this morning is that they want to stifle the debate and send out messages from an electioneering perspective. They want to pique the interest of the people their party is constantly sending messages to about current events and urging to donate money to their campaign.

There is a debate going on this morning, but we are being prevented from speaking. If the minister believes that Bill S-7 is a priority, then how does he explain the previous 90 times?

[Business of Supply, March 10th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I would first like to thank my colleague for her very articulate and detailed speech, which really highlighted the NDP position on this situation and the turmoil in the Canadian economy, which the government is not addressing.

The government is not commenting, nor is it bringing down its new budget or coming up with new solutions. We hear over and over again the same old song about the plan to date, which does not take into account what is happening today. I really liked the image she conjured up of the orchestra that kept playing on the Titanic.

I would like to know how she can continue to hope that the government will hear the NDP's common sense message.

[Business of Supply, March 10th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his very heartfelt speech. He mentioned young people. It is true that we are currently failing our young people. We need to address the future of jobs in the manufacturing sector, not the resource sector.

We heard the member for Brant talk about the successes in his region. Every time he rises in the House, he tells us that everything is going well in his riding. That is odd, because we do not often hear that kind of speech.

I would like to ask my colleague why he thinks the government continues to give us the same old story about the economic action plan it has implemented, which is obviously not working, and in passing insults the CIBC economists.