Pierre Nantel

[Champlain Bridge, November 6th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, what a debacle.

The Minister of Infrastructure has finally seen the light. One thing is for sure, this minister's insensitivity has embroiled the family of our Maurice Richard in a huge controversy that it never asked for. Nevertheless, the minister is refusing to close the debate, although there is really no room for debate. This is not a new crossing or a new bridge. Therefore, it does not need a new name.

Instead of getting sidetracked, why does the minister not focus on his real responsibilities: greater transparency in the bidding process, no tolls and, finally, discussions with the government and the CMM.

[CBC/Radio-Canada, November 6th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Minister of Canadian Heritage tried unsuccessfully to defend her partisan appointments to the CBC's board of directors, using Pierre Gingras as an example.

Let us talk about Mr. Gingras. Known for his involvement in the Conservative Party and his close ties to their leader in the Senate, he is a former member of the ADQ in Blainville, and was himself under investigation by Canadian Heritage in 2013 for allegations at the Charbonneau commission.

We want to know when the report from that investigation was received and what its findings were.

[CBC/Radio-Canada, November 5th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, nine out of 12 is not bad.

CBC/Radio-Canada is a cultural institution that is vital to Canada, and especially to Quebec. It would even be fair to say that Radio-Canada has been one of the key instruments to the affirmation of Quebeckers. The people running it should be aware of that heritage.

Unfortunately, the Conservatives like appointing their cronies to that corporation. Nine out of 12 members of the board of directors are thugs who have been placed there to dismantle our public broadcaster and who could not care less about the impact these cuts will have on our heritage. Will the minister ever acknowledge this reality? Her government is responsible for this mess.

[CBC/Radio-Canada, November 5th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, for weeks now, the Minister of Canadian Heritage has been trying to convince us that the decision to eliminate one in four jobs at CBC/Radio-Canada was made by the CBC's top executives. Seriously. How can the minister claim that CBC is independent when nine of the 12 board members are Conservative Party backers?

People are not buying it. The minister's henchmen are just doing the government's dirty work. What is more, she and her predecessors are elbow-deep in the day-to-day management of CBC. How disgusting is that?

[CBC/Radio-Canada, November 4th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, since we are talking about all manner of things, let us also talk about the tailor who has to close shop because of a $67,000 debt.

Let us look at the facts. At least 9 of the 12 members of the board of directors are Conservative Party donors. The Minister of Canadian Heritage talks directly to the CEO when the programming does not suit her. We also have a board of directors that wonders what the minister might think about the programming. That is grossly inappropriate.

Is the minister surprised by the fact that today four CBC unions are calling for the resignation of her henchmen who are there to dismantle our public broadcaster? Enough is enough.

[CBC/Radio-Canada, November 4th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the parliamentary secretary swore that CBC was entirely the master of its own decisions. That is great, but I have here the minutes of the November 25, 2013, board of directors meeting, which proves the contrary. The minutes say that, and I quote, “Board members inquired...whether the minister's office has raised issues in relation to some on air personalities”.

How can the parliamentary secretary claim that CBC is independent when the board of the directors is constantly catering to the minister's whims when it comes to programming?

[CBC/Radio-Canada, November 3rd, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday on Tout le monde en parle, we learned from Alain Saulnier just how cozy CBC senior management and the Conservative government really are. Not only is the board of directors already stacked with Conservative donors, but the former heritage minister also went so far as to interfere in the crown corporation's programming by communicating directly with the president, Hubert Lacroix.

The public broadcaster is there to serve Canadians, not the interests of the Conservative Party. How can the government justify such political interference in CBC's programming?

[Questions Passed as Orders for Returns, October 31st, 2014]

With regard to the Department of Canadian Heritage: (a) does the Department have an internal policy on the processing times for grant and contribution applications for the various program components administered by the Department, and if so, (i) does this internal policy set out the maximum processing times for the Department and for the Minister’s office, and if so, what are they, (ii) are internal or external evaluations done to measure the Department’s compliance with its policy on processing times for grant and contribution applications for programs administered by the Department; and (b) for all of the Department’s various program components, what is the average processing time for grant and contribution applications between the time the Department receives the grant application and the time the Department publicly announces its final decision to the applicant, broken down by program component and quarter, for fiscal years 2011-2012, 2012-2013, 2013-2014 and 2014-2015?

[Shipping, October 29th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, let us talk about safety.

Half of all Quebeckers get their drinking water from the St. Lawrence, and a number of them are calling on the federal government to ensure that it has the capacity to deal with a major oil spill caused by one of the supertankers leaving Sorel-Tracy. What is more, the environment commissioner seriously doubts that Transport Canada and the Coast Guard are equipped to handle such a spill.

How could the government authorize such a significant increase in tanker traffic on the St. Lawrence, when, by all accounts, it is not prepared to deal with a major oil spill?

[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, October 24th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, there is no question that too many jobs have been cut at CBC/Radio-Canada in recent years, and this continues.

In June, CBC/Radio-Canada announced that 25% of its workforce would be let go between now and 2020, but things have gotten worse. It is our responsibility to respond. There is no way that one in four workers can be laid off without affecting the public broadcaster's mandate. It is impossible.

Can the minister stand up, show respect for the artists and journalists of our public broadcaster and ensure that Canadians get to keep the public broadcaster they cherish?