Raymonde Folco

[Victor Hugo, February 26th, 2002]

Madam Speaker, I would like to remark to the members of the House of Commons that on February 26, 1802, one of the greatest writers ever was born. Today we celebrate the bicentennial of Victor Hugo's birth.

He was a poet, novelist, journalist, polemicist, historian and politician. His life was richer for all the battles he waged, particularly those in defence of freedom and against the death penalty.

His works are all the more important because they encompass every level of language and every genre. Who has not heard of Les Misérables , Le Dernier Jour d'un condamné or even Notre Dame de Paris ? He set his novels at the time of the struggle for freedom and dignity during the middle ages, or during the July revolution in France, but his accounts remain relevant for the youth of today.

I would like to highlight this special day by reading this quote from Victor Hugo: “Memories constitute our strength... Let us never forget noteworthy anniversaries”.

[2002 Winter Olympics, February 22nd, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I am honoured today to tell you about the accomplishments of some great Canadian athletes. Some of them won medals and others placed among the top eight finalists on February 20 in Salt Lake City.

I am referring to Marc Gagnon of Chicoutimi, Quebec, members of the Canadian women's relay team, Isabelle Charest of Rimouski, Marie-Ève Drolet of Laterrière, Amélie Goulet-Nadon and Tania Vincent of Laval, of whom I am obviously very proud, Alanna Kraus of Abbotsford, British Columbia, Cindy Klassen of Winnipeg, Manitoba, and Jeff Pain and Lindsay Alcock, both of Calgary, Alberta.

Marc Gagnon won the bronze medal in the 1,500 metre short track event. These are his third Olympic Games; he won a gold medal in 1998 and a bronze in 1994.

Our women's relay team won a bronze medal in the 3,000 metre short track speed skating event.

After—

[Team Canada, February 21st, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, for the past few days, the Team Canada trade mission, under the leadership of the Prime Minister, has been travelling around Russia and Germany to promote Canada's trade relations, particularly for small and medium-size businesses.

The team includes representatives of Warnex, a Laval company which is developing a brand new technology for the speedy and inexpensive detection of the presence of GMOs in food, based on DNA, as well as the presence of bacteria. Warnex hopes to develop new business relations leading to international opportunities.

All the best to our Canadian companies and organizations who, by participating in Team Canada, will be able to explore the potential of these new markets.

[National Remembrance Day, February 20th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, in response to the hon. member's comment, I wish to add that we have worked hard with the industries. To give just a few examples, I am thinking of the situation of Doman, Abitibi Consolidated, Bowater, of the fact that we helped the workers in British Columbia, and that we helped people get back into the labour market.

There is not just one program that is going to help these people. What will help is the whole spectrum of programs governed by part II of the Employment Insurance Act.

[National Remembrance Day, February 20th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to respond to the member on the other side concerning the position of the Government of Canada. As he is well aware, the government is concerned about the impact of the softwood lumber conflict on the workers. As we have already said, the employment insurance program is there to help workers who have lost their jobs.

We in Canada have the good fortune to have an EI system that is solid, flexible and there to help when Canadians lose their jobs. In the minister's response to the report of the standing committee of which I am a member, as is the hon. member, she has agreed with the committee that the basic elements of the new employment insurance program put in place in 1996 are working well.

We know, the committee knows, the hon. member over there knows as well that the EI program fulfills its main objectives, which are to provide temporary income support to those who lose their jobs and to help them find other jobs.

Employment Insurance is responsive to changes in local unemployment rates. Through the variable entrance requirement, and this is highly technical but it works, when unemployment rates go up Canadians need fewer hours to qualify for EI and can receive benefits for longer periods. The requirement is adjusted every four weeks based on the latest unemployment statistics.

When a region experiences a very high rate of unemployment, the EI rate is adjusted to that specific region. A review of each region is carried out every four weeks.

We anticipate that the majority of workers in the softwood lumber sector will be eligible for employment insurance should they need it. In addition, most employment insurance claimants only use two-thirds of their entitlement. Even in high unemployment areas claimants rarely use more than 70% of their entitlement.

We are always prepared—and I am speaking on behalf of the Minister of Human Resources Development—to meet with workers and employers to examine the types of assistance that the employment insurance system can provide. The minister's office is in contact with the Council of Forest Industries to share any information it may need to support its members.

Human Resources Development Canada comes to the assistance of employees and employers in the case of mass layoffs. We go on-site to assist workers in filling in their EI applications and we process them as quickly as possible. An automated program also allows employers to send pay data electronically and helps local offices deal with situations of mass layoffs. We also inform employees about programs and services available to them to help them re-enter the workforce.

A wide range of programs are available under the Employment Insurance Act, Part II. The programs help laid off individuals get back to work through skills development, training and other employability supports.

Human Resources Development Canada provides other services to employment insurance clients who want to re-enter the workforce: job finding clubs, resumé writing, job search techniques, counselling and interview preparation.

As always, our goal is to help Canadians re-enter the workforce. We are ready, and we have always been ready, to work with workers and employers in this difficult period that they are going through.

[2002 Winter Olympics, February 19th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, our Canadian athletes have already been living the Olympic dream for some days already in Salt Lake City, where they are all doing their utmost to come home with those precious medals which instill pride in us all. Among those representing us are four young people from Laval.

Tania Goulet, a young woman speed skater from Sainte-Dorothée, who came back from Nagano, Japan, with an Olympic bronze in the 3000 meter relay short track, will be aiming for another trip to the podium for Canada.

Along with her in the 3000 meter relay short track will be Amélie Goulet Nadon, also from Laval.

Pascal Richard, an RCMP constable who grew up in Sainte-Dorothée, will be enjoying his very first Olympic adventure. He will be competing in the skeleton run, at speeds of close to 140 kilometers an hour.

Erik Desjardins, a sledge hockey player, will be competing in the Paralympics for the first time. These will be held March 7 though 16 in Salt Lake City.

All of us wish our athletes good luck. For these few days, they are giving us the opportunity to live the Olympic dream along with them.

[The Art Bank, February 8th, 2002]

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the members of this House, I would like to extend congratulations and best wishes to the Canada Council Art Bank, as it celebrates its 30th anniversary.

The Art Bank's collection of over 18,000 paintings, sculptures, sketches, etchings and photographs makes it the world's largest collection of contemporary Canadian art. Its holdings are rented out to the private and public sector.

Since 1972, the Art Bank has contributed to the creation of a stimulating and original work environment, as well as making Canadian art and artists better known. A number of its works can be seen in the offices of MPs or ministers, who have decided, like myself, to rent them to decorate their offices on the Hill.

Thank you to all those who have contributed to the vitality of the Art Bank and have done such an excellent job to make Canadian visual art accessible to greater numbers of our fellow citizens. May the next thirty years be equally successful.

[Sir John A. Macdonald Day and Sir Wilfrid Laurier Day Act, February 7th, 2002]

Madam Speaker, I believe the hon. member is getting everything mixed up.

I remind the member that in the aftermath of the tragedy of September 11 all Canadians, no matter what party they belonged to, recognized that new measures were required to ensure our common security. These steps need to be taken in co-operation with our international partners to strengthen our defences against terrorist attacks.

One such step is the protection of highly sensitive information, which is the point of the bill. The fight against terrorism depends largely on our ability to gather sensitive intelligence relating to terrorist activities. It is imperative that we be able to protect not only the substance of our intelligence but also its source.

As a final note, Bill C-36, which is the bill we are discussing here and not any other so-called misdemeanour the member of parliament could raise, provides for a comprehensive parliamentary review of the provisions and the operation of the act within three years after the act receives royal assent. I think we have proven very well that there is--

[Sir John A. Macdonald Day and Sir Wilfrid Laurier Day Act, February 7th, 2002]

Madam Speaker, I welcome this opportunity today to talk about the points raised by the hon. member for Pictou—Antigonish—Guysborough regarding Bill C-36 and the issuance of certificates by the attorney general, even if the member did not expressly mention it.

I would like to explain exactly how the new subsection 38(13) resulting from the coming into force of Bill C-36 works. The Attorney General of Canada has the power to issue a certificate that would prohibit the disclosure of information in connection with a proceeding for the purpose of protecting information obtained in confidence from or in relation to a foreign entity as defined in subsection 2(1) of the Security of Information Act or for the purpose of protecting national defence or national security.

The hon. member's question would seem to imply that the certificate could be used to deny the disclosure of all types of information held by the government, but this is simply not the case. Freedom of information remains the rule for the government rather than the exception. Full public access to the vast majority of government information will not be affected by the legislation.

The attorney general's certificate process is intended to apply in exceptional cases only as the ultimate guarantee that it ensures the protection of very sensitive information that is held by the Government of Canada.

I would like to add that there are a number of safeguards. I will mention only two, given the time limit. First, the certificate can only be personally issued by the Attorney General of Canada. Second, it can only be issued after an order or a decision for disclosure of that information has been made under the Canada Evidence Act or any other act of parliament that would result in a disclosure of the information.

Unfortunately time is short, but I would refer the hon. member to the subsections I just mentioned in my reply where he will find the exact information that develops my answer to him even more.

[Nobel Prize, December 13th, 2001]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to draw the House's attention to the fact that this year is the 100th anniversary of the Nobel Prize. This prize rewards excellence in medicine, physics, chemistry, literature and acts promoting peace.

Throughout the 20th century, people and institutions around the world have been honoured. For 100 years, the prize has been conferred on men and women who have made the world a better place through their commitment, their talent, their discoveries and their actions.

Think of Marie Curie, Melvin Calvin, the Prime Minister of Canada in 1957, Lester B. Pearson, Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandela and Kofi Annan.

The Nobel Prize reflects great discoveries, struggles and the political and artistic evolution of the world.

I wish the Nobel Foundation many more centuries of rewarding those who work to change the world.