House of Commons photo

Crucial Fact

  • His favourite word was deal.

Last in Parliament October 2015, as NDP MP for Dartmouth—Cole Harbour (Nova Scotia)

Lost his last election, in 2015, with 24% of the vote.

Statements in the House

Intergovernmental Relations March 26th, 2013

Mr. Speaker, the first thing the government has to start doing is being straight with Canadians. Now the Conservatives' shell game with skills training is also unravelling. Their job grant is not the same money; it only has new conditions. Once again, it is being unilaterally imposed upon the provinces, a relationship that is already in tatters. The relationship with the provinces and territories is already in tatters.

What is the new intergovernmental affairs minister going to do to repair some of that damage?

The Budget March 25th, 2013

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for picking up my comments on VIA. It is a very serious concern for those of us in Atlantic Canada, the way the service has been gutted over the past few months. We are concerned that the Conservatives are setting the stage for the end of it.

It makes me crazy that the government does not follow through with any commitment. How can it when it is not prepared to have a national strategy on transit, for example?

The Conservatives talk about their commitment on skills training. We are one of the only developed countries in the western world that does not have a national skills-building and training strategy. It is deplorable to think that the government would solve the problem on skills training, for example, and it does not have any idea which way to go.

Countries like Germany, after which the government likes to model itself in the area of skills training, has a long history of working together with unions and companies, and it has a national strategy. We do not have a good history of working together, nor do we have a national strategy on skills training.

The Budget March 25th, 2013

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the member recognizing the positive contribution I try to make in this House each and every day. I want him to know that when this budget came down, I began to pore over it, looking for the positive, looking for the constructive things that I could discuss with my constituents.

I went through it and then I went home. Whether it was at the pancake breakfast I went to on Sunday, whether it was at the Alderney market I went to on Saturday morning or whether it was in the grocery store where I ran into people, my constituents kept saying to me, “What are they doing to us? What have they done? Have they completely forgotten the needs in Atlantic Canada? Have they forgotten what we desperately need to have attended to, as it relates to infrastructure, as it relates to transit, as it relates to regional economic development?” I had to tell my constituents that I did not understand either what the government was all about, because this budget was clearly a failure.

The Budget March 25th, 2013

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise to speak, but there is so much to say and so little time. We have 10 minutes in which to respond. I will be sharing my time with my colleague, the wonderful MP from across the harbour, the MP for Halifax. We will perhaps give a bit of a Nova Scotia flavour of how to respond to this budget. However, there is so much to say.

There is no question that the budget came down in a great deal of flurry and fanfare, but it appeared, not to overuse a phrase, that it really was a lot of smoke and mirrors. Once we began to dig down a bit, we saw the sleights of hand. However, we will not be able to get into the details until the implementation act is tabled.

I want to focus a bit on the budget as it relates to my constituency and as it relates to a process I have been involved in for the past couple of years. I bring representatives from different sectors and areas in the community to share with me and with each other their thoughts, priorities, and their advice to the government on the upcoming budget. It is a wonderful experience for me, and I know it is for the people who participate. We go for three hours, and we share some very valuable information about the community and our perspectives on the nation and what the government is doing. I want to share some of that with the members.

As I indicated, I held a community round table at North Woodside Community Centre in the riding of Dartmouth—Cole Harbour. We dealt with a wide range of perspectives. We had a wonderful level of discussion and debate. We talked about trains and public transit, poverty and affordable housing, funding for local infrastructure, community organizations, regional economic development, defence procurement, environmental protection, and so much more.

We also talked about how on a whole range of issues there seems to be a complete lack of consultation by the government. This was expressed across the board. Whether it is consulting the provinces, stakeholders, or first nations, the government seems not to care what ordinary Canadians have to say about these issues and therefore does not engage with them in discussions before it makes important decisions. Even in the case where the Supreme Court of Canada has said that with respect to first nations, Inuit and Métis, the Government of Canada has legal obligations to consult and accommodate them, the current government completely ignores those obligations. People are feeling that. People feel the disdain with which the government seems to hold its ideas. They see it and they feel it, and they find it quite disappointing.

I was also disappointed with what I heard emanating from some of this discussion, and that is that citizens are feeling disheartened about participating in the political process. In fact, one participant went so far as to describe the government's approach to consultation as an erosion of opportunity to submit ideas. Another commented on how those who like nature have been equated by the government to being enemies of the state.

I think we agree in this House, but we have to pay attention to the effect of our actions. We want citizens to be engaged in the political process by having a government that will work actively to find ways, not reduce ways, for people to participate, to voice their concerns, as well as to voice their agreement, if that happens to exist. Unfortunately, we see too often that the current government wants to hear only from people who agree with it rather than those who dissent.

I cannot tell members enough how grateful I am and have been that we have so many interested and interesting people in my community, who take the time to share their perspectives with me and with each other.

Let me now talk about why I believe the budget fails to deal with a number of items discussed at the community hall meeting that afternoon.

On infrastructure, this budget commits $50 billion over 10 years in the face of Canada's current infrastructure budget, which is tagged at over $300 billion right now. It is a sleight of hand. The government is going to be spending less money over the next two years, at a time when our infrastructure is crumbling. At this time in Nova Scotia, Dartmouth and Halifax, the municipality is working desperately to maintain sewer and water lines. Those costs are being borne by taxpayers. The government needs to step up to help fund that level of infrastructure. It is deteriorating at a terrible rate, and the government is simply not putting the money forward that is needed.

On trains, there was no commitment in this budget to re-establish daily trips from Montreal to Halifax. In the last year, the government cut in half the daily VIA Rail passenger service from Montreal. It has been reduced from six trips to three. We need to recognize that this is where the trip ends. The people in Halifax, whether they be students or people who would rather travel by train or they do not have a car, do not have any other options. Some would suggest that the government is focusing some attention on VIA in central Canada and forgetting about the people in Atlantic Canada. It has cut back passenger rail service through northeastern New Brunswick. Communities there have been completely abandoned. What is interesting is that at the end of February, early March, for three successive weekends, the railcars in operation were completely booked, both sleeper and passenger car services. People are disappointed that the government has not come forward to properly fund trains.

On transit, Canada is still the only G8 country that does not have a national transit strategy because the Conservatives voted down the NDP motion in the House earlier this year. On poverty, poverty rates in Canada are on the rise. Instead of working with provinces to address the root causes, the government is downloading social costs onto the provinces. On regional development, one of the best ways to foster economic growth is to invest in local innovation. The Atlantic region has a wealth of innovation in areas such as agriculture and green technologies, but the government has provided no new funding to invest in these and other exciting regional industries.

What New Democrats have found in this budget, and we will begin to dig into the details as we go forward, is that the government is failing to support national programs and is now funnelling money into opportunities for government members to hand out cheques. It is pork-barrelling gone mad.

As I wrap up, I want to remind all members of the House that the Constitution commits all governments, provincial and federal, to promoting equal opportunities, furthering economic development, reducing regional disparities and providing essential public services to all Canadians. The federal government is not doing that. In fact, it is heading in the absolute wrong direction. We need a strong federal government that recognizes the value of all regions and all people of the country. It should pull things together and make sure there is equality of opportunity throughout this country, so we can all participate together in moving the country forward. This budget fails to achieve that.

Petitions March 25th, 2013

Mr. Speaker, I have a petition signed by a number of residents of Dartmouth—Cole Harbour. These are people who live on Shore Road and adjacent to Shore Road, which is next to the harbour and next to a CN rail line. They are suffering as a result of the excessive noise and vibrations caused by CN trains switching along the area of the residential street, Shore Road.

These residents are urging members of the House to support Bill C-393, An Act to amend the Canada Transportation Act (railway noise and vibration control), which they believe properly addresses railway noise and vibration in the ways laid out in the petition.

BAN ON SHARK FIN IMPORTATION ACT March 25th, 2013

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise to speak to this important issue. I want to thank my colleague, the member for New Westminster—Coquitlam, for bringing this important issue to the attention of members of the House. Frankly, tens of thousands of Canadians have responded in an incredibly positive manner by agreeing with him and many members of the House that the finning of sharks at sea is an intolerable practice that needs to stop.

I talked at some length in my earlier comments about how approximately 100 million sharks are being killed each year primarily for their fins, shrinking the international shark population and resulting in the near extinction of dozens of species. The last time I was on my feet I spoke about the porbeagle shark, which has subsequently been listed as an extinct species. It is found off the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia. The problem with that species is primarily the damage that is done as a bycatch. However, there is still a small directed fishery, and there was some attempt made at an international conference last fall to try to get Canada to recognize that it was another species nearing extinction and controls were required to be put on the fishing effort. Unfortunately, at that time Canada decided not to act, though there have subsequently been some efforts in this regard.

There has been a fair bit of polling done of the general population of Canada, and I believe over 80% of Canadians are opposed to this practice and would support a ban. Likewise, the majority of the Asian community also support the measures proposed by this bill. The question that needs to be asked and that is being posed by the member who sponsored this private member's bill is this. Why do we not show some leadership on this important issue, move forward, take action, and respond not only to the international nature of this problem but recognize the will of the Canadian population by proceeding with a ban?

Several municipalities have done that. It is not without its controversy, but New Democrats believe that it is time to act because it is the right thing to do. Surely, members in the House can agree to act on the basis that it is the right thing to do.

Ethics March 18th, 2013

Mr. Speaker, this former minister is going to run in a byelection before Elections Canada has even finished its investigation. He resigned on Thursday, yet his campaign website was set up four days before that. He received a letter from Elections Canada on February 12, yet he only took action a month later.

Canadians want to know what is really going on. Will someone from the government start telling the truth about what is going on with the disgraced minister?

Intergovernmental Relations March 6th, 2013

Mr. Speaker, that minister will start getting some respect when the government starts showing respect to unemployed Canadians.

Conservative EI policies are pushing unemployed Canadians onto provincial social assistance rolls. Instead of providing measures that fight high unemployment through such things as skills training, the Conservatives are demonizing the seasonal industries and cutting regional development.

I want to ask the minister responsible for intergovernmental affairs if he would give us some indication of the meetings and consultations he has had with the provincial governments that will be affected by these changes in skills training.

Employment Insurance March 6th, 2013

Mr. Speaker, at least the Conservatives are no longer denying the end of the $2 billion transfer to the provinces for skills training. This is money that provinces are now using to train the unemployed. Even if, and this is a big if, the money does get used for federal training programs, they are simply robbing Peter to pay Paul.

When will the government step up to the plate and up its investments in training?

Northern Jobs and Growth Act March 4th, 2013

Mr. Speaker, we will be voting in favour of this piece of legislation and it will go through. However, that does not mean that there are not some weaknesses that need to be addressed and that there were not some weaknesses in the process that the government needs to be aware of so it does not happen again. The government has stood up and faced opposition from us, and Canadians, to various pieces of legislation it has brought forward, and it has been unwilling to change.

We do not only have the duty to consult with first nations, Inuit and Métis people, but we also have the duty to accommodate and the duty to recognize inherent treaty rights and rights to land. The more the Conservatives want to put their heads in the sand and not recognize those principles, the more trouble they are going to face and the more trouble they are going to create, not only for Canadians, but also for first nations, Inuit and Métis groups in this country.