House of Commons photoWon her last election, in 2015, with 70% of the vote.
The Environment October 25th, 2006
Mr. Speaker, I am happy to repeat exactly what I said, which was the opposition should listen to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities that said:
Recent announcements signal that the present federal government is prepared to take a leadership role and develop an environmental plan capable of delivering tangible results.
The Environment October 25th, 2006
Mr. Speaker, I appreciate that the hon. member likes to pull things out of the Lung Association's press release. It has said, in fact, that it is in favour of the clean air act to regulate indoor air because it is one of the largest health risks associated with lung cancer for non-smokers. It is concerned about some of the health impacts of climate change. We are working with it and many other organizations to address these issues.
The Environment October 24th, 2006
Mr. Speaker, I will take friends like the Canadian Lung Association and the Canadian Medical Association who are saying that millions of Canadians suffer from lung cancer, and while the opposition refuses to help them, we are actually proposing Canada's clean air act which, for the first time in Canadian history, will actually regulate indoor air, which is the leading cause of lung cancer in Canada among non-smokers.
If the member actually cared about clean air and cared about the health of Canadians, he would support the act.
The Environment October 24th, 2006
Mr. Speaker, as I indicated yesterday, cities and Canadians across the country want and need clean air. We know that smog days are rising while the opposition is playing politics with the clean air act.
If the opposition will not listen to Canadians, maybe it will listen to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities which said that recent announcements signal that the present federal government is prepared to take a leadership role and develop an environmental plan that is capable of delivering tangible results for Canadians. Mr. Speaker, it did not stop there. It said that municipalities can and want to be partners in--
The Environment October 23rd, 2006
Mr. Speaker, my concern is that the member chooses big industry over the environment. Yesterday on TV the member said that he does not support introducing mandatory fuel efficiency standards for the auto sector, unless they are coupled with subsidies for auto corporations.
My question for him is, will he support the clean air act that will for the first time in Canadian history regulate and have mandatory requirements for fuel efficiency, or will he side with big business?
The Environment October 23rd, 2006
Again, Mr. Speaker, I would just point out what concerns me is that the health of Canadians is suffering while that member continues to politicize this issue.
That party is actually opposed to the establishment of national air quality. It is also opposed to introducing new energy efficiency and labelling requirements for 20 new products under the clean air act.
Even the Canadian Lung Association said, “We hope that energy efficiency improvements referenced in the act will result in better regulations”.
They will result in better regulations. The only thing standing in the way of this and what the Canadian Lung Association wants is the NDP.
The Environment October 23rd, 2006
Mr. Speaker, I know that the hon. member would like to play politics with the issue of the environment, but the truth of the matter is that the Government of Quebec and I, Minister Béchard and I have a good working relationship. We are working on a number of issues related to the environment.
Quebec has a good plan in place. It is not in law yet. We put forward regulations that are moving forward under the current legislation and also under our new act. Obviously we have to work with the Government of Quebec to ensure there is no duplication, but at the end of the day these laws will ensure that we protect the health of Canadians and of Quebeckers.
The Environment October 23rd, 2006
Mr. Speaker, again, if the member opposite will not listen to Canadians, maybe he will listen to the Canadian Lung Association which said, “Improving air quality is critical to protecting the health of Canadians” and “the Lung Association is pleased to see indoor air quality regulated under the act”.
Maybe the hon. member could explain to the Canadian Lung Association and the millions of Canadians suffering from lung cancer why he is opposing this act.
The Environment October 23rd, 2006
Mr. Speaker, what concerns me is that while the health of Canadians is suffering, the opposition parties continue to play politics with this issue.
The clean air act will allow us for the first time in Canadian history to set national air quality objectives. If the opposition does not want to listen to Canadians, maybe it will listen to the Canadian Medical Association which said, “By recognizing and targeting the role clean air has in ensuring good health, the government appears to be on the right track”.
The Environment October 20th, 2006
Mr. Speaker, I will let the hon. member know the current status of the environmental assessment.
The responsible departments, Fisheries and Oceans and my department and the Minister of Transport's department, are involved in this ongoing province-led environmental assessment at this time. It is examining some of the options related to the modification of the causeway. When I have more information, I would be happy to share it with the hon. member.