Steven Blaney

[Railway Continuation Act, 2007, April 17th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I salute the leadership of the Minister of Labour and I have a question for my colleague from Saint-Bruno—Saint-Hubert.

Obviously many workers from Quebec and Canada may suffer because of this strike. There will be job losses, gas shortages, as was the case recently, workers will lose income and all workers will suffer financial losses.

Will the member agree this evening to remove the threat hanging over the Quebec and Canadian economies by supporting this bill? Is the Bloc member prepared to defend Quebec workers rather than continuing to say one thing and doing the opposite?

[Petitions, April 16th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I recently met at my Levis office with Jocelyne Gagnon, Émilienne Morrissette, Berthe Fradette and Chantal Bélanger, from Bellechasse, who asked me to table their petition in the House.

According to the parliamentary tradition, I table that petition signed by more than 500 persons who ask the government to give a social status to the unborn child.

[Marie-Pier Beaudet, April 16th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to share how proud I am of a 20-year-old woman from Lévis who recently captured her third Canadian archery title, breaking a 23-year-old record in the process.

I am inspired by Marie-Pier Beaudet from Lévis, who also won six gold medals at the Copa Merengue in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, a few weeks ago.

Not resting on her laurels, Lévis' star athlete is now in Phoenix for the Arizona Cup International, where she is ranked fifth out of 62.

Achieving that kind of distinction requires a great deal of effort, patience and talent. We would therefore like to highlight Marie-Pier's exceptional achievements, which have earned her a place among archery's best and have made her a role model for all citizens of Lévis-Bellechasse.

Marie-Pier, Lévis' Canadian champion archer, my colleagues and I congratulate her and wish her every success in her future endeavours.

[Textile Industry, March 29th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank you and my colleagues for giving me the opportunity to participate in the debate on Motion M-158 concerning the textile and apparel industries.

Before discussing the merits of this motion, I think this is a good time to remind the members of what our new government has done and what it is still doing to help these two industries compete in an ever more demanding global market.

Among our government's many initiatives worth mentioning, I would like to highlight the in-depth review of several proposals concerning an outward processing program to open new markets for the textile and apparel industries; measures to meet the changing needs of workers in these changing industries through the employment insurance program; and efforts to determine and reduce customs tariffs on textile inputs to improve cost competitiveness.

The 2007 budget offered even more support to the textile and apparel sectors. It contains a measure encouraging investment in manufacturing and processing equipment between now and 2009 by applying a 50% straight line write-off for two years. It also increases the capital allowance rate on buildings used for manufacturing and processing from 4% to 10%.

Canada's new government is providing tangible proof of its commitment to helping these industries by taking steps to reduce or eliminate customs tariffs on certain textiles used in the apparel industry. In addition to enabling apparel manufacturers to save nearly $4.5 million per year in customs costs, these measures will help companies maintain jobs for Canadians by making those companies more productive and competitive. This announcement was very well received by industry representatives. Elliot Lifson, president of the Canadian Apparel Federation, was very happy with this measure, which is a step in the right direction. He said that the industry has been asking for this for a long time.

Our new government has also demonstrated its continuing support of the Canadian Apparel and Textile Industries Program, or CATIP. That program provides financial support for the textile and apparel industries to help them become more competitive. Working in partnership with industry associations and other stakeholder organizations, CATIP assists Canadian textile and apparel firms to adjust to impacts of globalization through numerous approaches including: industry-wide branding initiatives; support for domestic and international marketing activities such as trade shows, match-making events and marketing materials; support for best practices and diagnostic sessions for companies; development of national textiles and apparel portals and e-commerce awareness activities; and, staging of domestic industry conferences. These are examples of initiatives that receive financial support from our government to help manufacturing industries position themselves on the global market.

Another unique component of this program, the textile production efficiency component, more commonly called CANtex, helps companies enhance their productivity and reorient production toward other value-added products for growth markets.

The measures I have just outlined clearly demonstrate that Canada's new government has been and continues to be determined to help these two important industries address the challenges of a global market, which, as we know, is increasingly competitive. But if the textile and apparel industries are going to meet the challenges that extend well beyond their own industry, our government, for its part, must also create an economic climate that encourages business to invest and expand. To help Canadian companies withstand competition and succeed on international markets, we need a specific, long-term economic plan.

That is why Canada's new government has created Advantage Canada, an ambitious plan based on the principles set out in the 2006 budget, a plan that looks to the future and that is designed to make this country a world leader, now and for future generations.

It is these commitments, and the other measures announced in that plan, that will enable the Canadian textile and apparel industries, and other businesses in Canada, to adapt to rapid changes in the world economy.

Advantage Canada will have a real impact on companies that invest in equipment, innovation and training. One of the fundamental principles of this plan is our government's firm belief that business must be free to grow and succeed. We realize that companies do not necessarily need the government to be directly involved in how they manage their business, and that rather what is needed is for government to act judiciously to guide the economy. They need the government to create a favourable climate that will enable them to excel at what they do best: investing, growing and creating jobs.

One element of the Advantage Canada plan is the reduction of income tax on investments by businesses, an essential measure to ensure our long-term prosperity. Canada wishes to maintain an advantage respecting the taxation of businesses, in order to encourage them to invest here rather than elsewhere. The tax relief plan for businesses introduced in the 2006 budget enables Canada to maintain a competitive advantage over the United States concerning the statutory tax rate for income from manufacturing, while increasing Canada’s advantage respecting the general tax rate. We have also enhanced Canada’s tax advantage by committing ourselves to establishing the general tax rate for businesses at 18.5% in 2011.

Many other measures designed to improve Canada’s fiscal competitiveness have been adopted under Advantage Canada, such as establishing the lowest tax rate on new business investment in the G-7 countries and envisaging the possibility of reducing tax distortions that work to the advantage or disadvantage of certain business sectors or structures.

Our plan is designed to eliminate repetitive and costly administrative procedures that prevent businesses from investing and innovating. Though it is important and necessary to maintain a certain level of regulation when justified by circumstances, we should take energetic measures to eliminate unnecessary regulations that put our country at a competitive disadvantage. As indicated in a study completed by the OECD in 2001, small businesses, the SMEs like those in Lévis—Bellechasse, or businesses found in the automobile sector in the riding of Chatham—Kent Essex, of my colleague here, are penalized the most by the administrative burden. Our new government has already lightened this burden and will lighten it more by adopting a versatile approach that includes the following measures: working with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business in order to reduce businesses’ administrative burden by 20%; developing a modern approach to intelligent regulation based on results rather than processes; and targeting the important sectors for small businesses, such as the expansion and implementation of appropriate programs.

Generally speaking, we will take steps to help Canadian businesses deal with the challenges of global competition by giving them every opportunity to succeed. Businesses that invest in Canada bring with them expertise and innovation, while foreign trade and investment provide our Canadian businesses with the expertise they need and increase their ability to take advantage of investments and innovation. Opening ourselves up to trade and investment creates opportunities here, and that is why we wish to create a favourable climate.

We want to work with business and Advantage Canada has thus provided these four key elements that are going to support the manufacturing industry: tax reduction; a fiscal advantage, notably by eliminating the debt and thus reducing the Canadian tax burden; a knowledge advantage, in order to have educated, skilled and efficient workers, and an infrastructure advantage, through record, historic investments of $32 billion over seven years to guarantee the free circulation of goods and services.

It is not surprising that the reaction to Advantage Canada has been positive and I will be pleased to talk further about the support our government is giving to manufacturing businesses and the Canadian textile sector.

[HEC Montréal, March 28th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, today I would like to sincerely congratulate and pay tribute to HEC Montréal, Canada's first university-level business school, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. The school has trained generations of entrepreneurs and managers who have been recognized for their talent and dedication, not only in Quebec and Canada, but around the world.

Around here, it is not often that a teaching institution celebrates 100 years in the business. We must therefore take advantage of this opportunity to highlight the pioneering spirit of this school, which continues to be an institution dedicated to innovation, a characteristic it is emphasizing with its 100th anniversary theme: Always at the forefront.

As Quebeckers and Canadians, we can be proud of the accomplishments of this great business school, which has strong roots in the community and is open to the world. That is why our new government, especially the Conservative members from Quebec, would like to sincerely congratulate HEC Montréal and its representatives here in the House today on a century of excellence and innovation.

[The Budget, March 26th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for his question.

Last Friday I visited a business in my riding, a cooperative in Bellechasse, where I was told that there is an excellent way to stimulate the manufacturing sector, a measure that would give the sector a shot of adrenalin. This measure involves writing off investments over a two-year period, 50% per year. This is an excellent measure that has been very well received by the manufacturing sector and needs the government's support.

This budget includes measures that will stimulate the Canadian manufacturing sector.

[The Budget, March 26th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for his question. Today is election day in the province of Quebec. It is important to let democracy speak. Today, it is Quebeckers' turn to speak. I therefore encourage them all to go to the polls today.

I have a question for my colleague opposite.

He has an opportunity to support a budget that puts an end to 13 years of inaction on environmental issues, during which time greenhouse gas emissions rose by 35% in Canada.

We have put an end to fudging the numbers and we have given Canadians the straight goods by telling them that concrete measures must be taken to fight climate change.

Moreover, our budget will restore fiscal balance in this country and will ensure stable funding for Ontario, New Brunswick, and all of the provinces, thereby giving them a solid foundation for long-term budget planning, which they did not have before, and responding to the Council of the Federation's requests.

Does my colleague opposite support this budget, which will improve the Canadian federation and help build a stronger country?

[The Budget, March 26th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, as the representative of families, businesses and seniors in Lévis, Bellechasse and Les Etchemins in this House, I am honoured to take the floor today to give my unequivocal support to the 2007 budget of Canada's new government, an historic budget that will restore fiscal balance for taxpayers and steer a steady course towards sustainable development.

You are aware of my environmental convictions and my dedication, and that of all parliamentarians, to make this a country with a healthier environment. You are also aware of my steadfast support for families and workers. Thus, I am pleased with the Minister of Finance's initiatives contained in the new budget. We are turning the page on a long decade of inaction and empty speeches and we are taking action in four strategic areas: restoring fiscal balance in the Canadian federation, adopting effective measures in the environmental sector, supporting families and seniors and investing in infrastructure.

The citizens of my riding are hard-working and dynamic people. They are proud to live in such a beautiful region. Today, I am pleased that some constituents from the riding of Lévis—Bellechasse are present in the House. I am proud to welcome the Paquet family with their daughter Émilie Paquet, world champion in traditional kata, and her coach, Dgina Girouard. I extend a very warm welcome to them in this House, the House of Commons that is their own. I would like to say to them that we are here working on behalf of the families of Bellechasse and for the good of the community.

I would like now to cite some examples of the concrete measures contained in the 2007 budget to help families enjoy a better life. We are talking about fiscal policies that support the family, substantial transfers to the provinces, sustainable, planned transfers, and a new beginning for our municipalities to create healthy, positive communities. We are talking about substantial sums of money over a long period to correct the fiscal imbalance. We are talking about $39 billion over seven years that will be redistributed to the provinces and in doing so meets a commitment that we made during the election campaign. In my riding, people often say to me, “You are doing what you said you would do and you are delivering the goods”. That was a basic commitment of our campaign; a commitment by our government and, today, by means of the 2007 budget, we are delivering the goods, not just for one year but for seven years; $39 billion over seven years.

With that money, Quebec, like the other provinces, can properly fund its social programs and continue to offer quality services to our fellow citizens. Among other amounts, we are talking about $21.3 billion in additional funding for health care. That is in addition to existing agreements.

It is important to remember that by restoring fiscal balance, the government is helping to strengthen the economic union; it is making Canada a strong nation, in which our wealth is distributed fairly and the specific needs of each province are recognized.

Restoring fiscal balance was the first priority. The second is the environment. Focusing on the environment has become a necessity if we are concerned about our future and the future of our children. Protection of the environment has become a priority. We must preserve the natural bounty that makes Canada the envy of the world. Concrete measures for the environment include $4.5 billion to be invested in ecoenergy to improve the energy efficiency of homes and businesses and to promote development of clean energy technology. In addition, the ecotrust program will provide $346 million to Quebec for implementation of its climate change plan to reduce greenhouse gases. The time for empty speeches is past; it is time for action. We are taking action, and in doing so we are giving Quebec the tools to show leadership on the environment within the Canadian federation.

Last week, I was in Montreal with the Prime Minister at AMERICANA, the largest environmental technology trade show in North America. It was the first time that a prime minister has served as honorary president of this major environmental trade show, and our Prime Minister renewed his commitment to make Canada a “clean energy superpower”.

We need energy for transportation and to feed ourselves. We should be able to do this on a sustainable basis. This is why our new budget introduced two measures to promote environmentally-friendly transportation. I consider these measures very important because they encourage taxpayers who display environmentally positive behaviour and introduce consequences for polluters. For instance, there will be rebate of up to $2,000 for the purchase of a new fuel-efficient vehicle and, conversely, a green levy on new fuel-inefficient vehicles. These are two real and significant incentives that will have a direct impact on the pocketbooks of taxpayers willing to do something to help the environment.

Furthermore, as we all know, the Alberta oil sands are being developed. They represent a significant source of energy production, but we must ensure that they are developed while respecting the strictest environmental standards. Our government will do this by phasing out the accelerated capital cost allowance and encouraging that industry to develop new, clean technologies, such as carbon capture and storage.

Those are concrete measures to counter the fiscal imbalance and favour the environment.

I would now like to talk about families. The budget contains good news for families—like Mr. Paquet's family, who are here this morning—because families work hard and already pay too much in taxes. The government therefore introduced advantage Canada, a long-term plan that, as the Minister of Finance indicated, rewards hard work and encourages job creation. Also, Canadian families will receive a $2,000 tax credit for every child under 18. This means $310 per child in the pockets of families. This builds upon the initiatives in the previous budget, such as the $500 tax credit for sporting activities. These additional measures in no way diminish the importance of the $100 a month the government pays for every child under six. In fact, we are correcting the fiscal imbalance, not only with the provinces, but also with taxpayers. There was also a tax disadvantage for married couples. This amount will be adjusted, which will mean a tax break of $209 for married couples.

As far as our seniors are concerned, our government made a brave decision by eliminating tax advantages to income trusts. This was done together with a measure to benefit senior couples, that is, income splitting. This is an intelligent solution that allows the transfer of a portion of the higher income to the lower income, thereby lowering the couple's tax rate. One of the boldest social measures in this budget is the one that helps people who enter the job market at low wages. In order to help them enter the job market more completely, our minister has implemented measures to break down the welfare barrier and ensure that low-income workers are not disadvantaged in comparison with welfare recipients. This is a practical tax measure to help workers who are in great need of it.

In my riding of Lévis—Bellechasse there are a number of businesses. I like to say that my riding is the economic tiger of Bellechasse, with its many manufacturing and agricultural businesses. I received over a hundred letters from these businesses asking us to increase the lifetime capital gains exemption, which is currently $500,000. Budget 2007 increases the exemption to $750,000, which is very good news for the farms and small businesses in Lévis—Bellechasse. As hon. members can see, there is something for the imbalance, the environment and for families. Nearly 30 municipalities in Lévis—Bellechasse need to make major infrastructure improvements. More than $16 billion has been added over seven years for a total of $33 billion for infrastructure. This a record in Canada. This funding will be used to improve drinking water treatment systems and waste water treatment, and to ensure working sewage and water systems. I call on all parliamentarians to join me in saying yes to the budget, yes to Quebec, yes to fiscal balance, and yes to Canada. I hope they will support us during the vote on budget 2007 in this House.

[Points of Order, March 22nd, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, do you not find that there is enough mud-slinging going on in this campaign without starting to repeat people's nonsense?

I am calling on the leader of the Bloc Québécois' sense of honour and I am asking him to withdraw his comments. As a parliamentarian, he should rise and withdraw his comments.

[Points of Order, March 22nd, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, he said one thing when the mikes were on and another when the Minister of National Defence was answering at the far end of the House. However, people around him heard these comments and will not tolerate disrespectful comments about the Minister of National Defence or any other hon. member in this House.

For this reason, I am calling on the Leader of the Bloc Québécois to apologize and withdraw the comments he made about our Minister of National Defence.