Tom Lukiwski

[February 5th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, as I mentioned in my earlier presentation, details as to the type of infrastructure funding and the criteria surrounding that will be announced shortly. I would suggest to my hon. colleague that coming up in budget 2007 there will be details surrounding infrastructure funding.

I know also, speaking from my experience, that in my home community of Regina, Saskatchewan there is also a great need for many infrastructure projects there. I have been speaking with the finance minister and the Prime Minister on infrastructure projects such as those. The information I have been receiving is very comforting to me, knowing that there will be as promised long term predictable and sustainable funding for municipalities as well as provinces and territories. Those details, I am sure, will be forthcoming in budget 2007.

[February 5th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for the opportunity to address an issue that is important to the people of his riding and indeed many New Brunswickers. I commend the member for his work on this file over the past several years. I also want to recognize the members for New Brunswick Southwest and Fundy Royal who have made countless representations to the Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities as well as the Prime Minister in support of this project.

I assure the hon. member and his constituents that the government understands that the Saint John harbour cleanup is a priority for the citizens of Saint John. We are committed to taking actions that will provide Canadians with clean water and a clean environment.

My colleague, the member for Saint John, will recall that the Prime Minister was in Saint John in March 2006, shortly after he was sworn in as Prime Minister. He was there to see firsthand the details of the project. The Prime Minister announced that the new Government of Canada was committed to the cleanup of the harbour. On that occasion the Prime Minister announced a commitment of $8.5 million as an important first step.

The first phase of the harbour cleanup is ongoing and we are actively working on phase 2 which represents a contribution of $27 million from all three levels of government.

As we committed to doing so with budget 2006, over the summer we consulted with provinces, territories and the municipal sector to seek views on a long term framework for infrastructure as part of fiscal balance consultations.

The Government of Canada and the Government of New Brunswick discussed the cleanup of the Saint John harbour which we recognize as a priority for the province. Budget 2006 provided an unprecedented level of support for infrastructure in Canada. Leading up to budget 2007 “Advantage Canada” reinforced this commitment. We are working on a comprehensive infrastructure plan that will include long term predictable funding as well as programing to support: first, improvements to the core national highway system; second, large scale provincial, territorial and municipal projects such as public transit; and, third, small scale municipal projects in addition to waste water management projects.

Once policy and program designs have been approved for the infrastructure plan, we look forward to moving forward on specific projects in New Brunswick as well as elsewhere in Canada.

The work we are doing now will ensure that federal infrastructure programs are accountable to Canadians and provide value for money, and meet the top priorities of provinces and cities, such as New Brunswick and Saint John.

I want to reiterate our commitment for the cleanup of the Saint John harbour. The government looks forward to working with the province and the city of Saint John on this project in the months and years to come.

[February 5th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, we have heard the arguments. I presented the need for royal recommendation on Friday. I know you are taking that under consideration and that we can expect a ruling sometime in the near future.

However, let me just respond to my hon. colleague by saying, as he well knows, that should the private member's bill, Bill C-288, be passed into law, it will require the government to perform certain obligations and, as he pointed out in a CBC interview, it will probably be in the $4 billion range. Perhaps the member does not think that $4 billion is an amount that we should be concerned about but, quite clearly, it is consistent with the royal recommendation argument that we presented saying that there will be new expenditures required should Bill C-288 come into force, and that obviously requires a royal recommendation.

However, we are not here for debate, Mr. Speaker. I know that you are taking this under very serious consideration and we look forward to your ruling in the near future.

[Questions on the Order Paper, February 2nd, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I ask that all questions be allowed to stand.

[Points of Order, February 2nd, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member for Wascana just underscores my point that this bill will obligate the government to spend new money. As you know and I know, this requires a royal recommendation.

I thank the member for Wascana for supporting my case.

[Points of Order, February 2nd, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I do have a legitimate point of order with regard to Bill C-288, the Kyoto implementation bill.

In your ruling of September 27, 2006, you concluded that Bill C-288 did not require a royal recommendation. I would appreciate your consideration of two developments that have occurred since that ruling.

First, the House of Commons Standing Committee on the Environment and Sustainable Development amended Bill C-288. In particular, I would like to draw two of these amendments to your attention.

One amendment was to include the require in clause 5(1)(a)(iii.1) that the government report:

measures to provide for a just transition for workers affected by greenhouse gas emission reductions

The second amendment added a new requirement in clause 10 for the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy to undertake research, gather information and advise the minister on the new climate change plan required by the bill.

The National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy is funded through government appropriations and reports to Parliament through the Minister of the Environment. While the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy does currently undertake research on the environment, the specific research this amendment requires is a new and distinct responsibility and as such would involve expenditures for a new and distinct purpose.

On May, 2005, the Acting Speaker ruled that expenditures for a new purpose require a royal recommendation:

—a royal recommendation is required not only in the case where more money is being appropriated, but also in the case where the authorization to spend for a specific purpose is being significantly altered.

The second development that I wish to draw to your attention is recent public comments made by the member for Honoré-Mercier that Bill C-288 would necessitate the spending of public funds.

In a CBC radio program on December 9, 2006, the member stated, “The bill forces the government to meet its Kyoto commitments”. When the member was asked to elaborate on the cost to meet the emission reduction targets in the Kyoto protocol, the member stated:

Even the worst case scenario, which would be to buy almost all the credits on the international level, is within the range of the cuts of the GST they made.

The 2006 federal budget estimates that the cost of reducing the GST from 7% to 6% will be in the $8.69 billion range over the next two years.

It seems to me that Bill C-288 has been written in a way that appears to avoid specifying a requirement for direct new government spending.

However, the member's recent media statement indicates his belief that the bill would result in a very large requirement for new government spending. To use the member's own example, this could involve costs of over $4 billion a year.

Since this new information has become available after your ruling on Bill C-288, I would request that you clarify your ruling on whether Bill C-288 obliges the government to spend additional public funds.

If the House agrees, I am prepared to table a copy of both the transcript of member's remarks in both official languages.

[Questions on the Order Paper, February 1st, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I ask that all questions be allowed to stand.

[Motions for Papers, January 31st, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I ask that all notices of motions for the production of papers be allowed to stand.

[Questions on the Order Paper, January 31st, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, I ask that all questions be allowed to stand.

[Points of Order, January 30th, 2007]

Mr. Speaker, my point of order is on Bill C-327.

Without commenting on the merits of this private member's bill, I would appreciate your consideration of whether this bill requires a royal recommendation under Standing Order 79. Clauses 1 and 2 of the bill add a new purpose to the Broadcasting Act to:

—contribute to solving the problem of violence in society by reducing violence in the programming offered to the public, including children.

To meet this purpose, the bill would provide new powers to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, also known as the CRTC, to regulate violence on television, verify broadcasters compliance, issue annual reports and undertake a five year review, including holding consultations. These are new responsibilities for the CRTC which were not previously authorized by the Broadcasting Act. They would clearly require new government expenditures.

Precedence clearly established that a change in purpose requiring new expenditures must be accompanied by a royal recommendation. On May 9, 2005, the Chair ruled:

— bills which involve new or additional spending for a distinct purpose must be recommended by the Crown. The royal recommendation is also required where a bill alters the appropriation of public revenue “under the circumstances, in the manner and for the purposes set out” in the bill.

What this means is that a royal recommendation is not only required in a case where more money is being appropriated, but also in a case where the authorization to spend for a specific purpose is being significantly altered.

On February 8, 2005, the Speaker ruled:

Where it is clear that the legislative objective of a bill cannot be accomplished without the dedication of public funds to that objective, the bill must be seen as the equivalent of a bill effecting an appropriation.

On September 17, 2006, the Speaker noted that the sections of the bill:

—with regard to the process of petitioning and reporting, are also functions which would require the authorization of spending for a new and distinct purpose.

I note that the new purpose for Bill C-327 is established by the operational obligation which clause 3 places on the CRTC for regulating, reporting and reviewing and by clauses 1 and 2, which would amend the overall broadcasting and regulatory policies in the Broadcasting Act.

I therefore submit that the bill in its entirety requires a royal recommendation.