Wayne Easter

[RESUMPTION OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS IN REPLY, November 24th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, the member for Peterborough is pretty good at trying to reinvent history but pretty poor in terms of actual facts. In his speech, he talked about the gas tax rebate and the refundable GST to communities. The fact of the matter is that was started by the previous government.

This is what the government that the member is a member of has actually done. It is strange that the throne speech is entitled “Protecting Canada's Future”, when no prime minister and no government in Canadian history has jeopardized Canada's fiscal future as much as that party and the Prime Minister over there have. The Conservatives have taken the fiscal capacity of the country and undermined it. They have taken surpluses and undermined them. They talked during the election campaign about not going into deficit, yet look at the Prime Minister's remarks today; they are now going into a deficit and blaming it on the global economy when it is really their party and the Prime Minister, and their actions that undermined Canada's fiscal security in terms of the country.

However, my question really relates to what the member talked about with regard to agriculture.

The hon. member said at the end of his remarks that Canadians, by voting the way they did in rural Canada, showed confidence in what that government was doing. No, they did not. The Conservatives got more seats. But we know that party got less votes than it did in the last election. Let us talk about that. That is not more confidence; that is less. The parliamentary system gives them more seats, yes, but the question is, what are they going to do for primary producers in this country?

We know in the last term you used every undemocratic action going to undermine the Canadian Wheat Board. You paid out $1.1 billion less--

[RESUMPTION OF DEBATE ON ADDRESS IN REPLY, November 24th, 2008]

Nothing, nothing.

[Canadian Wheat Board, June 20th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, avoiding the subject and confusion is all we get from the government.

It is interesting to note that this session started with the Federal Court ruling that the government illegally attempted to use its regulatory power to undermine the board and this session ends with another Federal Court ruling that the government imposed gag orders, violating the right to free speech.

However, no one should be surprised by the government's illegal actions. Its record is of scandal, cover-up and breaking the law.

What does the government have against honesty and the rule of law?

[Canadian Wheat Board, June 20th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, last night, the Conservative government was found by the Federal Court to have violated the right to freedom of expression by issuing gag orders against the Canadian Wheat Board.

Judge Hughes ruled:

It is hereby declared that the Governor in Council acted contrary to law by issuing said Direction....

It is hereby declared that said Direction contravenes the provision of subsection 2(b) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Part I of the Constitution Act....

Is there no law the government will not break in its attack on farmers' marketing institutions?

[Agriculture and Agri-Food, June 19th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to emphatically reject the personal attacks and blatant politics displayed by the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food yesterday in this House on my person.

Such behaviour demonstrates complete and utter disrespect for Parliament and fellow MPs. Instead of debating ideas, the Conservative member attacks individuals as a cover for his government's utter incompetence. Canadians deserve better.

When I speak on the hog and beef crisis and the government's lack of resolve, I do so for all farmers. When I speak on the government's cruel cuts to program spending by $1.2 billion, I include all farmers. When I fight for the democratic rights of farmers to run the Canadian Wheat Board without government interference, I do so to protect supply management as well.

As a member of Parliament from Prince Edward Island, I have and will continue to fight for all our country's farmers and, in spite of the personal attacks, will continue to do so.

[Points of Order, June 17th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, a member opposite, in statements by members prior to question period, made a statement that a number of us had voted with the government as if we were against the carbon tax.

The fact of the matter is that the Prime Minister's Office put out misinformation in a media release on the motion that was passed by committee. The motion passed by committee is for a study on the carbon issue.

[Committees of the House, June 10th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, for the previous questioner, let us set the record straight. When the previous government was in place, it announced a reduction strategy. It committed itself to that reduction strategy and followed through on it, according to what the tobacco industry requested. However, things changed and the situation for tobacco producers became worse. They realized they needed an exit strategy, given the contraband with which the current government has not dealt. Although Conservatives talk law and order, they have not really dealt with the contraband issue.

The member chairs the committee. He talks about the whole area, and, yes, that is important. There has to be regional development strategy for that whole area, and we support movement in that way. Specifically, there has to also be an exit strategy for the tobacco industry. It is in this specific area that the government has violated its word. The current Minister of Citizenship and Immigration committed to an exit strategy during the election and the government failed to follow through on that.

I met with those tobacco producers. Suicides are happening. The life work of people has gone down the drain. Even the lending community made a commitment to come forward this year based on what it thought the government would do.

Will the government at least keep its word on that specific area related to tobacco producers and commit to the exit strategy, which was about $275 million? Will it do that?

[Points of Order, June 9th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order. The minister only told half the story. The other half of the quote is:

“Involved” farmers are evenly split between a single desk and an open market for barley.

The minister--

[Budget Implementation Act, 2008, June 6th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, that is typical of that party. What I remember most of that member is his saying to hog and beef producers, “money is flowing as we speak” and then we had to pass special legislation to make it flow. The fact of the matter is the Conservatives' plan will cost $65 a tonne, carbon tax by 2018 and no relief for anyone in terms of their plan--

[Budget Implementation Act, 2008, June 6th, 2008]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the question from my hon. colleague. I sit on the Standing Committee on Agriculture with him. Sometimes we agree and sometimes we disagree and I guess this is a moment of disagreement. Clearly the member should know why I did not talk about a lot of what is not in Bill C-50, because it is what is not there that concerns me. It is the ignoring of rural Canada, the ignoring of primary producers, the putting farmers last that concerns me. I had to express those concerns.

Earlier we heard the parliamentary secretary try to put a spin on the survey of the Canadian Wheat Board. He tried to put a spin to misrepresent the facts. That is what the hon. member did in terms of the carbon issue. We are talking about a green shift. Let me be clear that on gasoline, there will be no increase. Wait until the plan rolls out. The member will probably be jumping up and down in favour of what the leader of the Liberal Party is trying to do.

Let us look at some of the opportunities in terms of a green shift for the farm community: other alternatives, research and development, carbon sinks. The net benefit at the end of the day will be an environment where our children and our grandchildren can enjoy a future. We on this side of the House will not bury our heads in the sand like that party over there does when it comes to dealing with environmental issues. We will deal with the facts. There are opportunities for farmers and primary producers in terms of a green shift: research and development, new crops, carbon sinks, and a better future environmentally for all Canadians and indeed the world.