Wayne Easter

[Public Safety, June 3rd, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, tomorrow will be the sad anniversary of the tragic shooting in Moncton in which three RCMP officers were killed in the line of duty.

The report on that tragedy made many of the same recommendations found in the report on the shooting in Mayerthorpe, where four officers died eight and a half years earlier. Now the RCMP faces charges under the Canada Labour Code for inadequate training and equipment.

Ultimately, responsibility rests with the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness. Why has the minister failed the RCMP and its funding needs? Why is the government not providing enough money to the RCMP for training and equipment so that its officers can protect themselves?

[Birthday Congratulations, June 3rd, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the presence in the gallery of JoAn Yvonne Pendergast, a lovely American lady who is celebrating her 80th birthday with her Canadian husband, Michael. Having experienced the splendors of western Canada as they travelled on the Rocky Mountaineer, they were joined by Michael's niece, Anne, and her husband, Hermann Wallner.

It turns out that Michael and Anne have a link to Parliament Hill. As a young girl of 20, Mary Evelyn Thompson, who was Michael's mother and Anne's grandmother, was a personal secretary on Parliament Hill. She was here the night Centre Block, save for the Library of Parliament, burned in 1916. They both recall with considerable fondness the stories she told about the fire and other exciting happenings on the Hill.

I ask members to join me in wishing JoAn a happy birthday and in recognizing a Canadian family with a Hill connection, who she has with her here today.

[Pensions, June 2nd, 2015]

The facts are, Mr. Speaker, step one, the Conservatives are stealing two years of income from low-income seniors.

Now, step two, they want to make the Canada pension plan just optional. All we need to do is look at the Prime Minister's so-called firewall letter, where he stated, “Withdraw from the Canada Pension Plan”.

Is this new scheme to go voluntary not just to over time make the Canada pension plan optional? Why will the government not tell the truth?

[Pensions, June 2nd, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, let us get to the facts. Step one, the Conservatives are stealing--

[Pensions, June 2nd, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, it is actually time for an answer from the Minister of Finance. Nobody should believe for a minute that the government had a grand conversion and is committed to strengthening the Canada pension plan.

Is it not true that this new voluntary scheme is just a stepping stone to a completely voluntary pension plan, as proposed by the Prime Minister when he was president of the National Citizens Coalition?

As step one, they are stealing two years of income from low--

[Business of Supply, June 1st, 2015]

That's a lie. Say it outside. Do you want to promote that lie? Say it outside. Say it outside the door.

[Petitions, June 1st, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition from a little over 400 Prince Edward Islanders who are demanding that the House of Commons and government respect the right of small-scale family farmers to preserve, exchange, and use seeds. They call on the Government of Canada and the House of Commons to adopt international aid policies that support small family farmers, especially women, and recognize their vital role in the struggle against hunger and poverty; that we ensure that Canadian policies and programs are developed in consultation with small family farmers; and that they protect the rights of small family farmers in the global south to preserve, use, and freely exchange seeds.

[International Trade, June 1st, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, not only is the current Conservative government out of touch with Canadians, its failure on the economy and lack of strategic planning is costing Canadian jobs.

Let us take trade as an example. While the minister brags about trade agreements signed, it is just spin. The reality is that Canada has sunk to such repeated monthly trade deficits that Statistics Canada had to revise its trade deficit numbers from $984 million to a stunning $2.2 billion in a single month. This government's incompetence to utilize trade agreements has led to 42 months of trade deficits out of the past 61. What an abject failure on trade.

Every province and territory suffers from the government's failure to expand trade. This is a betrayal of trust that Canadian businesses and workers have placed in the government to deliver.

The numbers tell the truth. The Conservatives have not. They are out of touch with reality. It is time for them to go.

[Port State Measures Agreement Implementation Act, May 28th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I know the member has a keen interest in sustainable issues. Maybe he could spell out how important it is in this area? I do not think there is any other industry that is as affected by the migratory movement of fish around the world and the distances they travel than the fisheries industry. I mentioned earlier in my remarks the tuna industry as a prime example, where we have a hook and line industry here and other areas may not.

Could the hon. member mention how important strong enforcement under this legislation is where other countries apply sustainable practices as we try to do in the long-term future of the fishery and our own economy in those coastal communities?

[Port State Measures Agreement Implementation Act, May 28th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, there is nothing I would like to do more than commend the fisheries officers for the great work they do.

I hear a lot of applause from the other side, and I am glad to hear it. It is fisheries officers we are talking about. However, when it comes to government policy fostered by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the cabinet, that is an entirely different story.

Conservatives are slow getting to the plate. How long did it take this bill to get here? It took years and years. They still cannot answer questions on how many countries have yet to ratify the agreement, what countries are unwilling to ratify, and when the agreement will be in place. We will be passing a piece of legislation, but the government failed to provide the witnesses at the committee level to give us those kinds of answers.

I say to my hon. friend on the other side that maybe some spokesmen on that side, as soon as they get some direction from the PMO, could give us those answers during the rest of the debate today.