The Environment  Mr. Speaker, a lot of talk, but no action. The Vancouver oil spill was a wake-up call, and it is not just Canadians who are ringing the alarm bell. Newly released documents show that U.S. officials are worried. A briefing note for Washington state's governor said Canada's oil spill response is probably a couple of decades behind the system in place in Washington state and that our weaker standards could cost Washington alone billions of dollars in harm.

The Budget  Mr. Speaker, there currently is no minimum wage for federally regulated workers. The previous government to the Conservatives, the Liberal government, eliminated the federal minimum wage in 1996. The Conservatives have not done anything on that front, so we feel a measured response to increasing it to $15 an hour would lift those federally regulated workers to a minimum of $15 an hour, which is a basic level and not even the living wage that many organizations across the country call for.

The Budget  Mr. Speaker, it is unfortunate that my hon. colleague's leader has decided that he will not support small business, while the leader of the NDP has categorically stated that he will invest in small business. We feel that small businesses are the engine of job growth because they create 80% of jobs.

The Budget  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise in the House today to address the current Conservative government's 11th, and hopefully final, budget. Mr. Speaker, I will also be splitting my time with the hon. member for St. John's East. After a decade of Conservative government, middle-class families are working harder than ever yet falling further behind.

The Budget  Mr. Speaker, I listened to my hon. colleague's comments with interest, and the member mentioned veterans in his speech. I am wondering if he will agree that the government has a moral, social, legal, and fiduciary obligation to provide equitable financial compensation and support services to past and active members of the Canadian Armed Forces who have been injured or disabled or have died as a result of military service, and to their dependants, which the Government of Canada is obligated to fulfill.

Questions Passed as Orders for Returns  With respect to government grants and contributions allocated within the constituency of New Westminster—Coquitlam from fiscal year 2011-2012 to the present: what is the total amount allocated, broken down by (i) amount, (ii) individual recipient?

Fisheries and Oceans  The Auditor General has been clear. The government is not prepared to deal with even moderately sized oil spills, but the Conservatives keep cutting the organizations that respond to these emergencies, including the Kitsilano Coast Guard station, B.C.'s oil spill environmental response centre and Coast Guard communication centres.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, as the member knows, I spoke in the House when the government was about to close the Kitsilano Coast Guard station. In voicing that opposition, we heard many speaking out. We also heard in 2010 from the Commissioner on Environmental and Sustainable Development who said that procedures for verifying preparedness for the Coast Guard were not in place, that the responses to ship source spills were poorly documented and that there was no national regime for ship source chemical spills.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his intervention. However, I do not know where to begin on all the claims that he made in his speech. I hope he will start by supporting the motion. The first thing the member from British Columbia can do is listen to the people of British Columbia and support the motion.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I want to pick up on what the parliamentary secretary said about consulting with experts. Could he specifically mention which marine emergency response partners the government consulted with, not just in the last few weeks or days, but in the last number of years on oil spill response, specifically relating to the closure of the Kitsilano Coast Guard station.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, we just heard from the parliamentary secretary, who said that the Kitsilano Coast Guard station did not have the equipment to respond to the oil spill that happened recently. I am wondering if he is aware that former Kitsilano Coast Guard commander Fred Moxey is willing to write an affidavit to say that the government is not telling the truth about having the equipment or the training the Coast Guard could have provided for that oil spill response.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, this is the typical response we are receiving from the Conservative government. It is not listening to our marine safety experts, who have over years warned that this station is absolutely outfitted for search and rescue response and is also able to play a vital role in quick response to oil spills and spills of toxins and contaminants.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for the question and for the work he has done as well, in speaking out on this issue over the years. His riding of Burnaby—New Westminister is right next to my riding on the Fraser River. We on the west coast know the vital role that our coast guard plays in immediately responding to disasters: oil spills or those of a human nature.

Business of Supply  moved: That, in the opinion of the House, the recent toxic bunker fuel spill in Vancouver Harbour represents an urgent reminder of the fragility of our coastal waters and, therefore, the government must reverse its cuts to marine safety, oil spill response, and environmental clean-up capacity in Vancouver and elsewhere on the coast of British Columbia by: (a) re-opening the Kitsilano Coast Guard Station; (b) re-opening the recently-closed Ucluelet Marine Communication and Traffic Service Centre; and (c) halting plans to close the Vancouver and Comox Marine Communication and Traffic Service Centres.

Petitions  Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition from thousands of people across the country who are concerned about overfishing and destructive fishing practices that are threatening marine life in the ocean. The petitioners say that over 120 million people are dependent on fish as part of their income but, over the last century, fish populations have dramatically declined.