Once again enemies of peace in the Middle East have surfaced and the innocent have been made victims. We urge the Israeli government and the Palestinian authorities to continue their work together for peace and to resist violent attempts by marginal groups to derail the peace process.
[Translation]
The Israeli government and Palestinian authorities have shown the world that former combatants can sit down together and reach a peace agreement. The terrorists who are trying to derail the process are being condemned by Canada and the international community as a whole.
[English]
The people of Canada have always strongly supported peace in the Middle East. We reject violence as a means of resolving the complex divisions between peoples there. A motion passed by the House yesterday was a demonstration of our solidarity with the
champions of peaceful political solutions to this too longstanding conflict and a condemnation of those who would see it destroyed.
A number of stakeholders will be present and several mini-conferences will be held on physical and mental health, as well as the rights and safety of the elderly. Legal advice will also be provided.
This family fair is an ideal opportunity for elderly people, and those responsible for them, to get useful information.
I want to congratulate the Association des familles soutien des aînés de Saint-Hubert for its praiseworthy initiative.
However, the government will still have to defend its actions in court. Last fall I filed a statement of claim in the Supreme Court of British Columbia asking the court to declare that the minister acted improperly in excluding commercial fishermen from the native only fisheries. The government will not be able to avoid the issue; it will have to answer to the judge.
Sir Robert Williams compiled an impressive list of community achievements over the past three decades. In addition to spearheading the Foundation of St. Leonard's House, which was the first home in North America devoted to prisoner rehabilitation, he was a founding member and later the chair of the Peel District Health Council. He was an active member of the Brampton Rotary Club, a director of Peel Community Services and chair of the United Way. In recognition of his outstanding achievements he was named Brampton's Citizen of the Year in 1981 and was the recipient of the Order of Canada.
Sir Robert Williams is survived by his wife Mary and his son Robert Jr. He will be missed by many. His contributions to his community and country will always be valued.
Who was the member? He was the newly elected member for Saint Jean, Quebec, the Hon. Lucien Bouchard. Canada was a country in 1988 by admission of the now premier of Quebec and it continues to be the best country in the world according to the United Nations. Vive le Canada.
She spent her life writing; she lived through and for writing. As the author of many books, she made a name for herself in several literary genres, such as stories, novels, plays and screen plays, including the one for the famous movie ``Hiroshima mon amour''. Her novel L'Amant, a book that was stopped at the border by Canada Customs, won the Prix Gongourt in 1984.
The Bloc Quebecois salutes this great woman who was called by Le Devoir a ``luminary of 20th century literature''.
[English]
The child support issue is not simply a woman's issue; it is a family issue. Child support must be family support. It must address the interests and concerns of children and both parents.
How the tax is calculated or how child support payments are enforced will only make sense with a fair and just support settlement.
Change is needed to remove the necessity of adversarial lawyers in a family court. Change is needed to bring federal and provincial jurisdictions together and change is needed to create fair guidelines and formulas.
The policies of governments have contributed in a very real way to the breakdown of family units in Canada. In child support as in all government decisions, Reform believes that the well-being of families should be the priority.
I also believe Canadians support the CBC's need for stable, multiyear funding. However the special tax proposed by the Juneau report is not the answer. Canadians are in no mood for any tax increases. A new tax for the CBC would unleash a storm of anger directed at the public broadcaster which is the last thing the CBC needs.
Providing stable long term funding for the CBC should not be achieved by new taxes or manipulating the tax system. The solution is quite simple. The government should guarantee funding for five-year periods.
This government promised in its red book: ``A Liberal government will be committed to stable multiyear financing for national cultural institutions such as the Canada Council and the CBC''. All it has to do is to live up to the political commitment it made to the Canadian people.
Today women make up 45 per cent of all workers but they also continue to do two-thirds of the unpaid work in Canada. In 1992 Statistics Canada estimated the total value of all unpaid work at between $210 billion and $318 billion. In order to make sound public policy, we need to take this productive activity into account and we will begin to do this in May.
For the first time ever, the national census will ask questions on unpaid work related to housework, child care and care of the elderly. In doing so, we are recognizing the tremendous contribution of women's unpaid work to Canadian society and the Canadian economy.
Our Bloc colleagues, however, have devoted all their energy since their election to criticizing our strategy, without proposing any serious alternative. Now he is the premier of Quebec, the former leader of our official opposition surely has a better understanding of the dilemma of preserving social programs while putting one's financial house in order.
To foster economic recovery and and create jobs, our colleagues will have to take off their sovereignist blinkers and help us attain these objectives for the good of all Canadians.
Hamilton's economy is relatively stable these days with an unemployment rate of 6 per cent. Co-operation between the unions, businesses, schools and government has created Hamilton's current success: a 5 per cent reduction in unemployment in two years.
Since Hamilton was incorporated in June 1846, the city has developed into one of Canada's major industrial centres. Although most famous as a steel town, Hamilton has numerous national attractions such as the Royal Botanical Gardens, Dundurn Castle, and the Art Gallery of Hamilton. This year's Grey Cup will be held in Hamilton, home of the Tiger Cats.
I would like to invite all my colleagues and all other Canadians to visit Hamilton this year to take part in the sesquicentennial celebrations.
In my riding women run businesses and are artists, farmers, politicians, service providers, homemakers and caregivers. They are also volunteers and members of service clubs, legions and women's institutes. Like women internationally, the women of my riding contribute wholly to the social, political and spiritual life of their communities. And they are heroes. I proudly recall witnessing Sheila Maracle and Terry Ann Richardson receive the Star of Courage and the Medal of Bravery for saving a drowning child in a spontaneous act of courage.
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Generous actions occur daily in homes and communities and across international boundaries. Mary Lou Carroll of Adolphustown is currently arranging a third shipment of supplies to the Sisters of St. Joseph's orphanage in Haiti.
Our lives are made richer by the women we know. Please join me in saluting the women of the world and of our constituencies across this great country.
With traditional methods, the rate of success for preoperative diagnosis is 78 per cent. This new method of detection raises the success rate to 99 per cent. The accuracy of these new tests will help relieve patient uncertainty, as well as reducing costs and length of care.
The Bloc Quebecois offers its congratulations to Drs. Arnold, Preul and Carmanos and their colleagues in neurosurgery for their discovery, which again offers proof of the innovative genius of Quebecers in the health field.
Canadians know that the Prime Minister promised to eliminate the GST. He did not promise to fudge the GST, to hide it or to sugarcoat it; he promised to eliminate it. What part of the word eliminate do the Liberals not understand?
Canadians and especially the voters of Etobicoke North will not be tricked by the same old Mulroney tax under a new name and a new cover. This issue may make the hon. minister and his Grit gang afraid of the voters, but we are not. Etobicoke North, say no to the supertax: vote Reform.
I would like to offer congratulations to the nominees and winners of this year's Geminis. Compelling, humorous, or informative programs, such as ``Due South'', ``Million Dollar Babies'', ``The Fifth Estate'' and ``This Hour Has 22 Minutes'' captured our imaginations and well deserved the recognition they received. The standards they set are an example of the exceptional work Canadians produce.
Canadian programming is now seen in every part of the world, a result of the hard work and talent of our own creators and craftspeople. It is also due in part to support from the people of Canada through the various programs and policies which exist to keep our cultural life vibrant and meaningful to all Canadians.
In 1993 scientists found the gene that causes Huntington's disease. Every child who has a parent with Huntington's has a 50 per cent chance of developing the disease.
Many know that May is Huntington's awareness month. In order to help local chapters in my riding spread their message, I am declaring May 19 to 26 Huntington's Awareness Week in Cumberland-Colchester. It is my hope that this initiative will help to heighten the local awareness and generate greater local support for research programs and education. With increased support for this dreadful disease, we can find a cure.