The ribbons, one of which members see me wear, are made out of plastic wrap. This is symbolic of the invisible uniform warn by the partners, spouses and children of military personnel. They are as committed to the military way of life as the personnel who wear the uniform. So too their morale is affected by negative media attention and public opinion.
I urge all members to join me in wearing an invisible ribbon to demonstrate that Canadians do appreciate military personnel and their families.
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This campaign will help reaffirm pride in the military and let military personnel and their families know that Canadians recognize and support their vital contribution to Canada.
Please join with me in urging people across Canada to wear the invisible ribbon. Let's have a visual thumbs up for the military.
[Translation]
Please join me in wearing this ribbon.
Nowhere has this been made more clear than in the chaos created by the Liberal government when it signed the softwood lumber agreement with the United States. This agreement is killing jobs and destroying job security across Canada.
The softwood lumber agreement is problematic for another reason. It replaces an open lumber market with the problems of a marketing board. Already I am hearing stories of lumber quotas being for sale to the highest bidder, while mills are being shut down and employees are being laid off because of a lack of lumber quota.
Will this Liberal government stop micro-managing the lumber industry and do something for the people of one of Canada's largest industries? I challenge the Liberal government to defend the jobs of Canadians against U.S. interests by referring the softwood lumber issue to the World Trade Organization.
People are hurting-
The Speaker: The hon. member for The Battlefords-Meadow Lake.
At the same time we recognize the minister's attempts to use the Canada Labour Code to protect the bungling of the Minister of Transport, who seems not to understand the real crisis facing Canadian Airlines or has chosen to ignore it.
New Democrats recognize that the real issue is the stability of the industry which it has demonstrated cannot regulate itself.
We care about the jobs of Canadian Airlines. We care about the future of the industry. However, we are concerned that by focusing only on the concessions being demanded of working people that the job and industrial security we all desire will be lost in the long term.
If the federal government wants to be involved in Canadian Airlines restructuring, it should leave collective bargaining to the affected parties and go to the table with a real package that addresses the real problems of the industry.
However, we should have no illusion about the spirit that drives our neighbours to the south. Just last week, U.S. farmers asked their government to amend NAFTA if the panel did not rule in their favour.
It is very likely that this lobby will continue to put pressure on the American administration to get the changes it wants. Consequently, the Minister for International Trade must remain firm on this issue.
The Bloc Quebecois remembers very well the mess created by this minister regarding the softwood lumber issue. We hope that, this time, the minister will show determination and will protect our fellow citizens.
The Armenian people will always remember the response of the Canadian government to this horrible tragedy. Over $6 million in aid was provided by the government to the people of Armenia and an additional $2.5 million in humanitarian relief was raised by Canadians.
On Sunday I will join Canadians of Armenian origin and Armenians everywhere in church services to mourn the loss of family members and friends. I urge my fellow members to reflect on this horrible tragedy and join with me in this commemoration.
If I were to be asked the same question I might say call centres. Yes, that is right, I said call centres. We have a highly advanced telephone network.
Listing a few companies that have already set up shop on the island are Cows, Island Tel, the GST Centre, HookUp Communications and Watts Communications.
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In fact we foresee such a growth in the industry that Holland College has set up a call centre and customer service excellence program to train call centre workers. The program will be the benchmark for high level training standards in the industry.
The call centre industry will provide year round full time jobs for Islanders. It is an excellent niche that has great potential for employment opportunities. Islanders are taking full advantage of their strength in carving out specialty niches, and eventually they will break the seasonality of the island economy.
More than 25 people have been killed by air guns in North America since 1980. Canadian hospitals report a growing number of non-fatal accidents involving such weapons. For example, Amanda Noseworthy of St. John's lost an eye when shot by a young boy who was playing with his rifle in a friend's home. Amanda is now losing the vision in her good eye and may become totally blind.
I have spoken to the federal justice minister on behalf of Amanda and her family and told him I support the inclusion of air guns as a real firearm under the Criminal Code of Canada, and therefore, should be subject to the same controls and safeguards.
Air guns are not toys. They are dangerous weapons that can kill. They must be regulated for the protection and safety of our children.
[Translation]
The Deputy Prime Minister suggested that RDI did not provide adequate coverage of issues concerning francophones outside Quebec. However, the fact is that RDI gives them long periods of coverage every day. Could it be that the heritage minister does not watch RDI?
The problem with RDI is not that it does not talk about francophones outside Quebec. The problem is that hundreds of French speaking households in English Canada do not get that channel, because the government agreed to make it an optional service for cable operators.
The question is: Does this government truly care about francophones outside Quebec, considering it did not deem appropriate to give them real access to RDI?
The first question dealt with the Liberal plan for harmonizing the GST with provincial sales taxes. When asked if they would support this in Ontario, 64 per cent said no while only 24 per cent said yes.
When asked if tobacco products should be placed under the Hazardous Products Act to give the government increased power over advertising and chemical contents, 72 per cent of Simcoe Centre voters said yes while 21 per cent said no. When asked if the federal government is justified in spending $20 million a year on the Canada Information Office, a whopping 90 per cent said no and only 8 per cent said yes.
The message is clear. The government needs to deal seriously with the tobacco issue, forget about a GST harmonization tax grab and stop wasting money on propaganda. When are the Liberals going to get the message? They just don't get it.
The premier of New Brunswick, Frank McKenna, together with the New Brunswick Telephone Company and Fundy Cable have co-ordinated their efforts to provide services and opportunities for the people of our province. The New Brunswick Community College, Miramichi, has received national recognition for its leadership in developing programs in multimedia technology, imaging, animation and virtual reality.
There is no secret to New Brunswick's success in attracting leading edge companies and call centres. NB Tel has digital equipment and some of the best fibre optics communications systems in the world. Our province has the economic environment to pursue and attract industries in the 21st century. I would like to inform the House that New Brunswick and the Miramichi are opened for business.
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Parliament has now closed these gaps and tightened the law, but the provinces of Alberta, Ontario, Manitoba and Saskatchewan are contesting this law in court, supported by the Conservative and Reform parties.
This law may not be perfect, but whenever access to guns is limited, the rate of crime with guns is reduced. The charge that guns do not kill, people kill, is ludicrous. It is much easier and effective to kill with a gun.
With more restrictions on guns there would be fewer homicides. Canadians should send a message to their provincial governments on this issue.
December 6 is Canada's national day of remembrance and action on violence against women. Violence against women has serious economic, health and social costs attached to it for individuals, families and society.
The Government of Canada is committed to working to eliminate violence against women. Everyone in society must become more involved, be it in their homes or communities in the fight against women's inequality. Violence against women is clearly a direct result of women's inequality in society.
The member for Halifax mentioned the department's commitment to women's health. But at the recent Canada-U.S. health forum, Canadian breast cancer advocates found themselves unaware of the conference's objectives and were shocked to discover their American counterparts had not even been invited.
The member for Halifax also spoke of the role status of women played at the UN Conference on Women in Beijing. What she did not mention was Canada's support for the marginalization of many Canadian women in order to advance its narrow agenda.
The official Canadian facilitating committee report classified the Vatican, pro-life groups and REAL Woman as fundamentalist groups and went on to say that: ``Constant criticism of fundamentalist discourses is a collective responsibility because they endanger the rights of women all over the world''.
I would like to know if the Secretary of State for the Status of Women, while standing on Canadian soil in front of Canadian citizens, including her own constituents, will defend this statement.
The poet, songwriter and singer Gilles Vigneault, who made this small area of our country famous, will honour us with his presence.
Natashquan is now a tourist destination accessible to everyone. With its breathtaking scenery and the warm hospitality of its residents, the region is now ready to share its beauty and its treasures with the rest of the world.
Everyone is welcome.
[English]
This tragic incident will serve as a constant reminder of the violence that is inflicted on women. In order to ensure safe homes and safe streets for all Canadians, and in particular women, the government has passed important legislation on issues like gun control, high risk offenders and other amendments to the Criminal Code.
But we need to do more if we are to honour their memory and eradicate violence against women.
[Translation]
May their deaths not have been in vain. Let us get to the roots of the problem of violence against women, first by increasing our social education efforts and by constantly promoting fundamental values, like respect and tolerance.
I encourage all my colleagues in this House to light a candle tomorrow in memory of the young victims of the massacre at the Ecole Polytechnique.
[English]
This day reminds us that we must continue to take action to eliminate violence against women in all its forms in all of society.
Statistics show that 51 per cent of Canadian women have experienced at least one incident of physical or sexual violence since the age of 16. We must remember that all violence is an assault on the sanctity of human life. Violence against women not only violates the body, it robs women of their dignity and scars their souls.
That is why the government has worked extremely hard in the past three years to introduce measures that address not only violence against women but violence against all persons.
Still, there is more work to do and we must all work together, in government, in communities and in homes across this country to ensure that women, men and children are truly free from the threat and fear of violence in Canadian society.