Tag Archives: First Nations

Roundup: Onto time-allocated debate

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After a much shorter voting marathon than we’ve become accustomed to, all of the amendments to Omnibus Budget Bill 2: The Revenge have been defeated, and it moves onto a one-day time-allocated third reading debate today. Remember when the government promised they’d be open to amendments and stuff? Yeah, good times.

The “temporary” measure of having prisoners in segregation double bunking – as in, two people in a small space for 23 hours a day – has been going on for two years in some prairie institutions. Yeah, this is going to end well.

Oh dear – it looks like the M-4 Unit – err, Julian Fantino didn’t get his duotronic databanks updated when he was given his new portfolio. As it turns out, he’s not familiar with the five principles of effective foreign aid that CIDA is committed to upholding.

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QP: Under the vote-athon countdown

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With an expected eight-hour vote-athon looming, and with Harper off meeting the Prime Minister of South Korea, QP got underway with Thomas Mulcair reading off a question about implausible economic forecasting. John Baird, again the designated back-up PM du jour, recited his Economic Action Plan™ talking points. For his final question, Mulcair asked about the government fighting the release of Residential School documents, bringing up how Jack Layton worked with Harper on the apology. Baird assured him that all relevant documents would be released to the question – but one wonders if “relevant” was the key word. Jean Crowder followed up asking the very same thing, to which John Duncan reminded her that he answered those very same questions in committee yesterday. Bob Rae was then up for the Liberals, making the case for refundable tax credits so that they actually benefit low-income Canadians, but Baird wouldn’t actually acknowledge the issue. For his final question, Rae asked the issue the issue of OxyContin in northern Reserves and mechanisms available to the federal government, but Leona Aglukkaq decided to hit back and blame the Liberals for approving OxyContin in the first place. This caused some outburst from Carolyn Bennett, but I missed what she said.

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QP: Dancing around disability questions

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It was nearly a full House, which is rare for a Monday, but as is also the norm for a Monday, Harper was absent. Nevertheless, Thomas Mulcair got the ball rolling by reading a about the government missing its economic targets, to which John Baird, the designated back-up PM du jour, first congratulated the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on their happy news before he moved onto approved Economic Action Plan™ talking points. When Mulcair pressed on about job numbers and temporary foreign workers, Baird kept on with the Action Plan™. Peter Julian was up next to denounce the supposed fire sale of Canadian resources to China, to which Christian Paradis assured him that they will ensure investments provide a net benefit to Canada. Bob Rae was up then for the Liberals and asked about the government’s disability tax credit and whether or not it would be made refundable. (It was Persons With Disabilities Day, for the record). Baird danced around the question with feel-good talking points about all kinds of tax credits.

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QP: Pursuing peace and human rights

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It was all hands on deck in the Commons today, for the first time in what seems like ages. Even the Bloc leader, Daniel Paillé was present – albeit from his perch in the diplomatic gallery, as he doesn’t actually have a seat. Thomas Mulcair kicked things off by reading off a question about the leaked proposed foreign policy plan, whereby the government would be abandoning their pledge not to sacrifice human rights on the altar of the almighty dollar. Harper stood up and in his usual shrugging manner, said the document wasn’t official policy and that his government always works to pursue peace and human rights. Mulcair went on to talk about the violence happening in the Congo, and the fact that Harper was just there talking about trade in the region. Harper disputed that characterisation, however, by saying that he did meet with opposition groups and expressed his concern over human rights abuses while at the Francophonie Summit in that country. Peggy Nash was up next, and wondered why Harper didn’t want to meet with the premiers when they were going to be discussing the economy. Jim Flaherty took this question, and pointed out that Harper regularly meets with the premiers. Bob Rae was up for the Liberals, and asked if Harper would consider doubling the flow of the gas tax to the municipalities by the next budget, so that they can engage in some long-term planning for infrastructure. Harper pointed out that they are consulting, but it was his government that made the gas tax transfers permanent, before the two of them had some back-and-forth over who can take credit for the gas tax revenues flowing to the cities.

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QP: By-election questions in the House

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With Stephen Harper off answering audience questions at the Canadian American Business Council’s fall policy conference, and John Baird over in the United Arab Emirates discussing the Gaza situation with his counterparts, it was up for grabs as to whose turn it was to be back-up PM du jour. So when Thomas Mulcair got up to read a pair of questions on Harper and Jim Flaherty contradicting each other’s deficit rounding error numbers, we found out that Tony Clement was the day’s designated hitter, who informed the House that it was their objective to balance the budget by 2015, and the NDP wants to raise taxes. Mulcair moved onto a question about why Harper wasn’t meeting with premiers in Halifax, what with the “fiscal cliff” looming and all, by Clement reminded everyone that the NDP wants to raise taxes. Peggy Nash tried to press after why Harper wasn’t meeting with the premiers, but this time Ted Menzies got to respond, reminding her that Harper meets with the premiers regularly. Bob Rae was up next, asking about a Calgary infrastructure project that was to have benefitted from an arrangement with P3 Canada, only to have the rules changed once the project was completed (and incidentally, this happened a year ago, and in the scrums afterward, Rae openly admitted that yeah, he’s asking these questions because there’s a by-election in Calgary Centre and god forbid there be politics in the House of Commons). Menzies accused Rae of having incorrect information, but did congratulate him on his concern for Calgary, and only wished that the Leader of the Official Opposition felt the same. For his final question, Rae asked about the situation in Gaza and working toward a cease-fire, to which Peter MacKay responded with a reaffirmation of the right of Israel to defend itself.

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Roundup: BYO-Armoured Car

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As the Prime Minister’s trip to India rolls along, we learn that after eight years of negotiation, a foreign investment protection agreement still hasn’t been signed, we’re still haggling out a deal to ship uranium two years later, and Harper brought over his own armoured cars, though that sounds to be more of an RCMP decision rather than his usual case of presidential envy.

A medical journal is warning of increased mental and physical illness as a result of the omnibus crime legislation, as people will be locked up for longer in overcrowded and stressful situations, and will be more exposed to things like Hepatitis C and HIV. The government, of course, doesn’t think the link between violence and overcrowding.

Further to the issue of veterans’ funerals, it seems that the rate has remained unchanged for 11 years. The Liberals are calling for an independent review of the Last Post Fund and its requirements.

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QP: Democracy costs money! Oh noes!

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With Harper off in India, and a number of other MPs back in their riding for Veterans’ Week activities, the Commons was a pretty sparse place, albeit not quite Friday sparse. Undeterred, Thomas Mulcair read off his first question about the extension of the deadline for the Nexen decision, to which John Baird, in his capacity as back-up PM du jour, mentioned that there were consultations going on as part of the complex decision making. Mulcair was up next, and asked quite simply who Baird would be consulting – but the cadence of the question was off, like he was still reading it off of a script he hadn’t previously read (though it was one of the rare moments when he spoke off-the-cuff in QP while not red-faced in anger). Baird, however, returned to his usual talking points about the “net benefit” test, and so on. Peggy Nash was up next and asked a pair of questions, in English and in French, about how in this time of fiscal austerity, Harper could have deigned to fly his own armoured limousines over to India. Toews responded that this was a judgement call by the RCMP, and he respected their decision. Bob Rae was then up for the Liberals, and in a rather impassioned display, wondered just what exactly changed on Friday that the government, which had been sitting on those Ashley Smith videos for five years, decided they now wanted to allow the investigation to proceed. Three times he tried to get the government to say something, to admit that they had been publicly embarrassed by those videos and had no choice but to let the investigation proceed unimpeded – but Baird simply resorted to the talking points about how they needed to do a better job of keeping people with mental illness out of prisons.

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QP: Detailing a nightmare scenario

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After some increasingly partisan sniping during Members’ Statements (and seriously, knock it off all of you), Thomas Mulcair started off QP by reading off a question on when the government was going to offer clarity on its Net Benefit test for foreign investment, to which Harper reminded him that they’ve already made changes to the Investment Canada Act when it comes to things like national security. Mulcair then turned his attention to the Canada-China FIPA, and detailed this nightmare scenario when the government of China would sue the Canadian government if the government of Alberta refused to sell them all of their undeveloped natural resources – to which Harper called the whole premise wrong and said that the FIPA was about protecting our investments under the rule of law – something Canadian investors don’t necessarily enjoy in China. Peggy Nash wondered about the omnibus budget bill going to the various committees, to which Shelly Glover made a dig about the Liberals voting against a motion related to the study, and then Nash turned to the topic of late night “bizarre moves” by the government when it comes to their decision-making, but she left herself wide open to Ted Menzies decrying the “bizarre move” of the NDP voting against their budget measures. Bob Rae was up for the Liberals, first asking about that disturbing Ashley Smith video, to which Harper said that it was a “terrible tragedy,” and that there was an inquest underway that he wasn’t about to get involved in. For his final question, Rae asked if Harper would allow various committees to meet over the break week to study the budget bill, but Harper noted that committees are the masters of their own destinies, and that he hoped MPs could work expeditiously.

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Roundup: Petronas fallout

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In the fallout over the rejection of the Petrnoas deal, Stephen Harper stands behind Paradis, yet still insists we’re open for foreign investment. Economist Stephen Gordon calls bullshit on some of the excuses for turning down deals like Petronas. Andrew Coyne calls for the “net benefit” test to be abolished.

The Prime Minister of Jamaica visited Ottawa yesterday, to celebrate 50 years of friendship and our opening a Canadian Forces supply base in the country to serve the region. When asked about Jamaica’s plans to abolish their monarchy, Simpson said that while she loves and respects the Queen, and Jamaica will always be a member of the Commonwealth, she feels its part of her country’s evolution.

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QP: No plans to privatise

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Lacklustre and listless – two words that could easily describe today’s Question Period. Harper was absent, which is not unusual for a Monday, and he’d just finished entertaining the Prime Minister of Jamaica before getting ready to head to Toronto to pay his respects to Lincoln Alexander, currently lying in State at the Ontario Legislature. Thomas Mulcair read off his first two questions, in French and English, about the rejection of the Petronas deal, to which Christian Paradis responded that he was not convinced that it would be of net benefit to Canada. And hey, at least it was Paradis responding and not a back-up PM du jour. Mulcair’s third question was about the rumours that the government wanted to privatise the CMHC, which Ted Menzies stood up to say that no, they had no plans to do so at this time. Peggy Nash then stood up and said “At. This. Time.” And then proceeded to read her two scripted questions on privatising the CMHC, where Menzies gave her the very same answer twice more. Bob Rae was up for the Liberals next, and first asked just what constituted “net benefit” with regards to the Petronas rejection, not that Paradis deviated from his message. Rae then asked about the Indian Act – the subject of his private member’s motion that was up for debate – and when the government would consult and head towards true equality with First Nations. John Duncan stood up and accused him of wanting more talk when the government was taking action. For his final question, Rae asked for a judicial inquiry in to the Jeffrey Delisle spy case, to which Peter MacKay told him that the issue was still before the courts.

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