All sittings← 2007-10-262007-10-30 →
Monday, October 29, 2007 · sitting No. 10
Bloc motion on spending power draws Conservative rebuke
Government orders on a Bloc Québécois supply-day motion consumed the largest share of the sitting. The motion, moved by Vivian Barbot, called on the government to allow Quebec to opt out of any federal program in areas of provincial jurisdiction with full compensation and no conditions. Lawrence Cannon said the proposal would eliminate federal powers long used by Parliament and accused the Bloc of seeking to make Ottawa as powerless as itself.
Barbot replied that every Quebec premier since Duplessis had asked Ottawa to stop spending in areas of provincial jurisdiction. Yves Lessard noted that governments after Duplessis, including one in which Cannon served, had made the same request.
In question period Michael Ignatieff pressed the government on reports of torture and disappearances of Afghan detainees transferred by Canadian forces, asking how many had gone missing since the May transfer agreement. Peter Van Loan said such allegations are expected from the Taliban and noted that monitoring mechanisms are now in place.
From the Hansard record of the sitting. Full Hansard
No CPAC Question Period upload is on file for this day. CPAC’s channel goes back to December 2019.
Who held the floor · 2007-10-29
65Bills creep ahead, answers mostly dodgeThe House moved a dozen bills through introduction and second reading while devoting most time to supply and Afghanistan. Question period produced few direct answers and no recorded votes were held.AI-rated Score out of 100; the verdict and the answer ratings behind it are a model’s reading. How the AI rates this
AI-rated The sitting score and the rating of each answer come from a language model reading Hansard. How the AI rates this
Other moments
Afghanistan
Michael Ignatieff asked how many of 50 transferred Afghans had disappeared since May and what the government would do to restore Canada’s human-rights reputation.
Read the exchangeCanada Student Financial Assistance Act
Geoff Regan moved amendments to restore the title and clause 1 of Bill C-284 on Canada access grants for students with permanent disabilities.
Read the exchangeElections Canada
Marlene Jennings said six Conservative ministers are implicated in the in-and-out scheme and called for their resignations; Peter Van Loan said all Conservative practices are open and within the law.
Read the exchangeInternational Aid
Caroline St-Hilaire asked whether the government monitors humanitarian spending in Afghanistan or merely distributes cookies; Bev Oda said aid follows clear criteria with internal and external audits.
Read the exchangeArms Sales
Dawn Black asked how many weapons Canada had exported and why figures required by law had not been released; Maxime Bernier said a report covering 2003-2005 is under study.
Read the exchangeQuestion Period, exchange by exchange
AI-rated Each answer’s rating (answered, partly answered, deflected, answered something else) is a model’s reading of the exchange. How the AI rates this
- deflectedAfghanistanMr. Michael Ignatieff (Liberal) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). substantive question.Answer avoids specifics on monitoring by blaming Taliban and restating mechanisms exist.
It is their usual modus operandi.
- deflectedAfghanistanMr. Michael Ignatieff (Liberal) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). substantive question.Answer repeats Taliban blame and general mechanisms without addressing number of allegations.
I would caution the hon. member against taking them instantly as words of truth without penetrating beyond them.
- misdirectedAfghanistanMr. Michael Ignatieff (Liberal) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). substantive question.Answer pivots to quoting an academic praising the deal instead of addressing disappearances or human rights reputation.
Most of all, it is a heck of a lot better rule than what was put in place by the Liberals when they sent the troops into Afghanistan.
- deflectedAfghanistanRobert Thibault (Liberal) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). substantive question.Answer reframes to troops defending rights without addressing knowledge of the 50 detainees or hands-off approach.
They are there to defend them from the Taliban who seek to dismiss their human rights and crush them as they have in the past.
- deflectedAfghanistanRobert Thibault (Liberal) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). loaded question.Answer praises agreement via media quote and avoids Geneva Convention or ministerial responsibility.
That is something to be proud of, as it is to be proud that we are there defending the Afghan people.
- deflectedAfghanistanMr. Gilles Duceppe (Bloc) asked Maxime Bernier (Conservative). substantive question.Answer blames Taliban and cites agreement without confirming implementation or visits.
this sort of allegations is to be expected from the Taliban.
- deflectedAfghanistanMr. Gilles Duceppe (Bloc) asked Maxime Bernier (Conservative). substantive question.Answer cites external praise for agreement but does not confirm visits or reports.
It is a very good agreement for the protection of human rights, and we are ensuring that it is respected by the Afghan government.
- deflectedAfghanistanMr. Claude Bachand (Bloc) asked Maxime Bernier (Conservative). substantive question.Answer shifts to survey on women's rights and troops' record without addressing access or hiding information.
In a recent independent survey carried out in Afghanistan, 73% of Afghans said that the women are treated better today than they were five years ago.
- deflectedAfghanistanMr. Claude Bachand (Bloc) asked Maxime Bernier (Conservative). loaded question.Answer restates agreement and mission goals without addressing prosecution risk.
An agreement was signed with the duly elected Afghan government.
- deflectedAfghanistanJack Layton (NDP) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). substantive question.Answer cautions against sources instead of confirming steps taken on the agreement.
I have to caution the hon. member on taking as the truth incomplete statements such as a few comments from unattributed sources
- deflectedAfghanistanJack Layton (NDP) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). substantive question.Answer avoids stating the date of last visits and pivots to polls and reputation.
We have an agreement which ensures that can happen.
- answeredAfghanistanBryon Wilfert (Liberal) asked Peter MacKay (Conservative). loaded question.Answer directly reconciles the two dates mentioned without evasion.
As the hon. member knows, we have a February 2009 end date.
- misdirectedAfghanistanBryon Wilfert (Liberal) asked Peter MacKay (Conservative). loaded question.Answer attacks the opposition's past record instead of clarifying the dates.
Unlike the members opposite, who were part of the government that sent soldiers to Afghanistan not only ill-equipped but without a mandate from Parliament
- deflectedAfghanistanDenis Coderre (Liberal) asked Peter MacKay (Conservative). loaded question.Answer claims agreement but does not resolve the 2011 vs 2017 discrepancy.
He was referring to the building of a professional army.
- deflectedAfghanistanDenis Coderre (Liberal) asked Peter MacKay (Conservative). loaded question.Answer asserts unity without addressing the specific 2017 claim or control issue.
The minister, the Prime Minister and the Chief of Defence Staff agree.
- partly answeredInternational AidMs. Caroline St-Hilaire (Bloc) asked Bev Oda (Conservative). substantive question.Answer offers to respond to specifics but does not address the transparency complaint.
If the member has a specific question to ask about a specific amount, project or program, I would be happy to answer the question.
- partly answeredInternational AidMs. Caroline St-Hilaire (Bloc) asked Bev Oda (Conservative). loaded question.Addresses monitoring and accountability but sidesteps tabling reports and the cookie remark.
We have a reporting process. We have accountability. We have audits being done both internally and by external parties.
- partly answeredBroadcasting and TelecommunicationsMr. Maka Kotto (Bloc) asked Josée Verner (Conservative). substantive question.Explains the Act and CRTC role but avoids committing to issuing directions.
Our government expects the CRTC to make regulations promoting the production and broadcast of Canadian content.
- deflectedBroadcasting and TelecommunicationsMr. Maka Kotto (Bloc) asked Josée Verner (Conservative). loaded question.Ignores the deregulation premise and lists funding instead.
a strong Canadian content is a priority for our government.
- misdirectedElections CanadaMarlene Jennings (Liberal) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). loaded question.Attacks Liberals on unrelated matters rather than addressing resignations.
the chutzpah of the Liberals when it comes to campaign finance stuff never ceases to amaze me.
- misdirectedElections CanadaMarlene Jennings (Liberal) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). loaded question.Turns to Liberal allegations instead of responding on Conservative ministers.
all our practices are open, transparent, disclosed and within the law.
- misdirectedElections CanadaMr. Brian Murphy (Liberal) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). loaded question.Attacks a Liberal member rather than answering about the scheme.
the activities the member speaks about are all entirely legal, follow the act, every single word.
- misdirectedElections CanadaMr. Brian Murphy (Liberal) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). loaded question.Shifts blame to Liberals and past scandals instead of addressing accountability.
the denial-athon goes on and on, from the HRDC boondoggle into Liberal coffers, from the sponsorship scandal into Liberal coffers.
- deflectedArms SalesMs. Dawn Black (NDP) asked Maxime Bernier (Conservative). substantive question.Blames prior Liberal government and avoids current export numbers or transparency.
we are currently studying a report covering the years 2003 to 2005.
- deflectedArms SalesMs. Dawn Black (NDP) asked Maxime Bernier (Conservative). loaded question.The answer promises a future report without addressing the current refusal or accusations.
as soon as it is ready, we will release it to the public.
- misdirectedMiddle EastMr. Mark Holland (Liberal) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). rhetorical question.The response changes subject to past Liberal actions rather than addressing the report.
it is very amusing to hear the Liberal Party today concerned and interested in the views of the member for Mississauga—Streetsville .
- misdirectedMiddle EastMr. Mark Holland (Liberal) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). loaded question.The answer attacks Liberals' past practices instead of addressing the report's release.
I do not recall that they were ever willing to release any of those reports, and you know what? They were not.
- answeredPassportsMr. John Maloney (Liberal) asked Maxime Bernier (Conservative). substantive question.The answer directly addresses the backlog with specific measures taken and results.
Seven hundred employees have been hired to speed up passport application processing.
- partly answeredPassportsMr. John Maloney (Liberal) asked Maxime Bernier (Conservative). substantive question.The answer repeats prior measures but does not address the lack of a plan or timeline for resolution.
There has been a sharp increase in these applications by Canadians and we have implemented procedures to ensure that Canadians get their passports on time.
- answeredCanada Elections ActMr. Michel Guimond (Bloc) asked Lawrence Cannon (Conservative). substantive question.The answer confirms the bill's tabling to address the Chief Electoral Officer's concerns.
Friday, we had the pleasure of tabling the bill.
- deflectedCanada Elections ActMr. Michel Guimond (Bloc) asked Lawrence Cannon (Conservative). loaded question.The answer avoids the equality concern by deferring to future debate without addressing it.
I have no doubt that he will have an opportunity to express his opinion when the matter is debated in committee or in this House.
- misdirectedChild CareCarolyn Bennett (Liberal) asked Monte Solberg (Conservative). loaded question.The answer attacks the Liberal leader instead of addressing the child care plan's failure.
One thing we will never do is take away the universal child care benefit like the leader of the Liberal Party has said he would do.
- deflectedVeterans AffairsMr. Peter Stoffer (NDP) asked Greg Thompson (Conservative). loaded question.The answer attacks the asker's record and offers private discussion instead of addressing the specific broken promises on VIP and agent orange compensation.
the voting record of that member and his party on veterans and our men and women in the military speaks for itself.
- misdirectedVeterans AffairsMr. Peter Stoffer (NDP) asked Greg Thompson (Conservative). loaded question.The answer ignores the question about court cases and instead attacks the NDP's historical voting record on veterans.
That party's record on veterans is deplorable.
- answeredTourism IndustryMark Eyking (Liberal) asked Diane Ablonczy (Conservative). loaded question.The answer directly corrects the false premise about removing the tax credit and states the program was reintroduced.
As he well knows, the government reintroduced a program to make sure that tour operators and conventions could in fact claim the goods and services tax credit.
- answeredSeasonal WorkersMs. Louise Thibault (Independent) asked Monte Solberg (Conservative). substantive question.The answer directly lists specific government actions on EI governance, transfers, training, and benefits in response to the query on seasonal workers.
We have also announced in the budget $3 billion in transfers to the provinces so that they can provide more training for people who have never been in the workforce.