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Thursday, April 26, 2012 · sitting No. 111

NDP motion rejects raising old age security eligibility age

The House spent the largest share of the sitting on an opposition day motion from NDP MP Irene Mathyssen that rejects the government's plan to raise the age of eligibility for old age security and the guaranteed income supplement from 65 to 67. The motion asserts that the current system remains financially sustainable at the present eligibility age. Debate focused on the impact on seniors' independence and dignity and on the absence of consultation with the provinces.

In question period the prime minister told NDP leader Thomas Mulcair that the government has received no request to extend Canada's military training mission in Afghanistan beyond 2014. Mulcair pressed for a clear commitment against any extension and accused the government of acting unilaterally on previous mission changes.

Liberal leader Bob Rae asked the prime minister whether he was aware that deputy ministers had sent letters to the auditor general disagreeing with the conclusions of the F-35 audit report. The prime minister replied that departments routinely respond during audits and that the government accepts the auditor general's conclusions.

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 · 2012-04-26

Government (Conservative)OppositionOver the day: government 40%, opposition 60% of the words spokenGovernment businessQuestion PeriodGovernment businessPrivate members▲ Government side held the floor▼ Opposition held the floorOpened 10:0511:0012:0013:0014:0015:0016:0017:00Last speech 18:15Time of day, Ottawa · the House sat 8 h 10 min · each dot is a stretch of debate, placed at the minute it began
41Supply day yields debate, not decisionsThe House devoted most time to Business of Supply and related debates while Question Period produced mostly deflected answers. Only one bill was introduced amid several points of order and no recorded votes.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

Justice

NDP leader Thomas Mulcair asked why the prime minister had allowed Conservative MPs to reopen the abortion debate through motion M-312. Prime Minister Stephen Harper replied that every private member can table motions and that an all-party committee had deemed the motion votable.

Read the exchange

Ethics

NDP MP Ève Péclet asked whether the government considered the international cooperation minister's travel expenses appropriate. Government House leader Peter Van Loan said the government requires travel on government business to be at a reasonable cost to taxpayers and that the minister had repaid inappropriate expenses.

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41st General Election

NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice said the investigation into Conservative election fraud was expanding beyond Guelph. Conservative MP Dean Del Mastro replied that the NDP itself is under investigation for illegal donations and has withheld information requested by the chief electoral officer.

Read the exchange

Agriculture and Agri-Food

NDP MP Malcolm Allen said the government is firing food inspectors and closing inspection stations. Agriculture minister Pierre Lemieux replied that Canada has a superior food safety system and that the government has increased inspection staff since 2006.

Read the exchange

Question 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

  1. answered
    AfghanistanMr. Thomas Mulcair (NDP) asked Stephen Harper (Conservative). substantive question.The answer directly clarifies the lack of contact from the US.I said that I have had no such contact.
  2. deflected
    AfghanistanMr. Thomas Mulcair (NDP) asked Stephen Harper (Conservative). substantive question.The answer restates general intentions without addressing unilateral action.the government has every intention of bringing military missions to the House of Commons.
  3. misdirected
    AfghanistanMr. Thomas Mulcair (NDP) asked Stephen Harper (Conservative). substantive question.The answer attacks the NDP historically instead of answering the yes-or-no question.The leader of the NDP, in 1939, did not even want to support war against Hitler.
  4. answered
    JusticeMr. Thomas Mulcair (NDP) asked Stephen Harper (Conservative). substantive question.The answer explains lack of leader control over private members' motions.Party leaders do not have any control over that.
  5. answered
    JusticeMr. Thomas Mulcair (NDP) asked Stephen Harper (Conservative). substantive question.The answer explains lack of leader control over private members' motions.Party leaders have no control over that.
  6. deflected
    National DefenceBob Rae (Liberal) asked Stephen Harper (Conservative). substantive question.The answer discusses standard procedure without addressing awareness of the letters.it is a standard procedure during an audit for departments to respond to the Auditor General.
  7. answered
    National DefenceBob Rae (Liberal) asked Stephen Harper (Conservative). substantive question.The answer affirms acceptance of the Auditor General's conclusions.The government has clearly accepted the conclusions
  8. deflected
    National DefenceBob Rae (Liberal) asked Stephen Harper (Conservative). loaded question.The answer reinterprets the Auditor General's conclusions to avoid the responsibility question.those are not the Auditor General's conclusions.
  9. deflected
    EthicsMs. Ève Péclet (NDP) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). loaded question.The answer avoids a direct yes/no on the minister's choices by restating general policy.The minister repaid any inappropriate expenses.
  10. deflected
    EthicsMs. Ève Péclet (NDP) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). substantive question.The answer restates that expectations are clear without addressing guidelines.our expectations are very clear.
  11. deflected
    EthicsMr. Charlie Angus (NDP) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). substantive question.The answer cites statistics and repayment instead of having the minister address appropriateness.The fact is that government spending by ministers on travel is down 15%
  12. misdirected
    EthicsMr. Charlie Angus (NDP) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). loaded question.The answer attacks the member for not acknowledging facts rather than addressing the question.The member has not acknowledged that fact.
  13. partly answered
    EthicsMr. Alexandre Boulerice (NDP) asked Rona Ambrose (Conservative). substantive question.The answer addresses the request by noting contact with the Auditor General but defers on the committee.We have asked the Office of the Auditor General to conduct an independent audit into these allegations.
  14. misdirected
    41st General ElectionMr. Alexandre Boulerice (NDP) asked Mr. Pierre Poilievre (Conservative). loaded question.The answer attacks the NDP's credibility instead of addressing cooperation with Elections Canada.The New Democrats have absolutely no credibility after the false allegations they had to—
  15. misdirected
    41st General ElectionMs. Chris Charlton (NDP) asked Mr. Dean Del Mastro (Conservative). loaded question.The answer shifts to NDP investigations rather than acknowledging the scope of the Conservative probe.the NDP is actually under investigation for not just its 2011 annual general meeting
  16. misdirected
    41st General ElectionMs. Chris Charlton (NDP) asked Mr. Dean Del Mastro (Conservative). loaded question.The answer accuses the member of misquoting and baseless allegations instead of addressing the question.now members opposite are misquoting the Chief Electoral Officer.
  17. deflected
    41st General ElectionMr. Peter Julian (NDP) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). rhetorical question.The answer ignores the question on ministerial accountability and pivots to unrelated economic talking points.The fact is that this government is composed of ministers who have been doing outstanding work, and Canadians have been benefiting.
  18. misdirected
    EthicsBob Rae (Liberal) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). substantive question.The answer attacks the Liberal Party's past scandal instead of addressing the timing of the minister's repayment.What also should be would be for the Liberal Party to for once take accountability for the $40 million it took from taxpayers through the sponsorship scandal.
  19. misdirected
    EthicsWayne Easter (Liberal) asked Mr. Dean Del Mastro (Conservative). loaded question.The answer denies the premise and counters by accusing Liberals of illegal robocalls rather than addressing the call for a royal commission.The Conservative Party is not being investigated.
  20. partly answered
    PensionsStéphane Dion (Liberal) asked Ms. Kellie Leitch (Conservative). substantive question.The answer states the government's position on OAS changes but does not confirm agreement with the cited figures from OECD or others.In order to assure the sustainability of old age security, the age of eligibility will be gradually increased from 65 to 67 starting in 2023 and fully implemented in 2029.
  21. answered
    JusticeMs. Françoise Boivin (NDP) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). substantive question.The answer directly states the Prime Minister's position on not reopening the abortion debate.the Prime Minister has been clear on this subject: he will not reopen this debate.
  22. answered
    JusticeMs. Niki Ashton (NDP) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). substantive question.The answer directly restates the Prime Minister's position against reopening the abortion issue.The Prime Minister has made it clear that he will not reopen this issue.
  23. deflected
    Status of WomenMs. Niki Ashton (NDP) asked Mr. Colin Carrie (Conservative). loaded question.The answer defends spending levels and attacks the NDP and Liberals instead of addressing the specific program cuts.Shame on the NDP and the Liberals because they voted against it.
  24. deflected
    Status of WomenMs. Libby Davies (NDP) asked Mr. Colin Carrie (Conservative). substantive question.The answer highlights overall spending and past votes against initiatives rather than addressing the impact of the specific cuts.Again the NDP members voted against each one of those initiatives.
  25. deflected
    Air CanadaMr. Robert Aubin (NDP) asked Denis Lebel (Conservative). substantive question.Answer avoids enforcement question by declaring it a private matter outside government scope.This issue does not concern the government; it is a matter for a private company and its management.
  26. deflected
    Air CanadaMr. Pat Martin (NDP) asked Denis Lebel (Conservative). substantive question.Answer refuses to address enforcement by insisting on non-interference with private companies.As this matter concerns two private companies, we do not interfere in private companies.
  27. deflected
    Agriculture and Agri-FoodMr. Malcolm Allen (NDP) asked Mr. Pierre Lemieux (Conservative). loaded question.Answer pivots to past staffing increases and opposition votes instead of addressing current cuts.since 2006 this government has been responsible for a net increase of over 700 new inspection staff within CFIA.
  28. deflected
    Agriculture and Agri-FoodMs. Ruth Ellen Brosseau (NDP) asked Mr. Pierre Lemieux (Conservative). loaded question.Answer cites OECD ranking and past votes rather than responding to claims of firing inspectors.Canada is one of the best-performing countries in the 2010 Food Safety Performance World Ranking study.
  29. answered
    Government ProgramsMr. Frank Valeriote (Liberal) asked Mr. Mike Lake (Conservative). substantive question.Answer directly explains termination rationale and notes continued youth internship support.Federal funding will continue to support youth internships at community Internet sites
  30. deflected
    Veterans AffairsMr. Sean Casey (Liberal) asked Steven Blaney (Conservative). substantive question.Answer discusses payment simplicity but never addresses whether grants are taxable.our veterans will receive a payment twice a year, which will eliminate millions of transactions.
  31. misdirected
    EmploymentMs. Jinny Jogindera Sims (NDP) asked Jason Kenney (Conservative). loaded question.Answer attacks the question's premise as false and outrageous instead of addressing exploitation claim.the premise of the question is entirely false. The question itself is absolutely outrageous.
  32. deflected
    EmploymentMrs. Sadia Groguhé (NDP) asked Jason Kenney (Conservative). loaded question.Answer denies wage differential and reframes around labour shortages rather than policy impact.at the same wage level as Canadians
  33. deflected
    Agriculture and Agri-FoodHedy Fry (Liberal) asked Mr. Pierre Lemieux (Conservative). loaded question.The answer addresses food safety funding but deflects the question about cabinet ministers' warnings.Our cost-saving measures do not reduce food safety.
  34. partly answered
    Regional Economic DevelopmentMs. Mylène Freeman (NDP) asked Denis Lebel (Conservative). substantive question.Answers by clarifying no closures but uses sarcastic tone to question the premise.None of the Economic Development Agency of Canada's regional offices have been closed.
  35. deflected
    Canadian HeritageMr. Matthew Dubé (NDP) asked James Moore (Conservative). rhetorical question.The question is rhetorical and the answer is brief without addressing the implication.we always take care with those kinds of documents.
  36. answered
    JusticeMr. Jean-François Fortin (Bloc) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). loaded question.Directly states the PM's position on not reopening the debate.the Prime Minister has been clear. He will not reopen this debate.
  37. partly answered
    Business of the HouseMr. Nathan Cullen (NDP) asked Peter Van Loan (Conservative). substantive question.Provides updates on the motion and budget but not fully on time allocation plans.I believe that motion had an expectation of about half a year before the government was to respond.
  38. misdirected
    Points of OrderMr. Charlie Angus (NDP) asked Steven Blaney (Conservative). loaded question.The response focuses on accusing the questioner of sexism rather than addressing the accountability issue.sexist comments are unacceptable in this House, period.