Richard Cannings

[Canada's Contribution to the Effort to Combat ISIL, February 23rd, 2016]

Madam Speaker, I will be dividing my time in the debate with the member for Timmins—James Bay.

I am happy to rise in the House this afternoon to speak against both the motion and the amendment to that motion.

I was encouraged to hear the speeches earlier this afternoon given by my NDP colleagues that I think really put the proper frame on this debate. Instead of how should we be throwing our military might into the Middle East, or should we bomb or should we not bomb, the question should really be, how can Canada be a truly positive force in the Middle East and the world?

I have heard many comments on this issue from many people in my riding, both recently and throughout the long election campaign. I would have to agree with the member for Elmwood—Transcona, who pointed out in his speech the clear change in the Liberal stance in this conflict.

When I travelled throughout my riding during the campaign, I went to 20 or so all-candidates forums. The Liberal candidate and I ended up at all those forums. Unfortunately, we did not really hear much from the Conservative side. I have to say that I continually heard from the Liberal candidate that Canada should be playing a more positive role in the Middle East, we should be pulling out the bombers and increasing humanitarian aid. The audiences in all 20 locations all agreed with us. Many constituents commented then that this is not our war. I still hear those comments from my constituents. I have had a couple of messages just in the last week alone from constituents about this, and they were not even aware of this debate going on. They just wanted me to hear that message.

I would like to also re-emphasize the comments made earlier by the member for Churchill—Keewatinook Aski that we seem to be so anxious to put our men and women of the armed forces in harm's way, and yet we continue to ignore the challenges they face when we bring them home. I have talked to many veterans in my riding who despair at the cuts to the services here in Canada. Some have even moved to the quieter parts of my riding since it is the only relief they can get from their PTSD.

Here we are again, putting more of our servicemen and women, tripling the number, into harm's way without a real clear plan of what they are there to do and when we will bring them home.

Let us look at the Liberal plan. The Liberals want to expand and enlarge our military role in Iraq with our personnel placed deeper and deeper into the combat. There is no apparent end date to the mission and no clear measures of success.

I remember commenting in the previous debate in the House that we had on an opposition day motion on this issue that I was reminded of George W. Bush's “mission accomplished” celebration regarding Iraq. In reality, he was celebrating the birth of ISIS and the destruction of any semblance of a stable Middle East.

The Liberal plan blurs the lines between training and combat roles. While they have recalled the bombers, we will still be refuelling bombers and we will be painting targets for them. The irony of this is simply painful, and I must say I am confused at the lack of clarity in this policy.

The human cost is difficult to assess. We are told that this mission will cost $264 million. It is interesting that the figure is so precise, considering, as I mentioned before, that the mission has no end date. Both my colleagues from Manitoba have already outlined the clear choices evident in these costs. There are so many positive ways we could be spending those funds here in Canada.

Canada does have constructive roles to play in fighting ISIS. We should be stopping the arms trade in the region, instead of increasing it. We should, first, sign the Arms Trade Treaty. It is absolutely unacceptable that Canada has not done this. We should be cutting off the funding sources for ISIS.

We constantly forget the other Canadian fighters in this region, in this conflict. Those are the Canadian fighters who have gone to the Middle East to fight for ISIS. There is nothing in the Liberal plan to increase and expand any deradicalization program here in Canada. This is something that we desperately need. There are models around the world that we can follow. We really need to tackle this end of things, because when we talk about the Canadian role in this conflict, we must remember that we can have a more positive effect by battling deradicalization as well.

We should continue our efforts to resettle refugees from this conflict in our country. I was disappointed to hear reference to refugees being confused with ISIS fighters and terrorists. This is just simply not the case. There is no evidence of the refugees coming to Canada being involved with this at all.

One of the most positive experiences for me as a new member of Parliament is the work I have been doing with refugee committees across my riding. There are committees in Penticton. We already have families that have come into Oliver and Osoyoos. There are committees working in Castlegar and New Denver, in the Nakusp. There is one in Naramata that wants to bring government-assisted refugees into a church conference centre for temporary housing.

These people have been working hard. There are hundreds of people in my riding doing this. There are thousands of people across Canada who are doing this. This is something that Canadians feel great pride in doing, sharing our great country with these people who have suffered so much.

Military involvement in this region is fraught with complexities and danger. It is perhaps not surprising that the United Nations and NATO have not sanctioned these actions. It is time that Canada played a positive role in the Middle East, concentrating on humanitarian aid and diplomacy. Many of our allies, including New Zealand, Norway, and South Korea have all taken this approach. It is something that we should really follow their lead on.

The Conservative debate stresses the effect of the bombing missions. Today I have heard many numbers thrown out there, the number of missions, the number of targets that have been hit, the number of ISIS targets hit. However, too often these bombing missions strike unintended civilian targets. We have all heard stories of bombs that have struck hospitals. It seems that we hear about this on a very regular basis. This is not only tragic in itself, but also serves as a recruiting tool for ISIS.

This is what will ultimately win this conflict. We must win the hearts and minds of the people who are suffering in the conflict. We must convince them that ISIS is not the answer to their problems. Bombing missions, no matter how well intentioned, just will not do that.

To conclude, I would like to reiterate that I think both this motion and the amendment offer a misguided path forward for Canada, and a misguided path for the brave members of our armed forces and for the Middle East as a whole.

[Canada's Contribution to the Effort to Combat ISIL, February 23rd, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, we have heard the past few Conservative speakers defending the Canadian bombing mission, but as the other member across the floor mentioned, there is a long history in this region of bombing missions doing nothing but further destabilizing the area. In fact, most experts would point to the American bombing in Iraq as being one of the key points in the birth of ISIS.

I would like to ask the member why he feels that this bombing mission will be so effective in destroying ISIS, especially now that we hear that training is dangerous. Considering that it is only 3% of the effort of our partners, why is it so important?

[Syrian Refugees, February 23rd, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, I would first like to wish my son Russell a happy 29th birthday today.

On a more serious note, all Canadians have been witness to the humanitarian tragedy unfolding in Syria. The devastating images of entire families risking everything to flee the violence have pushed many of us to help.

In my riding, people from Naramata to New Denver, and many places in between, have been opening their hearts, their homes, and their wallets to accept refugees with housing, ESL programs, job placement supports, and integration plans in place.

The people of South Okanagan—West Kootenay have stepped up to privately sponsor refugees, and many are in a position now to accept government assisted refugees. Today I want to thank all those who have lent their helping hands.

We want the government to know that our communities are ready, willing, able, and indeed anxious, to work with the government, and we look forward to hearing more about how our communities can help.

[Forestry Industry, February 18th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, the softwood lumber agreement expired last year, but the government has shown no signs of working to get a new deal. There are thousands of jobs on the line in forestry communities throughout British Columbia and across this country. The clock is ticking on these good, family-supporting jobs, and communities are looking for action.

When does the government expect to have a new agreement in place to protect Canadian forestry jobs?

[Business of Supply, January 28th, 2016]

Madam Speaker, I want to ask the member opposite about the credibility of the National Energy Board and its really flawed assessment process. The environment commissioner's report recently showed that the NEB does not track compliance in over half of all of the cases studied. I want to know what concrete steps the Liberals will take to ensure that the NEB does its job more than half the time.

[Business of Supply, January 28th, 2016]

Madam Speaker, the Liberal government has been talking about restoring the confidence of Canadians in the environmental assessment process around these pipelines. Yesterday, at a hastily called news conference, it announced what it called a new process. However, it will not change anything with the NEB assessment process at all. There is nothing to address questions that companies refuse to answer, nothing to talk about documents that are not available in both official languages, and nothing to restore cross-examination. I wonder if he could explain why Canadians would think there is a restoration of credibility in the process when the NEB process is really untouched.

[Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply, January 26th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite took some of the words right out of my mouth with his comments. However, the member for Beauce mentioned zero wealth creation, something about which the previous government knew a lot.

It comes down to the fact that there are two sides to government finances, things that will get the government in and out of trouble. The first is revenue and the second is spending. The member for Beauce talks a lot about the spending side, but I would like to know his attitude on the revenue side.

Both the Liberals and the Conservatives over the past two decades reduced the corporate income tax to the point where we were more than competitive in the world. Yet no money is being invested by businesses in Canada to create the wealth we want. We really need to increase that corporate income tax so Canadians can benefit.

[Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply, December 11th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I must grudgingly admit that the member's riding of Kootenay—Columbia is almost as beautiful as mine.

As I said, the South Okanagan—West Kootenay is an area that is unique in Canada. It is part of the dry interior of British Columbia that is one of the very last ecoregions of Canada that does not have a national park. There has been an initiative now over 10 years, since I think 2003, to initiate a national park in that area. I very much would like to see that move forward.

Parks Canada has been developing policy over the last decade to move the park idea forward, while protecting the livelihoods of ranchers and other stakeholders, and involve local first nations in close collaboration with that. I look forward to meeting with my provincial counterparts in the riding to move that idea forward.

[Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply, December 11th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to touch on the infrastructure question. When I was campaigning throughout the riding, I met with almost all the mayors and councillors in the 41 communities. Infrastructure was at the top of their list at all times. They wanted the infrastructure funding from the federal government to be easier to access for small communities. So many of the funding programs are aimed at larger communities and it is very difficult to find partnerships for small communities.

As far as helping children in poverty and families in need, the NDP ran on a program to provide affordable child care across the country. That really resonated on the doorsteps in South Okanagan—West Kootenay. So many people thought said that was what could really help them much more than a lump sum payment.

[Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply, December 11th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise to speak for the first time. I would like to begin by thanking the voters of South Okanagan—West Kootenay for placing their trust in me to speak for them in the chamber.

I would especially like to thank the many volunteers who worked hard to elect me as the first MP in the big, beautiful riding of South Okanagan—West Kootenay. I also thank my wife Margaret, who was one of the hardest working of those volunteers and has always been a pillar of strength for me. As well, I would like to mention the hard work of Alex Atamanenko, the respected and newly retired MP for the old riding of British Columbia Southern Interior.

As someone born and raised there, I am somewhat biased, but I think that my riding, from the vineyards and orchards of the South Okanagan, the ponderosa pines of the Kettle, the big Columbia River rolling through the West Kootenay, and the ice-capped peaks soaring above the Slocan and Arrow Lakes, has to be the most beautiful riding in the country. As an ecologist, I love both its diversity and uniqueness since it is home to a host of species found nowhere else in Canada.

It is also the unceded territory of the Syilx, Sinixt, and Ktunaxa peoples, and we are all the richer for their traditions, culture, and knowledge. Other communities add to that cultural diversity, including the Indo-Canadian and Portuguese communities in the South Okanagan, the Doukhobors of Grand Forks and Castlegar, and the big Italian community centred on Trail.

While it is beautiful, my riding faces serious challenges. From the desert grasslands of the South Okanagan to the forests of the West Kootenay, climate change is bringing longer, hotter summers, shallower snowpacks, and more frequent wildfires. Just this summer, the communities of Oliver, Osoyoos, Grand Forks, and Christina Lake were threatened by a series of fires. One catastrophic fire destroyed 30 homes in the village of Rock Creek. I want to take this opportunity to register in the chamber the thanks that my constituents give to the brave men and women who fought those fires and the many volunteers who fed and housed both the firefighters and the residents who had been forced from their homes.

Climate change is a clear concern to the residents of my riding, and I hope that the government backs the elegant words about climate change in the throne speech with a clear plan, bold targets, and prompt action. Hotter summers and diminishing rainfall are also forcing local agricultural operations to adapt quickly to remain competitive. Agriculture has always been the heart of the economy in the western half of my riding. I grew up on a small apple orchard, and the region is justly proud of its apricots, peaches, cherries, wine grapes, tomatoes, peppers, melons, apples, and beef. Many local residents are concerned about food security issues. I was deeply disappointed, therefore, to note that agriculture was not mentioned once in the throne speech. I sincerely hope that the government will take up the national food security strategy prepared by the NDP in the previous parliament.

South Okanagan—West Kootenay is a very important tourist destination, with its sparkling lakes, sandy beaches, hiking and biking trails, rock climbing opportunities, and world-class ski hills. Tourism is a huge part of our economy, not just in my riding but across this spectacular country. I have to say I was disappointed to see that there was not one mention of it in the throne speech.

We need to market our country more skilfully, and I have to give a shout-out here to the Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association for its cutting-edge marketing programs. The federal government would do well to invest in programs such as these through a larger contribution to Destination Canada.

As is the case across this country, natural resources are a big part of the economy of South Okanagan—West Kootenay, from the huge Teck smelters in Trail to the Celgar mill in Castlegar, and other mining and forestry operations throughout the riding.

I was proud to be named the deputy critic for natural resources for the NDP, and I look forward to working hard on this file, which is so critical to Canada's wealth.

We must continually improve the sustainability of our resource extraction methods and process our resources here in Canada so that we do not export good paying jobs.

The natural beauty and mild climate of South Okanagan—West Kootenay is attractive to retirees from across Canada. Real estate prices are relatively high, and that factor, combined with the generally low wage rates across the riding, results in a large population of constituents who are struggling to make ends meet. Affordable housing and homelessness are big issues in all of my communities.

Seniors also make up a very large part of the South Okanagan—West Kootenay population. Many of them have inadequate pensions, and the health issues that go along with an elderly demographic have been straining our health care system.

Young people also face a difficult future in this riding. Some had left for the energy sector jobs in northeastern British Columbia and Alberta, but as that sector contracts, many have returned home, hoping to find similar work. Hopefully they have listened to the government's promises of infrastructure funding and investments in green technology that could change the face of hundreds of communities across this country.

Many others have gone on to post-secondary education. Some go to large universities outside the riding, while others go into apprenticeships and the trades. Many attend Okanagan College and Selkirk College, two fine post-secondary institutions in this riding. They are well known for their innovative programs, such as the sustainable construction program at Okanagan College, and the rural pre-med program at Selkirk.

To be a successful country in the 21st century, Canada needs to provide its young people with a grade A education, so I am also proud that I am the NDP post-secondary education critic. The Speech from the Throne briefly mentioned the plight of students facing increasing debt loads, but we must look at the root cause of these debts, the soaring tuition rates caused by a long-term decline in federal funding.

In the last election, Canadians voted for change. In that long campaign, the Liberals promised much regarding the environment, a more positive role in foreign affairs, and social infrastructure, housing, poverty reduction, pension reform, and health care. The people of my riding will be watching the government closely to make sure it delivers on those promises. As part of the NDP progressive opposition, I will also be watching over the coming months. We remain optimistic and hopeful, but we will be diligent in holding the government to account.

Now I will simply say merry Christmas to all, and I hope everyone in this chamber and across the country has a happy and healthy new year.