Journals of the Senate
47 Elizabeth II, A.D. 1998, Canada
Journals of the Senate
Issue 63
Tuesday, May 26, 1998
2:00 p.m.
The Honourable Gildas L. Molgat, Speaker
The Members convened were:
The Honourable Senators
Adams, Andreychuk, Angus, Atkins, Austin, Bacon, Balfour, Beaudoin, Berntson, Bolduc, Bosa, Bryden, Buchanan, Butts, Callbeck, Carstairs, Chalifoux, Cochrane, Comeau, Corbin, De, Bané, DeWare, Di, Nino, Doody, Fairbairn, Ferretti, Barth, Fitzpatrick, Forest, Forrestall, Gigantès, Grafstein, Graham, Grimard, Gustafson, Hébert, Hervieux-Payette, Johnson, Johnstone, Joyal, Kelleher, Kelly, Keon, Kinsella, Kirby, Kolber, Lavoie-Roux, LeBreton, Lewis, Losier-Cool, Lucier, Lynch-Staunton, Maheu, Mercier, Molgat, Moore, Murray, Phillips, Pitfield, Poulin, Prud'homme, Rivest, Robichaud, (L'Acadie-Acadia), Robichaud, (Saint-Louis-de-Kent), Rossiter, St., Germain, Simard, Spivak, Stewart, Stollery, Stratton, Taylor, Watt, Whelan, Wood
PRAYERS
SENATORS' STATEMENTS
Some Honourable Senators made statements.DAILY ROUTINE OF BUSINESS
Tabling of Documents
The Honourable Senator Carstairs tabled the following:Supplementary Estimates (A), 1998-99.-Sessional Paper No. 1/36-598.
Government Notices of Motions
With leave of the Senate, The Honourable Senator Carstairs moved, seconded by the Honourable Senator Joyal, P.C.:That when the Senate adjourns today, it do stand adjourned until tomorrow, Wednesday, May 27, 1998, at 1:30 p.m.
After debate, The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
Introduction and First Reading of Government Bills
A Message was brought from the House of Commons with a Bill C-19, An Act to amend the Canada Labour Code (Part I) and the Corporations and Labour Unions Returns Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts, to which they desire the concurrence of the Senate.The Bill was read the first time.
The Honourable Senator Carstairs moved, seconded by the Honourable Senator Maheu, that the Bill be placed on the Orders of the Day for a second reading on Thursday next, May 28, 1998.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
ORDERS OF THE DAY
GOVERNMENT BUSINESS
Bills
Resuming debate on the motion of the Honourable Senator Poulin, seconded by the Honourable Senator Forest, for the third reading of Bill S-2, An Act to amend the Canadian Transportation Accident Investigation and Safety Board Act and to make a consequential amendment to another Act,And on the motion in amendment of the Honourable Senator Spivak, seconded by the Honourable Senator Cochrane, that the Bill be not now read the third time but that it be amended:
1. In clause 1, on page 1:
"(2.1) The definition of "transportation occurrence" in section 2 of the Act is replaced by the following:(a) by adding the following after line 17:
"transportation occurrence" means an aviation occurrence, a railway occurrence, a marine occurrence, a pipeline occurrence or a highway occurrence."; and
(b) by adding the following after line 19:
""highway occurrence" means(a) any accident or incident associated with the operation of a truck, and (b) any situation or condition that the Board has reasonable grounds to believe could, if left unattended, induce an accident or incident described in paragraph (a);".
2. In clause 2, on page 2, by adding the following after line 14:
"2.1 Section 3 of the Act is amended by adding the fol lowing after subsection (4):(4.1) This Act applies in respect of highway occurrences
(a) in Canada, if the occurrence relates to extraprovincial truck transport; and
(b) outside Canada, if Canada is requested to investigate the occurrence by an appropriate authority.".
3. In clause 3, on page 2, by adding the following after line 21:
"(1.1) Subsection 4(2) of the Act is replaced by the fol lowing:(2) The Governor in Council shall appoint as members persons who, in the opinion of the Governor in Council, are collectively knowledgeable about air, marine, rail, pipeline and highway transportation.".
4. On page 3, by adding the following new Clause after line 10:
"4.1 The portion of subsection 6(1) of the Act after paragraph (b) is replaced by the following:
and in this subsection, "transportation" means air, marine, rail, pipeline or highway transportation.".5. In clause 7, on page 3, by replacing lines 31 to 36 with the following:
"7.(1) Subsection 10(1) of the Act is replaced by the fol lowing:10.(1) From among the employees appointed under subsection 9(1), there shall be (a) a Director of Investigations (Air), a Director of Investigations (Marine), a Director of Investigations (Rail and Pipelines) and a Director of Investigations (Highway); and (b) other investigators.
(2) Subsection 10(2) of the Act is replaced by the follow ing:(2) Each of the four Directors mentioned in paragraph (1)(a) has exclusive authority to direct the conduct of investigations on behalf of the Board under this Act in relation to aviation occurrences, marine occurrences, railway and pipeline occurrences, and highway occurrences, respectively, but
(a) the Directors' authority under this subsection must be exercised in accordance with any policies established under paragraphs 8(1)(b) and (c); and
(b) the Directors shall report to the Board with respect to their investigations and shall conduct such further investigation as the Board requires under paragraph 8(1)(d).".
6. In clause 13:
(a) on page 5, by replacing line 32 with the following:"(2) Paragraphs 19(9)(a) and (b) of the Act are"; and
(b) on page 6:
(i) by adding the following after line 4:"(b) where the investigator believes on reasonable grounds that the medical examination of a person who is directly or indirectly involved in the operation of an aircraft, a ship, a rolling stock, a pipeline or a truck is, or may be, relevant to the investigation, by notice in writing signed by the investigator, require the person to submit to a medical examination;", and
(ii) by adding the following after line 18:"(3.1) Paragraph 19(14)(a) of the Act is replaced by the following:
(a) to imply that a thing seized pursuant to subsection (1) may not be an aircraft, a ship, an item of rolling stock, a pipeline or a truck, or any part thereof; or".
After debate, The question being put on the motion in amendment, With leave of the Senate, a recorded division was deferred until 3:00 p.m. tomorrow. Resuming debate on the motion of the Honourable Senator Bacon, seconded by the Honourable Senator Joyal, P.C., for the third reading of Bill C-9, An Act for making the system of Canadian ports competitive, efficient and commercially oriented, providing for the establishing of port authorities and the divesting of certain harbours and ports, for the commercialization of the St. Lawrence Seaway and ferry services and other matters related to maritime trade and transport and amending the Pilotage Act and amending and repealing other Acts as a consequence.
After debate, The Honourable Senator Spivak moved, seconded by the Honourable Senator Doody, that further debate on the motion be adjourned until the next sitting.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
With leave of the Senate, The Honourable Senator Forrestall tabled the following:
Minority Report Prepared by Progressive Conservative Senators, serving on the Standing Senate Committee on Transport and Communications, on Bill C-9, The Canada Marine Act.-Sessional Paper No. 1/36-599S.
Ordered, That the Report be printed as an Appendix to the Journals of the Senate of this day and form part of the permanent records of this House.
Resuming debate on the motion of the Honourable Senator Cook, seconded by the Honourable Senator Lewis, for the second reading of Bill C-31, An Act respecting Canada Lands Surveyors.
After debate, The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
The Bill was then read the second time.
The Honourable Senator Carstairs moved, seconded by the Honourable Senator Bacon, that the Bill be referred to the Standing Senate Committee on Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted. Order No. 4 was called and postponed until the next sitting.
OTHER BUSINESS
Senate Public Bills
Orders No. 1 to 3 were called and postponed until the next sitting.Reports of Committees
Orders No. 1 and 2 were called and postponed until the next sitting. Consideration of the Seventh Report of the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology (Bill S-13, An Act to incorporate and to establish an industry levy to provide for the Canadian Tobacco Industry Community Responsibility Foundation, with amendments and comments) presented in the Senate on May 14, 1998.The Honourable Senator Murray, P.C., moved, seconded by the Honourable Senator Spivak, that the Report be adopted.
After debate, The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
The Honourable Senator Murray, P.C., moved, seconded by the Honourable Senator Spivak, that the Bill, as amended, be placed on the Orders of the Day for a third reading at the next sitting.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted. Orders No. 4 to 6 were called and postponed until the next sitting.
Other
Resuming debate on the motion of the Honourable Senator Lynch-Staunton, seconded by the Honourable Senator DeWare:That the Senate endorses and supports the findings and recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry on the Blood System in Canada;
That the Senate for humanitarian reasons urges the Government of Canada and the Governments of the Provinces and of the Territories to comply with these findings and recommendations; and
That a copy of this motion be forwarded to each federal, provincial and territorial Minister of Health,
And on the motion in amendment of the Honourable Senator DeWare, seconded by the Honourable Senator Kinsella, that the motion be not now adopted, but that it be amended in paragraph two by removing and replacing the words "to comply with these findings and recommendations" with the following:
"to not exclude in determining compensation any person who has contracted Hepatitis C from blood components or blood products."After debate, The Honourable Senator Grafstein moved, seconded by the Honourable Senator Callbeck, that further debate on the motion in amendment be adjourned until the next sitting.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted. Resuming debate on the inquiry of the Honourable Senator Grafstein calling the attention of the Senate to the Statement of the Vatican on the Holocaust as a teaching document.
After debate, The Honourable Senator Prud'homme, P.C., moved, seconded by the Honourable Senator Lavoie-Roux, that further debate on the inquiry be adjourned until the next sitting.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted. Orders No. 1 (motion), 21, 14, 15 and 25 (inquiries) were called and postponed until the next sitting.
Resuming debate on the motion of the Honourable Senator Meighen, seconded by the Honourable Senator Kirby:
That the Senate urges the Government, in the February 1998 Budget, to propose an amendment to the Income Tax Act that would increase to 30 %, by increments of 2 % per year over a five-year period, the foreign property component of deferred income plans (pension plans, registered retirement savings plans and registered pension plans), as was done in the period between 1990 to 1995 when the foreign property limit of deferred income plans was increased from 10 % to 20 %, because:
(a) Canadians should be permitted to take advantage of potentially better investment returns in other markets, thereby increasing the value of their financial assets held for retirement, reducing the amount of income supplement that Canadians may need from government sources, and increasing government tax revenues from retirement income;
(b) Canadians should have more flexibility when investing their retirement savings, while reducing the risk of those investments through diversification;
(c) greater access to the world equity market would allow Canadians to participate in both higher growth economies and industry sectors;
(d) the current 20% limit has become artificial since both individuals with significant resources and pension plans with significant resources can by-pass the current limit through the use of, for example, strategic investment decisions and derivative products; and
(e) problems of liquidity for pension fund managers, who now find they must take substantial positions in a single company to meet the 80 % Canadian holdings requirement, would be reduced;.After debate, The Honourable Senator Carstairs moved, seconded by the Honourable Senator Bacon, that further debate on the motion be adjourned until the next sitting.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted. Orders No. 12, 19, 24 and 18 (inquiries) were called and postponed until the next sitting.
INQUIRIES
The Honourable Senator Spivak called the attention of the Senate to the differences between the proposed Multilateral Agreement on Investment and the NAFTA.After debate, The Honourable Senator Di Nino moved, seconded by the Honourable Senator Stratton, that further debate on the inquiry be adjourned until the next sitting.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted. The Honourable Senator Gigantès called the attention of the Senate to the shameful way Canadians are treated by the procedures of the personal income tax system. He will suggest that the Senate propose corrective steps.
After debate, The Honourable Senator Di Nino moved, seconded by the Honourable Senator DeWare, that further debate on the inquiry be adjourned until the next sitting.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
REPORTS DEPOSITED WITH THE CLERK OF THE SENATE PURSUANT TO RULE 28(2):
Report of the recipient of the Centennial Flame Research Award for the year 1996, pursuant to the Centennial Flame Research Award Act, S.C. 1991, c. 17, sbs. 7(1).-Sessional Paper No. 1/36-589.Summaries of the Corporate Plan for 1998-99 to 2002-03 and the Operating and Capital Budgets for 1998-99 of the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation, pursuant to the Financial Administration Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. F-11, sbs. 125(4). -Sessional Paper No. 1/36-590.
Report on the administration and enforcement of the fish habitat protection and pollution prevention provisions of the Fisheries Act for the fiscal year ended March 31, 1997, pursuant to the Act to amend the Fisheries Act and to amend the Criminal Code in consequence thereof, S.C. 1991, c. 1, s. 11.1.-Sessional Paper No. 1/36-591.
Report of the Canada Ports Corporation, Halifax Port Corporation, Montréal Port Corporation, Prince Rupert Port Corporation, Port of Quebec Port Corporation, Saint John Port Corporation, St. John's Port Corporation and Vancouver Port Corporation, together with the Auditors' Report, for the year 1997, pursuant to the Financial Administration Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. F-11, sbs. 150(1).-Sessional Paper No. 1/36-592.
Statutes of the Northwest Territories for the year 1997, pursuant to the Northwest Territories Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. N-27, sbs. 21(1).-Sessional Paper No. 1/36-593.
Reports of the International Development Research Centre required by the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act for the period ended March 31, 1998, pursuant to the Access to Information Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. A-1, sbs. 72(2) and the Privacy Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. P-21, sbs. 72(2).-Sessional Paper No. 1/36-594.
Actuarial Report (including Certification of Assets) on the Public Service Death Benefit Account as at March 31, 1996, pursuant to the Public Service Superannuation Act, S.C. 1992, c. 46, s. 28.-Sessional Paper No. 1/36-595.
Actuarial Report (including Certification of Assets) on the Regular Force Death Benefit Account as at March 31, 1997, pursuant to the Canadian Forces Superannuation Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-17, s. 71.-Sessional Paper No. 1/36-596.
Report of the Northern Oil and Gas for the year ended December 31, 1997, pursuant to the Canada Petroleum Resources Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. 36 (2nd Supp.), s. 109. -Sessional Paper No. 1/36-597.
ADJOURNMENT
The Honourable Senator Carstairs moved, seconded by the Honourable Senator Fairbairn, P.C.:That the Senate do now adjourn.
The question being put on the motion, it was adopted.
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Changes in Membership of Committees Pursuant to Rule 85(4)
Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Trade and CommerceThe name of the Honourable Senator Di Nino substituted for that of the Honourable Senator Oliver (May 13).
The names of the Honourable Senators Fitzpatrick and Kenny substituted for those of the Honourable Senators Kenny and Fitzpatrick (May 26).
Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology
The name of the Honourable Senator Lavoie-Roux substituted for that of the Honourable Senator Nolin (May 20).
The name of the Honourable Senator Maheu substituted for that of the Honourable Senator Chalifoux (May 22).
The names of the Honourables Senator Di Nino, Bosa and Chalifoux substituted for those of the Honourable Senators Phillips, Kenny and Cook (May 26).
Special Joint Committee on Child Custody and Access
The name of the Honourable Senator Lewis substituted for that of the Honourable Senator Cools (May 22).
The name of the Honourable Senator Cools substituted for that of the Honourable Senator Lewis (May 26).
Standing Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forestry
The name of the Honourable Senator Fairbairn substituted for that of the Honourable Senator Callbeck (May 22).
Standing Joint Committee on Official Languages
The name of the Honourable Senator Comeau removed from the membership (May 22).
Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations
The name of the Honourable Senator Cogger removed from the membership (May 22).
Standing Senate Committee on Fisheries
The name of the Honourable Senator Rossiter removed from the membership (May 22).
Standing Committee on Internal Economy, Budgets and Administration
The name of the Honourable Senator Poulin substituted for that of the Honourable Senator Johnstone (May 25).