It is quite comprehensive. Devolution and the sharing of resource revenues from non-renewable resource development is among the highest priorities for members of the aboriginal summit in the region and the government of the Northwest Territories. We have a tripartite process on devolution. It includes the federal government, the territorial government and the aboriginal governments.
It is very complicated. It has a number of issues that have to be resolved. There is much negotiating going on. It is a huge priority for all northerners. While negotiations toward an agreement in principle are underway, there are major challenges to overcome prior to the completion of an agreement in principle on devolution. It is imperative that the final agreement on devolution be a tripartite agreement among those said groups.
Land claims and self-government negotiations in the Northwest Territories are progressing well, with significant agreements finalized and negotiations continuing with a number of regions and communities. We have three settled comprehensive claims with the Inuvialuit, the Gwich'in and Sahtu, and one settled treaty land entitlement claim with Salt River first nations.
The Tlicho agreement is due to be reintroduced in the House this session. The Beaufort Delta self-government agreement in principle for Gwich'in and Inuvialuit aboriginal self-government and public self-government for the Beaufort Delta region was signed in April The Deline self-government agreement in principle was signed August The community of Tulita recently signed a framework agreement on its community self-government negotiations.
In the Deh Cho region an interim resource development agreement was signed on April 17, and interim land withdrawals were approved through cabinet in August Discussions are now focused on an agreement in principle, while negotiations are ongoing with the Manitoba and Saskatchewan Denesuline on boundary issues.
Burgeoning with development, the world continues to watch the north intently and witness the promise of prosperity through a Mackenzie Valley pipeline and resource development. I eagerly look forward to continuing my work this session, working extremely hard shoulder to shoulder with my federal and northern colleagues so that northerners from the many themes and areas mentioned will be able to achieve the goals that they intend to achieve.
Our government intends to review the employment insurance system so that it is responsive to the needs of Canada's workforce, including seasonal workers such as those in the north. We also have the issue of the freshwater fishing industry in the north, which offers stable employment for many aboriginal and non-aboriginal northerners.
Canada entered into an economic union agreement on trapping. This agreement has expired and northerners and all of the various proponents and stakeholders are trying to find a way to resolve this. We have completed two training programs in the north. We have made much progress in the north. We are happy to be able to play a major part in Canada's economy.
If I may, I will put my question to the minister, based on today's debate. She will rise this evening, at p. I wonder if the minister could tell us the reasons why she disagrees with the amendment to the amendment proposed by the Bloc Quebecois.
Speaker, in this instance, as a Canadian from the north, I agree with the things that promote and expand on the ideals and values of the country as a whole. I do not just promote northern interests as a member of Parliament. I do not believe that only various corners and regions of the country are important; the whole of the country is important.
It is important that we are all Canadians and we all participate. That is what my speech was about. I promote the idea that we all have something to contribute but that we all belong.
We are all different but we still believe in equality. We are all Canadians. That is my belief and that is the way in which I conduct myself in the House. This evening, at p. I would like to know why. Speaker, as you can see, ideologically we differ and therein lies the dilemma. The member will never understand that I am a fervent believer in the country as a whole and that everything I do as a member of Parliament speaks to that, and everything I do as a member of the Privy Council speaks to that.
We have come a long way. I have been in the House for 16 years. I was on the committee for Meech Lake. I was on the committee for Charlottetown. I was on the Beaudoin-Dobbie committee. I was also on the committee for New Brunswick resolutions. I sat through all of that. I know all of the debates on devolution, on devolved responsibility.
I know all of the issues regarding that. We devolved labour market responsibility. We devolved many responsibilities. It is not as if we are ignoring any part of the country. However, we cannot abdicate our responsibility to be fiscally responsible for the whole country. We have to govern the country as a government. We do not govern as separate territories and separate provinces or regions. Speaker, I would like the hon. Speaker, we will have to do better than that. I can read it because I have it here, but I choose not to.
It would be a waste of words. Instead, I can say to the member opposite that we have very different views. I am a first Canadian. I am an aboriginal person. Aboriginals were here first. We welcome people at contact. I want everyone to know that I am proud to be a Canadian. When I go places around the world, people know I am aboriginal, but they also know I am a Canadian and a contributing member.
I have sat in the House to serve this country and to serve its people, not to serve just the north, even though that is my priority. As a privy councillor I have to be fair. I have to reach out to all parts of this country, to all people in this country. That has been my role, that has been my opportunity and I believe that is what I have done. I want to thank my colleague for her contribution. Of course, she did not fall for the tricks of the Bloc Quebecois.
Her approach is very sensible. I would like her to speak as an aboriginal Canadian. Since she has also worked extensively with children, I would like her to remind this House, for the benefit of those who are watching us, how the throne speech is important for children and for aboriginal health. Speaker, in my new responsibility as Minister of State for Northern Development, one of the issues I am dealing with is the health of aboriginal Canadians.
It will help with FASD, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, which affects many children. There are a lot of issues that affect children and their health.
There is the whole issue of diabetes, which is almost in a crisis in some regions of Canada. The issue of suicides by young people is in clusters across this country. It is endemic in some communities and has to be dealt with. That is what it is all about. We are also looking at a child care program. Quebec is very socially progressive.
It has some very good social policies. Those are to be emulated, worked with, admired and respected and we do that as well. Speaker, I am honoured today to rise and make my first speech in the House of Commons. I would like to say from the outset how honoured I am to represent the people of Dartmouth--Cole Harbour.
I would like to thank my constituents for the confidence they have placed in me as their member of Parliament. Let me first add a voice of sympathy to those of our party leaders yesterday in offering condolences to the family of Lieutenant Saunders on his tragic passing. As a member who represents a constituency with a large military population, I know the sacrifices and dedication of our military personnel and their families. This is truly a sad day for us all.
My riding has been represented over the years by individuals from many political parties including Michael Forrestall who served from to as a Progressive Conservative member, followed by my good friend Ron MacDonald, who many members here would remember fondly. I would also like to recognize and pay tribute to Wendy Lill, my predecessor as member of Parliament for Dartmouth--Cole Harbour. I can speak honestly in saying that Wendy was a tireless advocate for the people of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia and Canada, and her efforts to help those in need is a standard that we can all be proud of.
I would like to take a few moments to speak about my riding and my community. Dartmouth is referred to as the city of lakes. It was founded in and is one of the most historic communities in Canada. I am glad that the member from Kingston is not with us today, and I know I will get some grief from my hon. Likewise, the famous Starr manufacturing plant was world renowned as the largest manufacturer of ice skates, selling 11 million skates between and The Shubenacadie Canal played a key role in creating trade links with the world by helping to sell hockey sticks produced by the Mi'kmag first nation.
The Shubenacadie Canal was a marvel in innovation for its time and truly worthy of historic site designation. Our hockey tradition continues today as Cole Harbour happens to be the home of Sidney Crosby, Canada's greatest young hockey player.
My community respects and honours its great history and I intend to do so as its member of Parliament. These leaders put people above politics and worked to make our corner of the world a better place. Their example will be my inspiration. I am here today to speak to the throne speech and to congratulate the government and in particular our Prime Minister for outlining a vision for us, a vision that speaks to sound fiscal management and the need for government to play a significant role in social policy and to social economy.
Our quality of life, the ability to create good jobs, and to support and enhance social programs relies on our ability as a country to compete in the global economy. The people of Dartmouth--Cole Harbour will be pleased to hear our government's commitment to cities. I am happy to hear that the government will continue to work with the provinces to share a portion of the gas tax revenue. I was pleased to hear that the government will continue to promote trade and investment to secure more opportunities and markets for Canadian goods and particularly in my case, Atlantic Canadian goods.
Companies like Acadian Sea Plants is an example of the entrepreneurial spirit that exists in Atlantic Canada. With an office in Dartmouth and plants throughout western Nova Scotia, it has marketed sea plants to the world. ACOA is an example of regional development that works with companies and organizations to improve the lives of our citizens. Let us not forget that our economy has also resulted in seven consecutive budget surpluses and has made Canada the envy of the G-8 nations.
This allows us to invest in the critical need for a national child care strategy. Health care continues to be an area of concern to Canadians. I believe that the recent health agreement signed by the provinces and the federal government speaks to the vitality of our country and our ability to work together on an issue that need not and should not be a political issue but rather a value that we cherish.
We must ensure that all Canadians have access to universal health care. I believe the leadership of the Prime Minister at the recent first ministers' conference proved that he would go the extra mile to put people ahead of politics.
The new health agreement will have a positive impact on the people in Dartmouth--Cole Harbour and for all Nova Scotians. Our Conservative Premier, Dr.
John Hamm, applauded the efforts of the Prime Minister when he said:. From a Nova Scotia perspective this was the most successful First Ministers meeting I have attended in more than five years as Premier.
I want to now focus briefly on two issues that are of personal interest to me and I believe national interest as well. As health care takes an increasingly large share of our government spending, we as a nation would do well to remember that a great deal of care, in fact a great deal of health, takes place far from the hospital rooms.
The sustainability of our cherished health care system will increasingly rely on our ability to safeguard the health of Canadians before they get sick and our ability to allow people to recover from illness in their own homes.
Let me tell the House about health promotion Nova Scotia style. A recent study conducted by Dr. Sally Walker and Dr. Ronald Colman, on behalf of the Heart and Stroke Foundation in Nova Scotia, indicated that increased physical activity would save the province of Nova Scotia millions of dollars.
Some residents of the Halifax Regional Municipality die prematurely each year because of physical inactivity. Often written in syllabics i.
In the census, 96, people reported speaking Cree. Filipinos have been in Canada as early as the late 19th century. Migration from the Philippines to Canada significantly increased from the s onward.
See Immigration to Canada. In the Census , , people reported being of Filipino ethnic origin. Filipino Canadians are the largest group of Southeast Asian Canadians.
Among Filipino Canadians, women outnumber men by 56 per cent to 44 per cent. The Philippines was the most common country of birth among people who immigrated to Canada between and Changing economic and religious conditions after the Gothic period brought a decline in majestic building projects, and by the 17th century, lodges could stay alive only by supplementing the membership of working "operative" masons with nonmasons "accepted masons".
And to the fantasy angle. Kay's latest bid for mainstream acceptance is his most ambitious work yet. Digging deep into his own pockets a couple of years back, the year-old Oakville, Ont. He was one of the most successful entrepreneurs in the early timber trade in the Ottawa Valley. Soper exemplified the quiet, unpretentious men who, surveying for the Dominion government, established the outline and substance of Canada.
She was the first Indigenous woman elected to Parliament when she won the Western Arctic seat for the Liberals in the federal election of It is based on the experiences of Margaret Pokiak-Fenton, who cowrote the novel with her daughter-in-law Christy Jordan-Fenton.
Fatty Legs was a finalist for the Sheila A. Covering roughly the part of the Canadian mainland and Arctic Archipelago that lies to the north and northeast of the treeline, Nunavut is the largest and northernmost territory of Canada and the fifth largest administrative division in the world. Nunavummiut live in 25 communities spread across this vast territory, with the largest number, 7, census , in the capital, Iqaluit. The creation of Nunavut in the region was previously part of the Northwest Territories represented the first major change to the political map of Canada since the incorporation of Newfoundland into Confederation in The Anishinaabeg plural form of Anishinaabe live from the Ottawa River Valley west across Northern Ontario and to the plains of Saskatchewan south to the northeast corner of North Dakota, northern Minnesota and Michigan, as well as the northern shores of Lakes Ontario and Erie.
See also Indigenous Peoples in Canada. In Canada, the process of reconciliation is tied to the federal government 's relationship with Indigenous peoples. The term has come to describe attempts made by individuals and institutions to raise awareness about colonization and its ongoing effects on Indigenous peoples. Reconciliation also refers to efforts made to address the harms caused by various policies and programs of colonization, such as residential schools.
For some, the word represents an opportunity to reflect on the past, to heal and to make right. For others, however, current gestures of reconciliation are merely performative and lack meaningful action to address the harms done by colonization. Two-spirit is used by some Indigenous peoples to describe their gender, sexual and spiritual identity.
A bundle might be a few feathers wrapped in skin or a multitude of objects such as animal skins, roots, or stone pipes inside a rawhide bag. Peter Tomkins Jr. Walter E. Speaker, I resent the comment that we are hiding behind the Privacy Act. The system in place has allowed them on February 21 to get 16 binders of information, five and a half inches thick and containing 10, pages.
Once members have sifted through them and if they are not satisfied that is another question. I would like to have more specific references than that. I believe we could not be much more transparent and much more open than we have been. There is a process that is fairly public.
The standing committee has members from all sides. There too they have access to all the officials who could give them the information if they have specific questions. We are not hiding behind anything.
There has been complete disclosure. Not everyone agreed that disclosure was the best thing but there it is. There is the information. How they use it and if they use it is entirely up to them. Speaker, perhaps my words were a little harsh. Nevertheless, better use could have been made of their time to review the information we made available to them.
They are on the presiding committee. We are making a concerted effort to have all the information available to them. How they use it is entirely up to them. Speaker, members opposite could have taken the two days they wasted in the House voting on all those useless amendments to the clarity bill to look at all the information we released on February There were 10, pages of hard copy.
Speaker, I am sure it is no secret to my hon. I too have contact on a daily basis with the chiefs and the national leaders of those organizations. In turn that program allowed over 25, aboriginal people to get jobs.
There is no way we could even begin to think of the benefits that would accrue to aboriginal people if members opposite put their complete support behind this program and ensured the line they have taken would not jeopardize the funding for aboriginal people. Speaker, in conclusion, we suspect that members opposite are more interested in playing politics with this call for an inquiry than they are in getting on with the facts.
There is clearly no need for the inquiry the motion proposes. Speaker, while I am pleased to participate in this debate, I do not think that debating this question is a very productive use of House time. It will end up costing taxpayers far more than it is worth. There has been an ongoing barrage of questions on this issue for a sustained period of time. The issue has been recycled time and time again, day after day, to no useful end.
Members of the Bloc have already shown how little they care for the time and effort that should be put into productive issues when they kept the House sitting, around the clock, for two days of voting on meaningless amendments to the clarity bill, a bill which members of every other party in the House supported.
Nevertheless, our friends opposite are entitled to bring issues like this. That is one of the advantages of being part of the Canadian system. For our part, we are willing to discuss the motion and to look at their concerns from a broader perspective. The motion suggests that the government does not take the management of public funds seriously. I want to reassure the hon. I want to remind him that the government has made every effort possible to ensure responsible public sector financial management.
Shortly after we took office the government undertook a comprehensive review of federal spending programs. We showed our determination to ask the hard questions about the money the federal government was spending. We made the tough decisions to cut back in some areas and to redirect funds to other uses when necessary.
Program review was one of the government's toughest and most comprehensive programs. It was one of many. As a result, we have been successful. Members of the government acted decisively.
There is no doubt in my mind that the government and the Minister of Human Resources Development are acting decisively now. The minister has already told the House about her six point plan to improve the management and administration of grants and contributions in her department. It is a good plan and it is a solid plan. It includes improved reviews of administrative procedures.
It has been reviewed by the auditor general and the Treasury Board, as well as accounting experts in the private sector. The plan will work, but we must give it time to work. There is no point in looking yet again at the management processes at HRDC. We have done that and we have identified some areas that need to be fixed. We are fixing them. We should let the minister and her staff in the department get on with the business of implementing the action plan and serving the clients who need their help.
A second issue which the member opposite raised is a concern that HRDC funds are being used for political ends. I am glad the member raised this issue because it gives us a chance to put some facts on the record.
First, politics is not the criteria by which we determine HRDC funding. The money goes where it is most needed.
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