Speech (House debate)

{
    "time": "2009-05-12 18:15:00",
    "attribution": {
        "en": "Mr. Pat Martin (Winnipeg Centre, NDP)",
        "fr": ""
    },
    "content": {
        "en": "<p data-HoCid=\"1467792\" data-originallang=\"en\">Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to add a few words, at least, to this initiative sponsored by my colleague, the member for <a data-HoCid=\"128569\" href=\"/politicians/peter-stoffer/\" title=\"Peter Stoffer\">Sackville\u2014Eastern Shore</a>.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1467793\" data-originallang=\"en\">Let me begin by paying tribute to the initiative that my colleague has undertaken and to his commitment to all things as they pertain to the quality of life for veterans. I want to emphasize this because I heard some remarks from members on the government side who were accusing my colleague from <a data-HoCid=\"128569\" href=\"/politicians/peter-stoffer/\" title=\"Peter Stoffer\">Sackville\u2014Eastern Shore</a> of stirring things up. They were questioning his motivation in raising this issue, and even questioning the veracity of his arguments that have been put forward, I note, not by him alone, but by a member from the Liberal Party and by other members from my own party who represent many military families.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1467794\" data-originallang=\"en\">I do not want the record to stand with those remarks which are critical of my colleague. We should recognize as a group that the veterans of this country have no better friend and no greater champion than my colleague from <a data-HoCid=\"128569\" href=\"/politicians/peter-stoffer/\" title=\"Peter Stoffer\">Sackville\u2014Eastern Shore</a>.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1467795\" data-originallang=\"en\">We come together today to attempt to remedy a historic injustice of long standing. It is one of the greatest things we can do as members of Parliament. It is one of the privileges we have that we can put forward a private member's bill to trigger debate and hopefully to bring some resolution to these long-standing problems that have frustrated and stymied well-meaning retirees from the armed forces and the RCMP for years.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1467796\" data-originallang=\"en\"> People have been trying to address this issue for decades. It is not as though we just stumbled across this recently. We have been getting representation from well-organized groups and retirees organizations, including the Military and RCMP Veterans' Campaign Against Pension Benefit Reduction. This is an organized group. It did not fabricate this, notwithstanding the remarks by my colleague from the Conservative Party. These are legitimate concerns by civil society. It was not fabricated here for any political motivation. This is something that needs to be addressed.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1467797\" data-originallang=\"en\">We should also take note that we are at second reading of the bill. Many of the concerns brought up by my colleagues from the Conservative Party had merit, but the place to address those things is at committee. A private member's bill of such broad interest and such broad public support deserves to go to committee where witnesses can be called and questioned and testimony can be given. We can promote the positive side of the bill, and if there are some shortcomings, we can address those too by amendment at the committee stage.</p>",
        "fr": "<p data-HoCid=\"1467792\" data-originallang=\"en\">Monsieur le Pr\u00e9sident, je suis heureux d'avoir la possibilit\u00e9 de dire au moins quelques mots au sujet de l'initiative pr\u00e9sent\u00e9e par mon coll\u00e8gue, le d\u00e9put\u00e9 de <a data-HoCid=\"128569\" href=\"/politicians/peter-stoffer/\" title=\"Peter Stoffer\">Sackville\u2014Eastern Shore</a>.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1467793\" data-originallang=\"en\">Permettez-moi de commencer en rendant hommage \u00e0 l'initiative prise par mon coll\u00e8gue et \u00e0 son engagement \u00e0 l'\u00e9gard de tout ce qui peut am\u00e9liorer la qualit\u00e9 de vie des anciens combattants. Je tiens \u00e0 le souligner, car des d\u00e9put\u00e9s minist\u00e9riels ont accus\u00e9 mon coll\u00e8gue de <a data-HoCid=\"128569\" href=\"/politicians/peter-stoffer/\" title=\"Peter Stoffer\">Sackville\u2014Eastern Shore</a> de semer la zizanie. Ils ont remis en question ses motifs et m\u00eame la v\u00e9racit\u00e9 des arguments pr\u00e9sent\u00e9s non seulement par lui, je le note, mais aussi par un d\u00e9put\u00e9 lib\u00e9ral ainsi que par d'autres d\u00e9put\u00e9s de mon parti qui repr\u00e9sentent de nombreuses familles de militaires.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1467794\" data-originallang=\"en\">Je ne veux pas que ces critiques \u00e0 l'\u00e9gard de mon coll\u00e8gue soient consign\u00e9es sans \u00eatre contest\u00e9es. Nous devrions conjointement reconna\u00eetre que les anciens combattants de ce pays n'ont pas de meilleur ami et d\u00e9fenseur que mon coll\u00e8gue de <a data-HoCid=\"128569\" href=\"/politicians/peter-stoffer/\" title=\"Peter Stoffer\">Sackville\u2014Eastern Shore</a>.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1467795\" data-originallang=\"en\">Nous sommes r\u00e9unis aujourd'hui pour chercher \u00e0 rem\u00e9dier \u00e0 une injustice historique de longue date. C'est une des choses les plus utiles que nous puissions faire en tant que d\u00e9put\u00e9s, \u00e9tant donn\u00e9 le privil\u00e8ge qui nous est d\u00e9volu de pr\u00e9senter un projet de loi d'initiative parlementaire afin de susciter le d\u00e9bat dans l'espoir de r\u00e9gler d'une fa\u00e7on ou d'une autre ces probl\u00e8mes de longue date qui frustrent et contrarient depuis des ann\u00e9es des retrait\u00e9s des Forces canadiennes et de la GRC.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1467796\" data-originallang=\"en\">Cela fait des dizaines d'ann\u00e9es que des gens tentent de s'attaquer \u00e0 ces probl\u00e8mes. Ils ne datent pas d'hier. Des groupes bien structur\u00e9s et des organisations de retrait\u00e9s nous ont pr\u00e9sent\u00e9 des arguments, notamment les sympathisants de la Military and RCMP Veterans' Campaign Against Pension Benefit Reduction, groupe structur\u00e9 qui fait campagne contre la r\u00e9duction des prestations de pension. Ils n'ont pas invent\u00e9 ces probl\u00e8mes de toutes pi\u00e8ces, quoi qu'en dise le d\u00e9put\u00e9 du Parti conservateur. Il s'agit de pr\u00e9occupations l\u00e9gitimes exprim\u00e9es par la soci\u00e9t\u00e9 civile. On ne les a pas invent\u00e9es pour des motifs politiques. Il faut r\u00e9pondre \u00e0 ces pr\u00e9occupations.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"1467797\" data-originallang=\"en\">Il convient \u00e9galement de signaler qu'on en est \u00e0 l'\u00e9tape de la deuxi\u00e8me lecture du projet de loi. Bon nombre des points soulev\u00e9s par nos amis du Parti conservateur \u00e9taient valables, mais l'endroit o\u00f9 les aborder, c'est en comit\u00e9. Un projet de loi d'initiative parlementaire qui suscite autant d'int\u00e9r\u00eat et qui jouit d'un appui aussi g\u00e9n\u00e9ralis\u00e9 que celui-ci m\u00e9rite d'\u00eatre renvoy\u00e9 \u00e0 un comit\u00e9 o\u00f9 des t\u00e9moins pourront \u00eatre convoqu\u00e9s, interrog\u00e9s et entendus. On peut mettre en valeur ce que le projet de loi a de bon et, s'il comporte des lacunes, on pourra les corriger au moyen d'un amendement \u00e0 l'\u00e9tape de l'\u00e9tude en comit\u00e9.</p>"
    },
    "url": "/debates/2009/5/12/pat-martin-8/",
    "politician_url": "/politicians/pat-martin/",
    "politician_membership_url": "/politicians/memberships/2515/",
    "procedural": false,
    "source_id": "2763020",
    "h1": {
        "en": "Private Members' Business",
        "fr": ""
    },
    "h2": {
        "en": "Canadian Forces Superannuation Act",
        "fr": ""
    },
    "document_url": "/debates/2009/5/12/",
    "related": {
        "document_speeches_url": "/speeches/?document=%2Fdebates%2F2009%2F5%2F12%2F"
    }
}