Speech (House debate)

{
    "time": "2010-10-20 19:45:00",
    "attribution": {
        "en": "Hon. John McKay (Scarborough\u2014Guildwood, Lib.)",
        "fr": ""
    },
    "content": {
        "en": "<p data-HoCid=\"2108205\" data-originallang=\"en\">Mr. Speaker, on June 1 before Parliament rose for the summer, I asked a question of the CIDA minister as to the funding with respect to CCIC and the minister said at the time that it was still under review. That is political speak around here for it is dead in the water. Already that decision had been taken. The drill question was when was it going to be executed. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108206\" data-originallang=\"en\">As it turned out, a mere few weeks later while Parliament had risen and we were all off on summer vacation, the axe did fall on CCIC, the Canadian Council for International Co-operation. It is probably one of the most respected organizations in Canada, if not in the world, with respect to advocacy and with respect to research. Its research has been cited by numerous organizations around the world and 90 to 100 NGOs in this country depend upon both its research and its advocacy because it is a perfectly sensible thing. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108207\" data-originallang=\"en\">Providing aid in this world is a complex and difficult undertaking. Therefore, we want to spend both the donor dollars and the government dollars as well as we possibly can. CCIC provided that very valuable service. It had been providing that very valuable service of research and advocacy for the last 30 years so that these 90 to 100 organizations did not have to have their own little shops to do it.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108208\" data-originallang=\"en\">The budget cut was $1.8 million, which is not a huge sum of money in the way the Conservatives government spends money, and it constituted over two-thirds of its budget.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108209\" data-originallang=\"en\">CCIC knew the jig was up when it submitted request after request and it was told by staff that it is on the minister's desk. That also is political speak around here for it is also dead in the water.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108210\" data-originallang=\"en\">Here we have it. A valuable organization that has been in existence for 30 years, that has a funding relationship going back all those years with various governments of Canada, of both the Conservative and Liberal stripe, is about to be axed and it is only a question of when.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108211\" data-originallang=\"en\">I want to make the point that was made in an article with respect to CCIC. The headline is \u201cAnother critical group feels Ottawa's axe\u201d. It is an article by Brian Stewart regarding CCIC about a week after the axe did fall. He writes:</p>\n<blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"2108212\" data-originallang=\"en\"> Foreign assistance is not just a matter of delivering help. It's also a highly complex matter of getting it right, if possible, through study, research, the exchange of ideas, co-ordination of plans, and, yes, open debate and criticism. </p>\n</blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"2108213\" data-originallang=\"en\">I know that is a foreign concept across the aisle. He continues:</p>\n<blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"2108214\" data-originallang=\"en\"> This is the area the CCIC excelled in. It played a leadership role and set high standards. </p>\n</blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"2108215\" data-originallang=\"en\">The question remains that CCIC funding was cut in fact because its criticism was a little too pointed. The government does not like to hear from the other side. It certainly does not want to hear the message and it certainly does not want to hear any message that is contrary to the propaganda put out by the other side.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108216\" data-originallang=\"en\">May I end with the real reason that this organization was cut out of its funding. </p>\n<blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"2108217\" data-originallang=\"en\"> For years, Barr and the CCIC have argued that CIDA's chronic attention-deficit disorder makes programming impossible when \u201cbased on themes that may have a half-life of six months.\u201d </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108218\" data-originallang=\"en\"> \u201cIt's like planning next year's crop on the strength of this afternoon's weather\u201d, Barr says. </p>\n</blockquote>",
        "fr": "<p data-HoCid=\"2108205\" data-originallang=\"en\">Monsieur le Pr\u00e9sident, le 1<sup>er</sup> juin, avant la rel\u00e2che estivale du Parlement, quand j'ai pos\u00e9 une question \u00e0 la ministre responsable de l'ACDI concernant le financement du CCCI, celle-ci m'a r\u00e9pondu que le dossier \u00e9tait en cours d'examen. Voil\u00e0 la formule qu'on utilise dans le contexte politique f\u00e9d\u00e9ral pour dire qu'un programme est annul\u00e9. La d\u00e9cision avait d\u00e9j\u00e0 \u00e9t\u00e9 prise. La question pratique \u00e9tait de savoir quand on ferait tomber le couperet. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108206\" data-originallang=\"en\">Or, \u00e0 peine quelques semaines plus tard, alors que le Parlement avait ajourn\u00e9 ses travaux pour l'\u00e9t\u00e9, le couperet est effectivement tomb\u00e9 sur le CCCI, le Conseil canadien pour la coop\u00e9ration internationale. Or, il s'agit probablement de l'une des organisations les plus respect\u00e9es au Canada, pour ne pas dire sur la sc\u00e8ne mondiale, dans le domaine de la promotion de la coop\u00e9ration internationale et de la recherche connexe. Les travaux du CCCI ont \u00e9t\u00e9 cit\u00e9s par de nombreuses organisations dans le monde et entre 90 et 100 organisations non gouvernementales canadiennes comptent sur ses recherches et ses activit\u00e9s de promotion, ce qui tombe sous le sens. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108207\" data-originallang=\"en\">L'aide \u00e9trang\u00e8re constitue une entreprise complexe et ardue. Par cons\u00e9quent, nous souhaitons faire la meilleure utilisation possible des dons, notamment ceux du gouvernement. Le CCCI fournissait des services fort utiles de recherche et de promotion depuis 30 ans pour que ces 90 ou 100 organisations n'aient pas \u00e0 mettre sur pied leurs propres services. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108208\" data-originallang=\"en\">La compression budg\u00e9taire a \u00e9t\u00e9 de 1,8 million de dollars, ce qui n'est pas beaucoup compte tenu du rythme auquel les conservateurs d\u00e9pensent l'argent, mais c'\u00e9tait plus de deux tiers de son budget.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108209\" data-originallang=\"en\">Le Conseil canadien pour la coop\u00e9ration internationale savait que c'\u00e9tait cuit lorsqu'il a pr\u00e9sent\u00e9 une s\u00e9rie de demandes en se faisant dire \u00e0 chaque fois par le personnel que c'\u00e9tait sur le bureau du ministre. Cela aussi c'est du langage politique qui veut dire que c'est fichu.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108210\" data-originallang=\"en\">Nous voyons donc un organisme de grande valeur qui existe depuis 30 ans et qui a re\u00e7u des fonds pendant tout ce temps des gouvernements successifs, tant conservateurs que lib\u00e9raux, et qui est sur le point de se voir couper les vivres. Ce n'est qu'une question de temps.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108211\" data-originallang=\"en\">Je veux mentionner un article sur le CCCI intitul\u00e9 \u00ab Un autre groupe essentiel victime d'Ottawa \u00bb. Cet article, sign\u00e9 par Brian Stewart a \u00e9t\u00e9 \u00e9crit environ une semaine apr\u00e8s que le couperet soit tomb\u00e9. Voici:</p>\n<blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"2108212\" data-originallang=\"en\"> L'aide au d\u00e9veloppement n'est pas qu'une question d'argent. Il y a aussi la question tr\u00e8s complexe de la mani\u00e8re de bien faire les choses, si possible, apr\u00e8s des \u00e9tudes, des travaux de recherche, l'\u00e9change d'id\u00e9es, la coordination de plans et, oui, un d\u00e9bat ouvert et des critiques. </p>\n</blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"2108213\" data-originallang=\"en\">Je sais que cela est un concept tout \u00e0 fait \u00e9tranger \u00e0 nos vis-\u00e0-vis. Je continue:</p>\n<blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"2108214\" data-originallang=\"en\"> Le CCCI excellait \u00e0 cela. Il jouait un r\u00f4le de premier plan et avait plac\u00e9 la barre tr\u00e8s haut. </p>\n</blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"2108215\" data-originallang=\"en\">Toutefois, le CCCI a vu son financement coup\u00e9 parce que ses critiques \u00e9taient un peu trop pointues. Le gouvernement n'aime pas entendre d'autres sons de cloche que le sien. Il ne veut pas entendre de message qui ne va pas dans le m\u00eame sens que la propagande qu'il diffuse.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108216\" data-originallang=\"en\">Je termine avec la v\u00e9ritable raison pour laquelle l'organisation s'est fait couper les vivres.</p>\n<blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"2108217\" data-originallang=\"en\"> Pendant des ann\u00e9es, Barr et le CCCI ont soutenu que la girouette appel\u00e9e ACDI rendait la programmation impossible parce qu'il fallait se \u00ab fonder sur des th\u00e8mes pouvant \u00eatre abandonn\u00e9s apr\u00e8s seulement six mois \u00bb </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"2108218\" data-originallang=\"en\"> \u00ab C'est comme planifier les r\u00e9coltes de l'an prochain en se fondant uniquement sur la temp\u00e9rature de cet apr\u00e8s-midi \u00bb, d'affirmer Barr. </p>\n</blockquote>"
    },
    "url": "/debates/2010/10/20/john-mckay-1/",
    "politician_url": "/politicians/john-mckay/",
    "politician_membership_url": "/politicians/memberships/1423/",
    "procedural": false,
    "source_id": "3387328",
    "h1": {
        "en": "Adjournment Proceedings",
        "fr": ""
    },
    "h3": {
        "en": "International Aid",
        "fr": ""
    },
    "document_url": "/debates/2010/10/20/",
    "related": {
        "document_speeches_url": "/speeches/?document=%2Fdebates%2F2010%2F10%2F20%2F"
    }
}