Speech (House debate)

{
    "time": "2017-05-10 17:00:00",
    "attribution": {
        "en": "Mr. Murray Rankin (Victoria, NDP)",
        "fr": "M. Murray Rankin (Victoria, NPD)"
    },
    "content": {
        "en": "<p data-HoCid=\"4865681\" data-originallang=\"en\">Mr. Speaker, I am rising today to seek your ruling on what I believe to be a contempt of this House that constitutes a prima facie question of privilege. Should you rule in my favour, I would be prepared to move the usual appropriate motion. This relates to Bill <a data-HoCid=\"8874160\" href=\"/bills/42-1/C-44/\" title=\"An Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on March 22, 2017 and other measures\">C-44</a>, the government's omnibus budget implementation act, that is currently making its way through the legislative process of this House and which will be followed by the often lengthy legislative process in the other place. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"4865682\" data-originallang=\"en\">For Canadians watching at home, last night the House passed Bill <a data-HoCid=\"8874160\" href=\"/bills/42-1/C-44/\" title=\"An Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on March 22, 2017 and other measures\">C-44</a> at second reading, which is the second stage of a five-stage process that must be completed even before the bill heads to the Senate for study. The bill still needs to be studied at a House committee, reported back to this House, concurred in at report stage, and then, of course, adopted at third reading. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"4865683\" data-originallang=\"en\">The summary of Bill <a data-HoCid=\"8874160\" href=\"/bills/42-1/C-44/\" title=\"An Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on March 22, 2017 and other measures\">C-44</a> is very informative. I will not read the whole thing, because even the summary of this massive omnibus bill is multiple pages in length, but the portion of the bill that I would like to focus on today is contained in part 4, \u201cVarious Measures\u201d. The summary states:</p>\n<blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"4865684\" data-originallang=\"en\"> Division 18 of Part 4 enacts the Canada Infrastructure Bank Act, which establishes the Canada Infrastructure Bank as a Crown corporation. The Bank\u2019s purpose is to invest in, and seek to attract private sector and institutional investment to, revenue-generating infrastructure projects. The Act also provides for, among other things, the powers and functions of the Bank, its governance framework and its financial management and control, allows for the appointment of a designated Minister, and provides that the Minister of Finance may pay to the Bank up to $35 billion and approve loan guarantees. Finally, this Division makes consequential amendments to the Access to Information Act, the Financial Administration Act and the Payments in Lieu of Taxes Act. </p>\n</blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"4865685\" data-originallang=\"en\">The idea that Canada's public infrastructure should be used as a tool to financially enrich private investors rather than as a way to enrich the lives of middle-class Canadians and those struggling to join it is bad enough, but the government has now gone beyond making bad policy decisions. It is actually discounting the need of this House to pass legislation before it rolls out appointments for this institution.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"4865686\" data-originallang=\"en\">I would like to read from a Canadian Press news story dated May 8, 2017, with respect to the new infrastructure agency. After noting that it has been decided to locate this agency in Toronto, it states:</p>\n<blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"4865687\" data-originallang=\"en\"> The Liberals are also starting a search to find a chair for the agency\u2019s board of directors, the directors themselves and the chief executive officer. Anyone is able to apply for one of the appointments, but there are few people internationally with the expertise and job experience for the positions. </p>\n</blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"4865688\" data-originallang=\"en\">I reviewed the government's appointment website, and it advertises these appointments with a closing date of May 23 of this year. The government expects the agency to be up and running by the end of the year. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"4865689\" data-originallang=\"en\">The enabling legislation has not been passed in this House\u2014</p>",
        "fr": "<p data-HoCid=\"4865681\" data-originallang=\"en\">Monsieur le Pr\u00e9sident, je prends la parole aujourd'hui pour vous demander de vous prononcer sur ce que je consid\u00e8re comme un outrage \u00e0 la Chambre et une question de privil\u00e8ge qui devrait \u00eatre consid\u00e9r\u00e9e comme fond\u00e9e \u00e0 premi\u00e8re vue. Si vous me donnez raison, je serai pr\u00eat \u00e0 pr\u00e9senter la motion voulue, comme on le fait normalement en de pareilles circonstances. La question que je soul\u00e8ve concerne le projet de loi <a data-HoCid=\"8874160\" href=\"/bills/42-1/C-44/\" title=\"An Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on March 22, 2017 and other measures\">C-44</a>, le projet de loi omnibus d'ex\u00e9cution du budget pr\u00e9sent\u00e9 par le gouvernement, qui est actuellement \u00e0 l'\u00e9tude aux Communes et que l'autre endroit \u00e9tudiera par la suite, sur une longue p\u00e9riode comme il le fait souvent.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"4865682\" data-originallang=\"en\">Je rappelle, \u00e0 l'intention des Canadiens qui nous regardent chez eux, que la Chambre a adopt\u00e9 hier soir le projet de loi <a data-HoCid=\"8874160\" href=\"/bills/42-1/C-44/\" title=\"An Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on March 22, 2017 and other measures\">C-44</a> \u00e0 l'\u00e9tape de la deuxi\u00e8me lecture, c'est-\u00e0-dire la deuxi\u00e8me \u00e9tape d'un total de cinq \u00e0 franchir avant que le S\u00e9nat puisse entreprendre son \u00e9tude. Le projet de loi doit encore \u00eatre \u00e9tudi\u00e9 par un comit\u00e9 de la Chambre, il doit faire l'objet d'un rapport pr\u00e9sent\u00e9 \u00e0 la Chambre, il doit \u00eatre agr\u00e9\u00e9 \u00e0 l'\u00e9tape du rapport et, enfin, il doit \u00e9videmment \u00eatre adopt\u00e9 \u00e0 l'\u00e9tape de la troisi\u00e8me lecture.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"4865683\" data-originallang=\"en\">Le sommaire du projet de loi <a data-HoCid=\"8874160\" href=\"/bills/42-1/C-44/\" title=\"An Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on March 22, 2017 and other measures\">C-44</a> est tr\u00e8s instructif. Je ne le lirai pas en entier parce que, \u00e0 lui seul, le sommaire d'un projet de loi omnibus aussi volumineux s'\u00e9tend sur plusieurs pages. Cependant, les dispositions auxquelles je m'int\u00e9resse particuli\u00e8rement aujourd'hui se trouvent dans la partie 4, \u00ab Mesures diverses \u00bb. Voici ce que dit le sommaire \u00e0 ce sujet: </p>\n<blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"4865684\" data-originallang=\"en\"> La section 18 de la partie 4 \u00e9dicte la <em>Loi sur la Banque de l\u2019infrastructure du Canada</em>, qui constitue la Banque de l\u2019infrastructure du Canada en soci\u00e9t\u00e9 d\u2019\u00c9tat. La Banque a pour mission de faire des investissements et de chercher \u00e0 attirer des investissements du secteur priv\u00e9 et des investissements institutionnels dans des projets d\u2019infrastructures qui g\u00e9n\u00e9reront des recettes. Cette loi pr\u00e9voit notamment les attributions de la Banque, son cadre de gouvernance, sa gestion et son contr\u00f4le financiers, la nomination d\u2019un ministre d\u00e9sign\u00e9 ainsi que le pouvoir du ministre des Finances de verser \u00e0 la Banque des sommes ne d\u00e9passant pas trente-cinq milliards de dollars et d\u2019approuver des garanties d\u2019emprunt. Elle apporte en outre des modifications corr\u00e9latives \u00e0 la <em>Loi sur l\u2019acc\u00e8s \u00e0 l\u2019information</em>, \u00e0 la <em>Loi sur la gestion des finances publiques</em> et \u00e0 la <em>Loi sur les paiements vers\u00e9s en remplacement d\u2019imp\u00f4ts</em>. </p>\n</blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"4865685\" data-originallang=\"en\">Il est d\u00e9j\u00e0 d\u00e9plorable que le gouvernement veuille se servir des infrastructures publiques du Canada pour enrichir des investisseurs priv\u00e9s plut\u00f4t que pour enrichir la vie des Canadiens de la classe moyenne et de ceux qui aspirent \u00e0 en faire partie, mais il fait maintenant bien pire que prendre de mauvaises d\u00e9cisions politiques. Il ne reconna\u00eet m\u00eame pas la n\u00e9cessit\u00e9 de faire adopter un projet de loi par la Chambre avant de nommer des personnes \u00e0 des postes \u00e0 cette banque.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"4865686\" data-originallang=\"en\">J'aimerais lire un extrait d'un article publi\u00e9 dans la presse canadienne le 8 mai 2017, sur la nouvelle Banque de l'infrastructure. Apr\u00e8s une mention sur le fait que le gouvernement a d\u00e9cid\u00e9 d'installer le si\u00e8ge de cette institution \u00e0 Toronto, on peut lire ceci:</p>\n<blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"4865687\" data-originallang=\"en\"> Les lib\u00e9raux ont en outre entam\u00e9 un processus pour trouver des candidats aux postes de pr\u00e9sident du conseil d'administration de l'organisme, d'administrateurs du conseil et de pr\u00e9sident et premier dirigeant. N'importe qui peut soumettre sa candidature \u00e0 l'un ou l'autre de ces postes, mais peu de gens \u00e0 l'\u00e9chelle internationale ont les connaissances et l'exp\u00e9rience voulues. </p>\n</blockquote><p data-HoCid=\"4865688\" data-originallang=\"en\">J'ai v\u00e9rifi\u00e9 sur le site Web des nominations du gouvernement et la date limite pour pr\u00e9senter sa candidature est le 23 mai prochain. Le gouvernement s'attend \u00e0 ce que l'organisme soit sur pied d'ici la fin de l'ann\u00e9e. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"4865689\" data-originallang=\"en\">La loi habilitante n'a pas \u00e9t\u00e9 adopt\u00e9e par la Chambre des communes \u2014</p>"
    },
    "url": "/debates/2017/5/10/murray-rankin-1/",
    "politician_url": "/politicians/murray-rankin/",
    "politician_membership_url": "/politicians/memberships/4152/",
    "procedural": false,
    "source_id": "9519385",
    "h1": {
        "en": "Routine Proceedings",
        "fr": "Affaires Courantes"
    },
    "h2": {
        "en": "Privilege",
        "fr": "Privil\u00e8ge"
    },
    "h3": {
        "en": "Proposed Canada Infrastructure Bank",
        "fr": "Le projet de Banque de l'infrastructure du Canada"
    },
    "document_url": "/debates/2017/5/10/",
    "related": {
        "document_speeches_url": "/speeches/?document=%2Fdebates%2F2017%2F5%2F10%2F"
    }
}