Speech (House debate)

{
    "time": "2019-06-10 11:35:00",
    "attribution": {
        "en": "Mr. Blaine Calkins (Red Deer\u2014Lacombe, CPC)",
        "fr": "M. Blaine Calkins (Red Deer\u2014Lacombe, PCC)"
    },
    "content": {
        "en": "<p data-HoCid=\"5980505\" data-originallang=\"en\">Mr. Speaker, it is interesting that I rise today to speak to Bill <a data-HoCid=\"8063284\" href=\"/bills/42-1/S-203/\" title=\"An Act to amend the Criminal Code and other Acts (ending the captivity of whales and dolphins)\">S-203</a>, which on its surface seems to be popular and appeals to the emotional drives behind it. Like many Canadians, I have seen cetaceans in captivity at places like SeaWorld and the Vancouver Aquarium; and at places like Marineland, where personally I have never been. I just want to put this in context.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"5980506\" data-originallang=\"en\">This bill is designed to shut down one business in Canada. There is only one business in Canada actively pursuing or using cetaceans right now for the purpose of entertainment. That is what I want to talk about in this bill.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"5980507\" data-originallang=\"en\">I am not against the notion that, if Canadians are by and large against having cetaceans in captivity, we can have that conversation. Of course we can have that conversation. It is the approach that this piece of legislation is taking that concerns me. It concerns me because I am a hunter and an angler. I am a guy who grew up on a farm and used animals every day at every stage and walk in my life. I am a guy who represents two areas of my constituency. One area hosts the Ponoka Stampede and one area hosts the Canadian Finals Rodeo in Red Deer.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"5980508\" data-originallang=\"en\"> I am also a conservationist. I have a zoology degree. I am pretty sure the guys who are laughing at me right now probably do not. I am going to ask that they just sit and think about this for one second. Many scientists appeared before the committee in the Senate and the committee in the House of Commons. They were people with not just bachelor of science degrees in zoology but with Ph.D.s. They were very concerned by the precedent that this piece of legislation would set. I asked the question in the committee whether we could end cetacean captivity in Canada in a simpler way, such as by just ending the permits of this particular business. We could do that by making a small change to the Fisheries Act and to the plant and animal transfer act.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"5980509\" data-originallang=\"en\">However, this bill would change three things. It would change the Criminal Code of Canada and would do some interesting things. The bill is not about how humans handle animals or about the welfare or treatment of animals in people's care. The bill would, for the first time ever, make it a criminal act in Canada to keep an animal in captivity. That is the first time in our legislation anywhere that having an animal in captivity would be considered an illegal act. It would be illegal in the Criminal Code of Canada to breed animals, and these particular cetaceans\u2014</p>",
        "fr": "<p data-HoCid=\"5980505\" data-originallang=\"en\">Monsieur le Pr\u00e9sident, il est int\u00e9ressant de prendre la parole aujourd'hui \u00e0 propos du projet de loi <a data-HoCid=\"8063284\" href=\"/bills/42-1/S-203/\" title=\"An Act to amend the Criminal Code and other Acts (ending the captivity of whales and dolphins)\">S-203</a>, qui semble \u00eatre bien vu, en apparence, et qui r\u00e9pond aux \u00e9motions qu'il suscite. Comme beaucoup de Canadiens, je suis all\u00e9 voir des c\u00e9tac\u00e9s en captivit\u00e9 dans des endroits comme SeaWorld et l'aquarium de Vancouver. Il y en a \u00e9galement \u00e0 Marineland, mais je n'y suis personnellement jamais all\u00e9. Je veux simplement mettre les choses en perspective.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"5980506\" data-originallang=\"en\">Ce projet de loi vise \u00e0 faire fermer une entreprise au Canada, \u00e0 savoir la seule entreprise en ce moment au Canada qui garde et utilise des c\u00e9tac\u00e9s \u00e0 des fins r\u00e9cr\u00e9atives. C'est ce dont je veux parler en ce qui concerne ce projet de loi. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"5980507\" data-originallang=\"en\">Si les Canadiens s'opposent en g\u00e9n\u00e9ral \u00e0 la captivit\u00e9 des c\u00e9tac\u00e9s, je ne suis pas contre le fait que nous ayons un d\u00e9bat \u00e0 ce sujet. C'est \u00e9vident. C'est l'approche adopt\u00e9e dans ce projet de loi qui me pr\u00e9occupe. Elle me pr\u00e9occupe parce que je suis \u00e0 la fois un chasseur et un p\u00eacheur. J'ai grandi dans une ferme et j'ai utilis\u00e9 des animaux tous les jours, \u00e0 toutes les \u00e9tapes de ma vie. Ma circonscription accueille \u00e0 la fois le stampede de Ponoka et les finales canadiennes de rod\u00e9o \u00e0 Red Deer. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"5980508\" data-originallang=\"en\">Je suis aussi un d\u00e9fenseur de l\u2019environnement. J\u2019ai un dipl\u00f4me en zoologie. Je doute que ceux qui sont en train de se moquer de moi en ce moment en aient un, et je les invite \u00e0 se calmer et \u00e0 m\u2019\u00e9couter. Un grand nombre de scientifiques ont comparu devant le comit\u00e9 du S\u00e9nat et devant celui de la Chambre des communes. Ce n\u2019\u00e9tait pas des gens qui avaient un simple baccalaur\u00e9at es sciences en zoologie, ils avaient un doctorat. Et ce qu\u2019ils redoutaient tout particuli\u00e8rement, c\u2019est le pr\u00e9c\u00e9dent que ce projet de loi cr\u00e9ait. J\u2019ai moi-m\u00eame demand\u00e9, en comit\u00e9, s\u2019il \u00e9tait possible de mettre un terme \u00e0 la captivit\u00e9 des c\u00e9tac\u00e9s au Canada d\u2019une fa\u00e7on plus simple, par exemple en mettant fin aux permis qui ont \u00e9t\u00e9 octroy\u00e9s \u00e0 cette entreprise particuli\u00e8re. Il suffirait alors d\u2019apporter un amendement mineur \u00e0 la Loi sur les p\u00eaches et \u00e0 la Loi sur la protection d\u2019esp\u00e8ces animales ou v\u00e9g\u00e9tales sauvages.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"5980509\" data-originallang=\"en\">Quoi qu\u2019il en soit, ce projet de loi modifie trois textes. D\u2019abord, il modifie le Code criminel du Canada, mais de fa\u00e7on assez curieuse. Il ne porte pas sur le traitement des animaux par les humains, mais il p\u00e9nalise, et c\u2019est une premi\u00e8re au Canada, le fait de garder un animal captivit\u00e9. C\u2019est donc la premi\u00e8re fois qu\u2019une loi canadienne rend ill\u00e9gal le fait de garder un animal en captivit\u00e9. Il sera donc ill\u00e9gal, en vertu du Code criminel du Canada, d\u2019\u00e9lever des animaux, en l\u2019occurrence des c\u00e9tac\u00e9s...</p>"
    },
    "url": "/debates/2019/6/10/blaine-calkins-1/",
    "politician_url": "/politicians/blaine-calkins/",
    "politician_membership_url": "/politicians/memberships/4320/",
    "procedural": false,
    "source_id": "10688700",
    "h1": {
        "en": "Private Members' Business",
        "fr": "Affaires \u00e9manant des d\u00e9put\u00e9s"
    },
    "h2": {
        "en": "Ending the Captivity of Whales and Dolphins Act",
        "fr": "Loi visant \u00e0 mettre fin \u00e0 la captivit\u00e9 des baleines et des dauphins"
    },
    "document_url": "/debates/2019/6/10/",
    "related": {
        "document_speeches_url": "/speeches/?document=%2Fdebates%2F2019%2F6%2F10%2F"
    }
}