In the House

A Call to protect British Columbia’s waters from oil disaster

We the undersigned Citizens of Canadians, draw the attention of the House of Commons to the following:

Whereas, the proposed Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline would carry oil 1,170km from the Alberta tar sands to the coast of Kitimat, BC contributing to an expansion of the Tar Sands

Whereas, the project would bring more than 225 super-tankers the size of the Empire State Building to the pristine North Coast of BC each year

Discussion will focus on the need for a national campaign for affordable housing

VICTORIA – New Democrat MP Denise Savoie will hold a housing roundtable with community stakeholders in Victoria, Wednesday, July 7th to discuss the need for affordable housing and federal support for a national housing strategy.

Hansard – (2010/6/17)

Ms. Denise Savoie (Victoria, NDP) :
moved for leave to introduce Bill C-549, An Act to amend the National Housing Act (Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation's retained earnings).

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce a bill that would harness CMHC's $2 billion annual surplus to the goal of sheltering Canadians, a goal from which CMHC has strayed over the years.

This bill would amend section 21 of the National Housing Act, requiring CMHC's unappropriated retained earnings to be transferred to provinces to provide housing for low-income households.

We the undersigned citizens of Canada stand against the biological and social threat and commerce of industrial marine net‐cage feedlots using our global oceans.

The science is clear: these operations risk wild salmon populations by intensifying disease and deplete world fishery resources to make the feed. They privatize ocean spaces and threaten our sovereign rights to food security.

We call on the Government of Canada to take the appropriate measures to get open‐net aquaculture out of our federal waters.

A petition to ensure action on greenhouse gas pollution and energy efficiency with Bill C‐311
Whereas:

1. Prime Minister Stephen Harper refuses to make necessary investments in clean energy or get tough on big polluters;
2. The Conservative government is avoiding Canada’s international climate change commitments;
3. The Conservative government continues previous government policies to use taxpayer dollars to subsidize the profitable oil and gas industry.
We, the undersigned residents of Canada call upon the House of Commons to:

By Susan Riley, Citizen SpecialMarch 12, 2010

Remember when the economy was the most pressing issue facing the nation -- at least, according to Michael Ignatieff? So last week.

What has Liberals excited now is Rahim Jaffer's supposed sweetheart deal on drug charges and ongoing questions about the treatment of Afghan detainees -- allegations of complacency, collusion, cover-up, on the part of Conservative and Liberal governments. Oh, and prorogation. Still.

“Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present several petitions. The first two have been signed by about 200 residents who are asking the government to impose a moratorium on non-essential use of cosmetic pesticides until they are proven safe in the long term.

“The petitioners wish to prevent the kind of negative, endocrine-disrupting impacts that research is now showing atrazine to have. They ask the government to respect the precautionary principle to protect children's health and to pass Bill C-368.

Get the new petition here.

During my first term as Victoria’s MP, I served as the NDP Advocate for Postsecondary Education, Literacy and Training. It was in this role that I fought with every tool at my disposal to make college and university more accessible and affordable for students.

Along the way I won a few victories along the way, including the creation of the Canada Student Grant Program.

“Mr. Speaker, I have a petition signed by my concerned constituents from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers asking that the government improve employment insurance. It belongs to workers, they say.

“They ask that measures be introduced to reduce the number of hours for eligibility to 360 hours. They are asking that benefits be extended, especially in this difficult economic time, and they are asking that benefits be at least 60% of normal earnings.”

Motion would require Triple Bottom Line assessment of federal property sales

OTTAWA – Victoria MP Denise Savoie today introduced a motion requiring that social, environmental and local-economic impacts are given full and equal consideration when the federal government sells or disposes of property.

“Under Liberal and Conservative governments there has been a fire sale of federal properties,” said Savoie. “Instead of selling out at the best immediate financial deal, I believe that respect for residents, communities and all Canadians dictates a more holistic, long-term view.”