Special to The Canadian

OTTAWA – Green Party Leader Elizabeth May is calling on all Canadians to demand democracy – again. The television companies, while admitting they have no rules for who participates in the leader’s debate, have attempted to overrule Canadians by barring Elizabeth May. She learned of the decision from a Canadian Press reporter and not from the TV companies.

“They are trying to silence the voices of one in ten Canadians,” said Elizabeth May.

In 2008 Ms. May was initially excluded – according to the TV companies – because the Conservatives and the NDP refused to participate if she was invited. Less than a week later the decision was reversed after tens of thousands of Canadians emailed and phoned to demand democracy. During the last election an Angus Reid Poll found that 73 per cent of Canadians wanted Elizabeth May in the debate.

“They have no grounds to stand on. They are making up the rules to please Stephen Harper and Jack Layton. It’s juvenile old boys stuff,” says May.

Troy Reeb, Vice President of News for Global TV and head of the committee of TV companies, also says their ruling is based on journalistic decision-making.

“We do not accept this highly arbitrary decision.” Mr. Reeb confirmed to us that they have ‘no prescribed rules.’ They describe the debates as a “journalistic exercise”, said May. “What kind of democracy excludes a party with the support of one tenth of its citizens? What kind of democracy allows a handful of TV executives to decide that a party only running candidates in one province had more right to be in a national leaders’ debate than a party with candidates in every riding? This decision will not stand.”

The Green Party has retained legal counsel and will be making an application to the court in the next few days should the TV companies continue to deny democracy. Details of the legal application will be provided soon.

“The House was brought down on contempt. This is contempt for democracy,” said Deputy Leader Adriane Carr.

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Edited by John Stokes

OTTAWA — Canada must make a serious effort to eliminate child poverty, says the Green Party of Canada in the wake of a UNICEF report card released by the Innocenti Research Centre.  Canada scored a six overall, placing it in the middle of the pack along with Poland and Portugal, behind countries such as Denmark and Finland but ahead of the US.  Among OECD countries, Canada scored average for health well-being and above average for education well-being but below average for material well-being.

“We cannot let our children fall behind,” said Rebecca Harrison, Green Party Poverty Elimination Critic.  “Although we think of Canada as an affluent nation, there is a great deal of inequality in family income and it is the children that bear this burden. Poverty is a systemic problem that requires intervention in all spheres of public policy. We need to develop a comprehensive plan to improve our social safety network so that it eliminates child poverty.  And this program needs to be spearheaded by the Federal Government.”

The Green Party’s call for a Poverty Commissioner to develop a national poverty elimination strategy is echoed in the UNICEF report card’s recommendations for Canada.  UNICEF also calls for a national Children’s Commissioner who would ensure children’s best interests are considered in policy development and that services across the country are better coordinated.

“It is time for action on child poverty,” said Green Leader Elizabeth May.  “This is an urgent issue that we cannot put off any longer.  We should be looking to the countries that are more successful in eliminating child poverty and asking what lessons could we bring to Canada.  We need to consider a comprehensive strategy ensuring that every family has an income level sufficient to allow every child to develop to their full potential.”

Edited by John Stokes

OTTAWA  –  In the wake of negative changes to the employment insurance system, many Newfoundland and Labrador residents are worried about getting through the winter on reduced income levels.  “People are already having trouble getting enough days of work to qualify for benefits and now if the Best 14 weeks program is eliminated, it will be that much tougher to pay the bills,” said Green Leader Elizabeth May. 

“With climate change bringing probable negative impacts to the various fisheries that the province relies on, the federal government has a responsibility to come up with effective assistance strategies,” said May.

The Best 14 Weeks program was a pilot project introduced in 2003 to allow people to use their highest-paying weeks to qualify for EI benefits, instead of basing a claim on their most recent 14 weeks of employment, which may result in a significant decrease of benefits.

“Seasonal workers in Newfoundland and Labrador often have irregular work schedules and often have to take shift work that results in low paying weeks.  The Best 14 weeks program was working and should be maintained,” said Marlene Wells, Green Party Newfoundland & Labrador Council Representative.

The Green Party maintains that the current recession is an ideal time to expand and improve the EI benefits.  Economists, such as Ian Lee, Director of the Sprott School of Business, have determined that spending on EI is especially effective in stimulating the economy.

“Those living on EI benefits need every cent to cover the essentials of food and shelter,” said Wells. “In this ongoing recession, expanding the EI system would be a sensible economic measure.  New money would not be required; the EI system has a healthy fund built up.  Newfoundlanders and Labradorians deserve to access its benefits as many families are struggling,” said Wells.

Edited by John Stokes

OTTAWA  –  The Green Party of Canada is calling on all MPs to vote for Bill C-304, particularly the Conservatives and Bloc who have not yet supported this Act to ensure secure, adequate, accessible and affordable housing for Canadians.

“MPs need to drop their partisan games and all vote in favour of Bill C-304,” said Deputy Green Leader Adriane Carr. “The housing crisis began when the federal government pulled out of social housing, transferring administration of social-housing programs to provinces and territories.  We now know that this was a big mistake. We need a National Housing Strategy and direct federal government involvement to ensure Canadians can meet the basic need of decent shelter.”

Canada is the only G8 nation without a federal housing strategy. There are now 250,000 homeless in Canada. “We are spending billions of dollars on international meetings, jails and fighter planes while Canadians are still having to worry about where they will sleep at night.  Somehow, our priorities have gone askew,” said Green Leader Elizabeth May.
“It is now well-documented that Canada has a housing crisis,” said Rebecca Harrison, Green Party Critic on Poverty Elimination. “The Senate report In From the Margins: A Call to Action on Poverty, Housing and Homelessness sets out a path of action that all levels of government should be initiating immediately.  The authors of this report also realize that investing in individual Canadians will bring great economic benefits to our country.  We know what we should be doing. Voting for Bill C-304 will move us into action.”

The Green Party would work to ensure cooperation at all levels of government for secure, adequate, accessible, and affordable housing for all Canadians.

Green Party MPs would also:

• Remove taxes from the lowest income categories so that no taxes are paid by those below the poverty line (Canada’s Low Income Cut-off measure).
• Allow income assistance recipients to keep 100% of the wages they earn up to the Low Income Cut-off level to encourage people to get back into the job market.
• Offer people the mobility they need to find work, shelter and other necessities through free transit passes for those on income assistance.

Edited by John Stokes

OTTAWA  –  Veterans Affairs Minister Jean-Pierre Blackburn announced yesterday that he will issue a formal apology to Capt. Sean Bruyea for the disclosure of his medical history in ministerial briefing notes.

Minister Blackburn also hinted that he is seeking an out of court settlement to Capt. Bruyea’s $400,000 lawsuit against Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC). Government documents quoted in the Montreal Gazette on October 25th indicate that VAC personnel characterize veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress syndrome as individuals who have had “bad experiences with the military,” distrust government and who believe in conspiracies.

“This is widely seen in the veterans community, and the public at large, as both too little too late, and a blatant attempt to silence one of the most outspoken critics of his ministry,” said John Percy, Veterans Affairs Critic for the Green Party of Canada. “Nothing less than the resignation of Minister Blackburn will suffice, and the wholesale replacement of senior bureaucrats in Veterans Affairs from the Deputy Minister on down. Minister Blackburn has not only dropped the ball, it is bouncing out of control with no hope of his ever catching up with it.”

“For his part, Capt. Bruyea today disclosed that he had been in contact with the Prime Minister’s Office as far back as 2006, yet somehow the Prime Minister had no knowledge of any contact by Capt. Bruyea with his own office,” said Percy.

Edited by John Stokes

OTTAWA  –  The Green Party of Canada is urging MPs to reject Bill C-49, An Act to Amend the Criminal Code, in its current form.  This Bill proposes changes to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act that centre on prohibiting human trafficking in Canada.  However, the Green Party notes that contrary to claims made by the government, the Bill does little to constrain the criminal activities of human smugglers and instead may penalize legitimate refugees.

“The Bill allows the federal government to designate ‘irregulars’, which carries the unacceptable risk of targeting those who seek and are entitled to Canada’s protection,” said Elizabeth May, Green Party Leader. “In addition, the Bill imposes minimum penalties in an attempt to prevent our courts from tailoring penalties to fit the crime; it grants the Minister wide and arbitrary discretion to detain individuals and then attempts to prevent independent and rational review. These are significant problems that demonstrate this Bill should not pass.”

A so-called irregular could be arbitrarily detained for up to a year while they wait to find out if they will be allowed into the country.  The Green Party is concerned that this Bill could impede legitimate refugee claims.  “Refugees are not criminals and should not be treated as such,” said May.

Another problem with the Bill are the retroactive provisions (Section 33.1) which authorize the Minister to impose sanctions on people who may have arrived in Canada as far back as March 2009.  “The Bill is clearly targeting refugees who are already in the country waiting to find out if they can become permanent residents.  Will they now be automatically detained if this Bill passes?” asked May.

“This Bill reveals a government trying to evade the  basic constitutional principle of the rule of law.  It must not be allowed to do so,” said May.

Edited by John Stokes

OTTAWA — The Green Party of Canada is pleased with Quebec’s decision to impose a moratorium on any oil or gas exploration in the St. Lawrence Estuary, but point out that a federal moratorium is now needed.  “With Quebec and PEI against oil and gas development in the Gulf, any federal government with an ounce of sense would put in a moratorium,” said Green Leader Elizabeth May.

The Quebec government has imposed a moratorium until scientific studies on the potential impacts to the estuary and the Gulf of St. Lawrence are completed, sometime in 2012.  The Quebec moratorium is only for the estuary and a small portion of the Gulf.

Of great concern to coastal residents is the Old Harry reserve, currently regulated under the Canada Newfoundland Petroleum Board and National Energy Board.  This reserve has the potential to severely impact the western side of the Gulf if Corridor Resources is allowed to proceed with its exploration plans, which could see drilling contracted to a major company such as Chevron, Shell or BP by 2011-2012.

“The Quebec study appears to go right up to the border of the Old Harry reserve,” said May. “Obviously, an oil spill will not respect these artificial boundaries; in fact, the currents in the Gulf move counter-clockwise, so any spill at Old Harry would wash around the Gulf, impacting Quebec, PEI, NB and NS. Ministers Prentice and Shea need to cooperate with Quebec’s efforts and implement an immediate moratorium and undertake similar studies.  It is imperative that the federal government take the risks to the Gulf of St. Lawrence seriously.  In jeopardy are important spawning grounds, critical fishing and tourism industries and thousands of jobs in coastal communities.”

The Green Party is calling on other parties to make known their position.

“Canadians deserve to know where the parties stand on whether they are prepared to support renewable fisheries and tourism industries.  Will we learn from the mistakes made in the Gulf of Mexico and act now to protect the Gulf of St. Lawrence?” said May.

Special to The Canadian

The Green Party of Canada is calling on Prime Minister Harper to protect endangered beluga whales in the Gulf of St Lawrence by putting a moratorium in place on oil and gas development in this sensitive ecosystem.  

The Canada-Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Board has approved preliminary work and seismic testing for a deep-water oil well east of the Magdalen Islands, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

“We have seen that this government is concerned about beluga whale protection with the announcement of the Tarium Niryutait marine protected area, and now concerned citizens on the east coast are saying, don’t forget about the belugas in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, they are at even greater risk than those in the Arctic,” said Green Leader Elizabeth May.

According to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans website, there used to be around ten thousand beluga whales in the St. Lawrence River system, a number that has now dropped to around a thousand. Industrial activity, environmental pollution, and collisions with commercial and recreational boats are all cited as contributing to the decline of the species.

“The beloved beluga whale is struggling with loss of quality habitat and a contaminated food supply.  We have listed this species as protected under the Species at Risk Act and yet we would still consider allowing further degradation of their ecosystem – it is not acceptable,” said Mary Gorman of The Save our Seas and Shores Coalition.  ”Seismic blasting is known to irreparably damage whales’ ability to migrate, communicate and survive.  If the Prime Minister is sincere in protecting endangered whales, he will call for an immediate and permanent moratorium on seismic blasting in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.”

“We need to realize that piecemeal regulation in Canada is not adequate,” said May.  “Protecting a little bit here and there does not add up to a sufficient safeguard for a threatened species.  What we need is a comprehensive plan that takes seriously the need for setting certain areas off limits to industrial development.  In the context of the climate crisis, this sort of decision makes even more sense, both to reduce our carbon emissions and to ensure that species will have the resilience to adapt to changes in their ecosystems.”

Additional Comment Added:

“The Green Party is outraged by the duplicitous move in setting aside a portion of Arctic beluga habitat for oil and gas development.  Seismic testing is very damaging to cetaceans, as it can cause permanent hearing loss, and loss of location ability.  You cannot protect belugas in the same area in which you are developing oil and gas.

We demanded that the Harper government extend protection of beluga with a moratorium on oil and gas exploration and development in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.   Had we known that the government was violating the essence of declaring a Marine Protected

Area by excluding a zone to allow oil and gas in the Arctic, we would not have applauded what we believed to be a significant conservation achievement.”

Special to The Canadian

The Green Party of Canada is urging members of Parliament to vote in favour of keeping the long gun registry, which the Conservative Party wants to scrap.  

The Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police recently voted unanimously to start an educational campaign about why the registry is so important to police officers and why they want to keep it.  Other organizations such as the Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians are chiming in with support for the registry.

“There is ample evidence that the long gun registry has been successful and is valued by those working in the field,” Eric Walton, Member of  the Green Party Shadow Cabinet and nominated candidate Kingston-The Islands. “The ideology of the Conservative Party is the only motive behind scrapping this useful program.  Instead, Parliament should be working to improve our entire strategy for dealing with guns in Canada.”

The Green Party has always been supportive of the long gun registry, but would like to reduce bureaucratic burden for hunters and marksmen with no criminal history.  Also, the Green Party believes the long gun program should be complemented with a ban on handguns and combat weapons.

“Over and over we have heard that the long gun registry is an important piece of the national firearms strategy.  It is time to put this debate to rest and get on with the job of improving the system and reducing gun crime in this country, including focusing on how we can reduce the smuggling of guns into Canada,” said Leader Elizabeth May.

The Conservatives appear to be working behind the scenes to quash support for the registry; rumours abound that RCMP Chief Supt. Marty Cheliak was removed as the Director General of the Canadian Firearms Program last week because of his vocal support of the long gun registry.  An evaluation report which praises the effectiveness of the Canadian firearms program has been buried since February.

“Unfortunately with this government, we have seen this pattern where good people are pushed aside because their views contradict the Conservative party line.  It is very demoralizing in a democracy as great as Canada that you can be fired for standing up for what you believe in,” said May. “Mr. Cheliak joins a long list, including Veterans Ombudsman Pat Stogran, and Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission president Linda Keen.  These people should be commended for working hard to keep Canada strong despite strong pressure to stay silent.”

Special to The Canadian

OTTAWA — “The Green Party of Canada is prepared to work with First Nations citizens and their representative organizations and leaders in consultation and negotiation to build a new relationship between Canada and the Indigenous Peoples of Canada,” said Green Party Leader Elizabeth May.

May welcomed the remarks from Assembly of First Nations (AFN) Chief Shawn Atleo in his address to the AFN General Assembly.  “National Chief Atleo is calling for a nationally facilitated, regionally driven and community mandated approach to move forward into a better future for Canadians and the original peoples,” said May.

“This is something the Green Party is willing to support,” said Lorraine Rekmans, Aboriginal Affairs Critic for the Green Party of Canada.  “The National Chief has outlined a plan that calls on the full support of the Canadian Government.  It is inclusive of First Nations citizens directly and it will lead us to much needed change constitutionally and institutionally,” said Rekmans.

“We can all agree that the Indian Act is an outdated instrument of oppression, control, paternalism and is long past its due date.  The imposition of a colonial regime on First Nations has had drastic results including poverty and rampant suicide.  It is a shameful instrument and we must eliminate it without delay,” said Rekmans.

 Atleo, has outlined a number of elements to an AFN plan that calls for building a new relationship between the Crown and First Nations including an effort to organize intergovernmental participation at the Council of the Federation.  He has called for a fully community-based engagement and decision making process to include grass-roots participation.

“Atelo’s plan is bold and courageous and is a much needed initiative to move Canada into the future.  The Indian Act should be an embarrassment to all Canadians.  It is a colonial dinosaur from the past and we need to put it behind us as soon as possible,” said Rekmans.