Question Period was an eventful one today in the House of Commons. Liberal MP Justin Trudeau made national headlines for calling Peter Kent, the federal Environment Minister, a “piece of sh-t,” and yours truly got in hot water for calling the minister of Fisheries and Oceans a “bully.” “Bully” is supposedly unparliamentary language (whereas “a pig with nothing but a squeak,” as one person informed me via Twitter, is not unparliamentary). I had no intention of calling Fisheries and Oceans Minister Keith Ashfield a bully. But in response to a question from NDP MP Fin Donnelly about how scientists are afraid to go public with concerns about cuts to Fisheries and Oceans, the minister asked, “Do I look like a bully?” It then just happened to be my turn to ask a question, resulting in the following exchange: Mr. Speaker, the answer to the minister's question, is “Yes sir, your department and you, sir, are a bully.” Some hon. members : Oh, oh! Hon. Jim Flaherty : He looks like a bully. Ki...

I posed a question last week in the House of Commons about why ACOA would approve a $1-million loan to a company that creates fish plant jobs in China? Turns out ACOA wasn’t alone in handing money to Ocean Choice International (OCI) to develop new technology to process yellowtail flounder – the very same species the company now wants to ship to Asia. The Newfoundland and Labrador government also kicked in cash. I submitted three questions to the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency last week regarding OCI. The questions and official responses are found below: 1) How much was drawn on the loan to OCI? In June 2010, in response to a project proposal from OCI, ACOA announced a provisionally repayable loan of $1,000,000 towards the application of water-jet cutting technology to process yellowtail flounder at the company’s plant in Marystown. A total of $750,000 was disbursed by ACOA. The total cost of this project was $2.5 million, with OCI contributing $1.24 million, and the provincial go...

I posed the following question today in the House of Commons: Mr. Speaker, Yet another well-connected Conservative has received a patronage appointment. This time it's Reginald Bowers heading to the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board. The board is responsible for resource management, environmental protection and safety concerns in the industry. Here's the rub: Mr. Bowers has little to no experience in the offshore oil and gas industry. Apparently managing a successful Conservative campaign is experience enough. When will the Conservatives take the development of Newfoundland and Labrador's offshore resources seriously , and stop appointing friends. The Speaker: The hon. Minister of Natural Resources. Order, please. Hon. Joe Oliver (Minister of Natural Resources): Mr. Speaker, Our government is appointing capable advisers. The Canada, Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board individual in question has decades of experience in regional econo...

Dec. 12th is an eventful day in Newfoundland and Labrador history. On this day in 1942, 99 people died in the Knights of Columbus fire on Harvey Road in St. John’s. There’s a theory that the fire was likely an incidence of enemy sabotage orchestrated by agents of Nazi Germany. The local musical troupe, Uncle Tim’s Barn Dance, was on stage that night. Uncle Tim was actually the stage name of my great-grandfather, Bill Duggan, whose two sons were on stage with him (Derm and Gus Duggan). Gus, a member of the Newfoundland militia, died in the fire. Years later, my mother was playing near the site of the former K of C hostel when she found a set of dog tags, owned by her uncle Gus. A vigil is planned for 11 p.m. tonight at the K of C monument on Harvey Road. ••• Today is also the 26th anniversary of the Arrow Air crash in Gander. Canada’s worst aviation disaster killed 256 military personnel and their crew. The chartered plane crashed seconds after it lifted off following a refueling stop ...

On Thursday, Dec. 9th, the second hour of debate took place in the House of Commons on my private member’s bill – the Newfoundland and Labrador Fishery Rebuilding Act. The following is my 5-minute speech. A vote on the bill is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 14th. Mr. Speaker, There has been a major breakthrough in the fisheries since the introduction of my private member's bill, Bill C-308, the Newfoundland and Labrador Fishery Rebuilding Act. The breakthrough took almost 20 years. It took tens of thousands of job losses, the biggest layoff in Canadian history. The breakthrough took unparalleled out-migration from the outports of Newfoundland and Labrador. The breakthrough comes after untold suffering and hardship, and a devastating blow to our heritage, a blow that still threatens our culture. The breakthrough is the long awaited acknowledgement that the Newfoundland and Labrador fishery is broken. The word “broken” has been used in recent weeks to describe the state of our fisheri...

I posed the following questions Friday, Dec. 9th in the House of Commons. Mr. Speaker, Yesterday in this House, the Associate Minister of National Defence described a flight on a search and rescue helicopter from the fishing camp as, “a very routine kind of endeavour, indeed.” Routine is taking a taxi to an airport. Routine is taking a taxi to work. I would like to ask the associate minister exactly what he means by “routine?” How frequently does the minister use a search and rescue helicopter to get back from vacation? Response from Chris Alexander (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence): Mr. Speaker, the Minister of National Defence was on leave, at his own expense. He was called back to work on very short notice. Government aircraft were used in this case for government business. Every rule, much more exigent, demanding rules, for the use of government aircraft was followed. This is a government that has reduced the use of government aircraft by 80 per cent com...

I posed the following question Wednesday, Dec. 8th in the House of Commons. Mr. Speaker, It seems that under the current government's watch ACOA has been throwing money away. It gave a $1-million loan to Ocean Choice International to process yellowtail flounder in Newfoundland and Labrador. But, at the same time, that company inked a deal to send the same fish to China for processing. Why would ACOA approve a loan to a company that creates fish processing jobs in China? Why is it not funding those jobs here at home? Response from Gerald Keddy (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade, for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and the Atlantic Gateway): Mr. Speaker, I am trying to follow the logic in the question. I expect maybe the honourable member will have a rebuttal, but I think he is actually taking about the loss of fish-plant jobs in the Marystown plant. Certainly, if that is what he’s discussing, he has to understand that ACOA is here in Atlantic Ca...

I gave the following statement today (Dec. 7th) in the House of Commons. Statements must be a maximum of one minute in length. Mr. Speaker, The public contempt over the Defence Minister’s use of a search and rescue helicopter as a personal taxi … And there is real contempt back home in Newfoundland and Labrador, Mr. Speaker … Not so much over the misuse of a government aircraft - that’s almost routine ... Not even because the Defence Minister misled Parliament … What’s most unforgivable about the minister’s embarrassing actions is that they take away from the real story … That being the search and rescue response times of the Cormorants: 30 minutes during working hours; 2 hours during evenings and on weekends. Can you imagine a fire department operating with one response time for the day, and another for the night? The emergency response times of the Cougar helicopters that service the offshore oil industry will soon be 20 minutes around the clock. I can tell you this, Mr. Speaker, t...

Fishing – Agriculture’s Poor Cousin Confederation’s dismal failure: chronic fishery mismanagement Newfoundland MP Ryan Cleary’s bill would start rebuilding process The following article is printed in the November issue of The Monitor, a publication of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives . The second hour of debate on Cleary's Private Member's Bill - the Newfoundland and Labrador Fishery Rebuilding Act - is scheduled for this Thursday, Dec. 8th, in the House of Commons. By Helen Forsey It has been called “managed annihilation”, “Confederation’s greatest failure”, “a national embarrassment, a national shame.” The demise of the cod fishery off Newfoundland and Labrador two decades ago is now legendary as an environmental and economic disaster. Nineteen thousand fishers and plant workers laid off indefinitely, another 20,000 jobs directly impacted – the biggest layoff in Canadian history. And yet, for most mainland Canadians the loss of the Northern Cod is at most a distant...

I learned an important lesson while taking part in my first Santa Claus parade as a Member of Parliament: avoid walking next to a 6-foot Grinch with foot-long droopy fingers. The Grinch will steal the show/Christmas every time. A politician can barely get a wave in edgewise. The Mount Pearl Lions Club Santa Claus Parade drew thousands on Saturday, thanks in large measure to the fabulous weather. Most popular question I was asked along the route: “Were you dropped off by a search-and-rescue helicopter?” Which was a shot at Defence Minister Peter MacKay . People aren’t impressed, it’s fair to say, with the minister’s choice of taxi. The quote of the day came when I mentioned to a woman how it was a lovely day for a parade. “Every day is a lovely day in The Pearl,” the woman said. And so it is. Smiles stretched the entire length of the parade route, and continued long past the Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony later in the evening. ••• The Once and guests performed S...

Defence Minister Peter McKay used one of the military's search and rescue Cormorant helicopters for a personal taxi from a Gander fishing lodge in 2010, but he wouldn't grant me a tour of 9 Wing Gander because it might interfere with the base's "operational tempo." What a joke.

I gave the following speech in the House of Commons on Tuesday, Nov. 29 th , against Bill C-10, the Conservative omnibus crime bill. Mr. Speaker, I stand in the House today in opposition to Bill C-10 , the omnibus crime bill. As I stated in a September speech in this House, I do not stand in opposition to every part of the bill. Indeed, some parts of Bill C-10 are worthwhile. As a father, I have no objection to protecting children against pedophiles and sexual predators, of course not, even though the Conservative government would have people believe otherwise. That is the rub with Bill C-10 , which throws so many pieces of legislation, nine bills, aboard the one bus, aboard the one omnibus bill. I may agree with coming down hard on pedophiles, but I do not agree with filling prisons with people who probably should not be there, like the student who gets caught with six marijuana plants. What will throwing that student in jail do for him or her, or for society in general besides costi...

On Tuesday, Nov. 29, I, along with NDP Transport critic Olivia Chow , raised questions in the House of Commons regarding Cougar Flight 491. Survivor Robert Decker has raised questions about why the helicopter was certified to fly in the first place, and why Sikorskys continue to fly. Cleary (St. John’s South-Mount Pearl): Mr. Speaker, 17 people died on March 12, 2009, when Cougar flight 491 went down after loss of oil pressure. Less than a year before, the same thing happened to an Australian helicopter, but Transport Canada failed to take action. After the Newfoundland tragedy, the Transportation Safety Board recommended that all Cougars must be able to run dry for 30 minutes, but the Sikorsky still fails the test. Mr. Speaker, why are we giving the Cougars a free pass at the risk of the lives of offshore workers? Response from Transport Minister Denis Lebel : Mr. Speaker, this was a very tragic accident. My thoughts are with the victims and their families. My department ...

"Nothing is gained without struggle. Cleary and his NDP are not doing this because they think they’ll win; they’re doing it because it’s right." — Hans Rollman, a regular columnist with theindependent.ca, in his most recent offering, A bill worth supporting . ••• The second and final hour of debate on my private member's bill — the Newfoundland and Labrador Fishery Rebuilding Act — is scheduled for Dec. 8th in the House of Commons. All support is greatly appreciated. As I used to say in my radio days, God guard thee Newfoundland and Labrador.

In answer to John Crosbie’s question from the early ’90s: the office of the Auditor General of Canada hears the fishes when they cry. It took 20 years, but the AG has apparently caught a sob or two. I’ve been demanding an inquiry into the management of the NL fisheries since since election Day 1 , and, turns out, the office of the federal AG has been carrying out a sweeping review for some time. The 2011 December Report of the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development — who works directly under the auditor general — is due Dec. 13, and investigates the challenges of operating fisheries in a sustainable way. Challenges the Department of No-Fish and Empty Oceans hasn’t exactly lived up to in terms of the Grand Banks of Newfoundland. Ottawa’s mismanagement has been epic — and largely ignored. Until now. Chapter 4 sounds like a must-read: A Study of Managing Fisheries for Sustainability. Sustainable isn’t exactly how I’d describe DFO management practices. Not i...

I posed the following question in the House of Commons on Monday, Nov. 21st: Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans has finally admitted what the rest of us already know – that the fishery is broken . The five years of Conservative mismanagement - after a decade of Liberal negligence - cannot be reversed by tearing up the Fisheries Act. Firing scientists, laying off fisheries staff and turning out the lights will not put fish back in the sea or food on fishermen's tables. The fishery is broken. Will the Conservative government finally support our fishing communities and put forward a concrete plan to fix it? The following is Fisheries and Oceans Minister Keith Ashfield’s response: Mr. Speaker, we know that the average age of our fishers is increasing, the same for our plant workers, and a declining number of new entrants into the fishery. It is a serious situation, one that we can change through modernization and efficiencies in the Department of Fisheries and in the fis...

I posed the following questions in the House of Commons on Friday, Nov. 18th, following the publication earlier this week of a front-page story in the St. John's Telegram (MP says EI claimants upset with long delays, Nov. 16th): Madam Speaker, Service Canada budget cuts mean fewer people are processing Employment Insurance claims and handling calls. Claimants are often forced to wait well beyond the normal processing time of about 28 days. With no income for six weeks to two months, workers and families are having a hard time putting food on the table and paying bills. My question comes directly from a Service Canada employee in St. John's, Newfoundland. When is the government going to stop talking about automation and actually fix the problems at Service Canada? Response from Kellie Leitch, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development and to the Minister of Labour, CPC: Madam Speaker, I thank the member's constituent for the question....

John Crosbie Says, ‘The Pope and The Archbishop Can Kiss My--’ — The front-page headline of the Oct. 17 th , 1919 Morning Post , a then-St. John’s newspaper owned by Sir Richard Squires. ••• And people wonder where John Crosbie gets it from. John Carnell Crosbie, NL’s current Lieutenant Governor, has a famous tongue, a direct inheritance from his grandfather, Sir John Chalker Crosbie (1876-1932), who started the family’s political and business dynasty, which flourishes to this day. The Crosbie family bloodline (and nerve of it) was brought home to me Wednesday afternoon at Government House in St. John’s when the Lieutenant-Governor pulled me aside after an MHA swearing-in ceremony. Crosbie asked if I had seen a copy of “the newspaper.” I thought he was referring to The Independent , the defunct St. John’s newspaper I once ran, but Crosbie was actually talking about an obscure city newspaper from almost a century ago. Crosbie led me to a room and showed me a framed copy of...

“Most groups , most experts and most witnesses who have given presentations on this bill would advocate that the federal government is proceeding in the wrong direction, and that this procedure has been tried in other areas before and has proven to be a failure. Incarcerating more people is not the answer.” - Newfoundland and Labrador Justice Minister Felix Collins, as quoted today (Nov. 3) in the St. John’s Telegram , about the Harper government’s omnibus crime bill, Bill C-10. NL joins Quebec and Ontario in raising objections about the crime bill.

CPAC's Beyond Politics — a show that "goes beyond politics to provide a window into the lives of public figures" — recently dropped by the federal riding of St. John's South-Mount Pearl.

I posed the following question in the House of Commons on Thursday, Oct. 27th: Mr. Speaker, the Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans made a recommendation for the government to create a task force into the management of the snow crab fishery in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. We know that the Conservatives are not the best at taking advice. If they were, they would be examining the management of the fishery as a whole . Fair enough. How about today we take a look at one fishery problem at a time? Will the Conservatives listen to the committee and create a task force into the management of the snow crab fishery? Response by Fisheries and Oceans Minister Keith Ashfield: Mr. Speaker, as the member should know, this was a record year for Atlantic snow crab prices . I congratulate the fleets on their successful season. The long-term economic prosperity of the snow crab industry is my priority and that of the department. We are committed to ensuring that the snow crab stocks are managed sust...

I spoke in the House of Commons on Monday, Oct. 24th, against Bill C-18, an act to dismantle the Canadian Wheat Board. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to speak on the Canadian Wheat Board from the perspective of a Newfoundlander, a Newfoundlander with a particular interest in the Newfoundland and Labrador fisheries. Last week, for example, I introduced my private member’s bill — the Newfoundland and Labrador Fisheries Rebuilding Act. But I rise today to speak on the dismantling of the Canadian Wheat Board. To speak out against the dismantling of the wheat board. The bays and harbours, the cliffs and craigs, the fishing grounds of Newfoundland and Labrador may be a world away from the Western provinces, but fishing and farming have much in common these days in Canada. What fishing and farming have most in common at this particular moment in our history is that they’re under direct attack by the Conservative government. In the Prairies, the Conservatives are attacking the livelihood...