Hon. Alan Redway (Don Valley East):

Madam Speaker, the Prime Minister designate intends to convene an immediate meeting of provincial premiers aimed at achieving a common national economic strategy. This is absolutely essential.

In February 1992 the federal government cut personal income taxes in order to increase consumer spending, stimulate the economy and create jobs. Two months later the Ontario NDP government raised personal income taxes, thus nullifying the federal job creation initiative.

This year the Ontario NDP increased taxes yet again by a further $2 billion. Every $40,000 tax increase wipes out one job. The 1993 Ontario NDP tax increases will wipe out 50,000 jobs. With 10.7 per cent unemployment in Ontario this is absolutely insane. The Ontario NDP must get its act together and realize that Canada desperately needs a common national economic strategy.

Audrey, for Heaven's sake, please reason with the Ontario New Democrats.

Hon. Alan Redway (Don Valley East):

Mr. Speaker, you will recall some three months ago Mrs. Mary Marko Elaskett visited Parliament Hill. Mrs. Haskett was born in Canada some 84 years ago. In 1915 at the age of six, Mrs. Haskett and her family were arrested and sent to an internment camp in northern Quebec called Spirit Lake.

Spirit Lake of course is no longer on any map of Canada. Mrs. Haskett was one of some 5,000 Canadians of Ukrainian origin who were rounded up and interned because they came from parts of Ukraine that at the time were controlled by the Austro-Hungarian empire, an empire with which Canada and its World War I allies were at war.

Although some 5,000 Canadians were treated in this fashion, there is no mention of it whatsoever in the history books of Canada. As far as Canadian history is concerned this never happened. There is no record of Spirit Lake or any other camps such as this ever existing.

When Mrs. Haskett came here for her visit it reminded me of a talk 1 had with another of my constituents who told me about the experiences of his father. His father, who was a Canadian with origins in the Austro-Hungarian empire, came to Canada before World War I. He too was arrested and interned.

This man had little formal education but he was hard working and had earned some money. He did not trust the banks. He decided to save his money. He put it into gold and not the bank. When he was interned he took his gold with him. Of course the guards at the internment camp said that he could not go into the camp with the gold and that if he gave it to them he would be given a receipt so he could claim it later, if he ever got out.

After World War I my constituent's father gave his receipt to the guards who took the receipt and went to get the gold. They came back saying that there was no gold. That did not happen just to one person, it happened to many people in World War I.

The son of this man, my constituent, investigated what had happened to his father's earnings, possessions and

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gold. He found that the Bank of Canada had been keeping these things in trust for many years, not just for his father but for other Canadians.

Of course the Bank of Canada said on presenting the receipt he would be given the money with interest. Of course the guards took the receipt. The Bank of Canada said that was too bad and it would just have to sit on that money, letting it accumulate for the benefit of who knows whom. That happened not just to one person but to a great many Canadians.

I think it is understandable that my constituent, as the beneficiary of his father's estate, would expect to get his money back. I think it is understandable that Mrs. Haskett in coming to Parliament Hill wanted an apology, wanted the fact that she and 5,000 other Canadians like her actually should be recorded in Canadian history. There should be something in the history books of Canada about the fact that these events took place.

It is not an isolated incident. In fact the Prime Minister drew attention to that when he spoke on November 4, 1990 to the National Congress of Italian-Canadians. My friend the parliamentary secretary was there at that time.

At that time the Prime Minister said: "I want to discuss a particularly sad chapter in our history that directly affected some of you here today and that concerns all Canadians. I am speaking, of course, about the harassment and the internment of Canadians of Italian origin under the War Measures Act during World War II. It was not an isolated case, in fact it was part of a pattern of discrimination practised by the Government of Canada over a period of years against Chinese Canadians, Ukrainian Canadians and others. That Canadians were interned unjustly must never be forgotten", said the Prime Minister. "It is a matter of simple justice. It is in that spirit that we will proceed."

The Prime Minister went on in that address on November 4, 1990 to say, and I quote: "I am pleased to announce today that during this session of Parliament I will rise in the House of Commons and extend a formal apology to all members of the Italian community for this unspeakable act and to other Canadians who have suffered similar grievances".

June 14, 1993

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Mr. Speaker, I do not have to tell you that the life of this Parliament is drawing to an end. Need I say more?

Hon. Alan Redway (Don Valley East):

Madam Speaker,

I am pleased this morning to present a petition on behalf of many people in the greater Toronto area including Newmarket, Toronto, Islington, Mississauga, Ajax, Scarborough, North York and East York, all of whom are petitioning this Parliament and this House in connection with the intention of the Canadian Parks Service^ to establish a proposed national historic park on Grosse lie.

The concern expressed in the petition is that perhaps in approaching this proposal Parks Canada is ignoring the fact that 15,000 Irish men, women and children fleeing famine in Ireland in 1847 are buried on Grosse He in mass graves and the fact that through the generosity of the people of Quebec nearly 1,000 of the children orphaned that summer were adopted and allowed to keep their own names.

They call upon the Parliament of Canada to urge the government through Parks Canada to ensure that the Irish mass graves are perpetuated as the main theme of

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the historic park on Grosse lie as a permanent reminder of the Irish role in the building of Canada.

Hon. Alan Redway (Don Valley East):

Mr. Speaker, do you remember where you were on the morning of June 23, 1985? That was almost eight years ago now.

Dr. Bal K. Gupta remembers. Dr. H. S. Radhakrishna remembers. The Aurora family remembers. The Jain family remembers. The Khan family, the Patel family, the Sharma family, the Singh family, the Uppal family, the Castonguay family and many others remember.

They remember, Mr. Speaker, and you may remember as well because that was the morning that we and they received the shocking and the horrifying news that many members of their families had perished on Air India flight 182. That was a flight bound from Toronto via Montreal to London and New Delhi. It plunged into the ocean off the coast of Ireland killing some 329 innocent men, women and children. Two hundred and seventy-nine of those people were Canadian citizens and they came from every corner of this country and every province from Newfoundland to British Columbia.

The very same day a bomb went off in connection with another Air India flight originating in Canada. That bomb went off at Tokyo's Narita International Airport and killed two Japanese citizens and injured four others.

Long ago an investigation was conducted and completed in Ireland in connection with the Air India flight 182. Long ago an investigation was conducted and completed in India but an investigation of this tragedy has been under way now in Canada for almost eight years. It is still going on and there have never been charges laid or convictions registered in connection with this.

There have been allegations that there were warnings made in connection with this flight that were ignored. There have been allegations that evidence has been destroyed. Last year the RCMP raised wreckage from the floor of the ocean off Ireland but on June 1 of this

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year the Solicitor General told the House that the investigation continues to be active and ongoing, eight years later.

Is it any wonder that the families and friends of those 279 Canadians who perished are frustrated, angry and bitter?

Surely it is time that either charges are laid or if that is not possible we institute a judicial inquiry immediately.

Hon. Alan Redway (Don Valley East):

Mr. Speaker, I rise to indicate once again my strong support for the bill and to address the issue of a review.

It is ironic that the government party, my own party, has for some time, particularly when we were on the other side of the House, advocated reviews of legislation and sunset clauses in legislation.

At the same time our party in government has in fact instituted in some cases reviews after a period of time. I think particularly of the employment equity legislation which has provisions in it for a review, first of all after five years and subsequently a review every three years after that.

I had the honour and the privilege of chairing the review committee on the Employment Equity Act after five years. It was set up in accordance with the legislation which had a review provision that it was to be reviewed in five years. It was set up over a year ago. The committee brought in a review report in a relatively short period of time. It was set up in November 1991. It brought in its report in early May 1992. We have yet to receive a response from the government with respect to that review.

This points out the difficulties that we face when we do have these review provisions. I share the concerns of opposition members that we should have a review provision. However, I think as the parliamentary secretary has pointed out, even where we have reviews we know that there are difficulties actually implementing recommendations that the review has put before the government. There are instances though where the government has acted well before a five-year period to bring in amendments that do make sense and that are very effective.

I am not quite sure, based on my experience here with this question of a review, whether we are any further

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ahead to put it in legislation or not. I think that if a review makes sense then it is going to happen. If it is just in there for the sake of having a review, as we have seen with the employment equity legislation, it can go on forever and we do not get any resolution in any event.