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Chuck’s
Record As Member of Parliament for Fraser Valley, and as Official Opposition House Leader, Chuck Strahl has challenged the federal Liberals on issues local and national. For Chuck it’s a matter of making sure the concerns of Valley residents and their fellow Canadians are represented. Below are a
number of issues I’ve raised in the House of Commons, in the national
and the local media, and in the political arena. Valley Choking The Sumas Energy 2 project in Sumas, Washington, has created quite a stir in the Fraser Valley. In September I joined 300 people at the Canada-U.S. border to show our opposition to this harmful power plant, something the federal environment minister has yet to do. “A crowd
numbering the hundreds jeered at the mention of federal Environment
Minister David Anderson, who local Alliance MP Chuck Strahl said should be
fighting the power project but has yet to draw his sword.” -- The
Province Sept. 15, 2000 Mount Logan Prime Minister Jean Chretien took the unilateral step announcing the renaming of Canada's highest mountain after former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. Mount Logan is named after Sir William Edmond Logan, one of Canada's premier geologists, mountaineers and surveyors. After a public backlash, however, the prime minister is now reconsidering his decision. "Canadian Alliance MPs said the government should have consulted with the public, the Yukon government and other MPs before making the decision. 'The proper way to do it is to talk to the family, talk to people of the Yukon probably, perhaps have an all-party discussion in the House," said B.C. MP Chuck Strahl, Alliance House Leader.'" -- Calgary Herald, October, 2000 Democracy in Decline "A new report, by the Public Policy Forum, suggests that both industry and senior government officials believe MPs' influence is marginal and waning. 'It's true and
I don't think it will ever change under Chretien's leadership," added
B.C. MP Chuck Strahl, House Leader for the Canadian Alliance. "He was
groomed that way and he's taken it to new levels. I think it's sad because
you elect about 300 people and you hope to get all of those views and
different concerns brought to bear on a subject. Instead, you get the
views of maybe a dozen that are close to the prime minister and the rest
are basically told 'You're chopped liver.'" -- National Post, October
10, 2000 Big Brother Database Last spring the Canadian Alliance caught Human Resources Minister Jane Stewart red-handed. She was hoarding personal information about every single Canadian in a secret computer database. It knew their income, when they were employed, when they were unemployed, whether they were eligible for EI benefits, whether they had ever been in a national training program, whether they ever had social assistance. It even knew their family situations. It knew about their T-4 slips, their T-1 slips. Simply put, it knew too much about individual Canadians and their families. By increasing public pressure we forced the Minister to dismantle this intrusive invasion of Canadian’s personal lives. “Mr.
Speaker, the big brother database is a huge intrusion into people’s
lives… It knows everything about us from cradle to grave. Why do they
want this information from innocent law-abiding citizens?” – Chuck
Strahl, House of Commons, May 19, 2000 Enraging Raves Raves rocked the Fraser Valley over the summertime, but not everyone was dancing. The last event had its pounding bass disturbing the Chilliwack community (and even Mission across the river) all night long. Many local folks phoned my office to complain about sleepless nights. I’ve also been contacted by people who had to go to the hospital because of stress-induced problems, only to have to wait in line behind rave goers suffering the ill effects of too good a time. As such, I wrote to the Vancouver Sun who seemed sympathetic to rave partying. “Perhaps a
fitting story on the glory of these raves would go beyond the
self-promotion of the event organizers and talk to the community affected.
Or perhaps we should host these raves in a park in Vancouver rather than
Chilliwack.” – Chuck Strahl, Letter to the Editor, Vancouver Sun
August 25, 2000 Closure Clampdown In the House of Commons, the government uses a procedure called closure to clamp down on debate. The Prime Minister invoked this device for a record breaking 67th time this past spring to stifle criticism and keep MPs from voicing the concerns of their constituents. I’ve been responsible for leading the Canadian Alliance to stop this closure clampdown. “Canadians
should be outraged, because (closure) has been used at a rate faster than
any government in history.” – Chuck Strahl, National Post, Sept. 25,
2000 Atlantic
Canada vote buying Recently in Ottawa, Prime Minister Jean Chretien showed off his new catch, Newfoundland Premier Brian Tobin. The Atlantic politician became Canada's unelected industry minister and Liberals hope he will raise their popularity during the election campaign. Most feel, however, that the Prime Minister was engaging in cynical vote buying. "We think people should elect parties to provide good, clean government and end cronyism," said Alliance MP Chuck Strahl (Fraser Valley). "Mr. Tobin seems to think the idea is 'Elect me, I can get more for us.' That's not the way to run the country. It should be run on behalf of all Canadians, not based on what province you're from or whose friend you are." – Chuck Strahl, Toronto Star, Oct. 17, 2000 Base lands – back and forth After years of waiting, we finally got some good news about the base lands this June. A deal was announced to divide the land up – 193 hectares to be held for two years awaiting the outcome of native land claims, 62 hectares to be developed, 20 hectares for federal government use, and 14 hectares for the Blue Heron Nature Reserve. But this September, a cloud came over this sunny announcement. Local first nations have asked for a judicial review of the deal, arguing the entire package should be open to land claims. I’ve been working with the City of Chilliwack and the Rotarians backing the heron project to try to keep the proposals on track. Chilliwack residents need certainty that something positive will happen with this property – and that something will happen soon. “This
announcement is a tribute to the hard work and pressure that came from
across our community. Without it I’m sure we’d still be waiting for a
decision.” – Chuck Strahl, Chilliwack Times, June 20, 2000 Real help for natives It seems that nearly every month a new story arises about financial mismanagement on native reserves. High unemployment, social problems and infrastructure decay still plague many native areas despite billions in federal monies going to assist them. Natives live in Third World poverty while their chiefs and councils – and an industry of lawyers and consultants surrounding native affairs – live in regal splendor. The Canadian Alliance is aggressively pressuring the government to implement accountability measures so that grassroots aboriginals get the services they need. “The
government spends billions of dollars on aboriginal-specific programming
that it claims will better the lives of Canada’s aboriginal people. Why
is it that grassroots aboriginals get so little and band councils get so
much?” – Chuck Strahl, Vancouver Sun, April 7, 2000 Protecting our protectors My Private Member’s Bill C-244 provides for a blood sample to be taken if front-line workers (nurses, police officers, prison guards, firefighters, and the like) or Good Samaritans who intervene in a situation, are contaminated by the bodily fluids of a person they are aiding. Such a test may provide evidence of HIV or Hepatitis and would help determine what these workers should do for medical treatment. The support of front-line workers and their professional organizations across the country has put a strong voice behind this Bill, called the Blood Samples Act. While it was unanimously approved in principle by MPs, and sent to the Commons Justice Committee for further study, it has died on the order paper because of the election call. This means a further delay in giving Good Samaritans and front-line emergency workers the protection they need and deserve. “I know one
thing for sure. With the committee’s help and expertise we can push Bill
C-244 through the House of Commons...It’s time to win Round 2.” --
Chuck Strahl, Chilliwack Times, March 24 Standing up to persecution For more than 16 years, civil war has raged between the Islamic government of Sudan, and the largely black, Christian-animist tribes of the South. The North has used famine, slavery, and genocidal actions against the tribes of the South. Unfortunately, our government seems unwilling to respond to this conflict in a serious way, even though Canadian firms are involved in business deals with the Sudanese government. As well, a concerned constituent wrote me asking what the government of Canada was doing about recent religious persecution in Indonesia. Unfortunately, even after a search of the Foreign Affairs Web Site, it was difficult to determine if Canada had responded at all. Therefore, I am proposing legislation that would end this information vacuum by forcing the government to take concrete, measurable and visible action in various forms. For example, the government could send a diplomatic note, publish a news release, call in an ambassador, bring a resolution to the UN, or even take more extreme steps. Canadians need to know that their government responds to human rights violations in the world. “If Canadian
businesses are perceived to pursue commerce without conscience they lose
trust and respect.” -- Chuck Strahl, letter to Canadian business working
in the Sudan, March 2 The Fraser Valley Law Local victim’s rights activist Gertie Pool – and all Canadians – had a lot to smile about this summer when Bill C-7 became law. Because of her efforts, the records of pardoned sex offenders are now available for background checks being done on people who want to work with children. Pool put together two petitions in the mid-1990s calling for such a law, and gathered close to 50,000 signatures. I put forward a Private Member’s Bill to change the law. Calgary MP Eric Lowther adopted the bill when I became Party Whip, and helped usher it through the House and into law – a rare occurrence. Fraser Valley
residents can hold their heads high and know they helped force the
government to act to protect our children. Protecting Privacy Recently there
have been incidences where privacy violators have videotaped others in
washrooms at work and in bedrooms at home. According to one law
enforcement official, it appears it “may be difficult, perhaps
impossible, for police to lay charges.” I am working on developing
legislation that would criminalize the violation of someone’s privacy in
these kinds of situations. Parking joyriding The direct dollar loss from motor vehicle theft in Canada approaches an estimated $1 billion annually. Of the 165,799 vehicle thefts recorded in Canada in 1998, three quarters were for joyriding. A number of joyriding thefts have resulted in high-speed chases, property damage, injury or death. Instead of
only focusing on educating people about the dangers of joyriding like the
federal government is doing, I will reintroduce my earlier Private
Member’s Bill to increase penalties for this crime and hold parents
responsible for the offences of their children. Prison Release Quotas Questioned It’s time to end Corrections Canada’s get-out-of-jail-free cards. Access to Information documents attained this July revealed that since at least 1997 Corrections Canada has pressured wardens to boost release numbers - even though prisoners may not be rehabilitated. One deputy commissioner even acknowledged the “risk involved” and the high rate of parolees who re-offend, but urged wardens to “stand together” and press on with the plan. “Prisoners released to meet a quota system have hardly earned the right to be out in the general public. Inmates must receive privileges based on merit and not be handed them for free.” – Chuck Strahl, Chilliwack Progress, July 9, 2000 Grant money linked to theft and fraud On October 17, 2000, through Access to Information, Chuck Strahl uncovered that the government gave a $5 million grant to a company in the prime minister's riding while its executive director was being investigated by the RCMP for HRDC grant fraud. "Why would the government give another $5 million grant, this time from Industry Canada, to a guy who has been charged with fraud and theft?" Alliance House Leader Chuck Strahl asked in the Commons. "Why is it that whenever the prime minister's riding is involved, even if someone has been charged with theft and fraud, the money just keeps getting ladled out by this federal government?" --Chuck Strahl, Halifax Chronicle-Herald, Oct. 17, 2000 |
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