Dear Constituents,

I hope you and your family had a safe and enjoyable summer season. As usual, it seemed to pass too quickly.

On the cover, I am pictured at a July Conference of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. Representing Canada at meetings involving elected persons from dozens of countries from around the world was a great opportunity. We exchanged views on world issues such as climate change, the conflict in the Middle East and human rights. Canada is highly respected around the world and I was pleased to have the opportunity to address the General assembly to share our views.

As you may know, the current government has talked often of an early election to try to obtain a majority. As such, all Parties are actively preparing for an election including nominating candidates.

With the support of my family, I have decided to run for re-election in the next campaign and have already been officially nominated by my party. My hope is that Parliament will continue to work in the best interests of all Canadians for many many months to come. We do not need an early election but if the Prime Minister so chooses, I will be ready to run the best campaign possible to remain as your elected representative.

Finally, I have included a few articles in this Householder which I hope you will find of interest. I also encourage you to contact me at any time on matters of interest or importance to you. Your views and comments help me to do the best job possible.

Sincerely,

Paul Szabo

To some, the work of Parliamentarians is sitting in the ornate Chamber called the House of Commons and yelling at each other like children. There is no question that during Question Period, which lasts only 45 minutes of the 8 hours and 30 minutes of the daily sitting, the speaking gets heated. Other than for votes, these 45 minutes is the only time when all of the members are in the House and the media and public seating is full. It is often referred to as the time when all the Parties try to catch the attention of the media for the evening news and the newspapers. Usually, the efforts to get that attention involve allegations, severe criticisms etc. which provoke things like cheers, applause, hooting, laughter and even yelling. This is not however reflective of the rest of the day.

If you visited the House of Commons public gallery at other times, you might be surprised to see very few MPs in their seats. That is because before and after Question Period, the over 20 legislative Committees are conducting their review of Bills or engaged in studies or hearing witnesses. In addition, there are a variety of other meetings or office business that an MP must attend to. The MPs in the House are either on periodic House Duty or are involved in the legislation that is currently being debated in the House.

Debating a Bill involves much preparation. Not only do you have to study the Bill and the briefing documents, but also you need to write a speech or at least some notes from which to make your points. Speeches are usually 10 or 20 minutes long and are followed by questions from other MPs. If you are going to speak in the House, you had better know the subject, or somebody will surely point it out by their question. Debating Bills helps to identify problems which could be corrected at various times throughout the legislative process.
When a Bill is proposed by the Government, a Minister will rise in the House and table the Bill. At this point it is said to have received First Reading which basically means that the Bill can be printed and circulated to the public. It is up to the Government to decide when the Bill will be debated. The first time the Bill is debated is called Second Reading. Effectively MPs are debating the principles of the Bill and the debate at Second Reading continues until no member rises to speak. Some Bills are dealt with quickly at this stage but others may go on for weeks depending on when the Government calls the debate to resume. Once the debate collapses, there is a vote taken as to whether the Bill should be adopted in principle. If so it then goes to the Standing Committee related to the Bill and the members of that committee will study the Bill, hear witnesses, propose amendments and vote on the Bill as amended.

The Bill then goes back to the House of Commons for Report Stage which allows MPs not on the Committee to also propose amendments. Each of these are debated and voted upon. Once Report Stage is completed, the Bill as amended is voted on again. If it passes, the Bill then goes for Third Reading or final debate. Again the debate goes on as long as there are MPs who want to speak on the Bill. Once the debate collapses, there is a final vote. If the Bill passes, it is referred to the Senate where it goes through the very same process. If it passes, the Bill receives Royal Assent and becomes law when it is proclaimed by the Government.

Every day the Government advises the House of the business for the next day. As such, MPs have to be prepared to move from one Bill to another on relatively short notice. Bills are not started and dealt with continuously until they have completed a stage. In fact, at any point in time there can be dozens of Bills in process.

As of September 18, 2006, 23 Bills had been tabled by the Government. Here is a list with their current status at that time:

C-1 – An Act respecting the Administration of Oaths of Office. This Bill is always the first Bill of every new Parliament and was tabled on April 4, 2006

C-2 - An Act providing for conflict of interest rules, restrictions on election financing and measures respecting administrative transparency, oversight and accountability. This Bill passed in the House of Commons and is now before the Senate Committee.

C-3 - An Act respecting international bridges and tunnels and making a consequential amendment to another Act. This Bill passed in the House of Commons and is now before the Senate Committee.

C-4 - An Act to amend An Act to amend the Canada Elections Act and the Income Tax Act. This Bill has passed all stages and has become law.

C-5 - An Act respecting the establishment of the Public Health Agency of Canada and amending certain Acts. This Bill passed in the House of Commons and is now before the Senate Committee.

C-6 - An Act to amend the Aeronautics Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts. This Bill is still being debated in the House of Commons.

C-7 - An Act to amend the National Defence Act (Concerning Military Justice). This Bill is waiting for debate in the House of Commons.

C-8 – An Act to provide funding to the Public Service for Government Operations. This was passed by Parliament.

C-9 – An Act to amend the Criminal Code (conditional sentence of imprisonment). It is still being debated in the House of Commons.

C-10 - An Act to amend the Criminal Code (minimum penalties for offences involving firearms) and to make a consequential amendment to another Act. This Bill is being studied by the Justice Committee.

C-11 – An Act to amend the Canada Transportation Act and the Railway Safety Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts. Debate has not started on this Bill.

C-12 – An Act to provide for emergency management and to amend and repeal certain Acts. Debate has not started on this Bill.

C-13 – An Act to implement certain provisions of the budget tabled in Parliament on May 2, 2006. This Budget Implementation Bill has passed and become law.

C-14 – An Act to amend the Citizenship Act (adoption). This Bill is now being studied by the Citizenship Committee of the House of Commons.

C-15 – An Act to amend the Agricultural Marketing Programs Act. This Bill was passed and is now law.

C-16 – An Act to amend the Canada Elections Act (Fixed Election Dates). The Bill is waiting to be debated in the House of Commons.

C-17 – An Act to amend the Judges Act and certain other Acts in relation to courts. This Bill is being studied by the Justice Committee.

C-18 – An Act to amend certain Acts in relation to DNA identification. The Bill is waiting to be debated in the House of Commons.

C-19 – An Act to amend the Criminal Code (street racing) and to make a consequential amendment to the Corrections and Conditional Release Act. The Bill is waiting to be debated in the House of Commons.

C-20 – An Act respecting airports, airport authorities and other airport operators and amending the Transportation Appeal Tribunal of Canada Act. The Bill is waiting to be debated in the House of Commons.

C-21 – An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Firearms Act (non-registration of firearms that are neither prohibited nor restricted). The Bill is waiting to be debated in the House of Commons.

C-22 – An Act to amend the Criminal Code (age of protection) and to make consequential amendments to the Criminal Records Act. The Bill is waiting to be debated in the House of Commons.

C-23 - An Act to amend the Criminal Code (criminal procedure, language of the accused, sentencing and other amendments). The Bill is waiting to be debated in the House of Commons.

As you can see, the Bills cover a broad range of matters and they are at various stages of the legislative process. I spend a few hours each day in the House giving speeches or asking questions. I find that listening to the debate helps me to better understand the fine points of making laws and it helps me to assess the quality of work of the members participating. You cannot be fully involved in every Bill and therefore you must often rely on the advice of those who you know do good work and have studied the Bill.

If you would like to know more about any of these Bills or how the legislative process works, please go to www.parl.gc.ca or contact my office for assistance.

You may have heard the quote from Pierre Trudeau that MPs are nobodies 50 yards from Parliament Hill. It really was not said in quite the context that you might think.

Each year in mid to late June, Parliament traditionally adjourns for 3 months and the MPs return to their ridings to work in their constituency offices. The Cabinet also continues to work on future plans and priorities as well. In 1969, Parliament was still sitting in late July. On July 25th, 1969, Prime Minister Trudeau announced in the House that Parliament was adjourning until mid-October. This lead to a heated exchange with the Opposition parties who suggested that the recess was just to go on longer holidays. The following is an extract of what Trudeau actually said:

“The opposition seems to think it has nothing else to do but talk. They say: if there is a problem, we will talk. If there is a difficulty, we will talk about it. If the Government is going too slowly, we will talk about it. If there is a real problem, we will talk about it. That is all they have to do. They do not have to govern, they have only to talk. The best place in which to talk, if they want a forum, is, of course Parliament. When they get home, when they get out of Parliament, when they are 50 yards from Parliament Hill, they are no longer Hon. Members – they are just nobodies, Mr. Speaker.”

Trudeau went on to describe how governing is not just what happens inside Parliament but necessarily involves substantial work and dialogue with department officials, experts, task forces, other levels of government and of course the people of Canada. Effectively responding to the needs of the country requires much more than talk by MPs in Parliament. The work in the riding is just as important as the work in Parliament. It also gives you the time you need to reconnect with family, friends and constituents.

Recently, I read a report from Statistics Canada and I was fascinated to see how Canada had changed between 1991 and 2004 which is the date of the last published census. Here is just a sample of a few interesting facts about Canada:

• Our population grew from 27.3 million people to almost 32 million. Ontario has 12.4 million or about 39% of the total and Metropolitan Toronto hads5.2 million or just over 16%.
• There are 8.4 million families of which 5.9 million are married compared to 5.3 million in 1991 or an 11% increase. Currently, there are 1.2 million common-law families compared to 352,000 in 1991 or a 241% increase and 1.3 million lone-parent families compared to 714,000 in 1991 or an 82% increase.
• In terms of religion, 43% of the population are catholic and 29.2 are protestant. No other religion has more than 2%.
• The top 3 mother tongues are 58% English, 23% French and 3% Chinese. No other language has more than 2%.
• The average after-tax income of families of 2 or more people is $59,000 and $25,600 for unattached individuals.
• There are 9.2 million males in the labour force or about 73% of all males. There are 8 million females in the labour force or about 62% of all females. The unemployment rate for males is 7.5% and 6.8% for females.
• There were 1.6 million new cars bought in 2004 and of these 1.2 million or 75% were cars made in North America.

Understanding and responding to the trends in Canada and around the world are important to legislators. On May 16, 2006, we had our last census and next year we should have the first updates on the numbers. If you are interested in obtaining more information about the work being done at Statistics Canada, visit www.statcan.ca or call them toll-free at 1-800-263-1136.

Canada signed the Kyoto Agreement with most other industrialized countries of the world to address the threats of global warming and climate change. Many of the sources of greenhouse gases also produce pollutants which are often directly related to respiratory and other health problems. Unfortunately, the new government has cancelled virtually every program introduced to start addressing the problem and effectively abandoned the Kyoto Agreement.

In June 2006, The National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy issued its report “Advice on a Long-term Strategy on Energy and Climate Change”. The report addresses the opportunities and challenges facing Canada in relation to long-term energy and climate change in the future. Specifically, it deals with how to, by 2050:

• Meet the energy needs of a growing economy;
• Achieve substantial reductions in carbon emissions; and
• Improve the quality of Canada’s air.

The findings suggest a possible scenario for how Canada can meet its future energy needs and address the pressing environmental challenges of climate change and clean air. The key findings are as follows:

• There can be a domestic solution to making greenhouse gas reductions by mid-century, but significant reductions can only be achieved if energy is used more efficiently and if energy is produced while emitting less carbon.
• Increasing energy efficiency could achieve 40% of our goal of a 60% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. The question is not which technologies to deploy but rather how to deploy all the potential reduction technologies. How to effectively deploy many different technologies in several sectors is an important policy issue.
• In respect of the oil and gas sector, Canada’s growing role as a major energy exporter is compatible with deep greenhouse gas reductions but only if carbon capture and sequestration is perfected. Resource extraction in the 21st century needs to take into account greenhouse gas reduction and adaptation to a carbon-constrained world economy. This will benefit Canada both environmentally and competitively as a leading provider of world energy.
• To reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 60% also means that the electricity sector will need to be transformed. Clean coal technology plays an important role and co-generation and renewable sources such as wind turbines must also be part of the strategy.
• The difficulty in significantly reducing greenhouse gases is not a lack of relevant technologies but rather the lack of a long-term signal to encourage the private sector to make shorter term investment decisions that take greenhouse gas emissions into consideration. These decisions affecting Canada’s energy use and production infrastructure are being taken every day. We need to send that signal now.
• Air pollution reductions and other co-benefits in key areas will occur along with reduction in greenhouse gases. Significant economic co-benefits through the marketing of clean energy technologies will occur. This needs to become a national priority.

The report has certainly attracted attention and should serve as a foundation for getting Canada’s efforts back on track as soon as possible. Most experts agree that the longer we delay implementing an effective strategy, the greater the long-term consequences will be. For more information, please visit their web site at www.nrtee-trnee.ca.

While Parliament is in session, I have some very challenging responsibilities, the key one of which is to Chair the Standing Joint Commons and Senate Committee on the Scrutiny of Regulations. Although it is not a very well known committee, it discharges a very important function.

When legislation is prepared, it often includes phrases such as “in accordance with the regulations” or “as prescribed in the regulations”. Regulations are actually not prepared until after a Bill has passed and become law. The Regulations are subsequently prepared and published in the Canada Gazette. Once they are promulgated, the legislation is proclaimed and the law is in force.

Regulations normally provide details which do not affect the intent of the legislation but rather provide details necessary for the legislation to operate. There are times however when the regulations go too far and in fact add new elements to the legislation which could not reasonably be anticipated when the Bill was considered by Parliament. This is commonly referred to as Executive made law or legislation by regulation.

Since the Cabinet can also amend regulations at any time without going through Parliament, my Committee is the Parliamentary scrutiny of new regulations. There are literally hundreds of regulations to dozens of Bills many of which can be years old.

Thankfully we have excellent legal support to monitor and advise the Committee on potential problems. The Committee has the authority to reject regulations and therefore we often find ourselves at odds with Ministerial and Departmental Officials. However, the Committee has earned a great deal of respect for its due diligence and thoroughness of study. Our determinations usually prevail and often result in further amendments to the proposed regulations.
I have also been appointed to the Tactics Committee of the Liberal Caucus. This Committee includes the Opposition House Leader and the Opposition Whip, their deputies, senior staff from the Leader’s Office, the House and Senate Caucus Chairs and MPs from each region of the country.

The Committee meets every morning at 8:30 am and its primary responsibility is to decide what questions should be asked at Question Period and who should pose them. This involves reviewing the media stories and other input from the members. Other MPs also submit written suggestions for issues to be considered. MPs who will be asking questions are then required to go to rehearsal one hour before Question Period to make sure the question is well delivered in no more than the 30 seconds permitted by the Speaker.

The House Leader has also asked me to co-ordinate Private Member’s Business. Each day, the House considers a Bill proposed by an MP. These are on wide-ranging subjects and much work needs to be done well in advance. My role is to ensure that the Opposition Critic for the subject to be debated is aware of the date, will study the bill and prepare talking points for speeches and recommend a position to the caucus. As well, we need to arrange for usually two speakers each day and that is often a challenge since the demands on MP’s time can change on very short notice. Private Member’s Bills may never become law but a Party’s position on an issue is reflective of its views on matters of importance to many Canadians.

Finally, I have also been asked to spend as much time as possible in the House to give speeches and ask questions as needed. My knowledge of House practices and procedures has also been very helpful and I often debate points of order and privilege which arise regularly in the House. The hours are long but I look forward to going to work each and every day.

Visit us on the Internet: www.paulszabo.com

Mississauga Office Hours: Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Appointments can be scheduled during office hours or other arrangements can be made by calling the office.

Constituents may write to any Member of Parliament or Cabinet Minister postage free. Simply address your envelope to the particular Member, c/o House of Commons, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A6. Your views and suggestions are important.