Mr. James A. McGrath (St. John's East):

Mr. Speaker, last year some 350 women who were involved in catching and harvesting squid in Newfoundland were disqualified for benefits under the Unemployment Insurance Act. There would appear to be a case of discrimination on the basis of sex, since the only two women who qualified for benefits have Christian names of Georgie and Francis. I would therefore move, under the provisions of Standing Order 43, with the consent of the House:

That this House directs the Minister of Employment and Immigration to review all cases where unemployment insurance benefits have been denied to Newfoundland women engaged in commercial squid fishing, to ensure that women who catch and harvest squid are treated the same as their male counterparts for the purposes of qualifying for unemployment insurance.

Mr. Speaker:

The presentation of such a motion for debate, pursuant to Standing Order 43, would require unanimous consent. Is there unanimous consent?

Agreed.

No.

Right Hon. J. G. Diefenbaker (Prince Albert):

Mr. Speaker, I rise, under the provisions of Standing Order 43, on an important matter on this historic date for all mankind. I move, on behalf of Canada whose devotion to peace has been proven over and over, seconded by the Secretary of State for External Affairs (Mr. Jamieson), the following:

That this House expresses its deep appreciation to President Carter, to the Prime Minister of Israel and to the President of Egypt at having been successful in producing a treaty which this House had hoped for as expressed in a resolution on March 7, and, furthermore, as the heads of these two countries have received the Nobel Peace Prize, and as each of them has spoken warmly of

President Carter's contribution, that an award of the Nobel Peace Prize to him would be welcomed not only by Canadians but by peace-loving people of all mankind.

Mr. Speaker:

The introduction of such a motion at this time would require the unanimous consent of the House. Is there unanimous consent?

Agreed.

Mr. Speaker:

The House has heard the terms of the motion. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the said motion?

Right Hon. P. E. Trudeau (Prime Minister):

Mr. Speaker, I just want to say a few words to associate the government and myself personally with this motion. The right hon. gentleman is, I am sure, expressing in very fine terms the feelings not only of the government and of the opposition parties but of all Canadians. This is one of the most important steps that has been taken in recent times in bringing peace to the Middle East.

I want to say that not only do we, as a government, associate ourselves with this motion, but that the government through me have already communicated with President Carter, President Sadat and Prime Minister Begin to indicate our support for this step and our admiration for the courage shown in these very difficult times. These steps are, indeed, very important.

I might add, Mr. Speaker-this might be of interest to the House-that Prime Minister Begin himself telephoned me a few hours ago, saying they had been engaged in very difficult negotiations for about an hour and a half yesterday and that one point remained to be resolved this morning. It was resolved successfully, upon which he immediately telephoned me to inform me of this step which would be taken. I thought I would add this personal bit of information to the welcome motion by the right hon. member.

Hear, hear!

Mr. Edward Broadbent (Oshawa-Whitby):

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of my colleagues, I would like to add the support of all members of my party across the country to what the right hon. member for Prince Albert (Mr. Diefenbaker) and the Prime Minister (Mr. Trudeau) have said. All people in the world are indebted to the courage and imagination of the leaders of the three states concerned. The action they have taken will not only bring peace to the Middle East in the short run but, hopefully, will lay the foundation for a much more durable peace which will not only be of great benefit to the people within that region but, indeed, to everyone in the world.

Mr. Gerard Laprise (Abitibi):

Mr. Speaker, we must applaud the event which is now taking place in the United States, namely the signing of a peace treaty between two Middle East countries. This bodes well for the future in that part of the world. We must hope and wish that no future action will be taken to counter the tremendous efforts of these two countries and the United States to make this treaty a reality.

Mr. Speaker:

The House has heard the terms of the motion moved by Mr. Diefenbaker and seconded by Mr. Jamieson.

Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the said motion?

Mr. Speaker:

The House will, I am sure, want to observe that there could scarcely be a more fitting way to celebrate the thirty-ninth anniversary of the right hon. gentleman's election to parliament which is being celebrated today.

Hear, hear!