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Mr. Tako Van Popta (Langley—Aldergrove, CPC)

Nov/24/21 9:18:38 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, congratulations on your appointment. I want to thank the member for Surrey Centre particularly for highlighting the work being done to enhance the diking system around the Nicomekl River and the Serpentine River running through Surrey and also through my riding of Langley—Aldergrove. However, we heard earlier in debate today that a significant cause of the flooding on the Canadian side of Sumas Prairie was the breaching of the dikes and the banks of the Nooksack River on the American side. I wonder if the member would have any comments about how the Canadian government has to work together with the American and the Washington governments to make sure that does not happen again. That needs to be solved.

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Mr. Randeep Sarai

Nov/24/21 9:19:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is absolutely essential. As we know, the environment does not pick borders or see boundaries and we have to work with our American and global counterparts for many things. In this particular place, we have to work with our partners to the south to make sure they make the same mitigation efforts, the same diking and restoration efforts, so that this does not happen again. Deep collaborations among the provincial and state governments and the two federal governments would have to take place. I will encourage and definitely speak to our ministers of global affairs so they can talk to their counterparts on the U.S. side.

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Ms. Kristina Michaud (Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, BQ)

Nov/24/21 9:20:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech. Earlier, my colleague from Saanich—Gulf Islands did a great job explaining what happened in British Columbia. Because of the fires that happened a few months ago, the ground had a hard time absorbing water. As a result, the water flowed across the land, destroying things in its path. That is an example of the kind of self-destruct sequence that can be triggered when nature is out of balance. It is the kind of surprise we can expect once we hit the famous tipping point if we do not keep the temperature increase in check. Does my colleague think his government has done enough to keep the temperature increase in check?

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Mr. Randeep Sarai

Nov/24/21 9:21:03 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, there is a lot of work to be done, absolutely. It is essential to control the growth of the temperature rising. As my colleague from Cloverdale—Langley City alluded to earlier, we must do more. Canada is warming faster than many other countries around the globe. We have a huge watershed in our Arctic that we have to preserve, which is kind of the coolant of the globe, and therefore we must do more. Otherwise, these disastrous events will happen. We need support from across the aisle on this issue and it should be bipartisan or tripartisan with all parties in this matter.

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Mr. Blake Desjarlais (Edmonton Griesbach, NDP)

Nov/24/21 9:21:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this is my first time rising in the House. I want to thank the fine people of Edmonton Griesbach for the tremendous honour to represent them in this place. I want to extend my condolences, first and foremost, to the people of British Columbia who have suffered and continue to suffer from the catastrophic flooding caused by human-made climate change. My heart and the hearts of the people of Edmonton Griesbach are with all of them. I also want to make clear that the impact of this crisis is being felt far outside the province of British Columbia. The Alberta supply chain has been hit hard by the devastating floods in B.C. Local business owners in my district of Edmonton Griesbach are working around the clock to keep their shelves stocked, but they are finding it impossible to keep food and essential goods on the shelf. Can the member expand on what plans the government has to ensure we build a more robust supply chain that can withstand this and future climate-caused crises, especially for those who have been hit hard by long-standing supply chain issues like indigenous communities and communities in the north?

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Mr. Randeep Sarai

Nov/24/21 9:23:12 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I congratulate the member on his election and representing the constituents of Edmonton Griesbach. The government will do whatever it takes. This is a very essential time. As we have seen, even without natural climate disasters, due to the COVID situation globally, supply chains have been even more imperative. They have to be examined and ensured, particularly for indigenous communities, remote communities and communities in the interior, so we will do whatever it takes.

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Hon. Erin O'Toole (Leader of the Opposition, CPC)

Nov/24/21 9:23:51 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is very good to see you in the chair, the first Acadian deputy speaker. Congratulations. Colleagues, I wish my first speech in the 44th Parliament was not on this topic. I will be splitting my time with the member of Parliament for Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge. I want to thank him and our colleagues from British Columbia for bringing forward this emergency debate. Over the last week and a half, Canadians have watched our families, our friends and our relatives in some cases fight devastating floods and landslides across British Columbia that have brought unspeakable devastation to communities in a province that was still recovering from the forest fires that took place over the course of the last year. I have been hearing some of the accounts first-hand from the British Columbian members of our caucus and of course from media reports. Families used kayaks, motorboats and canoes to reach safety. They watched their homes, farms and businesses literally become submerged by the flooding. Others spent nights in their cars on highways that were washed away or covered by trees and mud.

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Hon. Erin O'Toole (Leader of the Opposition, CPC)

Nov/24/21 9:23:51 p.m.
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Supply chains connected to the Port of Vancouver are blocked. Residents are wondering how they are going to get essential goods. The destruction is heartbreaking, and that is why we are here tonight. Tonight I want to speak directly to British Columbians. I can only imagine the hardship that they and their families have been facing and will continue to face in rebuilding efforts. Although with the roads and railways they may have felt cut off from Canada, they should know that they will never be cut off from their friends and family in this great country. Our country as a whole is here to support them because that is what it means to be Canadian. In times of trouble, we all come together. When people need help, we are there to serve. From the Lower Mainland to the Interior, when the highways turned to rivers, that is when we saw British Columbians step up with heroic action for their neighbours. These are people like Henry Chillihitzia, who used a motorboat to lead 29 horses to safety in near-freezing and fast-moving flood waters in Merritt, and a helicopter pilot from Vancouver Island who sprung into action, delivering badly needed supplies in the Mainland before rescuing six people who were stuck in Hope. Cities like Kamloops and Kelowna have opened their doors to welcome hundreds if not thousands stranded in British Columbia. Communities have stepped up with heroic resilience, a resilience that Canadians have been known for at home and around the world. However, it is time that those families know that the rest of Canada is stepping up too. The work of our Canadian Armed Forces, our first responders on the ground and civic workers has saved lives and protected property. However, the rebuilding effort will require significant federal support and a long-term plan and commitment. British Columbians need to know that Canada will be with them for the long term as they rebuild. They need a united country behind them to help them get back on their feet, and my commitment to them is that the Conservatives here in Ottawa will be a voice for them now and every day forward as we rebuild. We will ensure that no one is left behind and that they will get the support they need. We know that one aspect of climate change is more frequent extreme weather. While we must work to lower emissions, we must also work to protect our communities and protect our economy by building resilient communities and dedicating specific infrastructure funding to adaptation efforts. The Conservatives campaigned on a plan to better prepare communities for the impacts of a changing climate. I spoke to Mayor Henry Braun in Abbotsford a few days ago. I want to thank Mayor Braun and civic leaders like him across B.C. for their leadership in this time of crisis. Mayor Braun has told me, as other mayors have told my colleagues, about dikes that need rebuilding in Abbotsford, Agassiz, Hope and Kent. These communities need to know that there is a long-term commitment to resilient infrastructure. The Conservatives promised to develop and implement a national action plan on floods, including a residential high-risk flood insurance program so that Canadians can rebuild. Our plan also included developing a national climate adaptation strategy, directly incorporating mitigation and adaptation lenses into all infrastructure projects. We also ran on and committed to appointing a national disaster resilience adviser to the Privy Council Office so that expertise is just down the hall from the prime minister whenever emergencies happen. For a government that is known for lots of talk and little action, I welcome the Liberals to steal any of our ideas as we need to rebuild British Columbia. We will advocate for these important measures, and the Conservatives will be watching to make sure the government takes concrete action to protect the lives and livelihoods of Canadians. Let us work together to protect our country. Thanks to the previous Conservative government's investments in the Canadian Armed Forces, our men and women in uniform have the capacity to carry out the mass movement of troops, supplies and equipment. I want to thank the Minister of Public Safety for working with Conservative MPs and all MPs in our federal response. I respect that. However, the Liberal government also needs to be crystal clear when it comes to promises it makes to Canadians who are in crisis and are worried. This past weekend, the Liberal minister was telling B.C. residents that they could cross the U.S. border to buy essential supplies without needing a COVID-19 test, but now we are hearing reports that flood-affected Canadians were fined over $5,000 for not taking the test before they returned home. British Columbians cannot afford this type of confusion, and I sincerely hope that the minister moves to correct this situation. I am incredibly proud of my colleagues in the House from British Columbia who have been actively supporting their constituents and partner levels of government, including the members for Abbotsford and Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, and all of our MPs, including the MP for Chilliwack—Hope, who has remained on the ground to help coordinate efforts with our members here in Ottawa. Our entire B.C. team is here tonight and is working day and night to help those displaced and impacted. As I said, I know that this is not just our side of the House. Indeed, all Canadians and all British Columbians need to know that we will be working for them. I thank everyone here in this emergency debate this evening for standing up for their fellow Canadians. Let us be united in helping those who need it most. Let us make sure we protect people now and have long-term commitments to the economic rebuilding that will be required. Let us combat emissions and get them down while also making sure that adaptation efforts are under way with dikes, with flood mitigation and with emergency preparedness. Issues such as these should not be political. We need to make sure that the Prime Minister and Privy Council Office have the ability to rapidly address the needs of the nation and address the use of the Canadian Armed Forces, including with more direct army engineering capacity on the ground in British Columbia, something the province has really been deprived of since a Liberal government in the past closed CFB Chilliwack. Let us make sure we build that capacity, we work together and we send a clear message to British Columbians tonight: We are here with them today, tomorrow and to the last day of the rebuilding because we need a strong British Columbia for a strong Canada.

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Mr. Mario Simard (Jonquière, BQ)

Nov/24/21 9:33:59 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I enjoyed the speech from the Leader of the Opposition. He ended by saying that we must be united and help those who need it most. I totally agree with him. As I told the Prime Minister earlier, simply putting out fires is no longer good enough. What we are doing tonight is showing compassion and sympathy. We are trying to put out fires, but we have to start preventing them. Preventing fires means accepting what science tells us. Science tells us that our current approach to oil and gas is no longer possible in a context of global warming. I wonder whether the leader of the official opposition would agree with me that the best short-term solution is to stop funding fossil fuels.

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Hon. Erin O'Toole

Nov/24/21 9:34:50 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for Jonquière for his question. Unfortunately, he is using an emergency debate to play petty political games. We are here for the well-being of Canadians. When it comes to climate change, we need to be better prepared for the future. We need to make historic investments to respond to the effects of climate change such as flooding, as we indicated in our political platform during the election campaign. We need to be better prepared for the future in order to respond to disasters such as floods and fires, and this includes having a leader in the Privy Council Office, which was also part of our political platform. It is time to work together and take action for Canadians in British Columbia.

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Mr. Richard Cannings (South Okanagan—West Kootenay, NDP)

Nov/24/21 9:36:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am glad to hear that the Leader of the Opposition is onside with the idea that we need to have a lot more ambition in funding climate adaptation for communities and in responding to disasters such as this. As small communities like Princeton and Merritt are faced with tens of millions of dollars, if not much more, in rebuilding efforts, would he also be in favour of eliminating the necessity for a 20% municipal investment? It is something that small communities simply cannot manage, and they are the ones that know what to do and how to do it.

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Hon. Erin O'Toole

Nov/24/21 9:36:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the way the member for South Okanagan—West Kootenay phrased the question in saying that we need more ambition reminds me of one of my major critiques of the Prime Minister and the Liberal government. They do not lack in ambition, nice tweets and trips abroad. What they lack is achievement. They never deliver on anything. They have long fired their person in charge of deliverology. What we need is what the Conservatives ran on during the election: adaptation and resilient infrastructure investments. I agree with the member that for some smaller municipalities this is a very huge expense. As municipalities are a creation of the province, this is an area where I really do think the federal government and the provinces need to make sure that infrastructure funding specific to the impacts of climate change has federal and provincial leadership. As I learned from my great discussion with Mayor Braun, the local governments can help set the priorities, but we have to be there not just to talk a good game but to deliver. The rebuilding efforts in B.C. will be some of the largest in our history. We have to show tonight that we will start and we will get the job done.

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Hon. Steven Guilbeault (Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Lib.)

Nov/24/21 9:38:24 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I have a few questions for the opposition leader. Is he aware that we have started to implement an adaptation strategy that is already delivering results by funding tangible projects from coast to coast to coast? Take Montreal, where a park is being built with the collaboration of the city and the federal government. These are nature-based solutions that represent tens of millions of dollars and will help limit spring flooding in the city's west end.

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Hon. Erin O'Toole

Nov/24/21 9:39:01 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the minister for the question. Perhaps he could go to British Columbia to see the effects of the flooding. He should get on a train today and go see the situation on the ground. Unfortunately, I understand the situation, and I am up to speed. The government has made a lot of announcements about climate change and investments in infrastructure, but there is no solid action. The difference between our team and the government is that we will deliver.

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Mr. Marc Dalton (Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, CPC)

Nov/24/21 9:39:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, congratulations on your appointment. You look good in the chair. I want to express my appreciation to all members in the House and all parties for taking the time and agreeing to have this emergency debate. This afternoon, when we heard different members speaking about the crisis and the flood in British Columbia, I was struck that we gave each other standing ovations. All of us here really do care for the people of British Columbia and the province. British Columbia is in a really tough spot right now. It is an emergency. I think of communities like Princeton, Merritt, Abbotsford and Chilliwack, which are submerged or partially submerged, and smaller communities like Lytton, which have been stranded. Many thousands of people have been evacuated. I think of my brother David who lives in Yarrow. The livelihoods of people have been lost. The main transportation links were or are cut off. Most of us have seen the pictures of devastation in the media, or pictures of the Coquihalla Highway, for example, and other rail and road arteries. I do not know if members or those who are watching have travelled the Coquihalla, but it is a marvel of engineering. To see the overpasses collapse and how the changing rivers have wiped out roads in other places is quite stunning. My wife told me this morning that she hoped to see our granddaughter Harper in Kelowna around Christmastime, as well as the parents, who we love. I told her I did not know if we would be able to see them, because it depends on the roads. It could take many months before they are restored. Gas is being rationed in my riding of Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge and throughout much of British Columbia. I think of the entire city of Merritt, which was forced to evacuate. I think of the towns and villages of first nations, many of which are still reeling from the damage caused by the forest fire this summer, forced out at a moment's notice and living in emergency shelters once again. I think of the many people who lost their homes, businesses and livelihoods. I think of Mirsad and Anita Hadzic, as well as two others, who lost their lives in the mudslide on Duffey Lake Road. Tragically, their two-year old daughter was left behind without parents. Even in these most tragic and sad situations, some rays are shining through. The people of British Columbia have rallied for this now-orphaned child, which is an example of the old adage “It takes a [community] to raise a child.” Money has poured in from everywhere, over $131,000 so far on GoFundMe. I think it is important to acknowledge some of the more positive stories from the past 10 days. We saw people reaching out to strangers with vulnerable health, offering to run errands for them so they did not have to put themselves at risk. There were stories that brought out the best in humanity, stories of love, generosity and hope, from a place aptly called Hope, a small town whose businesses and people stepped up in ways that we have not seen since Gander on 9/11. One of my staff, Jay Denney, told me about his friends Mya Warren and Kris Lang. They were on their way from Kelowna to Vancouver and became trapped in Hope, along with many others, when the roads leading out were closed or destroyed. They stayed positive throughout days of living in a car. The member for Langley—Aldergrove's son, daughter-in-law and five children lived in their vehicle under an underpass for several days until they were able to escape. Mya and Kris talked about the amazing volunteers at the high school in Hope, who provided blankets when they mentioned how cold it was. They shared stories on social media of how Panago Pizza had a generator and the staff fed people for free until they ran out of supplies. They were connected with Barb, who took them in until safe passage to Vancouver became available. Many others in Hope welcomed complete strangers. It is a testament to the fact that despite our differences, when things get tough in Canada, our strong community fabric comes through to help one another. Kudos to the people of Hope and to the people everywhere who have lent a hand or donated to help out. This fabric includes our first responders, the Canadian military, highway and utility crews, search and rescue units and emergency services volunteers. I thank all of them and the people of British Columbia for their resiliency, and for all the generous offers of assistance from all across Canada. I want to move onto the challenges, current and future. One challenge is the clarity and timeliness of information. Those same people in Hope, with all their positive stories, also raised valid complaints about accessing information. The information they received was from word of mouth. They wondered, as did I, why they received no information via emergency alerts on their cellphones. It seems pretty simple. A simple message with the details of which radio station or website people could get information from would have gone a long way to help locate emergency supports. If we can inform people province-wide about a missing person or about a potential tsunami, then certainly we can inform them of how they can get help in a natural disaster. This needs to be discussed further so it does not happen again. We also have, as others have mentioned, British Columbians who have been issued severe fines for passing through Washington state without getting a COVID PCR test. These people are not on holidays. They are travelling essentially to get goods to survive, and doing what the minister said they could. The minister said that the matter was now clarified. However, what about those fines? The minister said that it was the responsibility of the Public Health Agency. That is not good enough. These people have enough to worry about. They should not be devastated financially. The minister needs to, within his statutory powers, do everything he can with respect to these fines to see them overturned. The ongoing challenges to infrastructure, transportation, supply chain, food supply, natural resources, human displacement and employment will be significant, and they all could have net-negative economic impacts for months, if not years to come. Infrastructure concerns me greatly across B.C., but particularly in my riding. We were relatively fortunate in Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, which is only half an hour away from Abbotsford. The Pitt and Alouette River watersheds were not as hard hit, but we did not escape totally unscathed. There was some localized flooding, but it could have been much worse. The dike system along the Pitt River has held, but there have been calls for years to upgrade this and no money has been committed. We need to do something about this. We could have a much more serious situation in the next freshet. The government has had six years to make significant improvements and it has not, putting the people in Pitt Meadows, Maple Ridge and the Katzie first nation at severe risk. We need to take action to deal with the issue right now. There is time to discuss climate change and mitigation. This is important. However, right now we need to get the people out of the burning fire to provide safety and to move forward. That is an immediate concern. It is important to keep the focus on keeping B.C. safe, keeping people informed and building back B.C. as quick as possible. We need to remember the commitments that are made here when this crisis is no longer front-page news.

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Mr. Dane Lloyd (Sturgeon River—Parkland, CPC)

Nov/24/21 9:49:43 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is clear that my colleague has a real heart for his constituents in the region. We have had a lot of talk about climate change tonight. We know that climate change is a large factor in why this flooding happened. However, we also know that we have not been putting in the effort to ensure people are kept safe, whether it be through building infrastructure or through better emergency preparedness. I know the member was previously a member of the provincial legislature. With the alert ready system, we have seen that the British Columbia government has not used that system. What more does the federal government need to do to work with the provinces to have a better standardized system for alert readiness in the country?

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Mr. Marc Dalton

Nov/24/21 9:50:38 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is the responsibility of each province. I do think there should be some basic foundations and precautions. It is hard to understand why people were not alerted. A few hours could have made a difference for many people to not be stranded. This is certainly a discussion the minister can have with provincial counterparts to ensure this is established and effective for all Canadians.

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Mr. Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe (Lac-Saint-Jean, BQ)

Nov/24/21 9:51:13 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate you on your election. You know how much I appreciate you, because we have spent time together on the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie. I thank my colleague for his passionate speech. He knows that he can count on the Bloc Québécois's support for our friends in British Columbia. I think everyone wants to rise above partisanship. I unfortunately did not like how his leader responded to the question that my hon. colleague, the member for Jonquière, asked earlier about oil and gas. The Conservative leader accused my friend of playing petty political games. Calling for measures to combat climate change is not a petty political game. I am sure that my Conservative colleagues are aware of what is going on. Climate change exists, and British Columbia is an example of what is happening on this planet. I would like to ask my Conservative friend whether we can count on all parliamentarians here to tackle climate change once and for all, in particular by eliminating subsidies for the oil industry.

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Mr. Marc Dalton

Nov/24/21 9:52:32 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the Bloc Québécois member for his question, which is very important to everyone. We will certainly have the opportunity to have this discussion during this Parliament. As a member from British Columbia, my priority is helping and protecting those who are in this serious and urgent situation. I do not want to say that the member's question is not important, but it is not urgent.

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Ms. Bonita Zarrillo (Port Moody—Coquitlam, NDP)

Nov/24/21 9:53:22 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, before I ask my question, I want to recognize Port Moody firefighters, Coquitlam firefighters, Port Moody police, Coquitlam RCMP and the volunteer organization of Coquitlam Search and Rescue for their work to bring stranded people to safety in Abbotsford. As we face more and more of these extreme weather catastrophes, I would ask the member for Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge if the Conservatives agree that there should be more federal support for these organizations that always come together to help.

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