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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Carol Hughes)

Dec/2/21 11:12:26 a.m.
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I am not telling the hon. member anything, and I would just ask her to address the questions through the chair. She may want to use “he” or “she” as opposed to “you”. The hon. member for Winnipeg North.

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Remarks addressed to the Chair

Mr. Kevin Lamoureux

Dec/2/21 11:12:38 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, in terms of the manner in which I present myself, it is something I have developed in the last number of years of being an advocate, and the member can turn down the volume if she so chooses. At the end of the day I am very passionate about these issues, because I believe they are in the best interests of Canadians and the constituents I represent, and I believe a part of being an advocate is making sure I am being heard. I applaud the member for recognizing that the issues I have talked about are important. She is conceding that, and that is one of the reasons I would recommend that, as opposed to listening to nothing but the Conservative spin, she start looking at some of the things that are actually being done—

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Carol Hughes)

Dec/2/21 11:13:37 a.m.
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I want to remind the member that she had a chance to ask her question. She should take the opportunity to listen to the answer. Questions and comments, the hon. member for Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou.

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Noise/conversations/heckling, interrupting Member speaking

Ms. Michelle Ferreri

Dec/2/21 11:13:37 a.m.
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Go ask your constituents.

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux

Dec/2/21 11:13:37 a.m.
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—because on a lot of the issues she raised, she would see that there have been actions: literally hundreds of millions of dollars in commitments, and negotiations and discussions with the different stakeholders, in particular our provinces, territories and indigenous communities.

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Ms. Sylvie Bérubé (Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou, BQ)

Dec/2/21 11:13:55 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would like the hon. member for Winnipeg North to elaborate on how we can grow the economy. As everyone knows, we are currently battling inflation. There are two solutions right now, specifically, child care and affordable housing. What is the government doing? It seems to be dragging its feet. What do you plan to do to help this situation, to help families buy their first home? Will you, the government, finally do something to fight inflation?

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Carol Hughes)

Dec/2/21 11:14:37 a.m.
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I would remind the hon. member and everyone in the House that members must address their remarks to the Chair, not directly to other members. The hon. member for Winnipeg North.

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Remarks addressed to the Chair

Mr. Kevin Lamoureux

Dec/2/21 11:14:45 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, one of the greatest things we can do as a government, in terms of fighting inflation, is to create an environment that employs more people. The more people who are employed, the more contributions are going to be made to Canada's GDP, and that is one of the ways we can fight inflation. I would ask members to take into consideration that inflation, much like the pandemic, is not something that is unique to Canada. This is something that is taking place around the world, and because Canada took the initiatives it did, such as the wage subsidy program and the CERB program, supporting millions of Canadians and thousands of businesses, we are in a better position to ensure that Canada is in a great position to recover and get back. In fact, we have gotten back more jobs than we had pre-pandemic. That is the way we are going to be able to overcome, going forward.

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Mr. Don Davies (Vancouver Kingsway, NDP)

Dec/2/21 11:15:46 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I want to thank my hon. colleague for pointing out something that is very important, which is that health care in this country is shared jurisdiction. The federal government has a role to play. The existence of the Canada Health Act is proof positive of that, where we set conditions for the provinces to get money. There are five conditions in the Canada Health Act that provinces must meet in order to receive that money. I would point out that the words “health care” do not exist in the Constitution. All that is there is that the provinces are given the power to establish and maintain hospitals, so it is important to point that out. There is no mention of pharmacare in this throne speech. The price of drugs has not gone down since the government came to power in 2015. Why should Canadians take any comfort from the member's comment that they may have relief in terms of universal pharmacare?

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux

Dec/2/21 11:16:39 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I believe the possibility of national pharmacare is still there. We saw it in the previous throne speech, in which the federal government indicated it is looking for willing partners at the provincial level. The member knows well that the only way we can be successful at getting a first-class pharmacare system is by having the provinces on side. We will continue, I suspect, to look for willing provinces on that point.

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Mr. Clifford Small (Coast of Bays—Central—Notre Dame, CPC)

Dec/2/21 11:17:14 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is an honour and privilege to stand in this historic House today amongst colleagues from across this vast nation as the representative of Coast of Bays—Central—Notre Dame and shadow minister for ACOA. I thank the great people of my riding for selecting me and putting their trust in me to represent them in the 44th Parliament. At this time, I would also like to thank those who volunteered their time and supported me on my campaign. Without them, I would not be here today. As well, I send my condolences to the Starkes family on the passing of their mom and grandmother, Ruby Starkes, who is being laid to rest today at 2 p.m. in Baie Verte, Newfoundland and Labrador. The Starkes were a great support to me throughout my life and have been great mentors. Coast of Bays—Central—Notre Dame is a large riding that makes up 40% of the island portion of Newfoundland and Labrador. I come from a tiny fishing village called Wild Cove, in the very northwest corner of the riding, in White Bay. I was involved in the fishing industry from a young age and eventually ran our family fishing enterprise for nine years. For the last 17 years, I have owned and operated several restaurants. At times, I have had up to 60 employees. Coming from an entrepreneurial background, I know what it is like to hold my head in my hands, and what it is like to make a payroll. The feeling of walking into my restaurants in late March 2020 and not knowing if they would ever reopen due to the unknowns of the pandemic will never be lost on me, nor will being at sea, caught in a hurricane and having the responsibility of my crew and the vessel on my shoulders. Now, a different responsibility rests on my shoulders, and it is a very heavy weight. Coast of Bays—Central—Notre Dame, in fact, the entire province of Newfoundland and Labrador, faces an uncertain future. Our main economic drivers are related to natural resources, but the Speech from the Throne neglects the support needed for our natural resource industries. The current Liberal government has relentlessly worked to dismantle our offshore oil and gas industry with ballooning red tape, which has destroyed investor appetite. We have lost 5,500 jobs as our oil industry has been scaled back. However, Norway is rapidly expanding its offshore oil industry after incentivizing companies early in the pandemic, which lured investment from our offshore to theirs. The rhetoric that the government sells the people of my province is that there is no future in oil and gas and that these jobs are being phased out, yet countries like Brazil, Trinidad and Guyana ramped up their drilling and exploration programs. Why is this government spreading false information, and why is it forcing the men and women in the oil and gas industry to leave their families to go to the shores of far-off countries in order to find employment? These are people like Luke Jarvis of Harbour Breton, who was one of the 5,500 who lost their jobs in our offshore oil industry. He now has to leave his family and commute to Brazil to work in its oil industry. The attack on Newfoundland and Labrador does not stop with the oil and gas industry. The fishery also has been thrown into peril as a result of six years of Liberal government mismanagement. Fishers in my riding are fearful of plans to increase marine-protected areas from 14% of Canada's oceans to 30% by 2030. These marine-protected areas are arbitrarily chosen, with very little industry consultation, as if done with a paintbrush. In most cases, fishers are barred from accessing prime historical fishing grounds and not even allowed to use low-impact fishing gear, like hook and line. Fishers need to fish where the fish are and not where they are told to fish. DFO science is another bone of contention within the fishing industry. This year, fishers like Brad Rideout in Robert's Arm were dealt a blow when the mackerel quota was cut in half. American science suggested we could sustainably harvest 10,000 tonnes, but our scientists set it at 4,000 tonnes. As waters warm, species like mackerel migrate further north. Therefore, science needs to adapt and relocate where they survey species. Fishers in my riding have observed mackerel in quantities never seen in their lifetime, and their frustration mounts with the way quotas are being set. Not all species are as lucky as mackerel to migrate south before seals invade from the north. Since the eighties, the seal population has grown from two million to at least ten million. Scientists estimate that harp seals alone, with a population of 7.6 million, consume anywhere from four to eight kilos of fish per day. That means harp seals consume our entire provincial landed tonnage of fish in three to six days. In 3PS, a region that has communities like Harbour Breton and Hermitage, grey seals have had a population explosion. Historically, there were approximately 100,000 in that herd. Now the number sits at five times that amount. Fishers there now watch seals even consume lobster. It was no coincidence that this year, sport salmon fishing was stopped in this region and the cod quota was cut in half within the two-week period. Fishers in 3PS are fearful that the minister of fisheries will place cod on her moratorium once again in 2022. The fishing industry is crying out for a solution to the overpredation caused by seals. By bringing the seal populations back to historical levels, our $2-billion fishing industry could grow to a$6-billion or $8-billion industry. If we do not act now, our fishery is doomed by this ecological disaster. The possibilities for expansion in our oil and gas and fishing industries are endless. We just need the political appetite to make it happen. Speaking of appetite, the Speech from the Throne did nothing to address food security in our province. Make no mistake, food security cannot be overlooked. In Newfoundland and Labrador, we only produce 15% of what we consume. The ongoing pandemic and the recent devastation caused by the flooding on the west coast of the island, which cut off supplies coming in from the mainland, shone a spotlight on this very issue. Typically, we have enough food on the island to last for just three days. No matter how much food we have, one group in our province is really feeling the pinch. Seniors make up more of our population than anywhere else in Canada. I receive emails on a daily basis from seniors who have to choose between heating their homes, buying medication, or putting food on the table. The short-sightedness of the government resulted in giving to seniors in one hand and taking it away from the other. Seniors are especially affected by increasing inflation. Our country's national inflation rate of 4.7% is the highest it has been since 2003. Many feel that this figure is closer to 15% in my province. The ever-increasing carbon tax applied throughout the logistics chain has compounded the effects of inflation in rural Newfoundland and Labrador, where a rebate cheque is never seen. This is a disgraceful attack on the people of Newfoundland and Labrador by a government that is constantly virtue signalling with no regard for the human cost. We have to consider the human cost and the impact of the decisions made in this sacred place. That seems to be lost on the party opposite. Newfoundlanders and Labradorians find themselves struggling to make ends meet. Action needs to be taken. Let us review: the government has attacked my province's key industries of offshore oil and gas and fishing, has made life increasingly more expensive for seniors and has no regard for inflation. Is it any wonder that Newfoundlanders and Labradorians feel abandoned by the government? The government claims that no one is left behind. I can tell members of this House that the people of Newfoundland and Labrador feel left behind. They have elected me to a be a voice that is free to speak on issues that have only been spoken of from a radical Liberal environmentalist narrative for the last six years. I am free to say what my six colleagues opposite want to say; what they cannot say. I will be a voice for Coast of Bays—Central—Notre Dame and all of Newfoundland and Labrador.

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Mr. James Maloney (Etobicoke—Lakeshore, Lib.)

Dec/2/21 11:26:16 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I congratulate the hon. member on his election victory and his inaugural comments in the House. They were very well done. I have had occasion to spend some time with him outside this House. As he points out, he is from a small town but he clearly has a large personality and will contribute greatly to this House. In fact, during some of our discussions, I thought we saw eye to eye on a number of things and sort of envisioned a world where we could work together and perhaps someday sit in the same caucus, but about a minute and a half into his speech I got over that. Clearly, his surroundings over there have gotten to him, although the caucus was here. My question— Some hon. members: Oh, oh!

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Carol Hughes)

Dec/2/21 11:27:08 a.m.
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Order. The hon. member for Etobicoke—Lakeshore.

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Mr. James Maloney

Dec/2/21 11:27:17 a.m.
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Re: Bill C-2

Madam Speaker, my question arises from the first minute and a half of the member's speech when he was talking about his personal experience running a restaurant business and how much he appreciated the ability to carry on. Can we work together and will he support Bill C-2?

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Mr. Clifford Small

Dec/2/21 11:27:35 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate the kind comments of the member opposite. When it comes to Bill C-2, we have a lot of discussion that needs to take place in this House. We need to know if that bill fits what is needed in my industry and in all of the hospitality and tourism industry in Canada. I have many friends from coast to coast who call me, email me and text me on a daily basis and say, “Cliff, we need help. Speak up for us.” I am here to advocate within my caucus and to work with members opposite. I will do my very best to make sure that the right thing is done with Bill C-2.

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Ms. Monique Pauzé (Repentigny, BQ)

Dec/2/21 11:28:29 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, my colleague mentioned the fossil fuel industry in his speech. It was not the Bloc Québécois but rather the OECD who said the following regarding the climate crisis: “The longer governments wait, the greater the risks of an abrupt transition in which energy prices are higher and more volatile.” I really wonder why the official opposition party sees only one form of energy, that which comes from fossil sources and will destroy the environment, our health, our youth and our planet. Why can they not see that there are other forms of energy that are renewable and do not cause all this damage?

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Mr. Clifford Small

Dec/2/21 11:29:19 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I think a lot about fossil fuels and I think about China producing 28% of the world's emissions and producing 4.5 million gigawatts of electricity by coal. China is a country that is about the same size as Canada. China produces 28% of the world's emissions and Canada produces 2% of the world's emissions. If we want to virtue signal, that is fine. We all understand that, but we need to address the problem where it is and that is with the big emitters, not Canada.

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Ms. Heather McPherson (Edmonton Strathcona, NDP)

Dec/2/21 11:30:17 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I give my colleague my sympathies for the loss that he described early in his speech. I also come from a province where oil and gas is, of course, very important to our economy. We are seeing very little investment in the oil and gas sector because we have not shown, in Canada, that we are doing what we can to take carbon out of the barrel. Does the member see a way that we could use our oil and gas subsidies in this country to invest in our sectors so that they could be removing the carbon from the barrel? Is there a way we could use those subsidies to invest in renewable energies and make the sector more attractive to international investors, but also make sure that the people in Alberta and across Canada are able to keep working?

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Mr. Clifford Small

Dec/2/21 11:31:14 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, if there is one barrel of oil produced in this world, it should be Canadian oil. We have ethical, low-carbon oil and we need to support our own people right here. Europe is sourcing ethical oil. Newfoundland and Labrador has the lowest-carbon oil in the world and it needs to be supported.

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Mr. Ryan Williams (Bay of Quinte, CPC)

Dec/2/21 11:31:42 a.m.
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Re: Bill C-4

Madam Speaker, it is my pleasure to stand today to represent the people of the Bay of Quinte. I am extremely proud to have been elected the first Conservative member for my riding. I want to thank all the volunteers who worked hard putting their time into the election, especially my campaign manager Susan Smith. We know how much work it is, especially to manage me. As many members of the House know, it is also a family affair. My mother Heather was one of the greatest volunteers. She is an Atlantic Canadian. She was born in Fredericton and grew up in Prince Edward Island. It is no surprise that door knocking is just easy for Maritimers. My kids were all involved as well. Jack is eight, Patrick is seven and Zooey is four. My biggest thanks go to my wife Allyson. Most of us know that the biggest sacrifice in this job is our families and especially our partners. I am not sure if this was meant to scare us, but our first training in this work was a work-life balance seminar, where I was told that 75% of MPs end up getting divorced. That is a big number. I moved right next to my father-in-law in Ottawa, which he has said is a blessing and a curse, so time will tell. It is a big sacrifice to have us away from our families. My biggest thanks and love go to my wife Allyson, who is home with my children right now sacrificing her time for us so that we can make this region and country a better place. My wife and her family are from Thunder Bay, or T-Bay as they affectionately call it. Thunder Bay residents are extremely strong people. I went there once in the winter and can say that they are so tough because it is so cold in January. My wife lives by the motto “always choose love”. In 2015, we lost our son Teddy at birth to a congenital heart defect. Every year there are thousands of Canadians who experience the terror of infant loss or miscarriage. Allyson was instrumental in our region for being a voice to women who experience loss. She wrote a blog called alwayschooselove.net and she continues to be a tireless advocate for women. She is a light for so many, and I love her dearly. I would also be amiss to not talk about my grandfather and father, who were both political candidates provincially, in 1975 and 2003 respectively, for the provincial Conservative Party and who did not get to represent their constituents. This proves that the third time is the charm. My grandmother Audrey said that she was happy to be alive to see a Williams elected to the House. Both have immensely contributed to our region. My grandfather Don Williams was an entrepreneur. He operated Stirling Motors from 1956 for 20 years and then successfully started Williams Hotels, which he still runs today. He raised awareness for organ donation in Canada, having received one of the first heart transplants in the first decade, in 1991. As well, he supported Camp Quin-Mo-Lac and many local charities. He would always tell people to sign their donor cards. My grandfather taught me tenacity. My father John Williams became the mayor of Quinte West for eight years and then was the honorary colonel of CFB 8 Wing in Trenton. My father passed away in 2020, but would have loved to have been here. He lived by the motto “get 'er done”. My father, alongside long-time Liberal MPP Hugh O'Neil, created the Afghanistan memorial in Bain Park in Quinte West, having attended every repatriation ceremony during the Afghanistan war, and was instrumental in the creation of the Highway of Heroes on Highway 401 to commemorate those men and women of our military. As an MP, I look forward to the challenge of representing my constituents in this House and feel very privileged to be here in this place. Never before have we had the challenges we face in this country. We all know that we live in the best country on the planet. Our standard of living, history, culture and freedoms are among the most revered in the world. However, we have some persistent problems facing Canadians right now. Inflation is the highest in 20 years. I have had calls from seniors this week who cannot decide whether to pay for groceries or rent. We consistently hear that employment is back to pre-COVID levels, yet we have heard of well over a million job vacancies in this country. I can say we have 2,500 skilled jobs we cannot fill in the Bay of Quinte today. We have had restaurants shut down for up to two weeks. Housing is a disaster right now, with prices doubling in the past year. Prince Edward County, in my region, had one of the highest jumps in housing costs in the last year, at 170%, with the average price last month at $1.2 million. How could anyone who is 25 or 30 years old afford a house at $1.2 million? What are the solutions? I am a Conservative because I believe that Conservatives believe in the dignity of us as Canadians to be individuals, and that as Canadian individuals we have the right to be free, live free and pursue that which motivates us the most, not because man or government says it is the right thing to do, but because it is our God-given natural right. I also believe that to fix our inflation on housing and other things caused by the overprinting of our money, we need to be producing more of the things money buys. That means homes. It means freeing up home builders to build the things that Canadians need. It means unleashing Canadian innovation and making things in Canada. I come from rural Canada. If we are to fix the persistent problems facing Canadians and build the next decade into a time when Canada can lead the world, then we need to focus on urban and rural Canada producing more of the things that money buys. To fix our inflation nation, we need to become an innovation nation to produce more wealth. That means allowing individuals to pursue what motivates them and ensuring that the government assists individuals to make, grow, dream and do things in Canada so that individuals making things in a free and enterprise-motivated economy will create wealth and jobs, reversing inflation and ensuring Canada does not see any more decline. This is not just in urban Canada, where there are 94 cities with over 100,000 people, but in rural Canada, where there are over 3,700 municipalities. The key to Canada's growth is not just in urban Canada, but in rural Canada. An innovation nation includes all 3,700 municipalities, its regions and its more than 600 first nations, Métis and Inuit reserves. In 2018, I was part of Canada's first Canadian Rural Innovation Summit in Belleville, at which we hosted the thinkers, dreamers and doers to talk about empowering Canada's rural regions, accelerating businesses and growing our Canadian innovation share. We have an alarming rural out-migration number. Eighty per cent of our youth in rural areas end up leaving the rural areas to go to urban centres because that is where the jobs are. I lost many of my friends growing up, as they left for bigger city centres. We need youth in our regions and in our rural regions. Some say youth are the voice of tomorrow. I believe that youth in this country are the voice of today. How can we truly listen to our children if they continue to leave the place we call home? How can they stay in the place we want them to call home when they cannot afford the home? We need a great rebuild of what will make Canada thrive: its rural regions. These are regions like the Bay of Quinte that have so much potential. It is potential I know how to unlock and potential we saw in 2018 when we hosted Canada's first Canadian Rural Innovation Summit. We need to start demanding the best from Canada and that specifically means the best from rural Canada. Right now we are not seeing entrepreneurs create the greatest wealth they can in Canada across all regions, rural and urban. We need to strengthen the innovation in this country and protect Canadian ideas and enterprise. Our intellectual property, the measure of intellectual ideas that translate into wealth in this country, is massively underperforming that of other nations. In 2019, prior to COVID-19, Canada produced $39 billion in IP. That is not bad, but compare that with the Americans, who produced $6.6 trillion of IP, or 169 times that of Canada, when they only have 10 times the population. We are not protecting the stuff that creates the stuff that creates wealth and kills inflation: homes; technology; our natural resources, including our softwood lumber industry; and new world-leading clean energy, including our clean, ethical oil and natural gas and advanced manufacturing. Ontario made a great announcement this morning that a new modular nuclear power unit is being developed in the province. It is going to create a large amount of GDP for the province and Canada. Innovation means improving what we are doing in the world and here in Canada, and we can do so much more. Members cannot see it but I am wearing red socks. I wear red socks because red represents the colour of our flag and the sacrifice that has been made by our soldiers to ensure that this is a free, democratic country, and because I believe that just like yesterday when the House came together on Bill C-4, the House can and will come together more often in Canada. Our people depend on it. God bless Canada. Merry Christmas and happy holidays.

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