44th Parl. 1st Sess.
December 7, 2021 10:00AM
- Dec/7/21 2:42:07 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, there was another shooting yesterday. This time, an 18-year-old was shot at a library in Laval. Now we are at a point where even our libraries are not safe. No good can come from normalizing the use of firearms to the extent that people feel free to fire guns in public places.
What will the minister do right now to reassure worried families?
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- Dec/7/21 2:42:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for the question. Our thoughts are with all the victims of violence perpetrated with assault-style weapons or any gun. We are transferring $46 million to the Government of Quebec to draft and implement prevention strategies for dealing with gun and gang related violence. I will be talking to my provincial colleague later, and I will continue to work in close collaboration with all our partners, including members of the House.
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- Dec/7/21 2:43:19 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, if we are at the point where libraries are getting shot up, what is next? The situation is getting worse by the day in greater Montreal, and yet there does not seem to be any sense of urgency on the federal government's part. No one is reassured to hear the federal government talk today about what it has done in the past to tackle gun trafficking, because everyone can see that it is not enough. We want to see the minister send a clear message and take concrete action so we can be satisfied that the federal government is finally assuming its responsibilities.
What is the minister going to do?
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- Dec/7/21 2:43:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I share my colleague's concerns. That is why our government has already taken meaningful action such as banning assault-style weapons, adding more resources to the border to stop them, continuing the fight against gun violence and working closely with the government to create safe spaces for everyone.
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- Dec/7/21 2:44:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we are dealing with a gun culture where criminal groups buy, sell and use firearms as though they were toys mainly because they are just as easy to obtain as toys.
The minister has some solutions. First, he could look to his own party for inspiration. The Liberals spent the election campaign saying that the RCMP is not adequately funded and that prison sentences are too lenient. Then, he could listen to his employees. Border services are telling us that they are underutilized. Finally, he could implement the Bloc Québécois's suggestions. We keep making them.
The minister has been repeating the same thing for two weeks. When will he take action?
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- Dec/7/21 2:45:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, our government is always willing to work with the Bloc Québécois and with all parties in the House to seek and find concrete solutions in the fight against gun violence. We will continue to work with the Government of Quebec to stop gun trafficking at the border, and we will be participating in several joint forums with the United States.
This is a major challenge and a major issue, but our government is committed to resolving it.
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- Dec/7/21 2:45:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, in order to supply themselves with cheap cash for their record deficits, the Liberals had the central bank flood lending markets with $400 billion of cash. We now learn that $192 billion of that overflowed into mortgage markets, and a quarter of all mortgages outstanding today are low-quality and variable-rate, which are highly subject to increases in interest rates. That has inflated housing prices by one-third and created the second-biggest housing bubble in the world.
Will the finance minister admit that Canada has a housing bubble?
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- Dec/7/21 2:46:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives continue to irresponsibly fearmonger and try to talk down the Canadian economy. The fact is that our Q3 GDP was 5.4%, beating market expectations and surpassing the U.S., Japan, the U.K. and Australia. We have now recovered 106% of the jobs lost to the COVID recession, compared with just 83% in the U.S. In the fall, Moody's and S&P reaffirmed our AAA credit rating.
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- Dec/7/21 2:47:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is always reassuring to have your credit rating backed up by those who said subprime mortgages were rock solid in late 2008, but the question was about Canada's housing bubble. I have asked the minister eight times now in the House of Commons if we have a housing bubble. Raj wants to know. He is driving Uber in addition to having an IT job in order to save up over the next 15 years to make a down payment on a $1 million Brampton home.
Canadians deserve to know. Bloomberg has said Canada has the second-most-inflated housing bubble on earth. Yes or no: Will the minister admit that Canada has a housing bubble?
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- Dec/7/21 2:48:04 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the fact of the matter is that it has been a long time since the member opposite has spoken about affordable housing. He has found it fashionable to talk about it, but here is the record. Every time we have put forward measures to help first-time home buyers access affordable housing, help the most vulnerable in our communities to access permanent housing solutions, or help women and children fleeing domestic violence to get rental support, he has voted against these measures.
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- Dec/7/21 2:48:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the manufacturing industry in the greater Chaudière-Appalaches region is currently losing $7 million a day in production as a result of the labour shortage in Quebec. The industry needs temporary foreign workers right now in order to get the job done.
Will the government present a plan to simplify the approval process for temporary foreign workers?
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- Dec/7/21 2:49:03 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we are definitely going to do that. We have an agreement with the Government of Quebec with regard to foreign workers.
We are making the processes more simple. The Government of Quebec is now able to bring in more workers more quickly. Some of the measures came into place yesterday and the rest will come in the weeks to come, but I can assure the member and everyone in the House that we are working very closely with the Government of Quebec on temporary foreign workers.
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- Dec/7/21 2:49:59 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the government needs to implement a plan to save Quebec's manufacturing industry as quickly as possible. Anything less will not do. The government needs to make the labour shortage a priority before our businesses move to other parts of the world because of this government's lack of leadership.
Will the government conduct a full review of the approval process for temporary foreign workers so that it is faster, more flexible and more consistent for the well-being of Canada's economy?
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- Dec/7/21 2:50:34 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives continue to talk down Canada's strong economic recovery following the COVID-19 recession. Perhaps that is because we did a better job than they did in 2008 when they were in office. Canada has already recovered more jobs than those that were lost during the COVID-19 recession. By way of comparison, it took nearly eight months more to recover jobs after the 2008 recession.
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- Dec/7/21 2:51:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Emanuel Benjamin is a 71-year-old senior from my riding whose GIS benefit was suddenly reduced because he accessed pandemic supports last year. Emanuel was already living below the poverty line, and his income has now been reduced from $1,500 to $600 a month. He cannot afford rent, food or medication. He may lose everything if the government does not step up and fix the issue immediately.
The Liberal government has admitted there is a problem, so when will it fix this and do what is right for Canadian seniors?
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- Dec/7/21 2:52:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, since the beginning of the pandemic we told Canadians and seniors we would be there for them as long as they needed, and that is exactly what we are doing. We have always prioritized the most vulnerable seniors by strengthening their GIS. We provided immediate and direct financial support to seniors this summer. When it comes to CERB and GIS, I can assure the hon. member we are working on that issue to find the best solution.
We will be there for seniors.
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- Dec/7/21 2:52:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, raising the GIS just to claw it back again is not going to do anything for people like Emanuel, and that answer is not going to pay his rent. We have been asking this question for some time now. We see a government that has clawed back the GIS and the Canada child benefit, and it has cut the CRB for 900,000 Canadians just as we are seeing COVID case counts go up. Financial support is not there for all of those 900,000 people who need it.
When is the government going to stop building the recovery on the backs of the financially vulnerable and actually look for some of the money at the top, such as with publicly traded companies that took the wage subsidy and have not paid anything back, except to their shareholders?
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- Dec/7/21 2:53:03 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I can assure everyone in the House that we have been unwavering and continue to support workers throughout this pandemic. That is why Bill C-2 talks about continuing the Canada recovery sickness benefit and the Canada recovery caregiving benefit. That is why we are creating the lockdown benefit. That is why we are continuing with support for businesses to hire workers and to provide rental support.
There is a lot we are doing for workers and businesses, and as the Deputy Prime Minister has said, we have regained 106% of the jobs we lost during the pandemic. Our unemployment was down last month again, for the sixth month in a row. We are within 0.4% of our record high in February 2020.
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- Dec/7/21 2:53:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, last week we were shocked to learn that the Yukon's rate of opioid fatalities is Canada's highest. While this toxic drug crisis has been addressed with many interventions in recent years, we are painfully aware that there is still much to do. Safe supply, supervised consumption, better access to treatment, effective prevention and decriminalization are all approaches that can help prevent more deaths.
Can the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions update the House on how the federal government is working in partnership with the Yukon to stop this ongoing tragedy?
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- Dec/7/21 2:54:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his extensive work on this issue as medical officer of health for the Yukon and for joining me last week for the discussions with Yukon ministers and first nations leadership.
Our hearts are with the families, loved ones and communities of those we have lost to the overdose and toxic drug supply crisis. Our government is working in partnership with the provinces, territories, municipalities, indigenous communities, experts and those with lived and living experience to consider all proposals to implement innovative bottom-up solutions to this crisis.
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