SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22

The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Carol Hughes)

Jan/31/22 3:46:11 p.m.
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Is that agreed? Some hon. members: Agreed.

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Carol Hughes)

Jan/31/22 3:46:27 p.m.
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I wish to inform the House that because of ministerial statements, Government Orders will be extended by 17 minutes.

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

Jan/31/22 3:46:47 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is an honour for me today to rise in response to the Speech from the Throne that was presented by the Governor General in the other House on November 23, 2021. In her opening comments, the Governor General made reference to the recent flooding in the Fraser Valley and in southern British Columbia. The memories were very fresh at that time and they are still very fresh today. I want to start on a positive note. I agree with the statement made in the Governor General's opening remarks when she said, “But in a time of crisis, we know how Canadians respond. We step up and we are there for each other.” I agree with that. There are many examples of Canadians stepping up to help each other in this time of crisis. People were working day and night, sandbagging and trying to protect farms, buildings and equipment. There were farmers helping other farmers rescue their cattle and getting them onto higher ground. There are many examples of churches and other charitable organizations stepping up and helping their neighbours, making very generous donations and financial contributions to emergency relief for those who needed it the most. I am thinking also of the Sikh Guru Nanak's Free Kitchen, which is always there to help people in times of need and supply food. I am also thinking of pilots with private airplanes operating out of Langley Airport in my riding, flying rescue missions to Hope and to the interior of British Columbia, to rescue people and bring food and supplies. It is people like that who make us all proud to be Canadians. I also want to highlight the work of an exemplary corporate citizen in my riding, the Mutual Fire Insurance Company of British Columbia. This a company created by farmers for farmers. During its now more than 100-year history, that is exactly what it has been. This company is on the hook for millions of dollars, because it has insured so many farms in the Fraser Valley, but it is happy to step up to honour its commitments and to pay out on insurance premiums. That is what the company is: farmers helping farmers. On top of that, this great corporation has also made a very generous donation of almost half a million dollars beyond its legal obligation to do so, to help those most in need and who are perhaps without insurance. This is what Canadians do. Yes, we are all very proud of them. The Speech from the Throne goes on to state what the government has been doing. It says, “The government will continue to be there for the people of British Columbia.” Sadly, the government was not there in response to the many studies done after the 1990 flooding. We were all very aware of the needs to preserve the diking, to enhance and seismically upgrade the dikes. There was report after report, and no action. The most recent report is dated November 2020, commissioned by the City of Abbotsford, and it estimated the cost of repair and enhancing the diking system to be somewhere between $339 million and $580 million. That sounds like a lot of money but it is pocket change compared to the billions of dollars that the rehabilitation of the farmland in Sumas Prairie and throughout southern British Columbia is going to cost. The railroads, highways, private farms and homes, and road systems throughout are going to cost billions of dollars. The government seems not to have learned a very basic lesson that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Just like the government fails time and time again to achieve its very ambitious and lofty Paris Agreement goals, so too it has been absent when the need for us to adapt to climate change reality is glaringly obvious. I want to pivot to what the Speech from the Throne says about housing. The housing affordability crisis in metro Vancouver is ground zero of that crisis. The speech says, “Whether it is building more units per year, increasing affordable housing, or ending chronic homelessness, the government is committed to working with its partners to get real results.” Let me tell members about real results that ordinary Canadians have been waiting for, and are running out of patience that they will ever arise. I was speaking with Alison in my riding just the other day, and she and her partner have been doing everything right. They want to buy a townhouse in Langley. They have saved a lot of money for a down payment and earn pretty good money. They pre-qualified for a mortgage and they understand the housing market. They have been bidding, hoping to get a house, yet in one bid after another they have failed. They have bid on a property 10 times and 10 times they have failed. For the most recent bid, they decided to go way over asking price and they failed. She is giving up hope. She is asking what she is doing wrong. I said she is not doing anything wrong; it is the government that does not understand the basic economic principles that are driving up housing costs. If the cost of something is too high, then supply is not keeping up with demand, so build more homes. There is another thing that our federal government does not seem to get. The Liberals did not anticipate what pumping billions of dollars of liquidity into the marketplace in response to the pandemic was going to do to inflation. There is billions of dollars of cash out there, and that is partially what is driving up prices. An idea the government could adopt from the Conservative Party's platform is to restrict the sale of homes to Canadians, rather than allow foreign investors to buy. I do not know how many of these 10 houses that Alison bid on went to a foreign investor, but it is a safe guess to say that foreign money has been driving up prices in Canada, making it nearly impossible for young families to buy a home. That is an idea the government could adopt from the Conservative platform. There are two ideas, as a matter of fact. First, increase the supply and work with other levels of government to find a way to increase the supply so that it meets demand. Second, adopt our proposal for a two-year ban on foreign investment in new housing. These are two great ideas. Please adopt them. I want to refer to what the Speech from the Throne says about truth and reconciliation. It says, “We know that reconciliation cannot come without truth. As the Government continues to respond to the Calls to Action, it will invest in that truth, including with the creation of a national monument to honour survivors”. I have spoken with residential school survivors who live in my riding, Kwantlen First Nation people, right next door to beautiful and historic Fort Langley. For them the memories are fresh, the pain is real and the anger is just below the surface. I asked what the government could do to help and what I could do as their member of Parliament to help. I did not ask them what they thought about a monument. I had not read that, and maybe a monument is a good idea. I will ask them the next time I meet them. However, this is what they told me they need and what their children are telling me they need: They want local care for seniors designed by first nations for first nations at home on reserve, not in an institution. The survivors of residential schools do not trust government-sponsored institutions. They do not want institutional care. What they are looking for is long-term care on reserve. A study was brought to my attention, a report of the Standing Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs, from the 42nd Parliament, dated December 2018. It is entitled “The Challenges of Delivering Continuing Care in First Nations Communities”, and I suspect it is just sitting on the shelf and being ignored. The people in my community are well aware of it and have found some very interesting things in it. As the member of Parliament for Langley—Aldergrove, I will be advocating for them and their community to get them what they need: real, true reconciliation and long-term care for seniors on reserve.

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.)

Jan/31/22 3:56:34 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the member talked about how Canadians step up when a crisis looms. He used the example of British Columbia, and it is an excellent example because Canadians from coast to coast to coast recognized the flooding and things that were taking place there. The contributions were quite immense, and they supported the people of B.C. in hard hit areas. It is the same idea with regard to the coronavirus. We have seen different levels of government, non-profit organizations and private companies coming together. Could the member provide his thoughts on how we as a society benefit when we see that sort of cohesion in working and dealing with the things we need to overcome?

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Mr. Tako Van Popta

Jan/31/22 3:57:32 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I agree completely that Canadians do step up and help fellow Canadians. There are so many great charitable organizations that are doing really good work. They should have the support of the government. The government cannot solve every problem; the government is not the best at solving every problem. We need to allow free enterprise, people with charitable intent and the many well-run charitable organizations to step up and do their part. The government just needs to help them.

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

Jan/31/22 3:58:17 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, my colleague mentioned, as did the previous questioner, the terrible floods we had in British Columbia last November. It was a terrible year in British Columbia, with the fires that destroyed Lytton and the fires through the southern interior, including in my riding. It is clear that we are being impacted by climate change right now. We do have to commit to mitigating these issues. We have to stop putting carbon in the atmosphere so that this does not get any worse. It is clear that we are being impacted right now. Does he think the federal government should be more ambitious in funding climate adaptation projects, things like FireSmarting communities and reinforcing infrastructure to help stop flooding? Should we not be upping the game in that department?

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Mr. Tako Van Popta

Jan/31/22 3:59:19 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I know the member opposite's riding was also impacted by the recent flooding, so he would have first-hand experience with how significant that has been. Yes, absolutely, the government has to step up with very serious dialogue about climate adaptation. It is glaringly obvious that it needs to be done. It should have been done 10 years ago. It should have been done 20 years ago. Now is the time to get it done.

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Mr. Ziad Aboultaif (Edmonton Manning, CPC)

Jan/31/22 3:59:54 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, there is never a conversation with friends here in Ottawa or back home where the housing crisis does not come up. People are confused, concerned and not happy. Even if the value of their homes is increasing, they are not happy because they are scared. The first question they ask is what the government is doing about it. To my hon. colleague, what is the government doing about the housing crisis?

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Mr. Tako Van Popta

Jan/31/22 4:00:23 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, clearly the government is not doing enough. I just gave two suggestions that the government could do. It could increase the housing supply. I know there is lots of talk of that, but there is very little action. Alison is a perfect example: She is waiting for results that are just not happening. There should also be restrictions on foreign ownership. Those would be two really good things.

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Mr. Mark Gerretsen (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons (Senate), Lib.)

Jan/31/22 4:01:04 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I believe if you seek it, you will find unanimous consent for the following motion. I move that the second report of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, presented to the House earlier this day, be concurred in.

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The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Carol Hughes)

Jan/31/22 4:01:04 p.m.
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All those opposed to the hon. parliamentary secretary moving the motion will please say nay. The House has heard the terms of the motion. All those opposed to the motion will please say nay.

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Mrs. Stephanie Kusie (Calgary Midnapore, CPC)

Jan/31/22 4:01:31 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is always a pleasure to be in the House of Commons representing the wonderful people of Calgary Midnapore. I want to recognize the fantastic speech given by my colleague, the member for Langley—Aldergrove. He always speaks with so much wisdom and local experience when he speaks to what he has seen in his community. I was asked today to speak specifically about foreign affairs in response to the Speech from the Throne as a result of my time at Global Affairs Canada. Page 23 of the Speech from the Throne holds special importance regarding foreign affairs. The title of this section says, “This is the moment to fight for a secure, just, and equitable world.” This is the moment. Page 23 goes on to say, “In the face of rising authoritarianism and great power competition, Canada must reinforce international peace and security, the rule of law, democracy, and respect for human rights.” This is the moment. Frankly, when I look at the last six years and the Liberal government's approach to foreign policy, I would not say this is the moment. I would ask, when is the moment? I think it is impossible to be here in the House today and not mention what is going on in the capital. We should ask ourselves what brought these individuals here. Was it indifference, being ignored, not being heard? Canadians are sick of the division. They are sick of being treated as less than. They are sick of being gaslighted, as we saw in the House earlier today. They are sick of being told that their feelings are not valid. The government brought this group to Parliament Hill today. When Canadians voted, there was a plurality of Conservative votes, frankly, so when the Prime Minister talks about an obstructionist agenda, it is actually him obstructing the plurality of Canadian votes. I thought more about this. There is the same approach to foreign affairs as there is to everything the government does, and it is applied in all that it does: arrogance and indifference to the minority. It does not affect their electoral chances, so who cares? It is the same approach regarding foreign affairs. That is why there is no consistent foreign policy from the government. I will remind the government that we cannot conduct foreign affairs through social media, selfies and tweets. I ask again: When is the moment? If I look back on the actions of the government toward the major foreign affairs activities that have taken place in our world since the Liberals have been in office, I have the same question: When is the moment? We can look at Venezuela, for example, where there was no clear offer from the government to mediate the conflict. The government ignored the roles of Russia and China in aggravating the conflict in this country. Any assistance that came was always too little, too late. In fact, in Digest Venezuela today, it was reported that 96% of Venezuelans are living in poverty. This is even before we start to consider regional influences and the lack of help Venezuela has had within the region regarding migrants going to other places and those sorts of tolls. I ask again: When is the moment? When we think about Saudi Arabia, the Deputy Prime Minister used Twitter, of all facilities and methods, to speak out against the kingdom following the imprisonment of civil society activists on women's rights. She used Twitter, social media, when diplomacy should have been used, which is again a fault of the current government. What the government was able to do was expedite an export permit for $1.5 billion in arms to Saudi Arabia. That is pretty interesting when we consider what is going on in Ukraine today. The government did not speak up in December of 2018 when we saw the murder of journalist Khashoggi. I ask again: When is the moment with the current government? Regarding Hungary, since Orbán came into power we have seen him centralize that power. He has weakened the rule of law. He has taken away academic freedom and freedom of the press. Again, the current government has not taken a strong position against this leader who continues to infringe upon democratic rights and rules. I ask again: When is the moment? Then we have China. How can we forget China and the lack of action we have seen from the current government when China messes with our export market when it comes to soy and pork? The government did not stand up for us. Who can forget the story of the two Michaels? My own colleagues from Global Affairs Canada actually reached out to me to say that I needed to speak up on this and that more had to be done to help these individuals. It was again the weakness of the government, with no clear values and using social media, that resulted in such a lack of action and poor stance. Who can forget the plight of the Uighurs? We saw within the House a motion passed to support them, to stand up for their rights in China, yet the current government has done nothing since that time. I ask again: When is the moment? As the shadow minister for transport, I oversaw the heartbreaking study and injustice with respect to PS752. The current government did little more than a study, not to mention that the House passed a motion, once again, that we hoped would see the IRGC placed on the list of terrorists. The government does this all the time. It has a complete disregard for what the House decides to do. Whether it's with respect to the IRGC, the Uighurs or the documents regarding the lab in Winnipeg, the government has had a complete disregard for the House, never mind Canadians and the Canadians who are on Parliament Hill today. I ask again: When is the moment? The U.S.A. was previously our best friend, our closest ally. Then Trump got in and the Liberals would compare the opposition to him. Then Biden comes along, and they find out that they are actually powerless. When they went to the three amigos summit, it was not the three amigos summit. It was more like Canada: the third wheel. We got no wins out of CUSMA whatsoever, so I ask again: When is the moment? Finally, we come to Russia today, where we are seeing Ukraine, a close friend of Canada, not being given the help and support it deserves. I will tell the House when the moment was. The Conservatives have always stood for the strong values of justice, democracy, prosperity and the rule of law. Every decision made in a Conservative government was one of clarity and transparency, in complete opposition to the actions and positions of the current government. There was no foreign policy based on social media and no reactive foreign policy. That was the moment. Today is not the moment. Look outside. We must listen. We must understand. How we do something is how we do anything, at home or abroad. It is not “this is the moment”. It is “when is the moment?”

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Mr. Mark Gerretsen (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons (Senate), Lib.)

Jan/31/22 4:11:32 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, when I was on the defence committee a number of years ago, we had the opportunity to go to Ukraine, meet with government officials and talk about the efforts that Canada was making in Ukraine. We sat with the chair of their defence committee at one point. He looked at us and said that other countries wanted to be involved in Ukraine because Canada was there and because of Canada's leadership on this front. It had nothing to do with the politicians. It had nothing to do with Liberals. It had nothing to do with Conservatives. What it had to do with was our men and women who were on the ground, the way that they engaged with Ukrainian people and the way that they engaged with other countries who were there as part of Operation Reassurance and Operation Unifier. Does the member not see that there is tremendous benefit to Canada's contribution in Ukraine?

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Mrs. Stephanie Kusie

Jan/31/22 4:12:37 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the reality is that engagement in foreign affairs is at the lowest level it has been since 2015, both in developmental aid and election observations around the world, which have been completely pulled down by the current government. The member can certainly stand there and talk about the good feelings and the example that he feels the men and women there have set. I wish he and his government and their leadership would do the same.

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

Jan/31/22 4:13:25 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for her speech. I would also like to thank my colleagues for their presence today and wish them a good session. My colleague mentioned what is happening on Parliament Hill right now. It is troubling to see what is happening and to see people who are fed up with the situation. There is a sense of collective frustration, and we are all feeling it. Some demands are more legitimate than others: the right to protest, for example. As I said earlier, this is an unusual situation, because there is no single leader representing everyone and issuing one specific demand. Rather, there are several. How do we negotiate and talk with them? What does my colleague think the government should do in this situation?

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Mrs. Stephanie Kusie

Jan/31/22 4:14:09 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I think that, even though there is not a single leader, the group is made up of a lot of people who represent different segments of the population across Canada. The reason these people are here is because they have an opportunity to make themselves heard and tell us why they have problems and feel frustrated. I think that, as members from across the country, we have a responsibility to listen to them.

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Mr. Alistair MacGregor (Cowichan—Malahat—Langford, NDP)

Jan/31/22 4:14:55 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate that my colleague spent a lot of time during her speech talking about Canada's role in the world and how we should use our foreign affairs resources. Many countries in the world right now are dealing with the detrimental effects of climate change, and we know those effects are only going to get worse as the years go by. I wonder if my colleague can inform the House of any practical things the Government of Canada could be doing vis-à-vis those countries, whether it is in direct aid or sending Canada's expertise and know-how to help those countries deal with the everlasting effects of climate change and how much worse it is making it for their home populations.

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Mrs. Stephanie Kusie

Jan/31/22 4:15:43 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the reality is that when we promote democracy, justice, the rule of law and human rights, as Conservative governments have always done, we create opportunities to have better social environments, better living environments and better environmental environments. I think that we have the same objective, which is to have a better world, but I believe that we need democracy, rule of law, human rights and an effort to have these as the building blocks and the base for a better world for everything.

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Mr. Kody Blois (Kings—Hants, Lib.)

Jan/31/22 4:16:26 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I will be splitting my time this afternoon with the member for Kitchener South—Hespeler. Happy new year to you, Madam Speaker, to my colleagues and indeed to all Canadians as we return to Parliament. Normally, I debate and provide my remarks in the House quite off the cuff. However, today I have sought to choose my words very carefully, because the circumstances warrant that I do. Today, we are debating the Speech from the Throne, the document that laid out the priorities of this government and was read by the Governor General before Christmas. The document is intentionally broad in its scope, outlining the issues of the day: climate change, reconciliation, economic recovery and, perhaps most important in the short term, getting us collectively through to the other side of this pandemic. The government launched a series of measures: first and foremost, the procurement of vaccines for all Canadians and booster shots to combat the wave of the omicron variant; then vaccine mandates for professions under federal jurisdiction; continued purchasing of rapid tests for provinces; and income supports for individuals and businesses who have been impacted by health protocols, all to prevent our health care system from being overwhelmed. Most Canadians have embraced vaccinations, with over 80% of our citizens vaccinated, one of the highest vaccination rates in the world. However, I would be remiss if I did not use this opportunity to provide my thoughts on those who have objected and who have chosen to protest at events like we have seen this weekend and which continue outside this chamber as we speak. My father was a truck driver. His name was Gordon Douglas Blois. He left high school at a young age and worked hard to provide for our family. I am so proud to stand here today as a member of Parliament whose dad drove a truck. Let me go on record thanking the men and women who are truck drivers and other essential workers, who show up for work to make an honest living, contributing in an invaluable way to our society. If there has been perhaps one silver lining of this pandemic, it may be the greater emphasis and understanding of the importance of our sometimes unsung heroes. What is my take on the so-called “Freedom Convoy” that has arrived in Ottawa? Let me first acknowledge that I am sympathetic to Canadians who are tired, frustrated and, frankly, want this pandemic to be over. I share that desire too and, frankly, I think we are all waiting to get to the new normal. I am also sympathetic to an individual who wants to protest and make their voice heard on government policy and decision-making. We live in a democracy where freedom of assembly is a constitutionally protected right. However, what we saw this weekend was not simply truckers showing up for a protest. We saw swastikas and Confederate flags, both symbols of hate. We saw people harassing journalists, urinating on and disrespecting the National War Memorial, intimidating and stealing from a food bank, and desecrating a statue of our national hero, Terry Fox. While there may be truckers as part of this crowd, they are certainly not sanctioned by the organization that speaks for truckers, and the prevailing voice of the past four days is one of a much more sinister crowd and outlook. The goal seems to be less about raising the issue of vaccine requirements at the border, and more about overthrowing government and eliminating any public health measure to protect against COVID-19. While I have concerns as to why individuals do not want to follow public health advice and do not want to get vaccinated, we must balance individual freedoms with collective freedoms. Let me explain. No one in Canada is being forced to take a vaccine. However, for those who choose not to vaccinate, there are consequences to those individual choices. Provincial and territorial governments along with the Government of Canada are imposing restrictions on those who have made an individual choice to not vaccinate in order to protect the collective well-being of those who have made their own individual choice to follow the recommendations of public health, to follow the science and to be vaccinated. The protesters outside have freedom. They just do not like the consequences of their choice. Why is all of this being done? It is not a global ploy to control the masses. It is not governments installing microchips through the vaccine. It is because there is an overwhelming disparity among those who are unvaccinated in the number of ICU cases in the public health system across the country as a result of COVID-19. In Nova Scotia, 44% of ICU cases are from a population representing just 9% of Nova Scotians: those who are unvaccinated. This brings us back to freedom. Where is the freedom for individuals whose life-saving surgeries have been delayed because hospital beds are being taken up by individuals who chose not to follow the recommendations from public health? One of my constituents, Mark Clark, a dedicated community volunteer, requires open heart surgery, but he must wait because there is a lack of beds in Nova Scotia. Where is his freedom? Who is protecting his right to life, liberty and security? It is certainly not the individuals who are screaming of freedom outside. It also bears repeating that the policy that was supposedly the impetus for this protest, the inability for unvaccinated truck drivers to travel across the border, is being imposed by the United States, not the Government of Canada. Yes, Canada is reciprocating for American truck drivers; however, these decisions are driven to protect our collective well-being. The world will not fall apart. Our supply chain will continue to be strained, as is the case around the world, but we will not go hungry in this country for the decision of the 10% of individuals who are exercising their choice to not get vaccinated. Perhaps what is most concerning is how certain members of this House have sought to give credibility to what we have seen this weekend, in particular the member for Carleton. Not only has he not condemned the blatant disrespect of a national war memorial and our national hero Terry Fox, but he has also not made clear whether or not he supports eliminating all health-related protocols to the pandemic, as this group of protestors is calling for. In fact, it raises the question of where the Conservative Party of Canada stands on this issue. Does it support the idea of eliminating all health-related protocols immediately? How long will these individuals stay in Ottawa? We heard from the government House leader earlier today the call for these protestors to go home. The mayor of Ottawa has certainly called for the same thing, as have local residents. Members will recall in early 2020 there were protests across the country following a dispute on Wet'suwet'en territory that led to a blocking of highways, bridges and railroads. Many Conservative members of this House were quick to call for the police to intervene. I agree with that proposition, that protestors, regardless of their issue, should not be allowed to shut down public infrastructure. What hypocrisy it would be if Conservative members in the House were to stay silent and not call for these protestors to remove their vehicles from the downtown. Sure, if these individuals want to continue to demonstrate and picket on Parliament Hill, they can fill their boots, but shutting down the corridor of our capital city cannot continue. I believe it is incumbent on all governments of all levels and all political stripes to be mindful of the importance of demonstrating and explaining in detail to Canadians how health-related protocols will help get us to the other side of the pandemic. This ties back, of course, to what I said, which is that there is a growing frustration and fatigue. As fatigue sets in, it will be important for Canadians who understand the importance of collective sacrifice to see the path beyond COVID-19. We colleagues, as parliamentarians, and indeed all elected officials, need to be mindful that our actions and our words have consequences. Of course, we must stick to our principles and beliefs, but we must not drive rhetoric or half-truths simply for partisan gain. It undermines our collective ability to come together, and it further fragments society and the communities and constituencies we represent. Finally, Canadians are closing in on the two-year anniversary of COVID-19 going from a far-flung concern in Asia to impacting our lives directly. Governments have worked to protect our collective well-being by implementing a series of measures to reduce the spread of a novel virus. Has the government done this perfectly? It has absolutely not. Have there been impacts and sacrifices? There undoubtedly have been. However, in a short period we have developed vaccines that give us greater protection. We have avoided a complete collapse of our health care system and saved thousands of lives in the process. While our sacrifice is different, there are parallels to the collective effort of the nation during the world wars. Generations before us have met their own generational challenge, and we too must continue to rise to meet our challenge of today. Together, we will get to the other side and, collectively, we will all be better off as a result.

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Mr. Brad Vis (Mission—Matsqui—Fraser Canyon, CPC)

Jan/31/22 4:26:32 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, earlier today, on my way to the agriculture committee with the hon. member, I spoke to some police officers from the Ottawa police force and the Toronto police force in town. I asked them how the weekend went and how things were going today, and they said that there were definitely some bad apples. As the grandson of grandparents from the Netherlands who suffered under Nazi occupation, I was brought to tears by the hate that I saw this weekend. Even seeing that flag in the nation's capital brought distress because it has impacted my family directly. The member talked about hospital capacity. Is it not wrong that we have spent so much money in the last two years, and I cannot point to a single new hospital in this country?

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