44th Parl. 1st Sess.
March 31, 2022 10:00AM
- Mar/31/22 2:57:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, let us come back to the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, which was asked yesterday what more the Canadian government could do to help. The answer was this: Relax the visa application process and help with travel. Send planes to bring these good people to Canada. Right now, they have to foot the bill and find their own way to Canada.
These people found a way to flee the war. The minister must now find a way to bring them to Canada. We have been saying for a month now that planes need to be sent in.
When is the minister going to wake up and charter flights?
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- Mar/31/22 2:58:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I remind the hon. member that typically refugee resettlement programs take years to implement to welcome people in large numbers. Over the past number of weeks, we have implemented new programs to allow those in Canada to stay. We have waived fees for new applications. We have found every application by a Ukrainian national that is in our queue already and are processing those applications in a priority way.
We introduced a new program so that people could get here in two weeks. We just this week extended new settlement supports to make sure people have language training and that they have access to employment assistance. We are continuing to do everything we can to support people. We will not stop and we will continue to introduce new measures to make it easier for them to get here.
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- Mar/31/22 2:59:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, when the government's decision put salmon farms in the Discovery Islands on notice, there was no transition plan for affected workers. Now, 15 months later, the government has spent over $20 million in PR exercises, but not a dime for worker transitions. The government's decision on the Discovery Islands deadline is three months away and there are still no transition supports for the workers who have lost or will lose their jobs.
Will the government provide targeted transition resources for displaced workers?
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- Mar/31/22 2:59:45 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am committed to implementing a responsible plan to transition away from open-net pen salmon farming in coastal British Columbian waters. As confirmed by my mandate letter and as a west coaster, I know just how important this transition will be.
Last year, the department held preliminary engagements with first nations and many other stakeholders. That report was published last July and will be critical in developing our plan forward. We are going to do a lot more consultation, and budget 2021 provided funds to do just that.
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- Mar/31/22 3:00:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, there is still no answer for workers. With regard to the expropriation of quota from crab and elver fishers, the minister told the fisheries committee that no decisions have been made on either the crab or elver fishery, yet DFO officials have written to crab fishers that the quota cut of 50% was final. They also told elver fishers that the 14% cut was final.
Does the minister understand that this will hurt the industry and kill jobs?
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- Mar/31/22 3:01:02 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, indigenous communities have a court-ordered right to fish in their traditional waters or to fish for a moderate livelihood. It is a principle of our government to satisfy those rights. There is not always the ability to add quota to satisfy those rights while also maintaining conservation of the stock for the long term, which is absolutely critical. That is why we have been in consultation with the crab fishers and the elver harvesters to have an industry-led way forward on these matters.
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- Mar/31/22 3:01:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, wharves are the Trans-Canada Highway of our commercial fishery. Without them, there would be no fishery.
They are a collective asset for the whole country, but the Liberals do not see the small craft harbours program that way. The Liberals see it as being just for Liberals. Here are the facts. In 2021, 74% of all projects went to Liberal ridings. Also, 15 of the 19 ridings that received more than one project were Liberal, and 20 of the 24 largest projects went to Liberal ridings.
This is just more misappropriation of funds for partisan purposes. As my colleague from Lévis—Lotbinière said, it is a scandal.
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- Mar/31/22 3:02:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I understand the importance of small craft harbours to rural fishers who depend on these facilities for their livelihoods. Livelihoods such as fishing, farming and tourism build resilience in rural and coastal communities.
It is a non-partisan program. The Conservatives did not invest in harbours, and we invested $1 billion in a new fund under the small craft harbours program.
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- Mar/31/22 3:03:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as we all know, tax season is now half over. Millions of Canadians have already completed and filed their tax returns, and many others are about to join them by filing their returns in the next few days.
Can the Minister of Revenue tell us how this year's tax season is going?
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- Mar/31/22 3:04:00 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Marc‑Aurèle‑Fortin for his question and for his work.
Tax season is going well thanks to all the employees of the Canada Revenue Agency, who are doing an extraordinary job day after day. I would also like to take a moment to remind Canadians that they should file their returns by the deadline to receive the benefits and credits to which they are entitled as quickly as possible.
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- Mar/31/22 3:04:32 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, invasive zebra and quagga mussels are devastating the ecology of waterways. They are harming natural species and ruining beaches, and they are costly to waterway infrastructure. Last summer, 17 boats were confirmed carrying invasive mussels coming into British Columbia.
With the summer fast approaching, we cannot have another year of inaction. DFO has a responsibility to stop the spread. What is the NDP-Liberal minister's plan to stop the spread of invasive mussels from coming to western Canada?
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- Mar/31/22 3:05:07 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, my department is very seized with preventing and dealing with invasive species that are indeed a scourge of Canadian waters from east to west. We recently actually stopped zebra mussels from coming—
Some hon. members: Oh, oh!
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- Mar/31/22 3:05:27 p.m.
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Order. As much as I like the fisheries questions, I like the fisheries answers and I want to be able to hear them.
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- Mar/31/22 3:05:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as I was saying, my department and I have a very important responsibility to stop, and to prevent and reduce, the invasive species in the waters across Canada. Zebra mussels were discovered through work that my ministry did with our border agency. They were coming into Canada from aquarium supplies, and we stopped that. This is something we are seized with. We will continue to work on it, and our budget allows us to do just that.
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- Mar/31/22 3:06:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, salmon anglers in my province have been told that a decision is being made to stop all retention of salmon in the upcoming season. Last year, the Exploits River had returns that were nearly double the average returns for the past 10 years. Stopping salmon retention will take anglers off the rivers and put poachers in the driver's seat. Given that many rivers were stable or up in their returns last year, there is no reason to take away the right to retain salmon. In fact, retention of salmon can be increased.
Will the minister allow local anglers to retain salmon this year in Newfoundland and Labrador?
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- Mar/31/22 3:06:58 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would say that on both coasts, west and east, wild salmon are incredibly important to our government and to the people of this country. Any measures that we put in place are to protect and to help regrow the stocks of wild salmon. We are very engaged with the sports fisher community on both coasts. In fact, I met with a group of sport fishers just yesterday who were salmon fishers.
Yes, we want to enable the sport fishing community to fish. At the same time, we are working with them and others to make sure that we sustain these populations and regrow them for the generations to come.
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Mr. Speaker, tomorrow, the tax on beer, wine and spirits will increase automatically thanks to the government's excise escalator. Today, I tabled Bill C-266 to repeal this automatic annual tax increase.
Under the government, simple pleasures such as enjoying a beer with friends after work, or a bottle of wine over dinner with a loved one, are increasingly unaffordable for working people.
Will the government give Canadian brewers, vintners, distillers and especially consumers a break, and support Bill C-266?
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Mr. Speaker, we will wait another week to see all the great contents of budget 2022, but what I can do is use this opportunity to hold the Conservatives accountable for their own record on affordability.
Let us get into it: we lowered the taxes for the middle class twice and raised them on the wealthiest 1%. What did the Conservatives do? They voted against it. We created the Canada child benefit and indexed it. What did the Conservatives do? They voted against it. We got tourism businesses all the way through omicron, and what did the Conservatives do? They voted against it.
We will stand for Canadians and affordability, each and every day.
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- Mar/31/22 3:09:07 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, over a month ago, Russia began an unprovoked, full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Ukrainian people have been very courageous in defending their homeland, but the situation is dire.
They are fighting for their very existence. There is a humanitarian crisis, and this is a threat to Canada's security, to global security and to Europe's security. Ukrainians are not only fighting for themselves, but they are fighting for us.
Could the Minister of Foreign Affairs please share with Canadians what Canada is doing to support the people of Ukraine?
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- Mar/31/22 3:09:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canada has one of the strongest relationships in the world with Ukraine, and we stand with Ukrainians in the face of this further invasion by Russia. We will continue to put maximum pressure on the Russian regime. We have imposed strong sanctions. We will send more lethal weapons, but we know we have to do more. We will do more. That is the reason why more sanctions are coming.
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