44th Parl. 1st Sess.
May 9, 2022 11:00AM
- May/9/22 2:19:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, today marks the beginning of National Mining Week. The focus of Mining Week is to highlight the innovations and accomplishments made by the mining industry and showcase the idea of advancing the industry to become more sustainable and environmentally sound. Canada's mining industry is essential to the products that we rely on as an economic driver and major employer in communities all across the country. In Northern Ontario alone, over 23,000 are employed, generating $5.5 billion in annual revenue.
I want to recognize and thank the mining industry in Canada, which continues to make large strides to ensure safety is at the forefront of its operations, while also working hard to enable a low-carbon future. Specifically, I would like to recognize the incredible efforts made by the Mining Association of Canada and its commitment to advocating for the mining and mining supply sectors across the country.
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- May/9/22 2:20:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, flooding has been affecting communities across Manitoba, particularly in my riding of Portage—Lisgar, and although there was warm weather and wind this past weekend, which helped, we are hearing that there is more heavy rain in the forecast today. Resources are quickly being used up, and people are exhausted. Communities are tired of being isolated and cut off from the rest of the province.
Can the Minister of Emergency Preparedness tell us what, if anything, the federal government is doing to help those affected by flooding in Manitoba?
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- May/9/22 2:21:02 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we are very much engaged with the Province of Manitoba and the impacted communities. Flooding continues to affect multiple communities across the province due to high water levels on the Red River and its tributaries. We have been working very closely through our Government Operations Centre and Indigenous Services Canada with the Manitoba Emergency Coordination Centre.
I have reached out a number of times to my counterpart, Minister Piwniuk. We are in regular contact, and we have offered every assistance that Manitoba may require. At this point, Manitoba advises that the flood response remains within provincial capabilities, but we have also engaged with the Red Cross to assist with evacuations, and we are working with the municipalities, 26 of which have declared states of local emergency.
We will continue to be there for the people of Manitoba.
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- May/9/22 2:21:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberals invoked the Emergencies Act without just cause, and they are now trying to cover it up. The government used extraordinary power on innocent Canadians, restricting their movement and freezing their bank accounts, and now they are trying to cover up the fact that they did not need to use the act.
As Perrin Beatty, the author of the Emergencies Act, said, “wherever you have extraordinary powers, there must be extraordinary accountability.” Where is the “extraordinary accountability” that Canadians deserve? What are the Liberals trying to hide when it comes to the Emergencies Act?
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- May/9/22 2:22:38 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the accountability comes in the professionalism and the way the police undertook their work to restore public safety. There is accountability is the ongoing way in which we are being fully transparent with the events that led to the invocation of the Emergencies Act, including testimony before the committee and our planned co-operation with Judge Rouleau.
We invoked the act because it was necessary. It worked, and we will continue to be transparent about this.
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- May/9/22 2:23:04 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberals' “just trust us” is not enough. This is the same Prime Minister who covered up his involvement in the SNC-Lavalin scandal. He covered up his involvement in the WE scandal, and he is hiding documents right now about the Winnipeg microbiology lab. He covers up every single scandal that he is a part of, and now he is trying to cover up the fact that he was abusing his power when he invoked the Emergencies Act.
Why do the Liberals think Canadians should just trust them on the Emergencies Act when they continually hide, cover up and deflect?
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- May/9/22 2:23:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, with respect, it continues to be astounding how the hon. leader for the opposition continues to deflect her responsibility for her conduct during the Emergencies Act and for the posture of the Conservative Party, which continued to encourage illegal blockaders to stay. If they do not want to take it from the government, they can listen to what the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, which said that the Emergencies Act “is critical to assisting law enforcement in addressing the mass national and international organization of the [so-called] Freedom Convoy”. These are the words of law enforcement, non-partisan, professional law enforcement.
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- May/9/22 2:24:24 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, he must waive cabinet confidence.
Gas is at $2.04 a litre in Montreal, $2.04 in Newfoundland and $2.23 in British Columbia, and I am just talking about regular gas. It costs more than $100 for 50 litres of gas. Putting in $20 will not even get your gas gauge above empty. The Liberals are not even hiding the fact that they are happy the price of gas is so high.
When will the NDP‑Liberal government give Canadians some relief to help them make ends meet?
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- May/9/22 2:25:03 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, at a time when all members of the House should stand united in response to Putin's illegal invasion of Ukraine, the Conservatives are just playing politics.
They know that the recent rise in gas prices is the result of this illegal war, but they continue to ignore these facts in an attempt to score political points. While the Conservatives remain focused on politics, we are focused on implementing real measures to improve the lives of Canadians.
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- May/9/22 2:25:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would be interested in knowing how much extra revenue the government is getting from the carbon tax. It would be nice if it provided those figures instead of all kinds of excuses.
The rising cost of living is expensive for everyone. It costs more to go to work. It costs more to grow our fruits and vegetables. It costs more to transport goods.
As the Prime Minister himself said in 2018, he likes to tax everyone to cover his endless spending. In 2018, on the subject of rising gas prices, he said that is exactly what he wants. Is that really what he wants, to impoverish all Canadian families?
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- May/9/22 2:26:10 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, that is a serious issue and Canadians deserve a discussion rooted in facts, not partisan speaking points. The fact is that this is a global phenomenon caused, in large part, by Putin's illegal invasion of Ukraine.
We continue to propose concrete measures to make life more affordable for Canadians. The Conservatives continue to vote against them.
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Mr. Speaker, in a democracy, one of the most fundamental principles is no taxation without representation. In other words, no elected officials, no taxes. This is at the heart of modern democracy.
The budget and the budget implementation bill are therefore essential moments in democratic life and in its exercise.
Does anyone in the government realize the damage that is being done to democracy by stifling the voices of the opposition on the budget implementation bill?
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Mr. Speaker, debate is essential, but the problem on the other side of the House is the Conservative Party's obstructionist tactics, which continue day after day. It took four months to pass Bill C-8, and that is completely unacceptable.
Unfortunately, we need to work as quickly as possible. There will be several opportunities for debate in committee and at third reading.
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Mr. Speaker, the bill that just went under time allocation is 500 pages long. It contains 60 measures and amends 37 acts. Just reading it takes longer than the time we have to debate it.
It covers issues such as COVID‑19 support measures, employment insurance, fighting anti-Semitism, the Social Security Tribunal, aerospace and more.
Every one of these topics deserves its own fulsome debate, but, no, they are using time allocation to shove it down our throats. Why deny democracy like this?
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Mr. Speaker, we have spent five days trying to get this bill passed, but the problem with the Conservative Party is that it gets in the way of our work at every turn. That is what happened for four months with Bill C‑8.
That is also what is happening here at a time when Canadians are in dire need of these supports. We know beyond a doubt that the bill needs to be passed, and the committee and the House will have plenty of opportunities to keep debating the legislation.
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- May/9/22 2:28:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, while people are paying more and more for necessities, there is a bunch of bad apples lining their pockets.
In the seven years that this government has been in power, becoming a first-time homeowner has become an impossible dream, and it is getting harder and harder to find decent housing at an affordable price.
In the meantime, the housing market is overheating and there is a growing number of renovictions. Just yesterday, the federal housing advocate, Marie-Josée Houle, told us that Ottawa could address the crisis by combatting the financialization of housing. Will the Liberals listen?
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- May/9/22 2:29:37 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to take this opportunity to agree with the hon. member that we need to support renters throughout Canada. We are the government that introduced the Canada housing benefit, and in budget 2022, we are adding more investments in that program, with a top-up of $500 on average to vulnerable renters. This adds to the over $2,500 on average that we provide to the most vulnerable members of our community who need help with rent.
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- May/9/22 2:30:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canada's housing crisis has been escalated by those using the housing market to make huge profits. The largest 25 financial landlords hold nearly 20% of the country's private rentals. For every one affordable housing unit built, 15 are taken up by investors making money on the backs of Canadians.
It is time to stop treating housing as a stock market. Will the government stop corporate landlords from buying up affordable housing and help non-profits purchase them for Canadians?
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- May/9/22 2:30:51 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I agree with the hon. member that we need to build more rental housing in Canada. That is why, as part of the national housing strategy, we have the rental construction financing initiative, a program that has increased so many times over the last number of budgets because we recognize that as a government we have a responsibility to build the next generation of affordable rental units across the country. In addition to that, while we were building more rentals, we introduced the Canada housing benefit, which we are topping up in budget 2022.
We agree that we need to tackle speculation and agree that we need to build more rental housing, and that is exactly what we are doing.
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- May/9/22 2:31:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, millennials were told that if they got a bunch of degrees, a skilled trade and a good job, they would have no problem owning a home, yet they still live in their parents' basements. The government’s signature housing promise to solve this is a new savings account, but people need $8,000 a year in savings to use it. To add insult to injury, the government said that it will put $500 toward a house that people cannot afford, and that is not a typo.
The more the government does, the worse it gets. When will the minister actually help anybody in this country buy a home?
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