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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 77

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
May 30, 2022 11:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 77 - May/30/22
Hon. Joyce Murray
  • May/30/22 9:54:51 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I thank the member again for his interest in this program. Since its inception, the ghost gear fund has supported retrieval efforts by third party partners, resulting in more than 1,296 tonnes of ghost gear being removed from Canada's oceans, as well as collecting over 153 kilometres of rope. This represents more than 7,000 units of gear removed from our oceans over the past two years, reducing the threat of entrapment and ghost fishing, as well as reducing the threat of entanglement to marine mammals, including the endangered North Atlantic right whales. These efforts have been undertaken by dedicated and committed industry leaders, such as the Petty Harbour fishermen's association, which removed five tonnes of gear from Newfoundland waters. CSR GeoSurveys used sidescan sonar technology to identify lost gear hot spots and retrieve 14 tonnes of gear in the Gulf and Maritimes regions. On the west coast, the Coastal Restoration Society worked with indigenous partners to perform large-scale ghost gear removals on the west coast of Vancouver Island, removing over 286 tonnes of gear from abandoned aquaculture sites. The ghost gear fund is helping us clean up our oceans, leading to some amazing innovation in the sector. As a former digital government minister, I love the digital solutions that are being used here. I think we can all agree in this House that this has been a huge success and will continue to be so.
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Mr. Ryan Turnbull
  • May/30/22 9:56:38 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I appreciate the minister's highlighting the incredible results of this program. It is clearly innovative and paying off for our ocean and marine coastal ecosystems, which are essential to Canada's livelihoods and a good fishery sector.
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Hon. Joyce Murray
  • May/30/22 9:57:03 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I want to thank the member for his work and his interest on this matter. We will continue to get that ghost gear out of the water for the benefit of the fish and the products that we can make from this recycled gear.
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Mr. Dave Epp (Chatham-Kent—Leamington, CPC)
  • May/30/22 9:57:24 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I will be splitting my time with the member for Kelowna—Lake Country. Is the minister against people owning cottages to relax as a family and/or for their mental health?
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Hon. Joyce Murray (Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, Lib.)
  • May/30/22 9:57:40 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, that sounds wonderful. I am for cottages and relaxing with family for mental health.
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Mr. Dave Epp
  • May/30/22 9:57:47 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, cottages are outside the affordability of almost everyone. What is the difference between owning a cottage, or going to a cottage, and owning a boat, if that is how families choose to spend their leisure time?
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Hon. Joyce Murray
  • May/30/22 9:58:01 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I enjoy boating myself. It is recreation that is important to many Canadians, and I do not know that it is an either/or between a cottage and a boat.
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Mr. Dave Epp
  • May/30/22 9:58:17 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, what does the minister then say to the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, which says that the luxury tax does not hurt the rich but rather the employees of this sector?
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Hon. Joyce Murray
  • May/30/22 9:58:32 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I understand that there are some tax increases on luxury goods to help afford things like child care for those who need it.
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Mr. Dave Epp
  • May/30/22 9:58:49 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, the PBO has estimated that about $600 million will be lost in sales and has estimated about $176 million of taxes might be recouped by 2023. Does the minister feel that this is good value for Canadians?
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Hon. Joyce Murray
  • May/30/22 9:59:04 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, those are projections that I will not support or contest. Having a luxury tax that helps us support low-income Canadians is worthwhile.
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Mr. Dave Epp
  • May/30/22 9:59:16 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, will the luxury tax apply to vehicles that are just for business purposes?
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Hon. Joyce Murray
  • May/30/22 9:59:24 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I think the associate finance minister may have a quick answer to that question, but the fisheries minister does not.
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Mr. Dave Epp
  • May/30/22 9:59:37 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, how can you then justify supporting such a tax if you do not know if it will apply to businesses? How will you ensure that this will not apply to rental yachts, aerial tour planes, or limousines, or can you justify that the impact of this tax will be positive for Canadians and the boating sector?
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The Chair
  • May/30/22 9:59:53 p.m.
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I remind members to run their questions through the Chair. The hon. minister.
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Hon. Joyce Murray
  • May/30/22 9:59:58 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I will reassert that having a tax on boats that cost over $200,000, and being able to use that to defray expenses for those who need it the most, is a decision that we have made as a government to reduce income inequality.
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Mr. Dave Epp
  • May/30/22 10:00:25 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, why was Canada behind on our obligation to the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement?
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Hon. Joyce Murray
  • May/30/22 10:00:34 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, in terms of the Great Lakes Commission, we have funded it to the tune of another $9 million a year in the recent budget.
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Mr. Dave Epp
  • May/30/22 10:00:48 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, was it to ensure that this obligation was met?
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Hon. Joyce Murray
  • May/30/22 10:00:55 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, our obligation is to be a good partner with the United States in helping to protect the waters of the Great Lakes from invasive species like sea lamprey, and we have almost doubled our funding just for that.
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