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Mr. Arnold Viersen (Peace River—Westlock, CPC)

Jun/6/22 3:31:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the second petition I am presenting today is from people from across Canada who want to review the National Advisory Committee on Immunization's finding that there was no transmission of COVID-19 on airplanes. According to WestJet's chief medical officer, Tammy McKnight, on April 23, 2021, “there have been no known cases of COVID-19 transmission onboard...aircraft.” Therefore, the undersigned citizens of Canada are calling on the Minister of Transport and the Government of Canada to abolish the vaccine requirements for folks flying, both Canadians citizens and permanent residents, on domestic flights and all federally regulated industries and the COVID-19 mandates.

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Mr. Arnold Viersen (Peace River—Westlock, CPC)

Jun/6/22 3:31:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the final petition I have today is from Canadians from across the country. They are calling on the government to protect human life at every stage of human development. Petitioners are calling on the government to support measures that protect human life and, as they note, all human life should be protected from the moment human life begins, which is at conception.

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Mr. Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, CPC)

Jun/6/22 3:31:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, today we have on the Hill with us Mr. Enes Kanter Freedom, who is an NBA player and a well-known human rights activist. In the process of welcoming him, I am pleased to present this first petition, which is calling on the House to formally recognize that Uighurs and other Turkic Muslims in China have been and are being subjected to an ongoing genocide. Petitioners note the various forms in which this genocide is taking place, including forced sterilization, forced abortion and other acts of violence, such as arbitrary detention, separation of children from families, invasive surveillance, putting people in concentration camps and forced organ harvesting. In addition to asking the government to recognize the Uighur genocide, petitioners want to see the government use the Justice for Victims of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act, the Magnitsky act, to sanction those responsible for the heinous crimes being committed against the Uighur people. The second petition I am tabling is also in relation to Uighur human rights. In particular, it highlights the case of Mr. Huseyin Celil, who is a Canadian citizen of Uighur ethnic origin. He is currently detained in China. He faces arbitrary detention. He has been there for over a decade and a half. Petitioners were pleased to see the release of the two Michaels. They want to see the Government of Canada make similar efforts with respect to seeking the release of Mr. Celil, who is in a similar situation, facing ongoing arbitrary detention by the Chinese Communist Party. In particular, the petitioners want the government to demand that the Chinese government recognize Mr. Celil's Canadian citizenship and provide him with consular and legal services in accordance with international law; formally state that the release of Mr. Celil from detainment and return to Canada is a priority for the Canadian government, of concern equal to the unjust detention of the two Michaels; appoint a special envoy to work on securing Mr. Celil's release; and seek the assistance of the Biden administration and other allies around the world in obtaining Mr. Celil's release.

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Mr. Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, CPC)

Jun/6/22 3:34:58 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the third petition that I am tabling is on an important domestic economic matter. It highlights how the government's system of carbon taxation and the GST being applied amounts to double taxation on essential goods and services and additional costs for consumers. Particularly at this time when so many Canadians are struggling with affordability challenges as a result of high gas prices, petitioners want to see the Government of Canada eliminate the GST on the federal carbon tax levies and other additional costs that the newly announced charges create.

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Mr. Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, CPC)

Jun/6/22 3:34:58 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the last petition I will table is in support of the bill currently before the House on forced organ harvesting and trafficking. This bill has been adopted unanimously at second reading and is now before a committee of Parliament. Petitioners hope that this is the Parliament that finally successfully passes legislation to prohibit Canadian complicity in forced organ harvesting and trafficking.

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Mr. Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, CPC)

Jun/6/22 3:34:58 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the next petition I am tabling highlights the human rights abuses targeting Falun Gong practitioners in China. In particular, petitioners want to see the government apply sanctions to those involved in the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners.

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

Jun/6/22 3:35:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would ask that all questions be allowed to stand at this time. The Speaker: Is that agreed? Some hon. members: Agreed.

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Stand

The Speaker

Jun/6/22 3:35:23 p.m.
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There is a request for an emergency debate from the hon. member for Edmonton Strathcona.

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Ms. Heather McPherson (Edmonton Strathcona, NDP)

Jun/6/22 3:35:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to request an emergency debate on the impacts of the war on Ukraine on the global food crisis. Over the weekend, Russia destroyed a major grain export terminal in Ukraine. This terminal plays a crucial role in international food security. The attack on this grain terminal is not only an attack on Ukraine, but it is an attack on millions of people around the world who are dependent on Ukrainian grain. The war in Ukraine has exacerbated food insecurity that was already at record highs due to COVID-19 and climate change. Crop failures, food shortages and skyrocketing prices on basic supplies have led humanitarian and development organizations to sound the alarm. The World Food Programme has warned the war in Ukraine is disrupting the global wheat trade, impacting food prices and food security globally. Currently, half of the wheat that the World Food Programme needs is stuck inside silos and ships blocked in the port of Odessa, while millions of hungry people in places like Lebanon, Yemen, Ethiopia, Syria and Afghanistan are suffering the consequences of the blockade. Just last week, The Globe and Mail reported that Canada has been asked to join a proposed effort to restart grain shipments from the port of Odessa. Parliamentarians should be debating this request with urgency. I would like to suggest that the foreign affairs committee study this urgent issue. In fact, I know that my colleague, the MP for Montarville, has suggested such a study. Unfortunately, the Conservative foreign affairs critic, the MP for Wellington—Halton Hills, and the international development critic, the MP for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, have filibustered the foreign affairs committee for close to 18 hours. They have denied committee members the opportunity to show our solidarity with the people of Ukraine. When as parliamentarians we are prevented from undertaking vital work within committee, it is urgent that the work be done within the House. This issue is too important. It affects too many people and it is too urgent to wait. The next G7 meeting will be held in Germany in only a few weeks' time and the NATO summit in Madrid will take place at the end of June. These are crucial meetings and the Government of Canada must ensure the impact of the war on Ukraine on the global food crisis is debated within the House. I thank you for your consideration, Mr. Speaker.

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Mr. Garnett Genuis

Jun/6/22 3:38:01 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, although I am actually supportive of the idea behind this, I do want to have clarified if the member's inaccurately characterizing events at the foreign affairs committee is consistent with what is supposed to happen under the rubric of requests for emergency debate. The member made a number of comments that are just wholly inaccurate. Conservatives have sought to adjourn the existing debate at the foreign affairs meeting—

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The Speaker

Jun/6/22 3:38:26 p.m.
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I am afraid we are getting into debate. What we are trying to determine is whether there is urgency for the House taking this into an emergency debate right now. I will put that aside for now and we will go to the hon. member for Saanich—Gulf Islands, who has a point of order.

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Ms. Elizabeth May

Jun/6/22 3:38:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I wanted to put on the record my support for the proposal for an emergency debate from the hon. member for Edmonton Strathcona and that the urgency is—

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The Speaker

Jun/6/22 3:39:02 p.m.
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We are into debate again, so I am going to rule. Although this is an important issue, and I want to thank the hon. member for Edmonton Strathcona for her intervention, I am not satisfied that her request meets the requirements of the Standing Orders at this time.

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Mr. Philip Lawrence (Northumberland—Peterborough South, CPC)

Jun/6/22 3:39:47 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-19

Mr. Speaker, bentornato. Welcome back. It is great to have you back in the chair. When I left off, I was talking about a challenge that faces our Canadian economy and really puts all of our prosperity at risk, and that is our failure to be a leader in productivity across the world. That noted right-wing commentator, Bill Morneau, actually commented that we are, as he correctly points out, number 25 out of 36 countries in the OECD when it comes to productivity. That might not mean a lot to Canadians sitting at home or that Canadian who is sitting at home watching CPAC today, but productivity has a tremendous impact on our lives. When we are less productive, that means with every stroke of a pen, we get paid less. That means with every swing of the hammer, we get paid less. With every wire that we fix and with every brick that we lay, Canadians are getting paid less because we are failing on the productivity network. It means there is less opportunity for our children, that there are fewer promotions, and that there are less opportunities for our businesses and many more failures. While Canada is less productive than many of the G7 and G20 nations, like many other countries, and, in fact, probably more so, we have well-educated and motivated citizens that are ready and willing to work and to lead the world in productivity. The one differentiating factor that Canada has that is separating us from many other G7 countries is our government. Our government has extremely high rates of taxation and regulation that are limiting our ability to be competitive. We are failing as a country to lead the world in productivity because of a self-inflicted wound of excess government, excess taxation and excess regulation. As we switch from productivity now to innovation, this is another challenge. We are currently sixth out of the G7 in innovation. Once again, we have an amazing populace, are blessed with many natural resources and have a great education system, but we are continuing to fail when it comes to innovation. We have a growing innovation culture out there, including many incubators, such as Venture13 in my own riding, which is doing a terrific job, but we have a challenge. Once again, it goes back to the government. Our system of legislation and taxation is antiquated, uncompetitive and fails to promote innovation. Our legislative framework fails to protect and to promote the commercialization of intellectual property. Our taxation system fails to reward those who are taking risks with regard to innovation. Other countries around the world are renewing their innovation frameworks, because they know that the first to innovate will be the first to win in the global economy of the 21st century. Unfortunately, Canada is failing to keep pace. The next area is admittedly more subjective. The human spirit is perhaps the most indomitable force in the universe. My father used to say to me, “If you believe you can, you are right, and if you believe you can't, you are also right.” This is a country that built a railroad across mountains, over and past waterways in the 1800s, an engineering feat that would be impressive today, a feat of political will that would be impressive today, but for a new country starting out in the world, it was almost unthinkable. We as a country need to focus again on accomplishing great things. We need to not be afraid to win but to be bold and brave and to go after that victory. We need to celebrate those who are winning, because when we undermine those achievers, we are undermining those who very much underpin our communities, our societies and our economies. We must celebrate our job creators, our successful business owners and, indeed, our innovators. As I said, when we demonize our achievers, we undermine those individuals and institutions who are the drivers of our shared prosperity. While it is incredibly important to be equitable and to make sure there is a fair distribution of a society's wealth, we must not also lose sight of the fact that when we expand the pie, we help everyone, but when that pie shrinks, it is often the most vulnerable who suffer the most. We are a nation capable of great deeds. I believe that the 21st century can belong to Canada. Our job as the official opposition is not just to criticize, so because time is brief, I will go through three quick proposals that could radically improve our country. First is a complete comprehensive review of the Income Tax Act. Second is a national economic development plan. Third is the construction of an energy corridor. If we are able to harness all of the great individual wisdom and abilities in our country, there is no doubt we will have a successful next 100 years.

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

Jun/6/22 3:45:26 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-19

Madam Speaker, the member spent some time talking about the importance of innovation, so I would think he would be more inclined to be sympathetic to supporting the budget. We have seen record amounts of money being allocated to things such as the research councils at the many different universities, which are there to encourage innovation. We have seen huge investments. We all recognize the importance of innovation, not just with respect to the public sector. There is also joint co-operation with many of our private industry stakeholders we have to incorporate, such as post-secondary institutions, along with private sector and public sector involvement. I wonder if the member could provide his thoughts on those three sectors coming together to ensure Canada does not fall behind on the issue of innovation.

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Mr. Philip Lawrence

Jun/6/22 3:46:29 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-19

Madam Speaker, that is the difference between the Liberals and the Conservatives. The Liberals measure success by the amount of money spent. The Conservatives measure it in results. Clearly, we are losing when it comes to innovation and productivity. An expensive failure is still a failure.

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Mr. Xavier Barsalou-Duval (Pierre-Boucher—Les Patriotes—Verchères, BQ)

Jun/6/22 3:46:55 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-19

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his interesting speech. I really liked the part when he said that it is important to be ambitious. I think that is how he started his speech. Maybe my colleague did not notice that in the recent budget, there was a line about infrastructure. For example, regarding infrastructure spending for which the money is often transferred to the provinces, they no longer have until March 31, 2025, to submit their plans. They now have until March 31, 2023. The government took away two years even though it had signed agreements with the provinces. There is Quebec's signature on one side and the federal government's signature on the other side. It is the same thing for the other provinces. Now we find out from a budget that the federal government is not going to honour those agreements. What does that say about the government's ambition when it comes to the future of our provinces?

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Mr. Philip Lawrence

Jun/6/22 3:47:55 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-19

Madam Speaker, I want to say a quick word of thanks to all of the interpreters. They are doing an amazing job. I understand that CBC had a story about their contributions to the workplace, and I thank them for all that they do. They are doing great, but I did not quite catch all of that. However, I think I understood the basics of it. We need to empower our provinces to be ambitious as the Liberal government continues to attempt to take more power and control from them. We need to empower our provinces, Quebec included, to be the best they can possibly be.

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Mr. Alexandre Boulerice (Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, NDP)

Jun/6/22 3:48:44 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-19

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech. I have a question for him about productivity, since we cannot keep producing fossil fuel energy forever. An agreement was signed in Paris on protecting our planet. Does my colleague agree with me that in order to boost innovation and productivity, the government should invest in workforce training so that people can get jobs in the energy sector of the future?

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Mr. Philip Lawrence

Jun/6/22 3:49:14 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-19

Madam Speaker, this is part of what I am talking about when I say we need a national economic development plan. Part of that will be more traditionally Conservative ideas, such as reducing regulation and taxation, but part of it is also more traditionally the space of the NDP, I might say, which is funding the areas of education that are in demand. Right now we have a disconnect between the education system and what the private sector needs. We need to bring that together, so I would agree.

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