44th Parl. 1st Sess.
June 20, 2022 11:00AM
- Jun/20/22 2:47:32 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, airport delays continue to cause stress for so many travellers. There are not enough airport workers, and the existing ones are overstretched and underpaid. Instead of simply paying airport workers fairly, the current government is offering a bonus for workers who do not take vacation or sick time this summer. Seriously, in the midst of a pandemic, the minister is incentivizing workers to come to work sick.
If he wants to get travellers moving again, he needs to scrap this program immediately and start paying workers fairly. Will he?
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- Jun/20/22 2:48:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to stress how urgent the situation is and that our government is working toward easing the delays at our airports. We have added more than 900 CATSA workers over the last few weeks. We have increased the number of CBSA agents. We have adjusted many of our measures, in collaboration with airports and airlines, to ease airport delays. We are working with workers, who have been working very hard over the last weeks, to address this issue. There is a lot of work to be done, but we are committed to it.
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- Jun/20/22 2:48:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the current government has a serious problem with transparency and accountability.
I have asked in the House and through access to information for a full and comprehensive list of the sanctions that have been imposed, when they were imposed and what assets have been seized. It has refused to provide any meaningful information. I need this information for my constituents and for Canadians who are horrified by the illegal invasion of Ukraine, so I will ask again. Will the minister today guarantee that she will provide a detailed description of who has been sanctioned, when, and the assets that have been seized?
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- Jun/20/22 2:49:38 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I think the hon. member raises a very important issue. With respect to Canada's unprecedented sanctioning of Russia, it started when Russia invaded Crimea illegally. It has continued. Those sanctions have been strengthened at an unprecedented level as Russia illegally invaded Ukraine again.
We continue to sanction a banking system, Mr. Putin and his inner circle, members of the Russian security council and countless numbers of industries and individuals in Russia. We will continue to do that until we draw them down to the point of no return.
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- Jun/20/22 2:50:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, an investment in recreational and sports infrastructure is an investment in the health and well-being of our constituents.
Could the minister update us on what he is doing to give Quebeckers access to safe, sustainable facilities that promote recreational and sports activities in our communities?
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- Jun/20/22 2:50:51 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, on Friday, we announced over $29 million in joint funding with Quebec for five sports and recreation projects in the Nord-du-Québec region.
Five indigenous communities in Nord-du-Québec will soon have access to high-quality, modern, accessible facilities where residents can come together and enjoy their favourite activities. We are always happy to invest in these types of projects across Canada.
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- Jun/20/22 2:51:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, a couple in my riding recently returned from a trip to Greece. When they tried to register for the ArriveCAN app, they were sent the wrong verification code eight times. When they tried to contact the CBSA to fix the issue, the CBSA told them it did not offer support in relation to re-entering Canada.
I hear stories like this from my constituents all the time. The ArriveCAN app is increasingly unnecessary and is hopelessly broken, so when will the government commit to ending the chaos at our borders and our airports?
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- Jun/20/22 2:52:03 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as my colleague knows, the ArriveCAN app technology has helped to facilitate the measures we have taken at the border to protect the health and safety of Canadians throughout the pandemic. We continue to improve that technology by streamlining our processes and by making sure that Canadians have the smoothest experience at the border.
I am pleased to report to my colleague and all members in this chamber that compliance with the ArriveCAN app is over 95% at the border. That is a signal that we have made progress. I am happy to work with my colleague on the individual case that was brought to his attention in his riding.
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- Jun/20/22 2:52:40 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is another week and there is more chaos in our airports. Even if one wanted to go anywhere, getting a passport is turning into a Canadian-made nightmare. The minister is claiming there is a surge in applications, but that is just not true. Over the past 10 weeks, the surge the government is talking about has been only half of what it was before COVID.
If no one was laid off and no one at Passport Canada is working from home, will the minister responsible for the chaos tell us why anyone is still waiting for a passport they applied for in March?
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- Jun/20/22 2:53:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as we have discussed, there has been an increased surge in the demand for passports with the ease of travel restrictions. In preparation for that, the minister and officials arranged for 600 new employees to be hired in September 2021, with an additional 600 being hired at this time. In addition to that, all Service Canada employees are back at work. Whether they are teleworking or in an office, they are at work. To disparage that is really questionable.
I really want to thank our public servants for everything that they have been doing for Canadians and continuing to work during this time.
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- Jun/20/22 2:53:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, perhaps the parliamentary secretary can tell us what she thinks the word “surge” actually means. Passport Canada is at 48,000 passports this week. She just said that. They used to do more than 90,000 before COVID.
I have a few simple questions: How many passports are in the queue ? Can she explain why she is telling Canadians about a magical surge that is not happening? When can she give the House a straight answer so that Canadians do not have to line up at 3 a.m. for a basic government service?
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- Jun/20/22 2:54:27 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as the member well knows, during the pandemic many Canadians did not renew their passports and many Canadians did not bother to check what the updated times on their passports would be. Nevertheless, the minister has been working closely with officials. As a matter of fact, she is at a processing centre in Mississauga today to see how we can increase capacity and efficiency.
May I mention that the 48,000 from this week is a 10% increase from last week, so that week over week we are working with Service Canada and passport teams to increase efficiencies.
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- Jun/20/22 2:55:12 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians are being told to go in person to a passport office if they have to travel within 45 days. Tia took time off work and made a five-hour drive to get to Service Canada’s passport office in Edmonton. She lined up at 4:30 in the morning with proof of imminent travel, but was triaged out of the line because she was not deemed urgent enough. In total, after 10 hours of driving, a hotel bill and time off work, she had no passport.
Folks living in my riding and in rural areas across Canada cannot just whip into a passport office on a whim. When will the minister fix this passport chaos?
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- Jun/20/22 2:55:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Service Canada and Passport Canada employees are working closely in teams to ensure that measures are taken to serve Canadians who ask for passport services. Those who are going to Passport Canada and service centres within 45 days of travel are encouraged to put in their applications in person and are assured that their passports will be processed efficiently. The member knows, as we have worked with her and many other members in the House, that those who have imminent travel do have the ability to work closely with the minister to ensure that their documents are received on time.
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- Jun/20/22 2:56:33 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, on Friday, the head of FrancoFolies de Montréal tried to justify the anglicization of his organization's workplace by saying that this promotes diversity and inclusion. That is absurd, but it is a shift we see all the time at the federal level. The official languages commissioner described this as backsliding. He explains that, on the contrary, the official languages and diversity are complementary, in that they are both ways of being more inclusive.
Does the minister agree that it is backsliding to claim that French can be set aside to be more inclusive?
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- Jun/20/22 2:57:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for the question.
Again, let us be very clear: we have the same goals, but our visions for achieving those goals may differ slightly.
We recognize that French is in decline in North America, including in Canada. That is why we are moving forward with an ambitious bill to do our part to protect our beautiful language, French. I hope that the opposition members will work with us—
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- Jun/20/22 2:57:42 p.m.
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Order. I must interrupt. It is very hard to hear the response from here, so I can only imagine how difficult it is to hear it in the back corner.
I will ask the minister to start over. I am sure that the hon. member for La Pointe-de-l'Île wants to hear the response.
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- Jun/20/22 2:57:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question. As I have said many times, we have the same goal.
We want to do everything we can to protect and promote the beautiful French language all across Canada, including here. We recognize that French is in decline in North America, including in Canada. That is why we are moving forward with an ambitious bill. We want to do our part to protect our beautiful language, French, across the country.
I hope the opposition members will work with us to ensure that we can move forward with Bill C‑13 as quickly as possible.
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- Jun/20/22 2:58:32 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we need only look to the people at the top to see how French is presented as a barrier to diversity. The Prime Minister himself appointed a Governor General who does not speak French, and his government has gone to court to try to force New Brunswick to accept a Lieutenant Governor who does not speak French. He is the first to drop the French language in the name of diversity, as though French could not also be diverse.
Does the minister support this shift to considering all forms of diversity to be more important than the French language?
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- Jun/20/22 2:59:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, let us be clear. We are the first government to recognize that French is declining in Canada, including here.
I once again call on the opposition members, especially the Bloc Québécois, to work closely with us to get this bill passed as quickly as possible. If we are going to do everything we can to protect and promote the French language, we must work together to ensure that this ambitious bill is passed sooner rather than later.
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