44th Parl. 1st Sess.
October 27, 2022 10:00AM
- Oct/27/22 2:48:27 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, while Canadians were distracted during the pandemic, the government engaged in hundreds of millions of dollars of wasteful spending, including $54 million on a dysfunctional ArriveCAN app that discriminated against seniors and sent thousands of vaccinated Canadians into quarantine. Wasteful spending is the cause of this current inflationary crisis. Canadians cannot afford this costly coalition anymore.
Will the Liberals stop their inflationary spending?
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- Oct/27/22 2:49:03 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am happy to stand in this House and extol the important virtues of vaccination over the last couple of years. Indeed, only very few Canadians have decided not to get vaccinated, and that means we have done quite well, in terms of the fatality rate in Canada. It is so important that Canadians consider now, this fall, getting a bivalent vaccine for themselves and their families.
I would encourage every Canadian to speak to their health care provider or their doctor and consider flu shots and bivalent vaccines this fall.
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- Oct/27/22 2:49:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, again that was a non-answer. I was speaking about wasteful spending during COVID.
The government also wasted $54 million on a failed ArriveCAN app. One developer replicated this app in one weekend and said it should not have cost more than $250,000. In addition, several contractors said they never worked on the app and never received the millions of dollars the government said it paid to those developers.
Where did the money go, and who got rich?
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- Oct/27/22 2:50:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we are aware of the costs related to ArriveCAN. We are investigating those costs. ArriveCAN was important for digitizing the border, for making sure we kept Canadians safe and for making sure we could reopen the borders. The other side was hooting and hollering at us to make sure we opened the borders. We had a tool in place to make sure we did that.
We invested $72 billion in Canadians' health to get us through the pandemic. The Conservatives wanted us to invest less. We invested the right amount; the economy is healthy, and now they are upset because we did the right thing.
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- Oct/27/22 2:50:50 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, did the Department of Canadian Heritage ask well-known, well-documented, self-declared anti-Semite Laith Marouf to apply for funding, yes or no?
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- Oct/27/22 2:51:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as I have stated before and will say again, anti-Semitism, hate and racism have no place in our society. The funding to this organization has been cut, and we have demanded repayment of the funding. We are implementing new measures to improve the Department of Canadian Heritage's vetting processes to ensure that this never happens again.
On this side of the House, we will ensure that we always stand against anti-Semitism and hate in all its forms.
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- Oct/27/22 2:51:32 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, here is the problem. Known racist Laith Marouf got $133,000 of Canadian tax money from the department and claims he was begged to apply for it. The diversity minister found out about his department's funding this vile anti-Semite more than a month before he acknowledged it publicly. The Minister of Canadian Heritage now claims he did not know about his department's funding this racist until he read about it in a newspaper a month later, which, of course, no one believes.
Who is lying: Laith Marouf, the diversity minister, the heritage minister or all three?
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- Oct/27/22 2:52:10 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, let me be absolutely clear. This organization was not approached by the Department of Canadian Heritage and was not specifically asked to run a program.
We on this side of the House have repeatedly condemned anti-Semitic, vile and reprehensible comments against various groups made by this individual. We have cut the funding to this organization; we have demanded the money back, and we are improving the vetting processes to make sure this never happens again.
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- Oct/27/22 2:52:40 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the U.S. Secretary of State will be meeting with the Prime Minister at at the end of the day today. I know that they will be talking about very important, critical issues, such as the situation in Haiti, Ukraine and Iran. They will also be talking about the matter of refugees in North America. Right now, thousands of asylum seekers are crossing the border irregularly, without protection, at their own peril. That is not how we should be welcoming people who need help.
Will the Prime Minister discuss the suspension of the safe third country agreement with the Secretary of State?
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- Oct/27/22 2:53:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, first, on behalf of all members of the House, I would like to welcome U.S. Secretary of State Blinken, who is meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs here in Canada.
Second, as we have said many times, we are committed to modernizing the agreement between our two countries. We are heading in that direction, and I am proud to welcome the Secretary of State to Canada.
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- Oct/27/22 2:54:02 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the way things are going, it is expected that there will be more than 30,000 irregular entries at Roxham Road in 2022. These are desperate people, exploited by criminal smugglers who often offer them false hope. They are intercepted by the police before they can apply for asylum. This is a situation that, purely from a humanitarian point of view, cannot continue. However, the government wants to allow it to continue.
Will the Prime Minister take advantage of the U.S. Secretary of State's visit to push for the suspension of the safe third country agreement?
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- Oct/27/22 2:54:41 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, our system for asylum seekers must be robust and humane. There is no magic solution.
Asking to close Roxham Road or suspend the agreement is not the answer. What the government needs to do, and what we are doing, is to modernize the agreement.
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- Oct/27/22 2:55:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Loretteville has a community fridge. Neufchâtel has the Amélie et Frédérick food bank. Val‑Bélair has the Val Bon Cœur community fridge. All three provide food aid. Unfortunately, in these communities, just like in the rest of Canada, needs have increased significantly over the past few weeks and months.
Today, we learned that 1.5 million Canadians turned to food banks last month alone. Putting food on the table is not a luxury, especially not here in Canada, but it takes money.
Could the government give Canadians at least a little good news and promise not to raise taxes in the coming months and years?
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- Oct/27/22 2:55:51 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, once again, it is hard to believe that the Conservatives are really concerned about the state of poverty here in Canada. Their record shows that, every time we introduce a measure to help people in need, they vote against it. Today, they have the opportunity to support measures that help people cover the cost of dental care and rent.
Will the Conservatives join us in supporting those measures? We hope to be able to count on them today.
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- Oct/27/22 2:56:28 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, all Canadians hope they can count on this government to not raise taxes. That is what people are asking of the Liberals, because so many are now having to go to food banks in order to have enough to eat. It is outrageous that this is happening in Canada.
The price of vegetables has gone up by 12%. The price of fruit has gone up by 13%. For baked goods, it is 15%, cereal products, 18%, and pasta, 36%. There is something wrong when spaghetti is expensive.
Can the government commit, on behalf of all Canadians, to not raise taxes? It is simple. Someone please say yes.
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- Oct/27/22 2:57:10 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his question. This is an issue that affects all Canadians, and I understand the situation.
I have the utmost respect for my colleague, and he knows that that is why I have asked the presidents of several large corporations and businesses across the country to do their part. In a situation like this, we must all do our part to lower prices for consumers.
I have also asked the Competition Bureau to investigate to make sure that there are no unfair practices happening in this country.
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- Oct/27/22 2:57:49 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, understanding and doing something about it are two entirely different things.
Behind this record inflation and rising interest rates are real people facing a real and harsh reality. They are exhausted, worried and broke, and the Liberal government is intent on piling on even more financial burdens.
I asked this question last week and I will ask it again. Will the government listen to Canadians and cancel its plan to triple taxes on gas, groceries and home heating?
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- Oct/27/22 2:58:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we waited 416 days for the member for Regina—Qu'Appelle's climate pamphlet when he was leader.
The member for Carleton has now been leader of the Conservative Party for 47 days, and Conservatives still do not have a climate plan. Maybe his new director of communications can help his climate-denying boss to get with the program.
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- Oct/27/22 2:58:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the cost of living has gone up in the past few months in Canada. Canadians have to tighten their belts to make ends meet.
Can the Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance tell the House what the government is doing to help Canadians with the rising cost of living?
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- Oct/27/22 2:59:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Dorval—Lachine—LaSalle for the question and for her hard work.
Inflation in Canada has shown signs of slowing down. That said, we understand that the cost of living remains a concern for Canadians. The current inflationary period is the result of the war in Ukraine, problems with the supply chain and the zero COVID policy in China.
That is why we took action by bringing in bills C‑30 and C‑31. We have passed Bill C‑30 in the House and we are close to passing Bill C‑31.
We hope the Conservatives will support Canadians and vote in favour of Bill C‑31.
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