44th Parl. 1st Sess.
November 21, 2022 11:00AM
- Nov/21/22 2:14:19 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise to commemorate the 89th anniversary of the famine genocide in Ukraine, known as the Holodomor, when the Soviet Union closed Ukraine's borders and confiscated all food to destroy a Ukrainian population opposed to its rule. There were 19 people per minute, 1,200 per hour and 28,000 per day dying of famine at the height of the Holodomor. The world was silent, and millions died as a result.
After World War II, we said, “Never again.” Year after year, here in this House, we commemorate genocides and atrocities, and we say, “Never again.” Right now, in Russian-occupied Ukraine, it is happening again. Russia is executing; Russia is torturing; Russia is raping women and even children. Russia is committing genocide in Ukraine.
Let us learn the lessons of the Holodomor. The only way to stop this is for the world to help Ukraine liberate all occupied territories. If we do not do this, then millions of Ukrainians will become victims of a genocide; we will show that we did not learn the lessons of the Holodomor, and we will have lost the right to ever again use the words, “Never again.”
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- Nov/21/22 2:15:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we have a health care crisis in Canada. I witnessed this first-hand over the past year as first my father and then my mother fell sick and went into palliative care. I witnessed the immense dedication of Canada's nurses, doctors and health care workers, and I know, as we all do, how underfunding by the government has created a crisis in public health care. That crisis is clear to see in children's hospitals and emergency rooms everywhere. Our health care workers are overworked to the point of exhaustion. Patients are sleeping in hospital hallways because there is nowhere else to go.
The Liberal government has been irresponsible here. Instead of providing adequate health care funding to provinces and territories, it gave $750 billion in liquidity supports to help big banks maintain their profits. The same government allows over $30 billion in taxes to go to loopholes for the ultrarich and overseas tax havens every year.
It must be a top priority to restore adequate health care funding so that seniors, children, families and everyone receives the health care support they deserve.
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- Nov/21/22 2:16:49 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Jean Lapointe has left us.
He left an indelible impression on us as a comedian who made Quebeckers laugh for decades, and as a prominent actor in Quebec films such as Les ordres, L'eau chaude, l'eau frette and Le dernier tunnel.
We will never forget his star turn as Duplessis, arguably one of the most remarkable performances in the history of Quebec television. We will also never forget his successful career as a singer-songwriter, with hits like C'est dans les chansons, Cyrano, Si on chantait ensemble and Chante-la, ta chanson. Above all, we will never forget his altruism, which motivated him to help out people who were struggling.
Since 1982, Maison Jean Lapointe has been a beacon of hope for people seeking help for alcoholism and drug abuse. Thousands of Quebeckers, as well as their families and friends, are indebted to him. Thousands, even millions, of Quebeckers are grateful to him, and his passing is a huge loss to us all.
On behalf of the Bloc Québécois, I offer my most sincere condolences to all those who loved him.
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- Nov/21/22 2:18:07 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, since this government took office, failed Liberal policies have cost thousands of Canadians their lives.
Unfortunately, in my province of Saskatchewan, drug overdose deaths are on the rise again this year. Addictions are terrorizing every community across this country and are the result of a failed experiment by the Liberal government to provide taxpayer-funded drugs to addicts. This approach has failed in every jurisdiction it has been tried in.
Addiction can happen to anyone. It is a health crisis that unfortunately touches almost all families in this country.
It feels like everything is broken in Canada, but there is hope. The Conservative leader has a plan: a compassionate, health-based approach to providing recovery, treatment and counselling.
We need to fix the problem. We are losing too many sisters, brothers, parents and friends to drugs.
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- Nov/21/22 2:19:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians come from a vast range of nations, races, religions and heritage. All Canadians can be proud of their identities, take pride in their ancestry and have a sense of belonging.
A community that brings Canadian society to life by sharing its identity is the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama'at Canada. We can all attest to the generosity, resilience and commitment of Ahmadi Muslims through Humanity First, Mercy for Mankind, Muslims for Life, Muslims for Remembrance and the Run for Canada. These are just a few initiatives led by the Ahmadiyya community in support of Canadians.
Despite facing persecution and discrimination in many countries, Ahmadi Muslims strive to live up to the simple but profound message of “Love for all, hatred for none.”
As chair of the Parliamentary Friends of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama'at group, I ask members to join me in welcoming the Ahmadiyya community to Parliament. I also invite them to join us tonight as we continue to promote adherence to the values of human dignity and freedom of religion for all.
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- Nov/21/22 2:20:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canada ranked 58th out of 63 countries in terms of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
The Liberals have missed every target for reducing emissions, yet they are moving forward with the same strategy. In fact, they want to triple down on the strategy by tripling the carbon tax, even though Canadians are struggling to pay their heating bills.
When will they realize that turning down the heat in our homes is not the goal of fighting climate change?
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- Nov/21/22 2:21:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canada has one of the most comprehensive plans in the world to combat climate change.
We will meet our target of a 40% reduction in greenhouse gases by 2030.
At the same time, we need to ensure that life is affordable for Canadians, and we have made the investments to ensure that it is.
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- Nov/21/22 2:21:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, if they had the most comprehensive plan in the world, why are they ranked 58th out of 63 in terms of performance on that plan?
What they have, actually, is a tax, a tax to drive up the cost of home heating, gas, groceries and everything else. They want to triple that tax.
We are now going into the winter, and families are facing a doubling of their home heating bills right across the country. Forty percent of Atlantic Canadians already live in energy poverty. They cannot afford to pay any more.
Instead of spending more inflationary money to try to solve the problem they caused, why do the Liberals not just get rid of the problem itself, by getting rid of the tax?
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- Nov/21/22 2:22:33 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, since 2015, the government has made enormous progress with respect to fighting climate change. We have one of the most detailed plans that exist in the world, but we were starting from a place where we were following 10 years of Harper Conservatives who did nothing to fight climate change or to ensure a prosperous future for our children.
We are working very hard to ensure that life is affordable for Canadians—
Some hon. members: Oh, oh!
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- Nov/21/22 2:22:55 p.m.
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I am just going to interrupt. We are going into preholiday season, known locally as the silly season.
I am going to ask everybody to just take a deep breath and not shout out.
I do not want to have to come down hard at Christmas and offer people coal, so please, no shouting or yelling.
There seems to be a problem with the interpretation.
Is it working now?
An hon. member: Yes.
The Speaker: The hon. Minister of Natural Resources, from the top.
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- Nov/21/22 2:23:41 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canada has one of the most detailed climate plans in the world. We are on track to ensure that we are meeting the ambitious targets that we have set.
We started from a base where the previous Conservative government, the Harper Conservatives, did nothing to fight climate change for 10 years.
We are very much committed and we will achieve those targets. We will do so in a manner that is affordable for Canadians. Eight out of 10 Canadian families get more money back when they pay a price on pollution. It should not be free to pollute in this country, and we are making investments, like the announcement we made this morning of $250 million for heat pumps, to ensure that we are moving forward in a manner that is affordable and fights climate change.
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- Nov/21/22 2:24:26 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, by using technology and not taxes, the Conservative government presided over the only government that reduced greenhouse gases in Canadian history, while the economy grew.
Now we have a government that has missed every single greenhouse gas reduction target it has set, even as its carbon tax has gone up, and now it wants to hit people with a tax, just as home heating bills are expected to double.
Its consolation prize is that some time down the road, one might be able to get a heat pump when the winter is over, if one is lucky.
Why does the government not get rid of the real problem, which is the tax?
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- Nov/21/22 2:25:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I find the phrase that the hon. member uses, “technology and not taxes”, quite ironic for somebody who has spent his entire political career being paid by the taxpayer.
As somebody who has spent 20 years in the clean technology sector, I would note that technology in and of itself is not a climate plan. It is part of a climate plan. It requires regulation. It requires putting a price on a pollution. It requires investments in ensuring that life is affordable.
Fighting climate change can generate prosperity, but only if one actually understands what one is doing.
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- Nov/21/22 2:25:46 p.m.
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Which he clearly does not, Mr. Speaker, by virtue of the results.
The results are higher emissions. The Liberals have missed their targets every single year. Now with 40% of Atlantic Canadians living in energy poverty, rural Canadians facing a doubling of their home heating bills, and some families who will be paying $5,000 and up just to keep the heat on, the Liberals want to go ahead and triple the tax.
Why will the Liberals not get rid of the tax so Canadians can keep the heat on and pay their bills?
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- Nov/21/22 2:26:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we had a prime example in Prince Edward Island of what will happen if we do not continue to address climate change.
We had massive destruction, with winds over 200 kilometres an hour destroying our wharves and over half our softwood forests. We have to continue to make sure we address the climate change. That is what the government has been doing and will continue to do.
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- Nov/21/22 2:26:51 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberals' taxes have failed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This is not an environmental plan; it is a tax plan.
Now, having driven up the cost of home heating, the Liberals say that if Canadians wait until the end of winter, they might be able to get a rebate for a heat pump if they are among the tiny minority people in this country who will qualify for the program.
The tax the government imposed caused the problems, and now it says it has a government program to solve the problem. Why not just get rid of the problem and get rid of the tax?
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- Nov/21/22 2:27:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I have to say I am really quite stunned by the comments from the other side of the floor.
With respect to what happened this year in Atlantic Canada with hurricane Fiona, I had the task of going to visit many provinces. I was in Prince Edward Island. The roof was actually blown off one of the schools completely. When I speak to Atlantic Canadians, they want the government to make sure we take action on climate, and that is exactly what we are doing.
On this side of the House, we have a plan. On that side of the House, they really do not know what they are talking about.
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- Nov/21/22 2:28:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Global News reported that China interfered in the 2019 federal election by funding at least 11 candidates. The Prime Minister was briefed on this subject last January, but he is denying everything. As usual, he is saying that he knows nothing. However, he raised the issue with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20. He supposedly knows nothing about the situation, yet he knows enough to talk about it with the second most powerful man on the planet.
Did he raise the very serious subject of interference in our election with China solely on the basis of a news article, or does he know details that he is hiding from the population?
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- Nov/21/22 2:28:43 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, safeguarding Canada's democracy is something that we take very seriously. We conducted two non-partisan, independent reviews, which confirmed that the 2019 election was free and fair. What is more, we passed Bill C‑66 to close the loopholes surrounding foreign funding. Any threat of foreign interference will be met with the most severe consequences.
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- Nov/21/22 2:29:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, either the Prime Minister knows the identity of the candidates who got money from China but is not telling, or, worse, he really was unaware, even though he talked to the Chinese President about it, like a rank beginner.
It boils down to two possibilities. One, he is hiding the truth about a Chinese attempt to undermine democracy, much like he hid the truth about Roxham Road and WE Charity. Two, he is admitting to being so diplomatically irresponsible as to be dangerous.
Which is it? Is he not very honest or not very bright?
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