44th Parl. 1st Sess.
November 25, 2022 10:00AM
- Nov/25/22 11:58:21 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the wait times for EI benefits are endless, but it gets worse, specifically for seasonal workers. They already know that they will be living in poverty this winter because they no longer qualify for EI after the rules suddenly changed. Seasonal work is one of the main economic levers for the regions of Quebec. Obviously, if these workers are unable to collect benefits this winter, it will threaten worker retention in our industries and threaten the entire economies of regions like mine.
When will the government move forward with the EI reform it has been promising for ages? When will the government understand that this is urgent?
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- Nov/25/22 11:59:07 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we are collaborating with workers, unions, organizations and businesses in order to introduce reforms to the EI system. I am also working with my hon. colleague and all the Bloc Québécois members to ensure that we address individual cases where there have been delays with people's employment insurance. As for seasonal workers, we are working with the Government of Quebec. We will continue this important work.
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- Nov/25/22 11:59:47 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Japan announced it is rescinding any increase to its carbon tax, because it is causing inflation. This leaves Canada as the only G7 country that has not repealed its inflationary carbon tax increases. Every major economy is repealing these taxes, because of the effect they are having on food, fuel, home heating and everything else. Canada is the outlier.
What does this finance minister thinks she knows that the rest of the world is missing?
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- Nov/25/22 12:00:21 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I listened carefully during this question period, and all this talk of axes reminds me of a famous song from the Conservative chorus, which is the “Conservative Austerity Shuffle”. How does it go?
Cut a little here,Cut a little there,Cut a lot here,Cut a lot there.
Who was responsible? They were. Who was damaged by that? It was seniors, veterans, families, scientists, our environment and our international reputation.
Not on our watch. We are going to build this economy, support Canadians and do the right thing.
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- Nov/25/22 12:01:02 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, carbon taxes are designed to be inflationary. They are meant to add taxes, and to make everything cost more.
Inflation is now at 40-year highs. It is destroying the savings of hard-working Canadians and everything they need to take home. While the government is collecting more tax in this scheme, hard-working Canadians have less in their pockets. It is time the minister took a lesson from all of her peers around the world.
Why is she going to be the last to figure out that she has to repeal this tax?
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- Nov/25/22 12:01:34 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I find it highly questionable that a member who lived through the Calgary floods is saying that the best market mechanism to combat climate change should somehow not be in place in this country.
There was hurricane Fiona, atmospheric rivers and the heat dome in my city and my province. It is the best market mechanism. Emissions were down in 2019 and 2020.
That side of the House cannot even resolve itself to climate change. We have, we will, and we are doing the right thing. They do not have to be happy about it, but we are and so are Canadians.
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- Nov/25/22 12:02:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, not a single climate target has been met, not one. The Liberal tax plan disguised as a climate plan unfairly targets rural and remote communities.
In northern Saskatchewan, driving is absolutely necessary. People travel great distances for groceries and medical appointments. Freight costs are significant on every item on every shelf everywhere. Heating our homes at -30°C is not a luxury.
Will the Liberals finally cancel their failed carbon tax, which is crippling Canadians?
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- Nov/25/22 12:03:01 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, like the hon. member, I am from the Prairies, and no region of the country has been hit harder than the Prairies. There was not just one, but two $1-billion floods. There were one-in-300-year weather events and the worst drought in over 50 years, which devastated farmers.
The costs of climate change are rising. The Conservatives are in denial. They need to get serious about climate change.
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- Nov/25/22 12:03:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as we recover from the pandemic, we must address existing challenges that were made worse for many people in Canada over the past two years.
This week, I was happy to learn that the Minister of Health and the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions announced an agreement with Quebec that will continue to support improved access to home care as well as mental health and addiction services.
Can the minister tell us more about this agreement?
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- Nov/25/22 12:04:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Lac‑Saint‑Louis for his excellent work, especially on palliative care.
The $270-million agreement announced Monday will help address these gaps and provide Quebeckers, especially young people, with better access to mental health, prevention and addictions services.
This agreement is vital because our government is continuing its efforts to ensure that Canadians have better access to mental health services and good-quality and timely support services for addictions.
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- Nov/25/22 12:05:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, everything the Liberal government touches gets broken. Fifty-four million dollars was spent on an ArriveCAN app that could have been built for $250,000. There were 10,000 people wrongly sent into quarantine because of this faulty app, which caused them mental duress and financial hardship. Inflation, house prices, rent, groceries, overdoses and violent crime are all at generational highs.
Will the Liberals stop trying to build back better and leave things as they found them?
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- Nov/25/22 12:05:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the government will never apologize for trying to be better. Progress is based on better. The kind of chaos that Conservative members are trying to pursue is the enemy of progress.
From the beginning of this pandemic, we have been there for Canadians. We have been there to support them with wage subsidies and with CERB. We are supporting them through rental supports and dental supports. Just a couple of weeks ago, we doubled their HST return rebates. Next year, we are going to be there with dental supports for their kids.
The party opposite is all about slogans and no solutions.
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- Nov/25/22 12:06:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Liberals break everything they touch. Darryl is a small business owner in Saskatchewan. He has waited 11 months to hire a foreign worker, but he is stuck in limbo waiting for final approval. He is not alone. Fifty-seven per cent of the files in the system are beyond the acceptable processing timeline set by the government. Now it wants to add another 500,000 applicants to the existing backlog of 2.4 million people.
When will the Liberals quit breaking everything they touch, so that Darryl can finally get the help that he needs?
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- Nov/25/22 12:06:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, temporary foreign workers are absolutely vital to the Canadian economy. Employers should be able to obtain decisions on whether they can hire TFWs in a timely manner. We are taking additional measures to address labour shortages, including removing the cap on low-wage positions for employers in seasonal industries. We are extending LMIA validity from nine to 18 months, expanding flexibility for LMIA applications in low-wage occupations, and we are increasing the maximum employment duration for high-wage and global talent streams from two to three years.
We will continue to work with employers to ensure their solutions meet their needs.
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- Nov/25/22 12:07:26 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, unfettered access by incarcerated individuals to spiritual guidance from prison chaplains is a key component of recovery and plays an important role in reducing the chance of reoffending. Equitable access to this guidance across faith groups is also a charter right. Therefore, it is disturbing to learn that incarcerated Canadians from a number of faiths, including over 1,000 Muslims, have no access to chaplain services in their own faith.
Why has the Liberal government broken the prison chaplain system and allowed this situation to develop?
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- Nov/25/22 12:08:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, in fact, I have been in touch with a number of colleagues on both sides of the House regarding this issue. I assure my colleague that we are in touch with Correctional Service of Canada so that those inmates who are fulfilling their sentences are able to exercise their rights under the charter during this season.
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- Nov/25/22 12:08:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as Canadians feel the impacts of the climate crisis from extreme heat and wildfires to floods and storms, there is immense urgency to build resilient communities. Yesterday marked another important step forward to equip Canadians to face the mounting impacts of the disrupted climate with the release of Canada's national adaptation strategy.
Can the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change tell the House how this strategy will help to protect people and communities from coast to coast?
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- Nov/25/22 12:08:58 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Fredericton for her long and strong environmental advocacy.
Our government has launched Canada's first-ever national adaptation strategy to help protect communities from coast to coast to coast with $1.6 billion in new investments and 84 focused actions. Taking measures to adapt can save lives, avoid damage to communities and spur innovative technologies and jobs. Adapting to climate change requires all orders of government, the private sector and Canadians to work together to build resilient communities and a stronger economy.
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- Nov/25/22 12:09:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this week, a group of terminally ill cancer patients and their doctors came to Ottawa calling for regulations for the medical use of psilocybin. Using psilocybin can alleviate clinical depression, anxiety, chronic pain and people's dependence on substances like opioids and alcohol. This could even mean fewer medical assistance in dying requests in the future. The government has the tools to help people lessen their pain and to help improve their treatment, but the Liberals are not using them.
When will the Liberals provide the needed funding for research and clinical trials for psilocybin so that doctors can treat people's chronic suffering?
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- Nov/25/22 12:10:21 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, our government is prepared to use every tool available to address mental illness of Canadians, and it recognizes the need to explore all possible treatments. While psychedelics have shown promise in clinical trials, further research is still needed and we are funding that.
Currently, the best way for patients to access psilocybin is through their participation in a clinical trial. Alternatively, patients can talk with their health care provider to inquire about the possibility for them to submit a special access program request to receive a prescription and be supervised. Last, patients can request an exemption on compassionate grounds when other paths are unsuitable.
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