44th Parl. 1st Sess.
February 16, 2023 10:00AM
- Feb/16/23 1:35:04 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I will just reiterate some of what I said before. I agree with my colleague. Wait lists for surgeries, children, seniors and people seeking addiction treatment are atrocious.
This is true in Quebec too. Every day, we see images of wait lists in ERs. People cannot get adequate care in Canada, and that is an absolute disgrace.
However, here we are spending yet another day wasting our breath because we cannot change anything about the things in my NDP friends' motion. That is all down to the provinces.
However, there are changes we can make. I wonder why the NDP did not use its motion to tell the Liberals that the provinces asked for $6 billion and got $1 billion. Why not move a motion asking the feds to increase health transfers from $1 billion to $6 billion? That would shorten wait lists—
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- Feb/16/23 1:35:59 p.m.
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I have to give the hon. member for Courtenay—Alberni enough time to answer.
The hon. member for Courtenay—Alberni.
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- Feb/16/23 1:36:07 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, clearly we are not satisfied with the amount of money that the government put on the table. It is far from what is needed. It has also not delivered on the Canada mental health transfer, which is absolutely critical. If we want to talk about solutions, we need to deal with the issues right in front of us. There is a mental health and substance use crisis in this country. It is an epidemic, and the government needs to respond like it is an epidemic.
We have a motion today that is—
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- Feb/16/23 1:36:37 p.m.
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Resuming debate, the hon. member for New Westminster—Burnaby.
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- Feb/16/23 1:36:42 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am pleased to rise in the House to defend the Canadian health care system and, more importantly, the Canadian public health care system.
It is already common knowledge that public health care was created here, in the House, by Tommy Douglas, former NDP leader, and by the NPD caucus in the 1960s. That was when our universal public health care system was created. The NDP was not only an inspiration, it also fought for the health care system we have today.
In all the polls of Canadians that have been commissioned over the years asking them which Canadian institution makes them the most proud, all Canadians, including Quebeckers, respond that universal public health care is the institution that they care about the most.
This is worth mentioning, because the NDP inspired its creation and fought for this Canadian public health care system that people across Canada value, be they in Chicoutimi or Calgary. Indeed, 80% of Canadians value our universal public health care system.
However, it must be said that this system is currently at risk because of underfunding. It was underfunded by the Conservatives and then by the Liberals. This lack of funding is undermining our public health care system. Now, we are also facing a government that is refusing to strengthen the Canada Health Act. This act reflects all of the principles of universal public health care in Canada. However, we have a Liberal government that refuses to respect these principles and ensure they are upheld. When I watch Quebec television, I am now seeing ads for private surgeries and for a whole range of services offered in the private sector. This type of thing should not be happening under the Canada Health Act. Proper funding is, of course, extremely important.
In light of all that, what the NDP is proposing today should be a given. The House should unanimously adopt this motion, which says that we cannot promote a for-profit health care system as some kind of innovation, that we must ensure that health care funding is used for the universal public system, and that we must ensure that we have more nurses, more staff and more doctors. All of these things are possible.
We are also saying that we need to strengthen the Canada Health Act so as not to expand the use of for-profit health care, because that is detrimental. We know that, because of its for-profit health care system, per capita health care costs in the United States are twice as high as they are in Canada. We also know that tens of millions of Americans do not even have access to their health care system. To illustrate, my cousin had a car accident in California, and that cost him $100,000 and put him in an extremely difficult situation. That is something that we see all the time in the U.S.
A profit-driven health care system is a system full of holes that leaves people without health care coverage. They then have to use their credit cards. Plus, the costs are double what they would be in a normal system.
This is the question that is before each parliamentarian. There is no doubt that, if we ask our constituents, and I hope Conservatives and Liberals will ask their constituents before they vote on this after we have a two-week break in our constituencies, our constituents would say, at a level of 80%, that they believe in universal public health care in Canada.
Tommy Douglas started universal public health care. The NDP caucus fought for it in the 1960s, and we fought for it because we know that people should not have to rely on their credit cards when they have health challenges that force them to get medical support. There is no doubt that ensuring our universal public health care system continues, and gets better and even expanded, is why the member for Burnaby South has fought for dental care. That is why we are fighting for pharmacare.
Members will recall that, just two years ago, Conservatives and Liberals voted against pharmacare, even though 30,000 Canadians in each of their ridings need access to universal public pharmacare. They voted against the interests of their constituents and for the interests of big pharmaceutical companies.
We believe we actually need to expand health care and ensure dental care. We must ensure health care, as the member for Burnaby South has said so often, from the tops of our heads to the soles of our feet. That is health care that Tommy Douglas imagined, and that is universal public health care that Canadians support.
We have the Conservatives, as always, trying to undermine and throw out our health care system. We see this with Doug Ford in Ontario. They are obviously not doing it with the support of their constituents, and I would level a warning to Conservatives who believe that somehow they can trick their constituents by voting against public health care and undermining public health care. Canadians support public health care, and Conservatives should get on board. They should be supporting public health care in this country, because that is what Canadians support and that is what their constituents want them to do.
I am anticipating that Conservatives are going to vote “yes” on this motion. I am anticipating that Liberals will too, even though they voted against pharmacare and dental care. The NDP brought them kicking and screaming to the reality that we need to expand our public health care system.
The member for Vancouver Kingsway is absolutely right. We have now forced dental care. We are going to have a vote this year on pharmacare. These are important innovations and expansions. This is the fundamental strength of our public health care system.
We need to ensure adequate funding. We need to ensure, as well, that the Canada Health Act is actually upheld, that a law in this country is actually respected. What a concept that is. We see private clinics and we see provincial governments moving to the huge cost that comes from for-profit health care. We see them trying to chip away at universal public health care rather than funding it adequately, and the federal government needs to start stepping up on funding of public health care in this country.
We throw away, in a system created by the Conservatives and maintained by the Liberals, $30 billion every year to the ultrarich in notorious overseas tax havens. There are treaties the Harper government signed to allow the ultrarich to take their money offshore, and the Liberals have maintained that system, to the chagrin of most Canadians.
We have the financial ability to adequately fund our health care, and that means ensuring people also have access to their medication, dental care and mental health care. These are all fundamental tenets of universal public health care.
In this corner of the House, the NDP stands resolutely for adequate funding for enforcement of the Canada Health Act and for ensuring we push back on private, for-profit health care, because we know it costs Canadians twice as much. We know it means Canadians get a substandard level of care as it is creamed off into for-profit health care.
When we see big corporations like Loblaws trying to step up to take their piece, New Democrats, members of the NDP caucus, our leader from Burnaby South and our health critic from Vancouver Kingsway all say “no” to for-profit health care. We say “yes” to adequately funded universal public health care in Canada.
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- Feb/16/23 1:46:32 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I actually do not disagree with a lot of what is in this motion. The problem is that the NDP does the same thing it has done so many other times when it brings forward an opposition motion. It put something in here that makes it very difficult for Liberals to support it, namely, saying that the Prime Minister has dramatically changed his position, which we all know is not true.
This is just an opportunity that the NDP has seized from a little bit of misinformation and a little bit of information taken out of context.
I think that, outside of those two comments in there, this is a pretty decent motion and I would be inclined to support it.
I am wondering if the NDP would be open to removing those two sentences that directly attack the Prime Minister. The first is (ii) and the second is (a). If the NDP removed those, it would be so much easier for me to support.
Would the members remove those two sentences from there?
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- Feb/16/23 1:47:43 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I think the member is overly sensitive. Let us read out the motion so that all Canadians can hear it.
First is that the House “(a) express disappointment that the prime minister has promoted Ontario’s for-profit health plans as ‘innovation’”. That is a fact that nobody can dispute.
Next is “(b) ensure that recently announced health care funding is not used for the expansion of for-profit health care, but instead used to rebuild and innovate within the public system by hiring more staff and reducing wait times". Who can disagree with that?
The last is to “(c) enforce the Canada Health Act and immediately move to close loopholes that allow for the growth of two-tier health care in Canada.”
This is a very simple, straightforward motion that everyone should vote—
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- Feb/16/23 1:48:26 p.m.
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Questions and comments, the hon. member for Regina—Lewvan.
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- Feb/16/23 1:48:31 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I never got an answer to my last question from the member before this.
This member seems to have selective amnesia. I feel so bad for him. He talks about Tommy Douglas but not about Roy Romanow's revenge on rural Saskatchewan, where, in the 1990s, he closed 52 hospitals and 13 long-term care homes. They are the kings of two-tiered health care systems, with one service in rural Saskatchewan and one service in urban Saskatchewan.
I would love an answer, since they ushered in the actual two-tiered system, and they closed hospitals where people did not vote for them.
I wonder how they feel about that, because they will never be trusted to run health care in Saskatchewan. Canada should not trust these NDP members either, because they are members of the same party.
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- Feb/16/23 1:49:15 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is quite simple. The member is asking absolutely ridiculous questions. To impugn Tommy Douglas, the founder of universal public health care, is the incredible disinformation that has become the wacky part of this Conservative Party. Its members no longer base anything on facts. They just get up and throw out anything.
I would simply ask them to talk to their constituents. I would ask the member to go back to Regina and talk to his constituents. What he will find is that 80% of his constituents want him to vote for this motion.
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- Feb/16/23 1:50:03 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, this is entertaining. It is like when people in Quebec bicker about who is the king of poutine or who created it.
What is not so funny is that everyone here is going to argue that the best health care system is public, universal and free. Everyone is going to say we do not want a two-tiered health care system, like the American system.
However, the problem here is that after describing the situation with health care they then urge Canada to save it. Quebec has health legislation. The problem for the Bloc is that the NDP puts Canada first.
We feel a sense of belonging to Quebec. To guarantee a public health care system, we must ensure that the federal government commits to funding it as part of its spending power.
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- Feb/16/23 1:51:04 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I have a great deal of respect for the member, but she is wrong. For the NDP, people come first. Nurses come first. Doctors come first. Health care systems come first, whether in Quebec, in British Columbia or elsewhere. We fought to have those systems properly funded and to create our universal health care system.
We have always pushed for a Canada Health Act that protects our universal public health care system.
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- Feb/16/23 1:51:49 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for London West.
I am very pleased to rise today to speak about health care. This has been a really important issue for my constituents and all Canadians, especially after the pandemic and the strain we saw in our health care system. All Canadians are focused on health care right now and are thinking about health care. The strain on our health care workers has been enormous. I am therefore pleased to rise in this House to talk about the plan that our Prime Minister announced.
My minister, the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, and the health minister have been travelling across the country meeting with premiers and their ministerial counterparts to discuss health care needs in each and every province and territory. We know that the needs in each province and territory differ, and that is precisely why these conversations about the priorities in each place are so crucial. There is not a one-size-fits-all solution, but what we can do as a federal government is lead and support.
We can talk about the areas of health care that we all know are under pressure, including emergency rooms. I have mentioned the strain on health care workers in the sector, who are overworked and whom we all regarded as our heroes. They are still our heroes but are not getting the attention and care they need during this difficult time. That is what the funding announced on February 7 is about. The Prime Minister announced almost $200 billion over the next 10 years to help support the critical areas that are under pressure. It includes better wages for health care workers, which is incredibly important.
In my riding, issues regarding mental health are raised all the time. Countless constituents have come to me talking about the mental health needs of a family member, for example. In my region, there seem to be some challenges in getting support for people with eating disorders, a specialized mental health area. It is also really hard to get supports for young people, and that is crucial for their recovery.
There are other areas I have met with constituents on. One is the area of stroke survivors getting the adequate rehab they need post-stroke. Another area we have heard about in my constituency is the need for family doctors and access to family doctors, especially for newcomers in my community who need family doctors or specialist appointments. It is becoming increasingly difficult.
I would be remiss if I did not speak about the need for long-term care and the supports there. Our government previously announced $4 billion to support long-term care. Sadly, during the pandemic, one of the long-term care homes in my riding lost many residents. I think we had among the most fatalities of anywhere in the country, which was devastating and only served to prove the breaking point that some of these facilities were already under. The measures and the supports needed during COVID highlighted that. We have committed to doing better. We owe these families and our seniors the dignity they deserve later in life.
I have spoken about emergency room wait times. I have heard from constituents who, if they do not have a family doctor, are putting more strain on emergency rooms because they have nowhere to turn, even if there might not be an emergency situation. That is also adding to the strain and pressures on our system.
These are all things that Canadians are extremely focused on. That is why, with this announcement, I was so pleased that the proposed funding addresses so many of the key points that my constituents have raised directly. One of those things is an immediate $2-billion top-up to deal with the pressures on pediatric hospitals and emergency rooms and with long wait times for surgeries. Those specialty appointments are becoming harder for constituents to receive, and many times it is a quality of life issue.
We have also committed to additional bilateral agreements because, as I said earlier, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. The priorities of each province and territory might be different. The needs of the residents there might be different. It is important that we are listening to those needs and where those priorities should be.
I spoke about support for our hospital workers, which includes $1.7 billion over five years to increase the wages of personal support workers. This is additional funding to help keep seniors, or those who need a bit of help, in their homes longer. I have personal friends and constituents who are in desperate need of that additional care. We will help them by injecting some of the funding into that system. In addition, there is $2 billion over 10 years to support indigenous priorities.
There is a lot of work to be done, but I think what is crucial is that we have identified what Canadians have been telling us about where the injection of funding is needed.
One of the most important things I can say, which constituents in my riding in Ontario have said time and time again, is that there has to be accountability. We cannot just send cash to the provinces without knowing where it is going or if it is actually hitting the services needed. My constituents and residents who have been asking for this influx of funding want to be able to hold their provincial governments accountable if the funding is not going there.
What I do not want to see after an injection of federal funding, which I have also heard from my constituents, is the provinces taking out their share while we end up in no better a place than we were before. Therefore, for accountability and transparency, the requirement to have data is important. The Prime Minister has talked about this. I find it difficult to talk to Canadians about the fact that if they require an ambulance and provide their health care, the ambulance staff do not know if they are allergic to anything.
I think I am running out of time since question period is about to start, but I would like to continue after that because this is a crucial moment for our health care system in Canada.
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- Feb/16/23 2:00:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, if someone looks up the term “exemplary service” in Elgin County, they will find the name and face of Ken Monteith.
Ken lived nearly all of his life on the family farm in Middlemarch. He served as a councillor, deputy reeve, reeve, warden and member of Parliament for Elgin—Norfolk. He was the chairman of the Progressive Conservative Party's national agricultural caucus and sat on the agricultural standing committee on Parliament Hill.
Ken dedicated his life to his community. He was chairman of the board for the St. Thomas Elgin General Hospital, director of Ridgetown College, chair of the 1985 International Plowing Match and co-chair of the Elgin-St. Thomas United Way campaign. He was the recipient of the Queen's Medal, the Westag Alumnus of Honour Award and the Outstanding Service Award from the Ontario Agricultural College. He was also inducted into the Elgin County Agricultural Hall of Fame in 2015.
Kenneth Ernest Monteith passed away on February 3. To his wife Luella and his children Ken, Paul and Janet and their families, from the people of Elgin—Middlesex—London, I say thanks for sharing Ken with all of us.
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- Feb/16/23 2:01:59 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is with pain and anguish that I state Ram Mandir, a Hindu temple in Mississauga, has become the latest target of a hate crime.
In recent times, other Hindu temples across Canada have been targets of hate crimes by anti-Hindu and anti-India groups. These groups first joined hands on social media to target Hindu-Canadians and started the trend of Hinduphobia. They have now moved on to physical attacks on Hindu temples. There are reports of individual Hindu Canadians also being targeted.
As I have said before, Canada needs to take this issue seriously and address the growing Hinduphobia. As Canadians, we need to practise, celebrate and share our many different religious faiths and heritages peacefully. Let us pledge to continue to do so.
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- Feb/16/23 2:03:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am both honoured and saddened to still be speaking about the tragic situation in Iran. It has been almost six months since Mahsa Amini was killed while in custody of the morality police, and it has been 44 years since an authoritarian government took over the country.
Today, countless women and young people continue to risk their lives protesting the gross human rights violations perpetrated by the regime. Even in the face of threats, execution and imprisonment, the Iranian people continue to show their resilience and solidarity with the ideals of human rights, liberal democracy and freedom, which we in Canada are so privileged to enjoy.
This morning, I stood to present a petition signed and presented to me by Iranian Canadians in my riding that called on the government to continue to implement the sanctions we have in place on the IRGC and its officials. I thank Shelly, Marjan and Lily, who spearheaded the petition and have been supporting and working tirelessly with the community and me to ensure this work continues.
I presented the petition with members from other parties to show that this issue is not a partisan one. I want to thank my colleagues, the hon. Conservative member for Elgin—Middlesex—London and the Green member for Saanich—Gulf Islands, who stood and presented petitions with me. I also want to acknowledge the support of the NDP, through the member for Port Moody—Coquitlam, and the Bloc, through the member for Shefford.
Unfortunately, women were so frightened to sign these petitions that they were not certified and not all of their names could stand. I want to point out to all Iranian Canadians that their government and their elected representatives from all parties stand with them and the Iranian people. Zan, zendegi, azadi.
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- Feb/16/23 2:04:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, February 13 to 17, 2023, is Hooked on School Days.
The campaign honours all those who support our young people. As the Hooked on School Days website explains, we recognize their crucial role in fostering students' motivation, resilience and self-confidence, and we salute their commitment to making student retention a priority. When that is combined with congratulations, guidance, encouragement, explanations, a sympathetic ear and support, young people and Quebec society as a whole are the ones who benefit.
The more we can do to instill a sense of confidence and self-worth, the better the chances that all young people, without exception, will realize their potential and discover they have what it takes to move forward in a direction that reflects their passions and interests.
I am confident that student retention will ensure a bright future for Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou.
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- Feb/16/23 2:05:38 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, yesterday was Canada's Agriculture Day. It is a good opportunity to celebrate our food and, above all, those who produce it.
In Coaticook, in the Eastern Townships, Agropur announced that the Morin farm won the prize for the best milk in Quebec for the third consecutive year.
Thanks to farmers like Réjean Morin et Véronique Lévesque, who pamper their animals from 5:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. every day, we can enjoy delicious local products.
The hard work of producers on 190,000 farms across the country has enabled Canada to enjoy an enviable reputation around the world for the quality of its food, its innovation in the agricultural and agri‑food sector, and its sustainable development principles.
The efforts of my colleague, the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, ensure that our government will continue to support our farmers by implementing various measures, including the new sustainable Canadian agricultural partnership, by investing in innovation and clean technologies, and by fully supporting supply management.
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- Feb/16/23 2:06:51 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is with a heavy heart that I rise today on behalf of the people of Battle River—Crowfoot, and all Canadians, to express my deep sadness at the passing of RCMP Staff Sergeant Bruce Holliday.
Staff Sergeant Holliday was not only an incredibly dedicated police officer, but an extraordinary human being and an involved member of the community. He worked tirelessly to break down the barriers within the communities he served and build trust between the residents of east central Alberta and the RCMP. He played an essential role in building community wellness programming and was an inspiration to many. Stettler, Bashaw and the many other communities he served benefited greatly from his leadership. His care and dedication transformed many lives and made our regions not only safer, but truly better, from his work while in uniform to his passion for his family and community.
I would ask all members to join Danielle and me in sending our condolences to Bruce's wife, Lidia, and kids Kayla and Claire, as well as his loved ones, friends and colleagues. May God grant them all peace during this difficult time.
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- Feb/16/23 2:08:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is coming up to one year since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Tens of thousands of soldiers have died and Ukrainian civilians have been targeted, left in the cold, tortured and murdered. The big question is, “Why?”
Russian leaders like Putin and Lavrov, standing on marble floors, wearing their ties and their shiny shoes, spout endless lies in an attempt to legitimize the killings. The only people buying into these lies are gullible fools or those who profit from the Russians. The war goes on because it is not the rich Russian leaders or their families who are dying in the snowbanks of Ukraine.
Those who perpetrated the war will be brought to justice, and when that happens, I hope it is those who wore the ties and the shiny shoes who will particularly get the harsh justice.
Slava Ukraini.
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