44th Parl. 1st Sess.
April 27, 2023 10:00AM
- Apr/27/23 2:06:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am sure members have noticed that the days are getting a little longer and the sun is shining a little brighter.
With spring in full bloom and summer just around the corner, I would like to take this opportunity to highlight some active ways my community of Ottawa Centre, as well as visitors to our nation’s capital, can get out to enjoy this beautiful city.
This summer, Ottawa will see the grand opening of the new Chief William Commanda Bridge, made possible by an $8.6-million investment by the Government of Canada, that will connect bikers and pedestrians across the Ottawa River between Ottawa and Gatineau. We will also see the return of NCC Weekend Bikedays, encouraging residents to use our existing parkways without their cars.
These initiatives build on Ottawa’s growing active transportation network, which includes new paths across LeBreton Flats, the iconic Flora Footbridge, hundreds of kilometres of bike paths and, quite possibly in the future, a fully pedestrianized Wellington Street.
I encourage all members to join the residents of Ottawa Centre whenever they visit our city, by walking, biking, running or just roaming around.
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Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to speak about the brave men and women who serve as firefighters in our communities. These courageous individuals put their lives on the line every day to ensure we all remain safe from emergencies. They are the front line of our emergency response system.
A few weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to meet with a few of their firefighters and their union from my riding of Mississauga—Streetsville. Our interaction was enlightening and it reinforced my admiration for the invaluable work they do.
Bill C-224 was introduced by the member for Longueuil—Charles-LeMoyne. The bill would establish a national framework for the prevention and treatment of cancers linked to firefighting. It has passed in the House with unanimous consent and is now in the Senate. As elected officials, we owe it to our firefighters to ensure they receive the support and resources needed to remain healthy and safe.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank firefighters from across Canada for their dedication and continued service to keep us safe.
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- Apr/27/23 2:09:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, one morning in January 2020, my home phone rang. It was the father of Catherine, a very close friend of my daughter Justine. He was calling to tell me that Catherine had passed away in a car accident with her friend Jérémy Routhier. I had to break the news to my daughter.
Three years later, Catherine and Jérémy are still with us as ambassadors of an organization called Chaîne de vie, whose mission is to educate young people on the importance of organ and tissue donation. Catherine's brother, Philippe Poulin, along with Elie Lessard, Mikaël Binet, Alex-Antoine Mercier and Émile Brousseau, with the help of Félix Tanguay, Samuel Laflamme and Mégane Bolduc, produced a poignant video that begins with an image depicting Catherine and Jérémy's accident. The video's narrator says:When I dieMy brain shuts downMy body leaves meMy soul takes flightBut my skin can still embraceMy lungs can still fill with airMy bones can still crackMy muscles can still liftMy corneas can still seeAnd my heart can still love
Catherine and Jérémy's organs and tissues have helped improve the lives of at least 30 people. Let us be part of the chain of life and share the video. Organ and tissue donation is about giving others a second chance at life. It makes perfect sense.
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- Apr/27/23 2:10:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, next Wednesday, the Vancouver Chinatown Foundation will host its annual spring banquet.
The foundation is dedicated to the revitalization of one of Vancouver’s most historic neighbourhoods, honouring a culture and community established in Vancouver over 100 years ago. It is building a more resilient and inclusive community, and preserving Chinatown’s irreplaceable cultural heritage, the historic heart of Vancouver.
To generate support and awareness for its projects, the foundation hosts several events each year. Some of this phenomenal work includes the autumn gala, which in recent years raised an impressive $1.1 million toward 230 units of social housing.
The spring banquet next week is held annually to remember the stories of working, playing and living in Chinatown. It is a celebration not only of Chinatown’s future, but also of its long and storied past.
I would like to particularly thank my friend Carol Lee, chair of the board of the foundation and the indomitable force behind this historic community’s revitalization.
I want to thank all for the work being done to preserve Chinatown in Vancouver for generations to come.
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- Apr/27/23 2:11:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to announce the death of a groundbreaking tidal energy project near Digby, Nova Scotia. It was operated by a world-leading company, Sustainable Marine Energy, which has been killed by the Liberal government.
A wonderful opportunity to make this country a leader in clean energy has been lost and thousands of hours of hard work have been wasted. This paints a picture of a government that is psycho-sclerotic, unintelligent, unimaginative and unwilling to experiment with new ideas to protect our environment, outside of taxing Canadians into submission at the fuel pump.
In the paraphrased words of the Premier of Nova Scotia, the federal government is shutting down a project that would change the economy of Nova Scotia and supply clean, green energy.
The federal Liberal government is happy to saddle us with a carbon tax, which will cost us more and do little to protect the environment.
Shame on the Liberal government.
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- Apr/27/23 2:12:50 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, McKinsey & Company has been connected to the Canada Infrastructure Bank since the beginning. It was McKinsey's CEO, Dominic Barton, who recommended the bank's creation. They then funnelled from the bank $1.4 million in contracts to McKinsey. Then a bunch of McKinsey loyalists were hired at the bank.
Now these former executives, board chairs and even the Minister of Infrastructure refuse to appear at the committee on transport and infrastructure.
These taxpayer-funded executives with six-figure salaries, some of whom are receiving big payouts and bonuses, think they do not have to answer to Parliament.
The committee was cancelled today, at a cost to taxpayers. That is why I am putting the witnesses on notice. The Conservatives will be demanding that these witnesses appear at committee. They can come the easy way or they can come the hard way, but they will come to committee and they will answer to taxpayers.
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- Apr/27/23 2:14:00 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, last month, La Nuit sur l'étang celebrated 50 remarkable years in our community. La Nuit sur l'étang is a Franco-Canadian music festival held every year in my riding of Sudbury.
This festival has contributed to the development of the Franco-Ontarian culture and helped it thrive, especially in the north. La Nuit sur l'étang has played an important role in promoting Franco-Ontarian musicians. It has had a crucial and lasting impact on the francophone arts community in the North.
I want to acknowledge the distinguished history of La Nuit sur l'étang. I also want to congratulate the team, the volunteers and the musicians on their remarkable work, their dedication and their passion. I congratulate them on 50 stellar years.
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- Apr/27/23 2:15:01 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, when I first visited Bella Coola, several Nuxalk people encouraged me to track down Clyde Tallio, their knowledge keeper.
The words “knowledge keeper” conjure an image of a wizened elder, so I surprised to discover that Clyde was an energetic 30 year old. After high school, instead of university, Clyde undertook five years of intensive traditional training with a group of elders and became one of only a handful of people who speak the Nuxalk language fluently. He was initiated as an Alkw, a ceremonial speaker and knowledge keeper.
Clyde's work revitalizing the Nuxalk culture, language and ceremonies now spans two decades and has made a tremendous impact.
Next month, the University of British Columbia is bestowing upon him an honorary doctorate in recognition of his work.
I spoke to Clyde the other day and he told me, “Our ways work. Our ways are relevant. Our ways are the future.”
I want to congratulate Clyde.
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- Apr/27/23 2:16:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, May 1 is International Workers' Day, a day that will be marked in Quebec by rallies that will focus on inflation.
Too many workers cannot make ends meet because inflation is driving up expenses but not wages. May 1 is the time to remember the struggles of the working class and the many gains painfully earned through lengthy struggles. These victories should not be taken for granted.
We should keep in mind that federal workers who are on strike or locked out can still be replaced by scabs, as we are currently seeing at the Port of Quebec. We should keep in mind that, because of the federal government, 60% of those who lose their jobs cannot rely on employment insurance. We should keep in mind that 150,000 people are on strike right now and the the Prime Minister is ducking the issue.
On May 1, let us keep in mind that the struggle continues and that solidarity remains the key to victory. I wish everyone a happy May 1.
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- Apr/27/23 2:17:26 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it takes an “unforgettable” amount of incompetence to increase public service spending by 53% and still end up with the biggest federal public service strike in history. Where is the Prime Minister this weekend? He is making a “brand new start of it in old New York”. We jest, but with how often he is out of the country, one would really think he is Frank Sinatra.
We all know that at the end of the day he likes to say ,“I did it my way”. While everyday Canadians struggle thanks to ever-soaring inflation, Liberal insiders are still singing “come fly with me, let's fly, let's fly”, even “to the moon” and back.
Canadians cannot fly with the Liberal elite when their cost of living is so out of reach. The Prime Minister may be in his “New York state of mind”, but Canadians no longer care about “the way [he looks] tonight”, because after eight long years, they have felt like “strangers in the night”.
“The best is yet to come”, because nationwide, as “a moon hits [their] eye”, Canadians will realize they deserve a bigger piece of the pie. Thankfully, “just in time”, a Conservative government will bring it home and that will be “amore.”
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- Apr/27/23 2:18:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second-best time is now, or in this case, this past weekend.
The rain did not dampen our spirits in Kitchener—Conestoga. We had an amazing turnout for two Earth Day tree-planting events in our community.
I spent the morning with the organization Trees for Woolwich planting, staking and sheltering over 100 trees in the Elmira Nature Reserve. That afternoon, I joined another hard-working group of volunteers, led by Let's Tree Wilmot. This organization dedicated its time and efforts to extend the forest between Schmidt Woods and Highway 7 and Highway 8 in Baden.
Nature-based solutions play an important part in protecting our environment. Trees help clean the air we breathe and the water we drink. They shelter and protect biodiversity. Investing in nature is one of the most affordable climate actions we can take.
I thank the amazing volunteers with Trees for Woolwich and Let’s Tree Wilmot for their time and dedication in selflessly planting trees knowing that in their lifetime, they may never sit in their shade. Future generations might someday spend an Earth Day in the very forests they helped create.
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- Apr/27/23 2:20:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of this Prime Minister, one in five Canadians are skipping meals and 1.5 million have to go to food banks just to eat. We have a government that is costing 50% more because of red tape and a strike at the same time. What is the Prime Minister doing? He is going to New York on vacation with fancy people who have a lot of money, but not much common sense.
When will the Prime Minister and his government get back to work?
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- Apr/27/23 2:20:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I believe the question was about what is happening at the bargaining table. What is happening is that we are working very hard to ensure that there is an agreement that is reasonable for employees and reasonable for Canadians. We are working hard to make sure that this agreement can bring the strike to an end. Obviously, we respect the strike, but we are working very hard at the bargaining table right now.
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- Apr/27/23 2:21:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of the Prime Minister, Canadians are broke and the government is broken. Here we have one in five Canadians skipping meals because they cannot afford the price of food. Nine in 10 young people say they cannot afford housing, and no wonder, as the Prime Minister has doubled rent, doubled mortgage payments and doubled down payments. Crime is raging out of control on our streets, and there is the biggest federal strike in Canadian history.
What is the Prime Minister's priority? Why, it is another vacation, this time to New York to hang out with people who have lots of money but not a lot of common sense. When will the Prime Minister and his government get back to work?
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- Apr/27/23 2:21:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, in the Leader of the Opposition's comment, I believe I heard him asking what is happening at the table at this time. What is happening is that we are negotiating. We are trying to find a reasonable deal for public servants that will be fair, and we are working day in and day out to get to that deal. We respect workers as they are striking, but we know that the best deal we will find is at the table.
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- Apr/27/23 2:22:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, they consider the best deal to be paying 50% more tax dollars on bureaucracy and ending up with a strike regardless.
The average Canadian household has to spend $1,300 more in federal tax just for bureaucracy, and people are not getting the services they are paying for. This is on top of 40-year highs in inflation, a doubling in housing costs and jobs that are leaving our country because the Prime Minister's gatekeepers are standing in the way.
Why does the Prime Minister not turn his plane around, get back to Ottawa, do his job and get his government back to work?
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- Apr/27/23 2:23:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, let us look at the facts, because we have a lot of bluff and bluster from the other side.
This government has been working for Canadians since the day we formed government. Let us just take a look at the facts over the last year: the strongest economic recovery in the G7, 830,000 jobs created since the worst time of the pandemic, an economic recovery that is faster than the United States' and over 700,000 people lifted out of poverty. We are going to continue to lead growth in the G7.
We are here working for Canadians every day. That is our job. We are going to keep doing just that.
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- Apr/27/23 2:23:52 p.m.
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Wow, Mr. Speaker, are they ever out of touch, telling Canadians they have never had it so good. Well, the 1.5 million people eating at food banks, some of them asking for help with medical assistance in dying because they are too hungry and miserable to go on, might beg to disagree with that rosy picture over there.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister is expatriating our jobs to other countries. Most recently, we have Glencore, an ethically challenged company, threatening to take over one of the oldest resource companies in Canadian history, Teck Resources. Will the government protect the thousands of jobs at stake and our minerals by blocking this takeover?
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- Apr/27/23 2:24:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, critical minerals are an enormously high priority for this government. They represent a generational economic opportunity for Canada.
At this point, there is no formal offer on the table, but as a British Columbian who lives in Vancouver where Teck is headquartered, I am very proud of the fact that its corporate office is in Vancouver and its research and development is done in British Columbia. It is an important member of the Canadian business community, and we certainly are in touch with it on an ongoing basis.
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- Apr/27/23 2:25:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, what we need to do is bring home more control over our resources so it is in the hands of Canadians, rather than ship our jobs overseas, as the Prime Minister has been doing for eight years. We can do that by getting rid of the gatekeepers to quickly build natural gas liquefaction facilities; by getting rid of the gatekeepers so we can have tidal power developed, which is clean and green, in Atlantic Canada; by getting rid of the gatekeepers to build more hydroelectric dams in Quebec; and finally by blocking this foreign takeover by an unethical overseas company.
Will the Prime Minister finally bring it home for Canada and block this takeover?
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