SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 194 - May/10/23

May/10/23 3:23:45 p.m.
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Following discussions among representatives of all parties in the House, I understand there is an agreement to observe a moment of silence in honour of our former colleague, the Hon. Marc Lalonde. I would invite hon. members to rise. [A moment of silence observed]

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The Speaker

May/10/23 3:24:32 p.m.
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It being 3:24 p.m., pursuant to order made on Thursday, June 23, 2022, the House will now proceed to the taking of the deferred recorded division on the question of privilege in the name of the hon. member for Wellington—Halton Hills.

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The Speaker

May/10/23 3:25:50 p.m.
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Call in the members.

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Call

The Speaker

May/10/23 3:37:49 p.m.
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I declare the motion carried.

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.)

May/10/23 3:38:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8)(a), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's responses to five petitions. These returns will be tabled in an electronic format.

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Mr. Ali Ehsassi (Willowdale, Lib.)

May/10/23 3:39:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 17th report of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development, entitled “Main Estimates 2023-24: Votes 1, 5, 10, 15, 20 and L30 under Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development, Vote 1 under International Development Research Centre, and Vote 1 under International Joint Commission”.

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Hon. Judy A. Sgro (Humber River—Black Creek, Lib.)

May/10/23 3:39:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am very honoured today to present, in both official languages, the ninth report of the Standing Committee on International Trade, entitled “The United States’ Inflation Reduction Act of 2022: Trade Impacts on Certain Canadian Sectors”.

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Mr. Stéphane Bergeron (Montarville, BQ)

May/10/23 3:40:22 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present a petition signed by 511 people, which reads as follows, and I quote: WHEREAS: The war on the Tigray region of Ethiopia has led to more than 63,000 refugees fleeing to camps in neighboring Sudan, 2.2 million civilians internally displaced, and over 91% of the 6 million people in need of assistance; The forces of Ethiopia and invading forces of Eritrea and Amhara region have jointly waged another round of atrocities, war crimes, and crimes against humanity on civilians in Tigray; The war on Tigray has resulted in a man-made famine. The World Food Program estimates that 5.2 million people, 91% of Tigray's population, need emergency food assistance. Due to the siege and blockade, the people of Tigray are denied access to humanitarian aid and basic services; Sexual Gender-Based Violence has been systematically used as a weapon of war in Tigray by Eritrean troops, Ethiopian forces, and Amhara regional forces; and Since November 2020, Canada has provided $54.5 million in humanitarian assistance to Ethiopia for the crisis in Tigray. It is more likely that this assistance will be used by the Government of Ethiopia to purchase military armaments, including drones, instead of addressing the humanitarian needs in Tigray and other parts of Ethiopia. We, the undersigned citizens of Canada, call upon the House of Commons to: Immediately call on the Eritrean government to stop invading the Tigray region of Ethiopia and withdraw its forces from Tigray; Immediately call for unfettered humanitarian access to Tigray. Call for humanitarian discussion under Resolution 2417 (2018); Immediately withhold all non-life-saving funding from Canada to Ethiopia until the cessation of violence is achieved; Provide an update on how funds for humanitarian assistance Canada has been given to Ethiopia in support of the people affected in the Tigray region; and Immediately call to allow the UN-led inquiry commission to enter the Tigray region to conduct its investigation on crimes against humanity, war crimes, and humanitarian and human rights violations committed in Tigray.

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The Speaker

May/10/23 3:42:38 p.m.
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I would remind the member and all members that we ask for a concise summary of the petition. The hon. member for Brampton North.

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Ms. Ruby Sahota (Brampton North, Lib.)

May/10/23 3:42:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise to present a petition on behalf of the staff and students of Notre Dame Secondary School, a Catholic school in my riding of Brampton North. Although the oil and gas sector is only 5% of the economy, it is responsible for 26% of Canada's emissions. The petitioners call for a hard cap on emissions from the oil and gas sector to address the climate crisis. They give a five-point plan on how to do so, by restricting pollution, reducing emissions, addressing extraction methods and the burning of fossil fuels, and phasing out fossil fuel subsidies. They lay out a groundwork for a just transition to a net-zero economy by 2050.

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Ms. Elizabeth May (Saanich—Gulf Islands, GP)

May/10/23 3:43:48 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to rise to present a petition expressing concerns of many constituents about the lack of adequate public transportation across Canada. As the Federation of Canadian Municipalities has pointed out, in the transition to zero emissions, public transit helps Canadians meet the Paris targets. It also notes that the lack of public transit is particularly acute between communities. The petitioners, citizens and residents of Canada, call for the House of Commons to establish a permanent federal funding mechanism for public transit; work together with all levels of government to provide sustainable, predictable and adequate funding; and have accountability mechanisms to ensure that different orders of government work together, collaboratively and effectively.

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Winnipeg North, Lib.)

May/10/23 3:44:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this is yet another petition, similar to petitions I have submitted before, looking at encouraging airlines and governments, all people, including the Winnipeg international airport, to have a direct flight from the city of Winnipeg to a place such as Amritsar, India, at the very least. With the growth of our Indo-Canadian community, I believe, as many believe, that the need to have additional international flights going from Canada to Europe is of the utmost importance. Hopefully, we will get a response coming not only from parliamentarians but also from other vested groups such as our airlines.

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.)

May/10/23 3:45:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the following questions will be answered today: Nos. 1344, 1346, 1348, 1350, 1353 and 1355.

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May/10/23 3:46:10 p.m.
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Question No. 1344—

Questioner: Tracy Gray

With regard to the $1,000 processing fee charged to employers for a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA): (a) what is the breakdown of activities funded by this fee, broken down by the actual cost and the proportion of the fee; (b) what was the total amount of fees collected or projected to be collected by the government for the (i) 2022-23, (ii) 2023-24, fiscal year; (c) how is the government projected to spend the amounts collected in (b); and (d) is a portion of the fee used for measures other than directly recouping costs associated with the LMIA, and, if so, what is the portion and what is it used for?

Question No. 1346—

Questioner: Cheryl Gallant

With regard to Transport Canada (TC), the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) and air travel: (a) what are the top 10 risks identified in 2023 as they relate to (i) airline safety, (ii) passenger delays, (iii) the smooth operation of airports; (b) what steps is TC taking to mitigate each risk identified in (a); (c) what is the role of (i) the CTA, (ii) TC, in ensuring that air traffic delays are correctly reported to air traffic control towers; (d) how many and what percentage of total flight delays were reported due to (i) mechanical issues, (ii) air traffic congestion, (iii) weather conditions, (iv) other issues, broken down by year for each of the last five years; (e) what are the specific steps taken by either TC or the CTA to (i) reduce flight delays, (ii) increase flight delay transparency, (iii) invest in improved flight reporting technologies; (f) how many delays were reported in compliance with Annex 15 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation — Aeronautical Information Services in each of the last five years, and, of those delays, how many were due to (i) weather, (ii) shortages of air traffic controllers, (iii) airline maintenance, (iv) supply chain blockages; (g) how does TC ensure the (i) safe, (ii) efficient, (iii) transparent, reporting of flight information between air traffic controllers and Nav Canada; (h) what measures has TC implemented to improve coordination and communication between air traffic controllers and airlines when flight delays are caused by (i) adverse weather conditions, (ii) equipment failures, (iii) labour shortages, (iv) labour disputes; (i) how does TC hold Nav Canada accountable when flight delays, runway safety or shortages impact safety and passenger experience; and (j) what steps has the CTA taken to ensure compliance with the Canadian Aviation Regulations and international aviation regulations in reporting of flight delays caused by (i) runway maintenance, (ii) air traffic congestion, (iii) security incidents at airports?

Question No. 1348—

Questioner: Lianne Rood

With regard to financial incentives provided by the government to Volkswagen to entice the company to open a battery cell plant in St. Thomas, Ontario: what are the details, including the total value, broken down by type of incentive (grants, tax deferrals, loans, etc.)?

Question No. 1350—

Questioner: Michael D.

With regard to the allegations related to the member from Don Valley North contained in the Global News reports of February 24, 2023: did anyone from the Office of the Prime Minister request briefings about the allegations, and, if so, for each briefing, (i) who provided it, (ii) who received it, (iii) what was the date on which it occurred?

Question No. 1353—

Questioner: Greg McLean

With regard to the government's stated goals on electric vehicle chargers in Canada, since November 4, 2015: (a) how much funding has the government invested in installing electric vehicle chargers, broken down by the (i) project, (ii) recipient company or organisation, (iii) year, (iv) location, (v) government entity providing the funding; (b) how many chargers have been installed with these funds, broken down by the (i) project, (ii) recipient company or organisation, (iii) year, (iv) location, (v) federal government entity providing the funding; and (c) of the chargers in (b), where were they manufactured or shipped from, and what is the carbon footprint of each installed charger?

Question No. 1355—

Questioner: Greg McLean

With regard to the $1.3 million government investment in Net Zero Atlantic for the Community Geothermal Resource Capacity Assessment and Training Program (GeoCAT): (a) how many geothermal energy infrastructure projects are expected to directly benefit from these funds; (b) what percentage of these funds will be used for engagement and relationship building with Nova Scotia communities to create and deliver the community-tailored geothermal opportunity information modules; (c) what percentage of these funds will be used to deliver a geothermal project development information module to provide the community with a roadmap to potential project development; and (d) what percentage of these funds will be used for other project components?

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.)

May/10/23 3:46:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, if the government's responses to Questions Nos 1343, 1345, 1347, 1349, 1351, 1352 and 1354 could be made orders for return, these returns would be tabled immediately. The Speaker: Is that agreed? Some hon. members: Agreed.

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May/10/23 3:46:30 p.m.
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Question No. 1343—

Questioner: Damien C.

With regard to government advertising on television and radio since January 1, 2022, broken down by department or agency: what are the details of all such advertisements, including the (i) type of advertisement (tv, radio, or both), (ii) title and description of the message, (iii) purpose, (iv) amount spent on running the advertisement, (v) start and end dates of when the advertisement ran?

Question No. 1345—

Questioner: Cheryl Gallant

With regard to the government's use of artificial intelligence (AI): (a) which government departments and agencies have used AI; (b) for each entity in (a), what are the specific uses of the technology; (c) has (i) the Department of National Defence, (ii) Public Safety Canada, (iii) the RCMP, (iv) CSIS, (v) the Communications Security Establishment, (vi) Global Affairs Canada, (vii) the Canadian Armed Forces, ever used AI to gather information on Canadians, and, if so, how many times has AI been used in the last five years and how was it used; (d) for each entity in (c), what specific privacy policies and protocols are employed before using AI; (e) in the last five years, how many incidents of inappropriate use of AI by any government entity have occurred, including the date of the incident and what happened; (f) is the government aware of any foreign governments or state-owned entities using AI on Canadians in the last five years, and, if so, what are the details of all such incidents, including (i) the date, (ii) the name of the government or entity, (iii) how AI was used; and (g) what specific actions, if any, is the government taking to protect Canadians from the harmful application of AI by (i) government entities, (ii) foreign entities?

Question No. 1347—

Questioner: Bob Zimmer

With regard to the items listed in the Supplementary Estimates (C), 2022-23, under Department of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs: what is the detailed breakdown of the $18,954,772 listed under "Funding for the stabilization of internal services", including how the funds were used and the specific details of each project funded with the money, broken down by the amount spent on the project?

Question No. 1349—

Questioner: Bob Zimmer

With regard to the sale of federal properties since December 1, 2021: (a) what are the details of the properties sold, including, for each, the (i) province or territory, (ii) city, (iii) street address, (iv) type of listing (residential, office, etc.), (v) description of property, (vi) sale price, if different than the asking price, (vii) buyer, (viii) future use of the property, if known, (ix) date of sale; (b) for each sale in (a), what were the costs incurred by the government related to the sale, broken down by type of expense; and (c) for each sale in (a), how did the government reinvest the net profits?

Question No. 1351—

Questioner: Eric Duncan

With regard to surplus government buildings being converted to affordable housing: (a) what are the details of all buildings which have been sold by the government since November 4, 2015, including, for each, the (i) location, (ii) address, (iii) description of the building, including the square footage, (iv) buyer, (v) price, (vi) number of affordable housing units expected; (b) what are the details of all government buildings currently deemed to be surplus, including, for each, the (i) location, (ii) address, (iii) description of the building, including the square footage; (c) of the buildings in (b), which ones will be sold or used for the purpose of developing affordable housing; and (d) are there any other government buildings, not listed in (c), which the government is taking steps toward converting to affordable housing, and, if so, what are the details, including, for each, the (i) location, (ii) address, (iii) description of the building, including the square footage?

Question No. 1352—

Questioner: Greg McLean

With regard to the Pembina Institute, from November 4, 2015, to present: (a) how much money has the government allocated to the Pembina Institute and what are the details, including, the (i) department, agency or other government entity, (ii) date of the funding, (iii) amount and deliverables expected; (b) of the allocations in (a), which ones were (i) sole-sourced, (ii) awarded through a competitive bidding process; (c) of the allocations in (b)(ii), what was the (i) duration of the competition, (ii) number of organizations that submitted bids for the required deliverables; and (d) what programs from the Pembina Institute received government funding, broken down by year and deliverables expected?

Question No. 1354—

Questioner: Greg McLean

With regard to the Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB): (a) what are the details of the process that led to the selection of the former McKinsey & Company partner Ehren Cory as the CEO of the CIB in October 2020; (b) how much money was spent on consulting services since the creation of the CIB, including, for each, the (i) consulting firm, (ii) number of consultants hired from each firm, (iii) fees paid to each consultant, (iv) duration of each consultant's contract, (v) reason each consultant was hired, (vi) proposals worked on by each consultant; (c) how many employees were hired by the CIB, broken down by month since its creation; and (d) how many project proposals were received by the CIB, broken down by year since its creation, including the number of proposals (i) rejected, (ii) approved?

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux

May/10/23 3:46:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would ask that all remaining questions be allowed to stand. The Speaker: Is that agreed? Some hon. members: Agreed.

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, Lib.)

May/10/23 3:46:51 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I ask that all notices of motions for the production of papers be allowed to stand. The Speaker: Is that agreed? Some hon. members: Agreed.

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Mr. Darrell Samson (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence, Lib.)

May/10/23 3:47:09 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-13

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to rise today to speak to Bill C‑13 on the modernization of the Official Languages Act. As members know, this is a historic moment. It has been a long time since we have reviewed this legislation, 35 years to be exact. As the member for Sackville—Preston—Chezzetcook, I want to tell my colleagues that I did all of my schooling in English because there was no French school. We did not have this essential protection at the time. My children, however, were able to do all of their schooling, from kindergarten to grade 12, in French. What a change. That was made possible because of the first Official Languages Act in 1969. Thanks to that, my grandchildren will also be able to complete all of their schooling in French. I want to tell my colleagues that this was a very long process. First, there was the Official Languages Act in 1969. Section 23 was added to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in 1982 and changes were made to the act in 1988. Then, as members know, Bill C‑32, which sought to strengthen the Official Languages Act, died on the Order Paper. Now, we are back with Bill C‑13, which underwent a number of essential changes in committee. As I see it, the most important thing is that the act will have to be reviewed every 10 years. We will not have to wait 35 years. The procedure has already been established. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, in consultation with the President of the Treasury Board, will have to undertake a review, a comprehensive analysis of the enhancement of the vitality of the communities. They will examine whether we have achieved our objective of protecting and promoting the French language. They will also examine whether sectors that are essential to enhancing the vitality of Quebec's francophones and anglophones, including health, immigration, employment and French-language education from early childhood to the post-secondary level, have been respected. A report will have to be tabled in the House of Commons. In my opinion, this is a well-regimented procedure. Let us start with the Treasury Board. It is the most important machine in Parliament. Bill C‑13 would make the optional powers, duties and responsibilities mandatory, which is essential. The Treasury Board will have some meaningful work to do. Other improvements were made in committee. They are very important to mention. Every community across the country asked that there be a central agency, a minister responsible, and we can now check that off the list. What is more, the minister cannot withdraw from their responsibilities or delegate them. The Treasury Board and the minister will have to ensure compliance. As far as justice is concerned, Bill C‑13 confirms that justices of the Supreme Court of Canada have to be bilingual. Still today, the Conservatives do not agree with that and do not want that to happen. I do not understand it. In committee, progress was also made on appointing justices to superior courts and appeal courts. It is extremely important. We have to take into account people's needs in terms of access to justice. The Canadian Bar Association and the Fédération des associations de juristes d'expression française de common law have been asking for that for years. Let us talk about immigration. In my opinion, this is the perfect example. When we started working on Bill C‑32, having a policy was important. When we moved on to Bill C‑13, ensuring that the policy had some content, some details, was important. Finally, in committee, we determined that not only did we need details, but we also needed to ensure that the demographic weight was restored and increased. It is going to be a game of catch-up and we will have to increase our newcomer target to 8% or 9% and then go back to our target of 4.4% or better. Let us move on to real estate. I am quite pleased because this was a problem for 20, 25, 30 years across Canada. I can say that now, because of the amendments that were made, the government has to consider the needs of the school community, which was not the case before. It is great to have a charter of rights that recognizes the right to education in French, but if land cannot be purchased, how and where are we supposed to build schools? It is not possible. Now, this will be guaranteed. It will no longer be an option, but an obligation, for the government to do something that is essential. It must consult the school boards about their needs. I can cite examples such as the Jericho lands and Heather Street lands in Vancouver, Royal Roads in Victoria, Lagimodière Boulevard in Winnipeg, or Oxford Street in Halifax. With respect to the language clause or the positive measures, the Standing Committee on Official Languages has made a lot of progress. It is not perfect, but it made a lot of progress. When agreements are being negotiated, those involved, such as school boards or the organizations concerned, must be consulted. It is important to ensure that there is accountability, and that when money is earmarked for a certain organization or a certain location, it ends up there. Major progress has been made in that regard. The Commissioner of Official Languages has been given significantly increased powers. Bill C-13 of course gives him the power to impose penalties and to make orders. This does not mean that violators will have to pay billions of dollars in penalties, but the idea is that anyone who has to pay $10, $100, $1,000 or $10,000 will be called out. That is very important. We are also giving the commissioner other powers and additional tools to do his job, which is to protect and promote the French language, and that is extremely important. Now, I must say, there are areas where we did not accomplish as much as we would have liked, and that hurts. On enumeration, we were not able to get it done the way we wanted. Nevertheless, we added that question to the short form census two years ago, which means that everyone had to answer it. We still have that data, which will be good for 10 years. I am confident that if the Liberals are still in power in 10 years, we will be able to achieve and cement this. This is extremely important. As I mentioned, the language clauses and positive measures are not what I would have liked, but we did make some progress, and I would like to thank the opposition parties for helping us. I also realize that English-speaking Quebeckers have some concerns that deserve mentioning. However, I can assure you that our government is going to defend linguistic duality and the rights of anglophone Quebeckers in Quebec. We will continue to provide funding, protect language and culture, and ensure the court challenges program is kept in place and adequately funded. I am extremely proud to commend the government and the opposition for doing a great job and for the work done and the progress made on bills C‑32 and C‑13 at the Standing Committee on Official Languages. It truly is a team effort. I am very proud of the House and, as always, ready to answer questions.

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The Deputy Speaker

May/10/23 3:56:08 p.m.
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I always appreciate the energy of my friend from Sackville—Preston—Chezzetcook as an Acadian from Nova Scotia. Questions and comments. The hon. member for Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier.

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