44th Parl. 1st Sess.
June 19, 2023 11:00AM
- Jun/19/23 2:39:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I listened carefully to the interpretation, but I did not detect even a hint of an answer to my colleague's excellent question. Simply promising to invest in the fight against climate change means nothing if those dollars do not make it out the door, and time is of the essence. Our country is burning, and the next generation is looking on in horror. How—
Some hon. members: Oh, oh!
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- Jun/19/23 2:39:53 p.m.
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I am going to interrupt. I am having a hard time hearing the question, and it is just people talking to each other more than anything else. I am going to ask everyone to take a deep breath and if members are going to have a conversation, please take it into the lobby.
The hon. member can start from the top so we can hear the question, please.
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- Jun/19/23 2:40:13 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I listened carefully to the interpretation, but I did not detect even a hint of an answer to my colleague's excellent question. Simply promising to invest in the fight against climate change means nothing if those dollars do not make it out the door, and time is of the essence. Our country is burning, and the next generation is looking on in horror.
How can the minister justify dragging his feet on the most important issue of our time?
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- Jun/19/23 2:40:43 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I agree that this is the most important issue of our time, which is why we have invested billions of dollars, which is why we are deploying regulations.
When we talk about the national adaptation strategy, this is what Climate Proof Canada had to say about it, “Climate Proof Canada applauds the Government of Canada on world-leading national adaptation strategy.”
Let us talk about the Insurance Bureau of Canada. It said, “Canada's first National Adaptation Strategy is brave and ambitious. No other country has proposed such a comprehensive suite of adaptation targets.”
We are working to help Canadians prepare for the impacts of climate change.
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- Jun/19/23 2:41:21 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the unacceptable transfer of Paul Bernardo from a maximum-security prison to a medium-security prison was possible because of the changes this government made in connection with Bill C-83. The government has all the powers it needs to reverse that decision.
The Minister of Public Safety has proven his incompetence time and again. Will the Prime Minister finally take responsibility, clean up his own mess and fire the minister?
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- Jun/19/23 2:41:58 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the definition of competence is to be a champion for victims' rights. That is exactly how I responded when I was informed, on May 30, of the decision to transfer Paul Bernardo to a medium-security facility.
I will continue to work with the representatives of the families of Kristen French and Leslie Mahaffy. We have since issued new instructions to ensure that victims' families are informed in advance of any upcoming decisions that will affect them.
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- Jun/19/23 2:42:34 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Public Safety either knew or ought to have known that Paul Bernardo was being transferred to medium security. To say otherwise is not credible.
The minister is at the top of the organizational chart in his department. He has dozens of political staff and high-level officials. They all report to him.
If it is true that he did not know, then he is grossly incompetent. The minister must take responsibility, be accountable and resign.
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- Jun/19/23 2:43:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as I have made clear now on a number of occasions, I have taken corrective steps to ensure that briefing protocols are provided in a timely manner, especially when it comes to sensitive decisions involving the transferring of dangerous offenders like Paul Bernardo.
As soon as I found out, I contacted the commissioner to express the concerns of the Leslie Mahaffy and Kristen French families. That is precisely what the responsibility of this position is, as well as issuing new instructions to ensure that this kind of things does not happen again.
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- Jun/19/23 2:43:40 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as long as that monster is in medium security, the minister's weak directive means nothing.
Under the last Conservative government, we provided for necessary restrictions. Those Liberals and that minister scrapped that threshold to provide that all prison inmates be placed in the least restrictive environment possible. He allowed this to happen.
The minister is responsible for this outrageous transfer. He is not a passive observer in this travesty. He should resign.
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- Jun/19/23 2:44:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, far from being merely an observer, I have been active in advocating for victims' rights, including those of the families of Leslie Mahaffy and Kristen French, because, I hope like all members, I share a great and sympathy compassion for them, given the retraumatization that they have no doubt had to endure.
Contrary to what Conservatives have said, this new instruction is stronger than anything the Conservatives ever did when it came to victims' rights, and if they were so worried about it, then why did they cut $300 million to the Correctional Service of Canada in their last year of government?
We know why. They are all talk and no action.
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- Jun/19/23 2:44:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, another Liberal insider, Dominic Barton, a close friend to the Prime Minister, has harmed Canadians. Today we learned the Prime Minister's favourite consulting company, McKinsey Canada, which was run by Barton, laid out plans to supercharge the sales and marketing of OxyContin to Canadians. Almost 36,000 Canadians have died during this epidemic created by McKinsey and Barton, and it is only getting worse.
Why does the Liberal government continue to reward McKinsey, which has profited from the suffering of Canadians, with hundreds of millions of dollars in government contracts?
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- Jun/19/23 2:45:33 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I as a physician, with my colleague, the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions, know first-hand the harm caused by opioid addiction. While the leader of the official opposition continues to oppose safe supply, our government is focused on saving lives and improving our policies to better serve Canadians.
For Public Services and Procurement Canada, that means working to improve Canada's integrity regime brought in by the previous government so that we can better safeguard procurement policies and practices.
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- Jun/19/23 2:46:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, recent media reports confirm that there is an active, ongoing RCMP investigation in relation to prosecutorial interference on the 2019 SNC-Lavalin scandal.
My question to the government is a simple yes-or-no question. Is the Prime Minister, any member of cabinet or any member of their staff currently under investigation by the RCMP, yes or no?
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- Jun/19/23 2:46:36 p.m.
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- Jun/19/23 2:46:49 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, four years after the appalling SNC‑Lavalin scandal, when the Prime Minister of Canada fired minister Jody Wilson‑Raybould because she refused to politically meddle in a legal matter, this dreadful business is now back in the news.
Will the Prime Minister rise in the House today and confirm whether he or any member of his cabinet has met with or is currently under investigation by the RCMP?
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- Jun/19/23 2:47:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I have already answered these questions. The Conservative Party is obviously bringing up a situation that happened years ago for partisan reasons. I have already answered the question.
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- Jun/19/23 2:47:42 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, ministers do not know anything about anything. That may seem like an odd statement, but it is nevertheless a major part of this government's record.
The Minister for Public Safety was out of the loop on Paul Bernardo's transfer, even though his employees knew about it. The Prime Minister was also out of the loop, just as he was out of the loop on China's threats against the MP for Wellington—Halton Hills. The Minister of Public Safety was unaware of that, too. None of the ministers knew anything about anything. The public no longer accepts this response.
When will the government stop pleading ignorance?
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- Jun/19/23 2:48:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, that is exactly what I did as Minister of Public Safety. I have strengthened the briefing protocol to ensure that I and the entire government team have all the information we need to protect our communities.
In addition, we have a very strong track record with new powers and new transparency mechanisms. We are always ready to work together, not only with the Bloc Québécois, but with all members in the House.
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- Jun/19/23 2:48:48 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the government's response may be worse than the situation itself.
It says that it has given instructions to inform ministers from now on about hot issues that concern them, such as the transfer of prisoners of interest or threats against elected members. This government has been in power since 2015 and it is telling us it is now requiring its ministers to be made aware of their portfolios. That raises an ethical question.
Which is worse: Ministers who do not know anything about anything or ministers who wait until the eighth year of government to require being informed of their portfolios?
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- Jun/19/23 2:49:33 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I think that everyone is in a good mood this afternoon. I am always ready to work with members from the Bloc Québécois despite their jokes.
This is very important work. We have a lot of files to focus on and we want to continue working with the Bloc Québécois.
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