44th Parl. 1st Sess.
November 23, 2023 10:00AM
- Nov/23/23 3:00:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives have mastered the art of never letting the facts get in the way of their pretty stories.
As for Stellantis, the Conservatives are trying to undermine the 2,500 jobs that will be filled to operate the plant and the 2,300 jobs that will be created to build the plant. How many labour market impact assessments have been approved for Stellantis? The answer is a single agreement, a single position. Those are the facts.
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- Nov/23/23 3:01:40 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, COP28 begins next Thursday, and Canada is about to show up empty-handed. It is about to show up without a regulatory framework for capping emissions in the oil and gas sector, the biggest culprit when it comes to climate change. We have been waiting two years for this and have heard nothing but empty rhetoric for two years.
Climate Action Network was on the Hill today. All of the environment minister's old friends, people from Greenpeace and Equiterre, are calling on him to present a costed regulatory framework before going to COP. Obviously, the Bloc Québécois agrees. Will the minister do that?
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- Nov/23/23 3:02:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my hon. colleague for her question and reassure her. Indeed, my former colleagues, who are still my friends, from the environmental community were on the Hill. I speak with them regularly.
Over the past few years, we have taken a number of steps to tackle pollution from the oil and gas sector, such as pollution pricing and methane emissions regulations. Furthermore, as the Prime Minister pledged to do in New York a few months ago, we will present a framework for capping greenhouse gas emissions from the oil and gas sector by the end of the year.
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- Nov/23/23 3:02:51 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this morning, the International Energy Agency issued its report on emissions in the oil and gas sector. If we want to meet the Paris targets then emissions in the fossil fuel sector need to be reduced by 60% by 2030. That is tomorrow.
They need to be reduced by 60% and Canada does not even have a plan to simply cap them. Canada, the fifth-largest oil producer in the world, will be one of the biggest culprits if the world misses these targets. Before heading off to COP28, will the minister present a regulatory framework to at least cap emissions from oil companies?
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- Nov/23/23 3:03:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, in addition to everything I said earlier, I would like to remind my hon. colleague that we have a plan to fight climate change that has been praised by Equiterre, Greenpeace, Environmental Defence and the David Suzuki Foundation, and we are the only country in the G20 that has ended fossil fuel subsidies, two years ahead of schedule no less. We are the only country in the G20 that is committed to ending its public support of fossil fuels. As I said, we are going to present our framework for capping greenhouse gas emissions in the oil and gas sector by the end of the year.
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- Nov/23/23 3:04:13 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the NDP-Liberal cover-up coalition blocked a Conservative motion to have a whistle-blower testify at the ethics committee. After eight years under the Prime Minister, it is hard not to feel disappointed in the government when every day there is a new scandal. It is easy to see that the Prime Minister is not worth the price.
The latest scandal is the billion-dollar green slush fund. Facing an Auditor General investigation and an Ethics Commissioner investigation, the CEO and the Liberal hand-picked board chair resigned in disgrace. Now they are blocking a whistle-blower from testifying. What are they trying to hide?
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- Nov/23/23 3:04:54 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, in fact, nothing, because we are the ones who want to get to the bottom of this. That is the reality.
Let me bring some facts to this story. The fact is that, the moment there was an allegation, I called for an investigation. I called for an independent report. I demanded from management a plan to restore good governance. The CEO has resigned. I have accepted the resignation of the chair.
We are going to get to the bottom of this, restore governance and make sure that we can support Canadian businesses.
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- Nov/23/23 3:05:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the minister is a bystander in this billion-dollar slush fund scandal.
Let us lay out the facts: He did absolutely nothing. Conservatives called for an investigation at committee. We wrote a letter to the Auditor General; she started an investigation. We wrote a letter to the Ethics Commissioner; he launched an investigation. We had the CEO and the board chair come to committee; they both resigned in disgrace following their appearances at committee. Now, we want a whistle-blower to come before committee, and what are they doing? Silencing whistle-blowers as a part of the cover-up coalition with the NDP.
What are they trying to hide?
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- Nov/23/23 3:06:10 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, unlike my colleague, who is behind the game, I am the one who started the investigation. Once we had the allegations, that is what we did. The record speaks for itself, but I know that my Conservative friends want nothing to do with the facts. They like to have their story, but they are not entitled to their own facts.
We are going to get to the bottom of this. We are going to restore governance, and we are going to keep helping Canadian SMEs.
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- Nov/23/23 3:06:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, while Conservatives are working overtime to expose Liberal corruption, Liberal and NDP backbenchers, and even a former minister, are doing everything they can at committee to cover up scandals, silence whistle-blowers and shut down investigations.
Can the Prime Minister tell us whether the coalition deal he signed behind closed doors, with the socialist NDP, includes requiring the NDP member for Hamilton Centre to vote to cover up the corruption we are seeing with the Prime Minister's billion-dollar green slush fund?
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- Nov/23/23 3:07:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, what we are seeing is a pattern of very concerning behaviour and desperate behaviour from the Conservative Party of Canada.
Conservatives are hiding from Canadians why they are really not supporting the Canada-Ukraine free trade agreement. In fact, Ukraine came out and said there is no price on pollution. They are also hiding why the Leader of the Opposition will not tell the truth as to why he jumped to conclusions yesterday when we learned about what happened in Niagara Falls. Now, what we are hearing from them is false allegations. They know that committees are independent.
What are they trying to hide?
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Mr. Speaker, my question has to do with Bill C‑57. Russia's invasion of Ukraine has cost thousands of people their lives, and it continues to jeopardize the stability of the entire region and the world.
Unfortunately, this week, the leader of the official opposition and the Conservative members voted against the free trade agreement between Canada and Ukraine. We are talking about an agreement that the President of Ukraine clearly indicated would serve as a basis for rebuilding Ukraine. The Conservatives have turned their backs on Ukraine and democracy; they have embraced Russian propaganda.
I would ask the Minister of Finance to reaffirm Canada's strong support for Ukraine.
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- Nov/23/23 3:08:48 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Ukrainians are currently fighting for their freedom and ours on the battlefields of Ukraine. We have all seen them. I saw them in Ukraine. They were strong, courageous and ready to make the ultimate sacrifice. They approached us and asked us to negotiate a free trade agreement. We are the first G7 country to sign such an agreement with them. Voting against that free trade agreement, as the Conservatives did, means failing Ukrainians and supporting Russia.
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- Nov/23/23 3:09:28 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years, the Prime Minister has done nothing but recklessly spend. Not only was $54 million rushed into the poorly functioning arrive scam app, but 11 million taxpayer dollars were given to a so-called consulting company, employing two people working out of their basement, who were doing absolutely no work. Talk about hitting the taxpayer lottery. It is beyond clear that the NDP-Liberal government is simply not worth the cost.
The question is simple: Which minister was responsible for this costly hiring?
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- Nov/23/23 3:10:10 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I do not want to disappoint my colleague across the aisle, but no minister was responsible for those contracting practices. Those contracting practices were done by public servants.
We have said if committees want to look into these issues, we welcome that examination. When the Canada Border Services Agency uncovered irregularities, it called for an independent audit and referred the files to the appropriate authorities. That is what a responsible government does in spite of some of the silly questions from the other side.
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- Nov/23/23 3:10:47 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canadians want these questions asked of the ethically and morally challenged government. Public officials were caught lying and insiders who became millionaires through the arrive scam app were caught lying. It is time for honesty and clarity in this House. For weeks, we have heard the same talking points from the minister and no action. No one has been charged and no one has been fired.
Once again, will the minister responsible for this fiasco that the RCMP is investigating please stand up?
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- Nov/23/23 3:11:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, my hon. friend knows very well that when any irregularity with respect to contracting practices comes to light, the responsible thing for senior public servants who administer these rules to do is to refer it to the appropriate authorities and to establish the facts from external audits. That is exactly what the Canada Border Services Agency did. If committees want to look into this matter, we welcome that exercise as well.
My hon. friend should know very well that it is not elected ministers who decide who faces criminal charges. It is the police and prosecutors, and I have every confidence they will do their job.
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- Nov/23/23 3:12:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, a couple of years ago, this House unanimously passed my private member's bill that allowed for the annual tax form to be used to ask a simple question on organ and tissue donation. Both Ontario and Nunavut opted to have this question included in their tax forms last year, and I am hoping that other provinces will participate in the future.
Can the minister tell us how many taxpayers in Ontario and Nunavut indicated through their tax returns their intent to become life-saving organ and tissue donors?
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- Nov/23/23 3:12:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the member for Calgary Confederation has worked hard to help Canadians waiting for transplants. I was happy, along with members from all parties, to support his bill. It shows we can do great things when we work together.
The impact of this change is significant, and I am pleased to say it has been very successful already. The most recent numbers we have indicate that 2.45 million people used their tax returns to indicate they want to be donors. This is very promising.
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- Nov/23/23 3:13:45 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of International Trade and is regarding the important Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement and Conservatives' concerns of our government's unequivocal support for Ukraine. They were right about one thing, that support for Ukraine on this side of the House is unequivocal. Clearly, the same cannot be said for the Conservative Party of Canada as the Conservatives made the shameful decision to appease their far-right, anti-Ukraine extreme base.
Can the minister tell us what the Ukrainians, our friends, have said about this agreement?
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