44th Parl. 1st Sess.
January 29, 2024 11:00AM
Mr. Speaker, over the holidays, I heard how after eight years of this NDP-Liberal government, Canadians are struggling to pay their bills and keep roofs over their heads. They know that the Prime Minister is not worth the cost.
Our leader, my Conservative colleagues and I are back to show Canadians they have a simple choice in the next election. On the one hand they can have a costly coalition of the NDP and Liberals that takes their money, taxes their food, punishes their work, doubles their housing costs and unleashes crime and chaos in their communities or they can choose the common-sense Conservatives and our common-sense plan.
We are back to address the priorities facing Canadians, starting with a focus on passing Bill C-234 to take the carbon tax off farmers and to bring food prices down.
Our priorities are clear: axe the tax, build the homes, fix the budget and stop the crime.
Let us bring it home.
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- Jan/29/24 2:14:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, seven years ago today, peaceful Muslim worshippers were gunned down in Quebec.
Three years ago, when the Afzaal family were brutally murdered because of their faith, every single political party leader in the House stood on the steps of the London mosque, recognized that Islamophobia is real and vowed to protect the Muslim community in the face of hatred.
Today, on the National Day of Remembrance of the Quebec City Mosque Attack and Action Against Islamophobia, we not only commemorate the victims and survivors but also reflect on whether we have taken action to combat Islamophobia in all of its forms, including the suppression of expression.
Our government declared January 29 a national day of remembrance, invested millions in our national anti-racism strategy and appointed a special representative on combatting Islamophobia.
More needs to be done by all political leaders in the House and indeed by all Canadians.
We remember.
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- Jan/29/24 2:15:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it was almost 8 p.m. on January 29, 2017, and evening prayers had just finished at the Quebec City mosque. Suddenly, a young man burst in and opened fire on those who were there. He killed six men and wounded 19 others in the worst racist terrorist attack in Quebec's history.
In the weeks and months leading up to this mass crime, the young man regularly visited the websites of right wing extremists and white supremacist influencers. Driven by fear and hate, he committed an unspeakable act. He coldly and methodically killed people because they were Muslim.
This reminds us that words and speech are important. Every word has power. We have a collective responsibility to fight Islamophobia and all forms of racism and dehumanization of any group of people. Let us work together to foster kindness, dialogue, understanding and friendship so we can build a world for everyone.
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- Jan/29/24 2:16:37 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, seven years ago, a gunman killed six people and wounded 19 others at the Quebec City mosque just because they were Muslim.
This attack sent a shockwave across Quebec and made us all painfully aware that we are not immune to such hateful acts.
Justice was served and the gunman ended up in prison, where he belongs, but our society as a whole must now be vigilant to ensure that intolerance never becomes commonplace. In case some people need to hear it again, I want to say that freedom of religion is guaranteed in Quebec and that no one should feel threatened because of their faith.
Today, our thoughts are with the victims' families, with all Muslims in Quebec and with all Quebeckers, who will always have to live with the consequences of this traumatic event. We all stand together in saying, “Never again”.
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- Jan/29/24 2:17:45 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, today is a difficult day for the Muslim community in Sainte‑Foy and across Canada. In fact, it is a difficult day for all Canadians, as we mourn the six lives stolen by a heinous terrorist at the Centre culturel islamique de Québec on this day seven years ago.
Our thoughts are with their families, with the 19 people who suffered injuries in addition to those who were murdered and with the many others who are left with mental scars that will never fully heal.
As we reflect on the tragic fate they suffered as a result of this evil monster, we must also reflect on the promise of freedom, peace and safety that they were guaranteed as Canadians and that was viciously stolen by the forces of hate and Islamophobia.
It must never happen again. We must stand on guard for our Muslim friends and neighbours, for all Canadians, to have the right and the freedom to worship in peace and security.
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- Jan/29/24 2:18:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honour Dr. Sathiajothi Selvakone, a proud Tamil Canadian who lived a life of extraordinary service and impact. Like countless Tamil Canadians, Sathiajothi and her family were forced to flee the Tamil genocide in Sri Lanka, having personally endured the horrors of communal violence in the 1958 anti-Tamil pogrom.
Sathiajothi became a pillar of the early Tamil community in British Columbia, helping to house and feed, and translate for, newly arrived Tamil refugees. She and her husband invested their time and resources to uplift the community while giving voice to the atrocities unfolding in their homeland. In 2022, Sathiajothi helped establish the Tamil chair at the University of Toronto to help preserve the Tamil language.
On January 3, surrounded by the love of her daughters, Suhanya and Meera, Sathiajothi peacefully departed from this world. She will be remembered as a loving mother, a lifelong learner and a fearless advocate for the Tamil people whose legacy lives on in the countless lives she has touched.
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- Jan/29/24 2:20:04 p.m.
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Following discussions among representatives of all parties of the House, I understand there is an agreement to observe a moment of silence to commemorate the National Day of Remembrance of the Quebec City Mosque Attack and Action against Islamophobia.
I would now invite hon. members to rise and honour the memory of the victims of the attack that happened seven years ago, on January 29, 2017.
[A moment of silence observed]
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- Jan/29/24 2:21:58 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, let me begin by welcoming the Prime Minister back to Canada after his big $80,000-plus free vacation. It was a gift he received. He said the situation was like that of every other Canadian who has had a similar vacation.
Apparently, he has not spoken to the two million Canadians forced to use food banks to eat, or the students in Montreal who have to resort to alternative types of housing now that his policies have tripled the cost of rent in his hometown.
Will the Prime Minister reverse the inflationary policies that are preventing construction, so that our students can—
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- Jan/29/24 2:22:33 p.m.
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The right hon. Prime Minister.
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- Jan/29/24 2:22:37 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, seven years ago today, six Muslim Canadians were murdered and 19 others were seriously injured in a terrorist attack at the Centre culturel islamique de Québec in Sainte-Foy, simply because of their religious beliefs.
We mourn the loss of those who were brutally murdered, and we stand with all those who have suffered because of Islamophobia, because of hate.
In the past few months, Muslim communities in Canada have witnessed a disturbing rise in hate speech and discrimination. Now, more than ever, we need to stand with—
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- Jan/29/24 2:23:13 p.m.
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The hon. Leader of the Opposition.
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- Jan/29/24 2:23:17 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, some two million Canadians are having to turn to food banks. Students are being forced to live in homeless shelters.
The cost of housing has doubled in Quebec City and tripled in Montreal. Across Canada, the cost of housing has doubled since this Prime Minister promised to reduce it.
Will the Prime Minister finally reverse the policies that are creating more bureaucracy and causing inflation, so that home builders can give Canadians an affordable place to call home?
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- Jan/29/24 2:23:57 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservative leader is resorting to personal insults to derail the debate on housing and prevent people from recognizing that he has no plan. Canadians know that shouting slogans does not build housing.
The leader tried unsuccessfully to delay removing the GST from rental construction and he voted against the housing accelerator fund, which is contributing to the construction of over half a million new homes.
We have made a great deal of progress and we will continue to do so.
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- Jan/29/24 2:24:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to welcome the Prime Minister back from his $80,000 vacation, which he got for free. He said, like most Canadians, friends welcomed him for that vacation. He took not one but two private jets paid for by the taxpayer, burning 100 tonnes of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. He wants to tax the heat and the food of Canadians.
Did he pay the full carbon tax on each of the 100 tonnes of emissions that he put into the atmosphere as part of his $80,000 vacation?
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- Jan/29/24 2:25:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservative leader has simply no plan to address climate change in this country and has no plan to increase the resilience of our communities in the fight against climate change.
A warming climate causes droughts. Droughts damage crops. Damaged crops increase the cost of groceries. However, the Conservative Party cannot even agree on whether climate change is real.
We will achieve our emissions reductions, all the while sending Canadians cheques to help with the cost of rising prices. There are real solutions.
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- Jan/29/24 2:25:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister says that greenhouse gas emissions are driving up grocery prices. He put 100 tonnes of emissions into the atmosphere for his personal vacation. This is high-tax, high-flying, high-carbon hypocrisy. Meanwhile, Canadians in Edmonton were facing -50°C temperatures on which they were paying carbon taxes just to heat their homes and to stay alive.
Given that he gives himself a free vacation at other people's expense, will he at least allow Canadians to heat their homes without his tax?
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- Jan/29/24 2:26:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservative leader likes to talk about the challenges Canadians are facing around the cost of living, but he refuses to take action and support them. He chose to delay the passage of Bill C-59, which is also hurting his own caucus.
Does the member for Battlefords—Lloydminster now suddenly oppose maternity leave for adoptive parents? Surely, the member for Cumberland—Colchester will not back down on his advocacy to remove the GST on therapy and counselling services.
While the Conservative leader is muzzling his own caucus and putting himself first, we will keep putting Canadians—
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- Jan/29/24 2:27:14 p.m.
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The hon. Leader of the Opposition.
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- Jan/29/24 2:27:21 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this one is just too easy. He walked into it. He had to muzzle a member from Newfoundland who called for an end to his leadership, joining another senator who did the same. They understand that their constituents are literally starving and unable to heat their homes because the Prime Minister is quadrupling the carbon tax, doubling housing costs and giving the worst inflation in 40 years.
Why will he not listen to, instead of intimidating, his member from Newfoundland and put his leadership of the Liberal Party up for a review?
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- Jan/29/24 2:28:00 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, over the course of the fall, we have announced projects on housing that are going to create a half a million new homes across this country over the year. We are working hand in hand with community leaders and with mayors. We are making sure that we are moving forward on the priorities that are facing Canadians.
In terms of standing up for his caucus, the leader across the way will not even mention the fact that the person sitting three seats to his left sat and dined with a far-right Conservative German politician and wants to abolish the United Nations.
Is abolishing the United Nations now the official position of the Conservative Party of Canada?
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