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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 306

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
May 1, 2024 02:00PM
  • May/1/24 2:27:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, unfortunately, Montreal and Quebec are not immune to the chaos the Prime Minister has caused in British Columbia by legalizing hard drugs. Montreal's director of public health has proposed a similar legalization policy. Will the Prime Minister reverse his radical position on drug legalization, or will he cause the same chaos in Montreal that he has already caused in British Columbia?
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  • May/1/24 2:27:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, let us take a moment to reflect on what happened yesterday. You had to censure the Leader of the Opposition for refusing to withdraw the unparliamentary language he used while making political attacks about a crisis, a human tragedy, that is happening in British Columbia. The fact is that we will always take this tragedy seriously. That is why we are taking a compassionate and evidence-based approach. We will be there to support British Columbia as it adjusts its pilot project.
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  • May/1/24 2:28:32 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, is he ruling out the legalization of hard drugs in Montreal, yes or no?
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  • May/1/24 2:28:43 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition knows full well that we are a government that is rooted in facts and that co-operates with the provinces. The province of British Columbia asked for a pilot project. We looked at their plan together and we green-lit the pilot project. No other requests came from any other province. However, if any of the provinces want to do something, we will look at their plan and make a responsible decision based on facts and on what has happened in previous situations.
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  • May/1/24 2:29:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, he is opening the door to legalizing hard drugs in Montreal and possibly other cities in Quebec. We are against that. The Prime Minister legalized smoking meth in hospital rooms, shooting up heroin in parks next to children and using hard drugs on public transit. The British Columbia government has asked him to reverse this legalization for parks, hospitals and transit. Will he do so, yes or no?
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  • May/1/24 2:29:59 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the opioid epidemic is hitting families, communities and individuals right across the country, and it has for many years. This is why we are continuing to use an approach grounded in compassion, public safety and public health through facts-based decisions. We responded to the British Columbia government's ask for a pilot project. We will, yes, work with it to adjust it in ways that it sees fit. It is important to make sure that B.C. continues to do the things it needs to do to keep people safe in its jurisdiction.
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  • May/1/24 2:30:40 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister still refuses to answer the question on whether or not he will reverse it himself. He made the decision to exempt hard drugs from the criminal law, so it became legal to smoke meth or crack in a hospital room, including around nurses who are breastfeeding their kids. This has caused chaos, and six British Columbians are dying every day that he delays. Will he announce that, as of today, he has changed his mind and he is reversing his legalization of hard drugs in B.C., yes or no?
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  • May/1/24 2:31:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, a number of years ago, British Columbia approached us with a pilot project that it wanted to bring in to look at a different way of dealing with the ongoing public health crisis that was hitting British Columbians with the opioid epidemic. We worked with the British Columbia government as it developed this pilot project, and now that it is asking for modifications to that project, we are looking at those modifications. We will work with B.C. as it seeks to adjust its plans for public health and dealing with this opioid epidemic.
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  • May/1/24 2:31:58 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, there is no time to waste. On Friday, the B.C. government asked the Prime Minister to reverse his legalization of crack, heroin and other hard drugs in public places. Every day, six British Columbians die of overdoses under this policy, and many more die as a result of drug-induced crimes. There is no time for bureaucratic and political considerations. Will he announce now that his experiment with legalizing hard drugs in B.C. is over, yes or no?
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  • May/1/24 2:32:38 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, colleagues will understand if I am a little skeptical when the Leader of the Opposition says this is not about politics, because he has been the one who has been pointing out vulnerable people and trying to pursue ideological aims on this ongoing public health crisis. We have consistently stepped up to work with provinces, with municipalities and with jurisdictions. Indeed, that would include moving forward with British Columbia as it wanted to try a pilot project. We are working with British Columbia to adjust in ways that make sense. We understand the urgency and we will act.
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  • May/1/24 2:33:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am reassured. I have not been sleeping well for some time now. I am going to be able to return the signs to the printers and cancel the bus. The NDP is voting with the Liberals in favour of the budget. That being said, the Bloc Québécois is voting against it. Let me read something from Amira Elghawaby: We are committed to upholding the values of religious freedom...and equality that are imbedded in our constitution and are at the heart of our democracy. That is why we are challenging this discriminatory and unconstitutional law. If Ms. Elghawaby's mission was—
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  • May/1/24 2:34:02 p.m.
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Time is up. The right hon. Prime Minister.
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  • May/1/24 2:34:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, our government has chosen to build bridges across the country through our infrastructure investments. That is how we are building bridges. We are also building bridges by fully engaging with all the various communities throughout the country, by listening to points of view and by understanding just how important it is to defend the fundamental liberties of all Canadians, whatever their origin, religion or language may be. We will continue to be there to uphold the Constitution and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. That is how we are building bridges between Canadians.
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  • May/1/24 2:34:58 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, you have been too generous with the Ritalin. We are definitely talking about different sorts of bridges. I am talking about the bridges Ms. Elghawaby is supposed to be creating between communities. As Guy Rocher used to say, one person's privilege is another's injustice. With her attitude and measures like Islamic mortgages, Ms. Elghawaby will ensure that groups like the Haitian community, the Vietnamese community and the South American community will lack the same privileges as those of the Muslim community, which, I would point out, we welcome with open arms. How does the Prime Minister explain this?
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  • May/1/24 2:35:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, in a pluralist and diverse society like Canada's and Quebec's, it is important to discuss and listen to all the various concerns of the communities and to respond specifically to these concerns. That is how we build a free, open and resilient society. We will continue to listen to everyone, including Quebec's Muslim community, which is expressing concerns about provincial laws. We will continue to listen to people from coast to coast to coast with a view to creating a stronger society.
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  • May/1/24 2:36:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, thousands of Canadians are boycotting Loblaw this month. They are taking action because the Prime Minister refuses to take on the corporate greed that is driving up prices for Canadians. The Prime Minister has set up a grocery task force, which has done no tasks and has no force. Today, Loblaw reported that its profits are up by nearly 10%. Liberal announcements are not going to cut it. Why is the Prime Minister letting big grocery rip off Canadians?
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  • May/1/24 2:36:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, like many others, we are concerned with the refusal of Loblaw and others to sign on to the grocery code of conduct, which we know will protect consumers and will protect growers across this country as well. We will continue to impress upon them, using various means at our disposal, the importance of signing on to the grocery code of conduct. We have also increased the Competition Bureau's ability to go after big grocery companies in terms of the competitive or uncompetitive options they are giving to Canadians. We have also moved forward in other ways of supporting Canadians with groceries like the national school food program announced in our budget.
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  • May/1/24 2:37:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, big grocery continues to rip off Canadians, and the Prime Minister is not stopping it. People know they are being ripped off at the grocery store and the Prime Minister has failed to protect them. Thousands of people are tired of waiting for him to act and have decided to boycott the grocery giants. What a failure of leadership on the Prime Minister's part. His job is to protect Canadians, but instead he is protecting the big grocery stores and their record profits. When will the Prime Minister rethink his priorities?
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  • May/1/24 2:38:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we will continue to work with the big grocery stores to ensure that there is more competition and that they adopt the code of conduct. I think it is a good thing that Canadians are expressing their disapproval of Loblaws, which refuses to adopt this grocery code of conduct. We will continue to be there for Canadians with increased competition and with the school food program that will help 400,000 more children across the country learn on a full stomach. We are there to help families during these difficult times. We will always be there for Canadians.
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  • May/1/24 2:38:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the decision is on his desk to reverse the legalization of hard drugs in British Columbia. The B.C. government has admitted that it was wrong. It decided not to go ahead with the full three-year pilot project that the Prime Minister brought in place by exempting hard drugs from criminal law. Will he do as the B.C. government has done and admit he was wrong today so we can start saving lives?
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