44th Parl. 1st Sess.
June 17, 2024 11:00AM
- Jun/17/24 2:05:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, cowgirls and cowboys should dust off their boots. The greatest outdoor show on earth is about to begin. From July 5 to 14, Calgary will welcome visitors from around the globe to celebrate our western way of life.
The Stampede Parade kicks off 10 action-packed days, including exciting chuckwagon races and rodeo, as well as live music and entertainment. We have world-class agricultural exhibits, weird and wonderful snacks, a huge midway and an amazing display of evening fireworks, as everyone two-steps the night away at Cowboys or Ranchman's. This year, people can also visit the beautiful, newly expanded BMO Centre, the largest event complex in western Canada. No Stampede experience would be complete without trying one of the many free pancake breakfasts or barbecues held across the city.
Calgary's white hat hospitality extends to one and all, and no matter who one is or where one is from, I wish them all a very happy stampede.
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- Jun/17/24 2:06:54 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, congratulations to the class of 2024 in Scarborough—Agincourt and across Canada. Whether students are graduating from kindergarten, high school, college, university or any level in between, they can be proud of what they have accomplished.
As graduates go forward, it is important to continue to be curious, to be helpful to others and to be willing to explore new paths. They have gotten here with years of dedication, hard work and perseverance. Life is not always easy, so it is important for them to stop and recognize the effort they have put in to get here. I would also like to acknowledge their families, their teachers and their school staff for their roles in students' monumental achievements.
May their journey ahead be filled with continued growth and endless possibilities.
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- Jun/17/24 2:07:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we know that changes in the digital environment have impacted news media. What is also true is that large media organizations have tended to, unfortunately, put profit ahead of people, including some of the most loyal employees. One of those is Jim Knight, who, for 43 years, worked at CTV News London and its predecessors.
I first met Jim when he was behind the camera and, sometimes, as a journalist when a media reporter was not available. The reality is that this is someone who served loyally, not just his community but also his country. We tend to forget that people behind the scenes are instrumental in helping news media happen and in helping those stories come together that tell the stories of everyday people. Jim was one of those.
In the end, it is not just about Peter Mansbridge, Lisa LaFlamme or Lloyd Robertson. It is about people who help to shape the news. Jim Knight was one of those. We thank him for his service, today and all days.
We wish Jim all the very best in the future.
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- Jun/17/24 2:08:58 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the housing crisis is untenable in Quebec. The housing shortage is being felt by people throughout Quebec. Homelessness is spreading and is more visible than ever before.
While Quebeckers suffer, the Bloc Québécois voted with the Liberals against the bill introduced by the Conservative Party aimed at building housing units. It also voted for $500 billion in centralizing and inflationary budgetary appropriations.
Quebeckers' cries for help can be heard across Quebec. Homelessness is everywhere in Rouyn-Noranda, and community service agencies in Rimouski are barely able to serve their growing client base. While Quebec needs help now more than ever, the Bloc Québécois is refusing to listen to their pleas.
Here on this side of the House, we hear them loud and clear. The common-sense Conservatives will continue to introduce measures to improve the quality of life of all Canadians, even if we are the only ones in the House to do so.
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- Jun/17/24 2:10:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the International Day of Parliamentarism is celebrated every year on June 30. This year, June 30 also marks the 135th anniversary of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, the IPU.
Having begun as a small group of parliamentarians in 1889, today, the IPU is a thriving international organization of 180 national parliaments, open to 46,000 parliamentarians. While Canada first joined the IPU in 1912, the current Canadian group was established in 1960. As president of the Canadian group and of the IPU Standing Committee on UN Affairs, I have the privilege of experiencing first-hand the incredible work the IPU does to make the world a better place, especially in relation to peace, democracy and human rights.
On behalf of all 130 Canadian members of the Canadian group, congratulations to the IPU on this 135th anniversary.
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- Jun/17/24 2:11:07 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after nine years, it is just as we suspected. The Prime Minister is not worth the crime and certainly not worth the corruption. Recently, the Auditor General reported that more than 180 conflicts of interest were committed at the Prime Minister's green slush fund. Corrupt directors actually funnelled taxpayer money to the tune of $336 million. That is $336 million to companies those directors own themselves. If that is not a textbook definition of corruption, I am not sure what is.
Conservatives have successfully pushed to try to bring action forward in order to make sure this corruption is exposed, and now, the RCMP is investigating it. It has also informed us it has the ability to actually get that money back. It just takes a little bit of political will. Canadians certainly deserve that much, at least. The Prime Minister must get that taxpayer money back, and he must act now.
Only common-sense Conservatives will continue to demand transparency from the Prime Minister and end this type of Liberal corruption that exists, right here, in Ottawa. May Canadians be well served by the next government.
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- Jun/17/24 2:12:21 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, after nine years of raising taxes, the Liberal-NDP government is doing it again with a new job-killing tax on health care, homes, farms, small businesses and fishing communities. Members heard me right. The taxaholics are again digging deeper into the pockets of Canadian taxpayers. The NDP-Liberals are raising taxes on doctors during a doctor shortage, on farmers while we have a food price crisis, on home builders in a housing shortage and on small businesses during a cost of living crisis that the federal government created.
To Liberals, hard work pursuing the Canadian dream should be punished, not rewarded. A common-sense Conservative government will fix this mess. We will introduce lower, fairer and simpler taxes to restore the Canadian dream. We will make sure hard work delivers strong paycheques that can buy affordable food, energy and homes in safe neighbourhoods. Conservatives will bring it home.
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- Jun/17/24 2:13:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to highlight the work of an exceptional member of the House of Commons' broadcasting team who, after a career spanning more than 32 years, will be retiring in the next few days.
Lorraine Henderson began her career at the House of Commons in 1992. She quickly gained her co-workers' confidence after establishing high broadcasting standards that fulfilled members' expectations. Over the years, she has contributed to the success of many important events, including visits by President Biden, Prime Minister Rutte and Malala Yousafzai.
A pioneer in a non-traditional occupation, she was one of the first women to be appointed television production director for the House of Commons. She inspired many women to join the broadcasting team. Her professionalism and dedication over the years have been exemplary.
Her legacy at the House of Commons will live on, and we are extremely grateful.
I wish her a happy retirement and thank her for her service.
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- Jun/17/24 2:14:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to humbly offer new thoughts on an aging tradition. Canada is bright-eyed and bushy-tailed at 157 years old. Happy birthday, kid. However, like any good coming of age story, there is much internal conflict. We, indigenous peoples and settlers alike, are at the convergence, or better said, at the place where rivers meet, perhaps again. All which has kept us from each other has now led us to one another.
Although our experiences over the last 157 years are vastly different, we can today see each other more clearly. We can hear each other more soundly, and we can understand each other more emotionally. Indigenous peoples History Month and Canada Day are often a reminder for me of just how far we have truly come, even in my short time. It is also a painful reminder of just how much more work there is to be done, but justice begins with truth. It is where wisdom, redemption and forgiveness live. Reconciliation is not a policy, but a journey toward that truth that we all must take.
I want to thank all those who are offering truths about these lands, especially our youth and our elders. kinana'skomitina'wa'w. Let us continue to heed these truths, and in time, we can become a worthy nation.
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- Jun/17/24 2:16:00 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this week, let us all celebrate National Indigenous Peoples Day together.
The presence of first nations and their influence on our society have been overlooked for far too long. It is essential that we recognize their contributions and the richness of their cultures and languages. It is as much a matter of truth as it is of reconciliation.
Without their knowledge of medicinal plants and especially without their support, the first Europeans in North America would never have been able to survive, let alone prosper. Let us not forget that, according to many historians, the first nations were ones who first laid the foundations for democracy in the Americas, with the council circle.
June 21 is really the perfect day on which to celebrate their heritage since it is the summer solstice, the longest day of the year.
I would like to wish a happy National Indigenous Peoples Day to all the Abenakis, Anishinabe, Atikamekw, Cree, Huron-Wendat, Inuit, Innu, Maliseet, Mi'kmaq, Mohawk and Naskapi peoples with whom we share this land.
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- Jun/17/24 2:17:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the NDP-Liberal carbon tax is costing northerners billions. We found out that the radical minister's carbon tax will cost Canadians over $30.5 billion per year, and that will be $2,000 per family by 2030. Last week, I was in Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk, where the carbon tax has caused diesel to rise to $2.73 per litre. High fuel costs are the reason food is so expensive in the Arctic. A can of Heinz beans is $7, a loaf of bread is $8, a regular bag of peas is $10, and a four-litre jug of milk is $18.
A local teacher from Inuvik told me that, by the end of the month, money is running short because of high food and heating costs. Judy, a local grandmother, told me that many cannot afford healthy food, so they rely on high-calorie junk foods, such as chips, chocolate and pop, to survive. In Tuktoyaktuk, Tina, a mother of four, told me she struggles to afford even the basics, such as milk, sugar, coffee and salt.
As such, will the radical environment minister finally resign?
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- Jun/17/24 2:18:17 p.m.
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Speaker, I rise today to highlight a special event that took place last week on Parliament Hill: the second annual Cutest Pets on Parliament Hill contest.
I thank the Canadian Animal Health Institute for organizing this contest, and I congratulate all the nominees and winners. Of course, I would like to congratulate my Walnut, who won cutest dog; I would also like to recognize the runner-up, owned by none other than the deputy leader of the Conservative Party. She showed me a picture of her beautiful dog, Winston, and the look on her face can only be compared to the look she has during question period when she is looking at her leader.
There are lessons to be taken away from this. Walnut and Winston were competitors. It was friendly. They were friends before, and they are friends after. It was not personal. The other lesson that can be taken away from this is that it does not matter how we dress up our dog or how many poles they sniff along the way; the campaign is what matters.
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- Jun/17/24 2:19:26 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I am hoping someone can explain something to me. The leader of the Bloc Québécois voted for a Liberal motion to raise taxes. The same day, he posted on X that the tax also significantly affects people who have been saving their entire lives, many of them pensioners, whose property is their retirement fund. Now he opposes the tax hike. He wants to amend it in committee, but the motion will not go to committee. The tax will be implemented within a week.
Can the Prime Minister explain to his counterpart in the Bloc-Liberal coalition how Parliament works?
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- Jun/17/24 2:20:17 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, in budget 2024, we are proposing an economic plan for our country. The other side of the House has no plan. We have a plan for the economy, for families, for seniors, for children. Those folks over there have no plan at all.
I hope everyone will vote in favour of our plan this week.
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- Jun/17/24 2:20:48 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we are talking about a so-called sovereignist party in Quebec that wants to take money from Quebec entrepreneurs, Quebec farmers, Quebec home builders and Quebec doctors and funnel it to the massive, centralist Liberal government.
How is that common sense?
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- Jun/17/24 2:21:21 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, how can the Conservative leader and chief insult-hurler explain the nonsense of asking someone who earns $500,000 in capital gains to pay less tax than a nurse who earns $50,000? How can he claim that it is common sense to ask middle-class families to pay more tax than those who make huge capital gains?
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- Jun/17/24 2:21:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we always knew the Prime Minister was not worth the cost after nine years, but now his carbon tax cover-up has been exposed. We forced him to release data showing that, in addition to the higher bills at the pumps and on home heating that Canadians pay directly in the tax, there is also going to be a $30-billion-a-year hit to our economy. That is $1,800 in lost wages and higher prices for Canadian families.
Now that we have caught the Liberals hiding the true cost of their tax, how can we believe anything else they say about any other tax hike?
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- Jun/17/24 2:22:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, facts are facts. The facts are that eight out of 10 Canadian families get more money back from carbon pricing than they pay. It is a fact that climate change is going to cost Canadians $35 billion by 2030. In fact, right now, eastern Canada is seeing a second heat wave before the summer has even started.
People are being evacuated in the Northwest Territories. What is the Conservative response? It is to let the planet burn. It is immoral. We will not have that on this side of the House. We will work with Canadians. We will help them. We will be there for them. Unfortunately, the Conservative Party of Canada will not.
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- Jun/17/24 2:23:17 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the fanatical rhetoric of the extremist minister will not change anything, nor will his carbon tax change the weather. His carbon tax is not going to eliminate a single forest fire, a single drought or a single heat wave. All it will do is turn up the heat on Canadian taxpayers. Now we know that the Liberals' talking point about eight out of 10 Canadians does not include a $25-billion hit to the economy, which works out to almost $2,000 in lost wages and higher prices for families. Again, if they have been hiding this, what else are they hiding about their other tax hikes?
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- Jun/17/24 2:23:59 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, last week, I noted my colleague's newfound interest in what economists have to say. Three hundred economists across this country actually validated the fact that eight out of 10 Canadians get more money back.
What is appalling is the complete disregard and ignorance of the effects of climate change and the costs of climate change. I do not know whether the hon. member is a climate denier or whether he just does not think climate change is very important, but his willingness to compromise the future of our children is absolutely appalling.
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