Senator Gold: I’m not in a position to answer that, but I’ll make inquiries.

Hon. Senators: Hear, hear.

Senator Tannas: Is the government satisfied with having 42.2% of its workforce located here in Ottawa?

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): Thank you for the question. I’ll have to make inquiries as to what the implications are of the government’s approach to the public service and whether there are plans along those lines. I’ll certainly make inquiries and report back.

Senator Gold: Thank you for the question. My understanding, senator, is that the government is considering these general themes, and that these are informing the development of the national adaptation strategy. The government looks forward to announcing its strategy in due course.

[Translation]

Senator Coyle: Senator Gold, this month the Federation of Canadian Municipalities also released its own recommendations for that national adaptation strategy. They have called for a scaling-up investment in resilient public infrastructure and a focus on nature-based solutions to climate change. They suggested investing in mechanisms such as the Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund, the National Infrastructure Fund and the Green Municipal Fund.

Senator Gold, could you tell us if the government is considering these recommendations and, if so, how will the government be incorporating these into the national adaptation strategy?

The Hon. the Speaker: Is it your pleasure, honourable senators, to adopt the motion?

On the Order:

Resuming debate on the motion of the Honourable Senator Dawson, seconded by the Honourable Senator Bovey, for the second reading of Bill C-11, An Act to amend the Broadcasting Act and to make related and consequential amendments to other Acts.

Hon. Denise Batters: Senator Gold, last week many of us stood in this place to pay tribute to the victims of the horrible murders in James Smith Cree Nation and Weldon in my home province of Saskatchewan. However, the victims of this terrible attack deserve action, not just words.

Last weekend, Global News produced a lengthy and alarming article in which we learned that Skye Sanderson, the wife of one of the perpetrators, called 911 to report her husband, Damien, and his brother Myles 24 hours before the murders began. According to the article, Skye believed “the only way to stop them from doing something ’stupid’ was to get them both locked up.”

The article further reads:

. . . her pleas fell on deaf ears. RCMP members arrived and returned her car to her but didn’t do enough to locate Damien and Myles — despite the pair’s outstanding arrest warrants.

Twenty-four hours later . . . 10 people were dead, 18 people were injured, and the Sanderson brothers were prime suspects in one of the worst mass killings in Canada’s history.

The RCMP refuses to answer questions about this shocking new information. Senator Gold, will the Trudeau government demand that the RCMP provide the answers that these victims, their families, the people of Saskatchewan and the whole country deserve?

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): I’ll have to make inquiries in response to your question, but I would say, senator, first of all, that one can never express their condolences and sympathy too often to the families and communities who are still grieving. I know that’s shared by everyone here.

Policing in Indigenous communities is critical. It can mean the difference between prevention and tragedy, and that’s why the government is co-developing legislation to recognize First Nations and Indigenous policing as an essential service.

The government is scaling up its efforts. It is providing over $181 million for Indigenous policing services in 426 Indigenous communities across Canada. This is all part of its effort. Nothing can take away the loss of life or the tragedy that occurred. One hopes that this is a step in the right direction.

Senator Batters: Senator Gold, there is no way that these victims should have to wait for months, and potentially years, for answers to these questions. Myles and Damien Sanderson are dead, and they won’t be judged in a public criminal trial. Some questions about this case will require a more detailed response and process, but there are other questions that need to be answered now. The entire province of Saskatchewan was terrorized for days by these killings. The public needs reassurance and peace, and the RCMP has a responsibility to give Canadians confidence in their own safety.

When will we get these critical answers, and what immediate steps is the Minister of Public Safety taking with the RCMP to ensure that this never happens again?

Hon. Leo Housakos: Honourable senators, my question is for the government leader in the Senate.

Senator Gold, as Canadians are looking at yet another hike in interest rates between now and the end of October, in an attempt to get skyrocketing “JustinFlation” under some sort of control, your government continues to defend the Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem, despite his abysmal performance.

I’m sure you are going to give me the talking points about how we need to respect our institutions and the independence of the Bank of Canada. But considering that we have a Prime Minister who has acknowledged that he doesn’t spend his time thinking about monetary policy, and we have a Minister of Finance who — in this chamber less than a year ago — said, in response to my question, that inflation isn’t a real concern, and considering that the Bank of Canada also recently weighed in on social media in support for the partisan agenda of this current Trudeau government, don’t you think, government leader, that if you don’t fire the Governor of the Bank of Canada, at the bare minimum you should ask for his resignation?

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate): I’m not going to give you talking points, honourable senator. It’s an important question about how any government and, indeed, this institution relates to its independent institutions. It is hard not to resist the observation that all of the premises buried in your question sounded very much like talking points that we have heard in the other place.

The fact remains that for more than three decades, the Bank of Canada has pursued an independent monetary policy, and that’s the appropriate way in which this should be handled in a democratic society. It is also the case, as every credible economist and every credible observer knows, that the inflation that we are suffering in Canada — and we are suffering, people are suffering, there is no question about that — is not created simply by Justin Trudeau and this government. It is a complicated function of worldwide phenomena.

If we are to be a serious chamber of sober second thought, as opposed to simply a place for snappy — the alliteration now escapes me. If we are going to be serious, as we are supposed to be serious, then I will continue to answer factually, as I am endeavouring to do in this case.

Senator Housakos: Senator Gold, how far is your government willing to go to continue to allow “JustinFlation” and soaring interest rates to skyrocket? Government leader, these are not talking points. Your talking points might be talking points, but I’m talking on behalf of Canadians who are actually out there dealing with egg prices, milk prices, grocery store prices and trying to feed their families.

At the end of the day, the question I have for you is a very simple one: When are we going to take our responsibility very seriously and hold somebody in this Parliament to account for this dismal performance? If it is not the Governor of the Bank of Canada, maybe it’s the Prime Minister, or maybe it’s the Minister of Finance. Whom do you hold responsible for this mess?

Hon. Donald Neil Plett (Leader of the Opposition): Honourable senators, over the weekend a report from Global News indicated that an ArriveCAN-related issue caused power crews from Maine to be held up at the border on their way to help the people of Nova Scotia in the aftermath of Hurricane Fiona. It is said that the U.S. crews were concerned they would not be able to get across the border at all. Following these reports, a spokesperson for Minister of Public Safety, Marco Mendicino, denied that there had been any such issue at the border. However, the Nova Scotia premier’s office stood by the allegation that there was indeed an issue and a delay. This was also confirmed by Nova Scotia Power. Even so, later, in an evening press conference, the Minister of Emergency Preparedness, Bill Blair, dismissed any delay as being inconsequential.

Honourable senators, tens of thousands of people in Atlantic Canada have been left without power and entire communities have suffered unimaginable devastation. There is nothing inconsequential about that. So, which one is it, leader? Can you confirm that there was an issue with ArriveCAN that caused the delay of crucial aid to the people of Nova Scotia? If so, do you agree with your colleague Minister Blair’s characterization of the delay as being inconsequential?

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate) tabled the reply to Question No. 64, dated November 23, 2021, appearing on the Order Paper and Notice Paper in the name of the Honourable Senator Plett, regarding litigation.

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate) tabled the reply to Question No. 101, dated November 23, 2021, appearing on the Order Paper and Notice Paper in the name of the Honourable Senator Plett, regarding court cases involving veterans.

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate) tabled the reply to Question No. 143, dated March 30, 2022, appearing on the Order Paper and Notice Paper in the name of the Honourable Senator Housakos, regarding Canadian offices and embassies abroad.

Hon. Marc Gold (Government Representative in the Senate) tabled the reply to Question No. 149, dated April 26, 2022, appearing on the Order Paper and Notice Paper in the name of the Honourable Senator Plett, regarding counterfeit products.