- Member of Parliament
- Conservative
- Provencher
- Manitoba
- Voting Attendance: 64%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $143,373.11
- Government Page
Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure for me to rise in the House this evening.
This is an important topic, and I appreciate that the member for Beaches—East York has brought this legislation forward and prompted the discussion that we are having here today. I can certainly understand that after the past two years of COVID, there are those who feel we need to get something like this done immediately. Nobody wants COVID or something worse to hit Canadians. Our first priority as parliamentarians is the safety and security of our citizens. We have to take the time to properly reflect on and examine what we have just gone through to have a meaningful conversation about how to respond to a future pandemic.
The bill's proposal that the Minister of Health and other government ministers be the ones to put together or even make up the advisory committee to review their own response to the coronavirus is, frankly, quite ridiculous. That is like having the fox guard the henhouse, because they all have a very vested interest in the outcome. Canadians will never get the answers they deserve if the ministers who perpetuated or promoted many of the failures, abuses and violations of charter rights that we have seen over the past two years are the same ones tasked with reviewing their own government's response.
Let us face it: Transparency, accountability and, frankly, honesty are hardly synonymous with the government. We have seen first-hand much of the misinformation propagated by these ministers. That is why I propose, before embarking on some of the elements contained in Bill C-293, that we need a full non-partisan national inquiry into how governments at all levels have handled the response to COVID-19, because as I reflect on the past two years, there are too many questions. These are questions that have never been answered by government, and in many cases, no one in government or the media has even had the courage to publicly ask them.
Herein we have the first major issue in the government's handling of COVID. It is the “my way or the highway, we know best and do not dare ask questions about what we are doing” approach that the governments across this country have taken. We kept hearing “follow the science” and “we are following the science”. It is the political science, yes, but the last time I checked, a big part of doing real science involved asking questions, analyzing data and doing so with rigorous skepticism. We make an observation, we research the topic, we form a hypothesis, we test the experiments, we analyze the data and we report the conclusions as objectively as we can based solely on the empirical data. That is the scientific method.
In the case of COVID, the government never really got beyond forming a hypothesis. The Liberals based their response on the assumptions that they and many in the medical field made in the early days of COVID, which led to selective and often misleading data being collected and used to back up those assumptions.
The media also failed in their objectivity to ask questions, choosing instead to parrot government talking points as truth, sowing fear and division as they quietly pocketed hundreds of millions of dollars in government subsidies. They refused to allow different points of view. They did not ask the tough questions, and they silenced or mocked anyone who did.
Canadians should not need to fear repercussions in their workplaces, their communities, their professional associations, online or by the media. However, that is what happened. Anyone who questioned anything related to the government's handling of COVID, at any level of government, got smeared, bullied and cancelled. In a free and democratic society, that should be deeply concerning to all of us. Governments made huge demands of Canadians, and it is incumbent on governments at all levels to provide empirical data to back up their actions. We owe that to Canadians.
I sat down the other night as I prepared to deliver this speech today and started to write down some of those nagging questions. They are questions that we cannot trust the government to ask because it has sought so diligently for two years to cover up the answers from Canadians for its own political purposes. I am going to take the remaining time here to ask some of those questions.
For a start, why did the government make the decision in 2019 to shut down our pandemic early warning system? We had SARS and H1N1, and we knew the potential of a Canadian epidemic. Who chose to shut it down? Who in the government was responsible for leaving Canadians defenceless?
Why was there so much conflicting information provided by government and public health officials? There were days when the WHO said one thing, Dr. Tam said another and, in my province of Manitoba, Dr. Roussin said something completely different, and all on the same issue.
This bred confusion, fear and mistrust. I think this is the type of issue the legislation, at least in part, may be trying to address, but again, we cannot address these issues until we know first-hand what took place and who was responsible, and we cannot trust the government to provide us with those answers.
We learned that the Public Health Agency of Canada, the same department responsible for the government's COVID response, allowed our national microbiology lab in Winnipeg, one of our nation's foremost secure facilities, to be infiltrated by Chinese spies with direct links to both the Wuhan lab and the bioweapons program of the People's Liberation Army. Why?
The government sued Parliament to cover it up. It refused to come clean. Then it turned around and made a deal with China to be the sole manufacturer of Canada's vaccine supply. The deal ultimately fell through, but there are a lot of questions here that require answers. Why does the government refuse to release procurement details, such as the price per dose, when other governments have been transparent?
There are still legitimate questions related to vaccine safety and efficacy. Why did the government agree to hide the safety data on Pfizer for 75 years? There are 51,714 Canadians who have suffered vaccine injuries to date as a result of their COVID shots, with 10,501 serious reactions, including 874 anaphylactic reactions, 1,342 cases of myocarditis, 140 thrombosis cases and 382 reports with an outcome of death following vaccination. Where does that information come from? It is from the government's own website. Anyone can look it up. There are also many reports of doctors refusing to even file a VAERS report, which is a vaccine adverse event reaction report.
How many of those individuals have been compensated by the government's vaccine injury program to date? It is eight. Why is the media quiet about those things? Why is it that the Prime Minister was more interested in his political fortunes than in public health?
We saw this in the Prime Minister's decision to call an unnecessary election last fall. We have seen this in his unacceptable rhetoric demonizing those who chose not be vaccinated and in his heavy-handed approach to dealing with vaccine mandate protests. One minute our truckers are essential workers and heroes who kept our country going, and the next they are villains so awful that the Emergencies Act was invoked to deal with them. The inquiry, and ultimately history, will show what an unjustified and politically motivated response that was.
There are also serious questions related to government spending. The Liberal government spent unprecedented amounts, hundreds of billions of dollars, to fight COVID, but its own Parliamentary Budget Officer shows that at least 40% of that money, or $205 billion, never went to fighting COVID. Where did it go? We know that tens of millions of dollars have found their way into the pockets of Liberal cronies, as the government paid exponentially more for ventilators and other medical equipment that was never used and now sits collecting dust in warehouses.
Who got rich while Canadians suffered? Why did the government refuse to put any safeguards in place for CERB, resulting in three million people, including criminals in jail, receiving the CERB benefit? Why did the government send federal public servants home at a time when five million Canadians had lost their jobs and were forced into government programs and unable to access services? Why are they still at home?
My office has stayed open every day over the past two years to help Canadians. We did it safely and we had no issues with COVID. There is no reason that other government officials and agencies could not have done likewise. Canadians are paying their salaries, and public servants need to get back to the office and back to work full time for Canadians.
We could keep going on here all evening. We could talk about divisive and unscientific mandates. We could talk about the disastrous ArriveCAN app. We could talk about how the government's actions destroyed border communities and separated loved ones. We could talk about how Canadians were assaulted in quarantine hotels. We could talk about the provinces and their responses, and the draconian measures that in my view did far more long-term harm than good. The questions go on and on. Canadians deserve answers.
Over the past two years, governments have made big demands of Canadians. Canadians stepped up again and again, only to have their hopes dashed by government failures and broken promises as the goalposts were moved over and over again. Canadians deserve empirical justification for mandates. History will show that mandates were based on politics, not public health.
After two years of sickness, restrictions, divisions and fear, governments at all levels need to be held accountable for their actions. Bill C-293 is insufficient because the government, and any government, cannot and should not be trusted to investigate itself.
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- Jun/22/22 4:52:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the final petition is signed by numerous Canadians who ask the House of Commons to conduct a review by the National Advisory Committee on Immunization regarding the transmission of COVID-19 on airplanes.
They take note that WestJet's first chief medical officer, Dr. Tammy McKnight, stated that there have been no known cases of COVID-19 transmission aboard Canadian aircraft. An International Air Transport Association study in 2020 found that out of 1.2 billion passengers worldwide, only 44 cases of COVID-19 transmission were reported as flight-related.
Countries around the world have removed their vaccine mandates and restrictions. Petitioners are encouraging the government and the Minister of Transport to abolish all vaccine passport requirements and end all federally regulated COVID-19 vaccine mandates and restrictions.
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- Jun/22/22 4:50:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the second petition is from a group of petitioners saying that they are recognizing the convoys and protest rallies across Canada opposing COVID-19 restrictions and mandates. In particular, they want to recognize the truckers who, through COVID-19, served Canadians so faithfully and were the heroes of our economy. Truckers are still subject to vaccine mandates when crossing the international border. The petitioners would like to see all federal mandates and restrictions lifted and an end to COVID-19 restrictions.
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- May/11/22 2:11:02 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it was the great Winston Churchill who said this: Never does a man portray his character more vividly than when proclaiming the character of another.
I am deeply troubled by the rhetoric the Prime Minister has used to describe Canadians who have chosen not to be vaccinated. According to the Prime Minister, the unvaccinated are racist, misogynist and dangerous extremists who do not love their neighbours, do not believe in science and should not be tolerated by society. He continues to use mandates to punish millions of Canadians, including federal public servants, by taking away their livelihoods for simply making a personal, private medical choice.
The government says it is following the science. It obviously means the political science. It is not our job to judge the medical choices Canadians make for themselves and their families. This fearmongering, this division and this stigmatizing must stop. It is time to end these divisive and discriminatory mandates.
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- Feb/21/22 12:15:32 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my friend for Edmonton Manning for an excellent speech.
I took note particularly of a comment the member made about following the science and this Prime Minister's refusal to follow the science when it does not fit his narrative.
I am wondering what message my colleague would give to NDP members who have always been champions of civil liberties and who are now seeing the liberties of Canadians trampled under foot. What would he say to the NDP about voting with their conscience and about remaining true to the values that they say are important?
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- Feb/21/22 11:12:11 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, that was an excellent speech. The member has clearly made the case that the threshold for invoking the Emergencies Act has not been met.
Due process is required to happen under the rule of law. Could the member speak a little about the fact that due process did not happen, that there was a complete lack of process, and that the government moved from A to Z unmerited?
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- Feb/4/22 1:52:54 p.m.
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- Re: Bill C-8
Mr. Speaker, I think what we have here with Bill C-8 is a bill that is going to, again, inject unnecessary money into the economy. It is going to further exacerbate the situation that we have with inflation, and make it very difficult for everyday Canadians to keep up with the cost of living.
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- Feb/4/22 1:50:46 p.m.
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- Re: Bill C-8
Mr. Speaker, I do not really know what the question was from the member for Timmins—James Bay. I think he was trying to stand on his political soapbox again and make some kind of statement. However, I will say that as Conservatives, we have deep respect and admiration for all of our health—
Some hon. members: Oh, oh!
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- Feb/4/22 1:47:44 p.m.
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- Re: Bill C-8
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for Calgary Skyview for his appreciation and concern for members in the trucking community.
We need to take a look at the whole picture here and see how our trucking industry is being so negatively affected by these mandates. Our statistics show that well over one-third of Canadians support these truckers, who are saying they need an end to these discriminatory mandates. It was not that long ago that the Prime Minister was calling our truckers the heroes of the pandemic.
Everybody else had the luxury of working from home and did not have to drive to the office. They had the luxury of locking themselves up and staying in their own little social bubbles. However, our truckers were the ones who went out there. They went wherever they were told to go to pick up goods to bring them back and make sure that our grocery store shelves—
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- Feb/4/22 1:42:48 p.m.
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- Re: Bill C-8
Mr. Speaker, this is a letter sent by one of my constituents who is a young businessman trying to eke out a living and provide a living for his family and for the people he employs. This is his letter. This is not some abstract person who does not have an identity. This is a real constituent with real issues, and I am so disappointed that the member for Timmins—James Bay has been so disrespectful.
I am going to read a little further. The letter states:
“Surely you can see the incompetence of that kind of thinking. It's absolutely illogical in every sense of the term, and it's affecting hard-working, honest, productive individuals all over this country. People like me. People who are worried sick over where this is all going. People who are hoping the illogical spotlight of condemnation doesn't find them in their quiet corner of the world, where they just want to continue working and providing for their families.
“Well, that spotlight found me and every other person in the transportation industry that isn't vaccinated in an industry that is strained for workers already and could very well disrupt the strained supply chain that is struggling already. While I know that saying this isn't good for anyone on any level, maybe a severely disrupted supply chain is exactly what needs to happen to wake up the government and start thinking about the ramifications of their actions.
“I feel like people like me aren't being represented. There are no strong and audible voices being allowed to speak on my behalf. I'm dealing with the very real possibility of not being able to continue with my small business, and it feels like a blanket of defeat is starting to settle on me and I am fighting to keep from lying still and letting that happen.
“No wonder people are having depression, suicidal thoughts, a loss of purpose and feeling discriminated against. Every day is hard and all this sure doesn't help. If anyone cared about that, they'd listen and take action. I don't see that cavalry coming but it needs to. I wish I had a platform to voice all of this to politicians implementing all these mandates and rules and who could listen and understand where regular people like me are coming from, what our concerns are and take action to represent us, but I don't have that platform. Again, a blanket of defeat.
“Stop mandating and shutting everything down at every turn. Let people make their own choices. Aim to protect the truly vulnerable. Loosen the shackles on society and start opening up. Let people get back to some sense of normalcy and leave people alone who are driven to get to work and who have ambitions and provide labour and our services to others. People with pride and work ethic. People like me.”
That is a letter from one of my constituents who is just completely exasperated and feeling frustrated, feeling alone and feeling overwhelmed. We know that mental health has paid a huge toll for many folks during the last two years. His request to all politicians is that we would consider the plights of individuals like him who are being mandated to do something that they do not feel is good.
I am speaking directly to part 5 of Bill C-8, which would spend $300 million on providing proof-of-vaccination initiatives. We are looking at ways we can start to trim back our spending. Bill C-8 would put another $70-odd billion of money into the economy, which would further exacerbate the situation of inflation. It would continue to drive up prices.
We have heard, from many speakers throughout this past week, of the inflation that they are seeing at the grocery stores and at the gas pumps. At every corner, inflation is hitting them hard. This is $300 million we do not need.
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- Feb/4/22 1:35:54 p.m.
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- Re: Bill C-8
Mr. Speaker, this is my first opportunity to make a speech in this session of Parliament, and I want to thank the constituents of Provencher for once again giving me the privilege to be their voice in Parliament.
I also want to take this time to thank the member for Durham for his service to our country and the Conservative Party, and to welcome the member for Portage—Lisgar as the new interim leader of the opposition and leader of the Conservative Party.
I am pleased to have this opportunity to speak to this bill. On this side of the House, we recognize that inflation is a crisis. We understand how hard it is for folks to put food on the table, and we recognize what the government does not: that it is the government's policies that are driving this inflation. It is the government's lack of fiscal responsibility that has led to more dollars chasing fewer goods. It is the Liberal vaccine mandate that has led to the fractures of our supply chains, our transportation industry and the divisions being created in this country, and it is the Liberals' arrogance that has led to tens of thousands of hard-working, freedom-loving Canadians to occupy the space in front of this House begging the government to hear their voices.
With that in mind, I would like to use my time today to address part 5 of this bill, which is the $300 million to support proof of vaccination initiatives. Both Saskatchewan and Alberta have indicated they will be dropping restrictions, mandates and vaccine passports. Ontario is considering the same, and many premiers have been talking about transitioning to the endemic stage. This is no time to be tossing another $300 million at proof of vaccination initiatives.
I have been clear from the beginning that I do not support vaccine mandates. I believe they are not charter compliant. I believe they are discriminatory and cause division. What we need right now in this country is not more name-calling or othering. What we need is unity. No one should lose their job, their business or the opportunities they would otherwise be entitled to for what ought to be a personal, private, medical choice, so today I want to take the rest of my time to read a letter from one of my constituents. His name is Terry. Terry is on the verge of losing of his business because of the Liberal government's policies, and I want the Liberal government to hear what he has to say.
This is a letter I received in the last few weeks unsolicited, and I have his permission to share it with the House, and indeed all Canadians, today. This is what Terry stated:
“ I've been running a small trucking business for the past nine years. I used to be just self-employed and running one truck. With the onset of COVID in 2020, I thought that this would disrupt my operations. Thankfully, that wasn't the case. Transportation was deemed an essential service that didn't warrant disruption. As a result, a year ago I was finally able to procure more customers and expand my operations to include additional owner-operators and company truck drivers.
“In the last couple of months I could see things shifting and potentially disrupting business operations and now it's upon me: a vaccination mandate at the Canada-U.S. border that prevents non-vaccinated individuals from crossing for business-related purposes. I am not vaccinated. I have no interest in being vaccinated. Why? Simply because none of what the government agency, federal or provincial, says is consistent or logical. The goalposts are constantly changing. What was compliant or acceptable yesterday is no longer the same today. This contradicts that rule and so on and so forth.
“These are my issues. We were once told that the vaccine will prevent you from getting COVID. That has proven to be false. Nobody knew that, but that didn't prevent the powers that be to spout “get vaccinated”. There is absolutely no shortage of stories all over the world in every sector, politicians, sporting athletes, media, news personalities and just plain old folks everywhere that are vaccinated, double vaccinated and boosted. So many injections to prevent, prevent, prevent and it has shown to prevent nothing that we were promised it would prevent. But, hey, guess what, get vaccinated anyway, it's your best protection. Protection to what?
“I'm no longer able to attend any sporting events. I've been a hockey player for 36 years on many different levels and that has been taken away from me and I think of all others it's been taken away from. Our local rink in Grunthal, Manitoba didn't even open for activities this winter. Think about what that does to all sorts of kids and adults who use a facility like that for exercise and community interaction. I'm no longer allowed indoors to eat, but I can walk in and order for takeout. I am in the building. Shouldn't that constitute a threat to those who are in the dining area? Mask or no mask, if I had COVID, I'm sure people wouldn't want me nearby, but, for the sake of commerce, allow me in. My money is wanted, but not my presence.
“Here is the big one. It's now been proven that both the vaccinated and the unvaccinated can catch COVID and that both vaccinated and unvaccinated can spread COVID. We are all able to spread it, but vaccinated people are able to gather wherever, family gatherings, restaurants, movie theatres, sporting venues, etc. There was a time in the not so distant past that these would have been labelled super spreader events and frowned upon viciously, but now it's okay to let the people who can spread COVID to gather at will.
“They can spread it so easily but are without restriction, and somehow I'm labelled and tagged as the bad guy because I'm not vaccinated. I'm stuck in my house or inside my truck not interacting with the general public like the vaccinated are, but somehow this is my fault that COVID is spreading.
“All of that to say that I'm not sure what's going to happen to my business. I need vaccinated drivers now. It's getting tough to find them. People don't respond to being told what to do, and that's what this mandate is doing. There's resistance because there's a strong sense that governments are lying at every turn, while trying to force something on people that they constitutionally don't have the right to do. I made a choice to not get it based on the illogical and inconsistent messaging.
“I have absolutely no doubt that COVID has taken lives and that COVID has made the vulnerable very sick. I know people who have gotten sick and have passed away, and I am by no means denying that COVID has done these things. But I am saying that people have gotten it, dealt with and moved on from it, whether naturally or with treatment, and those people have an immunity that studies have shown to be 27 times better than anything that can be manufactured in the lab in the form of a vaccine. But that natural immunity is denied and not recognized. Why? Has anyone thought about where we'd be—
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