André Bellavance

[Employment, May 11th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the government claims that the changes to the temporary foreign worker program do not affect the farming sector. However, the Fondation des entreprises en recrutement de main-d'oeuvre agricole étrangère tells us that processing companies are having to dramatically reduce the number of foreign workers they hire and that the maximum stay for Guatemalan workers, who make up half the foreign agricultural workers in Quebec, has been reduced from 48 months to 24 months.

Does the minister realize that these measures are truly hurting Quebec's agri-food sector and consumers, who will have to foot the bill at the end of the day?

[International Trade, May 8th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, the government's rhetoric regarding the negotiations for the trans-Pacific partnership is not reassuring anyone at all. In fact, farmers are so worried that the Quebec minister of agriculture, fisheries and food and the Ontario minister of agriculture, food and rural affairs had to write a letter to the federal minister of agriculture, asking him to honour the motion on supply management that I had unanimously adopted in 2005. Minister Pierre Paradis said this week that if it falls apart, it will be a disaster. He emphasized that the federal government is what poses the threat.

Will the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food commit to maintaining his previous position, which was to support the key pillars of this system, as Quebec and Ontario are calling on him to do?

[Employment, April 29th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, everyone was entirely justified in condemning the way that banks and fast food restaurants abused the temporary foreign worker program. Now the government is penalizing employers who follow the rules. Not only must seasonal businesses, such as restaurants, hotels, food processors and landscapers, struggle because of the new employment insurance rules, but they will also bear the brunt of this.

Will the Minister of Employment and Social Development abide by the Canada-Quebec accord on immigration and postpone these measures while the federal government negotiates with Quebec, which is what the Government of Quebec, the Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec and the Canadian Federation of Independent Business are calling for?

[Quebec Cheesemaker, April 29th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, 10 years ago, the Morin family of Sainte-Élizabeth-de-Warwick transformed the old presbytery across from their farm into a cheese factory called Fromagerie du Presbytère. The fame of their cheeses has been spreading ever since.

The Fromagerie du Presbytère makes a cheese called Laliberté, which was recently selected from among 81 finalists as the grand champion of the ninth edition of the Canadian Cheese Grand Prix.

Here is how the jury chairman described it:

The exquisite, aromatic triple crème and tender bloomy rind combine to create an unctuous cheese with well-balanced flavours and notes of mushroom, grasses and root vegetables.

Does that not whet your appetite? The Fromagerie du Presbytère also won two other prizes for its Bleu d'Élizabeth and its Louis d'Or, which was the Canadian champion in 2011.

Sainte-Élizabeth-de-Warwick has become a not-to-be-missed destination on Fridays in the summer, when the factory serves cheese made fresh that day, as well as during the autumn fine food tour that attracts visitors from all over Quebec.

I am very proud to congratulate the Morin family and their employees because they are genuine ambassadors for our region and for Quebec who make it possible for us to enjoy outstanding cheese.

[Consumer Protection, April 20th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, an oil cartel ripped off more than a million drivers, most of them in central Quebec and the Eastern Townships, to the tune of $200 million, and now an oil company has been fined $1 million. If not for a complaint from a Victoriaville retailer that refused to participate in price fixing, the Competition Bureau would not have investigated, and charges would not have been laid because the government is refusing to amend the Competition Act.

Will the government finally take action by enabling the competition commissioner to open investigations, by creating a petroleum monitoring agency and, most importantly, by no longer sabotaging the people who are now launching a class action against the oil companies?

[Pensions, March 24th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, a new study has confirmed that the government is heading in the wrong direction by thinking that it can solve the sustainability problem of the old age security program by raising the retirement age to 67. The University of Montreal study shows that that decision will only increase inequalities between seniors, forcing greater dependence on private savings, which will have a negative effect on the quality of life of poorer seniors.

Is the Minister of Finance prepared to correct the situation by focusing more on tax incentives and work time management to keep people working longer, as the FADOQ network has been calling for, rather than making poor people even poorer?

[Committees of the House, March 11th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I will vote in favour of the motion.

[Respect for Communities Act, March 9th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, I will vote no.

[Rail Transportation, March 9th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, a fourth derailment in a matter of weeks reminds us how vulnerable our municipalities and the people who live there are, since the government has failed to implement proper oversight measures for the railways since the Lac-Mégantic tragedy. We notice instead that the trains are longer and heavier and travel more quickly and the new tanker cars are not any safer.

Since her bill does not address all these problems, will the Minister of Transport put in place additional safety measures, along with enough human and financial resources to enforce them, as the Union des municipalités du Québec is calling for?

[Canada Post, February 26th, 2015]

Mr. Speaker, in her response to the municipalities in my riding that are speaking out against Canada Post's unilateral changes, the Minister of Transport sings her government's same old song about the volume of mail. She says nothing about the regional economies affected by the job losses and nothing about the lost services for seniors and people with limited mobility. She is completely washing her hands of this. The municipalities are simply asking to be consulted.

I am sure the minister will claim to be sensitive to the municipalities' concerns during the election campaign. Why not listen to them right away by launching a real consultation on postal services?