Bernard Généreux

[An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada's Official Languages, May 10th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask my friend a question. There was a consensus within the Canadian francophonie about setting up a central agency in charge of overseeing enforcement of the act within Treasury Board. Everyone was in agreement. Unfortunately, the Liberals rejected this option in multiple ways.

Still, it would have been the best approach. Having two authorities in charge of oversight does not work. The past 50 years are proof.

The Conservatives are not alone in asking for this. The entire Canadian francophonie was asking for it too. I would like my colleague to tell me why he thinks the Liberals consistently rejected this option.

[Carbon Pricing, May 9th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, ever since this Prime Minister came to power, everything costs more. A family of four will have to hand over $1,065 more for food. One in five Canadians is skipping meals, and more and more people are turning to food banks. What is this Prime Minister doing? He is making things worse by increasing the carbon tax. Contrary to what he is saying, this increase has an impact across the country, even in Quebec.

Will he finally get rid of these policies, which increase the price of everything we buy?

[Public Safety, April 28th, 2023]

Madam Speaker, Canadians in our big cities are feeling less and less safe on the streets and when taking public transportation. The Prime Minister's soft-on-crime policies are to blame. Violent offenders are back out on the streets the same day they are arrested and others are serving their sentence from the comfort of their living room instead of in prison.

Will the Prime Minister and his government finally get back to work so that violent criminals are punished and victims are protected?

[Seventh Edition of Enfants d'coeur's Fundraising Dinner, April 28th, 2023]

Madam Speaker, last Saturday was the seventh edition of the spaghetti dinner fundraiser in Montmagny.

This charity event, organized by Enfants d'cœur, finally made a comeback after a forced three-year break. The evening was a resounding success. In total, 1,356 tickets were sold and over $17,000 was raised.

The proceeds from the dinner will go towards supporting the foundation's primary mission, which is to support projects that encourage youth to adopt healthy lifestyle habits by participating in sports.

I want to sincerely congratulate and thank Francis Fréchette and Frédéric Ouelle, the founders of Enfants d'cœur, two men with big hearts. Thanks to their dedication and involvement, hundreds of young people will have the chance to grow up healthy.

I also want to thank all the volunteers who made sure that the event went smoothly and the partners who gave everyone the opportunity to enjoy a delicious dinner in good company. I am extremely proud of my riding's vitality and community spirit.

Long live Enfants d'cœur.

[Justice, April 27th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, since the Prime Minister took office, violent crime has increased by 32% and crime related to street gangs has jumped by 92%. Sex offenders can serve their sentences in the comfort of their own homes while watching Netflix.

Together with police forces, we are calling for tougher legislation so criminals go to prison rather than staying at home.

Instead of gallivanting around the world, including in the Big Apple, could the Prime Minister get back to work and fix this problem once and for all?

[Ethics, April 21st, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, 24% of Canadians say that they cannot take a vacation this summer because of inflation.

They are definitely not impressed when they see their Prime Minister vacationing in a Jamaican paradise at taxpayers' expense. The average Canadian dares not even dream of such luxury.

This Prime Minister is so used to living on another planet that he does not even realize how this is perceived by Canadians and the entire world.

I will repeat my question: Will he pay for his luxury hotel out of his own pocket?

[Ethics, April 21st, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, at a time when inflation is eating away at more and more taxpayers' paycheques, families are being forced to pay $1,000 more each year to put food on the table, and mortgage payments are doubling, causing untold stress for Canadians, the Prime Minister sees nothing wrong with taking a luxury vacation to Jamaica.

Can he at least tell us how much he paid out of his own pocket for his luxury hotel?

[Housing, April 20th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, since this Prime Minister took office, the average cost of mortgage payments has doubled in this country. Worse yet, because of the successive increases in interest rates, the cost of interest on mortgage payments was up by 26.4% in March compared to February. It is the largest increase ever recorded. Canadians continue to go into debt and have to give up their dream of home ownership.

Will the Prime Minister finally take measures to curb the inflation he himself created?

[Committees of the House, April 20th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I must lower the member's expectations. I am far from being appointed minister. We are far from that. Actually, only one person can do that in a government, and that is the Prime Minister himself. The member is right to say that the Prime Minister is waiting. We hope he will not be waiting too long. The future Prime Minister of Canada is sitting on this side of the House.

He was once a member of the Standing Committee on Industry and Technology. One thing is certain, we will make sure that the aerospace industry as a whole can continue to grow as robustly as possible, not only in Quebec, but right across the country.

[Committees of the House, April 20th, 2023]

Mr. Speaker, I understand my colleague's question, that the pandemic had a global impact on the industry. The impact in Canada is even greater. The Canadian industry is so developed that we are not only supplying aircraft to Canadian companies such as Air Canada, WestJet and others, but we are selling aircraft, and aircraft engines and parts around the world. Obviously there was an impact.

My colleague's question is interesting because he talked about the automobile sector. He said that this had repercussions across Canada, which seems obvious to me. In my riding, there is a company called Liberty Spring. It supplies half the shocks of all the vehicles built around the world. We can be extremely proud of that kind of business. Its headquarters are in Montmagny, in my riding. I am a business owner myself. We can be proud of what business owners have done to develop this industry for over a century now in Quebec and Canada. The same goes for the auto industry. These industries are not in competition, and we should not frame them as such.

We all have to work together in this country.