Maxime Bernier

[Ethics, October 26th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, the minister just admitted that he did what he did because he was in conflict of interest. I am sure he has other conflicts of interest. Canadians are having a hard time believing him; they want the whole truth. I can understand why, before entering politics, the minister would have considered his personal financial affairs nobody's concern but his own, but now that he holds a seat in Parliament, now that he is a minister, they are everyone's concern.

Did the minister recuse himself on any other occasion when he was in conflict of interest?

[Ethics, October 26th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance recently told us that he recused himself only twice from matters in which he had personal conflicts of interest. The problem is that Canadians are having a hard time believing him because he has several conflicts of interest. First, there was the introduction of Bill C-27, which he sponsored, then his many numbered companies with investments in all kinds of sectors, and there are also his ties to Bombardier.

In order to deal with all of this, could the minister disclose all his assets so that Canadians can determine the extent of his conflicts of interest?

[Ethics, October 25th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, the opposition's job is to make sure the Minister of Finance is not in conflict of interest and represents all Canadians.

I am very disappointed to see that the Prime Minister is still defending and protecting his finance minister despite the latter's many conflicts of interest.

If ethics are so important to the Prime Minister, why does he not just tell his finance minister to disclose all of his assets and numbered companies so Canadians can get a sense of just how many of the finance minister's interests are in conflict?

[Ethics, October 24th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, the government does not like the fact that we are focusing on the Minister of Finance's conflict of interest. The government does not like it because what we are saying is true: the minister is working for his own personal interests, when he is in a conflict of interest, and not the interest of all Canadians. We have a number of examples, including Bill C-27 and the Bombardier deal. In any case, the most flagrant is the fact that the minister said he was going to put his assets in a blind trust, but he failed to do so for two years. He misled the House about that.

How can the Minister of Finance continue to act as the government's nice guy while being in a conflict of interest because of his personal affairs?

[Ethics, October 24th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance is collecting dividends from his family business, Morneau Shepell. Yesterday we learned that Morneau Shepell does business with Bombardier. As everyone knows, Bombardier got millions of dollars from the government. When a subsidized company contributes indirectly to Morneau Shepell's bottom line, that clearly puts the finance minister in conflict of interest.

My question is a simple one: did the minister recuse himself from all discussions about subsidies with Bombardier?

[Ethics, October 23rd, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, we have questions about the minister's conflicts of interest.

He tabled a bill that will benefit him personally. He told Canadians he would put his assets in a blind trust but then failed to do so. He is up to his neck in conflicts of interest.

All we want to know, yes or no, is whether the minister recused himself from all discussions, especially those around Bill C-27.

[Ethics, October 23rd, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, in 2013 the current Minister of Finance was an executive at his own company, Morneau Shepell. At that time, he talked about the need to bring in legislation in Canada specifically to change the private pension system. That is one of the first things he did after being elected. On top of that, he continues to make money from Morneau Shepell. He put himself in a direct conflict of interest.

My question to the Minister of Finance is simple: did he reach out to the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner to ensure that his behaviour met all ethical standards?

[Ethics, October 19th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, the sad truth is that the reason he had these discussions with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner was not because he wanted to be more transparent. It was because he wanted to find a way to get around the law. That is just what he did. It is what he had been trying to do since 2013.

In 2013, as president of Morneau Shepell, the minister gave a speech in which he said Canada needed legislation enabling target benefit plans. In 2016, he himself delivered the goods by tabling this bill, which benefited both the minister himself and his company.

At what point did the minister recuse himself from these discussions?

[Ethics, October 19th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, this government was elected on a promise of transparency and we are getting quite the opposite today.

The Minister of Finance and his company, Morneau Shepell, have benefited from the minister's actions. His company made money and the minister still holds shares in that company. He introduced Bill C-27, which directly increased profits at Morneau Shepell.

My question is simple: when did the Minister of Finance inform the Prime Minister that he was in conflict of interest and when did he recuse himself from any discussion on this bill?

[Aerospace Industry, October 18th, 2017]

Mr. Speaker, the government must approve the sale of the Bombardier C Series aircraft to Airbus in a few weeks' time. We know that the government has given Bombardier millions of dollars to develop the C Series. Now it is time for Canadian taxpayers to be reimbursed. My question is simple.

Will the conditions for approval for the Bombardier-Airbus agreement include a specific condition that Canadian taxpayers get their money back?