Simon Marcil

[Aerospace Industry, May 16th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, Ottawa is still demanding an end to family control of Bombardier, and now, apparently, it wants the company to issue $1 billion in stock. That stock could be purchased by foreigners and would further dilute Quebec control of the company.

Worse still, the suggestion seems to have come from the Wall Street consultant whom the government hired because its own officials recommended offering just a line of credit.

Why is the Canadian government determined to dismantle Bombardier? Is it trying to provide us with further proof that its 40 Quebec MPs are mere puppets?

[Business of Supply, May 12th, 2016]

Madam Speaker, I would remind the minister that before anyone quotes Mr. Martin, it is important to remember the Canada Steamship Lines scandal. He was hiding money in tax havens when he should have been paying taxes on it here. She should maybe think twice before she quotes the former prime minister.

I know we are talking about the TPP and some of the progressive compensation that will be paid, but can the minister explain why the budget makes absolutely no mention of the $300 million promised to Quebec's cheese producers as part of the Canada-European Union comprehensive economic and trade agreement? Not one red cent of that money has been delivered.

[Business of Supply, April 21st, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, I must admit that I rather agree with some of the comments by my colleague from Outremont, especially as they relate to the empty rhetoric we heard from the member for Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia. We often hear empty rhetoric from that source, so this is par for the course.

We see now that the Liberal Party did not really change its stripes during its 10 years in opposition. The old Liberal tradition of giving to the party's friends is still alive and well.

Does my esteemed colleague agree? Is there a chance that the minister and the parliamentary secretary will one day get out of their limousine, put on their workboots, and go back to the stables to see what is really happening?

[Bombardier, April 19th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, it only took the government a few weeks to decide to hand over $10 billion to GM, but the Bombardier file has been on hold for over a year.

The Conservative government did nothing, and the Liberals are even worse: they are doing more harm than good. With a weak dollar and share prices at rock bottom, only the Bombardier family's votes are protecting the company from a foreign takeover and, ultimately, its demise.

Now the government wants to drop the safety net and is threatening the company's very existence in Quebec. Who is the government consulting for advice on this file? It has turned to an American bank, Morgan Stanley, as though Wall Street would recommend keeping Bombardier under Quebec control.

I accuse the minister of issuing a political directive that could kill Bombardier. I accuse the government of listening to Wall Street instead of Quebec.

[Bombardier, April 12th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, since the Liberals are not defending Quebec's aerospace industry, politicians from English Canada have free rein to spew their venom and say that Bombardier is a spoiled child that lives on handouts from the rest of Canada.

This morning, in The Globe and Mail, a Bombardier vice-president set the the record straight. After investing $586 million, Ottawa pocketed $733 million in royalties from the sale of Bombardier aircraft. In comparison, the federal government absorbed a net loss of $3.5 billion after having invested $10 billion to save GM.

Quebec's aerospace industry provides 41,000 good jobs, 10,000 of which are directly in research and development. It is the cornerstone of our leading-edge industry.

Here we have 40 Liberal MPs keeping mum while the Minister of Transport is working on dismantling Air Canada's bases, the Minister of Industry is trying to bury Bombardier, and the Minister of Finance is abandoning this leading-edge sector.

Quebec is paying a high price for the subservience of the Liberal MPs from Quebec.

[International Trade, April 11th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, last week, the UPA and the Government of Quebec both called on the federal government to regulate imports of diafiltered milk. This morning, a central-Quebec-based group of agri-food advocates known as the Front commun de la filière agroalimentaire weighed in.

On page 127 of the budget, the government talks about eliminating tariffs on food manufacturing ingredients other than supply-managed products.

Does the government really want to eliminate tariffs on diafiltered milk, which is contrary to the wishes of Quebec, the UPA and the Front commun?

[The Budget, March 22nd, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, the federal budget has a direct impact on major sectors of Quebec's economy. The government has already said that there is nothing in the budget to help Aveos workers and Bombardier workers. The Liberals refuse to commit to providing any compensation for dairy and cheese producers for lost revenues associated with the Canada-EU trade agreement.

Since the workers in Quebec's economic sectors are being ignored once again in this budget, does this mean that nothing has changed and government MPs from Quebec still have very little influence on decisions made by the Canadian government?

[Housing, March 21st, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, the Canadian homelessness strategy, which focuses on a housing-first approach, is simply not working.

The Prime Minister publicly supported the strategy developed by organizations that work with the homeless to protect Quebec's more broadly based approach, while also promising to increase Quebec's share to $50 million a year.

Will the Prime Minister honour his commitment, or is he going to penalize those in need?

[International Trade, March 7th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, the free trade agreement with the U.S. was supposed to ensure trade peace. However, the forestry industry has had to deal with one dispute after another. Our industry has done nothing wrong and wants only one thing: the return of free trade as defined by NAFTA.

The government is hurting Quebec's forestry industry by doing nothing about these protectionist measures.

When will the government, and especially its Quebec members, stand up and protect our forestry industry and our workers?

[Air Canada, February 24th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, in order to privatize Air Canada, the Mulroney government made a solemn promise to the people of Quebec and enshrined guarantees for maintenance activities in the law.

Since the Conservatives and the Liberals decided not to enforce the law, Air Canada has had free rein to break it. Thanks to the aerospace industry, Quebec is a more technologically advanced society than Canada, but I am very concerned about the federal government's complacency.

Maintaining aircraft means more than just changing the oil. Planes are often dismantled and rebuilt from the ground up with new parts. The entire industry and its suppliers are suffering. By failing to enforce its own law, Canada has betrayed the employees, and we all know it. It also broke a solemn promise to the people of Quebec. We know whose side we are on: we support the Aveos workers.