Tim Uppal

[COVID-19 in Alberta, May 5th, 2021]

Mr. Speaker, what I am saying is that what everyone agrees with and all experts are saying is that vaccines will help us get past this pandemic. It is what other countries have used. It is what other countries had back in January and February. We can see that in the United States. They are opening up their economy. People are going back to work. They are going to be able to meet with their families. We can see that in Europe.

What I am saying is that if we had had those vaccines here in Canada, we would not be in this situation today. We would not be putting premiers right across the country in the situation that they are in today, having to ask Canadians to sacrifice more because the government mismanaged the situation from the very beginning.

[COVID-19 in Alberta, May 5th, 2021]

Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the member for Edmonton—Wetaskiwin.

It is a privilege to speak on behalf of the constituents of Edmonton Mill Woods. My constituents, like those right across Canada, are having a very difficult time coping with the current spike in COVID-19 cases and the accompanying lockdowns. It is unfortunate that we are even in this position to be having this emergency debate and that we could have so easily been in an emergency debate on many of the cases that we have seen and are currently seeing right across the country.

In the last seven days, we have seen the Atlantic bubble burst, with Nova Scotia seeing nearly 800 cases over the last week. Nunavut, which just weeks ago had zero cases, is now facing its own outbreak. We are still seeing British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec continue to cope and grapple with the third wave. We are in this position today because the response of the Liberal government throughout the pandemic has been slow and confusing at every single step.

Let us go back to the beginning of this pandemic when we were just seeing the reports of the first cases that we all then called the coronavirus. My colleague from Edmonton Riverbend, then our shadow minister for health, had questioned the government consistently on its plans for stopping flights from Wuhan province, when the health minister said that closing the border was not effective at all. On January 28, 2020, over a year ago, we learned from the health minister that the first individual identified with the coronavirus did not self-identify when entering Canada. He had travelled from Wuhan and had a cough. The Minister of Health stated that this individual took exactly the appropriate precautions that he was given at the border, and that the systems were working and were working very well.

One year later, and with more examples than I have time to discuss tonight of the Liberal government's failure, our entire country is facing lockdowns and restrictions over and over again. This stands in stark contrast to places like the United States and Britain where restrictions are being eased and economies are reopening. What is the difference between Canada and those other countries? It is vaccines. While both the U.K. and the United States were rushing to secure vaccines for their citizens, Canada stood at the back of the line, dawdling.

The government pursued a dubious vaccine partnership with CanSino, a Chinese state-owned company. The deal fell apart almost immediately after the Prime Minister made the big announcement about it. It took only a week for the Chinese communist government to stop necessary materials from being exported to Canada so research and production could happen. It was the only leading vaccine that the Liberal government was pushing to be made in Canada. Instead of working with the private sector to build vaccine production capacity right here in our own country with companies like Providence Therapeutics, just one of the 17 companies that have submitted proposals to build and roll out pharmaceutical strategies in Alberta, the Liberal government decided to build a new vaccine facility which will not be ready until 2022 at the earliest, well after the pandemic should be under control.

The government's failure on procuring vaccines is shown with the wait times between the doses. The four-month wait period is longer than that of any other country in the world and contrary to the advice of the developer and manufacturer of that vaccine. The Liberal government has forced an off-label usage of vaccines only because there is insufficient supply. The NACI has acknowledged it would not be recommending a four-month delay if there were sufficient supply. This, of course, is leading to more COVID cases, more vulnerability. This is the result of the government's failures.

As I mentioned earlier, another massive failure by the Liberal government has been in being very slow on closing the border. For more than a year, we have been calling for greater border measures to protect against COVID-19 and ministers of the government said that we were spreading fear and scaremongering.

More recently, we saw the ravaging effect that the variants of the virus were having. The double variant in India was first identified in October. The government continued to see variant cases pop up right across our country, most notably in British Columbia and Ontario. Now we are seeing the effects of these variants right across the country. Today, nearly 60% of the active cases in Alberta are variant cases. Simply, we needed the government to listen to our calls to secure the border. Its slowness is why we are here today.

Despite all of that, the Prime Minister has come out and said he has no regrets regarding his leadership throughout this pandemic. That is astonishing. He has no regrets that the government shut down our pandemic early warning system months before COVID-19 happened. He has no regrets that the government sent hundreds of thousands of masks, gloves, gowns and the government's own reserves to China, leading to our own health care professionals and first responders being forced to ration their own PPE and recycle masks. He has no regrets on telling Canadians that the risk was low at the beginning of the pandemic. He has no regrets about not securing our border at the beginning of the pandemic or stopping flights from hot spots earlier as variants were ravaging countries across the globe. He has no regrets about the mental health crisis that my community of Edmonton Mill Woods and communities right across Canada have been struggling with as a result of lost lives, livelihoods and more lockdowns.

For us to prevent the surge in cases we are seeing right across Canada, we needed to vaccinate Canadians in January and February, like the United States did. By the end of February, only 4% of Canadians had received their first shot, while 10% of Americans were fully vaccinated. From the very beginning, the Liberal government has been slow and confused at every step, leading us into this situation. Its slowness to procure the vaccines that we needed was a major contributor to this third wave. Its slowness to close the borders as highly contagious variants were emerging across the globe left us vulnerable to the same variants that are driving the third wave today. My constituents in Edmonton Mill Woods and all Canadians deserve better.

[Economic Statement Implementation Act, 2020, April 13th, 2021]

Madam Speaker, the member is absolutely right. Just talking about spending and giving out numbers does not actually help.

What would be better is telling Canadians about results, and to have results-based spending. A part of getting to that solution would be to have the Auditor General look at that spending. The Auditor General and her team could look at it and let us know if the spending has hit the targets it intended to.

Unfortunately, the Liberal government has not even funded the Auditor General's office properly for the Auditor General to do those audits. It is unbelievable that any corporation, any organization would increase its spending and decrease the number of its audits. That is the problem. We need to be able to have more transparency, to open up the books and see what that spending is doing. Let us see the results of that spending, not just the amount of the spending.

[Economic Statement Implementation Act, 2020, April 13th, 2021]

Madam Speaker, the member says the Liberals have made many announcements but the results just are not there.

That is most pronounced in the vaccine procurement problem, where they made many announcements, and Canadians feel that they have heard we are getting millions of vaccines but as of right now, we are behind many other countries with our vaccine plan. America is opening up. The U.K. is announcing opening up. It is because they have the vaccines and have vaccinated much of their population, where Canada is still sitting at about 2%.

Again, as the member has said, the Liberals have made all these announcements, but the plan is not there and they have not followed through. Announcements do not help. We actually have to have plans and details. That is part of the problem with this bill. The details for the spending are just not there.

[Economic Statement Implementation Act, 2020, April 13th, 2021]

Madam Speaker, the member is asking me and other MPs to trust him that the Liberals are going to increase the spending but they are not actually use it.

Maybe the member could commit to us, on behalf of the government, that if the Liberals are going to increase it, they will not actually use it, or, if they are going to use it, to at least present a plan. That is part of the problem.

If the Liberals say they are increasing it but are not going to use it, fine, tell us that, or if they are going to increase it and use it, which I believe is what they are planning to do, then they should present a plan and tell us how they are going to use that money.

[Economic Statement Implementation Act, 2020, April 13th, 2021]

Madam Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the member for Lethbridge.

Since today is Vaisakhi, I want to start by wishing all Sikhs across Canada and around the world a very happy Vaisakhi. This is an opportunity to recognize the generations of Sikhs who have contributed to building this great nation, Sikhs who today are on the front lines fighting this pandemic, Sikhs serving in Canada’s military and Sikhs who continue to support their fellow Canadian through Seva or a duty of selfless service.

[Member spoke in Punjab]

[English]

I am honoured to rise in the House today to debate Bill C-14 on behalf of my constituents of Edmonton Mill Woods.

The bill has some aspects with which we agree. It would provide more support to those who need it during this pandemic and it would top up the Canada child benefit, which was in the platform of the leader of the Conservative Party. The bill would also fix the gaps in the second version of the rent relief legislation, a mistake that could have been prevented if we were afforded more time to properly examine the bill before it was rushed through the first time.

Throughout this pandemic, the Conservatives have proudly supported programs to help Canadians who have been the hardest hit. However, I do have concerns surrounding the increased debt with which we will be saddling our children's future. The last part of the bill would amend the Borrowing Authority Act to significantly increase the borrowing limit of the federal government, which I cannot support.

One of the things I have been hearing the most from my constituents throughout this pandemic is their concern about the state of Canada's economy and the impact COVID-19 spending has had on our federal deficit. The parliamentary budget officer estimates the government ran a deficit of about $363.4 billion in the 2020-21 fiscal year and will be running another massive deficit this year.

How will the government pay for all of this stimulus spending? The answer is found in part 7 of the bill where the government would raise the upper limit on the borrowing authority by 56.8%, from $1.1 trillion to $1.8 trillion. However, $700 billion is far beyond what the government needs to fund all the emergency programs, the stimulus and even additional spending promises. This is another $700 billion that will be left to our children and future generations to pay.

Spending to protect and support Canadians who have been hit hard by this pandemic was the right thing to do, and the Conservatives supported it, but we cannot pass unsustainable debt on to future generations.

I would ask members to apply this scenario to real life. If I went home to my wife tonight and said that I was going to ask the bank tomorrow to increase our credit limit by 56%, she would probably want to know why, and my bank would want some type of plan as to how I would repay it. However, the Liberal government is asking us, as MPs, and the bank of the Canadian taxpayer to trust it with another $700 billion without a plan. That is completely backward. We need to see a plan for the spending.

It is worth noting that the $700 billion increase in the maximum borrowing limit that the bill proposes is vastly beyond what is needed for all the emergency programs and stimulus suggested to date. This leaves the question: To which ineffective pet projects is this money really going to? Perhaps this provides the leeway needed for the universal basic income program, or the UBI program, that the Liberals passed at their convention this past weekend, a big step toward their plan of reimagining Canada's economy. This would require the Liberals to increase personal income taxes by almost 50% and triple the GST. The simple fact is that this kind of risky and unknown experiment will leave millions more Canadians behind.

The reason we are in this position of borrowing more money is because of the Liberal's mismanagement and failures during this pandemic over this last year.

Right now Americans are seeing businesses open, restaurant patios busy and fans returning to watch in-person NHL, NBA and MLB games. Canadians on the other hand are seeing businesses close again, workers losing their jobs again or having their hours cut again, and the mental health crisis continues to drag on. That is the real-world result of the Liberals’ failures during this pandemic, especially on vaccines.

We should be focused on a plan to secure jobs and get our country back to work. On this side of the House, we know that every Canadian deserves the security and dignity that comes with a secure, stable and well-paying job. We know our economic recovery should create opportunity in all sectors of the economy and all parts of the country, not just in areas where the Liberals find political success in sectors they support or by giving handouts to politically powerful corporations with inside access to the Prime Minister’s Office. We know that only paycheques will reduce Canada’s debt, put food on Canadian’s tables, roofs over their heads and tax dollars into schools, hospitals and roads.

That is the reality of this and it is the crossroads about which our Conservative leader has talked. The two paths before us could not be more different. One veers off into the unknown, with more risky shutdowns and unfunded, unknown and untested changes that will leave millions more Canadians behind.

The other is a path of the Liberals' reimagined economy, where an Ottawa-knows-best approach picks and chooses which jobs Canadians should have and in what sector or region. It is a path where the connected few get richer while working families get left behind; a path where the budget does not balance itself but where sky-high deficits and burdensome debt will have to be paid for by some means of new income for the government, meaning higher taxes and possibly taxing the capital gains on personal property, as some Liberals have proposed.

Our Conservative team is offering a path of security and certainty that will safely secure our future and deliver us to a Canada where those who have struggled the most throughout this pandemic get back to work. It offers a Canada where manufacturing at home is bolstered, where wages go up and where the dream so many Canadian families have of affording a better life with their children can be realized.

Bill C-14 would increase the upper limit on the borrowing authority by $700 billion without a plan. The Liberal government has no plan for that spending, no plan for Canada's economic recovery and no fiscal anchor to keep our country's finances afloat. Again, while I agree with some parts of the bill that would directly help those who are struggling throughout this pandemic, I simply cannot be in favour of increasing the government’s credit card limit by 60%, especially without a plan for the spending.

[COVID-19 Emergency Response, March 24th, 2021]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are frustrated with the failure of the Liberals to manage this pandemic. The Prime Minister’s failures on rapid tests and vaccines have had an immeasurable impact on our small businesses, health care system and Canadian families. Over the last year, we have seen a dramatic rise in mental health issues, and addictions and overdoses, which has become a shadow pandemic.

Things must change. The new normal is not okay. The Liberals cannot keep asking Canadians to sacrifice more without being clear about when restrictions will be eased. That is why we are asking for a clear, data-driven plan to support the gradual, safe and permanent lifting of COVID-19 restrictions.

The Prime Minister has been slow on the border and rapid tests, and he is behind the entire developed world on vaccines. The U.K. and U.S. have data-driven plans for lifting restrictions and reopening the economy. Why does Canada not have one?

[Farmers' Protests in India, November 30th, 2020]

Mr. Speaker,

[Member spoke in Punjabi]

[English]

Today is Guru Nanak Dev Ji's Gurpurab, meaning it is the birthday of the founder of the Sikh faith. This year, Sikhs across Canada and around the world are thinking of and praying for India's farmers, who are peacefully protesting new farming legislation. Hundreds of thousands of farmers from Punjab, Haryana and other parts of India have made their way to Delhi.

Shockingly, along the way, these peaceful protesters were met with blockades, water canons, batons and tear gas, but they persisted peacefully. In fact, they even provided food and water to the same security forces who were attacking them.

The right to peaceful protest is fundamental in any democracy. These farmers deserve to be heard and respected. Therefore, as the world watches, we urge the Indian government to hear out the farmers because the fact is, if there are no farmers, there is no food.

[Health, November 27th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, just having a contract for a vaccine is very different than actually knowing when most Canadians will receive that vaccine.

What we do know is the Americans will be vaccinating 20 million of their population in December, and 30 million in January. By the middle of January, the U.S. will have vaccinated the equivalent of the entire population of Canada.

I am asking again, why is Canada at the back of the line when it comes to the COVID-19 vaccine?

[Health, November 27th, 2020]

Madam Speaker, the Liberals spent hundreds of millions of dollars on Canadian production of the COVID-19 vaccine. In August, they announced that Canada would be able to make 250,000 doses by November. It is now the end of November, and the Prime Minister is saying that we do not have any domestic production capacity.

The reality is that, because of Liberal failures, Canada will be getting the vaccine after one third of the world's population does. What happened?