Canadian Sustainable Jobs Act  Madam Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for her remarks and the tone of her speech. As I mentioned to one of her colleagues earlier today, we appreciate the tone—although we do reserve the right to disagree with the content. We appreciate the tone, especially since it strikes such a sharp contrast with what happened at the Standing Committee on Natural Resources.

Canadian Sustainable Jobs Act  Madam Speaker, in its initial version, the bill would have been a huge encroachment on Quebec’s jurisdictions. The Bloc Québécois gave them the benefit of the doubt and thought it might have been a mistake. We therefore proposed amendments to make adjustments and achieve a certain level of asymmetry in the bill.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, yesterday, immigration minister Christine Fréchette reiterated the Quebec government's modest demands. There is nothing spectacular or over-the-top about them. The minister is not asking for full powers over immigration; she is asking for the bare minimum. What she is asking for is a fair distribution of asylum seekers among the provinces, reimbursement of the costs associated with taking in asylum seekers, and adequate funding for French integration classes.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, their discussions are going so well that the Government of Quebec is thinking of holding a referendum on immigration. The truth is that Quebec is so fed up with having the government laugh in its face that it is thinking of reaching out to the people. Considering the federal government's incompetence when it comes to managing its responsibilities, we all know that things would work a lot better if Quebec had full powers.

Canadian Sustainable Jobs Act  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech and, especially, for the tone of his speech. We may not agree on the content, but I appreciated the thoughtful way he presented his arguments, which is in stark contrast to what happened at the Standing Committee on Natural Resources in December, when the heckling actually prevented informed voting by some members and was a health hazard for the interpreters.

Committees of the House  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech, even though I only had the pleasure of hearing the second part of it, since we were called back to the House at the last minute. The minister just tabled an update of Canada's defence policy, which will invest $8 billion over the next five years.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, last Thursday, the Journal de Montréal reported that police had responded to incidents involving people lining up at food banks. Food insecurity is causing chaos. Community organizations are blaming the dramatic surge in the number of hungry people on the fact that asylum seekers have to wait 21 months for a work permit.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, the Liberals are boasting about doing something about climate change, but only a few days or weeks ago, their former minister, Catherine McKenna, said that the oil and gas lobbyists had pushed to get tax credits for carbon capture, which should never have happened.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, all day, and indeed every day for months now, the Conservatives have been blaming the carbon tax for everything. If the culture sector is in trouble, it is because of the carbon tax. If people ask for MAID, it is because of the carbon tax. If people are lining up at food banks, it is because of the carbon tax.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, the federal government's decision to unilaterally increase Quebec's immigration targets represents a historic loss of sovereignty for the Quebec state. When Quebec sets its threshold at 50,000, it means 50,000, not 60,000 or 70,000. If the minister wanted to increase family reunification after the thresholds were set, he should have worked with Quebec.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, just to clarify, no one is against family reunification. We are simply against Ottawa imposing its irresponsible federal policies on Quebec. If the minister had wanted to, he could have negotiated compromises. Let us look at his record. He is forcibly increasing Quebec's immigration targets.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, Quebec sets its own immigration targets, as even the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship has repeatedly said. That is why it is all the more unacceptable that the minister ordered his officials, two weeks ago, to exceed the threshold set by Quebec. This is a serious precedent.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to let him know that I have read it. The federal government has no lessons to give Quebec on successful immigration. The federal government is the one responsible for plunging immigrants into the worst housing crisis in recent history. The federal government is the one responsible for the lack of services that asylum seekers too often face.

Canada Early Learning and Child Care Act  Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague, someone I hold in high regard, for his speech. Like my colleague from Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, I would like him to discuss the issue of opting out with full compensation, but from another angle. Based on what he said at the start of his speech, the key to Quebec's success is that no other government told the province how to set up its early childhood education program.

Canada Early Learning and Child Care Act  Madam Speaker, I thank the member for his speech. I would like to come back to what my colleague from Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou said about Quebec's specificity and respect for jurisdictions. She said that, although the bill does not recognize Quebec's specificity, respect its knowledge or require the government to give Quebec the right to opt out with full compensation, there is a five-year agreement between the two governments.