Child Care  Mr. Speaker, this pandemic has exposed what parents in my riding of Saint John—Rothesay have long known: Without access to affordable child care, parents and mostly mothers cannot work. I am proud that earlier this week our government signed another agreement, this time with my province of New Brunswick, to provide accessible, affordable and high-quality $10-a-day child care to the people of Saint John—Rothesay.

Saint John—Rothesay  Madam Speaker, I rise in this House today, humbled and privileged to be returned for a third term. I want to thank the people of Saint John—Rothesay for their amazing support and for giving me such a strong mandate. As we all know, we cannot get here alone. I want to thank my family, my beautiful wife, Denise, my sons, Christian and Connor.

An Act to Provide Further Support in Response to COVID-19  Mr. Speaker, it absolutely baffles me that the party opposite holds itself up as a steward of the economy. It does not have the record to show that, it does not have any results and it ran deficit after deficit. Actually, two former Bank of Canada governors, who were appointed by that government, do not agree with its economic policies.

An Act to Provide Further Support in Response to COVID-19  Mr. Speaker, our government was there to help to workers, self-employed workers, artists, small business owners and tourism operators. Our government delivered programs that basically touched almost everybody in Canada in one way, shape or form. Whether it was the wage subsidy, rent support or a CEBA loan, there were all kinds of opportunities, even through the RRRF regionally.

An Act to Provide Further Support in Response to COVID-19  Mr. Speaker, I absolutely understand that committees need to get moving and study this, but I also take exception to the fact that we cannot get work done now. We are back. I sat here last week and watched a debate go on for days about whether a virtual House of Commons was effective.

An Act to Provide Further Support in Response to COVID-19  Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to be here speaking today in the 44th Parliament. It is wonderful to be here from my riding of Saint John—Rothesay. Before I start, I certainly want to acknowledge my wonderful constituents, the people of Saint John—Rothesay, who voted me in for a third term.

An Act to Provide Further Support in Response to COVID-19  Madam Speaker, I too was a small business owner for many years, owning the Saint John Sea Dogs, a Quebec major junior league hockey team, and an aquaculture business. I can tell members first-hand that the constituents of Saint John—Rothesay absolutely appreciated the supports that our government delivered for small businesses.

An Act to Provide Further Support in Response to COVID-19  Madam Speaker, it is great to be back in the House speaking and I want to thank my friend and colleague from Winnipeg North for his impassioned speech. I listened with great interest when he was talking about the child care program that we have rolled out across the country and the benefits of that program.

Housing  Mr. Speaker, since 2015, I have been advocating for more affordable housing for my riding of Saint John—Rothesay. Housing is a basic human right that should be available to all. That is why for the fifth consecutive budget, we are making significant new investments in housing. Budget 2021 proposes an additional $2.5 billion over seven years in new funding.

Public Safety  Mr. Speaker, Canadians with a criminal record face barriers long after serving their sentence. For those just trying to get ahead, it became even more difficult when the Harper Conservative government created more barriers to accessing a pardon, such as by increasing the cost by 1,200%.

National Trade Corridors Fund  Mr. Speaker, my riding of Saint John—Rothesay is home to Port Saint John, an economic jewel in our region and one of Canada's busiest ports by volume. It is our province's gateway to the world. I am thrilled that through budget 2021 we have committed to strengthening our regional, cross-border and international trade by allocating $1.9 billion in funding over four years to renew the national trade corridors fund, which is great news for our port's future growth and development.

Nuclear Energy  Madam Speaker, last week I had the privilege of being part of a historic announcement in my riding of Saint John—Rothesay. Our government introduced an investment of $56 million in the responsible development of small modular reactor technology, including an investment in Moltex Energy.

Infrastructure  Mr. Speaker, Saint John—Rothesay has needed an infrastructure overhaul for over a decade. Under the previous government, essential infrastructure was allowed to fall into disrepair. Under our government's watch, federal investments in infrastructure for Saint John—Rothesay have doubled, but strategic investments in our waterfront such as the recently announced Fundy Quay require other essential infrastructure to support them.

Airline Industry  Mr. Speaker, last Thursday I met virtually with over a dozen Air Canada employees and Unifor union leaders in my riding to discuss the impact the pandemic has had on them. On Friday I was informed by Air Canada that nearly 100 additional employees in my riding were being laid off.

Controlled Drugs and Substances Act  Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my friend and hon. Liberal colleague from Beaches—East York for introducing this much-needed legislation. The war on drugs has failed my constituents. My riding of Saint John—Rothesay has a higher per capita opioid overdose rate than Vancouver.