COVID-19 Pandemic Committee on June 18th, 2020

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Mr. Chair, the Prime Minister has sent billions of dollars of taxpayers' money to countries with economies more advanced than Canada's or led by dictators with terrible human rights records. That is his legacy. He's also turned his back on our friends and our allies, voting in favour of one-sided anti-Israel resolutions at the United Nations in order to curry favour from countries that do not acknowledge Israel's right to exist. Again, was it worth it?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Papineau, QC]

Mr. Chair, every step of the way, we've continued to stand up strongly for Canadians' values and for Canadians' interest on the world stage. It is in our interest to see a more peaceful and a more prosperous world in which everyone has a real and fair chance to succeed, and that's what we've been contributing to.

With regard to the question of Israel, we have stood strongly by Israel as a friend, but we have also expressed our concern about the annexation policy that it has put forward. These are issues that are complicated, but Canada will always stand true to its values and to our approach on the world stage.

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Mr. Chair, this House voted to list the IRGC, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, as a terrorist entity. The Prime Minister refused to take action and do that. He's also refused to impose any Magnitsky act sanctions on human rights abusers around the world, all in an attempt to curry favour with those dictators and despots at the United Nations, selling out Canada's values in pursuit of a seat.

Now he has come back empty-handed, having come in last. Again, was it worth it?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Papineau, QC]

Mr. Chair, it is always worth it for Canada to step up on the world stage. It is always worth it for us to reach out and fight for things like fighting climate change, like women's equality, like protecting our oceans, like opportunities for Canadians around the world and like opportunities for the vulnerable around the world. Canadians expect their government to step up on the world stage, and that's exactly what we did.

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

That's not what he did, Mr. Chair. You see, when he was in the same room as dictators and despots and leaders of countries with terrible records, he was silent. In fact, he stood right beside the president of Senegal when that president defended Senegal's laws making homosexuality a crime. The Prime Minister said nothing. He was silent. He's even using Canadian tax dollars to invest in oil and gas projects in other countries in order to win favour as well.

Again, when we look at this government's record, when we look at his personal record on the world stage, we see that our relationship with India has been damaged by his actions. We have a worse trade deal than he inherited. He has angered, with his erratic behaviour, our partners in the Pacific area, and at the end of it, he came home empty-handed. Was it worth it?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Papineau, QC]

Mr. Chair, Canada has continued to stand strong on the world stage to engage with countries around the world in need of support, in need of economic opportunity. We have consistently stood up for our values, unlike the Conservatives, who have slashed protection for the world's most vulnerable women by not funding reproductive rights and services around the world, who have not stood up for LGBTQ communities. Canada has always stood up for progressive values on the world stage, and we will continue to.

[The Chair, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

It is now Mr. Therrien's turn.

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Since October 21, the Bloc Québécois has tried to be a constructive opposition. As the lieutenant for Quebec, the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons knows it. He knows that we have always been constructive in all our efforts.

I made a list, because I didn't want to forget anything. It's a list of measures that can be attributed to us or that we contributed to, measures that, above all else, were achieved. They are all improvements, no matter whose idea they were.

Assistance for seniors, the ability for people to earn a bit of income without losing the Canada emergency response benefit, or CERB—that includes firefighters, dividends and councillors—CERB eligibility for self-employed and independent workers, enhancements to the emergency business account and wage subsidy, and commercial rent relief are all on that list. We would have liked to see more support for fixed costs. Unfortunately, it's been a rocky road. Dairy farmers received support through the increase in the Canadian Dairy Commission's borrowing limit. We were also the first ones to broach the idea of a virtual Parliament.

The problem, however, has to do with the CERB, clearly an integral part of the government's response to the pandemic. The CERB is supposed to provide income support to people who are struggling. That's understandable, but it should not be a disincentive to going back to work. On that front, it has failed.

Why did the government not adjust the CERB accordingly?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Papineau, QC]

Mr. Chair, to begin with, I want to recognize that, over the past few months, we have indeed seen parliamentarians of all stripes work together in a respectful and collaborative way to help Canadians during this pandemic. We have passed a number of bills, which were made better not just by our members, of course, but also by members of the opposition parties. That's a wonderful example of how strong Canada's democracy is. It also shows that we can continue to defend our institutions and make them work, even under extremely difficult circumstances.

Initially, the CERB was indeed meant to be a disincentive. We needed people to stay home. Now, we are encouraging people to make the transition to the wage subsidy, but we recognize that there isn't enough work to go around, unfortunately. Some three million people who would like to work still aren't able to.

That's why we need to maintain the CERB, but we are certainly exploring ways to incentivize people to work. As my fellow member mentioned, we want people to be supported, but we also want them to be able to work.

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

On April 29, we talked to people in the government. Back then, it was clear that the Canada emergency student benefit, or CESB, needed to have incentives built in and that the CERB should as well. We asked a question about that. We wanted the government to pledge to do so. We didn't include it in the motion, but we asked the Deputy Prime Minister about it. She said that the CERB and the CESB were being offered in a manner that meets their objectives while encouraging employment in all circumstances.

Why didn't the government keep its word?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Papineau, QC]

Once again, I'd like to thank the honourable member for his question.

It is true that we wanted to make adjustments to the CERB to incentivize, even require, people to look for work. That was part of the bill we introduced last week. We were trying to further incentivize work and, to some extent, eliminate any disincentive in the CERB.

Unfortunately, some people were more interested in playing political games, especially the Conservatives, so we weren't able to move forward with that measure or even to help people with disabilities. It was shameful on the part of—

[The Chair, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

Mr. Therrien, you may go ahead.

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Chair, the Bloc Québécois was told that it was impossible to build incentives into the CERB owing to a lack of resources. Last week, the Liberals proposed the use of coercive measures, which weren't easily enforceable. They had the resources to implement coercive measures, but not incentives.

The Quebec government is calling on you to do this. Why are you not adjusting the CERB, which is currently hindering the economic recovery?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Papineau, QC]

We appreciate that many business owners want to rebuild their workforces. We are actually delighted at that. We know the recovery is coming, but a great many people won't find jobs this summer, no matter how hard they look because the economic recovery is not in full swing. As we speak, three million people are looking for jobs.

[The Chair, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

Mr. Therrien, you may go ahead. Please keep your question very short.

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

I know it isn't easy to put incentives in place, but the Liberals have a responsibility to do the right thing in a difficult situation. We made that clear a month and a half ago. We warned them, because they needed it, and we told them that what they were doing was risky since certain people would refuse to work if they could make more money staying home. It's important to do things properly. We can't have people refusing to work when the economic recovery begins.

Everyone is asking for this. Are you going to adjust the CERB quickly?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Papineau, QC]

As the summer progresses, we are exploring ways to make sure the CERB and our other support measures do not serve as disincentives to work.

The underlying goal was and is to help people in need. That's the priority. Canadians' well-being was and remains our priority.

[The Chair, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

Mr. Singh, you may go ahead.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

[The Chair, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

Mrs. DeBellefeuille has a point of order.

[Claude DeBellefeuille, Bloc, Salaberry—Suroît, QC]

Mr. Chair, the member for Burnaby South used unparliamentary language yesterday. He insulted the member for La Prairie, Alain Therrien, and the Bloc Québécois.

Four times, he called him racist, and I also think he challenged your authority. When you asked him to apologize, he refused to do so. You expelled him from the House.

I am again asking you not to recognize him today.

[The Chair, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

Thank you.

Mr. Julian would like to comment on the point of order.

Go ahead, Mr. Julian.

[Peter Julian, NDP, New Westminster—Burnaby, BC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I listened very carefully to your ruling yesterday. It applied to yesterday's sitting, but not today's. As you know, it wasn't conditional. The fact that the Bloc Québécois whip is trying to alter your ruling, which was quite clear, doesn't seem right to me.

Chapter 13 of the House of Commons Procedure and Practice, by Marc Bosc and André Gagnon, states that the Speaker has the authority to name the member, that is, to address the member by name, and to order his or her withdrawal from the chamber for the remainder of the sitting day. That's what you did.

I'd like to move on to question period.

[The Chair, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

I'm going to finish responding to Mrs. DeBellefeuille.

Yesterday's incident occurred during a sitting of the chamber, and I made my ruling clear in the chamber.

Just before today's meeting began, I received a letter from Mrs. DeBellefeuille. I'm going to take the time to consider it and I will provide a response to Mrs. DeBellefeuille before the next sitting.

For the time being, we will carry on with the committee's proceedings.

I'm going to let Mr. Singh ask another question.

Mrs. DeBellefeuille, you have another point of order?

[Claude DeBellefeuille, Bloc, Salaberry—Suroît, QC]

Mr. Chair, I understood your response. I am grateful to you for considering our request, given how serious the matter in question is.

If a member or a party leader is allowed to insult another member, what happens? We can insult a fellow member and simply be tossed out of the House for a day. That's not a serious consequence.

Today, I am deeply disappointed to hear the leader of the NDP speak. I thought he was a great democrat. Honestly, what kind of example are we setting today?

Mr. Chair, I am again asking you not to recognize the member for Burnaby South.