Human Resources Committee on Dec. 11th, 2023

[Rosemarie Falk, Conservative, Battlefords—Lloydminster, SK]

We do know that billions of dollars have left this country, though, due to your government's ineffective policies.

We know that if your government was actually interested—

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Edmonton Centre, AB]

Actually, it's due to Premier Smith putting a moratorium on renewables.

[Rosemarie Falk, Conservative, Battlefords—Lloydminster, SK]

It's my time, Minister. Thank you.

If your government was actually interested in good public policy, it would work with provinces and respect their jurisdiction. We all know that recently the Supreme Court ruled that the “no more pipelines” bill, Bill C-69, was unconstitutional. It affirmed the provinces' jurisdiction over their natural resources.

Do you accept the Supreme Court's ruling?

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Edmonton Centre, AB]

If we're going to be specific, it was an opinion, and the opinion of the Supreme Court—

[Rosemarie Falk, Conservative, Battlefords—Lloydminster, SK]

Do you accept it?

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Edmonton Centre, AB]

We always accept the opinions of the Supreme Court, and we are going to make sure that we make adjustments to our policies. I think you will see in the emissions—

[Rosemarie Falk, Conservative, Battlefords—Lloydminster, SK]

How are you going to justify supporting a policy that once again tramples over provincial jurisdiction, which was Bill C-69?

What is the government going to change if they take these opinions seriously?

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Edmonton Centre, AB]

I think the proof is in the pudding that TMX is getting built and will be fully operational in 2024.

[Rosemarie Falk, Conservative, Battlefords—Lloydminster, SK]

We know that the PBO has confirmed that Bill C-234 would have saved farmers a billion dollars between now and 2030. To be clear, it's $1 billion that your Liberal government is intent on collecting on the backs of our farmers.

Why did your government direct Liberal-appointed senators to delay and gut this bill, which would have thrown a lifeline to our farmers?

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Edmonton Centre, AB]

Unlike your party, Mrs. Falk, there are no senators who come to our caucus meeting every week. There was no direction given to them.

[Rosemarie Falk, Conservative, Battlefords—Lloydminster, SK]

They're appointed by the Prime Minister. Most of them.... I mean, Rodger Cuzner is a former Liberal member of Parliament.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Your time is up. Thank you.

I just want to remind committee members that when one talks over the other, it causes problems for the interpreters. They just asked me to raise that. Please respect that part.

The ministers are here at the request of the committee to address issues topical to their ministries.

With that, I will go to Mr. Van Bynen for six minutes.

[Tony Van Bynen, Liberal, Newmarket—Aurora, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I appreciate the opportunity to meet with the ministers and hear back from them. Contrary to what we've seen so far, I'll give them an opportunity to respond.

My first question will be for Minister Boissonnault.

Minister, I think lots of us have been very disappointed in recent weeks by attacks from the Conservatives on the transformational investments that we're making in EV battery production, specifically, most recently, with respect to the plant in Windsor. Can you talk about how important this work is and how important the role of foreign workers is to get battery production started, so that we can go forward and create long-term, permanent jobs in Windsor?

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Edmonton Centre, AB]

Mr. Chair, I thank MP Van Bynen for the question.

I think what you're seeing is a tectonic plate shift in terms of our decision in Canada to be a country that makes things, not one that just exports things. For a lot of our life, we've been drawers of water and hewers of wood. We send it off to other countries to actually get the value-added jobs.

Now we are changing that approach. We're going to make sure that our children and our children's children are actually part of a supply chain that is going to not just provide batteries, but extract and refine the critical minerals to get to those batteries. We're going to see that across the country, whether it's Stellantis or Northvolt, or what we're seeing in Newfoundland and Labrador, in Atlantic Canada and in Edmonton in some of the examples that I've already mentioned. The Stellantis plant is just one example of 2,500 good-paying, long-term union jobs once the plant is up, and at least 1,600 construction jobs for Canadians.

I think we have to have an adult conversation about what it means to have technical experts from another country come to our country to help do the technology transfer.

There's a technology company in Calgary called Eavor. It does deep-hole, geothermal drilling to provide heat and electricity. We've exported this technology to Germany right now and, guess what, there aren't any technicians who understand how to do this deep, geothermal drilling. Can you guess which technical experts are going to Germany to set up shop and do tech transfer? It's Canadian engineers, Canadian geophysicists and Canadian drillers.

Are we saying that South Koreans shouldn't be able to send over their technicians to actually help Canadians understand how we do a battery plant? We've never built batteries in this country before, and we actually need the expertise of our friends from Korea—our trading partners under a free trade deal signed by the Conservatives—to come and set up shop.

What's really dangerous, Mr. Chair, to Mr. Van Bynen and other colleagues, is if the Conservatives turn up the rhetoric too hot. Dave Cassidy, the Local 444 union president, said this. There's another $3-billion ancillary plant that could go to us or to Mexico. If the Conservatives are talking about doom and gloom and the sky falling with some workers coming to help us do a tech transfer, that $3-billion plant is at risk.

I don't want to see foreign direct investments scared away because of misinformation.

[Tony Van Bynen, Liberal, Newmarket—Aurora, ON]

Thank you.

My next question is for Minister Khera.

Minister, we put in an awful lot of work in this committee to see the success we've had with the Canada disability benefit. Can you provide a timeline for when Canadians with disabilities can expect to see money in their bank accounts?

[Kamal Khera, Liberal, Brampton West, ON]

Thank you for that very important question.

Let me say thank you, first and foremost, to this incredible committee, which I know did relentless work to make the Canada disability benefit legislation a reality. It is also because of the tireless advocacy of the disability community, which has been working extremely hard for many decades to make this a reality for so many Canadians.

Let me also be very clear: Getting the Canada disability benefit right, and getting it out as quickly as possible, is a top priority of mine in this mandate.

Mr. Van Bynen, as you know, since the Canada disability benefit received royal assent in June 2022, we have been doing extensive consultations with the disability community, particularly on the design and regulations of this benefit. I, myself, met with many persons with disabilities. As you can imagine, there is a lot of diversity in the group. It's about making sure we're looking at it with that intersectionality, particularly when we talk to women with disabilities, youth with disabilities and seniors with disabilities. It's very important that we get a diverse perspective and ensure we get this benefit right, in the true spirit of “nothing without us”.

As we speak, right now.... I want to say November 21 was the date when we launched the public online consultations, which are fully accessible. They are open right now. I hope all Canadians, particularly those with disabilities, will participate in this very important work. We need to make sure we can hear as many perspectives as possible, in order to get this benefit out right.

Tony, we remain absolutely committed to the original timelines. This act, as you know, must come into force by June 2024, and regulations must be in place by June 2025. I'm absolutely committed to getting this right, as quickly as possible.

[Tony Van Bynen, Liberal, Newmarket—Aurora, ON]

Thank you.

In addition to making sure people with disabilities aren't below the poverty line, it's important to make sure workers have an opportunity to contribute fully to society.

Can you give us an overview or an update on the ongoing work under the disability inclusion action plan?

[Kamal Khera, Liberal, Brampton West, ON]

Absolutely. This is a very important question.

As you will recall, when we got elected back in 2015, one of the very first things we did as a government was work alongside parties and pass the Canada accessibility act. This led us to having a disability inclusion action plan, which truly is a road map to creating a barrier-free Canada by 2040. In fact, I hope we can do it sooner than that.

It has four very important pillars. The first one is around financial security. As I mentioned, the Canada disability benefit is a big component of making that happen. The second point is employment. It's about ensuring we are working with persons with disabilities and making sure they have the skills they need to fully participate in the labour force. In fact, we are doing a lot of work very closely with my colleague Mr. Boissonnault and his shop, in order to have an employment strategy for persons with disabilities.

A year ago, we launched the Canada disability inclusion business council, which is bringing together the private sector to see.... We can't do this work alone. We need to ensure businesses are part of this.

Just last week, we launched—

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Thank you, Minister.

You can conclude that in another question.

Ms. Chabot, you have the floor for six minutes.

[Louise Chabot, Bloc, Thérèse-De Blainville, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I also thank both honourable ministers for being with us today.

My question is for Minister Boissonnault.

I would have liked to find in the appropriations and expenditures some sums of money dedicated to the comprehensive reform of employment insurance. However, we didn't find anything about that.

You know, Minister, that this has been a firm commitment of your government since 2015, reiterated in 2019, reiterated in 2021. The Prime Minister had given your predecessor, in particular, the mandate to put in place a better employment insurance system, a more inclusive system.

This was to be done by the summer of 2022. We're at the end of 2023.

Minister Boissonnault, is a comprehensive reform of employment insurance, to correct the inequities in the system, still a priority for your government?

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Edmonton Centre, AB]

Mr. Chair, I thank the member for her excellent question.

Let me reiterate that the Employment Insurance program is Canada's most important income support program. It is an essential element of employment. Every year, it supports around two million Canadians, for example when they find themselves out of work, starting a family, taking time out to care for children or a loved one, or when they need to improve their skills.

To answer Ms. Chabot's question more directly, the Government of Canada will continue to strengthen Canada's social safety net, including ensuring a resilient Employment Insurance program. Given current and short-term inflationary pressures, we will take a cautious approach and gradually increase the premiums that are in place.

The pandemic has highlighted the shortcomings of the system, which, it must be said, had been present for a long time. In my opinion, it's important for the employment insurance system to help families make ends meet.

As for what we've already done...

[Louise Chabot, Bloc, Thérèse-De Blainville, QC]

Excuse me for interrupting you, Minister, but I wasn't talking about what you've already done. My question was very clear. I heard you mention a more robust system. Is that still a priority for your government?

You just talked about the social safety net. However, we're talking about a federal program with a hole in it, if I can put it that way. After the pandemic, we said we took too long to fix it. There's also a problem of accessibility. This plan is financed by contributions from workers and employers. Currently, six out of ten workers who contribute to it don't have access because of outdated eligibility criteria, inequity in the system and discrimination. All this has been demonstrated.

Your predecessor conducted consultations for two years, and workers were seriously engaged in the process. We know the problems and we also know the solutions.

What's stopping the government from acting now, Minister?

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Edmonton Centre, AB]

Mr. Chair, we have extended sickness benefits to 26 weeks. In Quebec, we've addressed the EI black hole by offering up to four additional weeks. This helps people in the following regions in particular: Gaspésie-Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Bas-Saint-Laurent-Côte-Nord, Centre-du-Québec, Chicoutimi-Jonquière and Nord-Ouest du Québec.

We have also introduced benefits for adoptive parents. However, it's not up to the demands of unions and workers. I met with representatives of the Centrale des syndicats du Québec, where you used to work, Ms. Chabot, as well as those of other bodies, such as the Fédération des travailleurs et travailleuses du Québec. They were surprised that we were able to offer four extra weeks, but they're asking us to do more. However, I have to exercise fiscal prudence.

[Louise Chabot, Bloc, Thérèse-De Blainville, QC]

Mr. Minister, you're talking about the extra four weeks, but we should be talking about real things. We're talking about pilot projects for seasonal industry workers. It's not just about Quebec, Mr. Minister. An interprovincial alliance even includes the unemployed in the Maritime provinces. It's not the workers who are seasonal, but rather the industry in these regions. The workers have even invited you to meet with them.

This pilot project has been running since 2018. Year after year, you extend it by offering up to five additional weeks. Yet the government had committed to two things: making this offer permanent and improving it. Four extra weeks is not going to fix the situation.

They've asked you to meet with them so you can get to know the reality of workers in the regions. Will you commit to meeting with them?

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Edmonton Centre, AB]

Mr. Chair, I met with representatives of several groups, including the Confédération des syndicats nationaux, the Centrale des syndicats du Québec and the Centrale des syndicats démocratiques. I want you to know that this is an issue that concerns me. I want to make sure that the employment insurance system works for today's workers. I will also continue to be fiscally prudent.

That said, Madam MP, I understand very clearly what you're telling me on this issue.