Debates of March 31st, 2015

The Economy

[Scott Brison, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, there are over two million more Canadians in the jobs market actually looking for jobs. Canada's economy not only shrank in January, it shrank in three of the last six months. The Bank of Canada says that we need “considerable monetary stimulus to avoid falling back into recession”. That is why the bank took action and lowered rates, but there has been no action from the Conservatives.

Why has the Minister of Finance spent the last two months in hiding, refusing to table a budget? When the Canadian economy flatlines, why is the finance minister missing in action?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Minister of Employment and Social Development and Minister for Democratic Reform]

Mr. Speaker, the best possible stimulus for our economy is to put thousands of dollars back in the pockets of everyday families with kids, and that is exactly what we did with our family tax cut and benefits, which will benefit 100% of families with kids by over $1,000 per family. The Liberals have announced that they will vote against this money, that they will take it away and that they will raise taxes on families.

We know that will not only hurt the middle class, but it will kill thousands of jobs and send shockwaves through our community. That is what the Liberals would do. We will not let them.

[Scott Brison, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister says that he cannot introduce a budget because of falling oil prices, but Alberta is more dependent on oil prices than Ottawa. However, Alberta's premier did not make excuses; he tabled a budget last week. If Jim Prentice can introduce a budget, why can the Prime Minister not?

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Minister of Employment and Social Development and Minister for Democratic Reform]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are desperate to have a budget that would raise taxes. I have an answer for them. We will never increase taxes. We will never bring forward their policy of higher taxes, more spending and irresponsible debt. We know that would drive the economy into the ditch.

That is why we have a low-tax plan that has created 1.2 million net new jobs, 85% of them are full-time, two-thirds are in high-wage sectors. That is why millions of Canadians have had a phone call that has said “Congratulations, you got the job”.

International Development

[Hélène Laverdière, NDP, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the humanitarian crisis in Syria is very troubling. After five years of civil war, 220,000 people are dead and there are millions of refugees.

In order to strengthen international aid, the UN Secretary-General organized an important meeting in Kuwait and asked every country, including Canada, to contribute more. Meanwhile, the Minister of International Development did not even attend that meeting.

How does the minister justify his absence? Will he respond to the Secretary-General's urgent call?

[Christian Paradis, Conservative, Minister of International Development and Minister for La Francophonie]

Mr. Speaker, I want to reassure my colleague. As we speak, Canada is very well represented at the conference in question.

I would like to remind members that, to date, Canada has helped 16 million people in Syria by giving them access to clean drinking water. We have given food aid to over 4 million Syrians. What is more, we have given emergency assistance to nearly 3 million refugees in neighbouring countries, such as Jordan. These concrete improvements are a result of the commitments that we have made and kept.

We believe that, in dealing with this crisis, we do not have to choose one solution over another, to choose between security and—

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

The hon. member for Ottawa Centre.

[Paul Dewar, NDP, Ottawa Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it would be nice if the minister would actually show up at the conference and commit for Canada to help out with this crisis.

The UN says that it needs $8.4 billion to help the over 11 million Syrians affected by this crisis, half of whom are women and children. It is the largest humanitarian appeal in UN history. The U.S. has already pledged $500 million. It has been over a year since Canada last made a humanitarian pledge for Syria.

Why has Canada not made a pledge at this conference? Why can the Conservatives spend over $100 million for a bombing campaign and not pledge the same to save lives?

[Christian Paradis, Conservative, Minister of International Development and Minister for La Francophonie]

Mr. Speaker, we are already the sixth largest donor in Syria.

I can tell my colleague that we have paid what we have pledged so far. This is what the other partner countries have to do. Our government believes there is no either/or in response to this crisis.

We are participating in the military mission against ISIL and contributing to the humanitarian crisis. Security and humanitarian go hand in hand. This is the way it works.

Public Safety

[Randall Garrison, NDP, Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca, BC]

Mr. Speaker, this is a government that never passes up a good chance to score cheap political points instead of taking on the hard work necessary to get things done.

When it comes to Bill C-51, the Conservatives are still putting their efforts into ramming this bill through the House instead of listening to Canadians. Now they are refusing to adopt common sense amendments that would address some of the worst elements of this dangerous bill.

Canadians should not be asked to trade away their freedoms because the government cannot admit to its drafting mistakes. Will the minister do the right thing and withdraw Bill C-51?

[Steven Blaney, Conservative, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, I hope the member has listened to the many witnesses. Here is one to whom I would like him to pay attention.

Bill C-51, and this is an important reminder, is directed against Islamist jihadists to prevent them from achieving their stated objective of carrying out terrorist threats against the west, including Canada. Our country is facing a serious threat.

—the measures proposed in Bill C-51 to deal with the nature of threats Canada faces are quite rightly and urgently needed....

That was professor Salim Mansur from Western University in Ontario.

[Rosane Doré Lefebvre, NDP, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Mr. Speaker, most of the witnesses that we heard from, including those called by the government, confirmed what we have been saying from the beginning.

Bill C-51 is a botched bill. It does not include any kind of oversight mechanism and it jeopardizes our rights and freedoms. From the outset, the Conservative government has been turning a deaf ear, and its stubbornness could undermine the freedoms of Canadians.

Will the minister finally do the right thing and withdraw his bill?

[Steven Blaney, Conservative, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, that would be a huge mistake at a time when Canada is facing an international jihadist threat. There have been terrorist attacks in Paris, in Sydney, Australia, and in Copenhagen. A terrorist attack even occurred here in this Parliament, and the New Democrats want us to stand idly by and allow terrorists to take advantage of loopholes in our system. That is despicable.

I would like to reassure the public. We are going to protect Canadians and their rights. We are being threatened by terrorists and we are going to take concrete action against them.

National Defence

[Rick Norlock, Conservative, Northumberland—Quinte West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Minister of National Defence was at CFB Trenton as the Royal Canadian Air Force accepted the delivery of its fifth C-17 Globemaster aircraft.

Under the government's watch, Canada is no longer dependent on the airlift capability of other countries. Could the Minister of National Defence update the House on how our C-17s are used for domestic and international missions?

[Jason Kenney, Conservative, Minister of National Defence and Minister for Multiculturalism]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for his good work on behalf of the Royal Canadian Air Force.

Back in the decade of darkness, we used to have to beg, borrow and plead countries like Russia in order to get strategic airlift capabilities. Thanks to the historic investments made by this government in our armed forces, we can now project Canada's presence around the world.

Indeed, I am pleased to report that yesterday I received the fifth C-17 Globemaster, significantly increasing the flexibility and lifespan of this critical asset. Thanks to this fleet, we have been able to respond to humanitarian disasters all around the world, and support our men and women operating against ISIL in Iraq.

Citizenship and Immigration

[Sadia Groguhé, NDP, Saint-Lambert, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we have not seen the end of the Conservatives' mismanagement of the temporary foreign worker program. Tomorrow, an arbitrary deadline imposed by the Conservatives will force tens of thousands of temporary foreign workers to leave Canada. So-called immigration consultants continue to extort these workers to the last cent, taking advantage of their vulnerability and helplessness.

When will the government take action and put an end to this shameful situation?

[Chris Alexander, Conservative, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, the priority for our reform of the temporary foreign worker program was to put Canadians in available jobs. This is working very well. The reforms were well received by employers all across the country. The pathways to permanent residence have never been more numerous, and the rules have been known for months.

What was not known was the NDP's position. The NDP wanted the reform to be done more quickly and is now in favour of keeping all temporary workers—

[The Speaker, Conservative, Andrew Scheer]

The hon. member for Newton—North Delta.

[Jinny Sims, NDP, Newton—North Delta, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives have made a complete mess of the temporary foreign worker program, leaving vulnerable workers paying the price. The Conservatives ignored all the warnings that their deadline was going to have unintended consequences, and now some consultants have taken advantage of desperate temporary foreign workers, bilking them of all their life savings while making false promises.

What are the Conservatives going to do to fix this? How are they going to protect these vulnerable workers and make things right?

[Chris Alexander, Conservative, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, if the hon. member has information about an immigration consultant who has broken the law, she or her constituents should give it to the Canada Border Services Agency.

Our temporary foreign worker program is working. It is putting Canadians first. The pathways to permanent residence have never been more numerous.

What is outstanding, what is bizarre, is the position of NDP members. Last year, they said we should have done this reform earlier. Today, they seem to be indicating that we should keep all temporary workers here. They are a weather vane.

Housing

[Mike Sullivan, NDP, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Conservatives are also letting down Toronto. Yesterday, the mayor made an urgent appeal to the federal government for housing funding. After years of federal downloading by Conservative and Liberal governments, repairs to social housing have reached a crisis point. Investing in social housing in Toronto is not only good for low-income families, but it would create 220,000 person years of employment.

When will Conservatives finally stop turning their backs on Toronto and start investing in Toronto's social housing?

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Minister of State (Social Development)]

Mr. Speaker, we have done just that. In fact, I recently signed the agreement for investment in affordable housing with Minister Ted McMeekin from Ontario. This is what he said: “The renewed partnership between Canada and Ontario will help improve access to safe, suitable affordable housing”.

What we do is provide funding to the provinces and work in partnership with them. They determine where the funding goes, and I know they are doing that in Ontario.

Intergovernmental Affairs

[Andrew Cash, NDP, Davenport, ON]

Mr. Speaker, 100,000 Toronto families are on a waiting list for affordable housing. They need more than that member's empty spin cycle.

However, the disrespect for Toronto does not end with that non-answer. A new report from Toronto City Hall shows that the federal government owes at least $4 million in lieu of property taxes, and that does not include the whopping bill for the island airport.

People pay their fair share of property taxes, so why does the federal government think it can cheat Toronto out of millions of dollars? Why the rip-off?

[Lisa Raitt, Conservative, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member should check his facts when it comes to this matter.

It is very clear. I understand from the Toronto Port Authority that indeed there is a written binding agreement between the Toronto Port Authority and the City of Toronto with respect to these outstanding facts. I would be happy to share the address of the Toronto Port Authority with the hon. member so that he can contact it for the actual facts.

Infrastructure

[Francis Scarpaleggia, Liberal, Lac-Saint-Louis, QC]

Mr. Speaker, according to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, Canada faces a $123 billion infrastructure deficit. It is going up by $2 billion every year. By 2020, nearly 60% of Montreal's water pipes will have reached the end of their life cycle.

The municipalities' confidence is decreasing every day, and so is that of the business world and Canadians in general, since we have a Minister of Finance who refuses to act.

When will the minister take responsibility and deliver the budget?