House of Commons Hansard #112 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was ceta.
Chrystia Freeland LiberalMinister of International Trade
Mr. Speaker, the softwood lumber agreement expired under the previous government.
As the Prime Minister has said, we look forward to working very closely with the new American administration. Michael Froman and I continued to negotiate last weekend in Lima, and the Prime Minister raised the issue with President Obama. We will continue to work closely with producers, workers, the provinces, and the territories.
Denis Lebel Conservative Lac-Saint-Jean, QC
Mr. Speaker, our troops are very important to Canadians.
Let us not forget that the Liberals have been known to send Canadian soldiers to a very warm part of the world wearing winter clothing. Let them not make the same mistake with the fighter jets.
The Liberals are sending a mixed message. They are buying planes, but leaning toward an open and transparent competition. Transparency is easier to achieve in word than in deed.
Who recently won international competitions? What planes are our allies flying? What is the best jet for the Canadian Forces? Stop protecting the Prime Minister and start answering those questions.
Harjit S. Sajjan LiberalMinister of National Defence
Mr. Speaker, I am very proud to be able to announce today that we will be launching an open competition to finally replace our fighter fleet, a file that has been mismanaged for the last 10 years. In addition, we will be investing in our military to make sure we have an interim fleet that will fulfill this capability gap.
Our government is committed to investing in our Canadian Armed Forces, and that is exactly what we are doing.
Karen Vecchio Conservative Elgin—Middlesex—London, ON
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is at it again with another cash for access event, this time with Chinese billionaires. Not only has he broken his own ethical rules, but he has violated Liberal Party guidelines requiring officials to ban anyone from attending a fundraiser if they have direct business interests before the government. Will the Prime Minister finally show some leadership, enforce his own rules, and stop using his government position for his own personal benefit?
Bardish Chagger LiberalLeader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of Small Business and Tourism
Mr. Speaker, as I have said in this House many times, we have some of the strictest and strongest fundraising rules across this country. In fact, the Chief Electoral Officer recently stated that Canada's political financing laws are the “most advanced and constrained and transparent” in the world.
Jacques Gourde Conservative Lévis—Lotbinière, QC
Mr. Speaker, we have seen it all with this Liberal government: conflicts of interest and apparent conflicts of interest.
The Prime Minister took the top prize in that regard when he accepted a $1-million donation for the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation from a Chinese billionaire. The Liberals have long been masters at skirting ethics rules.
Do the Liberals want Canadians to live in a country where money buys access to the Prime Minister?
Bardish Chagger LiberalLeader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of Small Business and Tourism
Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is confusing matters, something we should avoid doing in this place. As the hon. member knows, Canada has some of the strictest fundraising rules.
In fact, as the chief electoral officer said, “political financing laws in Canada are the most advanced and constrained and transparent in the world”.
Blaine Calkins Conservative Red Deer—Lacombe, AB
Mr. Speaker, we learned today that 32 people, including Chinese billionaires, paid $1,500 to meet the Prime Minister at yet another cash for access event. Billionaire real estate developer and bank founder Ted Zhou, actress and real estate investor Jenny Qi, the CEO of Goldenmount Capital International, and even a member of China's Communist Party attended this event. In the last year, more than 80 exclusive cash for access events have been hosted by the Prime Minister and his cabinet, targeting wealthy stakeholders. Absolutely everyone can see the blatant conflicts of interest here. Why can the Prime Minister not?
Bardish Chagger LiberalLeader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of Small Business and Tourism
Mr. Speaker, unlike the previous government, Canadians have access to this government. This government committed to working with Canadians. We have committed—
EthicsOral Questions
The Speaker Geoff Regan
Order, please. It is the opposition's responsibility to ask tough questions, but it is also the rules that we do not interrupt the answers or else we could have a shortened question period.
The hon. government House leader.
Bardish Chagger Liberal Waterloo, ON
Mr. Speaker, our government has embarked on unprecedented levels of public consultation to make sure that this government is responding to the very real challenges Canadians are facing. The member very well knows that we have some of the strictest rules in the country when it comes to fundraising. We will continue to follow the rules. When we follow the rules, no conflict of interest can exist.
Blaine Calkins Conservative Red Deer—Lacombe, AB
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister was the star attraction at this exclusive cash for access event with Chinese billionaires. Zhang Bin is a political adviser to the Chinese government. After attending the event, he and his partner, Mr. Gensheng, donated $1 million to the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation, including $50,000 to build a statue of the former prime minister.
We know the Prime Minister's love for the Chinese dictatorship, so what exactly did he promise the Chinese for their million dollar donation?
Bardish Chagger LiberalLeader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of Small Business and Tourism
Mr. Speaker, what we know is that this government is working for Canadians. This government has lowered taxes on middle-class Canadians. This government has given more money to families with children that need it the most through the tax-free Canada child benefit.
This government will continue to work with Canadians. This government will continue to raise the bar on openness and transparency. We are here to help grow the economy and grow the opportunities that Canadians need.
Tracey Ramsey NDP Essex, ON
Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are ramming through CETA, while ignoring the fact that it will lead to higher drug costs in Canada.
Health Canada has admitted this, but the Minister of International Trade continues to deny the basic facts. Canadians could be on the hook for an increase of $1.6 billion a year; that is a 13% increase. I know folks in my riding of Essex are already struggling to cover the costs of expensive prescriptions.
Is the minister not at all concerned that Canadians will be forced to pay more for prescription drugs?
Jane Philpott LiberalMinister of Health
Mr. Speaker, I have been very pleased to work with my counterparts in the provinces and territories to address the cost of prescription drugs. We have worked together on a pan-Canadian pharmaceutical alliance, which is allowing us to save upwards of $1 billion every year to do bulk purchasing.
In addition to that, I am working with my colleagues to address the regulations associated with the Patented Medicines Prices Review Board to make sure the cost of prescription drugs is affordable and Canadians will have the medications they need.
Ruth Ellen Brosseau NDP Berthier—Maskinongé, QC
Mr. Speaker, yesterday in the House the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food said that he was very proud of his transition plan for dairy producers because Ontario producers said that they are satisfied. What about Quebec dairy producers? They will be negatively impacted by the Canada-European Union comprehensive economic and trade agreement. According to Quebec dairy producers, the Liberal transition plan is way off base.
Why are Liberal members of the Quebec caucus keeping mum on this file? They never say a word about dairy producers and they never defend supply management. Are they proud when their minister spouts such nonsense?
Lawrence MacAulay LiberalMinister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
Mr. Speaker, as my hon. colleague is well aware, I have met dairy farmers and dairy processors across the country for the last 10 months. The truth is that the program that was put in place was put in place by what we heard across the country. In Quebec, young dairy farmers are interested in the future of the dairy industry.
This government has committed to supply management and it will make sure supply management lasts for generations—
Dairy IndustryOral Questions
James Bezan Conservative Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB
Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are pursuing their plan to sole source the CF-18 Super Hornet. They told Canadians during the campaign that they could buy the CF-18 for $65 million per plane, but Kuwait just bought 40 of them last week for $335 million apiece. This is a waste of billions of dollars of taxpayer money and is sticking our air force with the wrong plane.
Why is the Minister of National Defence taking five years to hold a competition and punting it down the road until after the next election?
Harjit S. Sajjan LiberalMinister of National Defence
Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the member opposite asked us to launch an open competition, and today I am very proud we have launched the competition. We will be launching this competition once the defence policy review is complete and we will start the process forward.
In the interim, because of the capability gap and because of the 10 years of neglect on this file, we are investing in our Canadian Armed Forces, making sure we can fill this gap and have the right equipment for our Canadian Armed Forces.
James Bezan Conservative Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB
Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are propagating the greatest hoax in Canadian defence procurement history. There is no capability gap. Defence Research and Development Canada said that we only needed 65 jets to meet our NORAD and NATO commitments. The commander of the air force said that our CF-18s could fly until 2025. Yesterday, officials from the Department of National Defence confirmed that all 77 CF-18s could be flown right until 2025.
Will the defence minister listen to his officials or will he keep doubling down on the Liberal credibility gap?
Harjit S. Sajjan LiberalMinister of National Defence
Mr. Speaker, right now, we cannot meet our NORAD and NATO commitments simultaneously. I have taken the advice from our chief of the defence staff. We have a capability gap, and the previous government policy was to risk manage that.
Our government's policy is not to risk manage it. We are going to be investing. We are going to make sure we have a permanent fleet replacement, with an open and transparent competition. We are going to have an interim fleet to fill this capability gap as well.
Alupa Clarke Conservative Beauport—Limoilou, QC
Mr. Speaker, the joint strike fighter program has generated hundreds of millions of dollars in investments in Canada's aerospace industry. It would have created thousands of jobs in British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, and New Brunswick.
The government says that it will hold an open and transparent process after having awarded a sole-source contract for the Super Hornet today. Its approach lacks credibility.
Why is the government buying CF-18 Super Hornets now given that the capability gap is a complete fabrication?
Harjit S. Sajjan LiberalMinister of National Defence
Mr. Speaker, we will be replacing the entire fleet with an open and transparent competition once the process starts after the defence policy review. There is a capability gap, and we will be buying an interim fleet. We will be staying as part of the joint strike fighter program as well.