Debates of Nov. 23rd, 2016

Infrastructure

[Bob Bratina, Liberal, Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, ON]

Mr. Speaker, as a former mayor, I know that virtually all of my colleagues, including my successor in Hamilton, were enthusiastic about our platform to support local communities by investing in infrastructure projects. These projects will not only strengthen our local economies, but would also improve the quality of life for Canadians.

With many of my colleagues meeting today with representatives and stakeholders, could the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities tell the House how our government is supporting our municipalities?

[Amarjeet Sohi, Liberal, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities]

Mr. Speaker, as a former city councillor and now minister, I welcome the Federation of Canadian Municipalities to the Hill.

Our government is delivering on our $180 billion, 12-year infrastructure plan in partnership with our municipalities, provinces, and territories. We will continue to listen to and work with rural and urban municipalities, and the FCM to ensure that our plan benefits all Canadians from coast to coast to coast.

Justice

[Michael Cooper, Conservative, St. Albert—Edmonton, AB]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Prime Minister, a self-described feminist, defended the disturbing decision of an Ontario judge to throw out a mandatory sentence for sexual interference involving a 15-year-old girl.

Does the Minister of Justice support the position of the Prime Minister, or is she finally prepared to stand up for victims, and assure Canadians that the government will not roll back mandatory sentences for child sexual predators, yes or no?

[Jody Wilson-Raybould, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, I am committed to standing up and following-through with the mandate that the Prime Minister gave me to do a comprehensive review of the criminal justice system, including sentencing reform. That includes looking at mandatory minimum penalties to ensure the laws we have in place are meeting their objectives.

This is what I am going to undertake. Certainly, with respect to child sexual assault, that is wrong. We are going to ensure that we work with the judiciary, and work with all the actors in the criminal justice system to ensure we are achieving the ends of the legislation we have in place.

Infrastructure

[Dianne Lynn Watts, Conservative, South Surrey—White Rock, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are taking $15 billion away from communities to set up their new bank.

We repeatedly warned that small and rural communities would be left out of the funding opportunities. Instead of listening, the Liberals called Canadians stupid and irresponsible for raising concerns.

Yesterday, the finance minister was forced to admit that small communities will in fact be left out.

When will the Liberals stop betraying rural communities, and start working to get infrastructure built in every part of the country?

[Amarjeet Sohi, Liberal, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities]

Mr. Speaker, we understand that infrastructure is the foundation for building strong and sustainable communities, including rural communities.

Let me tell the House what we are doing. There are water and wastewater upgrades for Red Deer, Alberta; upgrades to the town of Lanigan water in Saskatchewan; wastewater treatment upgrades for Selkirk and Gimli in Manitoba; water and wastewater upgrades to Royal Oak, Bay, Ontario; and there is more I could say.

I encourage members to actually visit the Infrastructure Canada website to see how many projects we are funding.

[Alain Rayes, Conservative, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the problem is that all the projects he just listed are not part of the infrastructure bank, since it has not yet been created.

The government is creating a new infrastructure bank for that party's cronies. It is taking back $15 billion that had been allocated to the regions, and reallocating it through that bank.

Yesterday the Minister of Finance said himself that small municipalities are unlikely to benefit from this infrastructure bank.

Can the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities explain to Canadians, and to the mayors in the House today, why he has been denying this fact for at least a month now?

[Amarjeet Sohi, Liberal, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities]

Mr. Speaker, I do not know which part of the plan the member does not understand.

We are investing $180 billion. We have approved more than 980 projects with a combined investment of $12 billion. Out of that, hundreds of projects are for rural communities, helping with water and wastewater infrastructure, roadway infrastructure, and all kinds of infrastructure that our rural communities need.

We are proud to develop a plan that is going to work for all communities, large cities, mid-size cities, and rural and northern communities.

Quebec Bridge

[Robert Aubin, NDP, Trois-Rivières, QC]

Mr. Speaker, according to the hon. member for Québec, it will cost no less than $400 million to repaint the Quebec Bridge, which is covered in rust.

During the election campaign, the Liberals promised to take action if a solution was not found by June 30, 2016. Five months later, there is still no agreement in sight with CN.

Is the Quebec Bridge an indication of the kinds of projects that might be funded by an infrastructure bank, where citizens, and not CN, will foot the bill through user fees?

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, I am glad that my colleague is giving me the opportunity to talk about how much the situation in the Quebec City region has changed compared to what we saw over the past 10 years. People are talking to one another, they are working together, and sharing information that is essential for collaboration and important to everyone. People are being respectful of and listening to one another.

We are working for the middle class. We are working toward a forward-looking economy and sustainable development, which is fundamental to the development of the Quebec City region. This is very good news for the Quebec City region. I am very pleased to be part of it.

Infrastructure

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill—Keewatinook Aski, MB]

Mr. Speaker, we keep seeing how the government puts a priority on its Bay Street friends instead of on everyday Canadians. We have a minister who will not stand up to the billionaire to whom the Liberals sold the Port of Churchill, and a Prime Minister who is busy going to cash for access fundraisers, yet has not visited Churchill or the Arctic since the election.

Manitoba municipalities are calling for federal action to reopen the port in 2017. When will the Liberals stop catering to their billionaire friends and stand up for Canada by saving the Port of Churchill?

[Navdeep Bains, Liberal, Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, I like the fact that the member opposite is asking this question. When this issue came to fruition, I reached out to her and her office and she was very reluctant to get involved. Therefore, we took leadership.

I had the opportunity to work with my colleagues from Manitoba who showed leadership on this file. That is why we invested $4.6 million in Churchill. That is why I personally went to Churchill and met with the northern delegation. We are committed to finding a solution there. We are committed to creating jobs. That funding will help with Arctic research. That funding will help with tourism. That funding will help the community. That is leadership.

Natural Resources

[Mark Strahl, Conservative, Chilliwack—Hope, BC]

Mr. Speaker, that is embarrassing.

One hundred thousand energy workers have lost their jobs since the government took office, and the Liberals are making things worse. The energy east pipeline is stalled as National Energy Board hearings are on an indefinite hold. The northern gateway pipeline is in limbo as the Liberals have refused to respond to a recent court ruling. The Kinder Morgan pipeline decision has been delayed by six months due to additional Liberal red tape.

Middle-class energy workers are hurting in our country. When will the minister start doing his job, stand up for energy workers, and make sure these job-creating energy projects get built?

[Jim Carr, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, we have shown certainty where before there was only uncertainty. We have a very specific set of timelines that are predictable. They are predictable to proponents. They are predictable for those who want to offer their opinion on all of these projects.

The member has mentioned four or five projects. What they share is that there is predictability, there is a timeline, and there is a process, none of which was the case when we took power.

[Mark Strahl, Conservative, Chilliwack—Hope, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the only thing predictable is that Liberals will never stand up for Canadian energy workers. These pipeline projects are waiting for a green light. If built, they will create tens of thousands of well-paying jobs for Canadians from coast to coast.

While middle-class energy workers are hurting, the Liberal government has done nothing to help them. When will the minister start to do his job, stand up for Canadian energy workers, and help get these projects built?

[Jim Carr, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, I am going to ask the member one of his favourite questions. How many kilometres of pipeline did his government build to export markets? The answer is zero. The reason the answer is zero is because the people of Canada lost credibility in the process.

In order to rebuild that credibility, we have established a set of rules that will govern those projects currently under review that will lead to long-term reform of the National Energy Board, which is in Canada's interests.

[Cathy McLeod, Conservative, Kamloops—Thompson—Cariboo, BC]

Mr. Speaker, 31 aboriginal communities are partners, equity owners, in the northern gateway project. As they wrote in statement last September, “Collectively, our communities stand to benefit from more than $2 billion directly from this Project.” That is going to be $2 billion for jobs, for businesses, for educational opportunities, and for long-term benefit.

Will the minister follow the court order and immediately start consultations with the indigenous communities?

[Jim Carr, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, if those members really want to refer to what the Federal Court of Appeal said in the northern gateway case, it said that the Harper government had insufficiently consulted indigenous peoples. That was the reason. It was not because of the proponent, not because of the regulator but because of her government. Canadians deserve a better process, and that is what we are giving them.

Justice

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Eglinton—Lawrence, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada was given a mandate to ensure the government maintained the greatest possible respect for the Charter of Rights and Freedoms in all of its legislation.

Could my hon. colleague inform the House what concrete steps the government is taking to demonstrate its commitment to the charter on behalf of all Canadians, including the LGBTQ2 community that has long advocated for equality of rights when it comes to sexual orientation?

[Jody Wilson-Raybould, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms is the pride of all Canadians, and our government is committed to ensuring our legislation is constitutional and ensures the highest standards that Canadians expect.

As with all legislation that I have introduced as minister, I was very pleased last week to introduce a charter statement on Bill C-32, an act related to the repeal of section 159 of the Criminal Code, and in tabling a charter statement, ensuring that we invite the public and parliamentarians into the thinking and the review I have undertaken to ensure our legislation is constitutional.

The Environment

[Ed Fast, Conservative, Abbotsford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the government has announced a coal plan that will drive up electricity costs across Canada.

We have seen the story before. In Ontario, Gerald Butts orchestrated the infamous green energy plan, where electricity rates skyrocketed to the highest in North America. The policy was such a disaster that Premier Wynne had to publicly apologize. Now Mr. Butts has convinced the Prime Minister to adopt the same crazy plan.

Why are the Liberals so intent on driving seniors out of their homes and businesses out of our country, and why will the Prime Minister not stop this insanity before he also has to apologize?

[Catherine McKenna, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, I am extraordinarily proud of the action taken by our government to phase-out coal-fired power by 2030. This is a very important measure. It will not only reduce greenhouse gas emissions, it will improve the health of Canadians. It will improve the health of elderly people and young kids who have asthma. It will stop premature deaths.

We will be working with all of the provinces and territories to ensure we have a win-win solution for ratepayers, workers, and for the economy.

Air Transportation

[Ruth Ellen Brosseau, NDP, Berthier—Maskinongé, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals promised that they would be transparent and work on behalf of all Canadians.

However, with regard to the Saint-Cuthbert, Terrebonne and Mascouche aerodromes, the Minister of Transport is satisfied with completely subjective and bungled consultations that benefit only the developers, not Canadians. The government is not doing its due diligence.

Can the minister set the record straight on the Saint-Cuthbert aerodrome?

Will he listen to the people of Saint-Cuthbert and put a stop to the aerodrome project?

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, it is the federal government's responsibility to review airport construction applications. We are doing just that, with the public interest and security in mind.

As for Mascouche and Saint-Cuthbert, I issued a ministerial order to force the developers in each case to hold consultations. It is an important process that I insisted on before making a decision. No decision has yet been made regarding Saint-Cuthbert.

Health

[Randeep Sarai, Liberal, Surrey Centre, BC]

Mr. Speaker, as all members in the House are painfully aware, there is an opioid overdose crisis going on in B.C. and across Canada. Could the minister update the House on what she is doing to work with our partners in health from across Canada?