Debates of Nov. 4th, 2016

Finance

[Gérard Deltell, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the reality is that this government is borrowing huge amounts of money and running up colossal deficits. We are talking about deficits totalling nearly $150 billion over its term. That is unacceptable.

It is funny, because those folks are borrowing billions of dollars as though money grew on trees, which it makes no sense, but when it comes time to ask Canadians to invest in their mortgage, the Liberals are making things harder for young families, for those who are starting out in life, and for Canadian workers.

Why is the government borrowing billions of dollars on the one hand, while on the other hand asking Canadians to show some restraint when it comes time to borrow?

“Do as I say, not as I do”. Is that the Liberals' policy?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, on the contrary. I thank my colleague from Louis-Saint-Laurent for his question. If the opposition could do as we say, everything would be fine.

What we are saying is that we have tightened the rules around the mortgage market because we know that, for Canadian families, buying a home is probably the largest investment they will make in their lifetimes. That is why the Minister of Finance's first responsibility is to ensure long-term stability in the housing market in Canada.

That is exactly what we did in December. That is exactly what we did with the new rules we announced. Canadian families understand this, because it is in their—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

Order, please.

The hon. member for Carleton.

Employment

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today's Statistics Canada report on jobs brought more bad news. There are now 23,000 fewer Canadians working full-time from September to October; 25,000 fewer manufacturing jobs today than a year ago when the Liberal Party took government; and 25,000 fewer young people are employed full-time as work has become more scarce and precarious.

The Liberals promised deficits and jobs. We have the deficits, where are the jobs?

[Rodger Cuzner, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Employment]

Mr. Speaker, as I said before, certainly the investments we are making are starting to show that kind of increase in jobs. Among young Canadians, we have seen an increase of about 26,000 jobs. What we know is that back in October 2015, Statistics Canada started publishing trend lines, and what we have seen over the last four months is job opportunities trending up in this country. The investments this government is making are starting to pay dividends.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, actually the PBO's report on jobs showed precisely the opposite, that Canada is performing below the trend line in every single area, and nowhere worse than with males. In fact, 70,000 fewer men are working full-time today than a year ago. The number of unemployed men is up to 7.1%. That means dads with nowhere to go in the morning and no paycheque to bring home at the end of the month. That is because of the big losses in energy and manufacturing sectors, two sectors that will be hardest hit by payroll and carbon taxes.

Knowing that, will the government announce today its plans to cancel future tax increases on manufacturing and energy jobs in this country?

[Rodger Cuzner, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Employment]

Mr. Speaker, as I said to my hon. colleague, we have been making investments. In talking about growing the economy, I spoke with a number of men today from the construction sector, who like the investments we have been making in infrastructure. We are putting tradespeople back to work with the investments we are making in infrastructure.

Having seen the downturn in commodity prices, they are happy that our government is making those targeted investments in infrastructure so we can get tradespeople back to work.

The Economy

[Marilyn Gladu, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

Well, Mr. Speaker, there is one project with shovels in the ground.

The Liberals' economic plan has failed. The deficit has gone north of $30 billion, job growth has gone south of the border, they have decimated oil and gas jobs in the west and ignored opportunities to create jobs in the east. The unemployment rate in my riding is now at an all-time high, and actual infrastructure implementation is at an all-time low. The Liberals' moral compass is broken, along with their promises, so why can the government not see that real change is lost in space?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, real change is really on this side of the aisle.

It is really clear that real change is about investing in Canadians. That is what confident and ambitious countries are doing. We are in 2016. Ambitious countries invest in their population. They invest to create jobs and invest in the future to improve the quality of life. That is why we have announced more than $180 billion in infrastructure spending to bring back jobs in the country, to invest in our future in public transit and green infrastructure, and to invest in our cities and social housing. That is what Canadians expect in 2016. That is what we are delivering.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the minister said all staff at the Vegreville immigration centre will be “guaranteed jobs in Edmonton”. However, officials say more than half will not be covered to move, some will not even get an offer at all, and others cannot afford to commute.

The minister's answers keep changing and contradicting officials and others. He has no clue. He is killing hundreds of jobs and ripping apart this community. Does he not care about rural Albertans? Will he not stop this edict immediately?

[Arif Virani, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, the situation in Vegreville is not one of job loss, but of job maintenance, and in fact job creation. The individuals in Vegreville will have their positions secured in Edmonton. In addition, in moving the processing centre to Edmonton we will increase efficiencies, reduce processing times, and make that centre more able to employ more Albertans.

What we are doing for the people of Vegreville is reaching out to the member opposite and the mayor the town to facilitate that transition, and we continue to look forward to executing that in the coming days and months ahead.

Agriculture and Agri-Food

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

Mr. Speaker, stakeholders from the agriculture sector were clear: as long as there is a labour shortage, there will be problems. Our farmers are losing millions of dollars with every harvest, but that was to be expected.

Instead of taking concrete action on this, the Liberal government holds endless consultations. In the meantime, 14 foreign workers were arrested in Victoriaville on Wednesday and the farmers are facing criminal charges.

When will the Liberal government do something about the labour shortage in the agriculture sector?

[Jean-Claude Poissant, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, the Canadian agriculture and agri-food sector needs reliable access to labour.

In many regions, temporary foreign workers make up a significant part of the workforce for some industries.

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada is working with its federal partners to ensure that the policies and programs pertaining to the labour force take those needs into account.

Shipping

[Guy Caron, NDP, Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC]

Mr. Speaker, for more than a decade the Liberals and the Conservatives have done nothing about the renewal of the icebreaker fleet. This is now jeopardizing the St. Lawrence Seaway and the prosperity of the regions that depend on it. It is not just local stakeholders who are worried and asking for the government to intervene. A confidential internal report by Fisheries and Oceans Canada deems the situation to be critical.

What will the minister do to quickly resolve this situation and guarantee that the Seaway remains open during the winter?

[Serge Cormier, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Fisheries]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to start by reassuring the marine industry, the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation, and all users of the Seaway that the Coast Guard takes icebreaking operations very seriously and provides exemplary service.

The Coast Guard meticulously maintains its fleet of icebreakers, and we are going to invest in modernizing and extending the lifespan of this fleet in order to ensure that they service the Seaway until new vessels are built.

The Coast Guard and stakeholders in the Seaway have an excellent working relationship. We are investing in our fleet so that vessels operate longer during peak periods and to meet the needs of our economy.

Ethics

[Pat Kelly, Conservative, Calgary Rocky Ridge, AB]

Mr. Speaker, at last Thursday's ethics committee meeting, I asked the Commissioner of Lobbying what she thought of cash for access fundraising involving lobbyists. Her answer was pretty clear. She said:

...I think we're seeing in the media and so on that this is an issue that's potentially creating real or apparent conflicts of interest, which is why I'm looking into it.

If cash for access fundraising with lobbyists does not break any rules, then why is the Commissioner of Lobbying investigating them?

[Bardish Chagger, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of Small Business and Tourism]

Mr. Speaker, I would remind all members of the House that when it comes to the rules and fundraising, the rules are some of the strictest across the country. Indeed, it is true that federal politics is subject to some of the strictest political financing legislation and regulations in the country. When it comes to accepting donations from trade associations, or businesses, or anything else, we cannot do that federally.

The Conservatives do have a very different approach when it comes to fundraising, because they chose to appoint people like Irving Gerstein to the Senate to do their fundraising.

We will not do that because we support the independence of the Senate. We will reform the Senate, and we will—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Calgary Rocky Ridge.

[Pat Kelly, Conservative, Calgary Rocky Ridge, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Commissioner of Lobbying repeatedly said that she is looking into cash for access fundraising involving lobbyists and Liberal cabinet ministers. She said that when a lobbyist organizes a fundraiser, a sense of obligation is created.

It is time for the government House leader to stop reciting irrelevant talking points. Why does she defend cash for access when the practice is clearly under investigation?

[Bardish Chagger, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of Small Business and Tourism]

Mr. Speaker, the member knows very well that this government engages and speaks to Canadians and that we welcome any perspectives because, as our Prime Minister says, we are here to serve Canadians and to ensure that this government is working hard for middle-class Canadians and those working hard to join it.

All members of Parliament, in all parties, fundraise and all abide by the exact same rules. When the rules are followed, no conflicts of interest can exist.

We know how the Conservatives fundraise. We will not follow their directives, that is for sure.

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, QC]

Mr. Speaker, over 10 years after the Gomery Commission exposed for all Canadians to see the culture of corruption that pervaded the Liberal government of the day, a central figure in the sponsorship scandal and close friend of the Liberal Party has been found guilty of influence peddling, forgery, and money laundering.

Will the government learn from the past and finally follow the ethics rules imposed by its own Prime Minister when it comes to fundraising?

[Leona Alleslev, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Services and Procurement]

Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to ensuring that all federal procurement processes are carried out in an ethical manner that protects the interests of Canadians.

We need to ensure that all procurement processes are open and accountable. That is what our government promised, and that is what we are going to do.

[Karen Vecchio, Conservative, Elgin—Middlesex—London, ON]

Mr. Speaker, for weeks, the Liberals have repeated the same talking points about their elite and exclusive cash for access fundraising schemes. Canadians do not believe the Liberals' excuses.

Just a year ago, the Prime Minister ordered his ministers to obey his own “Open and Accountable Government” rules, but the finance minister, the innovation minister, the trade minister, the natural resources minister, and even the Prime Minister have completely ignored them.

Will the Prime Minister stop using government positions to fill the Liberal Party coffers?

[Bardish Chagger, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of Small Business and Tourism]

Mr. Speaker, I am happy to remind Canadians that, at the federal level, we have some of the strictest rules around fundraising of any level of government.

The fact is that the Conservative Party chose to name people like Irving Gerstein to the Senate and charge them with the responsibility—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!