Debates of May 10th, 2016

Agriculture

[Chris Warkentin, Conservative, Grande Prairie—Mackenzie, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the misleading rhetoric and self-glorification of the Liberal cabinet is not fooling anyone. The Minister of International Trade seems to have convinced herself that it was she alone who resolved the issue of country of origin labelling; however, Canadians are not convinced. They know that it was the former Conservative agriculture and trade ministers who did all the heavy lifting on these files.

While the former Conservative ministers had their priorities straight, promoting Canadian agriculture around the world, the current minister has lost sight of these priorities. Rather than promoting Canadian interests, the minister has been on a campaign of self-promoting vanity trips, costing Canadians over $20,000.

The Minister of International Trade should halt her partisan self-admiration and give credit where credit is due. She should pay tribute to her predecessors and get busy doing the work that was left to her, such as ratifying the trans-Pacific partnership and other trade deals that would vastly improve the lives of farm families across this country.

Cystic Fibrosis Awareness Month

[Sherry Romanado, Liberal, Longueuil—Charles-LeMoyne, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to rise in the House today in honour of Cystic Fibrosis Awareness Month. During this month, I encourage all my colleagues to wear a rose to support the thousands of individuals across Canada who are affected by this disease.

Cystic fibrosis is the most common deadly disease among Canadian children and young adults. It is estimated that one out of every 3,600 children born in Canada has cystic fibrosis.

Researchers have made great strides in recent years. Today, 50% of Canadians with cystic fibrosis are expected to live into their early fifties and beyond.

It is very important to promote awareness in Canada, in order to show those suffering from this disease that we are fighting alongside them.

Oil and Gas Industry

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Mr. Speaker, as wildfires in Alberta continue to rage, it appears that 90% of Fort McMurray has been spared, and the brave men and women who helped save that city deserve our thanks and praise.

[Some hon. members]

Here, here!

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Now the rebuilding will begin. In addition to aid and infrastructure, the region will need significant investment to ensure there are jobs to come back to.

Will the Liberals stop blocking private sector investment that would cushion the blow and allow pipelines to be built?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I too, in the name of all Canadians, congratulate the brave firefighters and first responders who have been there to do extraordinary work through these terrible blazes in Fort McMurray.

I want to congratulate, as well, all the MPs from all parties, particularly the Leader of the Opposition, who have been very strongly engaged on the ground, supporting their fellow citizens. I want to congratulate all Canadians who across the country came together to give incredibly generously to the people of Fort McMurray through the Canadian Red Cross and in other ways.

I am pleased to confirm that I will be going, personally, to Fort McMurray on Friday to offer support for all Canadians.

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Mr. Speaker, Alberta has been hit hard by many factors beyond its control. The low price of energy and natural disasters have left thousands out of work. One thing we can control though is ensuring that the private sector is able to bounce back. Unfortunately, the Prime Minister has added additional red tape and unnecessary hurdles to pipeline approval projects. His new term “social licence” is actually just political licence.

Could the Prime Minister assure energy workers that he will not allow special interests and politics to block important pipeline projects?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, it is unfortunate that after 10 years of failing to get pipelines built to tidewater, the Conservatives opposite still do not understand that the only way to build pipelines in the 21st century is to demonstrate the community's support, the partnerships with indigenous peoples, and the strong science that is going to demonstrate that we understand that environmental protection and economic development go hand in hand. It is not an either-or choice.

That is what Canadians have elected us to do and that is what we are working hard to get done.

Ethics

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Mr. Speaker, he keeps forgetting the four major pipelines that were approved by our government, and he forgets about the additional political hurdles he has added.

With regard to their trip to Washington, we know what they are saying and the messages that they are sending.

We know that all bilateral meetings are important. The Prime Minister's priorities are what Canadians are concerned about. There was a limited number of seats at the table and he made sure to save spots for his in-laws and bagmen, but he left his Minister of Natural Resources at home.

What role did his wife's parents and the party hacks play for him to think that it was more important for them to go on that trip than his own Minister of Natural Resources?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, for 10 years, the former government wanted to talk to the United States about only one thing: pipelines. Unfortunately, that poisoned Canada's relationship with the United States. As a result, our economic growth, our relationship, and the work of our companies and entrepreneurs have suffered.

The reality is that it has taken a lot of energy to rebuild that relationship. We put our hearts and souls into it, and I was touched by the fact that President Obama personally invited my mother and my in-laws to be part of this big family reunion, the reunion of two families—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. member for Regina—Qu'Appelle.

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Mr. Speaker, no one believes that President Obama, on his own, decided to invite the Prime Minister's in-laws. No one believes that President Obama, on his own, decided to invite Liberal Party fundraisers. Canadians know how these kinds of official events work.

Does the Prime Minister deny that it was his office that sent the White House the invitation list for the state dinner?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, yet again, the party opposite has demonstrated it has very little understanding of the strong friendship between Canada and the United States.

I can say, on top of the official delegation seats that we were allocated, the President and his office insisted that we add to it my mother and our in-laws, because it emphasizes the relationship. These were extra seats that the President made available. They were not in the official delegation that we provided.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Hon. members are enjoying this exchange. Let us ensure we can all, including the Speaker, hear both the questions and the answers, please.

The hon. member for Regina—Qu'Appelle.

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Mr. Speaker, is the Prime Minister sure that they just added in his in-laws and did not just drop the natural resources minister to make room?

It is not about whether some of these people paid back the cost of their flights; it is about the fact that they were there at all. For example, the Prime Minister's party fundraisers were granted privileged access to high-ranking U.S. officials. Now that is not a bad deal: repay the cost of a commercial flight and meet with connected Washington insiders.

However, do members know who was not there in Washington? Do they know who was not there to promote his portfolio? Do they know who was not there at the table to promote Canadian businesses? It was the natural resources minister.

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Yet again, Mr. Speaker, we see that the members opposite simply do not understand how important the relationship with the United States actually is.

Working together across broad portfolios, creating the kinds of interactions and strength between our two countries that Canadians rely on every day to move goods and services across the border, to find markets for their produce and products, these are the things that for 10 years the members opposite failed to get done. That is why we are working hard to grow Canada's economy and friendship with the United States.

Canada Revenue Agency

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Outremont, QC]

Mr. Speaker, by announcing that the RCMP will analyze the Panama papers data made public this week, the government wants to show that it is serious about cracking down on tax evasion.

However, the Prime Minister is doing everything he can to block the investigation into the 15 multimillionaires who illegally hid money in tax havens with the help of KPMG.

Can the Prime Minister explain why there is a double standard? Who are the KPMG clients and executives that he is trying to protect?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, we indicated very clearly that it is vital that all Canadians pay their fair share of taxes.

That is why we added $440 million to the budget. We want the Canada Revenue Agency to crack down on tax evasion and tax avoidance. That is why a Liberal MP, in committee, proposed an investigation into KPMG, and why we are working so hard: we want to ensure that all Canadians and all companies pay their fair share of taxes.

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Outremont, QC]

Mr. Speaker, actually it was the NDP that proposed it, and it was voted down by the Liberals.

The Panama papers revealed a vast network of shell companies in offshore tax havens. One Canadian firm, Newport Pacific, created an astonishing 60 companies in known tax havens. The vast majority of these offshore shell companies were set up while the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage worked at Newport Pacific.

Has the Prime Minister asked his parliamentary secretary if he assisted in the marketing, development, or design of any offshore companies in tax havens?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal Party has been very clear that, as government, we are committed to ensuring that all Canadians pay their fair share of taxes and to cutting down on avoidance and tax dodging.

The fact is that we put $440 million in this latest budget to ensure that the Canada Revenue Agency has the tools to go after tax avoidance and tax evasion. That is something that we are committed to. That is something that we are working very hard on. That is what we will continue to put forward, regardless of the smears put forward by the members opposite.

Small Business

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Outremont, QC]

And crickets on his parliamentary secretary.

Mr. Speaker, today the Liberals moved to cut off debate on their omnibus budget bill, something they once deplored when the Conservatives did it and something they promised never to do.

Buried within the bill, among changes to 35 other laws, is the cancelling of small business tax cuts, tax cuts that the Liberals promised they would keep. The PBO reported today that this broken promise would not only cost small businesses $2.2 billion, but it would kill jobs and hurt economic growth. Now that the Prime Minister knows the true cost of his flip-flop, will he do what he promised and reduce the small business tax rate?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Actually, Mr. Speaker, the budget implementation bill contains commitments that we made in our platform. There are very clear commitments in the budget. These are things that we are putting forward that would indeed allow for nine out of 10 Canadians to get more generous child benefit cheques as of July 1.

On top of that, we have allowed for around 20 hours of debate on the second reading of this bill. These are things that are greater proportionately than what any previous government has done for the small size of this budget bill.

Physician-Assisted Dying

[Thomas Mulcair, NDP, Outremont, QC]

Mr. Speaker, a number of experts and legal professionals have serious concerns about the constitutionality of Bill C-14. The legislation could be challenged in court, but in committee, the Liberals have rejected nearly all of the amendments that would have fixed the bill.

What is preventing the Prime Minister from seeking the Supreme Court's opinion on Bill C-14?

With so many raising concerns about the constitutionality of Bill C-14, why will the Prime Minister not simply refer the bill to the Supreme Court to avoid years of legal challenges.

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, on Bill C-14, Canadians understand that this is an important and big step in our nation's history as we move forward on a delicate issue under a time crunch by the Supreme Court.

One of the things Canadians expect is that we take this very seriously and responsibly, and that is exactly what we are doing before committee, and that is what we have been doing with these consultations.

The NDP has put forward amendments to enlarge the scope of the allowances. The Conservatives are putting forward amendments to further restrict it. We are listening to all proposals. We are working hard to ensure that Canadians have the right legal framework to help them with these incredibly personal and sensitive decisions.