House of Commons Hansard #50 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was budget.
Marilyn Gladu Conservative Sarnia—Lambton, ON
Mr. Speaker, I will expect to see palliative care mentioned in Bill C-14.
The Minister of Health said her priority was palliative care for $3 billion. However, she is spending her time and government resources right now on legalizing marijuana.
Is marijuana a bigger priority for our aging population than palliative care? Is it worthy of her attention now, or is her palliative care initiative going to pot?
Kamal Khera LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health
Mr. Speaker, it is important that Canadians have a good, peaceful, and dignified life until the very end. For that purpose, we will make sure that Canadians have access to the palliative care services that they need. We will do so with the participation of our colleagues and the provinces and territories. This is something we look forward to talking about with our colleagues on the other side in the future.
Harold Albrecht Conservative Kitchener—Conestoga, ON
Mr. Speaker, due to the legal uncertainty created by the Liberal promise to legalize marijuana, grow ops are sprouting up in my riding. This is causing significant health concerns, especially for our children.
Could the minister explain exactly how the Liberals plan to keep this product out of the hands of children when it could be available on every street corner?
Bill Blair LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada
Mr. Speaker, our government has been very clear that we intend to introduce a comprehensive and responsible framework of regulation for the strict control of marijuana in its production, its distribution, and its consumption.
Our intent in these regulations will be to keep it away from children, to prevent organized crime from continuing to profit from it, to make our communities safe, and to assure the health of all Canadians. To that end, we will shortly be announcing a task force, which will have expertise from the legal community, the health community, and the law enforcement community to enable the government to move forward and to ensure that—
Harold Albrecht Conservative Kitchener—Conestoga, ON
Mr. Speaker, Colorado has had legalized marijuana for over a year now, and we have started to see the statistics that show the dangers of its decision. According to Reuters, over 40 children were taken to a poison control centre after they picked up colourful sweets laced with strong doses of marijuana that their parents had left lying around.
The government has said it wants to protect children through legalizing marijuana. Could the Minister of Health explain exactly how she plans to do that?
Bill Blair LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada
Mr. Speaker, the question from the member opposite illustrates precisely the reason this government feels it is so necessary to change the current regime for the control of marijuana and replace it with something far more comprehensive, far more responsible, and quite frankly, far more effective.
We believe that through strict regulation we will be able to restrict access to children by being able to control the manner in which marijuana is retailed and consumed in this country.
We can do a far better job than the current criminal sanction.
Sheila Malcolmson NDP Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC
Mr. Speaker, the feds towed the vessel Silver King from one riding to mine a month ago. Now it is rotting right off Ladysmith's community dock, and dozens of abandoned vessels cram the harbour already. Local business, Ladysmith council, and the Stz'uminus First Nation all warn that this will harm the local community and economy.
This is a growing issue for our coast, yet the government is shuffling the problem from one community to another. When will the government remove abandoned vessels from Ladysmith's harbour?
Hunter Tootoo LiberalMinister of Fisheries
Mr. Speaker, when that vessel was reported, the Coast Guard was deployed to respond to a pollution threat by the Silver King. It began pumping water from the vessel and concluded that the vessel was no longer seaworthy and was beyond repair. It moved the vessel to a different location, and prior to deconstruction scheduled for later this month, the vessel will be cleaned and hazardous materials and potential pollutants will be removed.
Hélène Laverdière NDP Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister claims that gender equality and work-life balance are priorities for him, but some workplace child care services are shutting down as a result of a government decision to stop subsidizing their rent.
The government is turning its back on the parents of children at the early childhood centre at the Guy-Favreau complex in Montreal and the day care centre at the Tunney's Pasture complex here in Ottawa.
When will the Liberals finally reverse this regressive decision made by the Conservatives?
Jean-Yves Duclos LiberalMinister of Families
Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for her question.
I share her view regarding the importance of ensuring that all Canadians have access to high-quality, inclusive, flexible, and affordable child care.
As the hon. member knows, we are working very hard with the provinces and territories to guarantee that Canada, and the government in particular, resumes its leadership role in this initiative. Over the next few months, I will have the pleasure of informing the House of the specific actions that will be taken.
Colin Carrie Conservative Oshawa, ON
Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Health stated this week, “The problem of tamper-resistant opioids, if it is applied only to a single drug, will not solve the problem.” The real problem that needs to be solved is why she and the Liberals have abandoned regulations that would require oxycodone, fentanyl, and morphine opioids in Canada to become tamper resistant before being approved for sale in Canada.
Will the Minister of Health please revisit the issue of tamper-resistant regulations to stop dangerous opioid abuse in Canada?
Kamal Khera LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health
Mr. Speaker, I am a registered nurse myself, and we are keenly aware of the damage being done to families and communities right across Canada by the abuse of prescription drugs. We know how complex this issue is.
As part of our comprehensive approach, our government strongly supports opioid manufacturers who wish to take proactive measures to make their medications harder to abuse. Health Canada will continue to work with the industry and health care providers to identify further tools and interventions that can help address this growing problem.
Arnold Viersen Conservative Peace River—Westlock, AB
Mr. Speaker, another day and the Liberals break another promise to Canadians.
Post-secondary education is critical for improving quality of life and opportunities for indigenous youth. The Liberals promised to help the first nation and Inuit students through a post-secondary student support program. Instead of keeping their promises, the Liberals are moving in the other direction.
Why did the Liberals break their promise to indigenous students and why are they cutting staff from the program?
Carolyn Bennett LiberalMinister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his question and for the excellent opportunity we had at committee yesterday and his good questions there.
As we know, post-secondary education is a really important part of moving students out of poverty and into the labour force. I am working with my colleague the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development to make sure that the historic changes from loans to grants will be available for first nation students. We will also work in partnership—
Randy Hoback Conservative Prince Albert, SK
Mr. Speaker, Saskatchewan's economy continues to suffer under the Liberals. Job numbers today show job losses in April and another 200 jobs were lost again this past week in Regina. The member for Regina—Wascana failed to protect the 200 steelworkers at Regina's Evraz facility who were laid off this week. The Liberals have created a toxic investment climate in Canada and are showing that Canada is closed for business.
When are they going to start supporting the Canadian energy industry so that workers and other Canadians can get back to work?
Kim Rudd LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources
Mr. Speaker, as we have said many times in the House, the job of our government is to get our natural resources to market. We will continue to work with the National Energy Board in providing the resources it requires to ensure that we have a fulsome and comprehensive review of all major projects that ensures that we are protecting our environment while growing our economy.
Neil Ellis Liberal Bay of Quinte, ON
Mr. Speaker, everyone is saddened by the devastation in Fort McMurray. It is clear that we all have a role to play in helping this community get back on its feet. Many will be looking for immediate support, including access to employment insurance, pension payments, old age support, and other support services. Could the government please tell us what it is doing to ensure that the people of Fort McMurray have the support and resources they need?
Jean-Yves Duclos LiberalMinister of Families
Mr. Speaker, all Canadians stand by the people of Alberta and Fort McMurray in this terrible catastrophe. Our government is committed to helping Canadians affected by this forest fire and is concerned about the health and safety of workers and families.
Service Canada is making every effort possible to provide direct support and assistance, which can be obtained by calling 1-800-O-Canada, going online at www.servicecanada.gc.ca, or visiting Service Canada centres in areas outside of those evacuated.
Dan Albas Conservative Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola, BC
Mr. Speaker, the other day I raised the Comeau case, dealing with the right for people to bring beer freely into New Brunswick. Conservatives support this decision and think it is absolutely ridiculous that, in Canada, people cannot bring beer from one province to another. My question is for the Minister of Justice. Has the minister examined this case? Does she agree with the judgment?
Greg Fergus LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation
Mr. Speaker, of course, internal trade is a very important priority for this government, as it is a key platform for growth in the economy between provinces all across the country. We are actively working with our provincial and territorial counterparts to make sure we can have freer trade.
There is goodwill and commitment to get this job done, and we look forward to achieving a real renewed agreement in the future. We support the notion of having open markets, to having freer trade in—
The Assistant Deputy Speaker Liberal Anthony Rota
The hon. member for Ville-Marie—Le Sud-Ouest—Île-des-Soeurs.
Marc Miller Liberal Ville-Marie—Le Sud-Ouest—Île-des-Soeurs, QC
Mr. Speaker, the purpose of the technology demonstration program is to encourage early-stage research and development and promote collaborative efforts among firms, universities, and research institutions.
This type of initiative is critically important for growing the economy in the 21st century. Can the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development tell the House about the benefits of this program?
Greg Fergus LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation
Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Ville-Marie—Le Sud-Ouest—Île-des-Soeurs for his question.
Yesterday, the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development went to Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue to announce a $54-million contribution to MDA Systems Ltd. in Montreal.
This support will help MDA and its partners develop and test next-generation satellite technologies, which will lead to better radar and search and rescue capabilities, faster data transmission, and improved cloud-based data processing capabilities.