Debates of Nov. 28th, 2017

Health

[Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, our government recognizes the tragic impact of the opioid crisis that has faced our country. We remain committed to taking action through this compassionate, collaborative, and evidence-based approach. I also had the opportunity to meet that group when I was in Edmonton last week.

Formal declarations of an emergency will not provide us with any additional tools or extra measures to provide to the opioid crisis. Our government will continue to work with all partners to address this crisis and the underlying cause of problematic substance use.

Post-Secondary Education

[Pam Damoff, Liberal, Oakville North—Burlington, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives have tried to score political points with their so-called support for free speech at post-secondary institutions, yet there has not been a word from the Leader of the Opposition after a group was prevented last week from showing a pro-choice documentary on a university campus. It seems like he is only in favour of free speech when it is an opinion he agrees with.

Could the Minister of Science please tell the House what our government's position is on this important issue?

[Kirsty Duncan, Liberal, Minister of Science]

Mr. Speaker our government is committed to creating open spaces for Canadians to debate and express their views. We also firmly support a woman's right to choose. In a free society, we may disagree with a person's views but we must defend the right to hold them unless those views promote hate.

The opposition leader's silence suggests he will only stand up for free speech if it is politically convenient. We cannot cherry-pick on free speech.

[The Speaker, Geoff Regan]

All members could show a little respect for free speech by not interrupting when someone else has the floor.

Ethics

[Maxime Bernier, Conservative, Beauce, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Morneau's office confirmed to the National Post that someone sold more than 680 shares—

[The Speaker, Geoff Regan]

Order. I would remind the member that he must not refer to other members by name. I would ask him to continue without doing this.

[Maxime Bernier, Conservative, Beauce, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister's office told the National Post that someone sold 680,000 Morneau Shepell shares in November 2015 at $15 a share, which allowed that person to save half a million dollars.

My question is simple. Was that person the Minister of Finance?

[Joël Lightbound, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance has always worked with the Ethics Commissioner. He has always said that he was completely transparent with her in disclosing his assets, following her recommendations, and upholding the highest standards of integrity. He will always work with the Ethics Commissioner.

[Maxime Bernier, Conservative, Beauce, QC]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague said that the minister works with the Ethics Commissioner. If that is true, did he ask the Ethics Commissioner for permission before selling 680,000 shares in his family company, which allowed him to make a $500,000 profit, since the value of those shares dropped by 75¢ seven days later?

Did the Minister of Finance inform the Ethics Commissioner of his intention to sell his company shares in November 2015, yes or no?

[Joël Lightbound, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Finance has always been transparent in his dealings with the Ethics Commissioner by following her recommendations, including setting up a conflict of interest screen, which she thought was the best possible measure of compliance.

As the member for Beauce knows, the minister announced that he would go the extra mile by divesting himself of the rest of his shares in Morneau Shepell and placing all his assets in a blind trust.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I tried asking the minister inside the House of Commons if he sold 680,000 shares on November 30 and now I invited him to come and answer that question outside the House of Commons. The House will be disappointed to learn that he did not show up to answer the question, so will the Prime Minister answer it on his behalf?

Who was it who sold 680,000 Morneau Shepell shares one week before tax measures were introduced on the floor of the House?

[Joël Lightbound, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, as I have said, the Minister of Finance always worked with the Ethics Commissioner. He will continue to do so, but I do appreciate the opportunity to talk about the tax measures that were announced in December 2015, which fulfilled a commitment that we made during the election campaign, namely to raise taxes for the wealthiest 1%.

I know that it is a fairly strange idea for the opposition party, which focused on giving tax breaks to the wealthy during the 10 years they were in power. We cut taxes for 9 million Canadians, and we introduced the Canada child benefit to reduce inequality in this country. This is a record that I am proud of.

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, somebody avoided paying the higher taxes that the finance minister imposed by selling those 680,000 shares before those measures took place. Someone sold those shares before the new tax measures were tabled in this House of Commons. It was either the minister, and he does not think there was anything wrong with that, or it was not the minister, and he could just say that.

We have repeated everything that was said in the House outside the House. The Liberals have refused to answer questions in the House or outside. Will the Prime Minister answer the question, who sold those shares in December?

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Geoff Regan]

Order, order. I am sure we will hear about some things later on.

The hon. parliamentary secretary.

[Joël Lightbound, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I am quite pleased with the question from the opposition member, who has given me the opportunity to talk about this tax measure that he is referring to. What is this tax measure? It is to raise taxes for the wealthiest 1% and to cut them for 9 million Canadians, and it is the Canada child benefit that we have made more progressive than ever. Under the Conservatives, not only was it taxable, but it was also sent to all families, regardless of income. We have introduced more fairness into our tax system to give more to those families who need it the most, and I am proud of that.

Public Services and Procurement

[Irene Mathyssen, NDP, London—Fanshawe, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the phoenix shows no signs of rising from the ashes. The problems continue.

Now we learn there is no way to assess whether programs to prioritize the hiring of Canada's veterans are working. The government knew about this. It made promises, but still cannot claim an increased number of veterans in the public service because it has no way of knowing if, or how many, veterans have been hired.

When will the government show veterans and public servants the respect they have earned, and fix the Phoenix problems?

[Seamus O'Regan, Liberal, Minister of Veterans Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, there is no question that there are many who have suffered under Phoenix system, and veterans are certainly some of those.

We are doing our level best to identify those who have been affected, and we are asking some of them to come forward. It does make it difficult, because we do need a head count on these individuals. However, I can say that these officials are working diligently on the matter. We ask those veterans who have not come forward and who have been affected by Phoenix to please do so, and we will do our level best to help.

[Karine Trudel, NDP, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this morning in committee, the deputy minister responsible for fixing the Phoenix fiasco said that IBM did not make any mistakes in creating and implementing the pay system. On the contrary, the company merely did what it was asked to do. In other words, all the blame lies with whoever is managing the project, namely this government.

If the government did not know what it was doing when it implemented Phoenix, how can we expect it to fix this disaster? It is time to work with the real experts: our public servants and unions.

[Carla Qualtrough, Liberal, Minister of Public Services and Procurement]

Mr. Speaker, let me assure everyone that resolving this situation is my top priority.

People deserve to be paid properly and on time. When the previous government irresponsibly treated this project as a cost-cutting measure instead of the complex, enterprise-wide business transformation that it was, it set the project up to fail and exposed it to enormous risk. We are currently taking steps that the previous government did not take.

Taxation

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

Mr. Speaker, the government promised a client-focused CRA, and all we have so far are tax increases on type 1 diabetics, half-baked plans for taxes on retail employees, misinformation, and busy signals.

Now there are reports that the CRA is auditing single moms and telling them to get expensive separation agreements, and then telling that it is not good enough, and withholding their child benefits.

When will the minister stop attacking ordinary, honest Canadians who are just trying to comply, and receive the credits and benefits to which they are entitled?

[Diane Lebouthillier, Liberal, Minister of National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, I am dedicated to ensuring that Canadians, especially the most vulnerable, get the benefits they are entitled to. That is a key part of my mandate. The CRA has never set out to make life more difficult for anyone. We realize that some people cannot provide all of the information needed for the agency to review their files. People grappling with situations like that should contact the CRA for help.

[Dan Albas, Conservative, Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I am assisting a single mom with three kids who has provided independent third-party letters and even a restraining order to prove to the Canada Revenue Agency that her ex-spouse no longer lives with her. Worse yet, CRA has said that until her ex co-operates with her, she will have her Canada child benefit withheld.

The government is being heartless, and I am hearing increasing numbers of cases of similar stories. When will the minister instruct her officials to quit making life more difficult for Canadian single moms?

[Diane Lebouthillier, Liberal, Minister of National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, as I said, I am dedicated to ensuring that Canadians, especially the most vulnerable, get the benefits they are entitled to. That is an absolutely key part of my mandate. I can assure my colleague that the CRA does not withhold the Canada child benefit for want of a spouse's signature. I want to emphasize that the CRA would not require potential beneficiaries to communicate with an abusive spouse.

[The Speaker, Geoff Regan]

I urge the hon. member for Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola to remember that the time for debate is when one has the floor, and there are a lot of opportunities in this House for debate.

The hon. member for Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis.