House of Commons Hansard #241 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was senate.

Topics

EthicsOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Conservative

Alain Rayes Conservative Richmond—Arthabaska, QC

Mr. Speaker, in Canada, financial executives have to disclose any transactions they make on the stock market. These measures were put in place to prevent insider trading.

The Minister of Finance is Canada's chief financial officer. He is the one who makes the rules. Consequently, he must be above reproach and lead by example.

If the Minister of Finance does not want to be transparent with Canadians, how can the Prime Minister still trust him?

EthicsOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Papineau Québec

Liberal

Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister

Mr. Speaker, once again, the members opposite are insinuating things that they do not want to come right out and say and that they certainly would not say outside the House. They are hiding behind parliamentary privilege. That is proof that this is nothing but a smear campaign against a finance minister who is managing the country so well that Canada has the strongest growth in the G7. We created 500,000 new jobs, and we are helping families across the country. We are going to continue in that direction.

EthicsOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Conservative

Alain Rayes Conservative Richmond—Arthabaska, QC

I have some facts for you, Mr. Speaker. Over the past two years, it has been proven that the Minister of Finance violated ethics laws. He forgot to put his assets in a blind trust. He forgot to declare his villa in France. He refuses to disclose his numbered companies. The cherry on top is this business with his block of 680,000 shares worth over $10 million that were sold just before a measure was introduced in the House. No one trusts this finance minister anymore.

What is the Prime Minister waiting for to fire him?

EthicsOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Papineau Québec

Liberal

Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister

Mr. Speaker, once again the opposition has nothing better to do than sling mud.

We are showing how to create economic growth after 10 years of sluggish economic growth under Stephen Harper, when we experienced the worst growth rate since before World War II. The work we are doing now will lead to real benefits for Canadians. The opposition had nothing better to do than make personal attacks and mount a smear campaign.

EthicsOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Regina—Qu'Appelle Saskatchewan

Conservative

Andrew Scheer ConservativeLeader of the Opposition

Mr. Speaker, I think the Prime Minister has rehearsed yesterday's talking points. In fact, our finance shadow minister did go outside the House and repeated everything that was said inside the House.

It may be a standard practice on Bay Street to threaten legal action any time legitimate questions are raised, but that is not befitting of a finance minister.

If he believes he did nothing wrong, could the finance minister simply confirm or deny whether it was he who sold 680,000 shares days before the motion to change taxes was tabled in the House.

EthicsOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Papineau Québec

Liberal

Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister

Mr. Speaker, I can understand that it be the Leader of the Opposition who chooses to get up again. The member for Carleton refused to repeat the allegations he made on Monday outside the House yesterday. He is hiding behind parliamentary privilege. I do not blame the Leader of the Opposition for taking his place right now.

EthicsOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Regina—Qu'Appelle Saskatchewan

Conservative

Andrew Scheer ConservativeLeader of the Opposition

Mr. Speaker, I think the Prime Minister and the finance minister are jumping the gun. The accusations have not been made, because we are just trying to get an answer to the question. Was it the finance minister who sold 680,000 shares days before the motion was tabled in the House?

It is up to him to answer the question. If he did it, will he defend it? If he did not do it, why can he just not say it?

EthicsOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Papineau Québec

Liberal

Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister

Now, Mr. Speaker, we see a bit of damage control where the opposition is trying to hide behind lawyers and hide behind parliamentary privilege.

On Monday, the opposition made allegations that its members have refused to repeat outside the chamber. The member for Carleton swept out of this chamber, and then refused to repeat what he had said on Monday outside the chamber. Now they are backtracking, because their lawyers have told them to. These are the kinds of attacks and campaign of throwing dirt which they have been doing.

EthicsOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Some hon. members

Oh, oh!

EthicsOral Questions

2:35 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

Order, please. I want to remind members that each side gets their turn. Members on one side should have confidence in those who will have a chance to speak for their side, to make the arguments they feel should be made. However, they should not make them while someone else is speaking and has the floor, but wait until they have the chance when they have the floor.

Let us list to the hon. Leader of the Opposition and then to the answer.

EthicsOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Regina—Qu'Appelle Saskatchewan

Conservative

Andrew Scheer ConservativeLeader of the Opposition

Mr. Speaker, all the facts that have been said inside the House by opposition MPs have been repeated outside the House. Those are yesterday's talking points that the Prime Minister is going on.

However, when we look at the facts, the Liberal campaign platform would lead Canadians to believe that the fiscal changes would take place and come into effect on April 1, 2016. Only when the finance minister decided they would come into effect in December 2015, and only when the public knew about that, would markets move. Days before that decision was announced to Canadians, 680,000 shares were sold. Was it the finance minister who made the sale?

EthicsOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Papineau Québec

Liberal

Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister

Mr. Speaker, opposition members have a job to do. They have to oppose. The challenge they have right now, despite 10 years of terrible economic stories from Stephen Harper's Conservative government, is that we have been able to demonstrate record growth and record job creation. We have helped millions of Canadians by lowering taxes on the middle class and raising them on the wealthiest 1%. They voted against those measures. However, they now have nothing to do except make wild accusations and sling mud. That is simply what they do.

EthicsOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Conservative

Michael Cooper Conservative St. Albert—Edmonton, AB

Answer the question.

EthicsOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

I have to ask the member for St. Albert—Edmonton to restrain himself and not interrupt when someone else has the floor. I know it is an exciting moment, but we have to restrain ourselves.

EthicsOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

An hon. member

Oh, oh!

EthicsOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

It seems the member for St. Albert—Edmonton did not hear me and is not listening.

The hon. Leader of the Opposition.

EthicsOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Regina—Qu'Appelle Saskatchewan

Conservative

Andrew Scheer ConservativeLeader of the Opposition

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister and the finance minister cannot answer simple questions. We have asked them if the finance minister meet with the Ethics Commissioner before tabling Bill C-27. They cannot answer that. We have asked whether it was the finance minister himself who sold the shares just days before tax measures became public here in the House of Commons. They cannot answer that. They cannot hide behind sweeping dismissals based on personal accusations. It is up to them to answer these questions.

We have an obligation to defend the interests of taxpayers. Canadians need to know there is not one set of rules for Liberals and another set of rules for everybody else.

Will the finance minister finally do the right thing and resign?

EthicsOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Papineau Québec

Liberal

Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister

Mr. Speaker, the members of the opposition cannot even keep their story straight in their attacks. For weeks, they demanded that the finance minister sell his shares. Now, they are saying that he should not have sold his shares. They are all over the place in their attacks, because that is just what they do.

Meanwhile, we remain focused on Canadians, on lowering taxes for the middle class, on lowering taxes for small businesses, on creating investments in infrastructure that will help Canadians from coast to coast to coast, on delivering on the promises we made in the election campaign on which Canadians are counting.

Human RightsOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

NDP

Hélène Laverdière NDP Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC

Mr. Speaker, in his apology to the LGBTQ2 community yesterday, the Prime Minister acknowledged that there is still much work to do. A bill to expunge criminal convictions for consensual sexual activity between same-sex partners has been introduced. However, the bill to make the age of consent the same for everyone has been languishing on the Order Paper for a long time now.

Will the Prime Minister commit to working with us to pass both of these bills before the House rises for the holidays?

Human RightsOral Questions

2:40 p.m.

Papineau Québec

Liberal

Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister

Mr. Speaker, yesterday was an important day for everyone in the the House, for all Canadians, and for future generations. Recognizing the harm we did as an institution and as a country to members of the LGBTQ2 community was essential. However, as the member said, there is still much work to do.

We will keep moving forward with changes to our laws, practical changes that send a clear message to the LGBTQ2 community that the discrimination and harm they were subjected to will never happen again.

Human RightsOral Questions

November 29th, 2017 / 2:45 p.m.

NDP

Randall Garrison NDP Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke, BC

Mr. Speaker, after yesterday's historic apology to the LGBTQ community and with the answer we just had from the Prime Minister, we see an opportunity here to begin to address some of the unfinished business the Prime Minister has been talking about.

In order to do that, will the Prime Minister join us in seeking agreement from all members of this House to deal with Bill C-66 before Christmas, so that gay men with criminal records for same-sex consensual activity can have those records extinguished?

Human RightsOral Questions

2:45 p.m.

Papineau Québec

Liberal

Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member opposite for his long advocacy for human rights, for LGBTQ2 rights, and for the rights of all Canadians over many years. It was an honour to stand with him in this House yesterday.

As the member mentions, there is still much work to be done and we look forward to working with all members of this House to get it done as quickly as we can.

EthicsOral Questions

2:45 p.m.

Conservative

Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON

Mr. Speaker, yesterday I repeated outside of the House the same questions that I have been asking inside of the House. Unfortunately, the minister will not answer those questions in either of those two places.

Somebody sold $10 million of shares a week before the minister introduced tax changes that caused the stock market and Morneau Shepell shares to drop. Was that somebody him?

EthicsOral Questions

2:45 p.m.

Papineau Québec

Liberal

Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister

Mr. Speaker, you see, once again the lawyers have got into their questions.

On Monday, the member for Carleton made a very clear accusation in this House. He then swept out of the House yesterday and did not repeat that allegation outside of the House. He is hiding behind parliamentary privilege, which is why Canadians can know that this is nothing but unfounded, personal, baseless attacks and not a substantive criticism of the government.

EthicsOral Questions

2:45 p.m.

Conservative

Pierre Poilievre Conservative Carleton, ON

Mr. Speaker, fact: on December 7, the minister introduced tax changes that gave an incentive for investors to sell their stocks and realize their capital gains before the new year and before the new tax increase would take effect; fact: the stock market dropped and Morneau Shepell shares dropped by 5%; fact: the finance department has revealed that this phenomenon led to a reduction in revenues of almost $1 billion in the subsequent year. These are all facts.

He sold his shares at some point. I am asking again. Did he sell them immediately before he introduced that measure, yes or no?