Debates of Feb. 2nd, 2017

International Trade

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, our government has an outstanding record on serving Canadians well when it comes to international trade.

Canada signed CETA this past October. In December 2015, the current government had the U.S. labelling law, known as COOL, repealed. We have obtained greater access to the U.S. and Chinese markets for beef. We have also obtained greater access in China for canola producers, including my father.

We will continue to work tirelessly to grow the middle class, and I will vigorously defend our interests together with my dear colleague.

[Denis Lebel, Conservative, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this is not reassuring.

How can those members stand over there with a straight face and tell Canadians they believe in free trade? The minister's mandate letters make no mention of the softwood lumber agreement or trade with Asia-Pacific nations that were in the TPP. Canadian workers need the Liberal government to work in their best interests.

When can we expect a new softwood lumber agreement and new markets for our exporters?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of International Trade]

Mr. Speaker, more trade is more growth and more growth is more jobs for Canadians. That is why this government will be relentless. We will have an ambitious trade agenda to create jobs for Canadians, to open markets, so Canadians and their families can be better in our country. We have an ambitious trade agenda and we will put it forward.

Employment

[Denis Lebel, Conservative, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the evidence shows that the Liberals' policies were ill-advised from the start. The group that represents Canadian manufacturers had this to say: “Right now, Canada is not a competitive location for investment. Add this to the rapidly changing business environment in the US—a primary competitor for investment—with increased protectionism...and Canada's situation will only worsen”.

The Liberals can keep kidding themselves with their plans that do not work, but we are reporting facts.

What steps will the Prime Minister take to defend jobs here in Canada?

[Navdeep Bains, Liberal, Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind the member opposite that when it comes to taking concrete steps, we extended the automotive innovation fund in the 2016 budget. Not only did we extend that fund, but we changed the terms. Because of that, we attracted a $500 million investment in the Honda plant in Alliston. That will secure 4,000 jobs. That is taking concrete action. That is bringing investment to Canada. That is securing good quality jobs for the middle class.

We will remain focused on growing the economy and creating good quality jobs for Canadians.

Justice

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the call from a Liberal member of Parliament to legalize all drugs is very troubling. The Liberals are going to be legalizing marijuana, but parents are concerned they may be considering legalizing even more dangerous drugs.

Unfortunately, the Prime Minister was not clear on this yesterday, so I wonder if the Minister of Justice could tell us, after the Liberals legalize marijuana, what will be the next drug they plan on legalizing?

[Jane Philpott, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, the approach of this government to drug policy is evidence-based, compassionate, collaborative, and comprehensive.

When it comes to the matter of cannabis, we have made it very clear that we are going to legalize access to cannabis, but we are going to do so in a strict regulatory regime to keep marijuana out of the hands of children and the profits out of the hands of criminals.

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal member for Beaches—East York is on record calling for the legalization of all illegal drugs. Yesterday the Prime Minister refused to denounce that position.

Will the Minister of Health have the courage to stand today, denounce that position of that Liberal member of Parliament, and state for the record that the only drug the Liberals will be legalizing is marijuana, and please be clear for all Canadians?

[Jane Philpott, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, as I have just said, our approach to drug policy is evidence-based. We have made it very clear that we have plans to legalize access to cannabis and to strictly regulate it. We have plans to legalize no other substances.

We will work together to address the opioid crisis in a manner that is comprehensive, evidence-based, and responds to the needs of Canadians.

Democratic Reform

[Alexandre Boulerice, NDP, Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, during the election, the Liberals promised to reform our electoral system, which is archaic, outdated, and ineffective. All of the Liberal candidates promised electoral reform. Once elected, the Prime Minister repeated dozens of times that there would be electoral reform. He reiterated it in the House, the Speech from the Throne, the minister's mandate, and even the committee's mandate. We believed him. That was a big mistake. The lesson learned is that one should never believe the Liberals because they will go back on their word, just like that.

If they are breaking promises about our democracy, what is next?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Democratic Institutions]

Mr. Speaker, our electoral system is the foundation of our democracy. We respect the views of Canadians, and we consulted extensively with them on this important issue. Canadians are proud of our democracy. We have always been clear. Major reforms to the electoral system should not be made if they lack the broad support of Canadians.

I look forward to working with all Canadians and to continuing to strengthen our democracy.

[Alexandre Boulerice, NDP, Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, you wake up in the morning and you feel like you are living the same day over and over again. Another Liberal 180, another prime ministerial flip-flop, another letdown, another broken promise. Sure feels like Groundhog Day. Oh right, it is Groundhog Day.

The consensus is clear: 90% of the experts and the witnesses were in favour of proportional representation. That was the committee's majority opinion and the opinion that emerged from citizen assemblies. Even the people who did the Liberals' survey want political parties to work together.

Consultation is all well and good, but why not listen to people? Why are the Liberals making choices that benefit only themselves?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Democratic Institutions]

Mr. Speaker, we listened to Canadians. We were clear: no change of this magnitude should go ahead without the broad support of Canadians. We consulted extensively with Canadians. MPs organized public meetings. The special all-party committee produced a comprehensive report. Over 360,000 Canadians weighed in at MyDemocracy.ca.

My job is to strengthen and protect our democratic institutions. That is exactly what we are working toward together with—

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

The hon. member for Skeena—Bulkley Valley.

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, what the Liberals are saying is simply not true. It is the exact opposite of the truth. In fact, it is one of those “alternative facts” of which they have suddenly grown so fond.

There was a consensus. It was the Liberals who just simply refused to listen to it. Ninety percent of experts and Canadians who came before us and testified said that they wanted a proportional representation system. The recommendation from the Bloc, the Greens, the Conservatives, and the New Democrats called for a plan to bring in proportional representation.

There was actually one party that stood in the way of that consensus, and that was the Liberal Party of Canada. It is a bit rich when the Liberals claim there is no consensus. It is only Liberals standing in the way of that very consensus.

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Democratic Institutions]

Mr. Speaker, our government will continue to act to strengthen our democracy.

While we did not hear a consensus on a particular electoral system to replace the one we have now, Canadians were clear that we could do more to improve our democratic institutions. What we did hear was that Canadians were proud of our democracy.

That is why my new mandate letter includes protecting the integrity of our democracy by making our system less vulnerable to hacking, and improving transparency by making parties' political fundraising more open than ever before.

We will always work to ensure our democracy represents the values of Canadians.

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister keeps talking about her mandate, but I do not actually think she understands what the word fully means.

The mandate of a government does not come from some piece of paper handed to them by the Prime Minister. The mandate comes from the democratic will expressed by the voters of our country.

Let me quote the Prime Minister, who said just a few months ago, “Over 60% of Canadians voted in favour of parties that promised to change the current voting system”. That, in fact, is true. That is the minister's mandate. That is the government's mandate.

Is the Prime Minister so arrogant that he believes he can change, with the flick of a pen, the mandate that was given to him by millions of Canadians?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Democratic Institutions]

Mr. Speaker, there is nothing more foundational than how we choose to govern ourselves as Canadians.

We respect the views of Canadians, and we consulted extensively with them on this important issue. We listened to Canadians. We heard that Canadians were proud of our democracy. We have been clear. Major reforms to the electoral system should not be made if they lack the broad support of Canadians.

I look forward to working with Canadians to continue to strengthen our democracy.

Finance

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

Mr. Speaker, a few hours before Christmas, on December 23, the Department of Finance published a document that stated two very alarming things for Canada's future. If nothing changes, we are heading toward an accumulated debt of $1.5 trillion by 2050 and a return to balanced budgets in 2055. This does not make any sense. To fix the problem, the government has two choices: either it gets its spending under control, or it increases taxes.

Can the Minister of Finance assure us and tell Canadians that he is finally going to regain control over public finances?

[Bill Morneau, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, we have a real plan for improving the situation in the future. That plan is not in the finance department's report. We are going to invest in our country's future. That means investing in infrastructure and innovation. By doing so we will have more growth and be better positioned in the future. It is about having more work for Canadians and an economy that works for everyone.

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

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal plan is not working. The Liberals have been in power for 15 months, and the economy has been stagnating ever since. Even worse, we are headed toward a huge deficit and colossal debt. It is unacceptable. The minister refused to say that he plans to regain control of public finances, so I will reach out to him once again. Can the minister tell us this time that the Liberal government will not impose any new taxes on Canadians in the next budget?

[Bill Morneau, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, what I can say is that we started by cutting taxes for the middle class. That is the first thing we did. What is interesting is that the member and his party decided to vote against those measures. We plan to continue with our program to improve the lives of middle-class Canadians by leaving more money in their families' pockets.

Industry

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, while the Prime Minister has broken his promise on deficits and electoral reform, he is keeping his promise to “transition away from manufacturing-based employment”. Yesterday's Manufacturers and Exporters' report said, “Right now, Canada is not a competitive location for investment”.

Increases in business taxes, regulatory demands, and energy costs are making it more difficult and costly to do business in Canada, and there are new carbon and payroll taxes to come.

Why is the government taxing 1.7 million manufacturing workers out of their jobs?

[Bill Morneau, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I want to just keep repeating the fact that we are actually the government that reduced taxes on middle-class Canadians. We know we have a competitive corporate tax rate in this country. We know that it is important to continue to make investments in innovation in our economy. We know it is important to continue to focus on how we can help Canadians get the skills they need in our economy.

That is our intention, and I am very much looking forward to budget 2017 to continue that message to Canadians.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am not sure if the minister heard, but the question was actually about manufacturing. It is an industry that employs 1.7 million Canadians. He might have also noticed that yesterday, the association that represents those jobs indicated that Canada is moving from the seventh most favourable environment in which to manufacture to tenth, while the Americans are moving from third to first, and that is before the new payroll and carbon taxes the government is introducing. South of the border, they are cutting taxes and regulations to unleash the potential of free markets.

When will the government realize that if we do not get down to business over here, the Americans are going to eat us for lunch?