Debates of Feb. 24th, 2017

Literacy Challenge

[Neil Ellis, Liberal, Bay of Quinte, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today I am proud to highlight a program in my riding, which is helping our community members celebrate our nation's 150th birthday by encouraging literacy and instilling a love for reading.

Students from JK to grade 8 are participating in our own Bay of Quinte Canada 150 Literacy Challenge. Through this challenge, we are inspiring our children to build personal connections to our proud Canadian heritage and culture by reading 150 pieces of Canadian literature, or written by a Canadian, or emphasizing Canadian content.

Many of our most notable civic figures have accepted the Bay of Quinte Canada 150 Literacy Challenge with enthusiasm. Schools, libraries, and community centres have also participated and hosted public reading events.

I encourage all of my hon. colleagues to consider joining the Canada 150 Literacy Challenge and bring the same joyful celebration of our nation to their communities.

NASCAR Cup Series

[Karen Vecchio, Conservative, Elgin—Middlesex—London, ON]

Mr. Speaker, start your engines. The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series begins this weekend with the Daytona 500. I am proud to rise in the House today to let all Canadians know, that D.J. Kennington, from the township of Southwold, will be the first Canadian in 29 years to race in the Daytona 500, and only the eighth Canadian to ever start in the Daytona Classic.

Last night, in the last qualifying race, Kennington squeaked out a spot, and outgunned the drivers he needed to beat, securing the last of 40 starting positions in NASCAR's biggest race.

I know his wife, dad, mom, his entire family, pit crew, and co-workers from the township of Southwold are very proud of him.

As we watch D.J. race number 96 this Sunday at 2 p.m., and throughout the NASCAR Cup Series, residents of Elgin—Middlesex—London are sure to be learning the terms: #slingshot, #banking, #compressionratio, #shakinbake, as we cheer for @DJKRacing.

I wish him all the best. He is an incredible inspiration, and remember:Elgin—Middlesex—London go fast and turn left.

Bernie Custis

[Bob Bratina, Liberal, Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the city of Hamilton has its own unique place in the history of black Canadians. Sadly, part of that history was lost yesterday with the passing of Bernie Custis.

In 1951, Bernie Custis began his professional career with the Hamilton Tiger Cats as pro football's first black quarterback. It did not happen in the United States until 1968.

Dad got season tickets in 1952, partly because of all the excitement Bernie was bringing to the game, and I watched him as an eight-year old in section 11. I got to know Bernie personally when he began his coaching career with the Burlington Braves and the McMaster Marauders, with an overall record in those teams of 105 wins and only 43 losses.

Bernie is in the Canadian Football, McMaster University and Syracuse University Halls of Fame. He also served his community as a teacher and principal.

His friends will remember him as a kind, intelligent, decent, and thoughtful man, whose dignity carried him through the inevitable episodes of racism sadly common during the years of his youth. We will miss him.

André Savaria

[Michel Picard, Liberal, Montarville, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this week, we lost a great man. André Savaria passed away at the young age of 83. Born in Sainte-Julie, he was a municipal councillor from 1972 to 1975, then mayor from 1975 to 1980.

Under his watch, countless parks and playgrounds were opened, as was the first municipal library—and let us not forget his significant involvement in getting the arena built. He also left his mark in a number of other areas. To honour his memory, the flags at city hall will fly at half mast until March 4.

I offer my deepest condolences to the family of Mr. Savaria, his loved ones, his friends, and the people of Sainte-Julie. The lunch we had coming up will have to be postponed for now.

Mr. Savaria, as you rest in heaven keep watch over your beautiful Sainte-Julie.

MPP for York—Simcoe

[Peter Van Loan, Conservative, York—Simcoe, ON]

Mr. Speaker, this week saw a record set at Queen's Park. The member of provincial parliament for York—Simcoe, Julia Munro, became Ontario's longest-serving female MPP ever. Julia became well-known in our community when she led the successful fight to stop Bob Rae's NDP proposal to locate North America's largest landfill site on the shores of Lake Simcoe.

A history teacher, Julia went on to teach the NDP a lesson it would never forget, and made some history of her own, as she went on to become the MPP for Durham—York and joined Mike Harris in painting Ontario blue. In the legislature, she has served in many roles, including as deputy speaker for the 40th Parliament.

Having served the residents of York—Simcoe for more than 21 years, she has a track record of fighting intrusive big government and working for individual freedom. Her electoral track record of success reflects the affection that York—Simcoe residents have for Julia Munro.

It is an honour to stand in the House of Commons today and pay tribute to the amazing work that Julia Munro has done for our community and for the province of Ontario in her work at Queen's Park. I congratulate Julia.

Black History Month

[Kamal Khera, Liberal, Brampton West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, as we celebrate Black History Month, I rise to recognize Mr. David Green from my community.

Mr. Green is a school board trustee in Brampton West, a bishop, and a youth counsellor. He is also the executive director of the Free For All Foundation, an organization that provides scholarships and youth programs free of charge to families in need.

Our country was built on the passion and dedication of leaders like Mr. Green. I thank Mr. Green for his continued service to our community.

Next week, I will host a round table with black Canadian community leaders from Brampton West to discuss potential solutions for the issues facing black Canadians.

I encourage all Canadians, in Brampton West and across Canada, to remember and celebrate the accomplishments of black Canadians not just this month, but every month

National Defence

[Randall Garrison, NDP, Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Canada must be a force for stability in this increasingly dangerous world by acting as a counterweight to the erratic and disruptive foreign policy of President Trump. Canada has already recommitted to NATO as an alliance that guarantees the defence of all its members, by offering to lead the NATO mission in Latvia, thus blunting Trump's assertion that the Baltic States are not defensible.

Canada should oppose Trump's cavalier remarks about proliferation of nuclear weapons and other advanced weapons systems by refusing to participate in the U.S. ballistic missile defence program. Our joining would risk setting off an arms race in advanced offensive missile capability as a response.

The New Democrats believe our troops should have the support, training, and equipment they need to do the difficult and dangerous work we ask them to do every day. We hope the Liberals will keep their promise of an increase in defence spending in the upcoming budget, and of allocating enough capital spending to sustain the national shipbuilding strategy.

Only with a well-trained and well-equipped military can Canada continue to play an independent role in the world in promoting peace and security.

Harriet Tubman Award

[Dave Van Kesteren, Conservative, Chatham-Kent—Leamington, ON]

Mr. Speaker, on January 29, two of my constituents, Bryan and Shannon Prince, were presented with the Harriet Tubman Commitment with a Purpose Award by the Ontario Black History Society. This prestigious award is presented to individuals for their success in maintaining a tradition of excellence in their work of preserving and promoting black history.

The Princes, who curate the Buxton National Historic Site and Museum, have received several honours over their many years for their dedication to the research and education of black history. This includes the Chatham-Kent Chamber of Commerce citizens of the year award and the YMCA Peace Medallion.

I invite all members to join with me in celebrating Black History Month by congratulating Bryan and Shannon on receiving this esteemed award.

Star of Courage

[Yvonne Jones, Liberal, Labrador, NL]

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to acknowledge Corporal Curtis Barrett, who is joining us in the gallery on Parliament Hill today.

In October 2016, Corporal Barrett was awarded the Governor General's Star of Courage for his act of bravery, recognizing his key role in stopping the shooter at the War Memorial and Centre Block of Parliament in October 2014.

Corporal Barrett is from Labrador. In March, his hometown of Labrador City will honour him for his act of courage in the face of great peril that rocked Parliament Hill and shocked our country.

Corporal Barrett is representative of the many men and women on the front lines, defending us as Canadians, our democratic institutions, and our communities.

I thank him on behalf of all Labradorians, on behalf of all Canadians, and on behalf of all of us who serve and work on Parliament Hill, for his courage, his skills, and his action to protect in a time of crisis.

I thank Corporal Curtis Barrett.

Taxation

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, during yesterday's debate on the carbon tax cover-up, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance offered a truly fascinating explanation as to why they needed to black out the cost of the carbon tax. She said that the memo's release would “cause confusion for Canadians”. I guess Liberal studies have shown that an overdose of transparency can lead to chronic cases of confusion. Liberals are protecting Canadians from the sticker shock they will experience if they find out what this tax will actually cost them.

Will the government end the carbon tax cover-up, clear up the real confusion, and release the true costs of this tax to Canadians?

[Catherine McKenna, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, the only confusion appears to be that the member opposite and the party opposite do not understand that we need to take action to tackle climate change, that polluting should not be free. We know that we need to put a price on pollution, because that means we will pollute less, actually innovate, develop clean technologies, grow our future, and ensure a more sustainable world for our children and grandchildren.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Still on the carbon tax cover-up, Mr. Speaker, today we learned that in January inflation was a third higher than expected. Bloomberg reported that the inflation growth was caused by “rising gasoline prices and new carbon levies”. This supports finance documents, which earlier said that Liberal carbon taxes would cascade throughout the economy in the form of higher prices on consumers, families, and businesses, but how much those costs would be are blacked out by the Liberals.

Now that Canadians are paying more, will the government finally end the carbon tax cover-up?

[Catherine McKenna, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, if the member opposite were really concerned about hard-working Canadians, he wouldn't have opposed the increase in the Canada pension plan, lowering old age security to 65, increasing the guaranteed income supplement for seniors, and ensuring that Canadian families get more through the Canada child benefit. We understand that we need to support middle-class Canadians, and they also elected us to take action on climate change so that we can grow our economy and ensure a sustainable future.

Finance

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in the interest of transparency, the chair of the transport committee has announced that the budget date will be March 21. Bloomberg lists the budget options as “tax, borrow, or wait”. Paul Wells said, “A funny thing happened on the way to [the Prime Minister]’s new world of justice for the middle class: the federal government ran out of money”. As Margaret Thatcher would have said, the Liberals are running out of other people's money.

Will the finance minister finally put is his head up before he runs straight on into the brick wall of reality?

[Bill Morneau, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, we are looking forward to budget 2017. What it will be is a continuation of our efforts to help middle-class Canadians, a continuation of our efforts to ensure that we actually grow our economy.

The reason we chose investment over austerity was because we knew that after a decade of meagre growth, the lowest growth for eight decades, it was time to make investments in the future of our country. That is exactly what we are doing. We are ensuring that children today, the people seeking jobs today, have those sorts of opportunities tomorrow. That is why our initiatives have created exceptional job growth, and we are looking forward to that continuing with our new budget measures.

Employment

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Mr. Speaker, if there is one thing the Liberals can be proud of, it is their ability to come up with slogans. They come up with empty slogans, as in their plan to help Canadian businesses create jobs, slogans on the environment to justify a new carbon tax, and slogans on infrastructure investment, instead of getting projects off the ground.

I have one for them: when will the Liberals get out of the way, lower taxes on middle-class businesses, and help those working hard to create jobs in Canada?

[Bill Morneau, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, what we know is necessary in our economy is to ensure that Canadian consumers, middle-class Canadians, those people who actually need to be able to buy things for their families, are being put in a good situation. That is why we introduced the Canada child benefit. That is why we lowered middle-class taxes. What those things will do is allow people to put more money into our economy. Together with the investments we are making, what that will do is help us to grow our economy so that businesses, small businesses, medium-sized businesses, large businesses, in our country can be successful, creating jobs for Canadians.

Softwood Lumber

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Mr. Speaker, more slogans.

For 15 months, the Liberals have been repeating ad nauseam that they want a softwood lumber agreement, but not just any agreement. So far there is no agreement, but now there is a task force that will start thinking about an agreement. Seriously. For 15 months now, the Liberals have done absolutely nothing for the 200,000 Canadians who work hard in our forestry industry.

The Liberal champion of softwood lumber, the Minister of Natural Resources, was never allowed to cross the border to defend his honour.

Will the minister take his work seriously and finally deliver a new agreement? When will we have a real Minister of Natural Resources instead of just any minister?

[Matt DeCourcey, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I would remind members of the House that the former Conservative government allowed the agreement to lapse. Our government is vigorously defending the interests of Canadian softwood lumber workers and producers.

We have a two-pronged approach, and the Minister of Natural Resources has announced the creation of a federal-provincial task force. We will continue our discussions with the United States, just as the Prime Minister did last week in Washington and yesterday by telephone. We are looking for a good agreement, and not just any agreement.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the Premier of Manitoba announced that the province will provide funding for housing and resettlement services for hundreds of asylum seekers who have risked life and limb to come to Canada. The premier also called on the federal government to set up a nationally coordinated response.

The continuation of the safe third country agreement will mean that even more refugees will come to Canada illegally. As provinces begin stepping up, why has the Liberal government taken no action and provided zero measures to address this situation? Why are they missing in action?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, our government is committed to maintaining a refugee system that maintains our tradition of providing compassion to those seeking safety and security in our country. We remain committed to working closely with CBSA, RCMP, and local communities. We thank communities for their generosity, and local officials for welcoming individuals who are coming over from the United States.

As far as the safe third country agreement is concerned, the hon. member may know or should know that, as of this morning, the head of the UNHCR in Canada has said that the domestic asylum system in the United States is unchanged. Therefore, the parameters and conditions of the safe third country agreement continue to be met.

Public Safety

[Jenny Kwan, NDP, Vancouver East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, that is with the exception that people are fleeing and coming to border communities here in Canada because they do not feel safe in the U.S. anymore.

The Liberals' Bill C-23 would give American border guards even more powers to question, search, and even detain Canadians on Canadian soil. There are already too many reports of Canadians being unfairly harassed or profiled at border crossings. The current pre-clearance system is working well, so why are the Liberals pushing this legislation forward? Why is the government working so hard to give even more powers to Trump's border guards?

[Ralph Goodale, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, the approach by the hon. member would simply blow up Canada's border with the United States. How would that be good for the 400,000 people who cross that border every day? How would that be good for the $2.5 billion in trade that crosses that border every day? How would that be good for the refugees who are seeking refuge when they cross that border every day?

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees has said that Canada is handling the situation appropriately, and so has the Canadian Council for Refugees. It has praised our approach to dealing with this situation.

Taxation

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

Mr. Speaker, while SMEs like the businesses in the Saint-Hubert Plaza are wondering what happened to the Liberals who promised them a lower tax rate, the wealthiest members of our society are still taking advantage of tax loopholes.

The Liberals' flip-flop on their plan to increase taxes on stock options is yet more proof of the influence that rich lobbyists have on government policies, as if we did not have enough proof already.

When will the Liberal government stop letting its millionaire friends call the shots and finally put an end to tax loopholes?

[Bill Morneau, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, we know that it is very important to have an efficient and fair tax system that works well for the middle class. That is why we cut taxes for the middle class. We also increased the tax rate for the wealthiest people in our country. It was the right thing to do.

SMEs need a healthy economy. That is why we are investing in our economy so that SMEs and Canadians who are looking for work will have more opportunities available to them.