House of Commons Hansard #160 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was housing.

Topics

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:35 p.m.

Winnipeg North Manitoba

Liberal

Kevin Lamoureux LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to one petition.

Mr. Speaker, while I am on my feet, I move:

That the House do now proceed to Orders of the Day.

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:40 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

The question is on the motion. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:40 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

No.

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:40 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

All those in favour of the motion will please say yea.

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:40 p.m.

Some hon. members

Yea.

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:40 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

All those opposed will please say nay.

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:40 p.m.

Some hon. members

Nay.

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:40 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

In my opinion the yeas have it.

And five or more members having risen:

Before I call in the members, the member for Pierre-Boucher—Les Patriotes—Verchères is rising on a point of order.

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:40 p.m.

Bloc

Xavier Barsalou-Duval Bloc Pierre-Boucher—Les Patriotes—Verchères, QC

Mr. Speaker, I seek the unanimous consent of the House to move the following motion: “That, given proposals articulated during the October 6, 2016, take-note debate on the Standing Orders of the House of Commons, a special committee be constituted to conduct a comprehensive review of the Standing Orders and procedure of the House of Commons as follows: (a) that the review be divided into four parts as follows: 1. management of debate, 2. management of the House and its meetings, 3. management of committees, and 4. management of parliamentary groups; (b) that committee members submit their list of proposed witnesses to the Clerk no later than seven calendar days following the adoption of this motion; (c) that the committee may meet outside of regular meeting hours, if any, to complete its review by the date indicated in item (i); (d) that the committee consist of 12 members, which shall include five members from the government party, three members from the official opposition, two members from the New Democratic Party, one member from the Bloc Québécois, and the Green Party of Canada member; (e) that changes to the membership of the committee be effective immediately after notification by the Whip has been filed with the Clerk of the House; (f) that membership substitutions be permitted, if required, in the manner provided for in Standing Order 114(2); (g) that, with the exception of the member for Saanich—Gulf Islands, all other members shall be named by their respective Whip by depositing with the Clerk of the House the list of their members to serve on the committee no later than 10 sitting days following the adoption of this motion; (h) that the committee be chaired by a member of the government party; that, in addition to the chair, there be one vice-chair from the official opposition and one vice-chair from the New Democratic Party, and that all candidates for the position of chair or vice-chair from the official opposition shall be elected by secret ballot, and that each candidate be permitted to address the committee for not more than three minutes; (i) that the quorum of the committee be as provided for in Standing Order 118, provided that at least four members are present and provided that one member from the government party and one member from an opposition party are present; (j) that the committee be granted all of the powers of a standing committee, as provided in the Standing Orders, as well as the power to travel, accompanied by the necessary staff, inside and outside of Canada; (k) that the committee have the power to authorize video and audio broadcasting of any or all of its proceedings; (l) that, at the conclusion of the review of House procedures and practices, the Committee will only make recommendations to the House that enjoy the support of all the members of the committee; and (m) that the Committee complete its report and present its findings and recommendations to the House no later than June 16, 2017.

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:40 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

Does the hon. member have the unanimous consent of the House to move the motion?

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:40 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

No.

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

3:40 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

Call in the members.

(The House divided on the motion, which was agreed to on the following division:)

Vote #245

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:20 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

I declare the motion carried.

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:20 p.m.

NDP

Daniel Blaikie NDP Elmwood—Transcona, MB

Mr. Speaker, I know the government has its reasons for wanting to move past routine proceedings, but one of the unfortunate consequences is that a particular time of day that allows MPs to represent their constituents gets blown past.

Could we have unanimous consent to return to the rubric of presenting petitions?

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:20 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

Is there unanimous consent?

Government Response to PetitionsRoutine Proceedings

4:20 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

No.

The House resumed consideration of the motion that this House approve in general the budgetary policy of the government.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

4:20 p.m.

Liberal

Fayçal El-Khoury Liberal Laval—Les Îles, QC

Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for Parkdale—High Park.

I have been surprised recently by the comments emanating from Quebec's political circles. People have been criticizing the work of the federal Liberals regarding the budget presented by my colleague from Toronto Centre, the hon. Minister of Finance, Bill Morneau. I would like to begin by reassuring Quebec and all Quebeckers—

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

4:25 p.m.

Liberal

The Assistant Deputy Speaker Liberal Anthony Rota

I would remind the hon. member that we do not mention other members by name in the House. He may continue his speech.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

4:25 p.m.

Liberal

Fayçal El-Khoury Liberal Laval—Les Îles, QC

Mr. Speaker, I would first like to assure Quebec and all Quebeckers, on my own personal behalf as well as that of every Liberal member from Quebec, I am sure, that we are there for them. We fight tooth and nail every day for Quebec's interests, businesses, people and infrastructure projects, whose financing is already in the honourable Minister of Finance's budget for this year, as it was last year.

This year, our government will establish the Canada infrastructure bank. With a budget of $35 billion, the bank will focus on public transportation networks and electricity grid interconnections. I see on page 120 of the budget that the Government of Canada will provide financial support for REM, the réseau électrique métropolitain, a Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec project.

Other projects that the Government of Quebec is eager to move on are the Quebec City bus rapid transit system and the Montreal metro blue line east extension. These projects align well with our government's plan to implement green projects under bilateral agreements. The Government of Canada will pay provinces up to $9.2 billion for priority projects that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions or contribute to the development of clean and better-connected electricity grids.

Also, many other projects approved and under way give Quebec access to $7.2 billion under the building Canada plan 2014-24. In budget 2016, under phase 1 of the infrastructure plan, Quebec was quick to sign agreements allowing it to receive $2.7 billion by 2021.

The Canada Infrastructure Bank will also have a $300-million supplementary fund for creating smart cities in Canada. That should make the mayor of Montreal happy.

In sum, as far as the work of the federal Liberal caucus is concerned, I will say to my fellow Quebeckers and those who are concerned about our work that we are defending the interests of Quebec, as evidenced by the very many projects that are currently getting funding from the Government of Canada.

People like me who are naturalized Canadians never stop revelling in the natural beauty of this country. We are blessed to be able to enjoy such a vast and beautiful country. Our government wants to preserve this beautiful nature, eliminate sources of pollution, and preserve natural areas. That makes sense. To love this country is to preserve it and help it flourish.

That is why it is only logical that we invest $21.9 billion in green infrastructure over the next 10 years. I would like to congratulate the hon. Minister of Finance for his vision and national perspective, as well as for his global vision. South of the border, there is a great deal of uncertainty .

The American President intends to make major tax cuts, and we still do not know what impact that will have. We do not know what will happen with NAFTA. We also do not know what impact American infrastructure projects will have on this side of the border.

There is also a lot of uncertainty with regard to Europe. What impact will Britain's departure from the European Union have and how will that affect the comprehensive economic trade agreement that Canada just signed with the European Union? What will be the outcome of the presidential election in France?

At times, it seems the uncertainties never end. The hon. Minister of Finance, however, took all of these things into account in order to develop an intelligent, prudent budget. He also developed a budget that gives hope to our future generations by including more measures to help the middle class and those who want to join it.

It therefore comes as no surprise that this budget benefits young people, workers, and businesses wanting to prepare for the structural changes that are on the horizon. Emerging technologies are going to drastically change the workforce. This upheaval was discussed at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where it was said that the level of job loss will wash over us like a tsunami or an avalanche.

We want to increase the share of green technologies in Canada's GDP. Indigenous peoples are not being left behind. Next year there will be programs with $4 billion in funding to help build and renovate housing and water treatment systems and make improvements to sanitation facilities and indigenous community infrastructure.

As far as health is concerned, we now know that Canada has concluded agreements with all the provinces to transfer $10.6 billion over 10 years to support home care and prevent mental health problems.

Budget 2017 would make a $7-billion investment to create 40,000 child care spaces in Canada by 2027. Countless other tax measures are included in this budget. They affect our way of life and our future. Every one of us as Canadians has reason to be proud when we look at this budget in detail because it looks to the future with confidence. This budget is not driven by numbers, it is driven by a vision, a hope, and a desire to make a positive contribution for future generations.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

4:30 p.m.

Conservative

Gérard Deltell Conservative Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his speech and for the eloquence with which it was delivered.

However, I disagree with the substance of his remarks. The president of the Quebec treasury board, the hon. Pierre Moreau, had some harsh words for these Liberal members. Just two days ago, Quebec's Liberal minister of health and social services, Dr. Gaétan Barrette, had some harsh words of his own for the Liberal members.

The member spoke earlier about the mayor of Montreal. Need I remind him that the mayor still does not understand why the government eliminated the public transit tax credit in its budget. The mayor is wondering why the government eliminated this tax credit when it is trying to encourage people to use public transit and is investing billions of dollars in public transit infrastructure.

The member is well aware that he was elected a year and a half ago on a platform that promised to balance the budget in 2019.

My question is simple. When will Canada balance its budget?

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

4:35 p.m.

Liberal

Fayçal El-Khoury Liberal Laval—Les Îles, QC

Mr. Speaker, I thank my opposition colleague for his question.

A single thing stood out to me in his comments, and that was when he said that the government is investing. That is true. We are investing in our green infrastructure. We are investing in protecting the environment. We are investing in the construction of affordable housing. We are investing to improve the situation and lives of our seniors. Yes, we are investing and we will continue to do so in order to improve the lives of Canadians.

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

4:35 p.m.

NDP

Robert Aubin NDP Trois-Rivières, QC

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Laval—Les Îles for his comments on the 2017-27 budget, which makes very few investments now, but announces many investments that will be made by some indeterminate future government.

Naturally, I find it hard to share his enthusiasm for how the Liberal members have been defending Quebec's interests. For instance, there is nothing in the budget on Montreal's réseau électrique métropolitain or the high-frequency train project. Furthermore, and probably to pay for those projects, the budget announced the infrastructure bank, in which the government will invest $35 billion that it does not have.

My question is very simple. Where will that $35 billion come from? From privatizing our airports?

Financial Statement of Minister of FinanceThe BudgetGovernment Orders

4:35 p.m.

Liberal

Fayçal El-Khoury Liberal Laval—Les Îles, QC

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question.

I can assure my colleague that we will continue to stand up for Quebec, as we are doing now, and much more than our friends across the aisle did. We take Quebec's interests to heart. Indeed, 40 members from Quebec work day and night to improve the lives of Quebec citizens.

I can give several examples of this. We gave Bombardier a loan to safeguard over 4,000 jobs in Quebec. We are currently working on extending the Montreal metro's green line. We are helping the Government of Quebec by transferring funds to the provincial department of health and social services in order to improve our seniors' quality of life. We announced a 10% increase in the guaranteed income supplement for our seniors. We care about Canadians and Quebeckers. The 40 members who represent Quebec are looking out for Quebec's interests.