House of Commons Hansard #174 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was labelling.
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, we take very seriously the safety of Canadians, the safety of communities, and the safety of the front-line officers who put their lives on the line to protect their fellow Canadians every single day. That is why I am pleased that the committee took very seriously the study of this proposal to improve our justice system.
On this side of the House we believe in two things: we believe in evidence-based policy and we believe in allowing committees to do their jobs.
Rona Ambrose ConservativeLeader of the Opposition
This is unbelievable, Mr. Speaker. The Conservatives, the NDP, the Green Party, the Bloc, and many Liberal backbenchers got up, voted, and did the right thing so the bill would pass, and now at committee, where no one is watching, the Prime Minister has ordered it to be gutted.
This is disgusting. The Prime Minister should be ashamed of himself.
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I can understand the member's confusion. In this government we do not interfere with the functioning of committees. We allow committees to make their own determinations, to examine laws, to examine and hear from witnesses, and to make decisions based on evidence.
We are committed to improving our justice system. We are improving it for Canadians' sake. That is exactly what we are going to keep doing while we respect the hard work done by committees.
Candice Bergen Conservative Portage—Lisgar, MB
She has more courage in her little finger than you have in your entire being. Shame on you. She is not confused. She is brave and honest.
The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan
Order. Order. The hon. opposition House leader will come to order.
The hon. member for Outremont.
Thomas Mulcair NDP Outremont, QC
Mr. Speaker, the media has just reported that the Prime Minister have chosen a former Liberal cabinet minister to be the new Commissioner of Official Languages. These officers of Parliament, these commissioners, have to be above the fray. They cannot be weighed down by the baggage of partisan loyalty.
Could the Prime Minister tell us if that is exactly what is going on here? He is under a record number of investigations by commissioners. Has he simply decided that the best thing for him is that he decides from now on who gets to investigate him?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, as the hon. member well knows, this party believes deeply in the importance of official languages, and we take very seriously merit-based appointments.
As part of that appointments process, opposition members and leaders are consulted on potential names going forward. We look forward to making an announcement in the coming days or weeks about any new commissioners.
Thomas Mulcair NDP Outremont, QC
Mr. Speaker, this Prime Minister has violated the Official Languages Act and must apologize.
The problem is that he has not learned his lesson. First of all, appointing someone from his inner circle to this position is a clear conflict of interest. Second, this undermines the authority and the credibility of the commissioner of official languages as an institution. Lastly, it is an insult to all Canadians who strongly believe in the importance of official languages.
Will the Prime Minister withdraw that appointment, which defies all logic?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, an integral part of the appointment process for the official languages commissioner position includes consulting opposition members. That is what we are currently doing. We believe deeply in the importance of protecting our official languages. When it comes to protecting official languages, it is important to select someone of the highest calibre. We will be announcing this appointment in the coming days or weeks.
Thomas Mulcair NDP Outremont, QC
Mr. Speaker, speaking of appointments, we see that the government is ready to fill positions on the board of directors of the infrastructure bank. The only problem is that the infrastructure bank has not been created yet. Can the Prime Minister explain how he thinks it is appropriate to try to fill positions for something that does not exist?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, we know how much Canadians need infrastructure to get to school, work, and back home on time, and to send our goods and services to market. It is important to invest in infrastructure and that is what we are doing. That is why we are taking a very serious approach to finding highly qualified people to advance this file. We take every appointment that we can make as a government very seriously.
Thomas Mulcair NDP Outremont, QC
Mr. Speaker, with that lack of an answer, we are going to have to follow up on this with you. The government created this privatization scheme during secret meetings with corporations, never revealed this during the election, and never revealed that Canadians would be forced to pay tolls and user fees so that their buddies in the corporations can get their cut.
Now he is headhunting for this bank that has not even been authorized by Parliament. Does the Prime Minister really not understand the problem here?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I stood on a stage in Calgary in a debate with that member to talk exactly about the infrastructure bank that we were committed to building so we could leverage even more money into building good infrastructure for Canadians.
As for consultations, we have engaged extensively with mayors, with premiers, with a broad number of unions and actors in the public sphere to talk about how we could make sure that the kinds of infrastructure Canadians rely on to get from home to work, to live, to succeed, to thrive, to grow the economy actually get built, and that is what we are doing.
Jacques Gourde Conservative Lévis—Lotbinière, QC
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister spends as much time explaining his rash decisions to the Canadian public and the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner as a disobedient child spends in time out thinking about what he has done. It is high time that the Prime Minister demonstrate some consistency and integrity and give the House some clear answers.
How many times has the Prime Minister met with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner to discuss his loose ethics?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, as you know, I am always pleased to work with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner to answer any questions she may have.
Jacques Gourde Conservative Lévis—Lotbinière, QC
Mr. Speaker, it is a very simple question, but mainly it is a question of trust.
What Canadians are hearing is that there are laws that apply to them but that do not apply to the Prime Minister.
I will repeat my question. How many times has the Prime Minister met with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, as I have always said, I am very pleased to meet with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner and work with her to answer any questions she may have on this subject or any other.
Candice Bergen Conservative Portage—Lisgar, MB
Mr. Speaker, a moment ago, the Prime Minister arrogantly insulted our opposition leader and said she was confused. Let me say that I think this is actually full confusion right now with the Prime Minister.
I will repeat the question in English, because the question is not if he is happy or satisfied or feeling good about meeting the Ethics Commissioner. Has the Prime Minister met with the Ethics Commissioner, and if so, how many times? It is very, very simple.
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to work with the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner to answer any questions she may have. That is what Canadians expect of the Prime Minister and that is exactly what I am doing.
The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan
Order. The hon. member for Banff—Airdrie and others will come to order.
The hon. opposition House leader has the floor.
Candice Bergen Conservative Portage—Lisgar, MB
Mr. Speaker, what Canadians expect is that their Prime Minister would give a clear answer to a clear and a simple question. If he has something to hide, then Canadians want to know that as well. I would suggest, if he wants to send Canadians the message that he has nothing to hide, that he answer the question.
How many times has the Prime Minister met with the Ethics Commissioner?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I am very happy to work with and answer the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner's questions. It is extremely important that we work—
The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan
Order. Most members in all parties can sit through question period without reacting to what they hear, and I think we should have confidence in the ability of Canadians to judge the quality of questions and answers. I am sure members have confidence in Canadians to be able to do that, and they do not need the help of people heckling.
The right hon. Prime Minister has the floor.