Debates of Nov. 1st, 2018

The Environment

[Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Intergovernmental and Northern Affairs and Internal Trade, Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, I am sure you will not be surprised to hear that I do not share our hon. colleague's pessimism.

As we have always said, our government takes climate change very seriously. Apparently the Conservatives have no interest in tackling this issue.

We have a plan to make polluters pay while keeping Canada's economy competitive and creating good jobs for Canadians, and we are following that plan.

[Linda Duncan, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians grow increasingly fearful from daily reports that the impacts of climate change are worsening beyond what scientists have predicted, that our oceans have absorbed 60 % more heat than predicted, that the Arctic is melting at a frighteningly rapid rate, that we can expect worsening floods and drought. Pressure is building for measures to hold our governments accountable. Today I tabled a motion to legally enact binding greenhouse gas targets and impose a duty to act, and measures to ensure improved accountability and transparency for federal action to mitigate climate change.

Will the government support my Motion No. 204?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Intergovernmental and Northern Affairs and Internal Trade, Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, I do share our hon. colleague's sense of urgency in terms of the fight against climate change. She correctly identified a series of global phenomena that all Canadians are concerned about and have asked their governments to take seriously. They asked their governments to act in a serious way to ensure that we have a plan to fight climate change.

We think an essential element of that plan is not to make pollution free, something the Conservatives think would be a key part of a plan. We will make the Canadian economy more competitive and fight climate change at the same time.

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

Mr. Speaker, it emerged today that cleaning up the oil sands will cost $260 billion. That is what we mean when we say pollution is costly.

In the Netherlands, a court in The Hague is forcing the Dutch government to step up its efforts to fight climate change. Quebec legal experts want to do the same thing here and sue the Canadian government.

We know things are bad when the Liberals have to be dragged into court in order to produce real measures to fight climate change.

Do they need to be sued before they will act?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Intergovernmental and Northern Affairs and Internal Trade, Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, on the contrary, as we have demonstrated for several years now, long before the legal threats arose, we are going to take climate change seriously, and we have a plan that Canadians understand and that will make a real difference in the fight against climate change.

I would remind my hon. colleague that his home province of Quebec has been a leader in the fight against climate change for a very long time. It also has one of the most competitive economies in Canada.

Privacy

[Dan Albas, Conservative, Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are refusing to listen to Canadians who are outraged that the government is engaged in unauthorized surveillance of their every financial transaction. Even if the Liberals could guarantee that this data could not fall into the hands of hackers, which they cannot, it would still be an abuse of power to collect it.

This is about the principle that the state does not get to monitor everything people do. Why are the Liberals so out of touch? When will they put a halt to this unauthorized surveillance? It is important to Canadians. When?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, let us be very clear on this matter. The information Statistics Canada wishes to study is entirely within section 13 of the Statistics Act.

How many times did Statistics Canada use this section when these very same Conservatives were in power? Not once, not twice, not even a dozen times, but 84 times. In fact, in 2008, a major credit card agency signed an agreement with Stats Can to provide this type of financial data for statistical purposes.

We trust Statistics Canada. We trust its ability to—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. member for Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola.

[Dan Albas, Conservative, Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola, BC]

Mr. Speaker, we are talking about millions of transactions that could potentially affect millions of Canadians. We do not know; it could me, it could you, Mr. Speaker.

George Orwell wrote 1984 as a warning, not as a road map. Canadians deserve to be free to live their lives without the state monitoring every single purchase they make. The Canadian people are quite concerned that every time they spend money, it will be documented and tracked by the state.

Will the government end this unauthorized surveillance of Canadians? When?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, enough of this fearmongering from the Conservatives.

Statistics Canada is a respected agency. It is respected in Canada and around the world. The data it receives will be scrubbed. All the personal information from it will be removed before it is made in any way available, compiled, etcetera, for the use of governments, Canadians, businesses and small business across Canada.

Following best practices, Statistics Canada has gone above and beyond the requirements. It has consulted the Privacy Commissioner and is going to work with him to make sure that the interests of Canadians are not breached.

[Sylvie Boucher, Conservative, Beauport—Côte-de-Beaupré—Île d’Orléans—Charlevoix, QC]

Mr. Speaker, when it comes to confidentiality, every Canadian expects the government to make it a top priority to protect their personal information. The data requested by Statistics Canada are not anonymous. That is private and personal information. However, Statistics Canada is requesting that information without consent.

Why does the party opposite want to collect information about Canadians' financial transactions without their consent?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, as I just said, the information that Statistics Canada wishes to study is entirely within section 13 of the Statistics Act.

The personal information that will be collected and studied by Statistics Canada will be scrubbed and anonymous. There is no way the government will have access to personal information. Statistics Canada is a respected agency in Canada and around the world. We trust its judgment.

[Kelly Block, Conservative, Carlton Trail—Eagle Creek, SK]

Mr. Speaker, Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau once quipped that there was no place for the state in the bedrooms of the nation. This Prime Minister seems to think that the personal financial details of the nation, on the other hand, are fair game.

Why is the Prime Minister so out of touch with Canadians, who do not want this unauthorized surveillance to continue?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, unlike the previous Conservative government, in the development of policy and public policy, we think facts are a good place to start and not ideology, which is how the Conservatives based its decisions.

Unlike the Conservative Party, we are a fan of the facts. Therefore, Statistics Canada will be empowered to collect this kind of information, anonymize it in order to protect the private information of Canadians and then Canadians across Canada, small businesses, large businesses as well governments, will be able to use this information to develop good policy and practices.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Mr. Speaker, one of the ideals of the Conservative Party is that we would ask people before we take their information.

Canadians are outraged by the Liberals' unauthorized surveillance of their private banking information. My constituents have been calling me worried about the Liberals snooping into their bank accounts.

The government has already acquired 15 years of credit information from millions of Canadians without their consent. Now the Privacy Commissioner of Canada is investigating abuse. When will the Liberals stop snooping into the lives of Canadians?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, from the get-go, the chief statistician of Canada has been open to working with the Privacy Commissioner to make sure that the private information of Canadians was not placed at risk.

I find it a little rich that the Conservatives make themselves the defendants of Canadians' privacy. We should remind them of their history. That is the same Conservative Party that was forced to back down when the Conservative government, not Statistics Canada, went after Canadians' personal information online. That is the same Conservative Party that leaked the medical information of a Canadian veteran. Enough of this fake outrage.

[Ron Liepert, Conservative, Calgary Signal Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, when I heard on the news on the weekend about this Statistics Canada scam, I thought it just cannot be true because we live in Canada, not the Soviet Union. After listening to the minister responsible for the gulag over there, I am not so sure we are not in the Soviet Union. The minister said today that Canadians had better get on board.

Yesterday, I surveyed my constituents. In one day there have been over 1,000 responses and 98% of them said, “Get out of my life,” not “Get on board.” I would like to ask the minister—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. parliamentary secretary.

[David Lametti, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, it is interesting to hear the members opposite try to defend the private lives of Canadians and quote former prime minister Pierre Trudeau when he said that the state has no business in the bedrooms of the nation. It is unfortunate that many people in that party still disagree with that today.

International Trade

[Karine Trudel, NDP, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the CPTPP comes into force in 59 days, and dairy producers still do not know what kind of compensation they will be entitled to. Unbelievable.

When the Liberals signed the CPTPP, they opened a 3.25% breach in our supply management system, on top of the breaches from the Europe agreement and the USMCA. Our producers are understandably angry. They are tired of being used as bargaining chips.

Will the government finally compensate our producers for the losses incurred?

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, we understand there will be an impact on farmers and we are committed to fully and fairly supporting them and to make sure that they succeed. We are forming working groups with the dairy producers and processors, poultry and egg producers and processors. Together we will help our supply-managed farmers and processors innovate, grow and remain competitive for generations to come. We will continue to support the agricultural sector and the supply management sector.

[Ruth Ellen Brosseau, NDP, Berthier—Maskinongé, QC]

Mr. Speaker, three times the Liberals had a chance to protect supply management and guess what? Three times they failed. The Liberals have signed deals that opened up more than 10% of our dairy market. The effects of these policies are hard and they hurt families. Hard-working families are feeling betrayed by the Liberals. The Liberals have used our supply-managed farmers as a bargaining chip in trade negotiations and we must know more about this.

Could the vice-chair of the agriculture committee tell the House whether the TPP and the lack of compensation for farmers will be on the agenda in the coming days?

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Order. A question can certainly be asked of the chair of a committee if the chair is here. If the chair is not here, then the vice-chair can be asked.

If the chair of the committee is present, he can answer. If not, then we will go to the hon. member for Cowichan—Malahat—Langford.

[Alistair MacGregor, NDP, Cowichan—Malahat—Langford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to inform the House that the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food is currently engaged in a study on the mental health challenges that farmers, ranchers and producers face. During the course of that study, we heard repeated testimony from supply-managed farmers about the mental health challenges they are facing because of trade deals.

The TPP comes into force 59 days from now, yet the Liberals have not introduced a compensation plan for losses in the supply-managed sector. Our farmers, ranchers and producers—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Order. The hon. member knows that the comments from a vice-chair should be on the agenda of the committee. That is what can be talked about by a chair or vice-chair in the House.

The hon. member for Carleton.