House of Commons Hansard #364 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was jobs.

Topics

Alleged Intimidation of MembersPrivilegeOral Questions

3:15 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

This sounds like debate to me.

The House resumed consideration of the motion.

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

3:15 p.m.

Conservative

Erin O'Toole Conservative Durham, ON

Mr. Speaker, I am happy to kick off coming back to our debate today, which was brought by my friend, our industry critic, the member for Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola. He is a great member of the House, who brings up competitiveness issues all the time. If Canadians are following this debate, this is why Conservatives have brought this debate to the floor today.

The last week or so in Canada shows how uncompetitive our economy is becoming under the Liberal government. Just on the weekend, we saw the Premier of Alberta limiting production of Canadian resources, in fact controlling or interfering with the private marketplace because of the crisis of depressed oil prices. We are losing billions of dollars. It was going to be $15 billion before the large drop in price. They were looking at $25 billion or $30 billion less in revenue to Canada as a result of the inability of the government to get pipelines built.

The other thing we saw in the last week, which was very personal to me and my community, was the announcement that GM intended to close the Oshawa assembly plant at the end of next year, after a century of assembling automobiles in Oshawa and after being at the epicentre of the auto industry, and indeed, the manufacturing industry, Ontario was known for. The driving force for decades of Confederation, the success of manufacturing in Ontario, is faltering now under three years of the current government.

Finally, at the beginning of the previous week, there was the inability of the government to even answer a question with respect to when the budget will be balanced.

Canadians should be very concerned that we have a Prime Minister with no experience in the private sector and no understanding of the unique needs of the economy in different parts of the country, whether it is softwood in British Columbia; resources, including potash, in our prairies; the aerospace industry in Manitoba and Quebec; the manufacturing base in Ontario; or seafood and exports in Nova Scotia and the Atlantic provinces. There is a total disconnect for the Prime Minister.

Should we be surprised? Here is what the Prime Minister said, as the new third party leader, to manufacturers at an auto parts factory in southwestern Ontario, in January 2015, as he was kicking off his election bid:

The people of southwestern Ontario are amazingly resilient and have demonstrated that moving beyond manufacturing-based employment is something they're willing to do.

That was his message to manufacturing facilities in southwestern Ontario and writ large to communities like mine in the Durham region: we need to just move past it.

What else did he say? In his first foreign trip abroad as Prime Minister of this country, he offended the resource industry at Davos. In January 2016, he said, “My predecessor wanted you to know Canada for its resources. I want you to know Canadians for our resourcefulness.”

In one brush, he was mocking or dismissing the impact of the resource sector and the innovation brought to that sector, such as steam-assisted gravity drainage and a reduction in the use of power and water. All these are innovations that, over time, have reduced the economic and environmental impact of resource development. He swept that aside with one statement, so much so that the mayor of Calgary, who was in Davos, criticized the Prime Minister. He is usually his wingman ideologically, but he criticized such a dismissive and divisive comment trying to pit one economy against another, one region against another, as if resource jobs are not the type of jobs we want. We want to be resourceful, as if Ontario has to move past manufacturing.

This is a Prime Minister who, in the middle of an election campaign, said this about his economic plan, on August 12, 2015, when he was the third party leader running to become prime minister:

We're proposing a strong and real plan, one that invests in the middle class so that we can grow the economy not from the top down the way Mr. Harper wants to, but from the heart outwards. That's what Canada has always done well with.

That comment is absolutely ridiculous, and it shows the absence of an understanding of the private sector, capital investment and risk-taking in the economy. It was comments like that the member for Scarborough—Guildwood, in opposition, called bozo eruptions. They were misplaced comments that showed a Prime Minister so disconnected from the real needs of Canadians that he is not worthy of the job.

What is interesting about the minister heckling is that before she ran for Parliament, she ran on closing the oil sands. Here we have a cabinet minister who made public statements about shutting down the oil sands and who had no real experience before Parliament, and she is at the cabinet table making the decisions. These things should really concern people. When people come with an activist point of view, trying to shut down jobs that hundreds of thousands of people depend on, Canadians should be concerned about the fact that the current government is on cruise control.

The resource industry is in crisis. The manufacturing sector is in crisis. We have tariffs. We have trade disruptions. We have a government that has piled taxes and tariffs on top of the manufacturing base, and it has been struggling under it.

The day the Prime Minister made that Care Bear economic speech, as it was termed at the time, was August 12, midway through a marathon campaign. At that point, the Liberals were still running on a balanced-budget plan. Interestingly enough, the current Prime Minister, as third party leader, said this: “It's a well-established fact. Liberals balance budgets.... Our platform will be fully costed, fiscally responsible and a balanced budget.”

He said that in April 2015. That was the Liberals' policy. They used to say that they were the party of Paul Martin and that they were going to have a balanced budget.

Midway through the election campaign, in fact mere days after he made the Care Bear economic speech, the Liberals changed their fundamental economic position for the country, and on August 25, they said they were going to run deficits. At that time, they said the deficit would never exceed $10 billion, and they promised to get back to budget by the end of their mandate, in 2019. However, they changed their underlying economic promise to Canadians. Within months, they had indicated that they were no longer going to stick to deficits under $10 billion, and within a couple of years, they abandoned any notion of balancing the budget. In fact, it is awkward when the Minister of Finance will not even give a date on which he intends to try to get back to balance. Those are fundamental economic promises to Canadians broken.

Why are we seeing a crisis in western Canada and in Ontario? The canaries in the coal mine in the last week alone are the price changes by the Premier of Alberta and the GM closure, with taxes, tariffs, trade disruption and excessive regulation.

Bill C-69 itself killed the energy east pipeline. An executive of TransCanada pipeline confirmed that. We have had taxes upon taxes. It is not just the carbon tax, which we highlighted last week. Payroll taxes in the first budget made it punitive for employers to hire more people. We had small-business private-company tax changes.

The Liberals have raised taxes on entrepreneurs. They have raised taxes on hiring people through the payroll. They are bringing in a carbon tax. None of those tax increases are happening in the United States. The U.S. is eliminating regulations and lowering taxes.

The auto industry competes in the Great Lakes region, so when Canada is getting uncompetitive because of the actions of the government, we are going to see capital and jobs flow. We have been calling that out for several years. When the Liberals are almost banning pipelines through Bill C-69, we are going to see companies leave the country.

Canadians need to be worried. We need a plan from the government. That is why the Conservatives have brought this debate to the House today.

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

3:25 p.m.

Liberal

Mark Gerretsen Liberal Kingston and the Islands, ON

Madam Speaker, the member commented on payroll taxes, but when we actually look at EI and CPP, let us look at what the government is doing. Since we came to power, employment insurance premiums have actually gone down by just over half a point. The only other thing that is being affected is the CPP benefit people are going to be able to use in the future when they retire, which is going to increase, in some cases, by up to 50%.

I am assuming that the member is upset specifically about the CPP portion of this and not the EI portion, because that has actually gone down. Can the member confirm to the House if he has a problem specifically with the CPP enhancements the government is providing for future Canadians when they hit retirement?

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

3:25 p.m.

Conservative

Erin O'Toole Conservative Durham, ON

Madam Speaker, the simple answer is yes. In fact, I am glad the member asked the question. I would refer him to the book written by the finance minister, or I should say, ghost written for the finance minister. It was actually written by the chief economist for Morneau Shepell, Fred Vettese. It is called the The Real Retirement, and it says that there is no retirement crisis.

This entire CPP sham was a concoction of the Wynne government and the Liberal government to suggest that there was a crisis looming, when there was not one. In fact, the finance minister stated that in his book. If we analyze it, the member misled the House. There will be a small group of Canadians, 5%, according to Mr. Vettese, who will see any benefit from the CPP reforms. Had the Liberals not cut the tax-free savings account in their first budget, that would likely have captured many of the people planning for their own retirement.

That member should understand that whether it is in Kingston, with Dupont, or other companies, they are probably looking at fewer hirings and moving capital. He should speak up at caucus meetings. Right now, he is part of a government that is driving jobs to the United States, not to Canada.

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

3:30 p.m.

NDP

Sheila Malcolmson NDP Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC

Madam Speaker, I was elected to protect the coast and represent jobs in B.C. on the coast, where we are obviously threatened by the risk of an unrefined oil spill. Tens of thousands of jobs in the aquaculture and fisheries sector have already been identified as at risk.

We are trying to find jobs that do not preclude the existing economy and the existing environment we have now. We hear about climate change impacts every day. We see the effects of climate change, with unprecedented forest fires.

In my region, I am proud to represent jobs at Harmac Pacific, Vancouver Island University, the Nanaimo Aboriginal Centre, Habitat for Humanity, and Canadian Electric Vehicles, all of which are part of the movement across the country. They are acting on climate change and employing people right now.

The green building sector employs more people than forestry, oil, gas, and mining put together. Does my colleague see the benefit of investing in this additional energy path that can employ people and protect our environment?

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

3:30 p.m.

Conservative

Erin O'Toole Conservative Durham, ON

Madam Speaker, I appreciate the question. I was in British Columbia for several days. I had a great meeting at Stemcell Technologies, in Vancouver, which is doing unbelievable innovation in cellular regeneration therapies, working with stem cells. Visionary leaders established that company, which came out of the Terry Fox Laboratory.

I like to see some of that investment. The trouble is, they cannot access capital in Canada. In fact, their capital is being accessed from the United States. Increasingly, because of the regulatory regime of the government, whether it is green tech, R and D in pharma or biotech, capital is not coming to Canada, because confidence is diminished under the government. In fact, the government has actually worked against entrepreneurs with the changes to closely held private corporations, with its treatment of dividends and with the treatment of retained earnings and where it wants to go with that. The government was almost going to eliminate stock options as well.

If we are going to compete for talent and capital, we actually have to reverse most of the decisions of the government. Whether it is in resources, green tech or manufacturing in Ontario, we have to be competitive, or we will not see the jobs and investments.

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

3:30 p.m.

Liberal

Mark Gerretsen Liberal Kingston and the Islands, ON

Madam Speaker, before I get into my speech, I appreciate the member for Durham's slightly historical knowledge of my riding and the various different manufacturers in it. Perhaps he should spend more time in his riding as opposed to Ottawa. He would then understand and learn about some of the hardships seniors are going through. It is not a manufactured crisis with respect to seniors. In fact, there is a real problem, a problem we need to prepare for through our programs such as CPP to ensure seniors have the tools they need to retire when they get to that point.

He mentioned the tax-free savings account. I am sorry, but there were select few people who could use the tax-free savings account, who would have money to put into that at the end of their yearly earnings to benefit from it. He knows exactly who those people are because they are primarily his donors.

I take honour to speak to this motion today, but I am absolutely perplexed by the context of it. It is as though for three years the Conservatives were throwing various things against the wall and none of them would stick. Then they had the idea to grab everything together and throw it against the wall at the same time and maybe at least one of them would stick.

This motion is so convoluted and it jumps all over the place. When writing it, one knows there is absolutely no way the governing party is going to support it. I find it very disingenuous that the Conservative Party would take the opportunity, through an opposition day motion, to use it in such a politically partisan way when it could have taken this opportunity to demonstrate a genuine passion for improving upon policy and legislation and trying to impact the day-to-day lives of Canadians. That could very well have been done through an opposition motion, yet we are here to discuss this motion.

I will gladly go through the motion and talk about some of the falsehoods in it. I am not going to ignore what is before us. There is so much to speak about that I do not even know if I can get through it all in the 17 minutes I have remaining. However, let me take a stab at it.

The first part says, “recognize the severity of the looming job crisis in Canada caused by the failed economic policies of the Liberal government.” Employment in Canada is at a 40-year high. The Canadian economy has created over half a million jobs since 2015. The unemployment rate is at an all-time low. More people are working now than we have ever have had over the past 40 years, which is a huge accomplishment by this government and the economic certainty that exists within Canada.

The next part of the diatribe of issues in the motion is that the carbon tax closed the General Motors plant in Oshawa. This is categorically untrue. General Motors has closed four plants in the United States. The U.S. does not have a price on pollution, yet it is still doing it. GM has been very clear that the only reason had done that is because it is moving toward electric vehicles. That is where it is focusing its attention. The president for GM just said that.

Maybe if the Conservatives could wrap their heads around the notion that the economy, the marketplace and the goods people want to buy are changing, we could see them contribute positively to policy that would impact our economy. However, they are stuck in debating and insisting we do not change to adapt to the changes in the marketplace.

The next part talks about the Canadian economy being at a competitive disadvantage. We have the lowest small business tax rate in the G7. Canada's corporate tax rate is also among the lowest in the G7. We have the fastest-growing GDP in the G7. I cannot understand how somebody can write this into a motion to be presented before the House, knowing that the vast majority of evidence out there does not support it. The U.S. tax changes put Canadian businesses at a competitive disadvantage.

Meanwhile, the facts are that the accelerated investment incentive, introduced in the fall economic statement, will lower the marginal effective tax rate on new businesses to one that is significantly lower than what is in the U.S.

I would like to talk a bit about what we are doing for small businesses and specifically what was brought forward in the fall economic statement.

First, the government will allow businesses to immediately write off whole costs of machinery and equipment used for the manufacturing or processing of goods. This will give a significant tax advantage to the year the equipment was purchased, fuelling new investments and supporting the adoption of advanced technologies and processes.

For those out there who might not be savvy with respect to the accounting world within business, businesses now have the ability to write off the expense for particular machinery and equipment immediately, in the first year or as the schedule allows, rather than amortize it over a long period of time, which is normally considered to be the life of the machinery or equipment. That is a huge competitive advantage for businesses to be allowed to write off that expense in the first year.

Second, the government will allow businesses that are specifically buying clean energy equipment to write off the full cost in the year it is put to use. This will also spur new investment, as well as the adoption of clean technologies. We expect it to generate more good middle-class jobs and position Canada to achieve climate goals while becoming more globally competitive.

This is another example of how we are providing incentives to businesses that will allow them to innovate, purchase and adapt to new technologies and to write off these expenses immediately. It shows the initiative of this government to move forward with the agenda of ensuring our economy stays strong, while at the same time ensuring we provide incentives for clean and renewable uses of the equipment we are buying. Specifically, in this example, it is clean energy equipment.

Third, the government is introducing a new accelerated investment incentive for businesses of all sizes and in all sectors of the economy, allowing firms to write off a larger share of the costs of newly acquired assets in the year the investment is made. Under the accelerated investment incentive, capital investments will generally be eligible for a first year depreciation allowance equal to up to three times the allowance that would otherwise apply in the year an asset would be acquired and be put to use. Businesses will be able to recover the initial cost of their investment more quickly, reducing risk and providing businesses in Canada with a true incentive to make capital investments.

These are examples of how we are fuelling, through tax policy, small, medium and large businesses throughout the country so we can maintain this incredible pace that the Canadian economy is experiencing right now compared to our G7 partners.

I will go back to the motion and continue on with some of its other points.

It says that the Canadian economy is facing a crisis. As I said, the Canadian economy enjoyed the fastest growth among the G7 in 2017 and it continues to be one of the strongest economies in the G7.

Section (vii) talks about “workers in all sectors impacted by the toxic medley” of tax increases on local businesses. Our government is lowering the small business tax rate. That has already begun. By January, it will be down to 9%, and that is the lowest rate among the G7 when it comes to businesses and business tax. That is another demonstration that we are willing to stay competitive in the global environment and the global market to ensure we can continue to see investment happening right here in Canada and with Canadian businesses.

I could go on to address every point, but I will be unable to do that in the amount of time I have left. However, the underlying principle here is that the Conservatives, through this motion they have put forward today, have missed the point that in Canada right now our economy is strong overall and that we continue to ensure that the right tools and processes are in place to see the economy continue to thrive.

That is not to say that from time to time we will not experience hardships in one part of the country or another, in one sector or another. These things will always happen. However, what will be the test of time and what we will be able to be judged on later is how we responded to those crises in different sectors in different areas of the country.

I would also like to talk briefly about the investments we have made in infrastructure. I find it remarkable. Earlier when I was sitting here listening to questions and answers, there was an exchange between a member of the Conservative benches and our side. They were talking about the crisis with respect to Montreal and the infrastructure that was needed there to ensure they were not dumping raw sewage into the river.

I come from a riding that used to have this problem, that used to have something like 30 to 40 days per year where raw sewage was dumped into Lake Ontario. However, through the previous Liberal government, which unfortunately because of its policy as it related to investment, there was very little money when the Conservatives were in power, it invested collaboratively with the province and the local government, in this case the city of Kingston, to build the Ravensview water treatment plant. This plant increased the capacity and we were able to put cleaner water, theoretically speaking, back into the lake than was in the lake before that. This was because the provincial and federal governments of the day decided to put investment into that. They recognized the need for it. As a result, the city of Kingston is down to one, maybe two days per year, when there are massive rainfalls that some minor overflow occurs, if any at all.

This is why it is so important for governments to recognize and to come to the table when it comes to investing in infrastructure. However, it is important to invest in the right infrastructure and to invest in an infrastructure that will have meaningful impacts in the communities in which it is built and to the economy as a whole, investing in projects that will see multiple spinoffs through the economy. We know when we invest in certain sectors like agri-food, for example, another seven jobs are created as a result of one job created in that sector. It is about picking the right sectors and ensuring that money is going into those sectors to have the spinoff occur.

I would also remind the House about some of the investing that this government has done in infrastructure since 2015, and those investments are paying off. To date, more than 30,000 infrastructure projects have been approved under the investing in Canada plan, the vast majority of which are already under way, creating good, middle-class jobs. Beyond construction, these projects will create long-term economic, social and environmental returns for Canadians and communities both big and small.

In budget 2016, the government announced phase one of the investing in Canada plan, which provides $14.4 billion for short-term investments in rehabilitation, repair, modernization in existing infrastructure. To date, more than $13 billion has been committed to projects with more than $6 billion already fully invested.

These are smart investments in areas that matter most to Canadians: public transit, trade, transportation, green infrastructure, social infrastructure and rural and northern communities. They will also help grow the economy, strengthen the middle class and build sustainable communities.

I will also take this opportunity, because I know this topic has been coming up quite a bit over the last few days, to talk about this government's action when it comes to what is going on in Alberta and in particular the oil crisis. This government has taken a responsible approach, when it comes to approving pipeline projects, that respects all levels of government, that respects the various different players and partners that are involved in the process. Unlike the approach that was taken for 10 years under Stephen Harper, this approach is the right approach.

We might not always like what we hear, but when we receive information we can use it in a constructive way to build and put forward a more robust plan that has the ability to stand the tests that come at it. That is what we have seen.

We talked about Stephen Harper's ability to create pipelines and move oil. Let us not forget that in 2006 when he came into power, 99% of the oil in Canada was going to the United States. My colleagues may wonder how much of it was going there in 2015 when he left office. I will tell them. It was 99%, the exact same amount. He was not able to effectively diversify the market. The thing is that he had a prime opportunity in 2006. That was before the 2008 recession hit. Oil was at an all-time high in 2006. There was no better opportunity or no better time to diversify and he was unable to get it done.

Stephen Harper was unable to get it done because he painted a target on the back of the oil industry by attacking climate movements, by attacking indigenous communities, by attacking the various players and partners who make the decisions. He thought he could bully his way through the process but ended up with delays in courts, injunctions that were withheld and various different legal mechanisms to stop him from getting done what he wanted to do. I truly believe that he wanted to build pipelines but he was unable to because of his approach. That is why this approach is much different. It is an approach that respects the process and respects the fact that we need to properly collaborate with everybody and with all players.

I went through a list of things that this motion attempted to attack and criticize. It is just as though the Conservatives decided that as they had been unsuccessful in getting any of their talking points to stick, maybe by bundling them together and throwing them all at once at the wall, one or two might stick. Then they could call it a day and be successful. In reality, they wasted an opposition day motion when they could have been talking, trying to inform policy and informing Canadians as to what this government is doing and what we could be doing better. There is always an opportunity to do better in many different ways. However, they used it as an opportunity to put forward something that obviously this side of the House will not be able to support.

I will close by just talking a bit about the fact that when the Conservatives bring forward something like this, there is no doubt that it will resonate with some people out there, particularly their base. There are a lot of people who will read some of this and think that the government is doing some pretty shady stuff. I did correct a lot of what was in this, in the beginning of my speech.

However, rather than the Conservatives trying to be forthright and honest about what was going on, they tried to play on the fears of Canadians and to scare them into thinking that the circumstances are much worse than they actually are. Rather than looking for opportunities to genuinely improve upon things that can be improved, they would rather scare Canadians into looking at a list of things put forward by them, and conclude that it is is a dire situation and they should elect the Conservatives in 2019, otherwise we are all doomed.

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

3:45 p.m.

Some hon. members

Oh, oh!

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

December 4th, 2018 / 3:45 p.m.

Liberal

Mark Gerretsen Liberal Kingston and the Islands, ON

The hon. members are agreeing. They are saying, “You're right. We would like to scare people into voting for Conservatives because that's the only way that it'll work”. It is extremely sad to hear members of this House cheer about that fact. They know that they are being dishonest to Canadians. That does not matter as long as they get the objective they are looking for in 10 months. That is all that really matters to them.

The truth is that the majority of Canadians, I strongly believe, can see through their tactics. Eventually, the Conservatives will have to learn if they want to get their message through to Canadians, it is going to have to be in a positive and productive way. Unfortunately, through this motion, they are not doing that.

Democratic Republic of CongoGovernment Orders

3:50 p.m.

Bloc

Gabriel Ste-Marie Bloc Joliette, QC

Madam Speaker, I believe you would find the unanimous consent of the House for the following motion:

That the House, with regard to the Democratic Republic of the Congo:

(a) condemn the violence and abuses committed against hundreds of innocent civilians;

(b) condemn gender-based sexual violence, especially against women and girls;

(c) recognize that this violence is the deadliest since the Second World War, with at least six million people since 1996 having been killed, and that hundreds of thousands of people are reported to have been systematically subjected to gender-based sexual violence; and

(d) call on the government to (i) closely monitor the situation in that country, (ii) play a leading role in mobilizing the international community so that repeated human rights violations and abuses end and threatened populations are protected, (iii) encourage the International Criminal Court to continue its work in the formal investigation of the killings in that country.

Democratic Republic of CongoGovernment Orders

3:50 p.m.

NDP

The Assistant Deputy Speaker NDP Carol Hughes

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

Democratic Republic of CongoGovernment Orders

3:50 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

Democratic Republic of CongoGovernment Orders

3:50 p.m.

NDP

The Assistant Deputy Speaker NDP Carol Hughes

The House has heard the terms of the motion. Is it the pleasure of the House to adopt the motion?

Democratic Republic of CongoGovernment Orders

3:50 p.m.

Some hon. members

Agreed.

Democratic Republic of CongoGovernment Orders

3:50 p.m.

NDP

The Assistant Deputy Speaker NDP Carol Hughes

(Motion agreed to)

The House resumed consideration of the motion.

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

3:50 p.m.

Conservative

Blake Richards Conservative Banff—Airdrie, AB

Mr. Speaker, I listened to the member's speech. He talked about this so-called balanced approach toward pipeline approvals and the regulatory approvals process. I struggle to understand how the heck they can call it balanced when they have a government that had three viable private sector pipelines put before them; two of them were cancelled as a result of the actions of that government and we have now one that at best could be described as being on taxpayer-funded life-support and we have, of course, Bill C-69, which would end any possibility of future approvals for pipelines. That is not balanced. I certainly would like to see him go and try to tell Albertans how balanced that is, because I will tell members the answer Albertans would give him.

I will now read a very brief passage from an email I received from a constituent, just today. He happens to be a national sales manager for an oil field supply company. He said that they received this email from one of the major companies that they supply. I will not name the company. He said that this is the quote from the email that they received: “As the oil differential and pipeline woes are continuing to strain our industry, we will not be doing a matting purchase until such time as we see some positive news.” It then listed off a number of things, including, “differential and commodity price, pipeline approvals, regulatory constraints lifted”. It goes on to say, “We have governments, both federally and provincially, who are not working toward opportunities for investment in Canada. Our federal government is holding up the pipeline file and at the same time trying to push through Bill C-69 to make it harder for large infrastructure projects like pipelines to get approved.”

He says that the effect of an email like this, cancelling an order in their case, would be about a $20-million hit to their small service company. That number does not include any subsequent spinoffs or jobs or work generated. That is one of many like this from Alberta. I want to know what the member would have to say to those people.

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

3:55 p.m.

NDP

The Assistant Deputy Speaker NDP Carol Hughes

I want to remind members to keep their questions short, within one minute. That would be much appreciated, so they should not go on with their preamble.

The hon. member for Kingston and the Islands.

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

3:55 p.m.

Liberal

Mark Gerretsen Liberal Kingston and the Islands, ON

Madam Speaker, the reason there is an oil crisis in Canada is that 99% of our oil is going to the United States. When Stephen Harper took office in 2006, 99% was going to the United States. When he left in 2015, 99% was going to the United States. The only way that the former Conservative government was able to do anything about the pipelines was to virtually continue to improve upon the fact that oil was going to the United States. The Conservatives did absolutely nothing to diversify the market and get it to new markets.

Therefore, to answer the member's question, if they had done a bit more to get oil to other markets we would not be in this problem right now.

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

3:55 p.m.

Conservative

Blake Richards Conservative Banff—Airdrie, AB

What is your guy doing? Cancelling pipelines.

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

3:55 p.m.

NDP

The Assistant Deputy Speaker NDP Carol Hughes

Order. The hon. member for Banff—Airdrie had more than two minutes to ask his question a while ago, and he should give respect to the member to answer. If he has other questions or comments, then he should get up when I ask for questions and comments.

Questions and comments. The hon. member for Nanaimo—Ladysmith.

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

3:55 p.m.

NDP

Sheila Malcolmson NDP Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC

Madam Speaker, for the people of Nanaimo—Ladysmith and, in fact, B.C.'s entire coast, our economy, culture and way of life are dependent on a clean coast. Therefore, I am sure the member opposite can appreciate our dismay and alarm at the government's $4.5-billion investment in a leaky old pipeline in the name of climate action. We want a very different kind of infrastructure investment in our community and not something, for example, that could cause an oil spill, which would threaten tens of thousands of jobs in fisheries and aquaculture on our coast.

A great example of the kind of investment that we have been asking for is the harbour-to-harbour link. It has been well received. Every party in the 2015 election expressed support for a downtown Vancouver to downtown Nanaimo passenger-only ferry run. However, it needs infrastructure investment. The fisheries minister and the parliamentary secretary for transport have been very supportive of this.

Is my colleague opposite willing to stand with us and other coastal MPs asking for this very positive investment, which does not threaten coastal jobs but enhances our economy?

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

3:55 p.m.

Liberal

Mark Gerretsen Liberal Kingston and the Islands, ON

Madam Speaker, while I know, and I am sure everybody in this House knows, we are extremely dependent on oil now, I also see new opportunities on the horizon. I am very glad the member has brought up some of those opportunities.

I recently saw a video on Facebook of a company from British Columbia that was able to take carbon out of the air, add water to it and turn it into a fuel that could literally be put directly into vehicles without having to alter the vehicle at all. Those are the businesses of the future.

Other countries know this, and I am not talking about northern European countries, but countries like China know this. We need to be moving in that direction too, and we need to ensure that we are putting investments into those new opportunities while at the same time ensuring that we diversify our existing market with respect to oil.

Opposition Motion—The EconomyBusiness of SupplyGovernment Orders

4 p.m.

Jennifer O'Connell Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance (Youth Economic Opportunity), Lib.

Madam Speaker, my hon. colleague spoke about the Conservatives' failure to diversify our energy sector and get to new markets. Can he elaborate on whether he thinks they actually knew what they were doing when it came to the economy for 10 years? Were they able to create jobs?

The Conservatives had us heading towards another recession. They were not able to balance the budget and added $150 billion to the debt. I would ask my hon. colleague if he thinks the Conservatives have any credibility when it comes to managing the economy.