Debates of Feb. 26th, 2018

Public Safety

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

Mr. Speaker, let me again say that the security officers of the Government of Canada, all of our police and security agencies have done their job in relation to this trip and they have done it extremely well in the Canadian national interest.

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Durham, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the public safety minister is answering these questions, so the government knows how serious this security breach was.

My question is very simple. Can the Prime Minister confirm that his office set up a media briefing with the national security adviser, where the Indian government conspiracy idea was floated?

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

Mr. Speaker, again, let me repeat for the benefit of the hon. gentleman that Canada has very strong, very proficient national security and police agencies. They are well trained in what they need to do to protect and advance the Canadian national interest, and they have done their jobs in relation to the trip to India. They have done that job exceedingly well to make sure the best interests of Canadians are served and protected.

[Alain Rayes, Conservative, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

Mr. Speaker, during his taxpayer-funded family trip to India, the Prime Minister sparked controversy by, of all things, inviting a known terrorist convicted of attempted assassination to dinner.

Initially, the Prime Minister blamed a Liberal MP for inviting him. Then he blamed the Canadian High Commission, and now he is saying that the Indian government invited the terrorist to derail Canada-India relations.

Is the Prime Minister really suggesting that India is trying to sabotage its relationship with Canada?

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

Mr. Speaker, it is very clear and the government has said for a number days that as soon as this invitation became identified, it was rescinded by the Government of Canada. That invitation should never have been issued in the first place.

[Alain Rayes, Conservative, Richmond—Arthabaska, QC]

What a bunch of malarkey, Mr. Speaker.

First the Prime Minister blamed his MP, saying it was poor judgment. Now he is saying it is a plot by the Indian government, and apparently he asked his national security adviser, his chief adviser, to spin an explanation. That is just unbelievable. What is the Prime Minister thinking?

Is the Prime Minister saying that India wants to sabotage its relationship with Canada? If so, let us see him table some evidence here in the House.

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

Mr. Speaker, the security interests of Canada are extremely important. Those interests need to rise above any partisan considerations. The government fully respects that all of our security officers and agencies perform and behave in all circumstances in a completely non-partisan fashion, and that is what happened in this case.

[Peter Kent, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, that is not good enough. We are still looking for some straight answers on the Liberal blame game. First, the Prime Minister's Office blames our high commission in India. Then the PM blames a backbench Liberal MP. Then the Prime Minister forces the national security adviser to pitch a conspiracy theory to selected journalists, blaming India for trying to embarrass Canada by giving a visa to a convicted terrorist.

When will these Liberals give some straight and honest answers to Canadians?

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

Mr. Speaker, the insinuations and accusations from that member and other members of the opposition today are absolutely and utterly false. We respect our national security agencies and we respect their non-partisan public service. We respect in particular their ability to provide non-partisan advice to the government, and that is indeed what happened in this case.

[Peter Kent, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister's Office forced a non-partisan public servant, the national security adviser, to plant unattributed stories in the mainstream media to try to influence and redirect stories about the Prime Minister's embarrassingly disastrous trip to India.

Does the Prime Minister have any evidence at all of this conspiracy theory, or was this tale concocted to protect the Prime Minister's political interests?

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

Mr. Speaker, the hon. gentleman is wrong.

Public Services and Procurement

[Karine Trudel, NDP, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Phoenix pay system has been wreaking havoc in Quebec ever since it was implemented.

More than 44,000 public servants in Quebec have suffered financial consequences, and this saga is far from over. This has been going on for two years. It is simply unworthy of a 21st-century government. It is time for the government to take responsibility and stop blaming the Conservatives.

Can the Liberals assure us that they will find a solution quickly, offer an apology, and provide compensation to the people affected by their poor decisions?

[Carla Qualtrough, Liberal, Minister of Public Services and Procurement]

Mr. Speaker, of course we sincerely apologize to public servants for everything we have put them through as a government. It is unacceptable that these public servants, who continue to come to work and work on behalf of all Canadians, are not being paid regularly. We are leaving no stone unturned in order to fix this problem. We are on it every day. Our hard-working public servants in Miramichi and in our satellite offices will be the people who fix this.

With all due respect, it sincerely was the former Conservative government that did this.

[Peter Julian, NDP, New Westminster—Burnaby, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal government has to take responsibility for the Phoenix fiasco. It was its decision to proceed on February 28, 2016, that has led to this debacle. Dedicated public servants are losing their homes. Communities are being devastated.

The government should have done its due diligence. The Phoenix system in Australia was a fiasco, and the Liberals did not even bother to check. It took four months to clean up in Australia. Here it has been two years, and the government has done nothing. Why such a profound lack of respect for Canada's public servants?

[Carla Qualtrough, Liberal, Minister of Public Services and Procurement]

Mr. Speaker, we certainly have the utmost respect for our public servants, certainly more than the previous government, that is for sure.

We had a choice in February 2016, and let me tell the House what that was. We had a choice between the new system or no system. The previous Conservative government had fired compensation advisers, had decommissioned the former system. As an aside, we were being advised that it was okay, by our officials, to proceed.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Geoff Regan]

Hon. members seem to have forgotten the rule against interruptions, and I have to remind them of that. I would ask them to listen, despite what they may or may not like in what they hear. I am sure members on all sides have things they do not like, but most members on all sides are able to control themselves.

Veterans Affairs

[Phil McColeman, Conservative, Brantford—Brant, ON]

Mr. Speaker, on August 24, 2015, the Prime Minister made this pledge to veterans:

If I earn the right to serve this country as your prime minister, no veteran will be forced to fight their own government for the support and compensation that they have earned.

That was when he was trying to get elected. Now that he is in power, the Prime Minister says veterans are asking for too much, but he has plenty of money for his pet projects, including a disastrous trip to India.

Will the Prime Minister do the honourable thing and quit breaking his promise to veterans?

[Seamus O'Regan, Liberal, Minister of Veterans Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, an increased pain and suffering award; increased income replacement; an increased estate exemption for veterans' funerals and burial; an education benefit of up to $80,000 that will come in with the new budget; redesigned career transition; a recognition benefit for caregivers; a centre of excellence for PTSD; 460 more staff hired; 10 offices; a pension for life.

The Prime Minister has kept his promises.

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Canadian veterans are tired of being left in the cold by a Prime Minister who cannot spend a dime on them but has money to burn on luxury travel.

Canadian veteran Roger Perreault wants the Prime Minister to tell him why he has $10.5 million for Omar Khadr but not a crumb for soldiers who were critically injured by roadside bombs in the line of duty.

[Seamus O'Regan, Liberal, Minister of Veterans Affairs]

First, Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate the hon. member on winning her nomination.

As everybody in this House knows, I also very much welcome the opportunity, in any instance, to compare the record of this government in two years to the record of the previous government. I commend the other side for the vim and vigour it brings to this debate. I only ask, where was it for 10 years?

[Alupa Clarke, Conservative, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in the last 10 years, we increased all benefits. That is the story the Liberals do not want to tell.

Today, the Prime Minister has a golden opportunity to show that he still respects veterans. This evening, he can vote in favour of the opposition motion.

A prime minister simply cannot claim that veterans are asking for too much when his own government has been spending money recklessly day after day for three years.

Will the Prime Minister do the right thing this evening and vote in favour of the motion moved by Her Majesty's official opposition?

[Seamus O'Regan, Liberal, Minister of Veterans Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, for everything the Conservatives took away over 10 years, in two years we have replaced, in two years we have made better: an increased pain and suffering award; a pension for life; an education benefit of up to $80,000. I would be happy to occupy more of this House's time with the accomplishments of this government in two years.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Whoa, Mr. Speaker.

Later today Liberal caucus members, including some who are veterans, will vote on a motion asking the Prime Minister to apologize to veterans and live up to his campaign promises. Four weeks ago, a veteran in Edmonton said, “I was prepared to be killed in action. What I wasn’t prepared for, Mr. Prime Minister, is Canada turning its back on me.”

The Prime Minister's response that veterans are asking for more than he can give them right now was appalling. Actually, what veterans are asking for, Mr. Prime Minister, is what you promised them.

Will the Liberals support this motion, yes or no?

[The Speaker, Geoff Regan]

The hon. member for Barrie—Innisfil is an experienced member and I am sure knows that in this House, members direct their comments to the Chair and do not use the word “you”, unless, of course, they are referring to the Speaker, which I am sure he was not in this case.

The hon. Minister of Veterans Affairs.