Debates of May 22nd, 2018

Human Rights

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, we have been very clear: Canada is a steadfast friend of Israel and a friend of the Palestinian people. We have also been very clear about the fact that the use of excessive forces is unacceptable. That is why we support a neutral investigative process to shed light on the events in Gaza. Canada is prepared to work with its international partners.

However, in keeping with our government's policy of not supporting resolutions that unfairly single out Israel, we did not support a clearly biased resolution at the UN Human Rights Council.

Justice

[Colin Fraser, Liberal, West Nova, NS]

Mr. Speaker, more Canadians are touched by family law than any other area of law.

Thanks to data from the 2015 census, we know that as many as two million Canadian children live in separated or divorced families, yet family laws in Canada have not been substantively amended for over 20 years.

Can the Minister of Justice please explain how Bill C-78 will strengthen and modernize the family justice system in Canada?

[Jody Wilson-Raybould, Liberal, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, this morning I was pleased to introduce Bill C-78 and the accompanying charter statement.

We know that separation and divorce impact the lives of millions of Canadians and can be challenging for families, particularly for children. That is why Bill C-78 focuses on the best interests of the child first, reducing conflict, addressing family violence, and encouraging parents and former spouses to meet their family support obligations.

Natural Resources

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the deadline for the Trans Mountain expansion is only nine days away.

Kinder Morgan never asked for tax dollars or a federal backstop. It just wanted an end to ongoing delays and roadblocks.

The Prime Minister's failure of leadership caused this crisis. Canada's former ambassador to the U.S. says it is making Canada a “laughingstock” in the world. It is a massive blow to investor confidence in Canada.

Will the Prime Minister finally admit his failure is jeopardizing future private sector investments in major energy infrastructure in Canada?

[Jim Carr, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, we say, as often as the hon. member rises in this House, that this Trans Mountain expansion project is going to create thousands of jobs. It is going to open up our resources to export markets.

No one feels comfortable that 99% of our exports of oil and gas go to one country, the United States, nor do they feel comfortable that we are losing about $15 billion a year in revenue. Much of that revenue could be used by governments to fund schools, hospitals, and other public services.

We agree that the line should be built.

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, then they need to get it done.

The livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of Canadians are at stake in the finance minister's Trans Mountain gamble. Now he plans to risk tax dollars and pension funds, but the finance minister says it will not cost taxpayers, while the infrastructure minister says Canadians will not know how much it will cost until after there is a deal. Meanwhile, Kinder Morgan says there is still no deal. The Liberals promised a law, but time is running out. It is a gong show, and it is undermining Canada's reputation and economic stability.

Why do the Liberals keep driving investment and jobs out of Canada?

[Jim Carr, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, the gong show is that the member stands up and after 10 years of failure, there is not one kilometre of pipe to tidewater, to export markets, while the environmental record is poor and the economic record is the worst for Canada since the Great Depression. That is some gong show.

Grain Transportation

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

Mr. Speaker, Canadian farmers want to know why the Liberals forced them to suffer through a debilitating grain backlog. For more than a year, the Conservatives offered options to get grain moving, but the only action the Liberals took was to delay their own bill.

Now the agriculture minister has admitted that Bill C-49 will not solve all the problems our farmers are facing, no own motion powers and no true extended interswitching.

Why is the Minister of Agriculture not fighting for the provisions in Bill C-49 that our farmers are asking for so they do not have to face this crisis again?

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I really cannot believe what I just heard from the Harper Conservatives who for 10 years did not do a single thing to modernize freight rail legislation to allow our grain to move far more effectively. In fact, they have voted against Bill C-49 on every possible occasion, and have caused an additional 11-day delay because they did not want to let it pass on May 11.

The Conservatives call themselves friends of the farmers. It is total hypocrisy.

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

Mr. Speaker, farmers know who their true friends are.

Captive shippers in the Maritimes are feeling shortchanged by the Liberal government. The Minister of Transport claims his new long-haul interswitching remedy is key for captive shippers in Canada, but is not extending it to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. All of the Liberal MPs from those provinces have not said a word.

Why is the Prime Minister treating captive shippers in the Maritimes so unfairly?

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, Bill C-49 is a very well balanced bill. If the members look at it and understand it in detail, 90% of the measures are to give shippers an advantage. This is very clear.

The Harper Conservatives obviously have not taken the time to read the bill in detail. If they did, they would also know that Canadian shippers and grain shippers fully understand the value of the bill, which will change things that should have been done decades ago.

Youth

[Anne Minh-Thu Quach, NDP, Salaberry—Suroît, QC]

Mr. Speaker, several groups of young people, including the Canadian Federation of Students, are calling for an end to interest on student loans.

The government is unwilling to tackle tax havens and does not mind signing blank cheques to Kinder Morgan, but in 2016-17, it made $662 million off of students. Why is the government helping multinationals instead of young people? This is kind of absurd.

In 2011, the government eliminated interest for part-time students.

Will the Minister of Youth now eliminate interest for all students?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Employment]

Mr. Speaker, Canada's prosperity depends on Canadians getting the education they need to succeed. Unlike the opposition parties that campaigned on cuts, our government is investing in Canadians. That is why we have increased the amount of support for Canada student grants by 50%. That is why we are ensuring that no student has to repay their Canada student loans until they make a minimum of $25,000 a year. We have expanded Canada student grants and loans for part-time students, for students with dependent children. We launched skills boost, which allows older students to access Canada student loans and grants and get the support they need to join the workforce.

We are making post-secondary education more affordable for all Canadians.

Ethics

[Charlie Angus, NDP, Timmins—James Bay, ON]

Mr. Speaker, elected office is not all that complicated. We are there to put the interests of the public first, but the Liberals treat it like an exclusive clam bar for their pals and their friends. Let us look at the investigation into the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans who had his hook in a deal that smells fishier than a Liberal at low tide. I have seen a lot of political red herrings over the years.

I am asking the minister to stop floundering around like some kind of fish in a suit and come clean about that fishy surf clam quota deal, please.

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Fisheries]

Mr. Speaker, I would have thought Brian Tobin or John Crosbie were back in the House of Commons. I want to congratulate the hon. member for those series of words. Obviously we are happy to co-operate with the Ethics Commissioner and answer any questions he may have.

Our government believes that increasing indigenous participation in offshore fisheries is a powerful opportunity to advance reconciliation. We created a process to consult industry and indigenous communities. We went to the next steps with a proposal that we think offered the best economic opportunities for indigenous communities.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Pierre Paul-Hus, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, a number of border services officers were transferred from the Toronto airport to deal with the influx of asylum seekers at Saint-Bernard-de-Lacolle, which has reached crisis proportions. The Conservative government increased the number of front-line officers by 26%. If the Prime Minister really wanted to deal with this crisis, he would have taken down his 2017 tweet inviting the whole world to come settle in Canada.

What will the Prime Minister say to Canadians who have to wait longer before deplaning in Toronto because officers were diverted to deal with the crisis he sparked?

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

Mr. Speaker, the reports upon which that question is based are mistaken. CBSA resources at Pearson International Airport are up by 6% over the past two years, and seasonal hirings for this summer are already up by a further 26%. Our service standard objective is to have passengers cleared in 20 minutes, and our determination is to meet that standard 95% of the time.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is diverting over 800 border agents to prioritize processing for illegal border crossers. Officials say that those legally returning to Canada from family vacations or entering for business trips can expect long delays at the customs lines.

Therefore, while the Conservatives increased front-line border guard positions by 26%, the Liberals are sending those resources to welcome those who are illegally entering Canada.

When will the Prime Minister close the loophole in the safe third country agreement?

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

Mr. Speaker, the people running CBSA, the RCMP, CSIS, and our other security agencies did an extraordinary job last year in managing their resources internally to cope with an unusual situation. They have also taken the necessary steps this year to further manage that situation.

I am very pleased that the Minister of Finance has offered to CBSA, and we have obviously accepted the offer, $72 million to augment our resources in the coming year.

Public Safety

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

Mr. Speaker, terrorist, Abu Huzaifa has admitted to authorities, the CBC, and the New York Times that he left Canada to join ISIS. ISIS officials in Syria confirm that he joined their terrorist group.

I would like to remind the Prime Minister that it is illegal under the Criminal Code to leave Canada to join a terrorist organization. It is illegal to be trained as a terrorist. It is illegal to be an ISIS enforcer and executioner.

Abu Huzaifa is the worst of the worst, and committed war crimes. When will the Prime Minister finally take action, put public safety first, and arrest this terrorist?

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

Mr. Speaker, Canada's police and security agencies work to the highest professional standards every day to keep Canadians safe. That is true in this case and in every other case.

With respect to terrorist travellers returning to Canada, our priority is to investigate, arrest, charge, and prosecute. Operations are active and ongoing. Obviously, we do not broadcast our plans to suspects so they know what our tactics are.

I would note that under the Harper government some 60 terrorist travellers returned to Canada. Not one was charged.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Order, please. The hon. member for Durham will come to order.

The hon. member for Kelowna—Lake Country.

National Defence

[Stephen Fuhr, Liberal, Kelowna—Lake Country, BC]

Mr. Speaker, last week, the Government of Canada received a request from the province of British Columbia to support its efforts in responding to seasonal flooding. As a result, members of the Canadian Forces were dispatched to a number of places throughout the province to include the Okanagan, Grand Forks, and the Lower Fraser Valley.

Could the Minister of National Defence inform the House how our Canadian Forces members are contributing to the flood mitigation effort.

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague from Kelowna—Lake Country for the support he has provided to his constituents during this difficult time. The safety of Canadians is our number one priority, and our government stands ready to offer assistance during times of crisis.

Yesterday I was in the Okanagan with my colleague to tour the affected area. I also met with some of the 600 outstanding Canadian Armed Forces members on the ground to thank them for their help with evacuations and sand-bagging.

We are focused on helping residents, and we will stay in the region as long as we are needed.

Government Spending

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Lévis—Lotbinière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, six staffers from the Prime Minister's office apparently needed a lot of help waking up for a convention in London, Ontario, seeing as they spent nearly $600 on coffee. I am sure you will agree that the Liberal Party spending taxpayer money like water is nothing new, but Canadians deserve an explanation.

How could the government possibly spend $600 on coffee for six people?