Debates of Dec. 11th, 2019

Foreign Affairs

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the House voted to take the crisis between Canada and the Government of China seriously by establishing a special committee to look at all aspects of the government's handling of that relationship. After China's unlawful imprisonment of two Canadians, after its putting blocks on our exports of canola and other products, the Prime Minister still has not stood up for Canadians.

Will the Prime Minister at least take the very practical step of withdrawing Canada's funding for the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, over the past year, we have been working at all levels to ensure the safety of the Canadians being detained, and indeed continue to advocate for their release as we stand up for our canola farmers, as we protect our beef and pork exporters and as we continue to engage with this important trading partner, while at the same time standing up for human rights every step of the way.

We recognize there is an opportunity to collaborate further on the special committee on China. We just certainly hope the opposition parties will be careful not to play politics and endanger the lives of those Canadians with it.

International Trade

[Yves-François Blanchet, Bloc, Beloeil—Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, we feared the new NAFTA would be a disaster for Quebec's aluminum industry. Today, we know for certain.

Aluminum gets none of the protections that steel does. Worse still, the agreement states that there will be no protections for aluminum for at least 10 years. Let me read out a quote: “Ten years after entry into force of this Agreement, the Parties shall consider appropriate requirements that are in the interests of all three Parties for aluminum to be considered as originating under this Article.”

Did the Prime Minister decide to abandon the workers?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, allow me to set the record straight, because the hon. member across the way does not have his facts right.

NAFTA is a win for aluminum workers. From now on, under this agreement, 70% of the aluminum used in North American automotive production will come from North America. As we know, much of that comes from Quebec. This will be good for aluminum workers. We are always happy to stand up for aluminum workers.

[Yves-François Blanchet, Bloc, Beloeil—Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, one of us does not have his facts right, that is for sure. I am not sure which one.

I read an excerpt from the document the government posted online that states beyond any doubt that, for 10 years, Canada is prohibited from protecting aluminum the way it protects steel.

I think it is pretty clear, and I want to know what the Prime Minister has to say to the workers in Quebec's regions regarding that sacrifice.

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the new NAFTA represents a net gain for aluminum workers. We stood up for them not only by getting the punitive section 232 tariffs lifted, but also by defending access to American markets. We made sure that at least 70% of the aluminum used in North American automobile production will come from North America. We know this will benefit Canadian workers.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, without actually protecting workers or the environment, the Liberals rushed to see the new NAFTA signed. American politicians did the work the Liberals should have done.

Without seeking protections for the environment and our workers, the Liberals were prepared to sign away our future.

Instead of relying on the Americans to stand up for our workers, will the Prime Minister commit to improving the process moving forward?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we agreed to improvements to the new NAFTA that strengthened environmental protection, strengthened labour protection, improved the automotive rules of origin, improved the protection of intellectual property and settled a stronger state-to-state dispute settlement. These are all improvements we made to the deal. The NDP has already said that the new NAFTA was the best deal possible.

Indeed, the members of the NDP attending the Unifor reception highlighted that this was a much better deal than the deal that was signed 24 years ago. That was from Jerry Dias, the head of Unifor. We know this is a good deal for Canadians.

Pharmacare

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, those fine words are not backed by action for Canadians. Yesterday, the Prime Minister promised to bring in a national and universal pharmacare program.

However, the reality is the Liberals have been promising universal pharmacare since 1997. Canadians should not have to wait, and in fact they do not need to wait. The Liberals can get to work right away.

What is the timeline? When will all Canadians have their medications covered?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, no Canadian should have to choose between paying for prescription drugs or putting food on the table. That is why we have not waited. We acted right away and have done more than any government in a generation to lower drug prices in this country.

Now it is time to take the next step toward national universal pharmacare, and that involves sitting down with the provinces to talk about how we are going to move forward on things like high-cost drugs for rare diseases and moving forward on a national Canadian drug agency that is going to create a national formulary. There are many steps we are embarking on right now, because we know Canadians deserve a health care system that works for everyone.

International Trade

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

Mr. Speaker, this is the second time the Liberal government has announced a final agreement on NAFTA. Each time Canada is at the negotiating table we seem to give away more. Maybe we should just accept this before we give away the farm. Wait, the Liberals already did that with dairy.

With the auto industry and manufacturing growing in Mexico, why would the government give away our opportunity to sell more and more aluminum to Mexico in the future?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I understand that this is a recent development, but I recommend that the member opposite take a little closer look at what actually was negotiated, because this is actually a significant—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

I realize I am getting older, but the noise gets amplified. I am supposed to hear members from here, but I had a hard time. I just wanted to let the members know in case they were wondering why I stood up. It does get kind of noisy at times, but I want to let the hon. Prime Minister answer the member for Durham's question.

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Papineau, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this new NAFTA accord represents a significant gain for aluminum workers and steel workers across Canada as we move forward with guaranteed percentages of 70% in the North American automobile industry for North American steel and aluminum. This provides predictability and stability for our workers across Canada.

We are going to continue to work hard to defend our workers, as this government has done for the past four years.

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

Mr. Speaker, the chairman of the U.S. Ways and Means Committee thanked Canada for conceding on all the new NAFTA amendments. This is after the Liberals gave graciously in the original deal. We know the Liberals have conceded on aluminum, impacting thousands of workers in Quebec. The Prime Minister's latest concessions come just weeks before the plant closure at GM Oshawa.

How can the Prime Minister call this a win when workers in Quebec and auto workers in Ontario will lose?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, what the member opposite is saying is simply mistaken. This is an improvement for workers across this country, particularly steel and aluminum workers. We worked very hard with all parties, with our Mexican counterparts, with the Democrats and the Republicans, to ensure that this was a win-win-win for all three countries. I can highlight that the improvements we achieved in this most recent and final version of NAFTA are significantly better for Canadians.

We will always stand up for Canadian workers and for our most important trade deals with the Americans.

[Richard Martel, Conservative, Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, unless we were to abandon NAFTA, there could be no worse free trade agreement than the one Canada just negotiated. It is simple: the United States and Mexico had a game plan and we did not. According to Jean Simard, president and CEO of the Aluminium Association of Canada, Mexico has become China's backyard. The Prime Minister has failed our workers.

Are there any solutions to help the industry export more of our Saguenay aluminum, the greenest in the world?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the new NAFTA agreement is a win for aluminum workers.

I understand that our colleagues in the House are more concerned with playing political games and fearmongering, but the reality is that we are here to stand up for aluminum workers. We made gains in the agreement we are signing.

Anyone who votes against this NAFTA agreement is voting against aluminum workers in Saguenay and elsewhere in Quebec and Canada.

[Randy Hoback, Conservative, Prince Albert, SK]

Mr. Speaker, while the United States and Mexico continued to negotiate a better NAFTA for themselves, the Liberal government again sat on the sidelines. This is a missed opportunity for the Liberals to help industries such as aluminum and softwood lumber. The forestry sector is hurting. Mills are closing. People are losing their jobs.

Why would the Prime Minister agree to a deal that does nothing for aluminum producers or our forestry workers?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, this new NAFTA deal has significant gains for our aluminum workers. On forestry workers, we remain extremely concerned with the difficult situations they are facing. We will continue to work very hard with our American counterparts alongside Canadian premiers, standing up for our forestry workers and encouraging the United States to come to an agreement on softwood lumber.

[Leona Alleslev, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the opposition showed the Prime Minister that he has lost control of the House. Nevertheless, the Prime Minister signed the new NAFTA without consulting the opposition. According to the media, the Democrats were clearly in the know and practically negotiated the agreement. The Conservatives will not rubber-stamp it.

When will the Prime Minister understand that he needs the opposition's approval before making important decisions?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we were very pleased to earn the confidence of the House yesterday to continue to move forward with our plan to help Canadians, invest in communities and serve Canadians across the country.

We will always work with our colleagues in the House of Commons to effectively represent Canadians. We know that this new NAFTA will help Canadian workers, including those in the steel and aluminum sector. They will have better job security and stronger growth in their communities.

[Leona Alleslev, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, not only did the Prime Minister not inform members of Parliament in Canada about the new NAFTA, but he has sheepishly accepted the terms put forward by our trading partners. According to senior Democrats, the Prime Minister conceded to just about every point that we asked for in this most recent final agreement.

Is this not the final, final agreement? When will the Prime Minister realize that here at home he does not have control of Parliament and he needs the support of opposition before finalizing major decisions?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to highlight the fact that we actually gained throughout this final process. We have significant advantages to Canada with the final text negotiated between Canada, the United States and Mexico. We are representing strong outcomes for Canadian workers, for Canadian businesses and for Canadians from coast to coast to coast.

We look forward to debate in the House on ratification of NAFTA, and I am sure all parliamentarians will support this deal that is good for Canadians.