House of Commons Hansard #393 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was justice.
Michelle Rempel Conservative Calgary Nose Hill, AB
Mr. Speaker, the only thing the Prime Minister has been doing is moving hell and high water to protect a company that stands accused of bribing Moammar Gadhafi's sons with prostitutes and he has been doing that while muzzling strong, principled women. That is not what a feminist looks like. That is not walking the talk.
Every day that he refuses to allow the former attorney general to testify and tell her story is another day he is a fake feminist. Why does he have her muzzled?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I am so pleased to have this opportunity to talk about women's rights.
Our government has invested millions and millions of dollars to help women across the country, and we will continue to do so. The Conservatives keep voting against our measures to promote gender equality and create more opportunities for female entrepreneurs.
We will continue our work because we know that investing in women in Canada and around the world is key to building a better world for everyone.
Tracey Ramsey NDP Essex, ON
Mr. Speaker, not only do Liberals not want the truth to come out at the justice committee, we now know they were bending the truth about jobs being in danger. The CEO of SNC-Lavalin just said he never told the Prime Minister that jobs in Canada were in danger.
The Liberals shut down debate at committee. They misled Canadians. Two cabinet ministers and two senior officials have lost their jobs. Remember the Liberals in 2015 promised transparency and accountability. What happened to them? Canadians are tired of being misled and now know they cannot trust the Prime Minister.
Will the Prime Minister do the right thing and launch an independent public inquiry, yes or no?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, in 2015, we promised to invest in the middle class and create economic growth. That is exactly what we have done and will continue to do.
As shown in yesterday's budget, we are investing in improving access to new housing for young families. We are investing in high-speed connectivity across the country. We are investing in pharmacare to help improve access to prescription drugs.
We can do all this because our plan is working. We can keep investing thanks to the economic growth of the past three years.
Charlie Angus NDP Timmins—James Bay, ON
Mr. Speaker, we have now learned from the CEO of SNC-Lavalin that 9,000 jobs were never at risk. To say that they are going to be unemployed is not true, he said, yet the Prime Minister has misled his caucus, the House and Canadians day after day, because it was never about jobs. It was about helping his wealthy friends and about shutting down the justice committee. He has tried to cover up his interference in an independent public prosecution. He has broken faith with the Canadian people.
Why is he so afraid of an investigation into his actions in making up the facts around the SNC lobbying?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, Canadians expect us to protect jobs and support workers while respecting our institutions. That is exactly what we are doing. Investing in training is one way we will continue to invest in workers and help Canadians.
We tabled our budget yesterday. Canadians will have access to training so they can be better prepared for the jobs and opportunities of the future. That is what it means to help workers and Canadians take control of their future, and that is what we are doing.
Alain Rayes Conservative Richmond—Arthabaska, QC
Mr. Speaker, Canadians want the truth. However, the Prime Minister refused to call a public inquiry. He refused to testify before the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights. He refused to let us hear from his senior staff who work in his office. He is refusing to waive solicitor-client privilege for the former attorney general.
Since he shut down the work of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights, where we could perhaps have learned a little more, will the Prime Minister agree to testify before the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, on this side of the House, we understand that parliamentary committees decide which witnesses they will invite and what they will study. I will always respect committee decisions.
On this side of the House, we respect our institutions. That is why we are investing in our institutions and in Canadians. We are investing in infrastructure across the country, we are investing in affordable housing, we are investing in connectivity, and we are providing funding to dairy farmers.
Alain Rayes Conservative Richmond—Arthabaska, QC
Mr. Speaker, the justice minister resigned, the Treasury Board president resigned, the Clerk of the Privy Council resigned, and the Prime Minister's principal secretary resigned, which is interesting because he is the Prime Minister's friend and supposedly did nothing wrong.
Today we learn that another Liberal MP has abandoned the Liberal ship because she was unhappy with the job. The Prime Minister is hiring private lawyers to defend himself with Canadians' money—but he did nothing wrong.
My question is simple. Will the Prime Minister agree to testify at the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, as the Conservatives should know, it is up to the committees to decide which witnesses they want to hear from. We will always participate in their studies.
I want to note that yesterday, our budget showed that Canadians continue to be our primary focus. The Conservatives can keep playing political games if they want to, but we have a plan for the economy that helped create 900,000 new jobs in three years, resulting in the lowest unemployment rate in 40 years. The Conservatives have no plan for the economy.
Gérard Deltell Conservative Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC
Mr. Speaker, for a year and a half now, the Liberals and the Prime Minister have being going on, practically with tears in their eyes, about how they are protecting the 9,000 SNC-Lavalin jobs. The cat is now out of the bag, after the president and CEO of SNC-Lavalin told the Canadian Press that he never mentioned protecting the 9,000 jobs. This is the complete opposite of what the Prime Minister has been saying for the past month and a half.
Now that we know that the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics will investigate the Liberal SNC-Lavalin scandal, will the Prime Minister agree to testify and tell his version of the story?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, we have been making every effort to protect workers and jobs since 2015. We will continue to do so, especially since Canadians have created more than 900,000 jobs in this country since 2015. However, we recognized that not all Canadians have access to the training they need to get new jobs. In the budget we presented yesterday, we created the Canada training benefit, which will help workers find the time and money to upgrade their skills. This measure will be a huge help to workers and businesses.
Gérard Deltell Conservative Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC
Mr. Speaker, when the Globe and Mail broke the story on the Liberal SNC-Lavalin scandal, the Prime Minister said it was false.
What has happened since then? The former attorney general lost her job. The former president of the Treasury Board lost her job, and now a Liberal MP has left the Liberal caucus. One woman, two women, three women have left. That is the record of a Prime Minister who claims to be a feminist.
Since the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics will be meeting to examine the SNC-Lavalin scandal, will the Prime Minister agree to give his side of the story?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, we will always work with the committees, who determine themselves what studies they will undertake. In the meantime, we know that investing in Canadians and the Canadian economy, as we promised to do in 2015, is working.
We are seeing economic growth that was never seen during the Harper years. We are seeing job creation that was never seen in the Harper years. Unfortunately, the Conservatives are still stuck on the same old Stephen Harper approach, and that is why they do not want to talk about the economy. They do not want to talk about the budget. They only want to play politics.
We will stay focused on Canadians.
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
Mr. Speaker, 1.5 million students around the world took to the streets in a climate strike last Friday.
Students from Canada, from coast to coast to coast, flooded the streets with a clear message: There is no planet B. We have 12 years to avert climate disaster, and climate leaders do not buy pipelines. Our children are demanding real action and an end to empty promises. Budget 2019 continues to subsidize big oil.
Will the Prime Minister admit that Harper's emission targets will not cut it, and that buying a 65-year-old pipeline is not climate action?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to see that students and young people are concerned about the future of our planet, because we on this side of the House share that concern. That is why we are moving forward with putting a price on pollution.
We are moving forward with an historic plan to protect our oceans. We are moving forward with investments in green energies and in new technologies to improve how our economy works. We will continue to fight climate change. It is a priority for our government, just as it is a priority for young people across the country.
Alexandre Boulerice NDP Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC
Mr. Speaker, on Friday, 1.5 million students went on strike for the future of the planet and their own future.
I attended the protest in Montreal, amid a sea of 100,000 other people. It was beautiful and moving to see all these young people standing up to demand action.
There was even a slogan that went, “Do something, for eff's sake”.
The Liberals let them down with yesterday's budget. The government is still plodding along with the same old policies, the same old subsidies for oil companies and the purchase of an old pipeline.
Our young people realize that the situation is urgent. Why do the Liberals refuse to listen to them?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, we will always listen to young people, and we will always work with them to protect the environment and build a better world.
We are taking concrete action with budget 2019. We announced a new home renovation program that will help Canadians lower their energy bills. We are making zero-emission vehicles more affordable for Canadians across the country. We are also building the infrastructure to support them.
The NDP keeps pitting the environment against the economy. We are growing the economy while protecting the environment.
Sukh Dhaliwal Liberal Surrey—Newton, BC
Mr. Speaker, yesterday our government laid out the next steps in our plan to invest in families and to support the middle class and those working hard to join it.
A key part of the budget is new measures to make housing more affordable. Could the Prime Minister update the House on what we are doing to help Canadians find an affordable place to call home?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for Surrey—Newton for his hard work.
Canadians told us that too many young families are being shut out of the housing market.
Budget 2019 tackles that issue. With the first-time home buyer incentive, Canadians will save hundreds of dollars a month on their mortgage payments. Boosting funding for the rental construction financing initiative will help Canadians find housing from the start, and we are going to continue with our approach.
Pierre Paul-Hus Conservative Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC
Mr. Speaker, who said that questions remain unanswered? The former attorney general. Who said that she had lost confidence in how the government dealt with this matter? The former president of the Treasury Board.
The Prime Minister is insulting Canadians' intelligence by refusing to shed light on this affair.
Will the Prime Minister stop covering up the truth and agree to appear, and let his officials appear, before the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics so that we can get to the bottom of this political interference?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, as I said, we will always respond to committees' requests. It is up to our committees to determine what work they want to do and what witnesses they want to call, and we will always respect that.
On that note, it is interesting that the Conservatives, who usually want to talk about Canada's economy, are refusing to talk about it today. They are refusing to talk about the historic budget that we just tabled. Why? It is because they have no plan for the economy. All they have is an old approach that did not work under Stephen Harper, whereas we created 900,000 jobs across Canada, we lowered the unemployment rate, we lifted over 800,000 people—
Pierre Paul-Hus Conservative Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC
Mr. Speaker, if anyone here is afraid of something, it is the Prime Minister himself. He is afraid to talk about political interference in our justice system. He is afraid to let the former attorney general speak.
What is he so afraid of? Four people have resigned so far. Things must be pretty bad.
Will the Prime Minister appear before the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics, yes or no?
Justin Trudeau LiberalPrime Minister
Mr. Speaker, I have already answered that question.
The fact is that the Conservatives, who used to be more interested in Canadians and the economy, are now completely lost. They spent 10 years helping the rich and cutting programs, but that approach did not work. They did not balance the budget or drive the economic growth Canadians need.
Over the past three years, we have invested in the middle class and communities. We have delivered positive results for Canada's economy and Canadian families. That is what we will continue to do. The Conservatives have nothing to say.
