Debates of April 1st, 2019

Justice

[Michael Cooper, Conservative, St. Albert—Edmonton, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister told Canadians to listen to Michael Wernick. We did, and last week we heard new evidence that further proves that the Prime Minister directed a coordinated campaign to stop the criminal prosecution of SNC-Lavalin, thereby interfering with the prosecutorial discretion of the former attorney general.

When will the Prime Minister stop changing his story and start telling the truth?

[Bardish Chagger, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, it was stated at committee that the rule of law in Canada is intact, that Canadians can have confidence in their institutions and that the rule of law was followed.

The Prime Minister recognizes that we can always improve and strengthen our institutions. That is why he acknowledged that there was a breakdown of communication and trust within his office and has put measures in place to ensure that, moving forward, we have even stronger systems in place.

The Prime Minister also acknowledged that he should have spoken directly with the former minister on this matter. It is important to note that the Conservatives are picking and choosing, but we should look at all the facts.

International Development

[Guy Caron, NDP, Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques, QC]

Mr. Speaker, over 22 million Yemeni are suffering immensely because of the conflict that has been raging there for four years. The Liberals announced $46.7 million in aid for Yemen in February.

Meanwhile, in 2016, Canada authorized the export of $15 billion worth of light armoured vehicles to Saudi Arabia and the sale of $500 million worth of other weapons, which are being used to create a blockade in various ports, thereby preventing humanitarian aid from reaching the people of Yemen.

What is the point of offering humanitarian aid with the left hand if the right hand is making it impossible for that aid to reach civilian populations?

[Pamela Goldsmith-Jones, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Consular Affairs), Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, our party supports the peace talks in Yemen. We call on parties to fully implement their commitments and to bring peace to the people of Yemen. We call for full access to humanitarian aid. We have announced additional millions to go directly toward saving people's lives in Yemen, as was referred to.

Our government has also a UN motion mandating the UN human rights commissioner to send investigators to Yemen to investigate crimes against humanity.

Infrastructure

[Pat Finnigan, Liberal, Miramichi—Grand Lake, NB]

Mr. Speaker, many rural communities across Canada are experiencing an infrastructure deficit after 10 years of neglect by the Harper Conservatives. For small communities, support from a higher level of government is absolutely essential to getting crucial infrastructure built.

Could the Minister of Rural Economic Development update the House on recent actions our government has taken to help rural communities across the country fill the infrastructure gaps?

[Bernadette Jordan, Minister of Rural Economic Development, Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his question.

Our government understands that rural municipalities are eager to get infrastructure projects done, and we know how important it is for them to have a dependable, co-operative partner in the federal government. That is why in budget 2019 we introduced a top-up of $2.2 billion, which will flow directly to municipal governments to get their infrastructure projects under way.

While Conservatives across the country continue to show disrespect for municipalities, our government remains a dependable partner for rural communities.

Justice

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

Mr. Speaker, after hearing the tape last Friday, Canadians were able to get a clear picture of just how far the Prime Minister and his operatives were willing to go to stop the criminal proceedings against SNC-Lavalin. In fact, he—he being the Prime Minister—was quite determined on this, as Michael Wernick said on the tape to the former attorney general.

The Prime Minister has changed his story several times, and we have reached the point where he needs to speak the truth to real power, the real power being the people of Canada. When will the Prime Minister come clean and finally tell Canadians the truth?

[Bardish Chagger, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians deserve to hear the truth, and that is exactly why the justice committee was meeting in public. That is exactly why the Prime Minister waived solicitor-client privilege as well as cabinet confidence for the period in which the justice committee determined parameters for their study of this matter. These meetings took place in public so that Canadians could judge for themselves.

The Conservatives will continue to speculate and to pick and choose points, but we have confidence that Canadians are able to see all of the facts because they are all on the table and they are all in public.

Intergovernmental Relations

[Monique Pauzé, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Quebec government has finally decided to set clear guidelines to protect secularism. Quebec believes that the best way to protect all religions is for the state to have no religion. However, the secularism bill had not even been introduced and the Prime Minister was already attacking it.

Will the Prime Minister promise to respect the will of Quebec and not undertake any legal challenges of Bill 21?

[David Lametti, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, our government has always defended the fundamental rights of each and every Canadian and it will continue to do so. The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms protects the rights of all citizens. We cannot choose which to protect and which to limit.

Our position is clear. The state must not dictate what people can or cannot wear, regardless of their beliefs.

[Monique Pauzé, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Speaker, when I hear that it is clear to me that the government does not care about Quebec. If it did, it would know that we have been thinking about secularism since the Quiet Revolution. This is nothing new.

To the Prime Minister, Quebec's secularism legislation is discriminatory. He said, and I quote, “It's unthinkable to me that in a free society we would legitimize discrimination against citizens based on their religion.”

The opposite is true. This is an anti-discrimination bill since the rules apply to everyone.

Will the Prime Minister promise not to challenge Bill 21 in court?

[David Lametti, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, Canada is a secular country. That is reflected in all our institutions. Government employees have the right to express their faith and no one should have to choose between a job and the right to wear a religious symbol. We all have a responsibility to protect fundamental rights. Any initiative that erodes those rights is unacceptable. Canada is open, inclusive, and rich in diversity.

[Monique Pauzé, Bloc, Repentigny, QC]

Mr. Speaker, all I understood from that answer is that Canada is anything but secular.

We know that the Prime Minister has already made up his mind and put the Quebec government on notice. He said that everybody knows he will defend the Canadian charter and that Mr. Legault and all Quebeckers know that his position on this is very firm.

Is that a threat?

Will the government respect the will of Quebec and agree not to file or fund any legal challenges to Bill 21?

[David Lametti, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, Lib.]

Mr. Speaker, the Government of Quebec only just tabled its bill. We are going to take some time before commenting on next steps.

That being said, as I just mentioned, we are the party of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and we will always stand up for the charter. No government should be making someone choose between their job and their religious symbols.

Presence in Gallery

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I wish to draw the attention of members to the presence in our gallery of a former member of the House of Commons, former federal minister, former occupant of the chair , and former premier of Quebec, the Hon. Jean Charest.

[Some hon. members]

Hear, hear!

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I have a point of order arising from question period.

In answer to my question about the Prime Minister's cover-up of the SNC-Lavalin corruption scandal, the government House leader said that every meeting of the justice committee was held in public. I have a notice of meeting from March 19 that says the justice committee meeting was in camera, in other words behind closed doors. That is where it shut down the investigation into the SNC-Lavalin corruption scandal.

I would invite the House leader to correct the record and tell Canadians the truth—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Is the hon. member able to table the document with unanimous consent?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

No.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Other than that, this appears to be debate. We will move on.

Government Response to Petitions

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to 14 petitions.

Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Pursuant to section 15(3) of the Conflict of Interest Code for Members of the House of Commons, it is my duty to lay upon the table the list of all sponsored travel by members for the year 2018 with a supplement that is provided by the Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner.

Interparliamentary Delegations

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I have the honour to lay upon the table the report of a Canadian parliamentary delegation concerning its visit to Lebanon and Jordan from October 8 to 11, 2018.

I also have the honour to lay upon the table the report of the Canadian parliamentary delegation concerning its visit to the Republic of Croatia and the Czech Republic from January 12 to 19, 2019.

Chief Electoral Officer of Canada

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I have the honour to lay upon the table the report of the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada on the 2018 byelections. This report is deemed permanently referred to the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs.

Interparliamentary Delegations

[Denis Paradis, Liberal, Brome—Missisquoi, QC]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 34(1), I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the report of the Canadian parliamentary delegation of the Canada-France Interparliamentary Association respecting its participation at the visit of the executive to Paris and Lille, France, from October 22 to 25, 2018.