Debates of April 29th, 2019

2019 Flooding

[Steven MacKinnon, Liberal, Gatineau, QC]

Mr. Speaker, as we speak, Quebec, Ontario and New Brunswick are experiencing major flooding. Our communities have been put to the test. The Government of Canada is monitoring the situation very closely and working with our provincial and municipal partners to maintain public safety, with support from the Canadian Armed Forces.

In Gatineau, as in other communities, I was again touched by residents' resilience and the solidarity they have shown with their neighbours. The coming days will hold new challenges, but I believe in the resilience of Canadians. I want to highlight the hard work of our municipal employees and the many volunteers across Canada.

In the span of three years, my city, Gatineau, will have experienced two major floods and a tornado. The climate is changing, and our ability to respond needs to change, too. My heart goes out to the disaster victims. We will not let them down.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Following discussions among representatives of all the parties in the House, I understand that there is an agreement to observe a moment of silence in memory of the victims of the Sri Lanka Easter bombings. I now invite hon. members to rise.

[A moment of silence observed]

Public Safety

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, as various regions in Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick are dealing with severe flooding, we are all very concerned for the lives, families and businesses that are being impacted by the high water. I know we are all grateful to the thousands of volunteers, first responders and the Canadian Armed Forces who are working around the clock trying to keep people and their properties safe.

Can the government provide this House with an update on the current situation and inform us as to what immediate actions are being taken to assist those who are affected by the current flooding?

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

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are standing shoulder to shoulder in combatting dangerous and damaging floods this spring across four provinces. The provinces have, of course, the front-line jurisdiction for emergency response, but when they need help they make a specific request to the Government of Canada. We have responded quickly and positively in every case.

I have spoken with Minister Urquhart in New Brunswick, Minister Guilbault in Quebec and Minister Jones in Ontario. Our collaboration in response has been seamless. All governments and thousands of volunteers will continue to work together to help support one another, because that is what Canadians do.

International Trade

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the canola crisis with China has been ongoing for over a month now, and it has been devastating for Canadian producers. However, the Prime Minister has been so embroiled in his SNC-Lavalin scandal that he has not offered any solutions. Sadly, he does not even appear to know the difference between China and Japan. He has been more consumed with saving his own political skin rather than address the real issues that Canadians are facing.

What will the Prime Minister do for canola farmers who are facing this immediate and growing crisis?

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, we have been standing shoulder to shoulder with our canola farmers from the very beginning. We stand with them and their families. We know that we have the best canola in the world. We have a very robust inspection system, and we are having an ongoing conversation with the Chinese authorities to resolve this issue as quickly as we can.

We remain committed to resolving this issue and we are also looking at the best ways to support our farmers even more. We look forward to having more on this issue.

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, Conservatives have been meeting and consulting with leaders and members of the agriculture sector, and earlier today, our leader put forward concrete proposals to addressing the canola crisis.

Conservatives are happy to do the work and offer solutions while the Prime Minister and the Liberals are clearly asleep at the wheel. Our plan offers real solutions and it has the support of canola producers.

Will the Prime Minister take the work that we have done and implement these proposals immediately?

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, we were working on this issue from the first day while our Conservative colleagues kept asking questions on other issues. It took them six weeks to ask the first question on the canola issue.

I have been working on this, and our team has been working with the industry, with our provincial colleagues, with the businesses involved and with the farmers for more than two months now. We have been there, standing by our farmers and their families since the beginning.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Order. It is difficult to hear the answer when the hon. member for Prince Albert is yelling throughout the answer. I would ask him to restrain himself and show respect for this House.

There are seven weeks ahead, and I know we can manage to contain ourselves.

The hon. member for Mégantic—L'Érable.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Mr. Speaker, since the beginning, they have refused nine times to have an emergency debate on canola.

The Prime Minister's inaction on the canola crisis is costing the economy a lot of money. Richardson was blocked from the Chinese market on March 5, nearly two months ago now.

What did the Liberal government do? Absolutely nothing. It is waiting for the crisis to fix itself.

Will the Prime Minister listen to the Leader of the Opposition and appoint an ambassador, increase emergency financial aid to farmers, and launch an official trade complaint against China?

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, we have been working on this issue since the beginning. It took six weeks for my colleague from Mégantic—L'Érable to ask me the first question about canola. Since the very beginning, I have been working with our farmers, with our producers, with the industry, with our provincial colleagues and with businesses that are directly affected. We have created a working group. We are looking at all the options. I will shortly be announcing some good news to further support our farmers.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food has been refusing to appear before the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food to talk about the canola crisis since before the holidays. She does not want to talk to the Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food about it. A month ago, the minister asked China to allow a delegation of experts to travel to China, but China has been completely ignoring the Liberal government ever since. Now it seems the crisis is spreading to other products. The new minister might have time to wait, but our farmers do not.

Will the Prime Minister listen to the Leader of the Opposition and appoint an ambassador, increase assistance for farmers and file an official complaint against China?

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, ever since I was appointed to my new position on March 1, I have been working very hard on this issue with my colleagues, the Minister of International Trade Diversification, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Prime Minister, as well as our provincial counterparts.

As a team, we are working tirelessly on ongoing technical discussions with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and Chinese officials. We are standing by our farmers.

Pharmacare

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the scandal around the Prime Minister's role in political interference has shown Canadians that Liberals have one set of rules for their powerful friends and another for everyone else. It is not just shielding a giant corporation from criminal prosecution. KPMG was let off the hook for tax avoidance. Sears financiers were protected, but workers were not. Pharmaceutical companies were put ahead of Canadians who are unable to afford their medication.

Will Liberals now change their course and help people by implementing our plan for pharmacare for all?

[Jim Carr, Liberal, Minister of International Trade Diversification]

Mr. Speaker, while Canadians are proud of their health care system, we believe that no one should have to choose between paying for prescriptions and putting food on the table. That is why we are laying the foundation for national pharmacare with several bold, concrete steps in budget 2019 that could lower drug costs by up to $3 billion a year. We look forward to continuing this progress when we receive the pharmacare council's final report in the coming months.

The Environment

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, that answer was an embarrassment.

Liberals are also missing an opportunity for Canada to become a leader in the green economy, and instead continue to pile billions on billions in corporate welfare to highly profitable companies. Investing in a green economy can create thousands of jobs while fighting climate change. Let us start by helping Canadians reduce their carbon footprints and their monthly bills.

Will Liberals stop subsidizing oil companies, stop giving millions to Loblaws and instead agree to our plan to retrofit all homes by 2050?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Minister of Fisheries]

Mr. Speaker, we have developed a comprehensive plan to address carbon emissions across this country that focuses not only on reducing emissions and adapting to some of the changes we are seeing in climate change but focuses very much on generating the new economy.

As somebody who has spent 20 years as a CEO in green tech, I understand this area very well. This government has a comprehensive plan to ensure we are addressing this on a go-forward basis in a responsible and thoughtful way.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, for a long time, rich corporations have had someone on their side, and ordinary Canadians are paying the price. Canadians deserve a government that is on their side, but the Liberal government maintained the billions of dollars in oil subsidies brought in by the Conservatives. That is unacceptable.

When will the Liberals put an end to those subsidies in order to protect our environment and help Canadians?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Minister of Fisheries]

Mr. Speaker, we have implemented many measures to fight climate change. We implemented measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We addressed the economic issues and we have a plan to adapt to climate change. We have demonstrated leadership and will continue to do so.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, that answer is still unacceptable.

It is high time Canadians elected a government that works for ordinary people, not for those who are already rich. Giving millions of dollars to one of the richest corporations is not going to help fight climate change. Families and workers need help.

When will the Liberal government admit that it made a mistake and reinvest that $12 million to help workers and their families?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Minister of Fisheries]

Mr. Speaker, we developed our plan with the help of Canadians. Our serious and affordable approach will get good results. We have a plan that includes over 50 measures to fight climate change and make the economy clean and affordable for everyone. Canadians want real action, not the Conservatives' status quo or the NDP's talk.

Foreign Affairs

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

Mr. Speaker, we have a Prime Minister who is letting our diplomatic relations with China deteriorate. The Huawei case has led to the canola crisis and the unjust detention of two Canadians.

This weekend, during a meeting with the Prime Minister of Japan, our Prime Minister did the impossible. He mixed up Japan and China in the same sentence not once, but twice.

What is the Prime Minister going to do to restore diplomatic relations with China?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, our priority, which is also my personal priority, is the well-being and safety of Canadians detained in China. We have rallied an unprecedented number of partners around the world to support Canada's position: Australia, the European Union, France, Germany, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Latvia, and others. I will continue by answering the second question.

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

Mr. Speaker, the reality is that the Prime Minister and his government have not provided Canadian canola producers with any support, and that is also the case for the two Canadians detained in China.

The Prime Minister must immediately appoint an ambassador to China that will defend Canadians who are unfairly arrested and restore stable trade and diplomatic relationship.

When will this Prime Minister demonstrate a modicum of responsibility and leadership?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, as I promised, I will continue to name the countries that have publicly supported Canada: Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Spain, Denmark, the United States and 140 academics and diplomats from around the world. NATO's secretary general appealed directly and publicly to China to consider our serious concerns.