Debates of April 8th, 2019

Justice

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

Mr. Speaker, here are the facts. On March 31, the same day the Leader of the Opposition received the letter, he deleted and then edited one of his defamatory tweets. He did the same thing with another defamatory statement he made on February 11. We will not stand idly by while the Leader of the Opposition misleads Canadians. Canadians can see that the only tweet the opposition leader did not change is the one regarding his affiliation with Faith Goldy.

[Peter Kent, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister's threatened lawsuit is a classic SLAPP suit, a strategic lawsuit against public participation. The Prime Minister is clearly attempting to censor, silence and intimate, without intending to proceed. However, if he actually does, the Prime Minister should proceed quickly. The Leader of the Opposition has invited him to “Bring it on.”

Could the Prime Minister assure the House that he has ordered retention of all documents related to the SNC-Lavalin corruption scandal?

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

Mr. Speaker, it should be once again stated that to ensure Canadians could hear the truth for themselves, it was actually the Prime Minister and this government that waived solicitor-client privilege, as well as cabinet confidence. It should also be noted that it was the first time in the history of our country that this had been done. It is important that Canadians be able to hear the truth.

However, it is not the first time the Conservatives are misleading Canadians. That is exactly why Conservatives have been put on notice. The same day, March 31, that they received notice, the Leader of the Opposition deleted and then edited his tweets. It is the same thing he did on February 11, after the Minister of Innovation had served him notice.

[Peter Kent, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, after months of hiding the truth from Canadians about his corrupt conduct and fraudulent excuses, the Prime Minister himself has created an opportunity to come clean. The PM is obviously trying to intimidate the Leader of the Opposition with the threat of a lawsuit, with no intention of proceeding. Because if he did, the PM would have to present his evidence and finally testify under oath.

Therefore, might I respectfully suggest that it is time for the PM to put up or shut up.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I of course will encourage my hon. friend from Thornhill to be judicious in his choice of wording.

The hon. government House leader.

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

Mr. Speaker, the member for Thornhill should not only be judicious of his words, but he should have respect for this chamber and should retract those comments.

When it comes to the Prime Minister of Canada or any prime minister, whether I have agreed with them or not, they are the Prime Minister of our country and we should be proud of our democratic institutions. These individuals are elected by people and we should be respectful of Canadians from coast to coast to coast. Unfortunately, that is something the member and the Conservatives are lacking. It is interesting to see that all of a sudden they have a newfound respect for our institutions.

When it comes to the justice committee, it did its work. When it comes to the officer—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. member for Jonquière.

International Trade

[Karine Trudel, NDP, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, a report by the Canadian International Trade Tribunal has found that the Trump administration's unfair tariffs on steel are not justified. We know for a fact that this is also the case for aluminum tariffs.

Workers are not going to be able to absorb the cost indefinitely. The Minister of Finance has the authority to overrule the tribunal's decision. The Liberals must take action and impose permanent safeguard measures to protect our jobs in the steel and aluminum sectors. This is urgent.

Will the minister finally help these workers?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, the illegal and unjust American tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum must be lifted. We consistently send this message to the United States, including at a meeting I had with Secretary of State Pompeo last Wednesday.

American legislators, both Republicans and Democrats, and a dozen U.S. industries have asked Ambassador Lighthizer to lift the tariffs.

[Tracey Ramsey, NDP, Essex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, last week steelworkers received the shocking ruling from the trade tribunal that safeguard measures would not be permanently imposed. Workers have already lost hundreds of jobs under the unfair steel tariffs imposed by Trump and they cannot believe that the Liberals signed the new NAFTA with them in place.

Remember when the Prime Minister told steelworkers in Hamilton that he had their backs? Now is the time to show it. The Liberal government is not doing enough to end the illegal dumping of cheap and dirty steel, and steelworkers are fed up.

Will the finance minister immediately impose permanent safeguard measures to protect steel jobs, yes or no?

[Navdeep Bains, Liberal, Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, it was our government that took a leadership role in introducing those safeguards. Above and beyond that, we introduced $2 billion worth of support for our steel and aluminum workers.

We understand that these unjust and unfair tariffs imposed by the Americans are completely unacceptable. We will continue to defend our steel and aluminum workers. We have been there with them. We have made investments in large producers, while supporting small and medium-sized businesses as well. We will continue to defend the sector.

[John McKay, Liberal, Scarborough—Guildwood, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today is a good day for corporate social responsibility in Canada. In the 10 years since the introduction and ultimate defeat of Bill C-300, the responsible mining bill, Canada has evolved from a strong resistance to naming an ombudsman for the Canadian office of responsible enterprise. This office will help support Canadian companies around the world to operate in accordance with international human rights standards.

Could the Minister of International Trade update the House on the appointment of the ombudsperson and the establishment of her mandate?

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

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Scarborough—Guildwood for his leadership, tenacity and perseverance for more than a decade on this file.

Today, I announced the appointment of Sheri Meyerhoffer as the first-ever Canadian ombudsperson for responsible enterprise. This office is the first of its kind in the world. The ombudsperson will ensure that Canadian firms operating abroad maintain the highest ethical practices. This solidifies our competitive edge and promotes Canada's strong leadership on the global stage.

Justice

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

Mr. Speaker, it emerged yesterday that after orchestrating a sustained campaign to put pressure on the former attorney general, the chief strategist and Liberal Prime Minister is resorting to intimidation to silence the Leader of the Opposition.

Writing about the Prime Minister's attitude, Emmanuelle Latraverse said that he is like a teenager who would rather party than buckle down and hit the books. She said that on this file, the Prime Minister got an F in governance and transparency.

The Leader of the Opposition is ready.

When does the Prime Minister plan to make good on his threat? Will he testify in court so that Canadians can hear the whole truth?

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

Mr. Speaker, to ensure that Canadians heard the whole truth, the Prime Minister waived solicitor-client privilege and cabinet confidence. That is exactly why all of the facts are now public.

We put the Leader of the Opposition on notice again. On March 31, the exact day when he received our letter, he deleted and edited one of his defamatory tweets. He did the same thing with another defamatory tweet he posted on February 11.

Last week, the member for Mégantic—L'Érable asked for an emergency debate on canola. Today, he is not asking—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The member for Mégantic—L'Érable.

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

Mr. Speaker, I have good news: the Prime Minister cannot fire the Leader of the Opposition, but Canadians will be able to fire the Prime Minister on October 21. That is what the Prime Minister deserves for trying to muzzle the Leader of the Opposition.

A real leader takes full responsibility, as the hon. member for Regina—Qu'Appelle does. That is what a real leader does. Canadians deserve the truth. In court, lies have consequences.

After all these intimidation theatrics, will the Prime Minister cave or will he testify?

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

Mr. Speaker, since my colleague has answered that question several times now and I know that my colleague from Mégantic—L'Érable is very interested in the canola file, I am pleased to take this opportunity to tell him that I am working closely with the task force. In fact, the first meeting was last Thursday.

I am in constant contact with our provincial partners and industry. I have asked that a delegation of scientists go to China. I will be getting a response shortly.

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

Mr. Speaker, what we are seeing here today is the Liberal government reacting to the fact that it sent out this letter threatening the Leader of the Opposition for, basically, doing his job. It is trying to get the Conservatives to back down so he does not have to, because the Liberals know how crazy this is. They know Canadians are watching this and are incensed.

I am here to say that we are not backing down. The Leader of the Opposition just stood up and said that he stood behind everything he said. When is the Prime Minister going to show up in court?

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

Mr. Speaker, perhaps that is exactly why the leader of the official opposition and the Conservatives have been given notice once again. It is not their job to mislead Canadians. It is our job to ensure that we work in the best interest of Canadians.

What has happened? On February 11, the leader of the official opposition changed his statement online after he had been served notice from the Minister of Innovation. On March 31, he was served notice once again, and what did the leader of the official opposition do? He deleted and then edited those tweets. All of a sudden he realized that he should be more judicious in his wording. The only tweet the Conservatives will not change is the one that affiliates them to—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. member for Calgary Nose Hill.

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

Mr. Speaker, my party leader has said that he stands behind everything he said. The interesting thing with the House leader saying that false statements have consequences is that it does not apply to her leader. She never came to him. He never put pressure on her. No one from his office directed her to do anything.

Why are the only people who have any sort of consequences for false statements are strong women in his party? When she is saying, “Put us on notice”, right back at you, Mr. Speaker. Giddy-up.

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

Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition pretends that he will not back down, then he tries to make a show of it. He even has his own members now parroting those same lines. We know that is false because while he is saying that, he has already edited his online statements or erased them entirely.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Order, please. The member for Calgary Nose Hill appeared to ask me to giddy-up. I do not think she meant that. Members should calm down a little and listen to the answer.

The hon. government House leader.