Debates of April 8th, 2019

Daughters of the Vote

[Nathan Cullen, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, what a week it was last week: 338 young women took over Parliament. Three hundred and thirty-eight strong, passionate voices came to the House of Commons for Daughters of the Vote and spoke truth to power, either in silent protest, dignified, or in raising issues that need answers.

As much as we gained from them, all Canadians were able to gain so much more. These young women came here, and one of them, Megan Metz, who represented Skeena—Bulkley Valley, a young, powerful Haisla woman, talked of meeting the former attorney general. This is what she told Canadians:

It was really awesome to see people that looked like me--that had regalia on, that also had traditional bracelets. It was really...empowering.

I was really upset...overwhelmed...and like maybe [I] don't have a place here [when she was removed] but...seeing how many supporters we have, I do [believe I] belong here and we do have a place.

Yes, Megan does have a place here, and we should work a lot harder to make sure that many people like her join us in the House of Commons.

Justice

[Michael Barrett, Conservative, Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, ON]

Mr. Speaker, since the Prime Minister cannot kick the Leader of the Opposition out of his cabinet or caucus, we found out yesterday that he is suing him for having the audacity to question the Prime Minister's role in the SNC-Lavalin scandal.

Now, I have seen the opposition leader's criticisms about the Prime Minister's many failures, such as an embarrassing trip to India, breaking ethics laws, paying $10.5 million to a convicted terrorist and how he is failing our veterans.

Since the Leader of the Opposition is clearly renting a lot of space in the Prime Minister's head, I have some suggestions on things he can do to make some room. One, the Prime Minister should immediately unfriend him on Facebook, block him on Twitter and unfollow him on lnstagram. Two, stop the thought of taking any selfies, because we know that will show him how upset the Prime Minister really is.

If these actions do not stop the Leader of the Opposition, there is always the option to apply his admiration of a basic dictatorship and place the opposition leader under house arrest.

Bone Marrow Donation

[Sonia Sidhu, Liberal, Brampton South, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today I rise in the House to speak about bone marrow donation and to raise awareness for the worldwide bone marrow donor registry.

In my riding of Brampton South, the charity organization, Match for Marrow, increases awareness about this need. This wonderful organization was born when Jasnoor Deol was diagnosed nine years ago and his family wanted to help others like him. He has been waiting for nine years for a transplant and still no donor.

His mother lnderjit, his sister Simrat and their entire team are here today to celebrate Vaisakhi on the Hill. At the health committee, I hear a lot about how registries and better data can save lives and improve care. I will continue to support their efforts to raise awareness of the bone marrow registry. This work deserves to be honoured by everyone in this House.

Justice

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, for months now, the Prime Minister has done everything he can to avoid accountability in his handling of the SNC-Lavalin corruption scandal. Now he has indicated that he intends to sue me to stop my criticisms of his government's actions. Canadians are looking forward to this. Canadians are looking forward to the Prime Minister finally appearing under oath and testifying in a setting that he cannot control himself. Can the government inform the House on what date these court proceedings will commence?

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

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives, and frankly their leader, have a history of making untrue and defamatory statements for political gain.

In response to a lawyer's letter in December, the Conservative leader deleted tweets that were defamatory to the Minister of Innovation. We put him on notice again, because there are consequences for making false statements. At his press conference, he has already refrained from repeating some of his false statements. He should not be misleading Canadians.

Here is a question to the Leader of the Opposition that Canadians want to know about. Has he deleted tweets since he received that notice?

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, they asked a yes-or-no question, and I can answer a yes-or-no question. No, I have not deleted tweets, because I stand by everything that I said in those statements.

The reality is that the Prime Minister led a campaign of interference and is now trying to silence his adversaries. Canadians deserve answers without the Prime Minister trying to obstruct the questions.

When will the Prime Minister proceed with his lawsuit?

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

Mr. Speaker, the response from the Leader of the Opposition shows yet again why we had to put him on notice. On March 31, the day he received that letter, he deleted and changed one of his defamatory tweets. He did the same thing with another defamatory statement he made on February 11. We will not stay silent while the opposition leader misleads Canadians. That is not how things are done in the House or in our country.

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the government House leader wants to talk about falsehoods. Let us run down a few of them. The Prime Minister said that the former attorney general never came to him with her concerns. That turned out to be false. The Prime Minister said that he never put pressure on the former attorney general to change her decision. That turned out to be false. The Prime Minister said that he had no idea about the phone call between the Clerk of the Privy Council and the former attorney general. That turned out to be a falsehood as well.

Is the Prime Minister aware of what the consequences are for saying falsehoods under oath in court?

[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 and he tries to make a show out of it, but that word he just used is quite peculiar. Canadians have noticed that he has been editing and changing his tweets once he was put on notice. The leader of the official opposition and the Conservatives know very well that there are consequences for intentionally misleading Canadians. It is not suitable.

We know that is false, because while he is saying that, he has already been editing online statements or erasing them entirely, and backpedalling during his press conferences, just like he did yesterday. This past December, he was again forced to take down a statement—

[David Anderson, Conservative, Cypress Hills—Grasslands, SK]

They are supposed to be the government—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

I ask members to be judicious with their comments.

The hon. Leader of the Opposition.

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the government House leader knows that is just not true. I stand by everything I said in that statement.

However, here is what we do know. The Prime Minister has done everything he can to try to shut down criticism. He has shut down two parliamentary investigations. He used his majority in the House to block calls for a public inquiry, and he kicked two members out of his caucus for the sole crime of telling the truth, all to cover up his corruption.

Once again, if the government House leader is so sure that the Liberals have such a firm case, when will they start court proceedings?

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

Mr. Speaker, Canadians know that we will not stand idly by while the Conservatives continue to intentionally mislead Canadians. It is not what the obligations of the leader of the official opposition or any elected official should be. The leader of the official opposition on numerous occasions, as I have mentioned, has edited and deleted those tweets. However, the one tweet that the Conservative leader will not change is the one of him attending the same rally as white supremacist Faith Goldy. It is quite interesting when he chooses to make changes and when he does not.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Order. Order. The hon. leader of the opposition.

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, this is nothing but a disgusting attempt to deflect from their own despicable handling of this affair. We will always denounce those who promote hateful ideologies while we stand up for energy workers who are fighting for their jobs.

Again, if the government is so sure of its case, why can the government House leader not inform the House on what day the Prime Minister will show up in court under oath?

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

Mr. Speaker, as I have stated clearly, yes, we have again put the Conservatives on notice because they are intentionally misleading Canadians. We have seen that on March 31, the exact day when he received this letter, he deleted and then edited one of his defamatory tweets.

The leader of the official opposition and his team of these Conservatives did the same thing when they were put on notice by the Minister of Innovation They continue to mislead Canadians in this House and they try to do it outside of this House, but what they did when they were served notice was change those comments. When it comes to the presence of Faith Goldy, he will not do such a thing.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the member for Markham—Stouffville described how the Prime Minister went from saying that there was nothing about the allegations and to saying they do not really matter. She disagreed and said that “...I believe it does matter...that this attempted interference took place”, and she was kicked out for speaking out.

This is about a powerful corporation given special access and about interfering in criminal cases. Will the Prime Minister promise that Liberals will not politically interfere with the decisions of Canada's top prosecutor?

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

Mr. Speaker, when it comes to this matter, first of all, members of the justice committee had set the parameters to have this conversation. They actually invited witnesses to appear. Witnesses appeared and responded to those questions. All the testimony is now public, because the Prime Minister waived solicitor-client privilege as well as cabinet confidence.

I know that the member is new to this place, but I encourage him to really look at the record when it comes to the votes that took place. He should know that when it comes to the public prosecutor, there is no possibility of political interference.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, five former attorneys general were so concerned that they wrote to the RCMP calling for an investigation.

A Toronto lawyer has also just written to the RCMP commissioner to urge a criminal investigation into the Prime Minister's potential interference. Now more than ever, people want to know what happened.

Why does the Prime Minister refuse to call a public inquiry?

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

Mr. Speaker, the members of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights did their job. They invited witnesses to testify, and those witnesses appeared. The facts are all out in the open because the Prime Minister waived solicitor-client privilege and cabinet confidence.

The Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner is investigating. We must respect our institutions. On this side of the House, we respect them and know that they are working. I encourage the member opposite to have a little faith as well.

The Environment

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, according to a new survey, the majority of Canadians are concerned about the impact of plastic waste on the environment and think that the Liberals need to do more.

The NDP has already announced that it will ban single-use plastics by 2022. Other countries are already taking action.

When will the Liberals take real action to combat plastic pollution?

[Catherine McKenna, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, personally, I am very proud of what our government is doing.

We took a leadership role in the G7. We have worked with other countries and with businesses to develop a charter on plastic pollution. We know that we are facing a major challenge. We are also working with the provinces and territories to develop a national zero plastic waste strategy. We all need to work together.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, we need to ban single-use plastics, as 1.6 billion plastic coffee cups sit in Canadian landfills. Nearly eight million plastic bags are thrown away daily. The science is clear that plastic pollution is threatening our ecosystem, our food supply and the very health of Canadians, yet the Liberals refuse to stand up to plastic producers. It seems the Liberals cannot even stand up to any powerful corporation.

Will the Prime Minister stand with us and ban single-use plastics by 2022?

[Catherine McKenna, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, when we hosted the G7, we took a leadership role. We said that we need to ensure that we do not have more plastic pollution in our oceans than fish by weight by 2050. That is why we brought in the ocean plastics charter, which sets clear targets for countries around the world. That is why we are supporting developing countries that need support with their waste treatment facilities so that we do not end up with plastic pollution. That is why we are meeting with provinces and territories and working with businesses to have a zero plastic waste strategy. We need to be working with provinces. We need to be working with cities and we need to be working with Canadians.

We banned microbeads July 1, 2018, and we need to keep on doing—