House of Commons Hansard #401 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was north.

Topics

JusticeOral Questions

2:55 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

Order. Order. The hon. government House leader and the member for Thornhill will come to order. Let us have a little order.

The hon. member for Trois-Rivières.

Rail TransportationOral Questions

2:55 p.m.

NDP

Robert Aubin NDP Trois-Rivières, QC

Mr. Speaker, while Trois-Rivières is still waiting for an announcement on the high-frequency rail project, Transport Canada is funding a feasibility study on the Hyperloop project in Canada. Transport Canada has yet to publish the results of the studies on the HFR. The Hyperloop project is decades away from practical application, while the HFR is closer to reality.

Since the minister is currently exploring the future, could he get back in his DeLorean, return to 2019 and tell us whether there is a high-frequency rail project on the horizon?

Rail TransportationOral Questions

2:55 p.m.

Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount Québec

Liberal

Marc Garneau LiberalMinister of Transport

Mr. Speaker, I know that my colleague is anxious about HFR. I keep telling him every week that we are working on this important file. When we have news, we will be sure to let my colleague know. In the meantime, we are interested in technologies of the future. We are a government that believes in science and research, and we want to explore all options for transportation in the future.

Fisheries and OceansOral Questions

2:55 p.m.

NDP

Gord Johns NDP Courtenay—Alberni, BC

Mr. Speaker, we found out yesterday that the Canadian Coast Guard is ill-equipped and does not have a concrete plan to deal with an aging fleet. This has resulted in “reduced search-and-rescue coverage, ferry-service disruptions, cancelled resupply runs to Arctic and coastal communities and nearly $2 million in lost navigational buoys”.

The government's lack of funding for the Coast Guard is leaving coastal communities at a real risk. When will the government finally make sure that our Coast Guard is properly equipped, and why has the safety of our coastal communities not been a priority?

Fisheries and OceansOral Questions

2:55 p.m.

Charlottetown P.E.I.

Liberal

Sean Casey LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Fisheries

Mr. Speaker, the Canadian Coast Guard members are at work every day across the country, and our government will continue to provide them with the tools that they need to keep Canadians and our waters safe and our economy moving.

During the 2018 Arctic season, the Coast Guard was faced with more unusually difficult ice conditions than in other years, which led to some delay in resupply and escort missions.

Canadians can be proud of the men and women of the Canadian Coast Guard and the important work that they do from coast to coast to coast.

The EnvironmentOral Questions

2:55 p.m.

Conservative

Ed Fast Conservative Abbotsford, BC

Mr. Speaker, last year Loblaws made $3 billion in profit, yet yesterday the Minister of Environment gave Loblaws $12 million—to do what? It was to buy fridges. This money came from hard-working Canadians, seniors and low-income families who struggle to make ends meet.

You tell me—how many Canadians can walk into the Prime Minister's Office and ask them to pay for a new fridge? How many? Why is it always the wealthy and well-connected who get handouts from these Liberals?

The EnvironmentOral Questions

3 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

The hon. member for Abbotsford, my good friend, seems to be asking me a question, but I think he knows he has to ask questions to the other side. I am happy that members are in a good mood, at least for a moment.

The hon. Minister of Environment.

The EnvironmentOral Questions

3 p.m.

Ottawa Centre Ontario

Liberal

Catherine McKenna LiberalMinister of Environment and Climate Change

Mr. Speaker, I was so excited when I saw the member stand up because I thought he was going to talk about the Conservatives' climate change plan. It has been 345 days since they announced a climate change plan.

What is our plan? We are phasing out coal, investing in renewables and providing a just transition for workers. We are investing in public transportation across the country. We are investing in clean-tech companies, and yes, we are investing in energy efficiency. This was an open tender, open to any company or organization across the country, to get bang for the buck, because guess what? Canadians want to reduce their emissions.

It is only the party opposite—

The EnvironmentOral Questions

3 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

The hon. member for Calgary Nose Hill.

The EnvironmentOral Questions

3 p.m.

Conservative

Michelle Rempel Conservative Calgary Nose Hill, AB

Mr. Speaker, I am so glad that the minister talked about her plan, a plan that taxes Canadians for committing the sin of heating their homes in the winter—which will do nothing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions—and then gives that money to Loblaws to buy freezers. I am really, really good with that not being our plan. I am proud to say we will not do that.

Why is the government so hell-bent on taking from the poor to give to the rich?

The EnvironmentOral Questions

3 p.m.

Some hon. members

Oh, oh!

The EnvironmentOral Questions

3 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

Order, please. I had no trouble hearing the question.

Order. Do not tell me it was the member for Lévis—Lotbinière that members are going to blame for still being this excited. I hope not.

The hon. Minister of Environment.

The EnvironmentOral Questions

3 p.m.

Ottawa Centre Ontario

Liberal

Catherine McKenna LiberalMinister of Environment and Climate Change

Mr. Speaker, it seems like the party opposite wants to “sticker” it to Canadians like Doug Ford, but let us talk about what we are doing.

We are putting a price on pollution and giving it all back to Ontarians. What does that mean? It means 90% of the money goes right back to families. A family of four will get $307, which is more than 80% of what families will pay.

However, I have a question. The member for Milton was on television the other day and was asked if Conservatives would commit to meeting the Paris Agreement targets. She could not answer.

Everyone in this House, except for one Conservative, voted for it. Will—

The EnvironmentOral Questions

3 p.m.

Some hon. members

Oh, oh!

The EnvironmentOral Questions

3 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

Order. We should have as much ease in hearing the answers as in hearing the questions.

The hon. member for Calgary Nose Hill.

The EnvironmentOral Questions

3 p.m.

Conservative

Michelle Rempel Conservative Calgary Nose Hill, AB

Mr. Speaker, they stick it to Canadians.

Amanda Stevenson, in Lundar, Manitoba, had her dairy fridge quit last week. She has watched these Liberals take money from her in the form of a carbon tax and increase taxes on her small business, and now she had to watch them give money to her competitor for the same thing she cannot afford. That is wrong. We are proud to stand for Amanda, not for SNC-Lavalin and for Loblaws.

Why is the government so hell-bent on taking from the poor to give to the rich?

The EnvironmentOral Questions

3 p.m.

Ottawa Centre Ontario

Liberal

Catherine McKenna LiberalMinister of Environment and Climate Change

Mr. Speaker, why does the party opposite not stand for the planet? Why does the party opposite not stand for our children and grandchildren? Why does the party opposite not stand for climate action that is creating good jobs and preparing us for the future?

To the woman in Manitoba that the member opposite is misleading, let me tell her that a family of four in Manitoba will receive $339, more than 80% of what families will pay. We can take action on climate change and we can do it in a way that is affordable.

HealthOral Questions

3 p.m.

Liberal

Yasmin Ratansi Liberal Don Valley East, ON

Mr. Speaker, health care is something all Canadians are proud of, and no individual should be left behind when it comes to making sure they get the services they need. Sunday, April 7, was World Health Day, and the focus was on universal health coverage.

Can the Minister of Health please advise this House on how she plans to make Canada's health care system even better?

HealthOral Questions

3:05 p.m.

Moncton—Riverview—Dieppe New Brunswick

Liberal

Ginette Petitpas Taylor LiberalMinister of Health

Mr. Speaker, on World Health Day, we celebrate universal public health care, something that Lester Pearson provided to all Canadians more than 50 years ago.

We recognize that in Canada people are proud of their publicly funded health care system, one that is based on need and not on their ability to pay, and this government wants to strengthen that. That is why we are making historic investments in the area of mental health and home care, and we have just laid the foundational piece for a national pharmacare program.

This government will continue to fight for a publicly funded health care system.

JusticeOral Questions

3:05 p.m.

Conservative

Richard Martel Conservative Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, QC

Mr. Speaker, our Prime Minister is trying to intimidate our leader with threats of legal action. He wants to beef up his credibility because his lack of leadership is causing the government to make mistakes.

He hid the truth from Canadians for weeks, if not months, but now we have the perfect opportunity to find out everything. He needs to present his evidence in court, follow through on his threat and testify under oath. When will he do that?

JusticeOral Questions

3:05 p.m.

Waterloo Ontario

Liberal

Bardish Chagger LiberalLeader of the Government in the House of Commons

Mr. Speaker, this is not the first time this Conservative leader and his party have misled Canadians by making false and defamatory statements. As I have already said at least twice, he was forced to withdraw or stop making defamatory statements about members of our government.

We had to warn him because he did it again. We know the Conservatives have a history of doing this. It is important for the Conservatives to remember that this is not the right approach.

Immigration, Refugees and CitizenshipOral Questions

3:05 p.m.

NDP

Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC

Mr. Speaker, climate leaders do not buy pipelines. Feminist prime ministers do not turf female colleagues because they speak truth to power. Humanitarian leaders do not shut their borders to asylum seekers during a refugee crisis. Now the Liberals have snuck in changes to refugee laws in the budget bill. That means people like Seidu Mohammed, an LGBTQ man from Ghana, whose asylum claim was accepted after he crossed irregularly from the U.S., will not even get a chance to apply.

Lives are at risk. Will the Prime Minister do what is right and suspend the safe third country agreement?

Immigration, Refugees and CitizenshipOral Questions

3:05 p.m.

Scarborough Southwest Ontario

Liberal

Bill Blair LiberalMinister of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction

Mr. Speaker, we remain committed to maintaining a well-functioning refugee system, and that is why we have made significant investments in budget 2019 to improve the efficiency of the IRB in holding these hearings and to bring in regulation to encourage people to use the appropriate ways of entry to immigrate to this country. We will continue to invest in that system.

We have achieved a significant level of success in significantly reducing the number of people who have presented themselves irregularly at our borders while maintaining a robust and efficient system of refugee determination.

Innovation, Science and Economic DevelopmentOral Questions

3:05 p.m.

Liberal

Bill Casey Liberal Cumberland—Colchester, NS

Mr. Speaker, Canadians have a long and proud history of medical developments and discoveries, like insulin and vaccines, which have saved lives at home and abroad.

Can the Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development please tell us what investments our government is making in cutting-edge research and facilities to pave the way for new medical breakthroughs and to make treatments even more effective?

Innovation, Science and Economic DevelopmentOral Questions

3:05 p.m.

Mississauga—Malton Ontario

Liberal

Navdeep Bains LiberalMinister of Innovation

Mr. Speaker, I would like to acknowledge the member for Cumberland—Colchester and thank him for his 30 years of outstanding service to Canadians. He has been a strong advocate for diversifying the local economy and is very passionate about growing the life sciences sector, particularly in producing life-saving treatments for serious illnesses. That is why, most recently, the Prime Minister made the announcement on BioVectra for $37.5 million, which helped leverage $144.6 million. More importantly, 450 good-quality, middle-class jobs were created.