Debates of May 2nd, 2019

Campaign Financing

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Democratic Institutions]

Mr. Speaker, as my hon. colleague knows, last year we passed Bill C-50 in the House of Commons to ensure that fundraising events hosted by the Prime Minister, ministers, leaders of parties or leadership candidates would be made public and that the list would be disclosed. In fact, the Liberal Party began abiding by these rules even before the legislation received royal assent. However, the opposition did not do so.

Ethics

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Lévis—Lotbinière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Prime Minister was evasive and short on detail in his scant response to my question.

The Minister of Justice will no doubt be able to give me an answer about the bespoke contract awarded to our dedicated Liberal donor.

A privileged communication between a law firm and the minister of justice on August 4, 2017, turned into a lucrative $711-per-hour contract. This communication exists.

Can the minister confirm to the House that this letter does exist?

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

Mr. Speaker, Canadians can have confidence in our government's contracting procedure and legal services, which follow a rigorous and responsible process.

The contract in question was managed by the Department of Justice, and the awarding process complied with all of the department's policies.

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Lévis—Lotbinière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the letter in question, dated August 14, 2017, references conversations that led to a contract for services that was designed simply to line the pockets of liberal cronies. It is as though the minister of justice did not have any lawyers on staff to provide counsel on the department's directions.

They can drop the charade, because this letter does exist. The minister needs to step up and confirm that the letter exists. Canadians want the truth.

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

Mr. Speaker, although the Department of Justice approves tenders, some approvals are delegated to the deputy minister or to other senior Department of Justice officials. This contract was approved by the deputy minister of justice and deputy attorney general.

All contracting rules and policies were followed in the awarding of this contract.

Health

[Georgina Jolibois, NDP, Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River, SK]

Mr. Speaker, like many northerners, Napoleon Bouvier in Ile à la Crosse does not have access to medical care. Instead of making life easier for northerners, the price of medical care and pharmacare is only going up for people in my riding. We cannot afford to wait any longer.

When will the Liberals invest in health care in northern Saskatchewan so every northerner can live with dignity?

[Yvonne Jones, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Intergovernmental and Northern Affairs and Internal Trade]

Mr. Speaker, health care costs are one of the things we have all been concerned about in the country. That is why, as a government, we have launched initiatives to look at pharmacare and how we make health care more affordable to Canadians, whether they live in the north or the south. In particular, we have paid careful attention to northerners.

That is why we have launched the northern strategic plan and the Arctic policy, so we can hear their concerns first-hand and act on programs and services that will benefit them.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Mr. Speaker, recently I raised the concerns of breast health experts, who are shocked at guidelines that ignore breast density and recommend against self-examination and timely mammograms. The minister replied that she was not going to do anything because the guidelines were produced by experts. However, the task force relied on outdated data and did not have a single member with breast health expertise.

If the minister claims her number one priority is the health of Canadians, then how can she sit back and ignore health guidelines that will cause over 400 women to die every year?

[Pam Damoff, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, having lost my grandmother to breast cancer, this is something I take quite personally. I know the minister does put the health and safety of Canadians as a top priority.

The Canadian task force on preventive health care is an independent arm's-length panel of 15 experts to develop clinical practice guidelines. While our government provided support to the task force, its decision was made totally independently. As such, these are not official government guidelines.

Democratic Reform

[Ruby Sahota, Liberal, Brampton North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, Ontarians know that an un-costed Conservative platform means Conservative cuts, cuts to health care, education and even libraries. That is why our government passed legislation to permit the Parliamentary Budget Officer to review—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Order, please. We need to hear the question. The Chair has to know whether it is within the rules and so forth. I need to hear the rest of the question to determine whether it is within the responsibility of the government. Members will have to allow me to hear the question.

The hon. member.

[Ruby Sahota, Liberal, Brampton North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, that is why our government passed legislation to permit the Parliamentary Budget Officer to review party platforms during election campaigns. That way parties cannot mislead Canadians and hide their planned cuts from them.

Could the government House leader give the House an update on how our legislation has empowered the Parliamentary Budget Officer to give Canadians more transparency during election campaigns?

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

Mr. Speaker, I agree with the member for Brampton North that Canadians deserve to know what political parties are proposing and the costs to them. That is exactly why the independent Parliamentary Budget Officer can now cost a party's platform.

Unfortunately, it is only the Conservatives who are refusing to have their platform costed. The only reason that can be is that we know the Conservatives are following the lead of Doug Ford and want to keep Canadians in the dark. We know the Conservatives do not support the tax-free Canada child benefit. We know they do not support the increase to the GIS. We know they do not support home care and other services. These are probably programs that are on their chopping block.

Natural Resources

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, for months, first nations, trade unions and provinces have warned that the Liberals' no more pipelines bill, Bill C-69, will block resource development. Yesterday, it got even worse.

The Liberals will steamroll provinces, giving themselves unprecedented power over highways, passenger trains, recycling plants and of course provincial resources, like wind, hydro and oil.

Not since the eighties have federal Liberals pit Canadians against each other over resource development and put the whole Canadian economy at risk. Will the Liberals kill Bill C-69?

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

Mr. Speaker, no, we will not kill Bill C-69. It is in the Senate. I was very pleased to testify today to talk about the importance of Bill C-69. Unfortunately, under the previous environmental assessment regime brought in by the Conservatives in an omnibus budget bill, the Conservatives gutted environmental protections and good projects cannot go ahead in a timely way because they all end up in court.

We know we need a better system and better rules to develop our resources in a way that protects the environment, that has proper consultation and accommodation with indigenous peoples and that ensures good projects go ahead.

We will continue to move forward and work with senators.

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the reality is that the Liberals will make it so that nothing is ever built again. They are not helping the environment. They are not helping indigenous communities. They are not helping resource development.

Eight provinces and three territories oppose Bill C-69. Hundreds of indigenous businesses and communities are against it. Economists, investors, big companies, family businesses and municipalities oppose it. The hundreds of thousands of Canadians who have lost their jobs because of the Liberals are against it.

Will the Liberals approve TMX on June 18 and kill Bill C-69?

[Amarjeet Sohi, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, we have put in place a process to consult with indigenous communities to move forward on the Trans Mountain expansion in the right way. We have said that once the consultations are complete, a decision will be made by June 18.

However, it is interesting to note that if the Conservatives had been really serious about the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, they would not have voted to de-fund and kill the process that would lead to a decision. They should know about that.

International Trade

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Chinese leadership has called the Prime Minister a name that is so insulting that you have ruled it unspeakable in the House. I will put partisanship aside and say that I will not stand for that kind of treatment of the Prime Minister.

In retaliation, will the government do the right thing and cancel the quarter-billion dollar gift to the China-controlled Asian Infrastructure Bank?

[Joël Lightbound, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the budget was presented over a month ago. Clearly, the Conservatives are making a desperate attempt to avoid talking about it. They are too busy talking about the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, which seeks to create greater inclusive prosperity around the world with investments from France, Germany, Australia, India, Italy and South Korea.

The only thing the Conservatives have to offer us again today is the old Stephen Harper approach, which was about turning our backs on the United Nations and other multilateral organizations that make this world a better place.

[Pierre Poilievre, Conservative, Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, The Globe and Mail says that the Asian Infrastructure Bank is part of “China's One Belt One Road policy of expanding its international influence through infrastructure.” This means pipelines, roads and bridges will be built in China with Canadian tax dollars.

Yesterday it was revealed that buried in a previous omnibus budget, the amount of money available to the government to give to the bank was actually $480 million, not the $250 million previously admitted.

What is the maximum amount Canadian taxpayers will be forced to pay to China's Asian Infrastructure Bank?

[Joël Lightbound, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, let me be clear. We are talking about $250 million over five years. About a year and a half ago, we announced our plans to join with France, Germany, the U.K., India and Australia on this initiative.

We believe that organizations like the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund are important multilateral institutions that contribute to global inclusive prosperity as well as Canada's prosperity.

Persons with Disabilities

[Cheryl Hardcastle, NDP, Windsor—Tecumseh, ON]

Mr. Speaker, a 68-year-old man with an amputation was not allowed to bring the batteries for his scooter on an airplane, ruining his once-in-a-lifetime trip to celebrate his wedding anniversary. He went to great lengths to have the paperwork approving the batteries in advance, to no avail.

The problem is that this will not be fixed under the proposed accessibility act, as it exempts Canadian transportation.

Will the minister stand and tell people with disabilities and their families what the Liberals will do to fix it so this never happens again?

[Carla Qualtrough, Liberal, Minister of Public Services and Procurement and Accessibility]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for the question which in fact, unfortunately, is based on error. I can assure all Canadians that transportation is a priority under the accessible Canada act, which gives an extended mandate to the CTA to ensure that accessible transportation regulations come into force immediately.

I thank my hon. colleague, the Minister of Transport, for being the first to adopt accessible Canada regulations for transportation.

Government Priorities

[Alistair MacGregor, NDP, Cowichan—Malahat—Langford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, life is increasingly unaffordable for people on Vancouver Island. Just like the Conservatives before them, the Liberal government is siding with the richest corporations, while people pay the price. The good times just keep rolling for corporate lobbyists.

The Liberals maintain the Conservatives' billion-dollar subsidies to oil companies, cater to SNC-Lavalin and throw money at Loblaws.

People deserve a government that is on their side, so when exactly are the Liberals going to grow a backbone and stop bending to the will of large and powerful corporations?