Debates of June 18th, 2019

Opposition Motion—The Environment

[Larry Maguire, Conservative, Brandon—Souris, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I acknowledge the fact that we have the ability to be a leader in the world with respect to the management of our climate. As a Conservative member who is sitting on the Arctic climate change committee, I am very aware of the changes that are taking place in that part of the world, and in all areas. The member mentioned Sweden and Norway. From my experience in those two countries, I know that because the Gulf Stream goes right up the coast of Norway, its average temperatures in the winter are 0°C to -6°C. This winter, we hit -50°C six times in Manitoba. There is a difference in the temperatures and in the climates we have to deal with in these areas.

The whole process of the Paris accord is something the government has adopted. We voted in favour of it. The levels the present government is targeting are those the Conservative government brought forward. Certainly, at the time we brought them in, they were obtainable targets. However, the government has missed the mark by a mile, and is still adding a tax on people that is not going to benefit them.

[John Nater, Conservative, Perth—Wellington, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise today to speak to this motion. Canadians do care about the environment. Canadians care about the environment, and they care about climate change. Constituents in my riding of Perth—Wellington care about the environment and climate change. They tell me that. Small businesses, families and the agricultural community care about the environment. After all, farmers are the original conservationists. They are closest to the ground, closest to the natural resources and closest to the natural environment that they depend on for their livelihoods and way of life, so they care about this. They care about what we as a country and we as a Parliament are doing for the environment and to combat climate change.

I also hear from my constituents about the negative impact the policies of the Liberal government are having on their families, their communities and small businesses in Perth—Wellington. They tell me on their doorsteps, write to my office and send emails, and I see it on social media. They are concerned about the rising cost of living. They are concerned about the impact and effect the carbon tax is having on the cost of taking their kids to soccer practice, driving to a part-time job, running their businesses and caring for their families. They are concerned about this. They are concerned that they are being taxed and taxed again, and seeing no tangible impact of those changes.

Today's motion is very simple. It calls on the House to express its opinion that we should repeal the carbon tax, which it has been shown will not meet the Paris targets. In fact, it will fall far short of meeting those targets. The motion calls on the House to endorse a real environment plan. I am proud to say that tomorrow Canadians will see what a real environment plan looks like.

The government fails to understand that people in my riding and Canadians across the country are not wasteful people. They care about the environment, and they care about their communities. They do not waste. They are already making changes where they can. They have made their best efforts and are continuing to make their best efforts, because they care.

I recently came across a comment by a small business owner just outside of St. Marys, Ontario. She wrote that as she listened to our Prime Minister stumble over the question regarding how his family were changing their lifestyle to help the environment, she thought of her husband, whom she called the unintentional environmentalist. He has flown on an airplane once in his life, in 1991, to attend a friend's wedding in B.C. His idea of a holiday is a day trip to a local museum or pioneer village, or a train ride to Toronto to watch a ball game. A fun Saturday night is staying home watching the game on TV. He has never used a fast-food drive-through. He does not even drink coffee.

On the rare occasion that he goes out for something to eat, he always goes into the restaurant to dine. When he goes to work, he packs a lunch in a reusable container and fills his water jug from the tap. His favourite drink, milk, is purchased from the local variety store in recyclable jugs. He shops locally, and the limited clothing in his closet comes from work, the township or sports team sources. His little Honda only leaves the driveway when there is a purpose, and he does multiple errands where possible. Christmas and birthday gifts are books, given and received, not trinkets from offshore. One can see his footprint is quite small.

That is reflective of so many Canadians, so many of my constituents and so many Canadians across the country who are making an effort. Then they see the Liberal government taxing them more, and they see a Prime Minister who, when asked the very simple question of what he personally and his family are doing, stumbled over his own words and made some incoherent comment about a “drink box-water bottle-sort of thing”. That is not good enough for Canadians. It is not good enough for Canadians who are making a real effort to reduce their carbon footprint. It is not good enough for Canadians who are struggling to get by because of the cost of having the Liberals in office.

Rural communities like mine are struggling because of these costs. They do not have the benefit of mass transit systems that our urban cousins have. Someone who works in Atwood but lives in Listowel cannot take a bus to work; someone who lives in Stratford cannot take a subway to St. Marys to visit family, and a person in Arthur cannot take a transit bus to Mount Forest for appointments. It is not possible, yet this carbon tax is putting an added burden on these Canadians.

I often hear about the cost of heating people's homes, and of course the carbon tax is increasing the cost of heating homes. Luckily, the Conservative Party has proposed to lower the cost of heating homes by removing the GST portion of the HST from home heating to help families get ahead.

The problem we see is that the Liberals are not talking about an environment plan. It is a tax plan. It is a tax plan that they claim takes with one hand and gives back with the other hand, but we see them reaching into both pockets. Their rebate plan was clearly not as advertised: We saw Canadians in Ontario being told they would receive $307 back, yet the vast majority received far less than promised.

We see the Liberals, at every opportunity they get, fearmongering. They say that anyone who is opposed to the carbon tax is somehow a climate change denier. They use strong-man arguments to try to paint hard-working Canadians and the opposition as climate change deniers. However, at the end of the day, we know that the Liberals are just using empty, symbolic gestures rather than taking real action. Real action is what Conservatives take.

Real action is what Conservatives will take once again in October when we are given the honour, hopefully, of serving this great country. It was a Conservative government, under Brian Mulroney, that introduced, signed and ratified the acid rain treaty. Contrast that with the Liberal government, which signed the Kyoto protocol and then did nothing. I am proud to be a member of the Conservative government that, during its time in office, actually saw emissions decrease.

We often talk about coal-fired power plants. In fact, it was a Conservative government in 2001 in Ontario that began the process of phasing out coal in Ontario, having a meaningful and real impact on emissions in Perth—Wellington and across Canada. In my riding, many people heat their homes with natural gas. It is fascinating that the Liberal carbon tax gives a more favourable rate to coal than it does to natural gas, which is a far cleaner use of electricity and energy. Once again, the Liberals do not care about that. They care about revenues and money, and that is exactly what the Liberal plan is: a tax plan.

Yesterday we saw the Liberals vote in favour of declaring a climate change emergency, which is a symbolic gesture but has no meaningful or tangible impact. The NDP member for New Westminster—Burnaby said, “I have to comment on what just transpired. The Liberals are slapping each other on the back because they passed a motion that is meaningless.”

That is exactly what we are seeing with the Liberals: meaningless gestures rather than taking real action. Real action is what we will see tomorrow, when the Conservatives unveil our plan.

I realize that my time is running short, but I want to make a few final comments. The carbon tax is not benefiting our environment. In fact, in 2016 Canada was 44 megatonnes over its Paris target. In 2017, that number rose to 66 megatonnes. Last year, it was 103 megatonnes above the Paris commitment.

Then we find out from the Parliamentary Budget Officer that the only way the Liberals will even come close to hitting their Paris targets is if they increase by five times the cost of the carbon tax, from $20 today to $102. That means people in ridings across Ontario and Canada could be paying as much as 23¢ per litre of gasoline more into the coffers of the Liberal government.

Under the Conservative plan, we will have the best chance of meeting our Paris targets. Under the Conservative plan, we will have a meaningful commitment to the environment, a meaningful plan to combat climate change and a meaningful plan that will benefit all Canadians, rather than the tax plan that we see from the Liberals.

[Terry Beech, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I would specifically like to talk about the national price on pollution. It was implemented on April 1. I am glad that the Conservative Party gave it a full 78 days so that they could gather the evidence they need to tell us whether it was successful or not.

I would refer the member to British Columbia, where this was first implemented 11 years ago. If we look at the data there, of course, we had reductions in per capita emissions, and at the same time, we had the fastest-growing economy in the country.

The member talked in his speech about emissions going down during the Conservatives' time. The only time that happened was during recessions, a climate plan so nice that the Conservatives did it twice the last time they were in government. That is not a way to actually protect the environment. Maybe the member is going to point to Doug Ford's plan in Ontario, one that is twice as expensive and is not getting the job done.

This is why the Conservatives voted against the climate change emergency. The Conservatives' number one promise is to repeal the national price on carbon. They are looking at the people of British Columbia, people who have done this for 11 years, and are saying, “Guess what, you have been doing it for 11 years, and finally the rest of the country came onside on April 1, but we are going to take that away. You guys in B.C. keep paying, but we are not paying anymore.” How does the member think that is fair?

[John Nater, Conservative, Perth—Wellington, ON]

Mr. Speaker, first of all, yesterday the Liberals voted in favour of a motion declaring a climate emergency, but the real emergency is a political emergency. The Liberals saw their votes seeping to other parties. They saw a Green seepage and an NDP seepage, so they used a political emergency to have a debate. The Liberals introduced that motion and let it sit for nearly a month.

Let us talk about British Columbia. The member says that there was a per capita emissions reduction, but what we see is that emissions have steadily risen in jurisdictions where there was a carbon tax. It did not reduce emissions.

Today we hear from the Parliamentary Budget Officer that for Canada to even come close to meeting its Paris targets, it has to increase fivefold from what it is today.

Let us talk about the provinces. We have provinces across Canada where the federal government has said that Ottawa knows best. The provincial plans are not good enough, in its opinion. Even if they reduce emissions, it is not good enough in the Liberal government's opinion. The government will only accept a tax.

[Gord Johns, NDP, Courtenay—Alberni, BC]

Mr. Speaker, first, my concern today is that what we have heard from Conservatives is an attack on every jurisdiction that has had success implementing a carbon tax.

Conservatives say that British Columbia is too warm. That is what I heard from my colleague from Calgary Nose Hill. This member talked about Scandinavia and that it is too cold there and it would be too hard for us to model ourselves on that. However, 83% of Canadians are in urban areas. The difference between Stockholm and Toronto, in median temperature, is one degree Celsius.

Canadians need bold and courageous action and to actually be committed to a clear plan with clear targets. The Conservatives are debating this motion the day before they put their plan on the table. One would think they would put their plan on the table the day before and then have this debate today. Instead, the Conservatives decided not to do that, because they do not want to talk about it. They do not want to have a real conversation so that we can talk about how we are going to move forward.

The Conservatives talk about being fiscally responsible. They know that the Parliamentary Budget Officer says that it is going to cost $40 billion to $50 billion for climate emergencies by 2050. Does the member think it is right that we put these economic deficits on future generations to shoulder, or does the member think we should pay a price on pollution right now? That would be the fiscally responsible thing to do for future generations right now.

[John Nater, Conservative, Perth—Wellington, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the right thing is to take real action in support of the environment, rather than introducing more taxes on Canadians who are already struggling to get by.

The member talked about urban centres. Let us talk about rural communities, which I am proud to represent. Our rural communities are going to be the hardest hit by the carbon tax, and they are going to see the least amount of benefit from the carbon tax. What is going to happen is that businesses are going to be impacted, families are going to be impacted, and we are not going to see the benefit for the environment.

The member mentioned that tomorrow we will be unveiling our Conservative plan for the environment. It is going to acknowledge and recognize that this is a global challenge and that it is going to take global action to address the concerns of climate change here in Canada and around the world. We need to take action in Canada, but we also need to be a leader in the world when it comes to this. That is why I am proud of our plan. I will be proud to see it unveiled tomorrow.

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Kingston and the Islands, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today I will be sharing my time with the member for Rivière-des-Mille-Îles.

I would like to pick up on a point the member for Perth—Wellington discussed in his speech a few moments ago. He talked about his constituent, the unintentional environmentalist, who had only taken one flight and is continuing to do a number of things that are environmentally friendly to protect our world.

The irony is that the member did not bother to tell his constituent the full story. The fact is that although there is a price on pollution, there is also the climate action incentive rebate. The fact is that because the member's constituent lives in a rural riding, he will even get a top-up to the normal rebate. As a result of being so environmentally conscious, the member's constituent is going to be further ahead than the vast majority of Canadians. Of course, the member did not bother to inform his constituent of that very important information.

The Conservatives will stand here and accuse this side of the House of playing politics. This is fascinating to me, because over the last three and a half years, I have listened to Conservatives talk about CO₂ being plant food. I have heard Conservatives talk about how we are demonizing CO₂. I have never heard them reference anything about climate change, yet suddenly, within the last month, we have started to hear Conservatives utter the words “climate change.”

I would love to ask the Library of Parliament to do a summary of the number of times the Conservatives said “climate change” during the last month versus the preceding three and a half years. I bet they have said it more in the last month. Do members know why? It is because they have started to do the polling, and they are starting to think they might have had it wrong on this one and had better start talking about climate change now.

What are they relying on? I will tell the House what they are doing. Tomorrow they will make their big announcement. They know that they have to thread the needle very tightly, because they also know that they represent Canadians who do not believe in climate change. They need to be careful. They need to make sure that they bring forward a plan that does not offend those people either.

What we are going to hear tomorrow is a whole bunch of rhetoric from the Conservatives about how we have to do more for our environment and that the Liberal plan is a horrible plan and at the same time, we are hoping that they bring forward something that is meaningful that we can have a real and honest debate about.

At the same time as they are starting to change this messaging, someone forgot to tell the member for Milton, the deputy leader of the Conservative Party. In a tweet, she said:

Bottom line is there's no solid connection between climate change and the major indicators of extreme weather. The continual claim of such a link is misinformation employed for political and rhetorical purposes.

She must have received the message right after she tweeted that out, because it did not take long for them to pull that message off the Internet, because it did not fit the new narrative the Conservatives have suddenly adopted.

Tomorrow we will see this “plan” that will somehow try to appease those who do not believe in climate change, because that is their base. We will also see them try to put it just enough over the fence so they can pull in some of those people who do not quite know where they stand. How am I doing? How is that for the war room? I am pretty sure that is bang on with how the Conservatives are trying to play this one out.

Of course, they will scare people by claiming that this is a tax and will not tell them the full story, which is that there is a rebate back-ended on this. All the money that is collected through the price on pollution goes right back into the pockets of Canadians. The Conservatives do not want to tell Canadians that part.

This is not a tax. This is a market incentive tool, a tool used to change market behaviour. That came out in the conversation and the questions I had earlier with the member for Calgary Nose Hill when she proceeded to educate us on economic models and price elasticity. She said that fuel is an inelastic demand, and therefore, it is impossible to change the price elasticity of it or to change demand for it. The reality of the situation is that after time, the price elasticity will change as new options come into the marketplace.

That is why, while putting a price on pollution, this government has also been doing a number of things to help change that price elasticity, such as putting in a rebate for electric vehicles, investing in green technology to change the way business looks at things and making large emitters pay more.

Did members know that globally, money is gushing into any kind of fund that has a green infrastructure or green asset attached to it? There is $31 trillion currently available in anything that is labelled green, because even the marketplace knows this. Even economists know this. We are seeing world-renowned, Nobel Prize-winning economists saying that this is the solution. We are seeing religious leaders saying that this is the solution. Former Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper said, in 2008, that a price on pollution is the way to go. It is what is going to make changes and make us make different choices in the marketplace. Preston Manning, another famous Conservative, said the same thing.

The bottom line is that while we continue to listen to the rhetoric from the other side of the House, we know that having a plan that incentivizes our market to make people make different choices is the right way to go. It is a fundamental principle of any economic model. The Conservative Party of Canada, which says that it is the saviour and the only party that understands how the economy works, is somehow the only party in this House that is fighting against putting a price on pollution. Every single other party in this House recognizes and knows that putting a price on pollution is the way to go.

I stand by this decision. I stand by this policy. I know it is the only way to go. I know it is the right way to go. I know that Canada and the world will be better off when we listen to these renowned individuals, as opposed to the Conservative Party of Canada.

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

Mr. Speaker, first, I would like acknowledge today that Bombardier Patrick Labrie of the 2nd Regiment, Royal Canadian Horse Artillery, was killed in an operation in Bulgaria. As a veteran, as the member for Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, and as a Canadian, my thoughts and prayers are with Bombardier Patrick Labrie's family, his regimental family and his Canadian Armed Forces family.

To my colleague across the way, I would ask if he could comment on how much per litre he thinks the market is willing to bear. How much can Canadians afford in terms of the carbon tax increase on the price at the pump?

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Kingston and the Islands, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes for his question and for recognizing the hurt that is inflicted upon our military community today. Being from a riding that has a military community in it, I know that these are events that impact the entire community and not just individual family members. Our hearts go out to them.

I believe that the scheduled price on pollution that has been implemented by this government is the correct way to go forward. We do not want to create a scenario where people are bombarded with a price on pollution all at once. It has to be ramped up over time. It has to be done in a way that can effectively get towards the targets we need to get to. I believe that the schedule that has been put in place is the right one.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate my hon. colleague on a very passionate speech, much of which I agreed with.

I will repeat again that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has come out with some stark numbers that ought to terrify every legislator in the world. If we do not hit a 45% reduction over 2010 by 2030, we risk elevating our global temperature by more than 2° above pre-industrial times, which will melt both polar caps. We can lose 99% of the world's coral reefs and face the extinction of one million species. What I am concerned about is that while we, and I in particular, support the idea of a carbon tax, we have to obtain significant reductions quickly. We have 11 years.

First, given that his government has capped the carbon tax at $50, does he think that is enough to start influencing the market to bring down our emissions quickly enough?

Second, I find it ironic that we have this passionate speech on a day that his government is going to approve, in all likelihood, the Trans Mountain pipeline. Can he tell me of a single economist or climate change leader who says that tripling bitumen exports out of Canada will have a positive effect on climate change in this world?

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Kingston and the Islands, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the member and I probably are closer on this matter than we would both think. In fact, I voted for the motion his party put forward a year ago that defined climate change. When he talks about the amount, if we just talk about the price on pollution, we will lose sight of some of the other things that have to happen at the same time, such as investing in new technologies and moving toward encouraging people to drive electric vehicles. It is a holistic approach.

I do not think having just a price on pollution is the only way. We have to move forward in a way that advances a number of different factors and variables that contribute to the equation.

[Robert Gordon Kitchen, Conservative, Souris—Moose Mountain, SK]

Mr. Speaker, the member talked about how he did not want to call it a tax. However, what we do know is the government put a GST on the carbon tax.

In 2017, 43.6 billion litres of gasoline were used in Canada and $2.6 billion were collected in GST. The Liberals said that they would give 100% of this money back. Surprisingly, the GST money will not be given back. We found after the fact that actually only 90% would go be given back. Therefore, any way we look at it, this is a tax.

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Kingston and the Islands, ON]

Mr. Speaker, that is such a red herring. The member is talking about an incredible fraction of the percentage on this. The reality is that we are dealing with a party that will not even say it believes in climate change, or at least it would not until a couple of weeks ago. This continual narrative will not help advance the objective of genuinely having a meaningful impact on our environment.

We have stated, and it has been proven by the fact that all the money is being rebated, that this is an incentive tool to incentivize the marketplace so people will make better and different decisions than they currently make when it comes the use of fossil fuels.

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

The hon. member for Rivière-des-Mille-Îles has about eight minutes until we begin statements by members. I will let her know when her time is up.

[Linda Lapointe, Liberal, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I listened very carefully to the speech by my colleague from Kingston and the Islands.

It was very interesting.

I would like to talk about Canada's “Changing Climate Report”.

Science is the foundation of the Government of Canada’s action on climate change, and our scientists provide the information we need to make strategic decisions.

Canada's “Changing Climate Report”, which was drafted by world-renowned scientists from Environment and Climate Change Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada and Natural Resources Canada and by Canadian university experts, is one of the scientific contributions that provide the evidence we need to make sound policy decisions and to protect our environment, our communities and our economy.

The report was released in 2014 and is the first comprehensive, autonomous assessment of why and how Canada's climate is evolving and of how it is projected to change in the future. Some of Canada's best scientists conducted this peer-reviewed assessment, which was based on already published research. The report represents the work carried out by the international climatologist community. It will help inform decisions regarding adaptation and will help the public gain a better understanding of Canada's evolution.

We rely on scientists to give us the evidence. During the 10 years under the Harper government, scientists were muzzled.

We, on the other hand, prefer to rely on evidence and scientific consensus when making decisions. The science is clear: Canada's climate is warming more rapidly than the global average.

This will continue, and global carbon dioxide emissions from human activity will largely determine how much more warming Canada and the world will experience in the future.

Reducing human emissions of carbon dioxide will reduce how much additional future warming occurs. However, no matter how much warming occurs, this warming is here to stay. It is effectively irreversible on timescales of centuries to millennia.

“Canada’s Changing Climate Report” is a comprehensive scientific assessment that will inform the development of sound policies designed to protect the environment, our communities and the economy.

The people of Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, located along the Mille-Îles River in the Montreal area, believe in having sound evidence. Unfortunately, we have had 100-year floods in 2017 and in 2019. There can be no doubt that climate change is real, and my constituents take their environment to heart.

The report will also help raise public awareness and understanding of the changing climate and enable strong adaptation to reduce our vulnerability and strengthen our resilience to climate change. It tells us strong mitigation action is required to limit warming.

In the development of the report, key stakeholders were engaged to ensure this information is presented to serve a broad range of public and private sector adaptation decision-makers.

This key reference document is relevant across many sectors and informs Canadian planning and investment decisions that will last decades.

When the time comes for the provinces and territories to prepare development plans, they need data to show where the flood plains are, whether climate change will affect those areas and what is going to happen.

The assessment confirms that Canada's climate has warmed mainly in response to emissions of carbon dioxide from human activity. The effects of widespread warming are already evident in many parts of Canada and are projected to intensify in the next five years. The report covers changes across Canada in temperature and precipitation, including extremes, snow, ice and permafrost, freshwater availability and changes in oceans surrounding Canada.

The report provides a riveting account of climate change in Canada. Canada’s climate has warmed and will warm further in the future as a result of human influence, and this phenomenon is irreversible. In Canada, the rate of past and future warming is, on average, about double the global average. The climate in Canada is warming at twice the rate of the rest of the world. The annual mean temperature in Canada increased by 1.7ºC over the past 70 years. The temperature in winter increased by 3.3ºC over the same period. The increase in annual mean temperature is even more marked in the Canadian Arctic, where it rose by 2.3ºC. To sum up, Canada is warming twice as fast as the rest of the world and the Arctic is warming three times as fast. It is quite worrisome. We must do something about this.

Canada's oceans have warmed and the acidification process has begun. They are now less oxygenated, which is consistent with the trend observed around the world over the past century.

The effects of widespread warming are evident in many parts of Canada and are projected to intensify in the future. These effects such as thawing permafrost, shorter snow and ice cover seasons, longer growing seasons, more extreme heat and earlier spring peak stream flow will continue because some further warming is unavoidable. Precipitation is projected to increase for most of Canada, although summer rainfall may decrease in some areas. Changing temperatures and precipitation, and also changes in snow and ice, have important implications for freshwater supply. The seasonal availability of freshwater is changing with an increased risk of water supply shortages in summer.

A warmer climate will intensify weather extremes in the future. Extreme hot temperatures will become more frequent and more intense. This will increase the severity of heat waves. That is why a report written by scientists is so important to both private enterprise and the public sector. It will help us make the right decisions in order to take climate action.

Since I am out of time, I will continue to explain why this report is so important after question period.

Taxation

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Mr. Speaker, according to the Canada Revenue Agency, tax evasion costs us $26 billion and banks and oil companies reap the rewards.

That is $26 billion that is not being taxed and used to pay for our nurses or to renovate our schools and that is just the tip of the iceberg.

The Canada Revenue Agency calculates how much money people are hiding, but not how much money people keep in tax havens with the CRA's permission. Corporations and banks are allowed to engage in tax avoidance. That is what the Liberals are hiding when they talk about tax fairness.

The CRA will put a citizen who owes $100 through hell to get that money, but Ottawa allows banks to hide billions of dollars in Barbados.

The Liberals even legalized three new tax havens during their term. They say that the net is tightening on tax cheats, but it is more like a window that is opening.

Sudan

[Chris Bittle, Liberal, St. Catharines, ON]

Mr. Speaker, last week, members of Niagara's Sudanese community marched to St. Catharines city hall to honour those killed in Sudan during increased violence and protests in the country. Many residents still have friends, family and loved ones in the midst of a brutal crackdown on political protesters bravely calling for change following decades of oppression from their government. They want what we have: a civilian-led government and a voice in their own future. They seek the basic human rights we all take for granted. The response from their government has been horrific violence, including killings and sexual assault. All of this was for doing what we are doing right now: making our voices heard.

My thoughts are with their loved ones and the people of Sudan. The perpetrators must be held to account for these atrocities. The Government of Canada stands with the people of Sudan. We are prepared to do whatever we can to support a civilian-led transition to a democratically elected government in Sudan.

We hear the Niagara Sudanese community, we stand with it and we stand with the people of Sudan.

Alberta

[Matt Jeneroux, Conservative, Edmonton Riverbend, AB]

Mr. Speaker, two years ago, the Prime Minister forgot to mention Alberta in his Canada 150 speech. We were of course offended but did not think it was more than an innocent omission. However, the Prime Minister's actions have lived up to this omission, as it appears he wishes he could forget Alberta altogether.

His policies, like Bill C-69 and Bill C-48, are deliberate attempts to destroy our energy sector. Bill C-69 would impose onerous new regulations around pipeline construction. Bill C-48 would ban tankers from parts of B.C.'s coast. As a result of these bills, thousands of hard-working Canadians will continue to lose jobs in our province. The government also wants to impose a new carbon tax on Alberta on January 1. Talk about kicking us while we are down.

Approving the Trans Mountain expansion project is not enough. The Liberals must put forward a concrete plan to get the project built and tell Canadians when construction will start in Burnaby.

A Conservative government will stand up for Alberta, as a strong Alberta is a strong Canada.

Liberal Party of Canada

[Pam Damoff, Liberal, Oakville North—Burlington, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to reflect on our accomplishments of the last four years: the lowest unemployment rate in 40 years, one million jobs created by Canadians and 300,000 kids lifted out of poverty.

I am proud of my work on the status of women committee to help shape a national gender-based violence strategy and my work on the public safety committee on legislation that will transform our national security landscape, eliminate administrative segregation from prisons and introduce a common-sense approach to firearms.

My office's young women in leadership program has connected over 150 young women with career mentors. Our government supported the Terry Fox Research Institute with a $150-million commitment toward cancer research. As Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health, I note we are moving forward on pharmacare and healthy active living.

I am immensely privileged to represent Oakville North—Burlington. Here is to another four years of good work on behalf of all Canadians.

Abitibi-Témiscamingue

[Christine Moore, NDP, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I first came to this world in a town called La Reine.
It captures my heart, again and again.
At the edge of the world, where the air is so clear,
The Abitibiwinni have lived for thousands of years.
To the sound of their drums is how my heart beats,
To the rhythm of their oars, the cadence repeats.
Bright, starry nights envelop, surround me,
I am Témis. I am Abitibi.
I was born in the autumn with colours ablaze,
But each season brings some beauty to praise.
An idyllic place to learn and to grow,
Where the Okiko River steady does flow.
A place of peace, rest and tranquillity,
I am Témis. I am Abitibi.
In this part of the land, mother earth gives her wealth,
And my little treasures were born in good health.
With all that they need to grow and to flourish,
They are raised in love, they are cherished and nourished.
Precious new life in need of nurture and caring,
We are mothers both, into eternity staring.
Here fertile soil helps to feed,
Nurturing every little seed.
Ancient forests embrace, enclose
All those in need of some repose.
My feet have travelled your breadth and length.
In you my heart has found its strength.
I am Témis. I am Abitibi.
I am Témis. I am Abitibi.

Veterans

[Anthony Housefather, Liberal, Mount Royal, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this month marks the 75th anniversary of D-Day and we share a sacred responsibility to keep veterans' stories alive. It is with that in mind that I wish to highlight the contribution of Jewish Canadian war veterans who have served in all of Canada's wars.

In World War II, for example, Canadian Jews served in Canada's armed forces at a rate 10% higher than the national average. One such individual was Nathan Dlusy. Nathan fled Germany in 1938 to come to Montreal. In 1942, despite not yet having his citizenship, Nathan enlisted with the Royal Canadian Air Force to fight against tyranny and oppression overseas. In 1944, he gave his life for our country. He was only 23 years old. Today, his brother John Dlusy has kept his story alive.

I wish to thank John for sharing his brother's courageous story and I want to thank all of our veterans who have served and sacrificed so that we may live in freedom.

Natural Resources

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, last summer, the Liberals defended funding anti-oil and gas groups because of “free speech” while they shut down church-run summer camps because of their “values” test. The Liberals showed their values this year, once again using taxpayer dollars to fund groups that want to block the Trans Mountain expansion and shut down Canadian oil and gas.

The list includes Tides Canada running a decade-long, foreign-funded smear campaign against the oil sands; the Pembina Institute working with American groups to “landlock” Canadian oil; the Dogwood Initiative campaigning against politicians who support Canadian oil and gas, specifically against the Trans Mountain expansion; the Sierra Club running a campaign right now against the Senate amendments to Bill C-69 that indigenous communities and nine provinces and all territories want; and the West Coast Environmental Law Association that took foreign money to push the oil shipping ban in 2015 that led to Bill C-48 and has already promised new legal challenges to the Trans Mountain expansion.

MPs review and approve the funding. It is all in Liberal and NDP ridings. When it comes to Liberals' claims to support oil and gas workers, the Prime Minister is not as advertised.

West Island Cancer Wellness Centre

[Francis Scarpaleggia, Liberal, Lac-Saint-Louis, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the West Island Cancer Wellness Centre, under the leadership of its founder Debbie Magwood and with the unflagging support of its dedicated staff, volunteers and donors, is the model for a new kind of cancer care. The centre is a pioneer in a whole-person integrated approach that goes beyond traditional medical treatment to focus on the psychosocial needs of those living with the disease.

The centre supports participants through a variety of programs including fitness, meditation, reflexology and yoga.

Debbie and her team are passionate about sharing their vision. That is why, with the support of Health Canada, they have launched national cancer wellness awareness day, to be marked for the first time this June 26.

I would like to congratulate Debbie and her team and the incredible community that supports the centre and its mission to make Canada an even more compassionate society.

Long Range Mountains

[Gudie Hutchings, Liberal, Long Range Mountains, NL]

Mr. Speaker, it has been my honour to represent my riding of Long Range Mountains in this 42nd Parliament. Our government has accomplished a great deal, however, I know that, working together, there is much more we will deliver in our next mandate.

With summer coming, I must take this opportunity to talk about the tourism industry. It is growing leaps and bounds and there is an economic boost especially in rural areas. The invitation is extended to all my colleagues, if they are looking for something to do this summer, to visit my riding. We have stunning campgrounds, cozy B and Bs, unique inns and hotels. Surrounded by majestic scenery, people can enjoy hiking, boat tours, icebergs and whales, kayaking, fishing, hunting, challenging golf, incredible theatre, museums, delicious culinary experiences and so many local shops to explore.

From our national parks and historic sites, people will see some incredible sunsets and if they are lucky, the northern lights. Visitors will always find the locals just waiting to share their stories in our unique lingo. I can promise that there is music everywhere.

I will be travelling about my riding all summer and I hope to see everyone there.

Canada–U.S. Relations

[Leona Alleslev, Conservative, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it has become obvious the Prime Minister is not taken seriously on the world stage. While the Liberals try to justify his disastrous foreign diplomacy, the Prime Minister inevitably makes another misstep that further erodes Canada's reputation. The result is that Canada has never been more alone.

Canada's economy and prosperity depend on trade and trade is all about relationships. Failed diplomacy is failed trade. That is why this meeting with the U.S. President this week is important. It is an opportunity for the Prime Minister to repair a strained relationship and advance Canada's interests.

Canadians imprisoned in China, softwood lumber, a guarantee of no new U.S. national security tariffs, improved defence and security, and Canada's Arctic sovereignty must all be addressed. Canada and the United States must resolve our differences and unite to face the common threats to our freedom and democracy.

Canada needs a Prime Minister who will rise to the challenge in Washington. There is much at stake.