Debates of June 18th, 2019

The Environment

[Paul Lefebvre, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians elected our government on a plan to grow the economy and protect the environment. That is exactly what we are delivering.

We have invested over $1.5 billion in the oceans protection plan. We have a national climate plan with more than 50 measures, investing over $50 billion in the green economy. We are also putting in place a process to make sure resource projects move forward in the right way.

If it were up to the NDP, there would be no new investments in any new natural resource sector. Let us look at LNG Canada. We are not sure where the NDP stands.

We are focused on getting the energy sector process to move forward in the right way.

Natural Resources

[Richard Martel, Conservative, Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, under Bill C-69, all natural resource development in this country will grind to a halt. Even Quebec opposes this legislation. The Quebec environment minister has said the bill “perpetuates the duplication of environmental procedures” and “expands federal government control”.

Bill C-69 will put the brakes on electricity exports, which are an essential opportunity for Quebec's economy.

Why are the Liberals undermining Quebec's economic development?

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

Mr. Speaker, when we were elected, we said we would bring in better rules for reviewing major projects.

The Conservatives' plan under Stephen Harper was a disaster. The Conservatives did not listen to indigenous peoples and did not want any environmental protections. They did not even want to listen to people who expressed concerns about projects.

That is not how good projects move forward. We must protect the environment and listen to indigenous peoples—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. member for Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock.

[Jamie Schmale, Conservative, Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON]

Mr. Speaker, nine provinces are opposed to the Prime Minister's attack on resource development in Canada. The Liberals stifled debate and rammed through bills that would block oil exports and kill energy projects. Twenty-one industry leaders announced that this is the end of future growth, and those investors have abandoned this important sector.

When will the Prime Minister finally admit that his no more pipelines bill and oil export ban bill are part of his plan to phase out Canada's energy sector?

[Paul Lefebvre, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians expect a transparent assessment of major projects that they can trust, and businesses need assessments to be done in a timely and efficient way. The Harper Conservatives gutted this process. They made Canadians lose trust, and they hurt our economy and energy sector at the same time.

Our better rules will ensure that resource development is done in a way that protects the environment, grows our economy, properly consults indigenous peoples and creates good, middle-class jobs. That is what Canadians expect. That is what we will continue to deliver.

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister dismissed six premiers' calls for changes to Bill C-69 as partisan, but he also rejected requests from the Liberal premiers of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador for offshore oil and gas. The Liberals have already killed over $100 billion in major projects, and the Bank of Canada predicts no new energy investment after 2019.

The Liberals' shipping ban bill, Bill C-48, blocks the west coast. Their poison pill in Bill C-86 would allow the same thing on every other coast. Bill C-69 would harm the whole country.

Will the Liberals kill these anti-energy bills before it is too late?

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

Mr. Speaker, Stephen Harper's failed system gutted environmental assessments. He rammed through a new process, without any consultation, through an omnibus budget bill.

What did that get us? It got us more polarization. It got us fights across the country. What did it not get us? Good projects were not able to go ahead in a timely way.

We built better rules that will ensure that we listen to indigenous peoples, that we protect the environment, that we listen to the concerns of Canadians. Yes, they will ensure that good projects are built in a timely way, because we have $500 billion of economic opportunity—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. member for Lakeland.

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, businesses, municipalities and indigenous communities say the Liberals' anti-pipeline, anti-rail, anti-hydro, anti-business bill, Bill C-69, would hurt all of Canada.

Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters said it will make it “in some cases, impossible...[for]...nationally significant natural resource development”. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce said “the impacts will be severe across Canada”. Nine provinces and all territories want major changes to Bill C-69. Quebec calls it a “veto” over economic development.

Will the Liberals stop Bill C-69?

[Paul Lefebvre, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, we are putting in place better rules to protect the environment, respect indigenous rights, attract investment and create good, middle-class jobs. Hundreds of major resource projects worth over $500 billion in investments are planned across Canada over the next 10 years. A robust project list will ensure good projects can move forward in a timely, transparent way that protects the environment, rebuilds public trust and strengthens our economy.

Housing

[Sheri Benson, NDP, Saskatoon West, SK]

Mr. Speaker, we have a housing crisis in Canada, and the Liberals are failing to address it. The PBO report shows that the Liberals are inflating their own figures while families in our communities are facing constant stress to find a place to call home. The report says the Liberals are doing even less to help people with immediate housing needs than the Harper government did. I find this shameful. Enough with the empty promises. Will the government act now to end homelessness and ensure families in Canada have a place to call home?

[Adam Vaughan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, I am very proud of the national housing strategy. As the PBO correctly identifies, the 62% increase in front-line services to fight homelessness will help us reduce chronic homelessness by 50%. As well, we are targeted on lifting 500,000 Canadians out of core housing need.

What the PBO does not count is the Canada housing benefit, an $8.4 billion program. The report also does not take into account the federal-provincial-territorial agreements that we have locked in, which guarantee a 15% increase in housing supply. It also does not properly qualify the loans and financing that are building thousands of housing units across the country.

The national housing strategy is working, building real housing for real people.

Fisheries and Oceans

[Rachel Blaney, NDP, North Island—Powell River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, a Powell River judge sentenced a crab poacher recently. In her decision, she noted that Fisheries and Oceans Canada is woefully understaffed. Law-abiding fishers struggle to make ends meet because of climate change, habitat destruction and tighter restrictions while they have no choice but to watch as poachers and over-harvesting destroy local ecosystems.

Will the minister listen to this judge and to my constituents and get more DFO staff on the water doing the work they need to do?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Minister of Fisheries]

Mr. Speaker, this government has done an enormous amount of work to restore the capacity of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans after it was gutted by the previous Harper government. There were $100 million in operating cost reductions and the gutting of the Fisheries Act in 2012.

We have just restored the protections in the Fisheries Act. We made significant investments in science. We made significant investments in enforcement and protection. We will continue to do so, so that the fisheries are managed in a sustainable way, going forward.

Indigenous Affairs

[Robert-Falcon Ouellette, Liberal, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I wear this beaded jacket that has the image of indigenous women so we may never forget that we all have a role in giving a voice to those who have been ignored for far too long.

In 2017, Bill S-3 was finally passed with a delay concerning the 1951 cut-off criteria. The government said it needed time to consult on an implementation plan. The minister's special representative has completed her consultations and report, which was just tabled in Parliament. Indigenous women and their descendants want to know. When will they finally have their human rights restored?

[Carolyn Bennett, Liberal, Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for Winnipeg Centre for his ongoing advocacy on this. Gender equality is a fundamental human right, and Bill S-3 does eliminate the sex-based discrimination from the Indian Act.

With the ministerial special representative's consultations concluded and her report tabled, we now know what our partners need in a successful implementation plan. Work on that implementation plan is well under way, and I can confirm that we will be bringing these provisions into force within the current mandate. We are committed to working with our partners to remedy all remaining registration issues, but also to accelerate the progress to self-determination by which nations—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

The hon. member for Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier.

The Environment

[Joël Godin, Conservative, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the government has no credibility on environmental matters. It says its plan will enable Canada to uphold its commitment to the Paris Agreement targets.

Experts, scientists, environmental groups and government officials unanimously agree that Canada is not going to meet its targets. Only the Liberals think they know better, and their refusal to tell Canadians the truth is hypocritical. The Liberals need to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

Why is this Liberal government not telling the truth?

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

Mr. Speaker, why did the Conservatives vote against the motion on the climate emergency? Is it because they refuse to listen to the science on climate change? Do they not realize that we are already paying the price? Are they not aware that even Quebec, the province that the member represents, has a carbon exchange that is working?

Quebec is lowering its emissions, it has a clean technology sector, and Quebeckers are happy. Maybe the member should try talking to Quebeckers.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Order. I have heard from the hon. member for Prince George—Peace River—Northern Rockies many times today, and normally I enjoy that, but he has not had the floor. I would ask him to wait until he has the floor before interjecting.

[Ed Fast, Conservative, Abbotsford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals have fallen far short of their Paris targets, and that should come as no surprise. They do not have a climate plan. They have a tax plan. Whether pretending that they will not raise the carbon tax past $50 per tonne or trotting out ministers to criticize a climate plan they have not even seen yet, the Liberals are increasingly desperate to distract from their own climate failures.

When will the minister tell the truth and finally admit that they will not meet their Paris targets?

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

Mr. Speaker, I want to go back to 2015. The member opposite came to Paris. He came when we negotiated the Paris agreement. He came when Canada said that we are back, that we are serious, that we are taking climate action. We negotiated for one year a climate plan with more than 50 measures.

Yesterday, we saw the hypocrisy of the Conservative Party. Those members voted against a climate emergency motion. They voted against taking action to meet our Paris agreement targets. They voted against a safe and cleaner future for our kids. They voted against a $26 trillion opportunity—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Geoff Regan]

Order. We could always have a shorter question period if members want that. If they cannot hear the questions and the answers, we might have to.

International Trade

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

Mr. Speaker, the China crisis is going from bad to worse. Canada's international reputation is in tatters because of this Prime Minister. China is not even taking his calls.

Like China, it is time the Liberal leader stopped making excuses. First it was canola and soy, and now China is targeting the pork sector even though it desperately needs Canadian pork. Standing up for photo ops is one thing, but standing up for our producers is quite another.

Why is the Prime Minister incapable of standing up to China?