House of Commons Hansard #427 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was housing.

Topics

2:05 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

We will now have the singing of O Canada led today by the pages.

[Members sang the national anthem]

D-DayStatements By Members

2:05 p.m.

Bloc

Michel Boudrias Bloc Terrebonne, QC

Mr. Speaker, on June 5, 1944, at 9:15 p.m., Radio Londres alerted the French resistance that Operation Overlord was about to begin by broadcasting the first stanza of Verlaine's poem Chanson d'automne: The autumn's throbbing
Strings moan, sobbing
Drone their dole;
Long-drawn and low,
Each tremolo
Sears my soul.

The next day, the Normandy landings began. The brave soldiers, some as young as 18, came under intense enemy fire. Too many young men fell on the beaches of Normandy, but their sacrifice freed Europe from Nazi rule. Many units from Quebec, like the Régiment de la Chaudière, the Black Watch and the Régiment de Maisonneuve, took part in the Normandy invasion.

On this day, we honour their sacrifice and their outstanding courage. They died for our freedom, which we so often take for granted.

Thank you to all our veterans. Lest we forget.

Jim DolanStatements By Members

2:05 p.m.

Liberal

Vance Badawey Liberal Niagara Centre, ON

Mr. Speaker, in Niagara Centre you would be hard-pressed to find many people who do not know Jim or Mary Dolan.

Married for 46 years, Jim and Mary not only raised a loving family but were the very definition of community service. Always willing to volunteer, in 1994, they saw a need and stepped up to champion the Kacey-Lynn Fund. Under their stewardship, the program is thriving and has grown to offer assistance to many families throughout the Niagara region with sick or disabled children.

Their generosity and caring spirits have been felt throughout our community. It is with a heavy heart that I share the news that Jim Dolan passed away on May 28. Jim will be greatly missed by his wife Mary, their children James, Kim, Scott and Tammy, as well as his many grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Despite our loss, I am certain that Jim's legacy will live on through the many people whose lives he touched.

Public SafetyStatements By Members

2:05 p.m.

Conservative

Glen Motz Conservative Medicine Hat—Cardston—Warner, AB

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals continue to mismanage the public safety of our country. Now they are considering a firearm ban in an attempt to deal with gangs and gun violence. This plan will also fail as it threatens licensed, law-abiding Canadian firearm owners and ignores the obvious problem: criminals.

News flash: criminals already ignore the law. As gang violence increased, Liberals failed to deliver funding to the police to combat it. As rural crime increased, Liberals turned their backs on rural Canada. Their border security mismanagement has led to dangerous foreign criminals entering our country. What is worse, the Liberals are watering down sentences for some violent crimes.

The first step to address any problem is admitting that there is one. Right now, many Canadians understand that Liberals are actually the problem.

The Conservatives have a plan to tackle crime by focusing on criminals and gang violence. It is time to replace Liberal failures with Conservative action.

Corner Brook Pulp and Paper MillStatements By Members

2:05 p.m.

Liberal

Gudie Hutchings Liberal Long Range Mountains, NL

Mr. Speaker, my hometown of Corner Brook is the largest community in the Long Range Mountains. The reason the town exists is the pulp and paper mill, which has been an economic stimulator since 1925.

I was so proud to stand alongside mill manager, Darren Pelley, to announce nearly $11 million from the strategic innovation fund for Corner Brook Pulp and Paper. The mill will use this investment to install a new system to dry and use low-quality biomass to limit the need to cut trees for fuel. It will reduce waste sent to landfills, reduce water use by 50% and allow the mill to avoid burning tens of thousands of barrels of oil each year.

This funding benefits the environment and strengthens the forestry and paper product trades in all of Newfoundland, ensuring our forest sector will continue to be a leader in my province for years to come.

Corner Brook was a mill town, is a mill town and will continue to be a mill town because of this investment.

Laurier—Sainte-MarieStatements By Members

2:05 p.m.

NDP

Hélène Laverdière NDP Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC

Mr. Speaker, I will likely have a chance to speak in the House again, but since this is my last official member's statement, I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to a number of people.

I want to thank all of the members of the big parliamentary family, including my colleagues, the staff, the pages and the press. I will miss you.

I want to thank the community groups and organizations in my riding for their creativity and their commitment to making Laurier—Sainte-Marie a place where everyone is able to live a good life.

I thank my team, Jean-François, Ariane, Christine and Marianne, and everyone else who has come through my office. I thank Jennifer Pedersen, Lili and Roxane. Good luck, Roxane.

I sincerely thank the people of Laurier—Sainte-Marie for their trust, their kindness and for inspiring me.

Finally, I want to thank my husband, Germain Bélanger. We have been together for over 40 years and he is the wind beneath my wings.

Status of WomenStatements By Members

2:10 p.m.

Liberal

Terry Duguid Liberal Winnipeg South, MB

Mr. Speaker, Maya Angelou once said, “Each time a woman stands up for herself, without knowing it possibly, without claiming it, she stands up for all women.”

This week in Vancouver, thousands of women and people of all genders are doing just that. They are standing up at Women Deliver and some of its side events: Feminists Deliver and the pre-conference on indigenous women and girls.

Thanks to their tireless work, the women's movement has made some hard-fought gains. While some would like to roll back those gains, our government will remain focused on leaving a lasting legacy for women and girls, a legacy of empowerment, a legacy of gender equality, a legacy of change that will benefit us all.

75th Anniversary of D-DayStatements By Members

2:10 p.m.

Conservative

John Nater Conservative Perth—Wellington, ON

Mr. Speaker, June 6 marks the 75th anniversary of D-Day and the Normandy invasions. Fourteen thousand Canadians landed at the beaches of Normandy that morning, and by day's end 359 had fallen. In the coming weeks, 5,000 more would die. We, as Canadians, owe a debt of gratitude to the heroes of D-Day that we will never be able to fully repay.

Among those heroes was a young man named Art Boon. At age 19, Art had already been in the war effort for four years, having enlisted at just 15 years of age. He would go on to participate in the liberation of Holland and would serve his country in uniform for decades to follow.

Today, Art Boon is back in Europe. Where he arrived 75 years ago to liberate a continent, he returns once more as a hero. History must never forget the heroes of D-Day. Today and always, we honour those who have served and those who made the ultimate sacrifice. We will remember them.

Cultural UnityStatements By Members

2:10 p.m.

Liberal

Gordie Hogg Liberal South Surrey—White Rock, BC

Mr. Speaker, we Canadians are generally accepting and tolerant people. We celebrate our multicultural and pluralistic society, we value our diversity and we live in relative harmony with many different traditions, religions and cultures.

Throughout the world, most people, like us, care about the same things. They care about family, friends and their communities and they care about having a better life for themselves and for those they care about, whether it is better physically, emotionally or spiritually. By recognizing this sameness, we recognize a value that unites us.

While multiculturalism and pluralism tend to emphasize our differences, we can celebrate our sameness from our diverse traditions, religions and cultural beliefs, and that sameness can help us to understand our complex, difficult and sometimes disparate world from our common aspirations, a place not of differences but a place of connections and hope.

Levi OakesStatements By Members

2:10 p.m.

Liberal

Marc Miller Liberal Ville-Marie—Le Sud-Ouest—Île-des-Soeurs, QC

[Member spoke in Mohawk and provided the following text:]

Levi Oakeskénha tehonwaká:nere ne raohwá:tsire, wa’thatsha’tí:ia’ke tsiahiàksera tsi nahe ratironhia'kehronòn:ke shiiotohétston. Karonhià:ke tethakà:nere ó:nen. Ronkwe’tiióhne, tóhske, tahnon raweientehtòn:ne ahaiéntho.

Ohnakénkha Kanien’kehá:ka Code Talker roiio'téhkwe ne tekeníhaton shiwaterí:io. Tsi tewateriioskó:wa tékeni watòn:tha, wà:ratste’ onkwehonwehnéha ahshakowennohetstánion ne tehotirihwaienawá:kon ronatenróhshon. Iah ónhka tehotitokèn:se oh nahò:ten rotitharahkwèn:ne ne Code Talkers.

Akwé:kon waharihwáhsehte’ tsi nihoié:ren íhsi nón:we ne tsiá:ta niwáhsen niiohserá:ke nikarì:wes. Akwáh í:ken tsi enhonwaia’tí:sake’ ne raohwá:tsire tahnon raonkwe'ta'shòn:a Í:kehre aonsahihsennakará:tate’ énhskat ó:ya nenkahá:wi’te’ né:’e tsi katá:tis ne owén:na nè:ne wà:ratste’ ne káti aón:ton akwé:kon skén:nen aetewanonhtonniónsheke.

[Mohawk text interpreted as follows:]

Mr. Speaker, Levi Oakes crossed over the clouds last Tuesday. There, there was his family when he passed away. He is looking down now from sky world. He was a good man, truly, and he was good at gardening.

Levi was the last Mohawk code talker; none remain. He used his indigenous language during World War II. He used a secret code to protect his family. No one broke the code talker's code.

He will very much be missed by his people and his family. I want to honour his name again on one more occasion, by using the language that he used so that we could live in peace.

Status of WomenStatements By Members

2:15 p.m.

Conservative

Kelly Block Conservative Carlton Trail—Eagle Creek, SK

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is masquerading as a feminist, willing to tear down any woman who opposes him. As the member for Whitby said when she ran afoul of him, “He was yelling that I didn't appreciate him, that he'd given me so much”.

Earlier this week, the Prime Minister stated that the history of women's rights shows that every step forward is met by another push back, but it is his divisive actions and words that have pushed back progress for all women.

It is one thing to describe oneself as a feminist and claim to value gender equality, but quite another to walk the talk, just ask the former attorney general and the former president of the Treasury Board.

If a woman disagrees with the Prime Minister, she can forget about civil discourse. He will undermine and then dismiss her. Canadian women are not being fooled by his virtue signalling. This Prime Minister is not as advertised.

Status of WomenStatements By Members

2:15 p.m.

Liberal

Anita Vandenbeld Liberal Ottawa West—Nepean, ON

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today to talk about the real and tangible way this government is improving the lives of women and girls. I am talking about the equality fund that our government announced this week. To tackle gender issues, we have to act as a team, because together everyone achieves more.

We are investing $300 million to build a funding platform and bring together the granting, philanthropic and investment worlds and make Canada the leading donor to women's rights and gender equality organizations in the world.

Over the next 15 years, we hope to allocate $1 billion to gender equality. In addition to funding, we will play a leadership role. When we act as a driver of change, other countries are bound to follow.

International Women's DayStatements By Members

2:15 p.m.

Liberal

Emmanuel Dubourg Liberal Bourassa, QC

Mr. Speaker, the riding of Bourassa, which I represent in the House of Commons, is teeming with talent, knowledge and expertise.

For the second year in a row, on International Women's Day on March 8, 2019, I had the privilege of awarding a certificate of honour and merit and recognizing eight women from the riding of Bourassa. I am absolutely delighted to welcome them to Ottawa today. The recipients are Micheline Cantave, Gaetana Colella, Julie Demers, Kerline François, Khadija Jyad, Diane Lecouëdic, Sister Pierre-Anne Mandato and Brunilda Reyes.

Hon. colleagues, please join me in extending a warm welcome to these eight extraordinary women.

2019 General ElectionStatements By Members

2:15 p.m.

Conservative

Alupa Clarke Conservative Beauport—Limoilou, QC

Mr. Speaker, this Liberal government is more centralist, paternalistic and, quite simply, arrogant than any other Liberal government in the history of our federation.

For the past four years, the government has repeatedly shown that it is out of touch with the spirit of federalism. It refuses to honour the tradition of appointing a political lieutenant for Quebec and instead made a minister from Toronto responsible for the economic development of our province. It is imposing political conditions on federal transfers. It refuses to give Quebec greater powers in the area of immigration. It refuses to respond favourably to the National Assembly's request for a single tax return, something all Quebeckers want.

I could go on and on. Following in the footsteps of founding fathers Cartier and MacDonald, we the Conservatives will continue to properly honour federalism. In 2008, we recognized that Quebeckers form a nation within a united Canada.

In 2019, when we form the government, we will respond favourably to the demands of Quebeckers and Quebec.

Pitt Meadows—Maple RidgeStatements By Members

2:15 p.m.

Liberal

Dan Ruimy Liberal Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, BC

Mr. Speaker, it has been almost four years since I first took my seat in the House. It has been privilege to serve the constituents of Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge. I have loved building the relationships that are so important to understanding the needs of my communities.

There are groups like Pathfinder Youth Centre Society, which supports at-risk youth, and Alisha's Wish Child & Youth Advocacy Centre, which provides services to children and youth who are victims of abuse.

Groups such as Alouette River Management Society, KEEPS and Watershed Watch work hard to restore fish habitat, advocate education on our diverse wildlife and try to find ways to reverse the damage to our fish and salmon stock.

Our Seniors Network is a group of individuals and organizations with a shared goal of providing support and resources for our seniors.

There are all the businesses and non-profits that hire summer students so they can gain valuable experience.

When we both build and sustain relationships with the grassroots people in our communities, we can work together to create better outcomes. From the words of Helen Keller, alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.

Indigenous AffairsStatements By Members

2:20 p.m.

NDP

Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC

Mr. Speaker, Canada committed deliberate race, identity and gender-based genocide against indigenous peoples and we can see the impact of this in every sphere of life: the violence, the loss of life, the child apprehensions, the marginalization, the deliberate exclusion, the poverty, the homelessness rate, the lack of protection, the Indian Act, the sex-based discrimination, the racism and it goes on. This is Canada's shame.

If we are to show that we have actually heard family members and survivors, we must have an indigenous-led action plan, with a dedicated budget and a timeline for implementation, that is publicly accountable. We must address indigenous land titles and indigenous people's right to self-sufficiency and self-governance.

We have a duty to address this historic and intergenerational trauma, social and economic marginalization and the ongoing dismissal of their expertise. The calls for justice are not just recommendations, but are legal imperatives that must be implemented.

The EnvironmentStatements By Members

2:20 p.m.

Conservative

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

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister's sunny climate plan was supposed to save the environment and boost the economy. Well, it did neither. In reality, all it did was punish Canadians for getting groceries, driving the kids to hockey or even running small businesses.

In reality, the carbon tax is a money grab. The Prime Minister has to pay for his consecutive deficits and reckless spending, so he is making hard-working Canadians pay for it under the guise of a climate plan. If the Prime Minister really cared about the environment, he would not be exempting Canada's largest emitters from the carbon tax and he certainly would not be spending more time flying to his vacations than most Canadians have actually spent on a vacation in the last five years.

The Liberal government is nowhere near meeting its climate goals and now we are at the point where the United States is closer to reaching its targets than Canada. The sunny ways are over and we are left with a money-grabbing carbon tax. The Liberals' climate plan is not as advertised.

Canada Child BenefitStatements By Members

2:20 p.m.

Liberal

Randy Boissonnault Liberal Edmonton Centre, AB

Mr. Speaker, when I knock on doors in my riding and meet families with young children, I ask them about the Liberal baby bonus and they tell me they love it.

Early in our mandate, families in Edmonton Centre hoped that the Canada child benefit would do better for them, and it has. In April alone, we issued over 7,000 payments to over 12,000 children, for a total of $4.6 million into the riding. That is over $55 million tax-free directly to Edmonton Centre families each year.

Three years into the program, we have lifted 17,000 children in Edmonton out of poverty. That is equivalent to a Rogers Place full of children out of poverty. When we add their parents, it is a Commonwealth Stadium full of people able to make ends meet.

Across Canada, we have reduced poverty from 13% to 9%. What do we call that in Edmonton? We call that better than advertised.

Canada Child BenefitStatements By Members

2:20 p.m.

Liberal

The Speaker Liberal Geoff Regan

Order, please. There are likely to be disagreements here, and there should be, but we cannot all speak at the same time and we should show respect for this place, for each other and for different opinions. Members should not all speak at once and interrupt.

International TradeOral Questions

2:25 p.m.

Conservative

Candice Bergen Conservative Portage—Lisgar, MB

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister's failures when it comes to dealing with the Government of China are escalating, and his gross mismanagement of our relationship with China will now hurt even more Canadians.

This time, Canadian meat producers are being punished, after China's customs agency announced that it is going to dramatically increase inspections and open all containers of Canadian meat and meat products.

Does the Prime Minister not realize that Canadian producers are suffering as a result of his failures? What is he prepared to do about this?

International TradeOral Questions

2:25 p.m.

Compton—Stanstead Québec

Liberal

Marie-Claude Bibeau LiberalMinister of Agriculture and Agri-Food

Mr. Speaker, we are working very closely with producers and the entire agriculture industry. Our main objective is to reopen markets in China, which we are doing in various ways in collaboration with my colleagues at the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of International Trade and my provincial counterparts.

We were informed that China would be increasing pork inspections. That is why we are encouraging all members of the industry to be extremely vigilant as they continue exporting.

Foreign AffairsOral Questions

2:25 p.m.

Conservative

Candice Bergen Conservative Portage—Lisgar, MB

As if it is the producers' fault, Mr. Speaker. That is absolutely incorrect.

Five months ago, former Liberal cabinet minister John McCallum had to resign in shame as our ambassador to China. We are now in June and the Prime Minister has not appointed a replacement. Canadians are being detained on bogus charges, soybean producers are facing new barriers, canola producers are having shipments blocked, and now the Chinese government is going after our meat producers. This is going from bad to worse.

Why has the Prime Minister not appointed an ambassador to China?

Foreign AffairsOral Questions

2:25 p.m.

Ahuntsic-Cartierville Québec

Liberal

Mélanie Joly LiberalMinister of Tourism

Mr. Speaker, our relationship with China is extremely important. We are very concerned with the detention of Canadians in China, which is why we are rallying a number of friendly countries. Also, we were able to make sure that we had a joint statement with the United States, calling for the immediate release of Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig and rejecting their wrongful detention.

Foreign AffairsOral Questions

2:25 p.m.

Conservative

Candice Bergen Conservative Portage—Lisgar, MB

Mr. Speaker, it is not working. This relationship and the impact are getting worse. The Prime Minister's failure when it comes to the Chinese government is causing real pain and real suffering for Canadians. He has failed to appoint a new ambassador. He is refusing to pick up the phone and call the Chinese premier. Canadian lives are at risk and agriculture producers are suffering.

When will the Prime Minister finally start treating this crisis with the seriousness, urgency and attention it requires?

Foreign AffairsOral Questions

2:25 p.m.

Ahuntsic-Cartierville Québec

Liberal

Mélanie Joly LiberalMinister of Tourism

Mr. Speaker, it goes without saying that the relationship with China is important. That is why this file is a priority for the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Prime Minister.

We are particularly concerned about the unjustified detention of Canadians in China. That is why we established an international coalition of countries that support our position. We have also signed a joint statement with the United States calling for the immediate release of the Canadians held in China.