Debates of Oct. 1st, 2020

Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply

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

Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize the member for Kelowna—Lake Country for her great speech today and her outstanding work since her election last year. She is a strong addition to our government in waiting. I just want to let her know that her hard work is very much appreciated.

I would like to thank all of the workers in my community who have put their community first during 2020. From prevention to testing to treatment, people in the health care field, and those who have stepped into the health care field, have done so much for our community. We have essential workers who, in times of great uncertainty, continued to provide the services that we required of them, and everyday folks whose jobs were not declared essential soldiered on to continue to serve their friends, neighbours and family members: people working at grocery stores, repairing roads, collecting garbage or working at financial institutions. Whatever it was, they carried on in the face of adversity.

Early in the pandemic, we were called on by the country to come together to provide the support that Canadians desperately needed. Giving credit where credit is due, there was a fast reaction from the government, but it needed a little help to get where it needed to be for Canadians. The wage subsidy is a great example of that. Through the work of all the members in this place, we were able to take it from the 10% proposed wage subsidy to the 75% that businesses were calling for, and that they so desperately needed to be able to keep businesses open and keep employees on the payroll. It is a tremendously important improved outcome created by the work of parliamentarians.

What also happened around that same time, early this year, was an unprecedented attempt at a power grab by the government, looking to tax and spend without parliamentary oversight until December of 2021. Parliament pushed back and we were able to stop that attempt at a power grab.

At that point we knew that the work of the government was going to require a close eye. That became so apparent during the summer months, when we learned that a company had paid members of the Prime Minister's family half a million dollars. His government saw fit to give that organization half a billion dollars.

At every turn, when members of the House or committee members tried to seek answers, they were faced with obstruction. They were faced with filibusters. The government wanted to deflect, duck and avoid accountability.

While many Canadians were making tough decisions about how they were going to pay their mortgages or rent, and worried, looking ahead, about how they were going to heat their homes or how they were going to eat, the Liberals were looking out for their well-connected friends and the insiders: people with access to the halls of power and the Prime Minister's office, believing that the executive had a set of rules that was different from the rest of the country.

We heard a great deal of testimony that was very damaging to the government, damaging to the Prime Minister, and so damaging to the then finance minister that, in fact, Bill Morneau resigned in disgrace.

There were echoes of a scandal from the Liberals' first mandate, the SNC-Lavalin scandal, which saw the Prime Minister fire cabinet ministers and kick women out of his caucus who had the courage to stand up to him and speak truth to power. That was the subject of the Trudeau Report 2, in which he was found to have broken ethics laws when he interfered in the prosecution of his well-connected friends at SNC-Lavalin.

During that same mandate the Liberals had, there was also the Trudeau Report 1, in which the Prime Minister was found guilty of breaking ethics laws for his illegal trip to billionaire island, and now here we are. Canadians gave Liberals a reduced mandate and put them on notice. They shortened the leash, but the Prime Minister is under investigation again by the Ethics Commissioner.

While these investigations were going on and the government was being damaged, the Prime Minister shut down Parliament. He prorogued, breaking a promise that the Liberals would never prorogue. In fact, the Prime Minister marched in the streets against prorogation, stating he would never do it and would never try to avoid accountability.

What did the Liberals do with those six weeks, aside from hiding from accountability? They did not get ready. They did not consult with stakeholders and opposition parties. They did not prepare to provide Canadians with the help they need. While all of our allies had approved rapid testing, we were into the second wave here in Canada. After weeks of opposition pressure, after we had come back, and after the doors had been unlocked after they had shut down Parliament, we put the pressure on for rapid tests. We were talking about rapid tests in March and are still asking the Prime Minister where they are. The government bought 7.9 million of those tests, but they were not approved. Suddenly, the next day, they were approved.

We have been calling for these tests but they are not in the hands of the government or Canadians yet. The Prime Minister says it is going to be a couple of weeks for the tests. How many schools are going to be closed in the next couple of weeks while Canadians wait for those tests? How many workplaces will close? How many more community outbreaks will occur? This is a failure of the Prime Minister, one of many during this pandemic.

Canadians deserve better. The Prime Minister said a couple of weeks, but he had a couple of weeks. He had six weeks. However, the Liberals had to rush through the reforms to the emergency response benefit because they did not get ready. They did not use those six weeks. The Prime Minister hid.

Let us talk about the commercial rent assistance program which has been, frankly, a disaster. It is expiring. There is nothing on the Notice Paper. There is no plan. The Liberals failed businesses. For many of the programs they have had, and in spite of urging from business groups, small business owners and the opposition parties, the criteria were often very narrow and excluded many Canadians. Many people in my community did not qualify for a single program.

For the six weeks the Liberals had, the Speech from the Throne fell very short of what Canadians deserve. What we did see, and what has been demonstrated to Canadians, is the importance of having this place, of having our parliamentary democracy and having a check on the power of government. The work that opposition members do is critical to the function of our democracy. Canadians get better outcomes when we do our work, when Parliament does its work and when committees do their work. That is what we are going to continue to do.

As the official opposition, Canada's Conservatives are going to continue doing the work of holding the government to account. When the time comes, this government in waiting will act on the lessons learned during this pandemic, and we will continue to deliver for Canadians.

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

Mr. Speaker, my colleague is in the neighbouring riding to mine, and I get to drive through his riding when I am heading to Ottawa. It is quite a beautiful riding to drive through.

I want to start by thanking the member for showing confidence in the government. When we voted in the wee hours of yesterday morning, we were voting on a bill that included a confidence motion. I know that he is quite tough on the government from time to time. He has no problem showing where he thinks things should be changed or where things should be done differently. However, at the end of the day when we did have that vote on supporting Canadians, he chose to vote in confidence of the government. It truly was inspiring to see that, despite what we heard today.

When it comes to the rapid tests he brought up, we know that the best way to make the decisions is to let Health Canada, the professionals, make those decisions. Those are not decisions that should be made by politicians.

If the member had been in the position of the Minister of Health, would he have made that choice as a politician or would he have relied on advice from professionals in those positions?

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

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to hear that I inspire the member. That is the role of any good opposition member: to inspire members of the government to do better.

In March, when the Prime Minister talked about rapid tests, when those calls were made, that is when action should have been taken. The health minister should have been looking at our trade agreements and looking at the obligation of Canada to recognize the approval of medical devices that had been approved in those partnering areas, to be able to recognize and take advantage of that, and to leverage that for the health and safety of Canadians.

That is what the government should have been doing. That is what it should do on a go-forward basis.

[Kristina Michaud, Bloc, Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to hear what my colleague has to say about the reference to infrastructure in the throne speech.

We heard that the federal government wanted to invest in all types of infrastructure over the next two years. This morning, we heard the Prime Minister announce a $10-billion plan over three years. No one said anything about whether the provinces and territories were consulted or whether transfer payments would be made.

Does my colleague share the Bloc Québécois's concern regarding how the federal government failed to consult the provinces about areas of shared jurisdiction?

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

Mr. Speaker, it is troubling that we have this Speech from the Throne, where time and again it is clear that there has not been adequate consultation, or at least the government did not listen to its own consultations with the provinces.

I know here in Ontario, much like in Quebec, the lower tiers, the municipalities and the province, are calling for certain infrastructure projects to be completed, but the government is missing in action. In Ontario, there are bilateral agreements in which the federal government's participation is required, but it is very slow to act on it.

The federal government made an announcement this morning, and I know that it will grab some headlines, but actually seeing shovels in the ground is a different thing. We hear a lot of talk from the government, but what we want to see is action. Before the government makes these announcements, it ought to make them in full consultation with the provinces.

[Laurel Collins, NDP, Victoria, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the member spoke about the scandals and ethical violations, about the government proroguing Parliament to avoid accountability.

I want to highlight one of the many impacts: the $900 million promised to WE Charity that was actually supposed to be promised to students. When the Liberals were caught, that help for students evaporated. Students are still waiting. They are still struggling to afford rent, tuition and food.

Would the member agree that in the government's attempt to have Canadians forget about the WE scandal, it has forgotten about students?

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

Mr. Speaker, the government has absolutely left students behind. It has left many Canadians behind.

That money, that $912 million, could have had an impact it if it had been invested, for example, in the regular Canada summer jobs program, if the government had fully funded those programs. The nearly $1 billion could have been added to a program that already existed.

In all of the ways that the government could have invested in students, instead it missed the opportunity. The government took the opportunity to look out for its Liberal friends and well-connected insiders, and it let Canadians down.

[Arif Virani, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, at the outset I will indicate that I will be sharing my time with the member for Don Valley East.

Before I commence my address, I want to thank another group that is very important: my constituents.

I thank those who are essential workers, who have stocked shelves in grocery and convenience stores, driven Ubers, delivered takeout and kept our neighbourhoods and schools safe and clean.

I want to thank the medical professionals, like those at St. Joseph's Health Centre, who are bravely treating those with COVID-19, and those who provide health care to the very vulnerable, people like Angela Robertson and her team at Parkdale Queen West Community Health Centre, who are on the front lines of the opioid crisis.

I want to thank neighbours, like the ones on my street in Roncesvalles Village and so many other streets around Parkdale—High Park, who organized to deliver groceries to people in quarantine who tested positive.

I want to thank musicians and artists in our community, like Jordan Isaac, who took curing isolation and loneliness to heart by serenading seniors on their balconies at long-term care homes like the Elm Grove Living Centre, and the organizations for whom seniors are a part of their clientele, like the workers at Parkdale Intercultural Association, CultureLink and Parkdale Community Information Centre, who are addressing the mental health and well-being of our elderly throughout this pandemic.

I want to thank those on the front lines of the spike in domestic violence caused by this pandemic, people like Abi Ajibolade and her team at The Redwood shelter, who are working overtime to keep women and children safe.

I want to thank the small businesses that, despite their own struggles to stay afloat during very challenging circumstances, have found the time to give back to their employees, like the Stay Home ale that was created at the Indie Alehouse, the funds of which go to support the employees themselves. I also thank the businesses that give back to our communities through fundraising efforts, like Barque, which provided food to front-line workers, and the efforts of Cici’s Pizza in Parkdale and Scout in Roncesvalles Village to raise money for food banks.

I want to thank the organizations that have been going above and beyond the call in addressing the critical issue of food insecurity, which has always existed but has been acute during the pandemic. The most notable of these is the Tibetan Canadian Cultural Centre, which has provided the use of its industrial kitchen to Jagger Gordon at Feed it Forward so that their joint forces could deliver meals to those in need with the help of the Tibetan Women's Association of Ontario.

I want to thank the advocates in my riding who have continued to shine a light on the need for things like climate action, addressing housing, and most recently, the continent-wide movement to confront systemic discrimination and anti-Black and anti-indigenous racism. I thank people like Debbie King, Ayan Kailie and Alexa Gilmour.

As the Prime Minister said, the story of Canada is about ordinary people doing extraordinary things. This rings true with the residents of Parkdale—High Park, who I am proud to represent here in Ottawa. I outline these attributes and achievements not simply because of what people have been doing in my riding during the pandemic, but because of what their actions have taught us about the pandemic, the fault lines and vulnerabilities they have exposed and the opportunities they have highlighted to build back better.

Let me now turn to the throne speech and the priorities we are outlining for the next session of Parliament and our country.

The first is that the path back to economic recovery starts with a plan to crush the coronavirus itself. This is why addressing the health care needs that relate to the virus is the lead pillar outlined in the throne speech. This means investing heavily in things like domestic supply chains for personal protective equipment. It means investing in research and development to develop a domestic vaccine. It also means procuring the supply of promising potential vaccines that are being developed abroad. It means putting in $19 billion, as we have already, to help all the provinces and territories with the safe restart of our economy. This is fundamental because, without a health plan, we do not have an economic plan and path forward to recovery.

Another thematic point I have learned from my constituents and my capacity as a member of Parliament and parliamentary secretary is that any plan for an economic recovery must start with women. We are in the midst of a “she-cession”. What we need to get out of this “she-cession” is a “she-covery”. These are terms that have been coined in the last few months that very aptly describe where we are as a nation. That is why we heard very active commitments outlined in the throne speech with respect to engaging women more robustly in this economic recovery and a commitment to an action plan specifically for women and their full participation in the economy.

We also saw a commitment to nationwide child care, which has been the subject of much discussion on the floor of the House over the past several days. People say they have heard that before and ask why they should believe people this time around. I understand their frustration. I remember some of those commitments being made by past governments. What is important now is that this is the first time in 16 years any federal government has come to the table in the form of a throne speech or a budget statement and said that, nationwide, child care is a priority. That is a critical commitment, and what I am dealing with here and now is the renewed vigour and interest in that commitment.

What am I talking about? To be candid, I am talking about people like me. For far too long, the notion of child care and a universal nationwide child care program has been deemed to be the purview of women of child-bearing age. The critics would call it a 25- to 35-year-old female issue.

What this pandemic has exposed to all of us, working from home, juggling and trying to balance caring for people who are ill and looking after children with the competing demands of work, is that the current system is not working. What we need is robust child care. By addressing robust and universal child care, we can fulfill the commitment we have repeatedly made that we want to ensure women's full participation in the economy. It is time to achieve and move on this demand. It is good that men, particularly men in this country who have now been through and are still going through the pandemic, are getting on board with this important idea.

The third issue is that we cannot recover from this virus or even prepare for the next one, and indeed there may be a next one coming, when isolation and quarantine at home is critical but too many do not have a safe and secure place to isolate, a place to call home, as we have heard so often in the vernacular.

Housing has to be addressed. Housing has to be part of a plan to build back and build back better. That means owning homes, renting affordable homes and supportive housing. Those three planks of our national housing strategy were announced three years back, with funding to the tune of over $50 billion, but what is very recent is that we made a commitment in the last two weeks to put $1 billion around the country into a rapid housing industry, or RHI, which will do things like build modular homes quickly for people who are in acute housing crisis and need homes to be built now. These are important steps in the right direction for things, as the pandemic has exposed and my constituents have explained to me, where the needs are acute.

I represent a riding in the city of Toronto. Much like many other urban centres around this country, we are experiencing an acute homelessness issue, a homelessness crisis, which has to be addressed. It is not sufficient when people are unable to be housed. Not only are they not able to look after themselves but they are also not able to curb the spread of this virus. What we are doing is upping our ante with respect to homelessness. We are saying that we will commit to ending chronic homelessness. The previous commitment our government made was to reduce it by about 50% over a period of years. We are saying that is not sufficient, and we are upping the priority and making a bold commitment to end chronic homelessness.

The fourth issue is that the recovery must not only build back better but also greener. People have been captivated by what we have seen in terms of a lower carbon footprint and animal life surfacing all around us, etc. They have also raised concerns about the usage of single-use plastics during the pandemic, when people were using single-use plastics at much higher levels. We are addressing things on both ends. We are committing to conservation measures. We are also renewing our commitment to ban the harmful use of single-use plastics.

We are also embracing where the economy is going, as well as what a just transition for workers looks like in terms of embracing a green economy by focusing on clean tech, clean infrastructure and zero-emission vehicles. Part of the million jobs plan we have for this country will involve this new economy, a greener economy, and we will continue to price pollution, an important statement that was reiterated in the throne speech.

The last theme I will discuss is the commitment to ending systemic racism and confronting discrimination. In the wake of what we have seen in the United States and are seeing here in Canada, this is a critical need. It is something I personally have believed in and advocated for all of my adult life. I am glad to see so much interest in it across all sectors of Canada, across all racial demographics and across all groups.

People want to see change. What are those changes? We are redoubling our work on reconciliation. We are working hard to have diversity and procurement. We will address overrepresentation in prisons and corrections through diversion and rehab. We will enact standards about the appropriate use of force and address online hate, something I had the privilege to work on all summer long in my capacity as parliamentary secretary. We are addressing seniors' needs with national standards and with beefed up amendments to the Criminal Code about the neglect of seniors.

What all these themes represent is that we are listening. We are listening to what we have heard from Canadians during this pandemic and as we continue to fight this pandemic. Therefore, those views have shaped our priorities. These are important initiatives that I hope we can have all-party support for, and I look forward to working with members opposite to enact these bold visions.

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

Madam Speaker, one thing that I wanted to touch on, which is affecting many small businesses in my riding, is a need for commercial rent assistance.

I was glad to see that the government is committed to extending the wage subsidy, because we know that small businesses have two major fixed costs. One is labour, which will be handled with the emergency wage subsidy, but the other is commercial rent assistance. The problem so many small businesses are having is that when they have an uncooperative landlord, who is unwilling to engage with the program, they are left with no options.

I had a business in my community that was called Sports Traders. It ran for 25 years and was a bedrock member of the small business community of Duncan, but it went under because of an uncooperative landlord.

I would like to hear the parliamentary secretary's comments on how the government is going to fix this program and make it so that tenants are not dependent on landlords to access those funds.

[Arif Virani, Liberal, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Madam Speaker, my thanks to the member opposite for his contribution to the House during this Parliament and the previous Parliament.

The rent issue is not a simple one. I will be very candid here in saying that. Based on the division of powers in the Constitution, we require intense participation and co-operation on the part of the provinces. Some provinces have been more forthcoming in terms of providing that co-operation; others have not. That has been a challenge. What we are trying to do is to ensure that we are putting in place programs that would incentivize landlords to participate and provinces to play ball with respect to rent assistance. The wage subsidy that the member mentioned is also an important step.

There are also commitments in the throne speech to expand the CEBA, which is, in part, a grant-based program, where 25% would be in the form of a grant and the rest would be an interest-free loan, to assist with small businesses in terms of overcoming the very serious problems that they are facing right now with the pandemic.

[Pat Kelly, Conservative, Calgary Rocky Ridge, AB]

Madam Speaker, I will continue in the same vein and ask the member to comment on the numerous failures that have been identified within the very programs he discussed.

The government talks about extending the CEBA, yet it still has not fixed the problems that have already been identified, problems that the government has already acknowledged and promised to fix. However, they are still not fixed. Many small business persons still cannot even get CEBA as it is. The commercial rent program, which the previous questioner spoke of, ended yesterday as a complete policy failure and not a word about it in the throne speech. These problems are failures that the government has not fixed so far.

Can the member comment on the problems the government already has, never mind the new programs they discussed in the throne speech?

[Arif Virani, Liberal, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Madam Speaker, the issues of small businesses are replete around the country. There is no denying that. The issue of fine-tuning the programs is also a completely fair comment, but this is very much a dynamic process. When programs are being rolled out in eight to 18 days, programs that would normally take eight to 18 months, there will be some lacuna, some voids or some gaps that are identified.

What we have done is worked diligently with the civil service to identify those gaps, to hear from opposition parliamentarians and government parliamentarians about where the gaps are, and to fill them, for example by expanding the eligibility on the lower end and on the higher end with respect to the business account.

With respect to rent assistance, it is at the foremost of all of our minds that rent assistance is critical for small businesses facing landlords who do not want to participate in these programs. Designing them in a better way that incentivizes landlords is the magic that we are trying to ensure is achieved here, but that requires provincial co-operation and the co-operation of the landlords themselves.

[Denis Trudel, Bloc, Longueuil—Saint-Hubert, QC]

Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his speech.

I am extremely pleased to hear that he is concerned about housing. In Montreal, this has been a matter of great concern for years. Since the beginning of the pandemic, people have been camping on Notre-Dame Street in Montreal. They are sleeping in tents. The situation is really bad.

Recently, the government announced a federal-provincial agreement under the national housing strategy, which was launched three years ago. Quebec did not get anything. This disaster could have been avoided if money had been given to Quebec. The agreement was signed, but we did not get any details. Another billion dollars was allocated, but we did not get any details about that either.

Can my hon. colleague guarantee that this money will help the people who are sleeping on Notre-Dame Street find housing?

[Arif Virani, Liberal, Parkdale—High Park, ON]

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question.

We will be providing the details of the program and allocating the necessary funds to help people across Canada, not just in Toronto and Vancouver, but in Montreal and all the other cities in Quebec too.

Housing issues are a national problem that requires a national response, including the details that the member has asked for.

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, NDP, Carol Hughes]

I would remind the members that when the Chair says the question needs to be brief, it is because they only have one minute left. We expect members to take 30 seconds to ask their question, and the answer should take 30 seconds as well. I just wanted to mention this so that members do not start making minute-long speeches.

Resuming debate, the hon. member for Don Valley East.

[Yasmin Ratansi, Liberal, Don Valley East, ON]

Madam Speaker, I rise today to support the Speech from the Throne. On March 13, 2020, Parliament shut down, and in the days that followed, in consultation with premiers from across Canada, a strategy was developed for curbing the COVID-19 crisis.

We were in uncharted territory. We asked businesses to close and employees to stay home. In these unprecedented times, the Prime Minister and our government had to rapidly prepare a plan to ensure that Canadians could still put food on the table and pay the rent, and that businesses could stay afloat.

The government introduced the Canada emergency response benefit to help, first and foremost, the most vulnerable. For businesses, it introduced the Canada emergency wage subsidy, which allowed employees to retain their jobs and businesses to stay open.

For businesses, our government introduced various measures, including the Canada emergency business assistance and the Canada emergency commercial rent assistance. Many businesses in my riding, especially in the entertainment and tourism industry, have thanked our government for the CEWS as it has allowed them to retain their employees. We know that over four million people have gone back to the workforce. The fact that the government has proposed to extend CEWS until next October is a welcome relief for employees and employers.

For families with children, we increased the Canada child benefit. For seniors, we provided a one-time tax-free payment on their GIS and OAS. This has helped over 6.7 million seniors. As well, we provided a one-time special payment in April, through the GST credit for low and modest income seniors, of between $400 to $600.

Many Canadians have written to say that the concrete investments we have made in them has alleviated their financial stress.

I held a virtual town hall during the pandemic, and the comments I received from the people of Don Valley East helped us refine many programs. I want to thank all my constituents for their input, which was incorporated into the Speech from the Throne. My constituents will be glad to see that the post-pandemic recovery outlined in the Speech from the Throne balances the needs for equity, sustainability, environmental responsibility and fiscal prudence.

With the ending of CEBA, our government has ensured that these Canadians who have been unable to find a job are transitioned to the EI. Again, I thank my constituents of Don Valley East for their input to ensure that the EI system is aligned to the 21st century.

As a government that is concerned with the welfare of all Canadians, we have used the fiscal firepower to the benefit of all Canadians, unlike the 2008 financial crisis where the previous government gave boutique tax cuts to the rich and left out the middle-income and low-income Canadians through austerity.

How have we been able to invest in people? According to senior economist at CIBC Capital Markets, Canada entered the COVID-19 pandemic with a healthy fiscal situation out of all G7 economies. In my previous life, where I did business—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, NDP, Carol Hughes]

The hon. member for Shefford has informed us that there is a problem with the interpretation.

We will wait for a minute. It now works.

The hon. member for Don Valley East.

[Yasmin Ratansi, Liberal, Don Valley East, ON]

Madam Speaker, as a government that is concerned with the welfare of all Canadians, we have used fiscal firepower to the benefit of all Canadians, unlike the 2008 financial crisis when the previous government gave boutique tax cuts to the rich and left out middle-income and low-income Canadians through austerity.

How have we been able to invest in people? According to senior economists at CIBC Capital Markets, Canada entered the COVID-19 pandemic with a healthy fiscal situation out of all G7 economies. In my previous life, where I did business turnarounds, I know that when we invest in people, we get a 100% return on investment. The best way to keep the economy strong is to keep Canadians healthy.

COVID-19 has exposed that women, especially the front-line workers, have taken the brunt of the stress and job losses. According to the OECD, 56% of women work in the five C’s, caring, cashiering, catering, cleaning and clerical, and 71% have lost their jobs. These are not just statistics, but the reality of many, including in my riding. Women, along with racialized Canadians, youth and persons with disabilities, are facing slower returns to work and dim employment prospects. This is unacceptable.

To get women back to work, we need an affordable child care system. I would like to remind the House that in 2006 the Paul Martin government had secured a national day care strategy, signed by all provinces and territories. This progressive plan would have seen the implementation of affordable child care for all Canadians two decades ago and we would be in a better position today. Unfortunately the Harper government tore up the hard-won agreement, and parents and children alike are feeling the damage of that heartless decision.

Going forward, we need to have a bold agenda. That is why our government and the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion introduced three new programs: the Canada recovery benefit, the Canada caregiver benefit and the Canada recovery sickness benefit. These programs will capture people in the gig economy, the self-employed and the contract worker as well as those who do not qualify for EI.

COVID-19 exposed food insecurity. Our government stepped up to the plate and provided $100 million to various food banks. A few weeks ago, at a virtual meeting with organizations across Don Valley East, I was pleased to announce that they had received $2 million in emergency funding. This money is to be used to facilitate better food distribution.

To help alleviate isolation among seniors, we provided $9 million in funding for the United Way. To help students through this pandemic, we created the Canada emergency student benefit, which has helped over 650,000 students. Through the Canada summer jobs, we are able to help both businesses and students lessen their economic burden due to this pandemic.

During the crisis, we saw the horrible images of long-term care facilities and the highest death rate. This is a provincial responsibility. COVID-19 exposed how the provinces that did not invest in long-term care facilities and allowed private organizations had the highest death rates.

The Prime Minister showed leadership and worked with the provinces to provide funding of $2 billion to alleviate stress and allow the front-line workers a safe environment. I would like to thank all the front-line workers for their selfless service in keeping Canadians safe.

In addition, through the safe restart agreement, our government has provided over $19 billion to provinces and territories to safely start their economies. These funds are to be used to support the most vulnerable, invest in child care, increase testing and contact tracing, the procuring of PPE, etc.

Farmers should not be forgotten as they have stepped up to the plate to ensure Canadians have access to food. The Conservatives made false statements that no Liberal had ever visited a farm. This is nonsense.

On September 9, I visited the Sculthorpe family farm in Port Hope, Ontario. I was joined by members of the Ontario Cattlemen’s Association. The farm raises grass-fed cattle. Farmers like the Sculthorpes are doing important work in sustainable beef production for both Canadian and international markets.

Contrary to what the opposition claims, our government has invested millions of dollars for beef produces and in Alberta alone, $8.3 million for six projects that will help support Canada’s world-class beef industry.

Investment in agriculture, one of the largest contributors to the economy, is an important investment. These monies will help producers become more competitive and provide them with the tools they need to remain sustainable and innovative.

Contrary to the statement by the leader of the official opposition, the pandemic has brought all Canadians together. My constituents from all political stripes participate, provide their input and want the government to continue doing the good work it is doing.

I urge all members to show leadership and not play politics. People are united, not divided, and it is critical that we remember this.

With COVID-19 in resurgence, I urge all Canadians and residents of Don Valley East to download the COVID-19 alert app on their phones. This app provides guidance to the government in helping to slow the spread.

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, NDP, Carol Hughes]

The member's time is up. I am sure she will be able to add, during questions and comments.

[Louise Chabot, Bloc, Thérèse-De Blainville, QC]

Madam Speaker, I have been listening to various Liberal government members' speeches since our return to the House after prorogation.

They appear to be talking up their track record in all of these speeches, but they forgot to back up those claims. They extol the virtues of the CERB, but I would remind members that if the Liberal government had taken action back in 2016, when it promised to completely reform our EI social safety net, we would not have been in this position.

In a discussion about women and equity, we cannot forget that the Pay Equity Act, which has received royal assent, has still not come into force.

I also want to point out that the assistance for seniors is not recurring or long term. It was a one-time payment, and the government did not make any further commitments.

The government has also bragged about the millions of dollars it has allocated to farmers. How did it deal with supply management before today? Prevention is the best medicine.

I want answers.

[Yasmin Ratansi, Liberal, Don Valley East, ON]

Madam Speaker, it is because we have managed the economy so well that we have the firepower to give people money. People were left jobless: women in the gig economy, women who are self-employed, women who work in restaurants. It is important that we look after them. We have done what it takes to look after everyone.

For the farmers, we did not kill the supply management. The members should look to a previous government and ask questions to those Conservatives.

[Chris Lewis, Conservative, Essex, ON]

Madam Speaker, he hon. member talked about Canadians being united, not divided.

In my riding of Essex, many Canadians are divided because they are across borders. I do not suggest for a moment that we open our borders right up, but there must be a compassionate side for so many people who are separated, so many loved ones, so many who have to make a decision between working across the border or staying with their families at home.

Would the hon. member agree with me that there must be a compassionate component to reuniting Canadians, families and loved ones once again?

[Yasmin Ratansi, Liberal, Don Valley East, ON]

Madam Speaker, I am facing the same issues. We have had conversations with the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, and there has been some allowance for people. If the member has questions, it is important he bring his case forward to the minister and I am sure he will look at it.

[Laurel Collins, NDP, Victoria, BC]

Madam Speaker, how many times were veterans mentioned in the throne speech? Zero. The report released just a few days ago from the Parliamentary Budget Officer confirms what New Democrats have been saying for years. Veterans are not getting the support that they need.

Many veterans in my riding have been waiting for years. How does the member defend a throne speech and a government that continues to shortchange our veterans?

[Yasmin Ratansi, Liberal, Don Valley East, ON]

Madam Speaker, as a member of OGGO, we studied veterans' issues. I would like to inform the member that had the Harper government not shut down nine veterans offices and cut funding to veterans, we would not be in a situation like this. How did it happen? The NDP joined hands with the Conservatives and gave the Harper government power.

Therefore, I think you have to take responsibility for that.