Madam Speaker, it is an honour to rise today, and I will be splitting my time with my hon. colleague for West Nova.
We are here today, because we have a great motion from our colleague from Calgary Nose Hill. It is one that looks at the COVID pandemic. Yesterday, we had a motion that the government decided was a confidence motion. The government did not like what we had put forward. Nowhere and at no other time have we ever seen a group, an organization or a government work so hard at not answering a question and not providing the answers that Canadians deserve than we have seen over the last little while.
A year ago yesterday, Canadians put this Liberal government on notice. From previously enjoying a majority, they were given a minority. I have to say that since the election of a minority government took place a year ago, we have seen a Prime Minister who does not seem really interested in governing this country. He does not have a majority. We have not even seen a federal budget for almost two years, and what we have seen time and time again are ethical scandals and ethical blunders from this Prime Minister and his cabinet.
Canadians also re-elected, a year ago yesterday, a strong Conservative opposition with a clear mandate to hold this Liberal government to account. We were elected to ask the tough questions of this government, which we do, but very seldom do we get answers. As a matter of fact, what we have seen time and again is every excuse as to why they cannot answer a question.
Just prior to this debate going on, we saw the parliamentary secretary stand on a point of order to say how hard it was going to be and that it would paralyze the government. It would seize-up the government to try and answer these questions. Yesterday they did not like the motion because they felt it was questioning the government and it was not COVID related. Now, we have a conscientious, measured motion that is directly related to the COVID pandemic, and they do not like it. They cannot do it.
I have to say that the last 10 months have been among the most challenging of my elected career. I think if we surveyed the 338 members of Parliament, they would say the same thing. We are experiencing the heartbreaking stories of our constituents, Canadians who not only have health concerns, but are also facing incredible, mounting financial losses.
In the early days I would say that, yes, there was a team Canada approach. Opposition would challenge some of the programs that came out and offer solutions. Sometimes the information was taken and these programs were changed. However, as we sit today, there are still tens of thousands of businesses that have shuttered their doors and Canadians who are out of work. Now we are gripped with a second wave of this global pandemic, and all we are asking is what the plan is and where the money is going.
In early spring, we saw almost $900 million awarded to an organization that had close ties to the Prime Minister and the former finance minister. Since the opposition has been asking questions about how it happened, all we have seen is filibuster after filibuster and a refusal to answer the questions. The Liberals like to say that they released thousands of documents. Perhaps they might have released thousands of documents, but the amount of black ink that was used to scribble out the lines of information in those documents is astronomical.
Just within the last few days, we found out that early in the pandemic, a former Liberal MP was given a contract worth over $237 million, only 11 days after actually registering the company.
Canadians have questions. The 338 members of Parliament elected to this House were elected to be the voices of Canadians. It is not a right for us to be in this House. It is a privilege. For those members who are new and who have never heard me speak, I will remind my colleagues that the House does not belong to them or me. It belongs to the electors who elected the 338 members of Parliament. They charged us to ask the hard questions of the government. They charged the opposition to hold the government's feet to the fire and to work collaboratively with the government. They also charged that minority government to work collaboratively with the opposition.
I want to talk about leadership in my province of British Columbia. Throughout this pandemic, my province of British Columbia has had incredible leadership. We have been well served by Dr. Bonnie Henry. She is a former navy physician now serving as our provincial public health officer. Maybe it is because of her military background, but she had a plan and she implemented it early. She did not take risks for British Columbians.
On January 27, I stood in this House and mentioned to colleagues that my riding is the Asia-Pacific gateway to North America. Every day, tens of thousands of passengers enter our borders. I asked the Prime Minister and the Minister of Health what the plans were to increase screening and to shut our borders down, as we were seeing other countries do. I was scolded. I was chastised for fearmongering and being racist.
Under Dr. Bonnie Henry's direction, British Columbia took swift and decisive action early and without hesitation. She communicated frequently, clearly and effectively. She implemented an early and aggressive testing and tracing strategy, and enforced social distancing regulations more rapidly than any other province.
Health care workers employed at multiple long-term care facilities were ordered to limit work to a single site, largely preventing the disastrous outcomes at long-term care homes seen in Ontario and Quebec.
Dr. Henry acted early when it mattered. Her strong and decisive leadership garnered international praise, and ultimately my province was able to flatten the infection curve ahead of other parts of Canada. Now we have seen an increase over recent months. However, she remains strong and resolute.
Dr. Bonnie Henry had a plan. What we are seeing with the government is that it is just now implementing pilots that other countries and other provinces have been doing for months. They did it at the start of this global pandemic.
We have questions. Sadly, we have seen the government and its ministers say that committees are masters of their own destinies and that they act independently. However, all the Liberals got together and decided they were going to filibuster every committee putting forth motions challenging the government on COVID-19 spending and the WE scandal.
I am a father of four. The Prime Minister's actions remind me of when one of my children did not like what the other children were doing, they would complain that the others were not playing fair. They would tell us we should look at what the others were doing. They would run away, or they would just take their toys to go to another area. I think Canadians deserve better.
Conservatives are here to ask the tough questions, and we will continue to do so.