Debates of Oct. 22nd, 2020

Health

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, Canada's global public health intelligence network was a global leader in pandemic warning before the government turned it off last year.

Even after that decision, multiple departments of the government were warning that COVID-19 had to taken more seriously, but the government got it wrong on human-to-human transmission. It also got it wrong on the border, and it got it wrong on masks.

Why is the Prime Minister denying Canadians the opportunity to learn the lessons from the first wave so that we can be better prepared to protect Canadians?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, let me again remind the members opposite of the prompt action our government took as this novel coronavirus hit the world.

On January 2, PHAC spoke directly with all provincial health authorities. On January 14, PHAC convened a meeting of all provincial health authorities. On January 27, we had increased screening at major airports. On January 27, we also convened the incident response group. On January 28, we convened the special advisory committee of chief public health officers across the country. I can and will go on.

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the trouble is that two months after those dates, the health minister of the country was still saying there was nothing to worry about. Countless contracts for PPE and other supplies have been held behind by national security designations. After the Frank Baylis affair, we can all understand why.

However, the motion before the House to allow the health committee to look at the process will make sure Canadian health care workers get the best equipment and that taxpayers get value for their money.

Will the Prime Minister let the health committee do what it is supposed to do and make sure that we put the health of Canadians ahead of contracts for Liberal MPs?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to address very directly the insinuation at the heart of that question. The suggestion that our government, in those dark days in the spring when we came together as a country to fight this novel global pandemic, was focused on anything other than protecting the health and safety of Canadians, while working closely with the provinces, territories and municipalities, is simply untrue.

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, I am inclined to believe the Deputy Prime Minister, but when they continually cover up, when they prorogue Parliament, when her colleague, Mr. Morneau, resigned, when they delay committees and when they threaten elections, pardon me if I do not believe her sincerity.

Canadians want answers. Will the Deputy Prime Minister put the health of Canadians first and vote with us for a health committee study on COVID-19?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, let me clear up a couple of things. The first is that I always put the health and safety of Canadians first. Let me say something else. I really believe that every single member of the House does the same thing. I know that we disagree on a number of policy issues, but I really believe that we are all here to serve Canadians. We understand that this is a moment of national crisis, and I really hope we can continue to put national interests first, as we did when we voted unanimously for the EI CERB changes.

Public Services and Procurement

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, there is a lot of whitewashing with this government.

Reporters are asking the Liberal government questions on the ventilator contract awarded to Frank Baylis, but they are getting no answers. Now the reporters are trying to get an explanation from Mr. Baylis, but he will not take their calls or answer the door.

Are the Liberals ashamed of supporting their millionaire friends during a pandemic?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to give a very clear and very accurate response regarding Mr. Baylis.

There is no contract between the public service, PSPC, and Baylis Medical. Public Services and Procurement Canada officials awarded that contract following a review and recommendation by a panel of experts.

Public Services and Procurement Canada has no part in the agreements reached between FTI Professional Grade and its other suppliers. That is the reality.

Post-Secondary Education

[Yves-François Blanchet, Bloc, Beloeil—Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the French-speaking community in the Americas is often subjected to harmful comments and words.

However, that pales in comparison to what visible minorities sometimes suffer on a daily basis. We must stand with them and commit to making society better. It starts with knowledge, science and critical analysis.

When a word that history and usage have characterized as racist, humiliating or degrading is used in a pedagogical context that explains and maybe even denounces the word in the interest of knowledge and analysis, is that a racist act that needs to be sanctioned?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, our government's position is clear: anti-Black racism is both heinous and illegal.

We can never remain silent in the face of injustice. When these things happen, we must come together and acknowledge the lived experiences of our fellow Canadians and take action.

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

Mr. Speaker, as institutions of higher learning, universities are an ideal venue for debate and analysis. What are the implications of a word? What does it mean to those it is directed at? What weight does it carry today and in history?

Universities are the place for such debates, and there should be the necessary freedom to impart knowledge. Academic freedom involves addressing difficult issues while paying attention to the sensibilities of individuals and not censoring oneself.

Will the Prime Minister defend academic freedom at the University of Ottawa, yes or no?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, our government and, I believe, all members of the House will obviously defend academic freedom. I am here together with many professors. I have a great deal of respect for universities and academia.

However, we must take stock of the reality. Systemic racism exists in our country and we must take action on this issue.

Indigenous Affairs

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Neskantaga First Nation has not had clean drinking water for 25 years. Imagine not having access to clean water for 25 years. Residents do not have water to wash their hands or take a bath.

This is appalling. The Prime Minister promised clean water, but he has not kept that promise.

When will Neskantaga First Nation have access to clean drinking water?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question.

Access to clean drinking water for all first nations is a priority for our government. We have worked on this issue and have made a lot of progress. I agree with the NDP member that a lot of work remains to be done, and we will work with first nations chiefs across Canada.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, what is happening right now in the Neskantaga First Nation is an example, a representation, of the abject failure of the government and the previous Conservative government to address a basic question of access to drinking water. The people of this community are being evacuated. Seniors are being evacuated. Chief Moonias describes the situation like this. He says, “Why is this not a public health emergency? Are we not important? Are we not human?”

When will the community get access to clean drinking water?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I really believe that we as Canadians understand that it is a national outrage that there are still drinking water advisories for indigenous communities in our country. This problem was not created in a day and it is not going to be resolved in a day, but what I will say is this. Our government has worked hard and has had some success. It is not enough, and I am very happy to recommit today to the effort to ensure that all communities in Canada have water that is fit to drink.

COVID-19 Emergency Response

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

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the government prevented Parliament from doing its job. We wanted to form a special committee on the allegations of Liberal corruption, but the Liberals told us we had to deal with the pandemic. That is fine. “Ask and ye shall receive”.

Today, we are introducing a motion to “un-paralyze” the Standing Committee on Health. We are asking the government to provide us with key documents relating to the pandemic. Now that we are responding to their request, we would like to know if the government will work with us and support our motion.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the House chose Canadians over petty politics. My Conservative colleagues are likely very disappointed that we are not in an election period today, but we are not.

This is an excellent opportunity for the government and all parliamentarians to continue working for Canadians. As I often say, the government has an extremely important duty to Canadians and the opposition parties. Let us work together for Canadians.

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

Mr. Speaker, it is our duty to ensure that taxpayers' money is spent well and distributed efficiently. We do not want to hear any more stories like the one we heard yesterday about Frank Baylis. We need to be more rigorous, for the sake of Canadians' health.

Our motion seeks to put an end to the filibustering at the Standing Committee on Health.

When will the government let us do our job and give us the documents?

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, we want to work with all of the opposition parties. That has been our goal from the beginning. We have succeeded in doing that several times. Let us remember all the times when we obtained unanimous consent or the support of one opposition party or another. That is what matters to a person who has lost their job, to a mother who is worried because her child cannot go to school, and to all Canadians.

Yesterday, I reached out to the opposition, and I am still reaching out. Let us work together for the well-being of Canadians.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, as a parliamentarian, I have been really heartened to see collaboration with opposition parties in coming up with a very common-sense, non-partisan motion to review the government's response to COVID-19 so we can chart a firm path forward to get people back to work while keeping people safe. The government is not so willing.

We likely have the support of opposition parties, so in the spirit of collaboration I am asking the health minister this. She said that a 15-day timeline was not reasonable for producing documents, in a scrum earlier today, so what is a reasonable timeline?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, certainly that is something I have communicated with the House leader that should be negotiated. The government is willing to work with the opposition to come up with a timeline that is reasonable and will get to the goal of understanding what we need to do, going forward.

The member opposite is right that when we work together, Canadians appreciate it and our response is stronger.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Here is the problem, Mr. Speaker. The minister has had two weeks to answer this question, because this motion was presented to the health committee nearly two weeks ago. The fact that she could not walk into her staff's office and ask what is a reasonable timeline, over a two-week period, really belies the government's overall response to COVID and her approach to her staff, which has been slow, incompetent and costly to Canadian lives.

I am going to ask her this one more time. She has had four hours since I asked her this morning and two weeks since it was originally moved. What is a reasonable timeline for the production of these documents?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, first, I have to take umbrage with defining our staff members, who have been working day and night around the clock, as slow and incompetent. I think we all can rise above that kind of language, and appreciate just how hard everyone in government and opposition is working to make sure that Canadians have a response that protects them.

The member also knows that health committees are independent, and that is something she needs to work through with the health committee and its chair.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, today, in an article by Dylan Robertson from the Winnipeg Free Press, we found out that fewer than half of federal freedom of information offices are operating at full capacity, including the health ministry. This means there are people whose actual job it is to produce information for Parliament who are sitting at home. I wonder what we could do with them. Maybe they could produce some documents for Parliament. I do not know.

What does the minister think?