Mr. Speaker, I will share my time with the member for Mississauga—Erin Mills.
It is an honour for me to address the House in reply to the throne speech for this second session of the 43rd Parliament.
Over the past few months, people in my community, Vaudreuil—Soulanges, and thousands of other communities across the country have had to overcome unimaginable obstacles. As stated in the throne speech, the COVID-19 pandemic has hit us all, but it has hit some of us harder than others.
Today, I would like to applaud the people of Vaudreuil—Soulanges and the rest of the country for their resilience. This unprecedented pandemic has forced us all to adapt to extraordinary circumstances.
Thanks to the hard and diligent work of our front-line workers, Canadian Armed Forces, first responders, doctors, nurses, grocery store workers, small and medium-sized businesses and, of course, all those who were at the forefront of this pandemic, we have been able to navigate through this crisis on a united front. As was stated in the Speech from the Throne, it has not been easy. It has not been easy on all of the parents who had to stay home to take care of their children as schools closed. It has not been easy on those who had to stay home to care for family members, a friend or a partner. These were not easy times, but with empathy and generosity in no short supply, as Canadians, we have been able to and will continue to face this unprecedented crisis by leaning on each other and being there for each other.
Since the beginning and through it all, the Government of Canada has been there with support, keeping Canadians safe and supporting workers and small businesses. Whether it was by extending the Canada emergency wage subsidy and the Canada emergency commercial rent assistance, providing loans to SMEs through the Canada emergency business account, transitioning from the Canada emergency response benefit to regular employment insurance or introducing the new assistance programs such as the Canada recovery benefit as part of our recovery plan, we are ready to continue to face this crisis together and in unity.
The last few months have also brought to the fore the work, dedication and generosity of community organizations in Vaudreuil—Soulanges that have worked so hard to help people in vulnerable situations. One of these is the Maison des soins palliatifs de Vaudreuil-Soulanges, a palliative care home that stayed open as long as it could so that patients could spend precious time with friends and family during their last days of life. Another is the generous team at Café de la Débrouille in Rigaud, especially Maria and Richard, who never stopped working to provide food hampers to everyone in need in our community.
I am also thinking of organizations like Hébergement La Passerelle, led by Véronique Girard, which, under the most difficult of circumstances, had to accommodate a growing number of women and children seeking safe and secure housing in Vaudreuil—Soulanges to get away from dangerous situations at home. I applaud the Centre d'action bénévole L'Actuel, Source d'Entraide, Grand Rassemblement des aînés de Vaudreuil et Soulanges, Réseaux, DEV and the Vaudreuil-Soulanges RCM. On behalf of the residents of Vaudreuil-Soulanges, I want to thank those organizations for the remarkable work they do. They have done so much to help our seniors, children, families, workers and small businesses weather these tough times.
The throne speech talked about COVID-19 and the immediate measures we took as a government. However, we must not forget about another crisis we are confronted with, climate change. A fair and carbon-neutral future is about more than just protecting our at-risk biodiversity, ensuring greater social justice or slowing climate change. It is about protecting our neighbours, friends and loved ones from the ravages of the destruction of nature. Future generations will decide whether we did the work that was needed to create a greener, healthier and more sustainable society.
Fighting climate change is at the heart of who we are as Canadians. Our government continues to take action.
Indeed, prior to the beginning of this pandemic, Canadians showed tremendous leadership in their everyday lives to tackle climate change. I think of parents in my riding of Vaudreuil—Soulanges who purchased fuel-efficient vehicles or took up public transit for the first time. I think of young people who I saw every spring taking to our shorelines to pick up all of the waste that was there, including so much plastic. I also think of neighbours who made the effort to put their food waste in the compost instead of the trash for the first time.
These actions stem from the firm belief in members of my community and all Canadians across the country that no matter how big or small, all of our actions individually matter, even small actions like putting a mask on during the pandemic or ensuring that we keep our distance and that we wash our hands. In all things, whether we are talking about the pandemic or environmental protection, we need to be able to count on each other and to do our part. That is exactly what people are doing in my community and I know that more and more Canadians are taking action all across the country.
The leadership shown by ordinary Canadians has been essential in supporting our government's implementation of the first real plan in Canada's history to combat climate change. For example, in a single term, we brought in a plan to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by more than 200 megatonnes. We have protected more than 12% of our land and marine environments, made it more affordable to buy electric vehicles and enabled green technologies to expand. Climate change needs a “Team Canada” approach and Canadians are key to our success.
However, over the course of this pandemic, the health and safety of Canadians remain our priority. This Speech from the Throne accounts for the fact that the world entered into this pandemic facing the risks and consequences of climate change. COVID-19 has taught us that we must face challenges decisively and with determination.
In that spirit, our government will bring forward a plan to exceed Canada's 2030 climate goals and will also legislate Canada's goal of net-zero emissions by 2050. The Speech from the Throne lays out key initiatives that will be a big part of our upcoming plan and will help us continue the momentum Canadians created to fight climate change. There are measures such as creating thousands of well-paying jobs in retrofitting homes, making zero-emissions vehicles more affordable while investing in more charging stations across the country, and creating a fund to attract investments in making zero-emissions products. Canadians know that climate change threatens our health, our way of life and our planet. This Speech from the Throne makes it clear that our government will continue to deliver.
Another measure I am thrilled to see in the Speech from the Throne is a new commitment by our government to work with the municipalities to increase the number of urban parks across the country. The pandemic has reminded us just how much nature means to us.
My community is rich in opportunities for nature outings, such as hiking Mont Rigaud, biking along the water in Vaudreuil-Dorion, and walking the colourful trails of Hudson and Saint-Lazare.
However, in the more urban communities it can be harder to get close to nature, and our government is working to green our urban centres.
In addition to providing more access to nature, this pledge would have benefited families like mine when I was younger. Indeed, when I was a young boy, I was not living in a household that had a lot of money. My brother and I could count on a loving mother who did all she could to provide for us. However, we knew that money was scarce. Expanding on urban parks is not just a question of increasing green spaces. It also provides all Canadians, no matter their social status or wealth, with an opportunity to benefit from connecting with nature.
The Speech from the Throne made it clear that, as Canadians worked together to fight this pandemic, to save lives, to protect and secure jobs, and to tackle generational challenges such as climate change and biodiversity loss, they will have an ally in the Government of Canada. History has shown us that we can meet any challenge by coming together and the many challenges we face today are no exception.