Debates of Oct. 5th, 2020

Resumption of Debate on Address in Reply

[David McGuinty, Liberal, Ottawa South, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate my colleague for an outstanding exposé of our government's approach to and investments in Canadian women. I want to focus on and get her insight on the most important investments from my perspective and certainly in my district. That is investments in shelters for our most vulnerable women and their children. We have seen quite an increase in compromised situations right now. There is an overflow demand. Can the member help us understand how our government is investing in these most important front-line shelters?

[Iqra Khalid, Liberal, Mississauga—Erin Mills, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I was talking to the chief of police in Peel region. Chief Duraiappah outlined for me how much there has been an increase in domestic violence and gender-based violence within the home over this pandemic. It has really exposed vulnerabilities within our communities and within our society, and our government recognizes that.

Just on Friday, we made a massive announcement of $50 million. We have created a whole strategy to combat gender-based violence. Over this pandemic, we have invested over $50 million to ensure that shelters are able to take in that increased capacity and to remain operational.

The reality is that gender-based violence is systemic and it has to be a fulsome and wholesome approach in how we combat it and how we eliminate it from our communities and society. In the meantime, we are making those important investments to continue to support women at their most vulnerable by having support for shelters.

[Richard Bragdon, Conservative, Tobique—Mactaquac, NB]

Mr. Speaker, it is with great honour that I rise today in reply to the Speech from the Throne.

As the member of Parliament for Tobique—Mactaquac and as the shadow minister for Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, I would like to thank our leader of the Conservative Party for the opportunity. We look forward to serving the people of our region and across the country to the best of our ability to make sure that their voices of concern are heard at this time, and also that we seize the opportunities that are before us.

Over the course of the last six months, Canadians have been hit extremely hard by COVID-19. It has affected every area of our lives. Most of us have spent extended periods of time locked in our homes, cut off from family and friends, oftentimes only able to communicate virtually or by phone, which has been extremely difficult for our seniors. Many people have lost their jobs, through no fault of their own, throughout this crisis and, most tragically, some have lost loved ones and those they cared for.

It is during times like these that both the best and the worst of people are revealed. Today, I choose to focus on the best.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the first responders, those who rush in when others are rushing out, and who gladly go into areas of danger to help their fellow citizens. I would like to thank our health care workers, such as our doctors, nurses, personal care providers, pharmacists and nursing home workers. I would like thank our agricultural workers, those who grow and harvest our food, including farmers, fish harvesters and grocers. I would like to thank our truckers, those who haul and transport our goods to make sure that we have the needed supplies during this time. I would like to thank our small business owners, entrepreneurs and innovators who are still taking the risk and getting out there doing everything they can to provide meaningful employment for others. I would like to thank those who choose to continue working in their minimum wage jobs when there is increased risk; they had other options before them and yet chose to keep working, and I commend them for that. I would like to thank our teachers, especially on this World Teachers' Day, and acknowledge the great challenges they have had to face, and the big adjustments they have had to make to ensure the safety of their students, to ensure that the quality of education is maintained and that our children are prepared for the challenges that lie ahead. I would like to thank our faith-based, non-profits and other food bank organizations, etc., who provided these essential services and offered hope to some of our most disadvantaged, often overlooked segments of our society. They continue to do good work in spite of not having the resources they once had. I would like to thank all of them.

I know that Canadians feel like there is no end in sight. It seems like, every day, it is just a new update on how many new cases and where the outbreaks are. Despite how it feels, I want to assure members that COVID will not last forever and that this too shall pass. Canada, as well as all the nations of the world, will get to the other side of this together. It is important and imperative now more than ever that we as Canadians and we as a nation choose to embrace our potential rather than continually focus on the peril that is before us. I feel that, in the midst of this, there is opportunity and there is hope in spite of all the challenges we face. All too often governments and people reach after the things that challenge us and concentrate on the things that are negative.

If there was ever a time for the voices of hope to arise and voices that point to our opportunities and our potential as a people, it is now. The Liberal throne speech was not just somewhat but a whole lot disappointing in this fact. It was high in spending, had a tremendous number of platitudes and a lot of virtue signalling, but it was very low on sustainability and a vision for our future.

The Prime Minister had six weeks of a prorogued Parliament to chart a path forward and instill confidence in the Canadian people who are so desperately looking for both a COVID plan and an economic recovery plan. Instead of using those six weeks to plan for the future, it would appear that the Prime Minister chose to prorogue simply to run away from the ever-increasing and ongoing ethics scandals, and threw together a speech made up, it seems, of the greatest hits from the last 20 years of failed Liberal promises and social experimentation.

I have heard from many Canadians about their disappointment in the Liberal throne speech, from those Canadians who were forgotten or left out of the speech, from Canadians who understand the need to take care of those who are struggling in these difficult times but are equally concerned about the ever-rising deficit and national debt, and those Canadians who are concerned about their children having to pay down this debt for years and years and for generations.

Unfortunately, it would seem that sometimes despair and apprehension are all too common during this time.

A great opportunity was missed in the throne speech, and that was the opportunity to speak to our potential as a people and as a country, the opportunities for growth where we maximize the potential of our resource sectors, our agriculture sector and our manufacturing and technological sectors. I have a feeling that, if we spoke to that potential, hope would begin to arise and we would say, “Yes, we can overcome. We can become more. Canada can be positioned to come back stronger,” as the Conservative leader has talked about.

Canadians know the circumstances we are in, but they also know deep within that there is a new day coming when this will all be behind us, and they expect us, as leaders, to be offering a vision that positions Canada to not only grow through this crisis but to be positioned to take advantage of the opportunities that are going to emerge on the other side of this.

I have had the privilege of being in a riding that has a lot of farmers and agriculture producers. I have also had the privilege in my new role to talk to fish harvesters. I have learned some very valuable lessons. I remember that at the height of the crisis, at the time we were so uncertain about what we were facing, I personally drew comfort in driving through the riding and seeing tractors going back into the fields this spring to plant seed, seeing them work as they always had in spite of the uncertain times we were living in. It was reassuring to see trucks driving back and forth on the highways taking goods to Canadians.

There was something reassuring about the fact that even though they were faced with uncertainty, they chose to keep working. They chose to keep doing what they knew they could do with the things that they could control. While there were lots of things that were beyond their control, they chose to keep specializing in the areas they had control over. It reminds me of the ancient proverb that says that he who regards the wind or looks at the clouds will neither sow nor reap. In other words, if we are waiting for perfect conditions to do what we can do, we will probably never reap or get back to doing what needs to be done in this time.

Farmers and fish harvesters can teach us a very valuable lesson, which is that we should keep working and doing what we can. Even though we are not sure what the future may hold, let us position ourselves to be ready to prosper and do well again when the tide changes.

In conclusion, this too shall pass. Yes, as the old writer once said, “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning”. I want to assure the people of Tobique—Mactaquac and the people of Canada that, yes, it seems like it has been a long night with COVID-19, but morning is coming and the day will break again. Now is the time for us to position Canada to prosper and seize our potential, rather than continually focus on the perils that surround us.

I look forward with optimism to a future that is bright for Canada, when we invest in our people and not only seize on the immediate crisis at hand but look beyond that and say that Canada can grow the goods the world is hungering for, we can produce the energy the world is looking for and we can manufacture the goods that the world is depending upon. I look ahead with hope.

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada and to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, I concur with the member in the sense that there is good reason for us to have hope and to be thankful.

The member referred to farmers and the production of food, truck drivers bringing food to our grocery stores, taxi drivers taking individuals to hospitals and grocery stores to get essentials and our first responders, whether they are a health care nurse in an emergency or a police officer on the street. All of these people have contributed a great deal and to them and so many others, we say thanks. There are also so many ways that outside organizations or non-profits have contributed. To them, we also express appreciation.

I would ask my colleague across the way if he could provide further thoughts on the goodness that we have seen at a time of crisis like this.

[Richard Bragdon, Conservative, Tobique—Mactaquac, NB]

Mr. Speaker, I agree with the member. There have been some real unsung heroes in the midst of this crisis. I think of those who are in the non-profit sector and those in food banks who are helping meet the essential needs of people. Oftentimes, it goes unnoticed or not thought of, but many in the faith-based sector, the charitable sector and the non-profit sector have had to continue to do that good work on reduced budgets and resources because it has not been as plentiful for them. It speaks volumes to the character of those types of organizations and the individuals who serve in those organizations as they continue to work and to do what is right in less than ideal circumstances.

That is a big lesson we can draw from them as a people and as a country: Let us continue to work even though it is uncertain and not ideal. We are going to keep embracing the challenges with optimism and dedication.

[Julie Vignola, Bloc, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the assistance programs are designed in such a way that farmers practically have to be on the brink of bankruptcy before they can apply.

Does my colleague have any suggestions for improving these programs and ensuring that farmers both young and old can benefit from the help they sorely need, especially after watching their crops rot in the field this year?

[Richard Bragdon, Conservative, Tobique—Mactaquac, NB]

Mr. Speaker, I agree with the hon. member in that agriculture needs to become a much bigger priority for the current government. Rather than being an afterthought, it should be one of the first things that gets prioritized. Food security is so important. We do not want to just be there as a backstop or as a last resort, but to be an effective partner to help position agriculture across the country to prosper and thrive and do well, because we know world demand for food is only going to increase. Canada has a tremendous reputation for providing some of the highest-quality agriculture and food products around the world.

We need to be positioned to take advantage of that and be set in a place where we recognize that potential and work with the farmers and stakeholders to make sure agriculture is a priority and positioned to do well coming out of COVID. There is no reason we cannot do this.

[Mel Arnold, Conservative, North Okanagan—Shuswap, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is good to be back in this chamber all the way from the North Okanagan—Shuswap riding in B.C. Since Parliament prorogued, we have not had great opportunity here.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the member for Tobique—Mactaquac for mentioning farmers. I would like his thoughts on the government's response to the COVID situation and farmers not being able to get seasonal agricultural workers into the country. I know the orchards and farms in my riding of North Okanagan—Shuswap suffered great difficulty in getting their orchards pruned and crops harvested. What did the member think of the government's response to not bringing in these agricultural workers?

[Richard Bragdon, Conservative, Tobique—Mactaquac, NB]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague is absolutely right. It was a sure sign of a delayed response as it related to the seasonal workers and temporary foreign workers who were needed during this time to ensure our food security and to make sure the farmers were able to continue to do the necessary work they needed to do. All throughout this pandemic, we have seen that there has not been a prioritization of agriculture as a whole.

I believe we have a tremendous opportunity right now as Canadians to position our agriculture sector not only to prosper but to thrive by making it a priority and making sure we are putting it at the top of our list when we are entering into any trade negotiation, and also making sure it is there as we position ourselves going forward and coming out of COVID-19. The world wants Canadian food and we have awesome Canadian producers. Let us make sure they are able to take advantage of that.

[Eric Melillo, Conservative, Kenora, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am please to speak today on the Speech from the Throne and its implications for residents in the riding of Kenora and those across northern Ontario. Unfortunately, the Liberal government's speech made one thing exceedingly clear, and that is that it has no plan to guide our country through this pandemic. The speech promised lots of new spending and plenty of recommitments to promises the government had already broken in the past, but the government has no plan to get our economy moving, no plan to address the health crisis nor any plan for the north.

The Liberals' slow response to COVID-19 has cost Canadians their jobs and their lives, and the government seems committed to its same failed approach. The speech contained no pledge to increase health transfers to the provinces, no plan to increase access to testing and no timeline for approvals of rapid at-home tests. The government has also been slow in its response to the pandemic in northern indigenous communities and has failed to deliver adequate support in a timely manner.

As I already noted, there was no plan to get our economy back on track. I have heard from countless business owners in my riding that the federal support programs that the Liberals came up with were not sufficient to cover their costs or any of their losses. Now the government is pledging to reform the business account and the business credit availability program, and I will be very interested to see what it is exactly that it comes up with.

The Conservative Party has been providing insight into many of the shortcomings of the government's pandemic support since this crisis began. We know the Liberals could have and should have acted much sooner than they did. They certainly did not need to prorogue Parliament. We note that the six-week suspension had nothing to do with helping northerners or Canadians, but had everything to do with covering up Liberal scandals.

Now as the economy of our country is attempting to bounce back from what truly was a devastating blow from COVID-19, we know that nearly one million Canadians are currently out of work as a result of the government's actions. The Liberals now claim that they can create one million new jobs with even more government intervention. This is a government that also claimed it would plant two billion trees and we know it has not planted a single one, so please forgive me if I do not have a lot of faith in its promise.

What northerners and all Canadians need right now is a plan to provide small businesses and the private sector with the opportunity to grow and prosper again. If the throne speech was any indication, the Liberals will continue to spend recklessly at a time when the government should be exercising ever more caution of how public funds are used. The last thing that hard-working families and businesses need as they begin to rebuild their lives after this crisis is to be hit with a huge tax bill to pay for Liberal overspending.

Let me be very clear. These are exceptional circumstances and many Canadians find themselves unemployed, underemployed or struggling to keep their businesses alive through no fault of their own. They need support to get through that. That is why the Conservatives supported many of the programs that were rolled out. We supported the emergency response benefit and the student benefit, and we convinced the government to provide a benefit top-up to Canadians who are gradually returning to work to make sure that there is always a financial incentive to do so. This new top-up is reflected in the government's Canada recovery benefit.

However, we also lobbied for the government to reform its business support programs and allow more Canadians to get more support faster. We also know if we want our social safety net to be sustainable for future generations, then we need to spend responsibly right now. The Liberals have shown time and time again that they have no idea how to prioritize when spending taxpayers' money and would rather hand over millions of dollars to their more connected friends than invest in legitimate projects to help Canadians.

The Liberal government is also ignoring many issues that are of importance to indigenous communities and those living in the north, such as the fact that it has recently walked back its promise to end all drinking water advisories on reserve. In fact, it was not even mentioned in the throne speech. What the Liberals did do was make some recommitments on issues like infrastructure gaps and food insecurity as well as Internet access, but these are all promises that the government has made before and we have seen very little improvement after five years of Liberal governance. Residents in my riding of Kenora and the territories and across northern Canada are not under the expectation that these promises are going to be anything more than just words.

For instance, I would like to talk about Internet access for northern communities. It is something that I have been fighting for since I was elected nearly a year ago. It is an issue that was top of mind for many folks in my riding and across Canada long before I was elected, yet there has been very little action from the Liberals. Residents in Yukon, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories have been especially disadvantaged by the gap that exists. We are now in the middle of a pandemic, forcing many people to work, attend classes or perhaps even act as government services from home, without any tangible commitments from the Liberals on how they are going to support people through that. I believe the necessity for reliable broadband is abundantly clear, given the fact that I am delivering this speech to the House of Commons through virtual means right now.

That is why, this past May, the Conservative Party released a list of recommendations that would bring Internet connectivity to all of Canada, including its rural, remote and northern parts. These are practical, common-sense policies that would provide relief in both the short term and the longer term. We look at a number of different things, including ways that we can increase competition and provide better services. I believe if the government wants to make good on its broadband pledge, it can start by immediately implementing many of the policies and solutions that we have put forth, as well as by reducing red tape for providers looking to deploy many innovative solutions. Unfortunately, if the government does not act soon, many people living in rural, remote and northern Canada will be left behind.

I must also say that I was glad to see that, in the new throne speech, the Liberal government finally acknowledged the tourism industry needs some help. Members from all parties have been lobbying for support since the crisis began, and there was no sign of movement from the Liberals. I signed a joint letter with a colleague from the NDP and even a member from the Liberals, urging the government to provide tourism support. There was still no response.

In the meantime, tourism operators in the riding of Kenora and across the north have lost their summer season. They have been forced to lay off employees and many are at risk of losing their businesses altogether. Frankly, many have also wasted capital on overhead and startup costs for a summer season that never happened, in part due to the government's lack of clarity on how long the border closure would last. I do hope the government will finally step up and provide that support. However, I feel it will be too little, too late, for many.

While the Speech from the Throne mentioned food security, I am concerned about the lack of detail that was provided. If the Liberals are serious about ensuring food security and lowering the cost of delivering it in the north, they need to commit to serious investments in transportation and infrastructure. The current programs and structures put in place by the government have actually led to an increased prevalence of food insecurity across the three territories, as well as in many northern and indigenous communities in my riding.

That is why economic development must be a central focus for our country, and more specifically northern economic development. Whether it is natural resources, transportation or tourism, I believe northern Canada has the potential to drive our economic recovery and provide the revenues that will help close the gap of food insecurity. Unfortunately, we did not see any of those details in the throne speech. In fact, one of the only things that the Liberals were explicitly clear about was that they are hoping to further restrict firearms rights, which is a direct attack on the way of life in northern and indigenous communities.

Going into the new session of Parliament, I hoped the government would present a new plan to bring Canada through this crisis. It is clear to me now that the Liberals have no such plan.

Canada's north is a region with immense opportunities, but the government has been trying for many years to dismantle the northern economy and is failing to provide adequate housing and social supports. The Conservative Party will continue to hold the Liberals to account and to provide a compassionate and ethical government in waiting, and we will fight for a stronger response to this health crisis across Canada and ensure northern regions have the tools and the support they need.

We will get our economy back on track. We will provide small businesses the opportunities to thrive in this unprecedented challenge. As always, we will continue to be a voice for northern Canada.

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada and to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, I would not want the member to give the false impression that the government has in any way ignored the tourism industry. We recognize that some industries were affected more than others. This government, working with other levels of government, has been there in a very tangible way. A few weeks back I talked to the owner of a hotel who said how appreciative he was of the fact the federal government was able to provide programs that allowed him to continue running his hotel. We need to recognize the industries through programs, such as the wage subsidy program, which literally saved thousands of jobs and protected many industries.

I wonder if my colleague would want to reflect on the fine work that not only Ottawa, but the provincial governments and other stakeholders, have put into place to protect our tourism industry, which has so much potential not only today but going into the future.

[Eric Melillo, Conservative, Kenora, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I would invite the member for Winnipeg North to take a drive down the highway to my riding and visit some of the tourism owners and operators in northern Ontario who would most certainly disagree with his statement and the implication that the government was there to support tourism operators.

I asked questions in the House. I wrote letters. I had individual conversations with various ministers about the issues that have been impacting tourism operators across northern Ontario and Canada. I even signed a letter with the member for Thunder Bay—Rainy River, who is a colleague of the member for Winnipeg North, and there was still no response from the government. Across northern Ontario, we see many business owners who are struggling to get by and might not make it to the next season, so I would have to disagree with the member on that.

[Mario Simard, Bloc, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, at the beginning of his speech, my colleague talked about health transfers and the demands of the provinces. Unfortunately, the provinces have not gotten an answer from the government on that.

It is odd because we had that discussion with the hon. member from Chicoutimi—Le Fjord last week. When we asked him whether he was prepared to increase health transfers to 35% he said that number was made up. I would like to give my colleague the opportunity to come back to the Conservative Party's proposals. The provinces are calling for health transfers to be increased to 35%.

If the Conservative Party were to form the government one day, would it commit to increasing health transfers to 35%?

[Eric Melillo, Conservative, Kenora, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from the Bloc Québécois for his good question.

I would like to make clear that it is the Liberal government in this situation that has failed to address the concerns put forward by a number of the premiers. It has been abdicating its responsibility from that point of view. I know my colleague would agree with me. Unfortunately, we have seen, time and again, that this is an issue the Liberals have. They talk a good game, but they have cut health payments before. Unfortunately, we do not think they are stepping up to the plate to provide that support.

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

Mr. Speaker, in the throne speech there was a passing reference to the need to ensure our supply-managed sectors receive full and fair compensation for the trade deals the Liberals signed, which have given away our domestic market share. I am wondering if the member can speak to whether he has any dairy, egg or poultry farmers in his riding, and how important it is that the Liberal government lives up to the promises it made, not only in budget 2019 but several times this year already. Here we are in October, and farmers are still waiting for that compensation. This affects small communities right across Canada. It is important that we live up to the promises we make when we stand in this place.

[Eric Melillo, Conservative, Kenora, ON]

Mr. Speaker, when we talk about trade, as the member mentioned, what is really important to a lot of residents in my riding is the forestry sector.

Unfortunately, as we have seen, the government has failed to adequately secure trade agreements that can get our softwood lumber to market and support our forestry sector. I know that is something we all need to work on. It is a sector of our economy that can provide a great amount of revenue. It is also great for the environment and is very important for our economic recovery going forward.

[Greg Fergus, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board and to the Minister of Digital Government]

Mr. Speaker, since this is the first time I have had an opportunity to address you in person since the throne speech, I would like to welcome you to the House. I am happy to see that you are back in the chair to preside over the debate.

Before I begin, I want to inform you that I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for Scarborough Centre. We have been colleagues since 2015, and I know that she has a lot to say and that she does a wonderful job of representing her constituents in the House of Commons.

I would like to voice my support for the government with regard to the throne speech. In my opinion, the Speech from the Throne very clearly identified the issues that are important to Canadians. It is not what is happening to us that is important but rather how we react. I am proud of the minority government for taking action. Sometimes it is hard to set aside one's partisan instincts, but I am proud that, in the end, members came together to ensure that Canadians get the help and support they need during this health crisis.

The Speech from the Throne is divided into four main themes defining the government's priorities. The top priority is protecting Canadians against COVID-19. The second is knowing how the government can support Canadians during the pandemic. The third is building back better. We do not want to return to the same inequalities that existed before. Rather, we want to create a more sustainable Canada with a more cohesive and stronger society. To achieve that, we need to include women, men, indigenous peoples, people from a range of cultural communities and Black Canadians. We hope everyone can work together to create a better Canada. Finally, the last priority is knowing what kind of Canada we want to stand up for and promote. I am very proud of everything we have done.

Now I would like to focus my remarks on two elements that demonstrate the importance of the Speech from the Throne.

The first is the way the government chose to support Canadians and restore their confidence. The government is encouraging people to fight the public health crisis by staying home. If they have to leave the house, they must practise social distancing. We know it will have a devastating effect on our economy, but it is necessary. If we want a strong economy, we need people to be healthy and able to carry out their daily activities safely.

I am very proud of the government's actions. As Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board and to the Minister of Digital Government, I must say, at the risk of sounding partisan, that I am very proud of the work public servants have done to ensure that Canadians get the support they need. Let's not forget that public servants have had to cope with the pandemic too.

These public servants had to leave their office towers, especially here in the national capital region, to return home, look after their families, look after their parents, protect themselves and reduce the spread of the virus. I have to admit, we were not ready to let tens of thousands of public servants work at home. I have to say that it happened thanks to the dedication of the public servants, these men and women who chose to serve their fellow citizens by joining the public service. On March 12, they did not know that they would find themselves in such a situation. Beginning on March 13, they quickly took the bull by the horns to ensure that we could provide services to Canadians. People working for Government of Canada digital services quickly came to realize that they would have to create the infrastructure required to accommodate these tens of thousands of public servants who, from one day to the next, had to work from home. It was unbelievable. They grew our government's capacity to provide services. They moved over to the digital world, to the Internet, without compromising security. They provided services.

They created the Canada emergency response benefit from scratch very quickly, in just a few weekends, to provide financial assistance to more than eight million Canadians. In a few weeks, they created a secure online system that helped many Canadians. It was unbelievable. On behalf of all parliamentarians and all of my constituents, I commend our public servants for their work.

I do not have much time left. I now want to talk about another part of the throne speech that really speaks to me. Our government has taken measures to eliminate anti-Black racism and systemic discrimination in Canada.

I am very proud of the work the government has done and of the priorities set by the parliamentary Black caucus. This caucus is made up of members of the House of Commons, independent senators and people from all political parties. We established these measures and also called for support from our allies. Half of parliamentarians immediately signed on, and I know that almost all of the other half supported our work.

With this consensus in Parliament, I am proud to see that all of the measures and main points were included in the throne speech. These measures included the importance of having disaggregated data, economic measures to support Black business owners across Canada, and measures to help integrate Black people into the public service and private companies.

The throne speech showed great respect for our heritage and our contributions to our heritage. For all these reasons, I am proud to support the throne speech.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to acknowledge my hon. colleague.

I have the pleasure of being my party's Treasury Board critic, so I will probably have opportunities to discuss a number of issues with my colleague opposite.

I have to wonder how the Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board can accept that his government is using all sorts of devious ways to prevent Canadians from accessing the government's data and numbers and from reviewing its spending with full knowledge of the facts.

We are in the middle of a pandemic, and the government is spending enormous amounts of money. It needs to spend to keep the government running and help people work from home. There is a lot of spending, and some of it is absolutely necessary. However, we cannot be certain about all of it, since we have not been able to review it.

How can the Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Treasury Board accept such an attitude from a government that is not being transparent?

[Greg Fergus, Liberal, Hull—Aylmer, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to acknowledge my colleague from Estrie and thank him for his question, although I must reject its premise.

Against great odds, Parliament took action to ensure that it could operate even during the pandemic in order to review government spending. It was by consensus that all members of this Parliament were able to ask the ministers questions and get answers and that they were able to improve the bills authorizing this minority government's spending.

[Claude DeBellefeuille, Bloc, Salaberry—Suroît, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I listened carefully to the speech given by my colleague from Hull—Aylmer, and it is clear that he is very proud.

However, I do not think he can be proud of his government's performance when it comes to access to high-speed Internet. Many Quebeckers and Canadians still do not have access to high-speed Internet, which prevents them from working from home during the pandemic.

This morning, I was talking with a reeve from my RCM. She said that she felt abandoned by the government because an agreement has not yet been reached with Quebec and she does not have the additional funding she needs to get more people connected to high-speed Internet.

I would like my colleague to explain how he can feel proud when we know that many Quebeckers and Canadians still do not have access to high-speed Internet today.

[Greg Fergus, Liberal, Hull—Aylmer, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for the question. However, I have to set the record straight.

On several occasions the federal government has announced increased investments to ensure access to high-speed Internet in rural regions. We have signed agreements with several provinces so that we can work hand in hand to provide these services.

I know that there are discussions under way with the Government of Quebec. I hope that my hon. colleague might help us convince the Government of Quebec to meet us halfway so that we can ensure that everyone can benefit from the advantages of this new digital economy.

[Matthew Green, NDP, Hamilton Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in his remarks, the hon. member talked about the non-partisan nature of the response to COVID-19, and I would agree with him. I thank him for his leadership and work on the Black parliamentary caucus, which was historic.

The caucus' document was historic as well. In fact, it was a blueprint that provided the government with the legislative framework to move forward in truly tackling anti-Black racism. However, given the Speech from the Throne, this still feels like a dream deferred. It still feels like, from our highest courts to our national research chairs to our senior levels in the public sector, Canadians of African descent continue to be left behind.

Given how much has been missed in this throne speech, what priorities from the Black caucus' declaration would the member like to see fast-tracked and prioritized by the government to truly begin to dismantle anti-Black racism?

[Greg Fergus, Liberal, Hull—Aylmer, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for Hamilton Centre for his work alongside all members of Black caucus to develop what he calls, and justifiably so, the historic document produced back in June.

The hon. member will be very pleased to know all the big aspects of what we put in have now become government policy, priorities of this government. That is what a Speech from the Throne is. It lays out the blueprint for the government's actions over the parliamentary session, and I am pleased to say that all the big issues we raised were there. The hon. member is right in the sense that there is impatience in the community in making sure we move forward with things.

The government put a pretty good down payment on an aspect of the economic measures we announced on September 8 with the Black entrepreneurial program: $221 million, a partnership between the private and public sectors. We also saw very good action taken by Statistics Canada to get at disaggregated data, which is particularly important, because we cannot change what we cannot measure. Those two actions, of the five big things we are going for, are a good down payment.

I expect the hon. member to keep on pushing, as I expect all Canadians to do.

[Salma Zahid, Liberal, Scarborough Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, let me begin by saying that I am happy to be back in this place for the first time since March. It is so important that we are able to be here, whether virtually or in person, to represent our constituents in a way that is safe and consistent with public health guidelines. I would like to thank the House of Commons staff who have worked hard to lay the groundwork to allow Parliament to resume safely, and the co-operation of all parties that has allowed us to be back here together.

It has been a challenging time for our country and for the world since many of us were here last in March. Canadians came together to meet the challenges of the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. As businesses closed their doors and there were those who had to stay home, our government stepped up with programs to support individuals and businesses facing loss of income and loss of business. I am proud of how our public servants responded to quickly design and launch programs like the Canada emergency response benefit to get help to the people who needed it the most. I am proud of how Canadians responded, supporting their local food banks and showing their support for our first responders.

No response will ever be perfect. There are lessons that can and should be learned, and this challenge is not yet over. Parts of the country are now firmly in the second wave of cases. Here in Ottawa and in my home of Toronto, cases are on the rise. We cannot afford to be complacent in following the public health guidelines.

I am here today to respond to a Speech from the Throne that sets out the government's plan, not only for meeting the ongoing challenge of the pandemic, but also to begin looking ahead to the recovery and the kind of a country we will build back: a stronger, more resilient Canada. One thing that is clear to me is that we must apply a gender and intersectional lens to our plans for supporting Canadians and for the recovery, because COVID-19 is not impacting all Canadians equally.

Data from the City of Toronto shows that positive cases are far higher among the city's Black population and among other people of colour. The data also correlates to household income, with those earning under $30,000 reporting far higher levels of positive cases. If an individual is wealthier and has a job that allows her or him to work from home, it is easier to limit that person's exposure. Meanwhile, lower-income residents, often members of minority groups in Toronto, most often have jobs that require them to go in and take the bus to work. Often in those front-line jobs people are relying on, in restaurants, grocery stores and taxis, they do not have the privilege of just staying home.

We must also look at the impact of this pandemic on women. Women have been on the front lines of this pandemic, with fields such as nurses, lab techs, home care workers and personal support workers dominated by women. As people began to go back to work over the summer, women were not returning to the workforce at the same rate as their male colleagues. Economist Armine Yalnizyan has said that Statistics Canada labour force data for May showed we were having more of a “he-covery than a she-covery, that is, more men returning to work than women.” In July the Standing Committee on the Status of Women met to examine the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on women, and one key message was the importance of child care.

Without access to safe and affordable child care, it will not be possible for both parents to return to work, and most often it is the woman who will stay home to care for their children or their elderly parents. For single parents, there often is no choice. So, I welcome the government's commitment to a significant, long-term and sustained investment to create a Canada-wide early learning and child care system.

We cannot let access to child care be a barrier for parents choosing to re-enter the workforce. I also welcome the commitment to an action plan for women in the economy and to a feminist intersectional response to the pandemic and recovery. We must consider the needs of diverse Canadians and have diverse voices as a part of a task force of experts.

My constituents have also told me that they are concerned about the safety of seniors, particularly in long-term care homes. The government responded to requests from some provinces to send in the Canadian Armed Forces and the Red Cross to help during the worst time of the crisis.

I have a number of long-term care homes in my riding. Despite the hard work of caring staff, we lost members of our community who were residents in these homes. Any loss is tragic, but to pass without one's loved ones by one's side is grief beyond compare. There can be, and there must be, a role for the government here. The safety of our citizens must be paramount. I support the government's commitment to work with the provinces and territories to set new national standards for long-term care homes, as well as to amend the Criminal Code to penalize those who neglect seniors under their care. I will work to bring the voices of the constituents and community groups in my riding to that process, so that we can ensure that workers in those homes have the support they need to give residents the care they deserve.

This pandemic has also underscored the need to move more boldly on our commitment to developing a national pharmacare system. Many Canadians cannot afford access to the medication that they need and many Canadians, who had coverage through their employers' plans, lost it during this pandemic. A person's access to medication should not be dependent on their wallet or their job. We must move forward more quickly to make pharmacare a reality.

We must do more to combat systemic racism in Canada, including rising levels of online hate. Our communities are reeling from a string of recent incidents. Last month, an innocent man, Mohamed-Aslim Zafis, was killed in front of the IMO mosque in Toronto by an individual with apparent links to a neo-Nazi group. During Rosh Hashanah, a father and a son were verbally assaulted with anti-Semitic remarks, outside a synagogue in Thornhill. Sadly, these are not isolated incidents. We must stand together to condemn Islamophobia, anti-Semitism and all forms of hatred. Our anti-racism strategy must include an acknowledgement of the dangers of white supremacy and a plan to combat this growing threat to the safety and security of Canadians.

As I come to the end of my remarks, allow me to highlight two areas that have frequently been raised by my constituents that were not directly addressed in the Speech from the Throne, but that I feel must form part of the government's agenda for a stronger, more resilient Canada.

The first is affordable access to the Internet. The speech touched on broadband access to rural and remote communities. I recognize how important that is. My constituents in Scarborough Centre are lucky enough to have access to broadband access to the Internet, but at prices so unaffordable that in reality they have no access at home. The government has committed to lowering wireless Internet rates and has a plan to bring down the price of mobile packages by 25%. Our efforts for affordability must also include wide broadband Internet access. I recognize the infrastructure and capital costs faced by the major service providers, but it is not fair that Canadians pay among the highest prices in the world. Unaffordable access is no access at all. We must do more to bring prices down.

The second is the call for basic income. We have seen during this pandemic the importance of Canadians having access to a base level of support. CERB made a major difference by helping Canadians through the first wave when the economy ground to a halt and many were asked to stay home. The need for support will not go away with COVID-19.

In a country like Canada, people should have the ability to keep a roof over their heads and meet their basic needs. I do not believe a basic income is a silver bullet. No one program can address all of society's challenges and it is not something the federal government can do alone. Our social safety net includes different programs at all levels of government. It would not do of benefits introduced at the federal level were to be clawed back by the provinces. We must take a holisitic approach, working with our partners at all levels.

It is time to reimagine our social safety net for the 21st century. It is time for a national conversation about basic income, and I want our government to lead that support.

I will be supporting the Speech from the Throne and I will be the voice for my constituents pushing the government to move forward with its goal for a stronger and more resilient Canada. Let us build that Canada together.

[Marilyn Gladu, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the member opposite has pointed out quite rightly that women have been disproportionately impacted by this pandemic, but why is that when all the legislation for all the programs rolling out was supposed to have a gender-based analysis done?

I was the chair of the status of women committee when it wrote a report recommending economic action. That was not delivered for three years. Now it is in the throne speech. There was a report on violence against women and again there has been no action, and here we are talking about it again. There was talk about other things that concerned women at the pay equity committee, which I was on, and there was zero action taken.

Why should Canadian women believe anything the government says about what it will do for women?