Debates of Oct. 6th, 2020

Health

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

Mr. Speaker, that is a great question.

I would like to say to Caroline that I agree with her wholeheartedly. One of the great strengths and prides of Canada is that we have universal access to our health care system. Everyone is treated the same.

When it comes to testing, let me say how delighted I am that today Canada has approved its first antigen test, the Abbott Panbio. We have an advance purchase agreement for 20.5 million of these tests. That is in addition to the ID Now tests, which were announced last week.

[Tony Baldinelli, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

Mr. Speaker, many workers in the tourism industry, people who are servers, flight attendants, hotel cleaning staff and more, are worried about their jobs. When I talk to leaders in these industries, they say a widely made available rapid test could significantly reduce the mandatory quarantine period for travellers and help these workers keep their jobs while keeping our communities safe.

Countries around the world are already ahead of us in doing this. Why has the Prime Minister not done the same?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, I agree with the member opposite that the more tools, including testing options, that we have as a country, the more options we have for employers and Canadians all across this country. That is why today's announcement about the Abbott Panbio COVID-19 antigen test is good news for employers exactly like the one the member opposite is talking about.

We look forward to ensuring that we continue to provide a variety of testing options to Canadians as they become available.

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

Mr. Speaker, only this minister would pat herself on the back for a failure to deliver tests, on the same day that Ontario has to send its samples to California for processing. It is disgusting, actually.

This year, many people will not be able to travel or will not be able to see their ailing family members because they cannot afford to take the quarantine. That is the reality for many people across this country, and rapid testing could be the solution.

Why has the Prime Minister not provided this tool as a way to augment quarantine requirements?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, in the House we all have to rise above personal attacks and focus on what matters most, which is being there for Canadians during their incredible time of need. That is why on this side of the House we remain focused on ensuring that the provinces, territories and, indeed, Canadians have the tools they need to fight this pandemic.

As the member opposite knows, we have been approving rapid tests. In fact, for a very long time we have had the GeneXpert test. We have seventy of those deployed in rural and remote communities across the country, including indigenous communities.

We are going to continue to work hard on this side of the House and stay focused on what Canadians need.

Aviation Industry

[Stephanie Kusie, Conservative, Calgary Midnapore, AB]

Mr. Speaker, on May 29, the Minister of Transport confirmed he is aware that it is his responsibility to help Canada's airlines survive the pandemic. “It is so essential for this country,” he said, “and we expect and need an airline industry in this country.” That was over five months ago, yet the minister and the government continue to ignore this essential industry, with rapid testing still not widely available.

I have a very simple question. Has the minister brought a plan for the airline industry to the Prime Minister, and, if so, will we hear about it soon in Parliament and will Canadians hear about it?

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for bringing up a very important point. I would also like to remind her that in the throne speech we fully acknowledged the fact that we need to address some challenges that exist within the air sector. That is exactly what we are doing at the moment.

Health

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

Mr. Speaker, the reality is that the tests they are talking about today will not be in the hands of Canadians until the end of the year. The Liberals had months to do this, and they failed.

Right now there are people travelling abroad and entering Canada who have exemptions. Would it not be better if everybody had access to rapid testing? When will the Prime Minister provide Canadians with the ability to rapid test and see their loved ones again, especially for people who cannot afford to take 14 days of quarantine and need to see loved ones?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, I think the member opposite is forgetting the announcement we made just a few days ago about another rapid-test approach. That is in addition to the other two rapid tests we have approved over the last several months.

Testing is one component of maintaining and containing COVID-19 in our communities. In fact, we have been working with the provinces and territories on a suite of tools they need, including support for additional contact tracing and isolation housing and supports for Canadians who are travelling within the country.

Air Transportation

[Stephanie Kusie, Conservative, Calgary Midnapore, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister made another one of his vague promises in his throne speech.

He said that the government would support the industries that have been the hardest hit in the tourism sector.

However, Canada's airline industry maintains that the Prime Minister's inaction regarding access to rapid tests is putting the industry on a trajectory of irreparable losses.

Did the Minister of Transport present a plan? Did the Prime Minister ignore it?

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague is pushing on an open door.

We clearly indicated that we are working on a plan for the airline industry, which was hard hit. In fact, we mentioned it in the throne speech. We are working on this important issue so that Canadians can continue to travel using our country's airlines.

Health

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

Mr. Speaker, 14 days away from work in one place that might not be safe, away from family, away from children with shared custody and away from people who depend on someone for care does not work for most Canadians. This is a sacrifice Canadians are making right now because the Prime Minister has failed to deliver rapid tests. They are not coming anytime soon, and this is making travel a sacrifice that most Canadians cannot afford.

Christmas is coming. Why does the Prime Minister not have a plan to let people see their loved ones by using rapid testing to keep our communities safe?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, the 14-day quarantine is an important tool to reduce transmissions in Canada, which I am sure the member opposite agrees is an important part of maintaining and containing COVID-19 in all of our communities. We work closely with the provinces and territories as we look at other countries and jurisdictions that have tried a variety of approaches to reduce the 14-day quarantine.

We will make sure that whatever we do to protect Canadians includes ensuring that they are safe from importations of COVID-19, and we will stop at nothing to ensure that we have turned over every stone.

COVID-19 Emergency Response

[Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay, Bloc, Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in March, the Bloc Québécois demanded support for businesses' fixed costs. On April 11, the Bloc got the government to vote in favour of a motion to help with fixed costs. Six months on, we are still waiting.

Another lockdown began on October 1. More than 12,000 SMEs are in jeopardy. The very next day, Quebec announced assistance for fixed costs. Meanwhile, radio silence on Ottawa's end.

Six months have gone by. When will the Liberals take action?

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

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

The Bloc member is well aware that we promised to help SMEs with fixed costs in the throne speech. That is absolutely necessary, and it is even more necessary now because of the second wave.

Our government agrees. This is an essential program. We are working with businesses and the provinces and territories to set up a program.

[Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay, Bloc, Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this has been essential for six months now.

Roughly 12,000 SMEs currently in red zones have been forced to shut down to combat COVID-19. Meanwhile, fixed costs continue to pile up, including rent, first and foremost.

The commercial rent assistance program is a disaster. Landlords refuse to apply, and tenants do not qualify because the criteria are so restrictive. Right now, the program is useless. When will the government finally adjust it?

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

Mr. Speaker, once again, I agree with the Bloc member that the program does need to be adjusted to help SMEs. We are currently discussing the matter with the provinces, including Quebec.

I spoke with the Quebec finance minister about this very topic yesterday and I can assure the member that Canada will always be there for Quebec and for Quebeckers. For instance, nearly one in four Quebeckers have received the CERB.

Infrastructure

[Michael Kram, Conservative, Regina—Wascana, SK]

Mr. Speaker, last week, the Alaska–Alberta Railway Development Corporation received the necessary American permit to move its project forward. This $17-billion private-sector initiative is a true nation-building project that will connect the Yukon and the Northwest Territories with the rest of Canada, all while creating 28,000 jobs.

Could the government confirm that it supports this initiative to open up Canada's north?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, we are firmly committed to ensuring that sustainable projects get built in this country and that they are assessed in a timely, fair and rigorous way.

With respect to this specific project, we have not yet received an initial project description, but as with all projects, if and when we receive it, we will assess it.

[Stephanie Kusie, Conservative, Calgary Midnapore, AB]

Mr. Speaker, we know the Prime Minister loves to kill projects in western Canada. The Alaska to Alberta railway project is a $17-billion private-sector initiative that will connect western Canadian resources to international markets. However, the Prime Minister has already hinted that he will use his old friend, Bill C-69, to kill this project.

For the sake of the west, for the sake of the Yukon and the Northwest Territories, for the sake of all Canadians, will the Prime Minister put aside his own selfish ideology and say yes to this project?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, I do not know how many other ways I can say it. We have not yet received an initial project description on this project. As soon as we do, we will certainly assess it in accordance with the processes that are in place.

Natural Resources

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

Mr. Speaker, Suncor announced 2,000 more layoffs in the energy industry. This industry supplies the world with ethical energy and creates the wealth underpinning our social programs. The workers have had enough: enough of the rhetoric that has sent jobs and investors fleeing to other countries, enough of job-killing laws like Bill C-69 and Bill C-48, and enough of the project cancellations.

When will the government admit that it is responsible for destroying thousands of jobs, dividing the country and enriching foreign energy suppliers?

[Seamus O'Regan, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, let me start by saying that we are all thinking about the workers at Suncor who are facing uncertainty and worrying about their jobs and their futures.

Across the globe, oil and gas producers are coping with two crises: a global pandemic and the aftershocks of a global price war. Companies in Canada, the U.S. and around the world are reacting. They are shifting operations. However, it is workers who are bearing the brunt of it.

In the face of these shifts in the oil sector, our government is working with workers and their communities. We will support them. We will continue to support them. Workers are at the heart of everything that we do.

[Greg McLean, Conservative, Calgary Centre, AB]

Mr. Speaker, 2,000 jobs lost at Suncor is devastating, and equally devastating is the non-answers we continue to get on these matters. This is five years of indifference from the government toward an oil and gas sector that has been the heart and soul of this country for decades.

We need the government. Our industry deserves to have the government actually commit to this. What we need is a regulatory system that works for Canadians. We need a taxation system that works for the industry. We need a commitment to deliver our products to market.

Where is the support that had been promised, not within hours or days or weeks, but over six months ago?

[Seamus O'Regan, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, as Suncor said, the sad news of layoffs are a direct result of “the unprecedented drop in oil prices, the continued impact of the global pandemic and economic slowdown, as well as continued market volatility”. This is painful news for workers here in Canada and around the world, but there has hardly been rhetoric. We have taken unprecedented action to support oil and gas workers through the emergency wage subsidy, through our $1.7-billion orphan and inactive wells program and through our supports to upgrade facilities offshore.

We will keep it up. We will keep supporting our oil and gas workers.