Debates of Oct. 6th, 2020

Foreign Affairs

[Rob Oliphant, Liberal, Don Valley West, ON]

Madam Speaker, this is about the independence and the integrity of our parliamentarians, and about the IPU, which stands for democracy and for Parliaments around the world to exercise their full rights.

We, of course, wish Senator Ataullahjan extreme good fortune in her bid to become its president. At the same time, we will stand and respect the independence of the IPU. This is completely different from the United Nations or the OECD, which are governmental organizations. I think the member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan will understand the difference between a parliamentary organization and a governmental organization.

We will ensure that everything is done to support the candidacy of any Canadian seeking any role. However, we will make sure that we also guard and protect the independence of the Inter-Parliamentary Union and our parliamentary associations.

Aerospace Industry

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

Madam Speaker, I hope that the adjournment debate will help clarify some things.

First, I would like to take this opportunity to commend my colleagues who are here in the House. The Bloc Québécois team is the biggest team in the House this evening. I am very pleased to see them here. They say it is always the best who leave first, but that is not true in this case.

Last Wednesday, during question period, I asked the government some questions about why there is no real policy in this regard. Of course, there has been some sporadic assistance, given at certain times, a little bit of money allocated on an ad hoc basis. However, the real question is, why is there no real policy?

Why is this industry not mentioned in the throne speech? It seems to me that a post-pandemic throne speech should mention the industries that are struggling. Unfortunately, the answers were completely unsatisfactory. The government said, among other things, that it was working hard for Canadians. However, we would like the government to make real commitments regarding the aerospace industry.

My humble opinion is that Canada could learn from Quebec when it comes to the aerospace industry. Quebec could serve as an inspiration, since it has had an aerospace policy for nearly 20 years. On top of that, it offers specialized workforce training, makes risk-sharing investments in major projects, offers a tax credit that is more appropriate for the sector than federal programs, and offers support to SMEs in the aerospace sector to help them integrate into their clients' supply chains. It has an integrated policy that has supported the development of the entire cluster. Since the sector is undergoing a radical transformation and is in a critical phase given the dismantling of Bombardier, Quebec is currently reviewing its policy, and consultations are under way. It is taking a proactive approach.

Still, there are certain things that a province cannot do alone. Ottawa needs to get on the same page. Sad to say, all we get now is radio silence. Any time we ask a question about it, we get no answer.

The aerospace industry is struggling, and it deserves real support. All members know that this is a massive and very important industry that includes 220 businesses in Quebec, 200 of which are SMEs. Since small businesses are the lifeblood of economic development in Quebec, we must give them all the support they need.

The context of the pandemic has come up often. A number of people have talked about planes being grounded and no orders being placed. This will probably not change for a long while. During the pandemic, 4,000 jobs were lost in the aerospace industry. In some cases, the federal support, such as the research and development tax credit or the Canada emergency wage subsidy, were not in tune with the reality. We, of course, fully supported the Canada emergency wage subsidy.

All of this shows that the aerospace industry has completely fallen off of Ottawa's radar. This major, crucial industry tends to be left out when the government is developing programs that should be adapted in a pandemic.

[Ali Ehsassi, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation]

Madam Speaker, I am pleased to respond to comments made by the hon. member for Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot regarding aerospace.

We all know and fully recognize that great Canadian industries have been disrupted.

We know that Canadian workers and businesses have all been facing economic uncertainty and challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Our government recognizes the importance of supporting the sectors that have been hardest hit by the current global pandemic, including, of course, the aerospace industry. I would like to take this opportunity to highlight our support to all sectors.

Our COVID-19 economic response plan includes broad measures to help Canadian businesses, small and large, weather this unprecedented storm. This includes the business credit availability program, the Canada emergency business account, the Canada emergency wage subsidy and, of course, the large employer emergency financing facility.

Let me be clear. Our government remains fully committed to supporting the aerospace sector and its workers in both the short term and the long term.

We have always gone to bat for Canada's aerospace workers, and we will keep doing so.

The aerospace industry in Quebec and across Canada is an extremely important industry for jobs, innovation and technology developments in Canada. In fact, as I am sure the member is fully aware, green aviation is an area where Canada is truly a global powerhouse. To be more specific, the two aircraft in the world that have environmental product designations are assembled right here in Canada.

We know that aerospace is one of the most innovative and export-driven industries in Canada. It contributed over $25 billion in gross domestic product and more than 210,000 jobs to the Canadian economy in 2018. The aerospace industry is also the number one research and development player among all Canadian manufacturing industries, with an R and D investment of $1.5 billion in 2018, representing, I might add, approximately a quarter of all manufacturing R and D undertaken in Canada. The industry is national in scope, with important aerospace clusters in each region of the country, comprised of maintenance work, suppliers or large manufacturers.

Canada, in other words, is an innovative global leader in the aerospace industry, and we know that Quebeckers, and indeed Canadians across the country, rightfully take enormous pride in this sector. Our government has provided significant funding since 2015 to support the aerospace and space industries through innovation programs, including of course the strategic innovation fund. These key investments are driving ongoing advancements in this sector as it transitions to be cleaner, more innovative and more competitive.

Our funding, in turn, has leveraged significant private sector investments to better position the aerospace industry in Canada. Throughout this process our government has engaged with industry partners and has been extremely proactive in promoting Canada's aerospace sector. We are working closely with our partners on various issues that have arisen since the onset of the pandemic. We appreciate this ongoing—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, NDP, Carol Hughes]

The hon. member for Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot.

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

Madam Speaker, unfortunately, that answer confirms what I feared. The member said the aerospace industry is important, but then he just repeated many of the statistics I included in my own remarks. I appreciate that, and I thank my colleague, but there is still the matter of turning that into a policy.

The hon. parliamentary secretary replied that the government has invested money and that there are broad programs for struggling companies. We know that, but this industry deserves a specific program.

Why not do what Ottawa did for the auto industry and come up with a proper policy? Why not start by sitting down with all the stakeholders, including workers, companies and the Government of Quebec, which is a very important stakeholder and partner, and designing a real policy?

There are also a lot of programs that should be targeted, and we need a cohesive vision around that. Basically, the government needs to treat this as a truly strategic industry because, quite honestly, Canada is one of only countries in the world that has a real aerospace industry but does not treat it as such.

[Ali Ehsassi, Liberal, Willowdale, ON]

Madam Speaker, as our government moves forward with Canada's COVID-19 economic response plan, we will continue to work with affected sectors such as aerospace to ensure that Canadian businesses and workers have the support they need. A smooth economic recovery will, of course, require an unprecedented level of collaboration between the public and private sectors.

Our government is fully committed to supporting the aerospace sector to create good, long-term jobs for its workers in Canada and help Canada's world-class aerospace industry weather this unprecedented COVID-19 storm. Our government will be there to help create a better future for Quebeckers and, indeed, for all Canadians.

Seniors

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Madam Speaker, Canada failed to protect long-term care residents from the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 840 outbreaks were reported in long-term care facilities and retirement homes across Canada, accounting for more than 80% of all COVID-19 deaths in the country. This represents the worst record of all comparable countries.

The situation was so dire that Canadian Forces had to be called in to long-term care facilities in Quebec and Ontario. Residents there were found underfed, abandoned and afraid. In some cases, they had been left to die alone in bed covered in their own urine and feces. These stories shocked our conscience and challenged our self-image as a compassionate and humane society. However, they were entirely foreseeable and avoidable.

Experts and advocates have been raising an alarm over the state of Canada's long-term care sector for many years, but successive federal governments have failed to act. Indeed, decades of research have demonstrated that insufficient staff-to-resident ratios and the reliance on precarious working conditions have led to hurried, dehumanizing care, high staff turnover and workforce instability in the Canadian long-term care sector.

British Columbia's long-term care system entered the pandemic with several advantages because the NDP provincial government had made progress on these issues prior to the outbreak despite the void of federal leadership. This included implementing measures to promote better coordination between long-term care, public health and hospitals; increased funding for long-term care; fewer shared rooms; and more comprehensive inspections.

Moreover, Premier Horgan acted early in the pandemic to limit long-term care workers to a single facility to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Before the pandemic, workers were forced to pick up shifts at multiple facilities that paid differing and insufficient wages. However, the B.C. government has spent more than $10 million a month to level up the wages and benefits of long-term care workers so that they earn a standard income no matter where they work. Premier Horgan has pledged to make this increase permanent.

As Canada sits on the crest of a second wave of COVID-19 and outbreaks in long-term care facilities are flaring up once again, residents remain at extreme risk due to continued federal inaction. In order to prevent another catastrophe, Canada's leading scientists and scholars are calling on the government to act immediately to implement binding national standards of care tied to new federal funding.

In its recent throne speech, the government did pledge to “work with the provinces and territories to set new, national standards for long-term care”. However, it failed to provide a timeline for action or a commitment to new federal funding.

Can the Liberal government confirm whether binding national standards and funding tied to meeting these standards for long-term care will be in place in time to protect vulnerable residents from the second wave of COVID-19?

[Stéphane Lauzon, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Seniors]

Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Vancouver Kingsway for his excellent question.

One of the greatest tragedies of this pandemic is the lives lost in long-term care facilities. Like all Canadians, we are alarmed by the events that have occurred. In a country like ours, we should not need to call in soldiers to look after our seniors, as my colleague mentioned in his introduction.

The pandemic has highlighted the challenges that the long-term care sector has faced for many years. It has also highlighted the essential work done by personal support workers across the country who deserve greater recognition for the contributions they make to our society. While long-term care is regulated by the provincial and territorial governments, the federal government works with the provinces and territories to ensure the safety of residents and staff.

Under the new COVID-19 resilience stream of the investing in Canada program, federal infrastructure funding can be used to modernize long-term care homes, making them more resilient to ensure the safety of seniors.

The safe restart agreement has invested $740 million in infection prevention and control measures in long-term care homes and among other vulnerable populations.

We published guidelines for long-term care facilities to prevent and control COVID-19 outbreaks. We are investing billions of dollars in the procurement of PPE for health care workers, including the staff of long-term care facilities. We have provided $3 billion to the provinces and territories to increase the wages of low-income essential workers, such as staff at long-term care facilities.

Members of the Canadian Armed Forces were deployed in more than 50 long-term care facilities in Quebec and Ontario, as my colleague mentioned.

In the Speech from the Throne, our government presented ambitious plans to work with other levels of government to improve how our society cares for seniors in long-term care.

Our government is committed to working with the provinces and territories to establish new national standards for long-term care. Our government will include in the Criminal Code penalties for those who neglect seniors under their care, putting them in harm's way. Our government will also examine other measures specifically for personal support workers.

Together with other measures, all this could help provide better protection for seniors and prevent this type of tragedy from ever happening again.

In conclusion, seniors built our country and continue to make an important contribution to our economy, our families and our communities. Seniors need to know that they can always count on our government to be sensitive to their needs and work hard to meet them.

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Madam Speaker, families are incredibly worried that their loved ones in long-term care will not get the support they need. They do not want to see more jurisdictional wrangling or finger pointing; they need concrete action now. The long-term care crisis is a national problem and the federal government must play a leadership role to resolve it immediately.

When the Liberal government previously struck targeted funding agreements in budgets to improve home and community care as well as mental health and addiction services, all in provincial competency by the way, it did not use jurisdiction as an excuse not to act. Long-term care residents deserve equal protection from COVID-19 no matter where they live in Canada. Therefore, when can Canadian seniors expect concrete action to improve their care in these vulnerable facilities?

[Stéphane Lauzon, Liberal, Argenteuil—La Petite-Nation, QC]

Madam Speaker, we will be there to support the provinces and the territories who need help managing their long-term care system.

Contrary to what my colleague across the way is saying, communications with the provinces are good. We are working together for our seniors whether by supporting them with the Canadian Armed Forces, investing in PPE, or being there for our seniors in long-term care.

We announced a new funding stream, COVID-19 resilience, which allows federal infrastructure funding to be used to improve long-term care facilities during the pandemic, in order to ensure the safety of seniors. We will always be there for seniors together with the provinces and territories.

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, NDP, Carol Hughes]

The motion to adjourn the House is now deemed to be have been adopted. Accordingly the House stands adjourned until tomorrow at 2 p.m. pursuant to Standing Order 24(1).

(The House adjourned at 8:08 p.m.)