Debates of Oct. 9th, 2020

Canada Post

[Anita Anand, Liberal, Minister of Public Services and Procurement]

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question.

It is very important to think about these things before Christmas and before the end of the month.

First of all, I would like to thank the employees of Canada Post for their extremely hard work during the pandemic. They have risen to the challenge, and they are essential workers.

I want to assure the member opposite and all members of the House that we are in touch with this independent Crown corporation to ensure that it will do its very best for Canadians, as it has done throughout this pandemic.

[Michel Boudrias, Bloc, Terrebonne, QC]

Madam Speaker, mail delivery is an essential service. During the first wave of the pandemic, when Canada Post was plagued by major delays, the Government of Quebec had the great idea to consider creating Quebec Post. The more time goes by, the more timely and necessary the idea seems.

The federal government's careless attitude toward postal services as a whole and postal management is forcing all of our businesses to turn to Amazon and other private courier services. Our businesses and retailers are paying the price for the mistakes of the Liberal government, which is shirking its responsibilities.

When will we force them to—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

The hon. Minister of Public Services and Procurement.

[Anita Anand, Liberal, Minister of Public Services and Procurement]

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question about Canada Post, once again.

It is vital to understand that Canada Post has been dealing with consistently high volumes of mail during this pandemic.

As I said earlier, the employees of Canada Post are working extremely hard to continue delivering mail to Canadians and Quebeckers throughout this crisis.

We appreciate their dedication.

International Trade

[Tracy Gray, Conservative, Kelowna—Lake Country, BC]

Madam Speaker, the ink is barely dry on CUSMA and now another Canadian industry may be facing tariffs, blueberries.

The U.S. is investigating if Canadian blueberry exports are negatively affecting its industry. Ninety-five per cent of fresh blueberry exports from British Columbia go to the United States. These potential tariffs will be devastating for blueberry farmers in places like the Fraser Valley and Nova Scotia.

When will the minister resolve this issue and give certainty to our blueberry farmers?

[Rachel Bendayan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Small Business]

Madam Speaker, we will always stand up for our farmers and our hard-working exporters across the country. Obviously Canada is extremely concerned about the decision of the United States to investigate the export of blueberries. We expect the United States to fully respect all the terms of the new NAFTA.

Canada will defend its exporters, including the farmers and producers of blueberries, right across the country.

[Kerry-Lynne Findlay, Conservative, South Surrey—White Rock, BC]

Madam Speaker, blueberries are Canada's largest fruit export both in terms of value and volume.

Hard-working blueberry producers in my riding, like Surrey Farms and Pacific Organic Blueberry, have seen crops decrease by 25% year over year. COVID-19 and CERB have already made it tough to find workers and now our farmers learn that U.S. tariffs may be on the horizon. Tariffs would be crippling. They need protection.

What exactly is the Liberal government going to do?

[Rachel Bendayan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Small Business]

Madam Speaker, let me be very clear. The reality is that our exports of blueberries do not infringe on any of our agreements and we will continue to defend our exporters of blueberries. We will continue to defend the entire agri-food industry from coast to coast to coast. We will stand up for our exporters.

[Ziad Aboultaif, Conservative, Edmonton Manning, AB]

Madam Speaker, I have been visiting important members of the agriculture industry in my riding and countless Canadian farms have been the victim of coercive diplomacy by China.

When can our farmers expect a return to normal and when will the diplomatic games end, so that our farmers can focus on feeding our families?

[Rachel Bendayan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Small Business]

Madam Speaker, when it comes to our trade policy with China, let me be very clear. As we have said before, the conditions for Canada to pursue a free trade agreement with China are not present at this time. Our priority does remain the immediate release of the two arbitrarily detained Canadians. We will continue to stand up for our two arbitrarily detained Canadians and push for their immediate release.

Health

[Yvan Baker, Liberal, Etobicoke Centre, ON]

Madam Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Health.

In Etobicoke Centre, we are mourning the loss of 43 residents of the Eatonville Care Centre due to COVID-19. In May, the Canadian Armed Forces disclosed horrific and beyond reprehensible conditions at a number of long-term care homes, including at Eatonville. That is why since May a number of MP colleagues and I have been advocating for the federal government to work with the provinces to establish national standards for long-term care. I was so pleased to see in the throne speech that the government had committed to do just that.

Could the minister share with us what the next steps are to establish national standards for long-term care in Canada?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his passion and commitment to ensuring that every senior has the right to live in dignity and safety no matter what province they live in.

We are deeply concerned about the outbreaks of COVID-19 that are growing in long-term care again despite the $740 million that we have provided to provinces and territories to strengthen protections for seniors in these facilities. I will be working with the Minister of Seniors on a path forward to ensure that long-term care homes have national standards and that they adhere to those national standards, so we can protect seniors from coast to coast to coast.

The Environment

[Steven Blaney, Conservative, Bellechasse—Les Etchemins—Lévis, QC]

Madam Speaker, the second wave is upon us, our restaurants are closed, and now we have the Liberals playing Don Quixote.

Alliance Polymères Québec says the Liberals are sweeping the problem under the rug by not focusing on managing end-of-life plastics, which can potentially be recycled using new technologies.

What is going on in the Liberals' minds? Did they get permission from Public Health to launch such a half-baked initiative, even though it is perfectly possible to recycle plastic?

[Terry Duguid, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages (Western Economic Diversification Canada) and to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change (Canada Water Agency)]

Madam Speaker, once again, we have been there for our small business community throughout this pandemic and we will continue to be.

We have a comprehensive plan to address plastic pollution and a proposed ban for six single-use items that will be phased in. Therefore, restaurants like the member mentioned will have time to adjust. Virtually all jurisdictions that introduce bans provide early notice to allow alternatives to be introduced. We have seen this in many of the provinces, and we will follow that path forward.

Public Services and Procurement

[Cheryl Gallant, Conservative, Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON]

Madam Speaker, Canada has a time-limited opportunity to preserve jobs and expertise in the aerospace industry.

Canadian manufacturers like Arnprior Aerospace are relying on being part of the fighter aircraft acquisition procurement supply chain to bounce back from the pandemic shutdown of the economy.

Could the Minister of National Defence assure Canadians that buy Canadian is non-negotiable as are Canadian jobs?

[Anita Vandenbeld, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence]

Madam Speaker, we are committed to making sure that the men and women in the Canadian Armed Forces have the tools and all the supports they need to protect Canadians.

We also are very pleased that we are in the process of acquiring 88 fighter jets to replace our CF-18 fleet through an open and transparent competition, something the Conservatives could not do in 10 years.

Last summer we reached an important milestone. We received proposals from three suppliers, which we are now evaluating. This competition will ensure we get the right aircraft at the right price, while creating job opportunities for Canada's middle class.

Telecommunications

[Jamie Schmale, Conservative, Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock, ON]

Madam Speaker, in budget 2019, the Liberals promised Canadians that by 2021, 90% would have reliable Internet access. However, the CRTC recently reported that less than 41% of rural communities can connect. Failure to plan was cited in a report by the Auditor General as the reason why the Prime Minister had botched delivering rural Internet access.

The people of Buckhorn and Apsley are being left behind by five years of empty promises and planning fiascos. Does the Prime Minister honestly think Canadians believe him anymore?

[Maryam Monsef, Liberal, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Rural Economic Development]

Madam Speaker, I would like to correct the record. Budget 2019 and the year 2019 were important for Canadians. We brought forward the first strategy to connect all Canadians to high-speed Internet, something that our hon. colleagues on the Conservative side of the House failed to do appropriately when they had 10 years to do it.

We have connected four times more households and invested to connect more than fourfold Canadian households and businesses to high-speed Internet in less than half the time. We are not done yet, and I hope our colleagues across the aisle will support our efforts to connect Canadians.

Health

[Michael McLeod, Liberal, Northwest Territories, NT]

Madam Speaker, in cities across the country we are seeing the number of COVID-19 cases rise. We know that first nations, Inuit and Métis face unique challenges combatting the spread of COVID-19.

Could the parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Indigenous Services update the House on how the government is supporting indigenous people living off reserve and in urban centres?

[Pam Damoff, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indigenous Services]

Madam Speaker, we understand that indigenous people living off reserve and in urban centres do indeed face unique challenges. That is why our government has provided $90 million through the indigenous community support fund to local indigenous organizations like the Arctic Indigenous Wellness Foundation that provides traditional health and wellness services to vulnerable Dene, Inuit and Métis in the Northwest Territories. We will continue to work with urban and off-reserve organizations to ensure that no one is left behind.

I thank the hon. member for his leadership and advocacy.

International Development

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Madam Speaker, this week it was revealed that the Liberals only spent a tiny fraction of the funding they promised in 2018 for international development. The Liberals made a big showy announcement, like they always do, and they did not follow through, like they always do.

Communities around the world were counting on Canada and the Liberals let them down again. At least when the Conservatives undermined our global responsibilities and hurt our international reputation, they were honest about it.

When will the Prime Minister get the full funding promised to those who need it and finally take Canada's role in the world seriously?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of International Development]

Madam Speaker, these programs represent a significant departure from traditional grants and contributions funding, particularly in terms of their expectation of repayment to the Government of Canada, but are particularly relevant given anticipated global post-COVID-19 recovery needs and their potential to leverage additional public and private financing.

I can reassure the member, though, that we continue to adjust our strategies for those innovative finance programs based on evolving global context as well as lessons learned and working on a number of potential initiatives.

Housing

[Marwan Tabbara, Liberal, Kitchener South—Hespeler, ON]

Madam Speaker, the cost of housing in my riding has steadily increased over the last decade, pushing many families out of the housing market and into precarious living situations. Currently, the consequences of this pandemic have exacerbated this problem by increasing building costs and housing prices. Home builders say increased material prices will increase a typical single-family home by $10,000.

Could the minister please update the House and Canadians about the government's plan to make home buying more affordable for Canadians?

[Adam Vaughan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Families]

Madam Speaker, the national housing strategy addresses the full spectrum of housing needs of Canadians across the country. Our first-time home equity purchase program, which supports first-time buyers getting into the market, is part of the way in which we are supporting the industry and making sure Canadians have access to affordable housing, whether it is through ownership or on the rental side. The rental housing initiative, part of the $56-billion national housing strategy, also assists Canadians in finding a home.

We have also launched the Canada housing benefit, which in Ontario is the Canada-Ontario housing benefit, to support housing needs through rent supplements, and that can also go toward low-income home ownership. There are many steps we are taking. I would invite the member to meet with me to talk—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker (Mrs. Alexandra Mendès), Liberal, Alexandra Mendes]

Order. This is the end of question period.