Debates of Nov. 24th, 2020

Agriculture and Agri-Food

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I will give the Minister of Agriculture another chance to respond to a very simple question: When will compensation go out to farmers, and particularly dairy farmers? They have written to us, and I have a Zoom meeting scheduled with them tomorrow evening in the hopes of being able to give them some good news.

I will give the minister a chance to respond. When will the next round of compensation for dairy farmers be paid? I think that is an extremely simple and clear question.

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, again, I would remind hon. members that in July last year we announced $1.75 billion over eight years to our dairy farmers as compensation for the Europe and trans-Pacific deals.

Less than a year ago we paid the first installment of compensation of $345 million to our 11,000 dairy farmers and I assure the House that we will respect our commitment.

[Jacques Gourde, Conservative, Lévis—Lotbinière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, dairy farmers have been anxiously awaiting the money the Liberal government promised them to compensate for the market share they lost after free trade agreements were signed with our trade partners.

Will the government act to establish some predictability and do so before December 31, 2020? Can the Minister of Agriculture confirm that?

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, I assure you that the supply management system and all of our dairy, poultry and egg producers are very important to the Canadian economy, to Canada's agriculture sector, to the vitality of our regions and to protecting our family farms.

That is why we are protecting the system. That is also why we have committed to compensating our farmers and processors in response to various new agreements. It has been less than a year since we paid out the first round of compensation, and I assure the House that we will keep our promise.

Health

[Mike Kelloway, Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso, NS]

Mr. Speaker, Canadians have changed their ways of life to keep each other safe. I am especially proud of my constituents in Cape Breton—Canso for all their efforts. In Nova Scotia, we have seen a surge in cases and that is cause for great concern. We need everyone to do their part to help stop the spread of COVID—19, and downloading the COVID Alert app is a great way to do that. Given the increase in cases, I am very pleased the COVID Alert app is available in my home province of Nova Scotia.

Could the Minister of Health inform Canadians of the importance of the COVID Alert app and how it will keep us safe?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his great work on the Standing Committee on Health.

The COVID Alert app is indeed an important public health tool that will help Canadians identify if they have been exposed to COVID—19. Over 5.4 million Canadians have downloaded the app to protect themselves, their friends and their families. The app protects the privacy of users, but also helps alert users if they have come into close contact with someone diagnosed with COVID—19. It is an extra layer of protection for users and a way to help our hard-working public health workers across the country. I encourage all Canadians to download the COVID Alert app today.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Raquel Dancho, Conservative, Kildonan—St. Paul, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the immigration minister recently said, “it has never been easier for families to reunite.” Meanwhile, hundreds of families have been unable to reunite since the onset of the pandemic. The Liberals promised these families would be reunited with a new 14-day processing deadline back in October, but hundreds of cases missed that deadline.

Graeme in Calgary is eager to reunite with his American fiancée Courtney. The last time they saw each other was five months ago when she gave birth to their son. Apart from a bizarre request to provide proof of their relationship, they have not heard anything in over a month. Maybe the baby would be proof enough of that relationship. I am not sure.

Why did the Liberals break their promise to separated families?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, far from breaking that promise, we are living up to it every day, and that includes in meeting the service standard with regard to reuniting families. We are prioritizing and accelerating spousal applications. We have allocated 40,000 spaces under the parent and grandparent program. This is a government that is committed to reuniting families, while at the same time protecting the health and safety of all Canadians.

Telecommunications

[Doug Shipley, Conservative, Barrie—Springwater—Oro-Medonte, ON]

Mr. Speaker, millions of Canadians do not have access to reliable high-speed Internet. Due to the lack of service, thousands of residents in Barrie—Springwater—Oro-Medonte cannot work, learn or connect with loved ones during this pandemic. Rural Canadians feel like they are intentionally being left behind. The universal broadband fund was announced in March 2019. In June, we were promised help was on the way. Finally, 150 days later, applications are open.

How can the residents in my riding be assured this will at long last result in real change for under-serviced communities?

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

Mr. Speaker, because of our government's investments, tens of thousands of households over the next month will be connected to this essential service, because of the universal broadband fund and everybody who worked so hard to develop the program. Canadians like those in my hon. colleague's community can reach out to us and can figure out which program works best for them. Is it the rapid response stream? Is it the core stream? Whatever supports they need, we are here to support them.

If my colleague wants to reach out to my team, that would be a good first step. We are here to help.

Persons with Disabilities

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Mr. Speaker, experts and leaders from the disability community have been overwhelming in their call for reasonable amendments to Bill C-7: Leave in place the 10-day waiting period, which can already be waived; ensure that people will actually be consulted on the requested date and still be free to withdraw consent and change their minds; and ensure that people do not have death pushed on them by someone else.

These are reasonable modest amendments to support autonomy while protecting the vulnerable. Why will the government not support these reasonable amendments?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Minister of Justice]

Mr. Speaker, medical assistance in dying is a complex, difficult issue, and it is deeply personal. Canadians have diverse and evolving views and we took care to consult with Canadians across Canada. There were over 300,000 participants in our online survey as well as round tables from coast to coast to coast.

What we heard about the 10-day waiting period was univocal. It caused suffering in people. It caused people not to take their pain medication in order to be capable of maintaining that final consent. Their decision was made before that 10-day period started, so we are removing it.

The Environment

[Anju Dhillon, Liberal, Dorval—Lachine—LaSalle, QC]

Mr. Speaker, energy efficiency is one of the quickest and cheapest ways of meeting our climate change commitments.

It is also an excellent way to reduce energy costs for Canadians. In the 2019 budget, our government invested an additional $950 million in the green municipal fund, or GMF.

Can the parliamentary secretary tell us how energy efficiency helps our economy, the environment and all Canadians?

[Paul Lefebvre, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Dorval—Lachine—LaSalle for her hard work.

Energy efficiency is a hidden fuel. It is good for the climate, good for the pocketbook and good for job creation. Since the GMF was created 20 years ago, it has provided funding for 1,360 projects and prevented 2.7 megatonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, the equivalent of taking 600,000 cars off the road. Other major efforts are under way to make homes, buildings and industrial processes more energy efficient.

I would like to invite members to read the green municipal fund's annual report and the report to Parliament under the Energy Efficiency Act for 2018-19, which was tabled in the House.

Veterans Affairs

[Rachel Blaney, NDP, North Island—Powell River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, Veterans Affairs Canada began calling veterans last week who were eligible for and already receiving the diminished earning capacity determination and telling them that they suddenly were not eligible. Injured veterans rely on this benefit to support their families, but VAC only gave them days to prove their continued eligibility or lose their income.

If the government has lost proof of eligibility for any program, that is its problem. Now we are going into the holidays. Can the minister commit to fixing this and not asking our veterans to prove their eligibility again?

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my hon. colleague's question and know that she cares. I will look into this situation and address it promptly to make sure that the veterans receive the benefits they should receive in a timely manner. That is what we will do.

International Trade

[Paul Manly, Green, Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC]

Mr. Speaker, both Liberal and Conservative governments have negotiated trade deals that fail to uphold Canadian values and protect Canadian interests. These deals have deepened our trade relations with anti-democratic regimes, with countries where freedom of speech is stifled and journalists are jailed. We sell arms to countries with horrendous track records on human rights.

Will the government learn from past mistakes, like the disastrous Canada-China FIPA, and prioritize environmental, democratic and human rights standards in our trade relations?

[Mary Ng, Liberal, Minister of Small Business]

Mr. Speaker, we all agree that trade needs to represent the values and interests of Canadians, and let me be clear about what those values are. We believe human rights are at the very core of our international policy. We believe the economy and the environment can go hand in hand and are mutually beneficial. We believe that everyone should benefit from trade, including women, LGBTQ2 businesses and indigenous peoples.

I can assure my hon. colleague and all Canadians that our trade policy will always be motivated by what is in the interests of Canadians.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

That is all the time we have.

We have several points of order. We will start with the member for Salaberry—Suroît.

Statements by Members

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

Mr. Speaker, during statements by members, the hon. members for Orléans and Labrador were not wearing their headsets, which meant that the interpretation in French was inadequate. As my party's whip, I would ask you to remind all hon. members of the importance of wearing their headset so that everyone can hear what parliamentarians are saying here in the House in both official languages.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

I would like to remind hon. members that when they are not in the House, they have to wear the headset with microphone issued by the House. It is very important to use it for two reasons. The first is so that people in the chamber can hear them. The second is so that the interpreters can properly understand what is being said in order to interpret for the people in the House who speak the other official language, whether English or French.

I thank the hon. member for Salaberry—Suroît for her point of order. This is something that is very important and gives us all the same opportunity to do our work.

Post-Secondary Education

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I think if you seek it, you will find unanimous support for the following motion.

I move:

That the House recognize the significant financial hardship that COVID-19 has caused to post-secondary students across Canada and, in an effort to alleviate such hardship, call on the Government to extend the moratorium on repaying student loans to cover October 1, 2020 through May 31, 2021.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

This being a hybrid sitting of the House, for the sake of clarity, I will only ask for those who are opposed to the request to express their disagreement.

Accordingly, all those opposed to the hon. member moving the motion please say nay. Hearing no opposition, it is agreed.

The House has heard the terms of the motion. All those opposed to the motion will please say nay.

There being no dissenting voice, I declare the motion carried.

(Motion agree to)

The hon. member for Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie also on a point of order.

[Alexandre Boulerice, NDP, Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, if you seek it, I think you will find unanimous consent for the following motion: That the House call on the government to recognize that French is the official language of Quebec and commit to working with the Government of Quebec to ensure that the Charter of the French Language is applied to federally regulated businesses operating in Quebec.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

This being a hybrid sitting of the House, for the sake of clarity, I will only ask for those who are opposed to the request to express their disagreement.

Accordingly, all those opposed to moving the motion please say nay.