Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Cloverdale—Langley City.
As the member of Parliament for Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, I thank my hon. colleagues in Canada's government-in-waiting for today's supply day motion. I also thank the people of Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke for their support as we work together for a better future.
There is no doubt in the minds of Canadians that the Liberal government has failed to be open and transparent regarding Canada's response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Canadians have been denied timely and factual information to give small business owners an element of certainty. Today's motion requires the government to share the timing of the plan to get the COVID-19 vaccines to Canadians.
It is unacceptable that Canadians still do not have critical information to know when lockdowns might end, such as when every Canadian will have access to a vaccine, how many people will receive vaccines each month, how vaccines will be safely delivered, stored and distributed, where Canadians will be able to get vaccinated, how the government plans to distribute vaccines to members of the Canadian Armed Forces and veterans, who fall under federal jurisdiction, when other vaccines will be available in Canada, and, at what point the government expects we will achieve herd immunity.
From the very outset of this pandemic, the Prime Minister has been disrespectful of Canadians, starting with parliamentarians. What has been particularly predictable has been the tactic by this Prime Minister and his disciples to try to pass off blame for his government's failings. His attempts to smear former Prime Minister Stephen Harper over the current government's lack of action are pathetic and dishonest.
Canadians should not be surprised to learn that the reason Canada does not have any capacity to manufacture its own vaccine is a direct consequence of the policy of the Prime Minister's father, Pierre, when he eliminated patent protection for drug manufacturers. This policy produced short-term gain for the long-term pain Canadians find themselves in today. The short-term gain was the drop in drug prices when the patent protection was reduced. The pain was felt more slowly. When the Liberal Party changed the patent protection on new drugs in 1969, it led to a brain drain. There was an exodus of major drug companies that used to do their research in Canada.
The University of Toronto was world renowned as the place Banting and Best did their Nobel Prize-calibre research leading to the discovery of insulin. Montreal had a vibrant research community. This proud legacy has been lost. What Canada received in its place were knock-offs: cheap generic drugs that rely on the work of others.
It was not until the election of a Conservative government in 1984 that a real attempt was made to reverse the damage. During legislative committee hearings, the deans of the leading medical schools pleaded with Conservative parliamentarians to fix Pierre's mistake. If a gifted Canadian medical researcher wanted to continue in his or her field, they were forced to leave Canada. This fact was noticed in our medical schools.
For every successful discovery of a miracle drug, there are a hundred failures. The money for failures comes from the successes. The pharmaceutical companies could not afford to have their research stolen by generic companies. It made sense to do their drug research where they manufactured the drugs. The Patented Medicine Prices Review Board that was formed could not bring back the companies that had fled Canada. Whenever government interferes in the marketplace, a price must be paid. The price today is Canada has no domestic capability to manufacture its own vaccine. This leaves Canadians and its enterprises where we are today.
The economic statement, the great reset budget, or however else the Prime Minister refers to the plan that was peddled to Canadians, follows the same muddy-headed thinking of reducing drug patent protection for short-term gain. It does not measure the future consequences that the ill-thought-out actions will have on tomorrow. The Liberal government promises to borrow, borrow, borrow and spend, spend, spend on items that have nothing to do with getting a safe vaccine so Canadians can get their lives back. This country will remain in lockdown for months, if not years, after the rest of the world will be in recovery.
Is it not strange how the things that were unaffordable before the COVID pandemic suddenly are now affordable?
The Liberal response to the pandemic has left this country poorer. The Prime Minister’s uncontrolled deficit spending had savaged this country’s finances before COVID hit. While the green finance minister would like Canadians to dismiss the $400 billion added to the national debt, the fact remains years of previously unimaginable deficits lie ahead. No wonder a career public servant, the deputy finance minister, promptly resigned the day after the budget statement.
Our supply day motion is a request from Canadians who are struggling: Please, no more tax increases. If we really are all in this together, as his apologists in the bought media are paid to say we are, how about treating us with a little respect? Tell us what the plan is so that we can plan and so that our small businesses can plan. That is all Canadians are asking for.
The Prime Minister's now revealed hidden agenda, a great reset, is based on the false assumption that magically massive public spending and deficits can generate economic growth. That is an act of deception. That plan has never worked. Ask the people of Greece or Cyprus if that plan worked for them.
The next act of deception is what this reset budget means to older people, the ones who built this country. It used to be a common perception that the 18- to 35-year-old age group would be stuck with the bill for today’s spending, including the pre-COVID deficits. That is no longer the case. The older generation is just as condemned as its children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren to paying for the government’s mistakes as long as the Liberals remain in power.
Canadians owe it to themselves to become informed about what the great reset is all about. I am grateful to quote from a piece written in The Post Millennial by Dr. Leslyn Lewis, who has big shoes to fill as the member of Parliament for Haldimand—Norfolk after the next election. She wrote:
The devastation brought on by COVID requires our united efforts in protecting Canadians. It is not a time to capitalize on our vulnerabilities by utilizing our tax dollars to usher in one man’s vision of a “greener,” more “sustainable” and “inclusive” economy. All of these words sound benevolent on their own, but what are the actual policy changes that this Liberal government believes are necessary and plan to implement? Without presenting budgets or plans to the House of Commons, this remains a mystery, to put it kindly. We need all hands on deck to survive this pandemic, and there should be no hidden agenda.
The Great Reset is using the pandemic to create a post-COVID era that redefine industries, work, and even how we are taxed (creating new streams for future taxation (for example: working from home tax, home equity tax, carbon footprint tax.)....
Canadians owe it to ourselves to get educated about the Reset and assess whether our government’s post-COVID policies reflect the “Reset” policies. One should not succumb to being bullied or shamed into not asking questions about why our government has touted several post-COVID policies on the environment, economy and social inequality within the book. Similarly, we should not accept our prime minister feigning ignorance over the Reset after he has adopted reset policies and bragged about this approach at the United Nations. As citizens, we must decide on the kind of post-COVID country that we envision, and not allow the pandemic to be used as an opportunity for any leaders to remake Canada in his own image. In the end, we must remember that governments can only implement this kind of economic, societal, and 4th green industrial revolution with the consent and the mandate of the electorate.
A government that is controlled by the people is a free society. Labelling concerned citizens “conspiracy theorists” and claiming that...the prime minister [did not say what he did] at the United Nations...is sheer bullying. This form of disenfranchisement and silencing of people is intended to instill fear so that we won’t hold our elected officials accountable. Our key to freedom and upholding democracy is knowledge, action, and civic involvement.
I am honoured to put that quote on the parliamentary record.
Today's opposition motion is a reasonable request for Canadians. It is time for the government to act like we are really all in this together.