Debates of March 12th, 2020

International Trade

[Randy Hoback, Conservative, Prince Albert, SK]

Mr. Speaker, on September 11, 2018, a spokesman for the finance minister commented on the government's retaliatory measures against steel and aluminum tariffs, saying that they are, “committed to making sure that every dollar raised [on]...tariffs is given back in the form of support for affected sectors,” but the PBO estimates that the government will actually spend $105 million less than it collected.

Could the Minister of Finance answer this: Where did the money go?

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance and to the Minister of Middle Class Prosperity and Associate Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, the government will always stand for Canadian workers and Canadian interests.

In response to the unjustified U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum, we provided targeted relief to begin countermeasures for Canadian manufacturers. As we have always said, all money collected through the retaliatory tariffs will go back to support the industry.

With the unjustified tariffs removed, we are going to continue to work with the industry, and expect that additional compensation could be provided over the next two years. More than $1.3 billion to date of support has been delivered to defend and protect the interests of Canadian workers, and additional support remains available for those who need it.

[Colin Carrie, Conservative, Oshawa, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the finance minister himself stated that the revenues collected from these surtaxes would go to supporting affected industries, but a closer look at the PBO's report shows that is not the case. Out of the approximate $1.3 billion collected, only $894 million went back to the steel and aluminum industries. The rest was spent on administration and programs that could be accessed by any industry in Canada.

Why has the Liberal government not kept its word and sent every dollar back to the negatively affected aluminum and steel industries?

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance and to the Minister of Middle Class Prosperity and Associate Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, I note that the question is nearly identical to the one I just provided an answer for, so I apologize in advance if I sound like a broken record.

We have provided $1.3 billion to date in support for the steel and aluminum sectors in response to these retaliatory tariffs. In response to the unjustified tariffs, the case remains that every dollar collected will go back to support the industry. With the unjustified tariffs now being removed, we are going to continue to work with the industry, and expect that additional compensation will flow over the next two years.

We are going to ensure that we are there for the industry as the need may arise.

Employment Insurance

[Louise Chabot, Bloc, Thérèse-De Blainville, QC]

Mr. Speaker, with the coronavirus, we need to make sure that workers who feel sick stay home.

Eliminating the waiting period for EI is a step in the right direction, but the government needs to do much more, considering how long it takes to process applications.

Is the government prepared to relax the rules and pay EI from day one to everyone in quarantine who applies?

[Carla Qualtrough, Liberal, Minister of Employment]

Mr. Speaker, protecting the public health and safety of Canadians, especially workers, is paramount to this government. That is why we immediately responded to the threat of COVID-19. This includes measures implemented government-wide. We also eliminated the waiting period for EI sickness benefits. We continue to look at other measures to help Canadians who are affected, including those who are not eligible for EI sickness benefits.

Health

[Luc Thériault, Bloc, Montcalm, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we welcome the increase to the health transfer to combat the coronavirus. That said, the government is admitting that the existing 3% transfer is not enough for provinces to care for the sick. Ottawa should be contributing its share towards health care at all times, not just in times of crisis.

Will the government make this measure permanent and increase the health transfer escalator to 5.2%, as Quebec is calling for, to cover 25% of the costs?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, as the member knows, under our leadership and the leadership of the Prime Minister, health transfers have significantly increased since we took office. We will continue to work with the provinces and territories on health transfers, and make sure they keep up with the costs of health care.

I will say that it is very important to remember that our country is facing a public health emergency right now. That is why we made the announcement yesterday of an additional $500 million, immediately, to provinces and territories to make sure they have the resources they need to deal with any potential health surge.

The Economy

[Warren Steinley, Conservative, Regina—Lewvan, SK]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday we all learned Liberal logic. The Prime Minister said proudly that Canada is attracting new investments.

Members should follow me, if they can. Warren Buffett invested $200 million in a wind farm, which taken alone is a good thing. However, days earlier, Buffett pulled out $4 billion from an LNG project in Quebec. I am just a farm kid from Saskatchewan, but here is some help for the Prime Minister: 200 is generally bigger than four, but, and here is the kicker, we always need to count the zeroes that follow.

Is this Liberal logic the reason why the budget must balance itself?

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance and to the Minister of Middle Class Prosperity and Associate Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, if the member is interested in counting zeroes, I would direct him to the one million Canadians, that is one with six zeroes, who are no longer living in poverty.

The reality is that foreign direct investment is up 18% year over year. Because of the investments we have been making in the economy, more than 1.2 million Canadians are working today who did not have a job. The kinds of investments that we are putting into the economy are putting people to work, raising kids out of poverty, and I hope the Conservatives would agree that that is a good thing.

Justice

[Blaine Calkins, Conservative, Red Deer—Lacombe, AB]

Mr. Speaker, in December, Jeffrey Kraft was murdered in Lacombe. The two accused are charged with second-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder and robbery with a firearm, and are now free on bail. One of the accused is also charged with breaching conditions.

Residents in my riding have lost faith in the justice system due to the Liberals' soft on crime approach that puts the interests of offenders ahead of victims and their families.

Was this the hoped-for outcome that the minister had in mind when he and his party rammed through legislation that forces the courts to give bail at the earliest opportunity and with the fewest conditions?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Minister of Justice]

Mr. Speaker, our government introduced Bill C-75 in the last Parliament in order to prevent people from entering into the justice system, into that revolving circle of a justice system, without having any impact on reducing crime. We introduced good measures to fight crime efficiently, to fight crime fairly, to protect victims, but also to prevent the over-criminalization, particularly of certain peoples, like indigenous peoples or racialized peoples, in our criminal justice system.

Infrastructure

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Infrastructure is unable to provide a list of projects funded by the Liberals' $186-billion infrastructure plan. That is not surprising. When the Parliamentary Budget Officer asked the minister's department for the plan, he was told there was no plan.

The Toronto Sun got us looking for these billions of dollars. Infrastructure Canada lost track of 199 laptops and tablets. What is the minister's plan for finding the computers and the billions of dollars for infrastructure?

[Andy Fillmore, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities]

Mr. Speaker, I can assure this House that we take security very seriously, as well as the need to keep equipment from getting lost or damaged. Department audits are routine and helpful, and we make them public to ensure accountability.

In this case, a total of seven computers, not 200, were not properly recorded in a new inventory system. We are engaged in efforts to ensure that we have a complete inventory to include those missing seven computers.

Has the hon. member read the report or just the headline? If he read the report, which is available online right now, he would see for himself that the headline is indeed overblown.

National Capital Commission

[Karen McCrimmon, Liberal, Kanata—Carleton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, maintaining a strong working relationship with our municipal partners is an important component of this government's mandate. As the member of Parliament for Kanata—Carleton, I understand the special importance of working hand in hand with the City of Ottawa on matters that affect our region.

As the minister responsible for the NCC, the Minister of Public Services and Procurement recently met with the mayor of the City of Ottawa. Could the minister please tell us how that meeting went?

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

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Kanata—Carleton for her continued hard work. I recently met with the mayor, Jim Watson, about the needs of the city and how we can work collaboratively to build up the city and the region. The parliamentary precinct's renovations alone have rendered three billion dollars' worth of investment into the region. I look forward to working closely with the mayor and to continue working hard for the city and the region.

Transportation

[Tom Kmiec, Conservative, Calgary Shepard, AB]

Mr. Speaker, later this year, Wayne Sands in my riding, will be made unemployed by Transport Canada. Wayne is 79 and was refused the renewal of his marine medical certificate for ocean-going vessels.

Wayne is the captain of the S.S. Moyie, an amusement park ride at Heritage Park for kids and tourists to enjoy 25-minute paddleboat rides. Having the same rules for container ship captains as we do for amusement park rides is a typical “Ottawa knows best” attitude.

Will the transport minister agree with me the situation is ridiculous and immediately approve Wayne's licence?

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, my hon. colleague actually brought this to my attention about three days ago with the letter he brought to me, and I undertook to look into it. I would ask him to be patient until I get back to him with an answer.

Justice

[Rob Moore, Conservative, Fundy Royal, NB]

Mr. Speaker, a Montreal man found guilty of sexually assaulting a four-year-old in 2015 was charged recently with making and distributing child pornography during the period he was having court-ordered supervised visits with the child he abused. This man was sentenced to a mere 22 months in prison for abusing this child.

The minister has stated that he will look to eliminate mandatory minimum sentences to give even more discretion in sentencing. Does the minister really think that justice is being served in a case like this?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Minister of Justice]

Mr. Speaker, cases like these are obviously tragic, and our hearts go out to the victims. It is also true that in our criminal justice system we rely a great deal on the facts and the evidence in any particular case, as well as giving, in the common law tradition, judges the ability to assess sentences as they move forward. We have promised to continue to look at and improve the criminal justice system as we move forward.

I will say with all certainty that the previous Conservative government's tough on crime stance was actually quite stupid on crime, and we will move forward with the evidence.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

Order, please. Order.

I want to remind hon. members to use parliamentary language and be judicious when they are using terms in the House.

The hon. member for West Nova.

Official Languages

[Chris d'Entremont, Conservative, West Nova, NS]

Mr. Speaker, my question is addressed to the Minister of Innovation.

This afternoon, the Standing Committee on Official Languages will hear from Statistics Canada about important issues related to the enumeration of rights holders in Canada for the 2021 census.

Time is tight. We need to know why we have not received confirmation of the approved questions that will be on the next short form census.

When will the government confirm that these important questions will be on the 2021 short form census?

[Navdeep Bains, Liberal, Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, our government recognizes the importance of promoting and protecting linguistic minority rights, especially with respect to education.

Unlike the Harper Conservatives, we asked Statistics Canada to figure out the best way to collect high-quality information so we can enumerate rights holders.

Canadian Coast Guard

[Churence Rogers, Liberal, Bonavista—Burin—Trinity, NL]

Mr. Speaker, my riding and communities across the country depend on the Canadian Coast Guard to keep our waterways safe and flowing all year round. Although we have been lucky with the light ice season this year, it has been detrimental to coastal communities in the past. Can the minister tell us how the Coast Guard is ensuring that our waters remain safe and open during the winter months?