Debates of Aug. 12th, 2020

COVID-19 Pandemic and Other Matters

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

Mr. Chair, in another one of his rash moves, President Trump has decided to impose tariffs on aluminum, putting 30,000 good jobs in Quebec in jeopardy. The government will impose retaliatory tariffs, but that is not a long-term solution.

Will the Liberals listen to the United Steelworkers and ensure that the revenues from these retaliatory measures go to support jobs in this industry?

Will they work on a climate adjustment system so that Quebec's aluminum, the most environmentally friendly aluminum there is, can finally have a competitive edge?

[Bill Blair, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Chair, as I have already indicated, our government is prepared to stand up to these unacceptable tariffs and take strong action in our disagreement with the United States on this matter. We are also prepared, as we have always been, to directly support the aluminum industry and aluminum workers as they go through the impact of these unacceptable tariffs. We will always stand up for those workers, and we will not back down from this type of economic intimidation.

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

Mr. Chair, that is interesting, but the aluminum produced in Quebec is the greenest and cleanest. It should have an advantage when it is imported.

Regarding another sector, yesterday, in a devastating surprise announcement, the Minister of Canadian Heritage told thousands of artists and artisans that there would be no recovery plan for the cultural sector until 2021. What are all these creators supposed to do in the meantime? Will they have to light a candle and hope they qualify for employment insurance?

Is that the Liberal government's only answer for the cultural sector?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague for his question.

As my colleague knows very well, the sector will not reopen before the new year because it is not possible. This is the worst pandemic in modern human history. Many venues have decided to postpone all events until 2021.

Had he bothered to read the article in question, the member would have seen that we have provided the sector with $3 billion to date—

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

I did read the article, Mr. Chair.

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Chair, we will continue to help these people until it is possible to reopen. Due to the public health crisis, it is currently not possible for arts and culture events to resume, as our colleague from the other side of the House knows very well.

[Mario Simard, Bloc, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Chair, I will be sharing my time with my loyal colleague, the member for Lac-Saint-Jean.

In negotiating CUSMA, the government unfortunately forgot to protect aluminum, the aluminum produced in my region, the greenest aluminum in the world. The Bloc Québécois had to lobby hard for a solution that would shut out China's black aluminum.

Today, we are in a new crisis, which is partly the government's fault. It announced that there would be countermeasures, but oddly, they will only apply to aluminum products. In 2018, the countermeasures applied to any U.S. export, whether it was a Harley-Davidson, bourbon or a boat. The countermeasures could be slapped on any exported good.

Why can that not be done now?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Chair, I would like to thank my colleague for his question. He knows full well that we have always been there for aluminum workers. I love to hear him talk about green aluminum, because I was there for the Elysis announcement. I was there when we said that the Government of Canada would stand up to find new, green aluminum products. That is precisely what he just said.

Yes, we are going to continue to invest in innovation, as we always have. Yes, we will always be there for the aluminum industry, and yes, we will always work for aluminum workers. It is an important industry in Quebec. We will always stand up for the interests of Quebec workers.

[Mario Simard, Bloc, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Chair, unfortunately, I did not get an answer.

Why are there no retaliatory tariffs on products other than aluminum? It is because, in 2019, they negotiated an agreement on the cheap. They went from a bazooka, with tariffs on all American exports, to a slingshot. They are defending Quebec's second-largest export sector with a slingshot.

I will repeat my question: Why is it impossible to impose retaliatory tariffs on products other than aluminum right now?

[Bill Blair, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Chair, let me be very clear. At the time in 2019 when the previous section 232 tariffs were lifted, an agreement was reached between Canada and the United States. We worked together to resolve all future irritants in the bilateral aluminum trade. We continue to urge the Americans to come back, but we have been very clear that we will impose reciprocal retaliatory tariffs on the things that get their attention the most, because, quite frankly, these tariffs that have been imposed on the aluminum industry are unacceptable and unlawful.

We are going to stand up to them and are not going to back down. We are going to stand up for the aluminum industry and will impose appropriate tariffs. We are consulting with Canadians to make sure we get this right, and within 30 days—

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

Resuming debate, the hon. member for Lac-Saint-Jean.

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Chair, in 2018, when we imposed retaliatory counter-tariffs on the United States, did all of the revenue from these counter-tariffs that was supposed to go to the aluminum industry actually reach the industry?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague for his question.

He knows that we have been standing up for the aluminum sector since day one. We have been proud to invest in this sector. As I mentioned earlier, we invested in Elysis. That is the future. Just ask the unions and the workers. Green aluminum is the future of Quebec, the future of the industry. That is exactly what we have invested in to innovate and ensure long-term jobs—

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

Order. The member has the floor.

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Chair, that is not what I asked. The answer was not forthcoming either, from what I could hear.

Did all of the money that was supposed to go to aluminum in 2018, the money from the counter-tariffs, actually get to the aluminum industry, yes or no?

[Bill Blair, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Chair, in the previous round of the unlawful section 232 tariffs, we demonstrated an unwavering commitment and no hesitation in providing direct support to the aluminum industry. We remain committed to that support.

We will be there for aluminum workers and for the aluminum industry. We recognize its importance to Canada, and those workers are important to us as well.

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Chair, I will answer for them: The Parliamentary Budget Officer told us that over $200 million was not used.

Is the Deputy Prime Minister aware of that $200 million?

What does she intend to do with it?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC]

Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague for his question.

As he said, the Deputy Prime Minister has all the facts. She masterfully negotiated this file from the beginning to stand up to the threats of U.S. tariffs. We will continue to do just that and we will continue to invest because we know that aluminum is an important industry for Quebec. We did so in the past, we are doing so now, and we will continue to do so in the future.

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Chair, when we listen to the Bloc Québécois's proposals, we see that they work. We saw that with aluminum.

We are going to make a suggestion. That money absolutely needs to go to the aluminum industry for secondary and tertiary processing. We are taking care of the $200 million that is left, but we want to see the promised $360 million and so do the unions.

Will that money immediately be sent directly to the aluminum industry?

[Bill Blair, Liberal, Scarborough Southwest, ON]

Mr. Chair, I want to acknowledge that the Deputy Prime Minister has had conversations with the leader of the Bloc and with some of her Conservative colleagues as well, and we think a team Canada approach, which worked so well with us in standing up to the section 232 tariffs, is exactly the right approach.

We encourage the Bloc to continue to engage in dialogue and to support our efforts to ensure that together we stand up for the Quebec aluminum industry.

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

Mr. Chair, I will be splitting my time with the member for Saskatoon—University.

One of the reasons Canada lost its AAA credit rating from Fitch Ratings, as it stated, was because Canada did not have an economic recovery plan. That was two months ago.

When will the government be announcing its economic recovery plan?

[Bill Morneau, Liberal, Minister of Finance]

Mr. Chair, I want to make clear that we recognize how important it is we address this pandemic, and that is exactly what we have been doing. We have been supporting individuals and businesses. That is the right thing to do during this time period. Certainly, as we move forward we will be considering how best to have a recovery, making sure we have—

[The Chair, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

We will go back to the hon. member.

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

Mr. Chair, one of the other reasons Fitch Ratings stated that Canada lost its AAA credit rating was because of interprovincial trade barriers. In May I questioned the Deputy Prime Minister about the government's announcement to put a hold on all work being done with interprovincial trade, and we were told at the time that it was due to COVID-19. That was three months ago.

What is the government doing now to jump-start interprovincial trade, and when did this work resume?

[Bill Morneau, Liberal, Toronto Centre, ON]

Mr. Chair, we continue to believe that working together with the provinces to bring down interprovincial trade barriers is critically important. We made enormous progress on this issue over the last number of years, but of course we do need to continue these efforts. It will require the provinces to step forward in this regard.

Our government is committed to working to ensure we have freer trade in our country, which will help us economically today and in the future.