Debates of Jan. 25th, 2021

Small Business

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

Mr. Speaker, the economic recovery is about to take a nosedive. The vaccination campaign, which is the only way out of the crisis, has just hit a wall.

According to CFIB, 180,000 businesses could close down and 2.4 million additional jobs could be lost, mostly in the arts, culture, tourism and food service industries.

What measures is the government proposing to help business owners hang on for another eight to 10 months, if the majority of the country is not vaccinated by September 2021?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

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

I completely agree that my priority as Minister of Finance is to support our businesses, especially our small and medium-sized businesses. That is why we have introduced extraordinary programs to support them, programs like the Canada emergency wage subsidy, the Canada emergency rent subsidy and additional measures for businesses targeted by new lockdown measures.

As for tourism, we announced additional supports in November. We will continue—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Brome—Missisquoi.

Canadian Heritage

[Lyne Bessette, Liberal, Brome—Missisquoi, QC]

Mr. Speaker, communities across Canada are extremely concerned about the rise of Islamophobia, online hate speech and other forms of prejudice that have only intensified throughout the pandemic. We have all seen that words can lead to violence.

As parliamentarians, we recognize that we all have a duty to lead by example. We must engage in respectful dialogue and remain open to debating ideas to hear the views of Canadians in order to work towards a society where everyone is free to thrive with dignity.

Could the Minister of Canadian Heritage tell the House what our government is doing to combat the promotion of hatred and violence online?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the hon. member for Brome—Missisquoi for the question.

Hate speech has no place in our society. Our government will continue to take ambitious, meaningful measures to combat online radicalization and the violence that may ensue. We recently announced funding for YMCA Canada's “Block Hate” initiative to combat cyberviolence and online hate speech.

This project will examine hate speech trends across Canada and work with experts to develop online tools and training for Canadians.

Air Transportation

[Taylor Bachrach, NDP, Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is shocking and unacceptable that nearly a year into this pandemic, tens of thousands of Canadians have still not received refunds for flights that were cancelled by the airlines. Now the Prime Minister is telling Canadians to cancel any travel plans they may have booked for this spring.

Canadians want to do the right thing and stay home, especially in light of these new strains of the virus. Will the Prime Minister guarantee that Canadians who do as he is asking and cancel their flights will receive full refunds?

[Omar Alghabra, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for the conversation he and I had last week. I wanted to reach out to him and all of my critics to ensure that they know that I am willing to work with them on issues that matter to Canadians.

As I said earlier, we are very much aware of the frustrations many Canadians have because of the lack of refunds. We as a government have already committed $1.1 billion to support key players, such as airport authorities and regional airlines. Discussions are ongoing with the airlines to ensure that Canadians get their refunds and that regional routes are retained.

Housing

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

Mr. Speaker, the world's ultra wealthy use Canadian real estate to launder money and evade taxes. At the same time, corporations, numbered companies, hedge funds and real estate investment trusts are squeezing huge profits from residential properties. As a result, rents are skyrocketing, affordable housing is disappearing and more Canadians are experiencing homelessness. Will the government introduce strong regulations to stop the predatory activities that are distorting Canada's housing market and making homes unaffordable?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, this is an issue that our government is absolutely seized with. That is why, in the fall economic statement in November, I announced our plan to introduce a tax-based measure to target specifically the unproductive use of domestic housing in Canada owned by non-residents and non-Canadians. It is something we are definitely focused on.

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Kingston and the Islands, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order.

There has been discussion among the parties and if you seek it, I hope you will find unanimous consent to adopt the following motion:

That, notwithstanding any standing order, special order or usual practice of the House, a bill standing on the Order Paper in the name of the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, entitled An act to amend the Canada Recovery Benefits act and Customs act, be deemed to have been introduced and read a first time, deemed read a second time and referred to committee of the whole, deemed considered in committee of the whole, deemed reported without amendment, deemed concurred in at report stage, and deemed read a third time and passed.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

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

Accordingly, all those opposed to the hon. member's moving the motion will please say nay.

[Some hon. members]

Nay.

Terrorist Designation of Proud Boys

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order.

We have consulted with the other parties and sincerely hope that if you seek it you will find unanimous consent for the following motion:

That the House call upon the government to use all available tools to address the proliferation of white supremacist and hate groups, starting with immediately designating the Proud Boys as a terrorist entity.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

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

Accordingly—

[Elizabeth May, Green, Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC]

Mr. Speaker, may I ask the hon. member a question before it is put to a vote?

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

What is that?

[Elizabeth May, Green, Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I wonder if the hon. member would be amenable to adding the other white supremacist group, Soldiers of Odin, to the motion.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

I will have to check with the table to see exactly what the rules are on that.

I will continue with the original motion and get it done, and if the hon. member wants to continue the discussion after, maybe she can come back to the House along with the hon. member and propose a further motion.

Accordingly, all those opposed to the hon. member moving the original motion will please say nay.

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 agreed to)

Health

[Ron McKinnon, Liberal, Coquitlam—Port Coquitlam, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the third report of the Standing Committee on Health in relation to Bill C-210, an act to amend the Canada Revenue Agency Act with regard to organ and tissue donors. The committee has studied the bill and has decided to report the bill back to the House without amendment.

Procedure and House Affairs

[Ruby Sahota, Liberal, Brampton North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Orders 104 and 114, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the eighth report of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs regarding the membership of committees of the House and I should like to move concurrence in the eighth report at this time.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

This being a hybrid sitting, for the sake of clarity I will ask all those opposed to the request to express their disagreement. Accordingly, all those opposed to the hon. member moving the motion will please say nay.

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 agreed to)

Government Response to Petitions

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

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36(8)(a), I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the government's response to 253 petitions. These returns will be tabled in an electronic format.

Human Rights

[John Williamson, Conservative, New Brunswick Southwest, NB]

Mr. Speaker, a parliamentary Subcommittee on International Human Rights, along with two U.S. presidential administrations, have concluded Beijing is committing crimes of genocide against Uighurs in China. Evidence makes it clear that the Chinese government's treatment of the Uighurs meets the criteria for genocide as outlined in the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.

I therefore table a petition from concerned Canadians calling on the federal government to find its voice by recognizing that Uighurs in China have been and are being subjected to genocide and using the powers of the Magnitsky act to sanction Chinese Communist Party officials responsible for the heinous crimes being committed against the Uighur people.

[Kevin Waugh, Conservative, Saskatoon—Grasswood, SK]

Mr. Speaker, I present a petition today in the House of Commons formally recognizing that Uighurs in China have been and are being subject to genocide. We talked about this earlier in question period, and I want to salute the two members from the Conservative Party who brought this up yesterday in a news conference. All Canadians should be ashamed of the government for not standing by Uighurs in China.

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

Mr. Speaker, it is urgent for the Government of Canada to listen to these petitioners, do the right thing and recognize the clear evidence that there is an ongoing genocide in East Turkestan in China.

The petitioners call upon the government to recognize the genocide; affirm that the government has a responsibility to protect under the genocide convention and that these are commitments the government has made; stop the delay tactics by calling for on-the-ground investigations that will never happen; and indeed impose Magnitsky sanctions to hold those responsible for these heinous crimes accountable.

I commend this petition to the consideration of all members.