Debates of Jan. 27th, 2021

Health

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we moved a motion to obtain the unanimous consent of the House of Commons to improve the bill and address this loophole. As the member stated, the bill was passed by all members of the House. Unfortunately, the Conservatives did not want to give their unanimous consent to resolve this right away.

We will continue to work with the parties in the House to fix this problem as quickly as possible, because people returning from non-essential travel should not have access to this money. We will fix this with or without the Conservatives' support.

[Gérard Deltell, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

Mr. Speaker, everyone knows that the Prime Minister does not like working in the House of Commons, and therein lies the problem. He introduced the bill in September and we only had a day to debate it. The result is that there are problems. He asked us the Monday after the bill was introduced to pass it right away, without debate. That is not how the process works. He made a mistake six months ago and now he wants to make the same mistake again. What we want is the opportunity to properly debate the bill.

Why will the Prime Minister not introduce the bill right after question period so that we can all debate it together, work on it and pass it?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, once again, we often hear this type of thing from the Conservatives. We moved too quickly to help Canadians. We reacted too quickly. We were too generous to students, seniors and workers. During this pandemic, we made a very simple promise to Canadians. We promised that we would be there to help them. We will do whatever it takes for however long it takes. That is exactly what we are doing.

Of course, the fact that we had to work quickly to help people means that there are things that need to be corrected. That is why we are fixing the problems that none of the parties noticed when we passed this bill. We will ensure—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

Order. The hon. member for La Prairie.

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we know that Pfizer is unable to deliver vaccines from Europe this week. We also know that Pfizer is producing vaccines just across the border in Michigan but that it cannot sell those vaccines to Quebeckers and Canadians because President Trump signed an order preventing it from doing so. We know that Joe Biden is now the President of the United States and that the Prime Minister talked to Joe Biden just last week.

Did it occur to him to ask the President for an exemption to that order so that Canada can make up for the vaccines it is not getting from Europe?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, it was a great pleasure to talk to Joe Biden last week about vaccination, vaccine supply, partnership and how we can work together to keep our citizens safe from COVID-19 and make sure everyone gets vaccinated quickly. We will keep working with our American friends to ensure we are doing everything we need to do to help Canadians and everyone as quickly as possible.

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we have a serious problem. Canada has no domestic vaccine production. The Americans cannot sell us any. The Europeans are threatening to halt all shipments. We just heard that the Prime Minister spoke with the European Commission an hour ago. That does not reassure me at all. He could have spoken with American officials and told them that, since they are cancelling Keystone XL and enforcing the buy American act, they could send us some vaccines as a form of compensation, to make up for the lack of vaccines from Europe. That is called negotiating.

When will the Prime Minister finally wake up and ensure that Quebeckers and Canadians can get vaccinated?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, despite working with a difficult administration in the United States for four years, we still managed to protect supply management. We also defended the cultural exemption and stood up for our steel and aluminum workers, even in very difficult situations and despite the protectionism of the former administration.

We are working very constructively with the new American administration on COVID-19 and climate change, and we will continue to work closely in everything we do to ensure that we are there for Canadians.

International Trade

[Greg McLean, Conservative, Calgary Centre, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is a good storyteller, but never fails to disappoint on results. For months, we have been calling on him to take action on Keystone XL. The end results are starkly clear. Now, the governor of Michigan wishes to cancel Enbridge's Line 5 easement, which would seriously affect workers and consumers in Ontario and Quebec.

Since this outcome would negatively impact millions of Canadians, will the Prime Minister take action now so that more Canadian workers and families are not simply disappointed and left in the cold?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, over the past seven years I have defended the Keystone XL pipeline, including to American Democrats, and I have continued to defend it every step of the way. In my conversations with President Biden and with Special Envoy Kerry, we talked about Keystone XL. We talked about energy security. I have emphasized the interconnectedness and the opportunity for us to work together to create good jobs in the energy sector, and indeed across our economies, by working together in North America. That is exactly what we are going to do.

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, thousands of jobs in Ontario depend on the operation of Enbridge's Line 5. In November, the governor of Michigan decided to revoke the easement, which has allowed this pipeline to operate safely for decades. Line 5 was not mentioned in the Prime Minister's readout of his call with President Biden last week, or his call with John Kerry last night.

Specifically, why has Line 5, the thousands of jobs, the decades of a safe record, not been a priority for the Prime Minister?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I think all Canadians know that this government has consistently stood up for Canadian interests with a challenging situation south of the border over the past four years. We defended our steel and aluminum workers. We defended our supply management. We protected our most important trading relationship by renegotiating and even improving NAFTA.

We are going to continue to work to ensure energy security and jobs for Canadians, and continue the fight against climate change, hand in hand with the American government.

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

Mr. Speaker, President Biden's new buy America executive order contains much tougher rules than we have ever seen before, all but shutting Canadian businesses out of U.S. government contracts. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce says this will have a chilling effect on businesses and jobs.

The Liberals failed to negotiate Canada's participation in Chapter 13 of CUSMA, which addresses government procurement. The Liberals' trade failures just keep piling up. Is the Prime Minister negotiating buy America exemptions for Canadian businesses?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, over the past four years, we have seen one of the most protectionist administrations the United States has ever had, and we were able to consistently defend Canadian interests, stand up for Canadian workers, and ensure our continued access to the American market and free trade.

We will continue to work with this new administration, in much more positive ways, to defend Canadian jobs and interests. I highlighted our concerns with buy American provisions directly with the President. He committed to working together to ensure that we are creating jobs and prosperity for both of our countries.

[Erin O'Toole, Conservative, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, in this pandemic, we are hitting record cases. Canadians are worried. They think there is no plan when zero vaccines come and in the coming weeks we will receive an unknown amount. The Prime Minister is suggesting we are misleading Canadians when we ask questions about the very documents they are presenting from our health motion last fall, which he opposed. They were questions about CanSino and questions about failures to deliver what he promised last month.

The Prime Minister prorogued Parliament. He has kept contracts hidden and has not released documents to allow us to do better. Last month he promised vaccines, and we are only going to receive 8%. Will he apologize to Canadians for dropping the ball on vaccines?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, while the Conservatives yet again try to score cheap political points, we are focused on delivering for Canadians. That is why we have delivered over a million vaccines to the provinces and territories, and hundreds of thousands of vulnerable Canadians have been vaccinated. That is why why we continue to work with vaccine companies around the world to get those deliveries of vaccines to Canada.

We will be receiving hundreds of thousands of Pfizer doses in just a few weeks, more than we had before, so we can deliver what we promised to Canadians.

COVID-19 Emergency Response

[Laurel Collins, NDP, Victoria, BC]

Mr. Speaker, over the holidays, the government sent anxiety-inducing letters to close to half a million Canadians, most of whom applied for the CERB in good faith. Some were given incorrect information by the government, a government that is now threatening to make them pay back thousands of dollars in the middle of a pandemic. At the same time, the Prime Minister refuses to make companies like Imperial Oil, which took the wage subsidy and then handed out millions to shareholders and CEOs, pay back a single cent.

Why are the Liberals going after Canadians who are struggling, who did nothing wrong, yet refusing to hold their corporate friends accountable?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, from the beginning of this pandemic, we made a straightforward promise to Canadians: that we would have their backs. That is exactly what we did. We sent out unprecedented help to millions of Canadians who suddenly found themselves unable to work or without a job because of this pandemic. We have continued to support Canadians, and we will work with Canadians who are worried to ensure that there are no penalties and no late fees involved as a result of being misunderstood. We will work with them on a case-by-case basis.

At the same time, we will continue to ensure that all the rules were enforced, and anyone who was profiteering or taking advantage of the processes will—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for London—Fanshawe.

[Lindsay Mathyssen, NDP, London—Fanshawe, ON]

Mr. Speaker, in his first days in office, the new U.S. president has signed a number of executive orders, including one for pausing federal student loan payments. President Biden stated, “Too many Americans are struggling to pay for basic necessities and to provide for their families.” The same can be said here in Canada. In November, this House unanimously supported our NDP motion to extend the moratorium on repaying student loans until May 31, 2021. However, there is still no action from the government.

Why is the Prime Minister content with breaking his promise to students and leaving them to struggle?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we recognize that young people are always hardest hit by economic shocks and downturns, and significant scarring from years of opportunities missed because of this pandemic could potentially follow them for years. That is why we moved forward with unprecedented measures, such as the CERB for students, for example, direct supports for young people, the creation of new jobs and new opportunities for young people, and yes, with forgiveness of student loans.

We will continue to work with all parties in the House to support young people, because we need them to continue to contribute to how we get through this pandemic and help us build a better world afterwards.

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

[Marci Ien, Liberal, Toronto Centre, ON]

Mr. Speaker, today we observe International Holocaust Remembrance Day, which commemorates the six million Jews and 11 million others who were murdered by the Nazi regime and its collaborators.

Can the Prime Minister tell this House what our government is doing to combat anti-Semitism and honour the lives of those lost in the Holocaust?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, today we honour the memories of the victims and survivors of the Holocaust. We pledge to tell their stories so that the horrors of the Holocaust could never happen again. We have formally adopted the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism and appointed the Hon. Irwin Cotler to lead Canada's efforts to promote Holocaust remembrance and combat anti-Semitism abroad. We will always stand with the Jewish community and fight anti-Semitism wherever and whenever it occurs.

Government Appointments

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

Mr. Speaker, when a worker quits their job they are not entitled to employment insurance. That applies to all workers except for the former governor general who was personally selected by the Prime Minister.

Friends of the Prime Minister who leave their job get a gold plated pension to the tune of $150,000 a year for life and a lifetime expense program.

Toxic environment, humiliation, intimidating physical contact: the examples are serious and not new. It truly took wilful blindness on the part of the Prime Minister and his office to not be aware of what was going on.

Does the Prime Minister still stand by his decision today?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, as soon as we heard about the allegations in the press last summer, we launched an independent and rigorous process to look into and review the working conditions at Rideau Hall.

We know that Canadians deserve to have a safe workplace and we thank all the employees at Rideau Hall for the exceptional work they have always done to help this country and for living up to the standard of service we provide to Canadians.