Debates of Dec. 7th, 2021

Foreign Affairs

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we can all remember the speed at which events unfolded in Afghanistan and the intensity with which members of the Canadian Armed Forces, our diplomats and our partners around the world continued to step up to evacuate people from Afghanistan and make sure that Canadians were getting out to safety, and indeed continued to be engaged with the people of Afghanistan throughout.

We know we need to continue to put pressure on the Taliban government to allow people to leave Afghanistan. That is what we are continuing to do alongside our partners, and we will bring 40,000 Afghan citizens to Canada to start their new lives.

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

Mr. Speaker, we had two years of reflection, slowness and failures, and this continues despite the SOS messages. The evacuation of Canadians and the Afghan interpreters and contractors who helped us was not a priority for this Liberal government.

Why did this government ignore Canadians' pleas and cause the greatest diplomatic disaster in decades?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I thank our soldiers, diplomats and all those who worked tirelessly to evacuate thousands of people from Afghanistan. They are still working to make sure that 40,000 Afghans will soon be able to come to Canada.

We will continue putting pressure on the Taliban to allow people to get out safely. We will continue to work with the international community to give a better life to tens of thousands of people who genuinely deserve it.

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

Mr. Speaker, the only thing the Prime Minister does tirelessly is call elections. This Liberal government's foreign policy is a disaster. It is one failure after another.

There are 1,250 Canadians trapped in Afghanistan. The terrorist group continues to terrorize people, but this Prime Minister was focused on calling a pointless election. He is all talk and no action.

Why did this government abandon our Afghan allies?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, that is quite simply not true. We worked with our allies in Afghanistan, with organizations and with our partners around the world. Members of our armed forces, our diplomats and our officials worked tirelessly to save as many people as they could in August.

Since then, we have continued to work with the international community to put pressure on the Taliban so that we could get people out of the country and bring them to Canada. We will bring in 40,000 people to make sure we continue to be there for the people of Afghanistan.

The Environment

[Yves-François Blanchet, Bloc, Beloeil—Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to see that our Liberal friends have discovered the virtues of physical attendance in the House. I am really happy about that.

However, I am concerned, and I want to tell all of them that I am concerned, because, according to the CBC, Ottawa is preparing to make changes to an extremely important regulation that prohibits releasing water from oil sands tailings ponds directly into the Athabasca River. That is obviously not permitted under the current regulation, since that water contains heavy metals and very toxic chemicals.

Can the Prime Minister tell us that this terrible news is not true and that he will not allow that water to be released directly into the Athabasca River?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we know that we cannot have a healthy economy without a healthy environment.

We are working with indigenous leaders, the provinces, the industries and stakeholders to develop strict standards for the release of oil sands tailings water in order to issue draft regulations in 2024. This important work will help us reduce the environmental and health risks associated with storing the toxic materials.

[Yves-François Blanchet, Bloc, Beloeil—Chambly, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I have a clear measure for him: the ban that is currently in place.

The Minister of Environment and Climate Change must be having a rough time these days, because not only is the government funding the oil and gas industry, it is making up false emissions caps and removing regulations. It never ends. This government is so pro-oil that the Conservatives are going to have an identity crisis here in the House.

I am formally calling on the Prime Minister to maintain the ban on direct release into the Athabasca River on a permanent basis.

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, there is currently a ban in place, but we are setting strict standards that could take effect as of 2024 on the quality of oil sands process waters that could be released. These measures are backed by science and are intended to protect our environment.

The Economy

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the fiscal update presents an opportunity for the Liberal government to tackle inflation, which is driving up the cost of living for families. Families are feeling squeezed, and they are struggling to make ends meet. The Liberals say there is nothing they can do. We disagree. They could immediately help people find a home that is in their budget. They could also put a limit on the charges that cellphone and Internet companies charge Canadians, which are among the highest in the world.

Will the Prime Minister commit today to using the economic update as an opportunity to tackle the rising cost of living?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, as the member opposite said, next week we will be releasing our economic and fiscal update. We will provide Canadians with a transparent look at our public finances and our plan to finish the fight against COVID-19, make life more affordable for Canadians and ensure that our economic recovery leaves no one behind. The best way to get our economy growing and support Canadians is by ending COVID-19.

We are going to continue to move forward, as we have, on initiatives such as increasing the Canada child benefit to match the cost of living, $10-a-day child care for families, boosts to GIS for vulnerable seniors, more supports for students and the many other things we continue to do to support affordability for families.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the economic update is an opportunity for the Liberal government to address inflation, which is driving up the cost of living. It is becoming increasingly difficult for families to make ends meet.

The Liberals say they cannot do anything, but we disagree. The Liberal government can help families find affordable housing. It can also put a cap on cellphone and Internet plan fees.

Will the Prime Minister commit in the economic update to making life more affordable?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, the pandemic has caused inflation around the world, and Canadians are facing rising prices.

Just as we were during the pandemic, we will continue to be there for Canadians. The 2021 economic and fiscal update will give Canadians a transparent look at our public finances and our plan to finish the fight against COVID‑19, make life more affordable for Canadians and ensure our economic recovery leaves no one behind.

The best way to get our economy growing and to make life more affordable is by ending COVID‑19. That is exactly what we are doing.

Foreign Affairs

[Kerry-Lynne Findlay, Conservative, South Surrey—White Rock, BC]

Mr. Speaker, today we put forward a motion for a special all-party House of Commons committee to examine Canada's flawed evacuation in Afghanistan. Instead of saving lives, we had an election. Some 40,000 Canadian Armed Forces members served in Afghanistan and worked closely with Afghan interpreters, whom we promised to protect and evacuate from the country. Now they are hiding in safe houses to avoid Taliban death squads.

Will the government support this motion to examine what went so wrong on its watch?

[Mélanie Joly, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, of course the question of Afghanistan is important. It is important to our government, and it is important to all Canadians.

I just came back from NATO and the OSCE, where I had the chance to meet with many of my counterparts to look at the lessons learned regarding what happened in Afghanistan. We can be extremely proud of being one of the countries that will be resettling the most Afghan refugees in the world, at 40,000. That is our commitment and we will get there.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[Mélanie Joly, Liberal, Ahuntsic-Cartierville, QC]

Of course, we can also be proud that we will be resettling many of the NATO-linked refugees. Flights are arriving as we speak.

[The Speaker, Anthony Rota]

I want to remind hon. members of the way things work in the chamber. They ask a question and they get a response. If they ask questions while a person is answering, it just messes things up and makes things difficult.

The hon. member for South Surrey—White Rock.

[Kerry-Lynne Findlay, Conservative, South Surrey—White Rock, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I would love it if we got a response. What I am hearing are delays, platitudes and excuses. That is just not good enough.

There are 40,000 Canadian Armed Forces members who put their lives in the hands of our allies and interpreters in Afghanistan. They served together bravely and selflessly so that we could try to build a new Afghanistan. We promised our allies and their families protection and a new life, and the government broke that solemn bond. Just talking about the 40,000 without doing anything means nothing. Canadians returned here to safety—

[The Speaker, Anthony Rota]

The hon. Minister of Immigration.

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, I think all members of the House will agree on the importance of Canada making good on its commitment to resettle 40,000 Afghan refugees.

Members on the opposite side are asking when people are going to arrive. Two weeks ago, when I was asked this question, I said 3,800 were here. Earlier this week, when I was asked the question, we had more than 4,000. I am pleased to share that by the end of this week, 500 more Afghan refugees will be arriving, including, for the first time, privately sponsored refugees from Afghanistan in my home province of Nova Scotia.

Our commitment will not waver and we will make good on bringing 40,000 vulnerable Afghan refugees to Canada.

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

Mr. Speaker, this summer, Canada failed in its duty to help our Afghan allies.

Who among us could forget the sad memory and tragic sight of Afghans clinging to airplanes as they were taking off. What happened in Afghanistan is terrible.

Those people are our friends and allies. They helped Canadian soldiers stationed in Afghanistan. They are interpreters, support staff and their families. Canadians need to know why we were unable to give them the help they needed.

If the Prime Minister did nothing wrong, then why is he not supporting our call for a parliamentary committee to study the matter?

[Mélanie Joly, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, the Afghanistan issue is indeed very important.

Of course, Canada served alongside many of our NATO allies in Afghanistan, and we were supported by many Afghans on the ground, which is why we decided to honour that Afghan commitment to Canada by bringing 40,000 Afghan refugees to Canada. We have now taken in almost 5,000, and we are one of the countries that has received the most Afghan refugees. Right now, the situation in Afghanistan is very difficult, and we will continue to work with our partners to ensure that those refugees get here safely.

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

Mr. Speaker, during this debate, let us always keep in mind that these Afghans, who are our friends and allies, put their lives on the line so that Canadians could benefit from the current situation. That is why we must not play partisan politics with this issue.

It is very sad to see the minister laugh, because as far back as 2016, the Leader of the Opposition warned the House that we needed a plan to bring these people home. This summer, when all of Canada's efforts were needed to get these people out, the Prime Minister called a partisan, self‑serving election.

If the government has nothing to be ashamed of, will it accept our proposal to create a committee—

[The Speaker, Anthony Rota]

The hon. minister has the floor.