Debates of Feb. 1st, 2021

Foreign Affairs

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, Canada will always defend human rights around the world, and we are closely monitoring Raif Badawi's case. Canadian officials continue to raise his case at the highest level, and we have asked for him to be granted clemency many times. We remain in contact with Ms. Haidar and, of course, we hope that Mr. Badawi will be reunited with his family.

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

Mr. Speaker, what a frustrating response for Ensaf Haidar. The minister did not even answer the question.

In 2015, when the Minister of Foreign Affairs was in the opposition, he wrote that “the eyes of the world are on Canada to see whether the government will exhaust its diplomatic channels pushing for Raif Badawi's release.” Even the Prime Minister, when he was in the opposition in 2015, was hounding Stephen Harper and telling him that it was time to act. Now they are in power, and all parties are calling on them to make Raif Badawi a Canadian citizen.

The Liberal opposition at the time spoke about Raif Badawi a lot. Those same Liberals are now in power. Will they finally do something?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question and for his work on this important matter.

The recent motion reflected the fact that Parliament and all Canadians are concerned about the unjust detention of Mr. Badawi. We will keep working with all parliamentarians as we continue our efforts to reunite Mr. Badawi with his family.

Speaking of human rights, I have to ask: When will the leader of the Bloc Québécois apologize to the Minister of Transport for his comments?

Natural Resources

[Marilyn Gladu, Conservative, Sarnia—Lambton, ON]

Mr. Speaker, 50,000 jobs, that is 50,000 jobs on both sides of the border, are at risk if the Prime Minister does not take serious action to save Line 5.

Enbridge has even been issued new permits by the Michigan government to make a safe project even safer by encasing the existing pipe in a tunnel along the bottom of the Straits of Mackinac. The natural resources minister has pledged his support.

Will the Prime Minister commit to speaking with President Biden about the importance of saving Line 5?

[Seamus O'Regan, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member and I have been speaking about this issue. This is obviously hugely important not only for her riding but, as she mentioned, for Canadian industry.

We are working alongside Ambassador Hillman and Consul General Joe Comartin, and I want to thank them for their tireless efforts on this issue.

We are loud and clear on this side of the House: We support Line 5. We will continue to advocate for it.

[Blake Richards, Conservative, Banff—Airdrie, AB]

Mr. Speaker, when asked about Keystone's cancellation, the Liberal-appointed ambassador to the United States simply shrugged, “It's time to let Keystone XL go.” That is what the Liberal government did: denigrate our natural resources sector, ignore the threat of the project being cancelled and then tell thousands of Canadians who are counting on these jobs to let it go.

Oil and gas projects must be part of the way forward for economic recovery, so when will the government actually do something to stand up for clean, ethical and job-creating Canadian energy?

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I am rising on a point of order. The interpretation is not working.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

We are having a problem with the interpretation.

I think there is a problem with the mikes and headsets. Sometimes the computer mike is on instead of the headset mike. This is a problem for some people, not for everyone.

For everyone, please check your screen. You will see a little microphone at the bottom. If you click on that, make sure it is on the Plantronics headset and not on the computer microphone, and that will make sure everything comes through clear and we have perfect translation. That is my technology trick for today.

Now we will go on to the hon. minister.

[Seamus O'Regan, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, it is incumbent upon us to safeguard our relationship with the single-largest customer for Canadian crude. In fact, over the past five years, Canadian oil has continuously displaced foreign sources in the U.S. market. Canadian crude now represents 60% of all oil imported by the U.S. That is up from 40%.

Because of this government, new pipelines are under construction. Trans Mountain and Line 3 will provide us with the ability to expand our energy exports. We are proud of our energy workers and we support them.

[Ted Falk, Conservative, Provencher, MB]

Mr. Speaker, when the Prime Minister was the opposition leader of the third party, he suggested that Keystone XL would have been approved if Canada had stronger environmental policy, stronger oversight, tougher penalties and, yes, some sort of means to price carbon pollution. I wonder how that is all working out for the Prime Minister.

How many gut punches does the Prime Minister think energy workers need to take before he is willing to stand up for them and Canada's national interests?

[Seamus O'Regan, Liberal, Minister of Natural Resources]

Mr. Speaker, the other night during the emergency debate, I listened carefully to the opposition and some of what the members said really shocked me. The member for Foothills called TMX a white elephant.

On this side of the House, we are proud that TMX is finally being built, no thanks to the Conservatives. TMX has already created 7,000 jobs. It is not a white elephant. Those are real jobs, real workers in Alberta and real support from this government. We are proud of our hard-working oil and gas workers. We have their backs.

Diversity and Inclusion

[Emmanuel Dubourg, Liberal, Bourassa, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this week marks the 25th anniversary of the designation of February as Black History Month, thanks to a motion moved by the Hon. Jean Augustine in this Parliament. This is a month to celebrate, remember and recognize the many contributions made by Black people and what they have accomplished here in Canada.

Would the Minister of Diversity tell us about our government's commitments to a fairer and more inclusive Canada?

[Bardish Chagger, Liberal, Minister of Diversity and Inclusion and Youth]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Bourassa for his leadership. As he knows, our government will always support all Black communities in Canada. We have invested millions of dollars in a number of areas: building capacity in Black communities, supporting young Black Canadians, culturally focused mental health programs, entrepreneurship and the anti-racism strategy.

We know we still have work to do. During Black History Month, I invite everyone to join us in celebrating and recognizing the many contributions Black Canadians have made over the past 400-plus years.

Infrastructure

[James Bezan, Conservative, Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB]

Mr. Speaker, Manitoba farmers, ranchers, first nations, cottage owners and municipalities are all stuck in limbo because of Liberal dithering and inaction. Despite repeated calls from the Province of Manitoba, the Liberal government refuses to sign the joint agreement for the Lake Manitoba and Lake St. Martin outlet channels project.

For the last five years, Liberals promised to fund the channel, to protect Manitobans and to reduce the catastrophic damages from future floods, but they refuse to put pen to paper to make it happen.

Why are these Liberals failing Manitobans again?

[Jonathan Wilkinson, Liberal, Minister of Environment and Climate Change]

Mr. Speaker, I would correct the record. We have been working very actively with the Government of Manitoba on this issue. The Government of Manitoba has now provided the first tranche of information to the Impact Assessment Agency. We continue to await the second tranche of information that would allow us to proceed through the process, as it should be done, as it is always done. We are working very productively with the minister of infrastructure in Manitoba on this issue.

Government Contracts

[Kelly McCauley, Conservative, Edmonton West, AB]

Mr. Speaker, documents we obtained on sole-sourced COVID spending by the Liberal government show a baffling item. Over $115,000 was paid out to Poets Cove luxury resort by Fisheries and Oceans in April 2020, a month after the pandemic was declared.

How does spending $115,000 of taxpayer money at a secluded millionaire luxury resort help Canadians in the fight against COVID?

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

Mr. Speaker, I would be happy to speak with the member directly and get more information about the contract to which he is referring. If it is a PSPC matter, I will take it under advisement. If not, I will ensure our government gets back to him.

Telecommunications

[Lianne Rood, Conservative, Lambton—Kent—Middlesex, ON]

Mr. Speaker, parents in my riding of Lambton-Kent-Middlesex have struggled to participate in online classes because of slow Internet. Some of my constituents are receiving $800 Internet bills, because their only connection is through cell service. The government has promised to expand rural Internet infrastructure, but, as usual, the Liberals are all talk and no action.

Will the minister tell rural Canadians, like mine in Lambton-Kent-Middlesex, why they should have to choose between educating their children and paying their home heating bills?

[Maryam Monsef, Liberal, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Rural Economic Development]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague speaks to a frustration that far too many Canadians are experiencing, particularly during COVID. We have heard them. In our first mandate we invested to connect 1.7 million households to this essential service. In this mandate that works continues with additional funds, making the Government of Canada the single-largest government investor in broadband ever.

Just last week, our partnership with southwestern Ontario with SWIFT moved forward. Partners in Wellington are now connected, communities in Caledon are beginning their construction and there is more news to come.

Air Transportation

[Mike Kelloway, Liberal, Cape Breton—Canso, NS]

Mr. Speaker, on January 11, the J.A. Douglas McCurdy Airport in Sydney, in my riding of Cape Breton—Canso, bid farewell to its last commercial flight indefinitely. The member for Sydney—Victoria and I have heard from countless constituents about their concerns around flight resumption.

Could the hon. Minister of Transport please update the House and my constituents in Cape Breton—Canso on the work our government is doing to secure air travel in my region and regions in similar situations across the country?

[Omar Alghabra, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for his strong advocacy for his region and for this matter. We know how regional airports are important for workers and communities in Cape Breton and across the country.

The air sector has been hit hard by the pandemic and that is why the government will invest more than $1.1 billion to support key players, such as airport authorities and regional airlines. Discussions with major airlines on support for the sector are ongoing right now and we will prioritize the reinstallation of regional routes that connect our communities, such as Sydney.

Public Safety

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, last week, the independent investigation unit of Manitoba cleared the police officer involved in the fatal shooting of 16-year-old Eishia Hudson of any charges. The police officer was not questioned, provided a statement and that was the end of it. Police violence without consequence in Canada is a norm: Rodney Levi, Chantel Moore and others, all resulting in deaths.

How many deaths of indigenous people at the hands of police need to happen before the government acts?

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

Mr. Speaker, that is a very important question. We recognize the importance of transparency and accountability for all police actions. The relationship between the police and the people they serve has to be predicated on trust and that trust requires transparency and accountability for all police actions.

We have made commitments to bring forward reform on these issues and we are working with our provincial and territorial partners to ensure that all Canadians can be assured that police actions will always be accountable to the people they serve.

Telecommunications

[Marwan Tabbara, Liberal, Kitchener South—Hespeler, ON]

Mr. Speaker, many Canadians already found it difficult to make ends meet and this pandemic has only made things worse. To reduce the cost of living, the government asked telecommunications providers to lower their already high prices by 25% over three years.

Can the minister explain how the government will make sure those prices really do come down?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, we understand the concerns of Canadians and families when it comes to their cellphone bills. That is why our government is taking action to make services more affordable in keeping with our commitment to bring down prices by 25%. The latest affordability tracker is now public so people can see for themselves where prices are going.

The good news is that the tracker shows that prices for most plans have decreased between 10% and 18% in Canada.