Debates of Feb. 25th, 2021

Pharmacare

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

Mr. Speaker, no one should have to choose between buying medicine and buying groceries.

We have already done more than any other government in the past generation to lower the cost of medication. We are also working with the provinces, territories and other stakeholders to establish the foundational elements of national universal pharmacare.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the Prime Minister made the same claim that the Liberal government has lowered the cost of medication, but that is not what I am hearing. I got a note yesterday from Kathleen in Oakville, and she told me her son filled out a prescription for his epilepsy medication and the cost has doubled. He does not have coverage and he lost his job because of COVID-19. So many Canadians cannot afford the medication they need during this pandemic, and the government has clearly shown it is more interested in protecting the interests of big pharma than people.

Why is it that the Prime Minister continues to choose big pharma over people like Kathleen's son?

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

Mr. Speaker, no Canadian should have to choose between paying for medicine and paying for groceries. That is why our government continues to work hard, in collaboration with the provinces, the territories and other stakeholders, to move forward in establishing the foundational elements of national universal pharmacare. That includes a new Canadian drug agency that would negotiate drug prices on behalf of all Canadians, thereby lowering prices. It includes a national formulary. It also includes a national strategy for high-cost drugs for rare diseases.

Public Safety

[Richard Martel, Conservative, Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the Prime Minister did not seem too concerned about the situation he created in quarantine hotels.

As though it were not bad enough that people have to wait on the phone for days and hotel staff are overwhelmed, now there have been cases of assault. That is very serious and very worrisome. Once again, the government improvised by presenting a policy that it is unable to implement properly. We are asking that the quarantine policy be suspended until the situation is quickly resolved.

What does the Liberal government intend to do?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, Canada has some of the strictest travel restrictions and border measures in the world, but with new variants of concern, we know that we need to take additional measures to protect Canadians against COVID-19.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have clearly indicated that no one should be travelling because it could endanger the traveller and those close to them.

[Richard Martel, Conservative, Chicoutimi—Le Fjord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, it is quite simple: The safety of our citizens is currently at risk. That is more important than anything else.

The Liberals' plan is not working at all. The government has failed on all counts. I am thinking now of the women who were assaulted and I cannot believe that we are letting this slide.

Is the government waiting for more assaults to occur before it decides to act?

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, if the member does not want to help us, he must at least let us do our work.

We have implemented some of the strictest measures in the world because that is what is called for, not because it gives us any pleasure. We are obviously extremely concerned about what happened at the hotel. However, is the member saying that we should forget about the health and safety of Canadians by waiving all the steps of quarantine and letting people enter the country whenever and however they want? Is that what he is saying?

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals' border and and travel restrictions have been chaos from day one. Their rules have real consequences for Canadians’ lives. Shockingly, there was an alleged sexual assault on a vulnerable woman at a federally run quarantine hotel, and a federally contracted official is charged with harassment, extortion and a sexual assault on a woman while enforcing federal rules. The public safety minister is directly responsible.

Will the Liberals shut it down before one more Canadian is harmed?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, as the member knows, border measures are an important component of protecting Canadians from the virus and indeed from the variants of concern. Now is an important time to remind all Canadians that travel is to be avoided.

I will say that these allegations are deeply concerning. They are under investigation. My officials are reviewing all of the processes and protocols, including with our service providers, to ensure the safety of all Canadians. However, I will repeat that the border measures we have in place are there to protect Canadians.

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I did not ask about the charges or the investigations. I asked what the Liberals are going to do. So-called concern and words are not enough. People are unsafe because this abuse happened in a federal facility run by the federal government with federal workers under federal rules. What is galling is that another woman complying with federal rules in the sanctity of her own home was extorted and assaulted by a screening officer sent by the federal government.

Will the Liberals stop this right now?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, I am deeply concerned to hear the member opposite suggest that we stop our border protection measures. In fact, they are some of the strictest in the world for a good purpose: to protect Canadians against the variants of concern, to protect Canadians against COVID-19 entering our borders and to protect families from travellers who have returned and inadvertently infected their loved ones.

These allegations are under investigation. We take them very seriously, but we will continue to apply appropriate measures at the border.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, upon entry into Canada, a woman's passport was seized and she was forced into a taxi without knowing where she would be taken. She was forced into a federally run facility, under a federal duty of care by the Liberal government, and she was sexually assaulted. This is misogyny and a gross violation of her rights.

The Deputy Prime Minister and the health minister have implied that the victim should not have travelled. Were they suggesting that she deserved what happened to her under their duty of care?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, every woman deserves to live a life free of violence and a life of dignity, but I will repeat that these border measures are in place to protect Canadians and will remain in place until such time that science and evidence indicates that it is safe to release them.

The member opposite knows that this matter is under investigation. We take all of these allegations very seriously.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, his attention was unwanted, but he still made his way into her room. He touches her. He took a condom out of his pocket and asked her to sleep with him. She said no; he insists. She was terrified, but no help came. He masturbated in front of her.

If this is making those who are listening uncomfortable, good. Imagine how she felt. After, she was told she could go to the hospital but that she would have to come back to her place of assault. They had removed the security locks from her door.

Would the Minister of Health put herself in this situation, and if not, why is she subjecting others to it?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, the assault of a woman is never okay. These are serious allegations and they are under investigation.

Having said that, the border measures we have in place are there to protect Canadians. We will continue to ensure that Canadians are protected and safe, and we will refine processes with our service providers to ensure that happens.

Public Services and Procurement

[Julie Vignola, Bloc, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

Mr. Speaker, it is costing the federal government $51 billion to shut out Quebec from the shipbuilding strategy.

The Parliamentary Budget Officer has revealed that the cost of the contracts awarded to Irving for 15 frigates has increased from $26 billion to $77 billion. Do my colleagues realize how big a $51-billion overrun is? That is 37 times what the Montreal Canadiens are worth. It is enough to buy the entire NHL and the Nordiques to boot.

When will the government give Davie its fair share of the contracts?

[Steven MacKinnon, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Services and Procurement]

Mr. Speaker, we are obviously committed to continuing with our national shipbuilding strategy so that our Coast Guard and navy can be equipped with ships befitting their place in the world.

Naturally, we have entered into discussions to include Quebec City's Davie shipyard in this strategy, to have it carry out this work and provide our navy and Coast Guard with the ships they deserve.

[Julie Vignola, Bloc, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

Mr. Speaker, it is worrisome.

In addition to the cost overruns, today the Auditor General is condemning the major delays in shipbuilding. She notes that Irving will not deliver its ships until 2030 and that Seaspan is also behind schedule.

These delays will get worse because there is going to be a labour shortage at both shipyards. Boycotting Quebec, as Pierre Elliott Trudeau recommended, costs tens of billions dollars more and takes decades longer.

When will the government completely revamp its national shipbuilding strategy to include Davie Shipyard more significantly?

[Steven MacKinnon, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Services and Procurement]

Mr. Speaker, the answer is that we have already done that.

We did not wait for the Bloc Québécois to include the Davie shipyard. We already did that for the icebreaker contracts that are worth billions of dollars, for the repair and return of frigates and, obviously, for building ferries. As far as the third shipyard is concerned, we are in negotiations to include Davie.

The Davie shipyard could be part of the national shipbuilding strategy, but that is thanks to this government, not the Bloc Québécois.

Indigenous Affairs

[Marilène Gill, Bloc, Manicouagan, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would be embarrassed to say what the Liberal member said about Davie, and I would be even more embarrassed about what the government has been promising indigenous communities since 2015. It promised to fix all the long-term water quality issues by March 31, 2021. Today, the Auditor General confirmed that the government is going to fail. She said: “Indigenous Services Canada did not provide the support necessary to ensure that First Nations communities have ongoing access to safe drinking water.” Half of the remaining problems are more than 10 years old, yet the government has the gall to blame its failure on the pandemic.

When is the government going to step up and take responsibility?

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Indigenous Services]

Mr. Speaker, we welcome the recommendations in the report from the Office of the Auditor General of Canada. I assure the House that we share this commitment and will continue to work around the clock until all of the long-term advisories are lifted.

We have been working directly with first nations communities since 2015 to improve access to drinking water. In spite of the challenges we announced in December, we are confident that we are on the right track to getting the long-term boil water advisories lifted.

The Economy

[Ed Fast, Conservative, Abbotsford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, this week, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a plan to reopen the British economy. Last week, Chancellor Merkel did the same for Germany. Even many of the U.S. states are reopening as people get vaccinated, yet here in Canada it is a different story. The National Post noted that “when you spend more money than anyone else and end up...experiencing death and economic collapse for 30 weeks longer than any other country...it's fair to call that a failure.”

Where is the Prime Minister's plan to reopen our economy?

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

Mr. Speaker, job one for all Canadians and all members of the House is to conquer COVID. That does include, in our government's view, strict border measures and vaccinating Canadians. That is why I am so pleased that 643,000 doses of vaccine are arriving this week alone. Once that job is done, I am confident that Canada will come roaring back, and we are hard at work with provinces, territories, municipalities, businesses and labour to do just that.

[Ed Fast, Conservative, Abbotsford, BC]

Mr. Speaker, promises, promises, but it has been over 700 days since the Prime Minister last tabled a budget. The most important planning document for a federal government is a budget, yet the current government has spent hundreds of billions of dollars without a plan to reopen the economy. Millions of Canadians are falling through the cracks. Tourism, restaurant, energy, airline and health care workers are all being left behind by the Prime Minister.

With Canadians struggling to survive, when will the Prime Minister finally table a plan to open up our economy?

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

Mr. Speaker, it is, in fact, our government's support that is helping Canadians, Canadian people and Canadian businesses, do the right thing and get through COVID. I will say that Canadians would be suffering much more under Conservative economic austerity. Notwithstanding the difficulties imposed by COVID, Canadians are working hard and finding ways to get the job done. In fact, in Q4 of last year, our GDP increased by 1.9%. That is an annualized rate of 7.8%, and almost double the U.S. rate.