Debates of March 26th, 2021

National Defence

[Anita Vandenbeld, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence]

Madam Speaker, as we have said, the minister followed the proper processes.

When the former ombudsman came to the minister, he brought the matter to the Privy Council Office, who reached out to the former ombudsman the very next day to obtain the information to start an investigation, but that information was not provided.

The former national security adviser was not part of that process, because if the Conservatives had actually read the entire email, he said that this was not necessarily unusual, particularly if PCO senior personnel were not able to obtain information that would have allowed and warranted the pursuit of an investigation.

Public Safety

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Madam Speaker, the Auditor General says the Liberals failed and put Canadians' well-being, safety and the economy at risk.

They delayed closing the borders when they should have, but were still unprepared. The border is in chaos. Agents cannot keep up with changes. The public safety minister still has not delivered training that he promised.

This week the Liberals voted against our call for a data-driven plan to get life and paycheques back to normal. How can Canada reopen safely with this ongoing incompetence and uncertainty?

[Joël Lightbound, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Madam Speaker, I would like to begin by thanking the Auditor General for her report. The Canada Border Services Agency, or CBSA, accepts the Auditor General's recommendations and will take concerted action to implement them. The CBSA will continue to examine the findings and recommendations in the Auditor General's report and use them to guide its future activities.

I can assure the opposition member that a number of mechanisms have been put in place to ensure that border services officers have all of the information they need to do their job properly in these unprecedented circumstances.

[Shannon Stubbs, Conservative, Lakeland, AB]

Madam Speaker, the U.S.-Canada border moves $2 billion a day in goods that are crucial to Canada's economy.

For these essential workers, it is a gamble. They are told they are exempt by public health and overturned by border agents, and could even get a $3,000 fine while the NHL and elites get special treatment. An Ontarian, who has crossed between auto plants for 20 years, says it depends on which customs agent they ask.

I wrote asking for clear answers, but the public safety and health ministers cannot decide who is charge.

The U.S. and U.K. have recovery plans. Where is Canada's plan to secure our future?

[Joël Lightbound, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness]

Madam Speaker, I thank the hon. member for that important question.

I would remind the House that in response to the pandemic and the closure of the Canada-U.S. border, for example for non-essential travel, the CBSA has expanded its support to front-line border services officers beyond what is required by current operational bulletins and guidelines. Officers now have direct access to support services 24 hours a day.

To ensure that officers understand all the border measures in place, the CBSA has also held information sessions to explain the order clearly so that all relevant information is available to officers.

Infrastructure and Communities

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Madam Speaker, in a scathing report yesterday, the Auditor General confirmed what the Parliamentary Budget Officer has been saying all along: The Liberal government has no idea what it is doing when it comes to infrastructure. It let $9 billion lapse and it does not have basic accountability measures in place. It has no idea if its plan is even working. This is bad news for communities looking forward to new, important projects and the billions of dollars in lost projects due to lapsed funds is bad news for workers who have missed out on three construction seasons.

Why should Canadians believe that the Liberal government will get anything built in the future when it cannot do it now?

[Catherine McKenna, Liberal, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities]

Madam Speaker, through the investing in Canada plan, we committed over $180 billion over 12 years to infrastructure that benefits Canadians: from public transit to trading ports, broadband networks to energy systems and community services to natural spaces. Five years into the plan, we have already invested $81 billion in over 67,000 projects, with 90% of them completed or under way.

My goal has always been to ensure multiple benefits from every dollar spent. That means jobs and growing the economy. That means more inclusive communities and that also means climate change. I certainly hope the party opposite supports that.

[Andrew Scheer, Conservative, Regina—Qu'Appelle, SK]

Madam Speaker, the Auditor General found that half of the Liberal government's $188-billion program, over $90 billion, actually comes from the previous Conservative government's plan. The Liberals are putting their name on our homework. They cannot even track the money they have spent, and 20% of the department's funds are not even getting out the door. That is $9 billion shuffled around the department. Construction workers were counting on those funds to get their jobs back.

Can the minister explain why she allowed $9 billion to get lost in her own department instead of getting shovels in the ground?

[Catherine McKenna, Liberal, Minister of Infrastructure and Communities]

Madam Speaker, I am pleased to tell the member opposite that we have been able to approve, through my department alone, close to 2,000 projects over the past year. That is getting shovels in the ground. That is creating jobs. That is getting growth, tackling climate change and building more inclusive communities.

We can talk to any mayor or city counsellor across the country to learn how these projects are improving lives in their communities, from Canadian-made electric buses in Brampton to the new McLoughlin Point Wastewater Treatment Plant on Vancouver Island.

What Canadians want to know about is this. During the last election the Conservative Party said it was going to cut infrastructure spending. Will it do that again?

Canadian Heritage

[Caroline Desbiens, Bloc, Beauport—Côte-de-Beaupré—Île d’Orléans—Charlevoix, QC]

Madam Speaker, today Quebec is lifting the lockdown on performing arts. This is our vaccine against despair. Performance venues can reopen, even in red zones.

The Bloc Québécois is therefore making six urgent proposals to ensure predictability and security for the cultural sector. Ottawa needs to create a stimulus fund to guarantee the viability of reopening performance venues and resuming cultural events. Creators need direct support in order to create things to present on stage. Ottawa must help Quebec City make up for the various financial losses experienced in the creative sector because of distancing, including at the box office.

We are reaching out to the minister. What is he going to do?

[Julie Dabrusin, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for her question.

We have invested in and are providing support to the performing arts, because we recognize how important they are. We recently provided an additional $181 million in ongoing support.

We know this is important, and we are here for the performing arts.

[Caroline Desbiens, Bloc, Beauport—Côte-de-Beaupré—Île d’Orléans—Charlevoix, QC]

Madam Speaker, that is not enough. We know that the Canada recovery benefit, or the CRB, does not work for more than 40% of artists.

Ottawa has to support the recovery of the arts. In the meantime, 40% of artists and artisans are considering changing their career or are suffering a major depression. Festivals and events need support for their lost revenue. Federal assistance programs need to be more flexible. Spectators need to be encouraged through tax credits and safer health protocols. Attendance needs to be encouraged. Concert halls are bravely reopening in a climate of uncertainty. The Bloc Québécois is reaching out.

What is the minister—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, NDP, Carol Hughes]

The hon. parliamentary secretary.

[Julie Dabrusin, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Madam Speaker, this year far too many workers in Canada's cultural sector have been denied their work, their passion and the stability they need to create and interact with their audience.

We want them to know that their government understands the extent of their challenges and knows that ongoing support is necessary. We have $181.5 million in funding. We are acting in the interest of artists and workers in Canada's cultural sector. We will continue to work with them to address the job losses in the sector and stimulate creativity.

COVID-19 Emergency Response

[Tony Baldinelli, Conservative, Niagara Falls, ON]

Madam Speaker, earlier this week, the coalition of hardest hit announced that 60% of Canada's hardest hit businesses will not make it to the end of the year if they do not receive extended support in the upcoming April federal budget. The coalition is asking for certainty from the federal government by way of extending both the Canadian emergency wage subsidy and the Canadian emergency rent subsidy to the end of this calendar year.

Will the government commit to these critical measures now, or will these businesses be forced to continue to wait for the clarity and certainty they so badly need?

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and to the Minister of Middle Class Prosperity and Associate Minister of Finance]

Madam Speaker, from the outset of this pandemic we understood that COVID-19 created immense costs for businesses, particularly in some of the sectors that were hardest hit. That is why we moved quickly to establish support programs that would help them keep the doors open and help their workers keep food on the table.

We recently announced that we were extending some of these emergency support programs, such as the wage subsidy, to the end of June, and we will continue to be there for businesses, no matter what it takes and as long as it takes, to see them through this pandemic.

Employment

[Richard Lehoux, Conservative, Beauce, QC]

Madam Speaker, it is all well and good to talk about economic recovery, but to make it happen we will have to find a solution to the labour shortage in certain regions of the country.

How can our entrepreneurs produce, build and innovate if they do not have the labour needed to fulfill their orders? When will the government reply to the many employers in Beauce who have been waiting for months to let the foreign workers they recruited themselves enter the country? What is it doing to facilitate the inter-regional movement of workers in Canada to meet the needs in regions such as Beauce?

[Irek Kusmierczyk, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Employment]

Madam Speaker, our government recognizes the integral role foreign workers play in Canada's agriculture and seafood sectors. We have streamlined requirements and introduced priority processing for applications and work permits in these sectors. We have also launched a temporary measure that allows workers already in Canada to start a new job while their permanent application is being processed.

While COVID-19 has presented unique challenges to Canada's job market, we continue to support workers, employers and our provincial partners to ensure the continued strength of Canada's food sector and supply chain.

Telecommunications

[Michael Kram, Conservative, Regina—Wascana, SK]

Madam Speaker, SaskTel is the largest phone company and Internet service provider in the province of Saskatchewan. Last week, the Government of Saskatchewan announced that this Crown corporation will not be using Huawei to develop the province's 5G network. Instead, SaskTel has decided to go with Samsung, a South Korean firm.

If the provincial government of Saskatchewan can say no to Huawei, then why can this government not do so?

[William Amos, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation]

Madam Speaker, our government is going to continue to ensure that Canadian networks are kept safe and secure. We have been saying this for months. Canadians can be assured that we are not going to compromise on matters of national security, and while we are never going to comment on specific companies, an examination of the emerging 5G technology and associated security and economic considerations is under way.

We are going to keep relying on our experts. We are going to keep relying on our international considerations with our allies and we are going to make the best decisions for Canadians in due course.

Sport

[Tom Kmiec, Conservative, Calgary Shepard, AB]

Madam Speaker, I wrote to the Minister of Canadian Heritage four months ago regarding substantiated claims of harassment, verbal abuse and intolerance levied against the Canada Artistic Swimming team's coaching staff by athletes on the team, including Cassie, an athlete and a constituent. It has been four months, and there is no answer. No coaches have been fired and there have been no apologies to the athletes, but Cassie deserves an answer.

The Artistic Swimming NSO is funded by Sport Canada, so what is the heritage minister going to do to fix this awful situation?

[Adam van Koeverden, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Diversity and Inclusion and Youth and to the Minister of Canadian Heritage (Sport)]

Madam Speaker, I have been in touch with athletes and I have been in touch with officials, and we understand that Artistic Swimming has taken measures to address these complaints. We are also working very hard on an independent safe sport mechanism, which will be implemented in the coming weeks and months.

Sport Canada has had the opportunity to speak with Canada Artistic Swimming regarding these allegations, and the government is working hard with the sport community to establish these mechanisms as quickly as possible.

International Development

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Madam Speaker, under the Liberal government, Canada is not back. Canada has dropped to 75th place in the list of countries contributing to peacekeeping efforts. Canada's official development assistance is lower than it was under Stephen Harper's Conservatives. Perhaps most shocking of all is that today, on the sixth anniversary of the conflict in Yemen, a humanitarian crisis that has been described as the worst place on earth, Canada continues to sell arms to Saudi Arabia.

Why is the government continuing to fuel one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of International Development]

Madam Speaker, I had the honour of participating in the pledging conference for Yemen a couple of weeks ago, and Canada actually increased its humanitarian assistance.

With respect to official development assistance, we increased it by over $1.7 billion last year alone, and we have been stepping up in the fight when it comes to COVID-19. We are responding to humanitarian needs around the world, including in Yemen, and we will continue to do so.

COVID-19 Emergency Response

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

Madam Speaker, recently media coverage has revealed that several hate-based anti-LGBTQIA2S+ and 45 anti-choice groups have received the Canada emergency wage subsidy. In 2018, the Prime Minister stated that organizations with an explicit goal of reversing a woman's right to choose would not qualify for any federal funding.

Will the government revoke funding to groups with goals that are harmful to Canadians?