Debates of April 28th, 2021

Labour

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, once again, we see that the Bloc is always there to defend the interests of Quebec with fine words. However, the Bloc cannot just settle for fine words in this situation, because we have the option to take clear action.

Will they support the bill to allow operations in the Port of Montreal to resume safely and to establish an impartial mediation and arbitration process that would settle the disputes and lead to a new collective agreement?

Will they help get the port and Quebec's economy back up and running?

National Defence

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

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister cannot keep his story straight. First he said he learned of the allegations of sexual misconduct against General Vance in the media; then he said he just did not know the specific details. Now he is saying it was a #MeToo complaint, even though the senior staff in his office, including the Prime Minister's chief of staff, were using the term “sexual harassment”.

Mr. Speaker, pick your poison. Did Katie Telford lie to the Prime Minister about the severity of the complaint, or has the Prime Minister been misleading Canadians?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I can understand how desperate the Conservatives are to fall back on attacks. Instead of talking about a budget that is there to support Canadians through this issue and instead of talking about the COVID crisis and the science that is going to get us through, they are choosing to neglect what the committee itself has put forward from multiple witnesses, that the details of the allegation were unknown.

The deputy secretary of cabinet testified, “I did not have information [even] about the nature of the complaint or specifics that would have enabled further action.”

The former ombudsman testified at committee that he could not provide any details and took the investigation as far as he could with the complainant's authority.

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

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is forgetting that we have had multiple witnesses, including the ombudsman and including the clerk to the cabinet, all saying that it was sexual misconduct in nature, and they have it in emails. The Prime Minister's chief of staff and his own senior adviser, Elder Marques, exchanged emails in March 2018 discussing sexual harassment allegations against General Vance.

Mr. Marques told the defence committee that even Katie Telford's assistant knew about the allegations; but somehow, the Prime Minister wants us to believe he was left in the dark. Is the Prime Minister telling us that the assistant to his chief of staff was aware of serious allegations against Canada's top soldier, but somehow the Prime Minister of Canada was not?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we put forward a number of processes over the past years to strengthen and encourage the supports for anyone coming forward with allegations of mistreatment, including of harassment, assault, intimidation or anything. We know we need to strengthen that system because still people are not feeling supported as they come forward.

That is why we will continue to work properly and we will continue to respect the wishes of complainants who come forward to remain anonymous. We will also ensure that there are proper processes in place to follow up whenever possible, to ensure there are consequences.

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

Mr. Speaker, that is true unless the person is a woman in uniform in the Canadian Armed Forces. The Prime Minister ignores those complaints.

The Prime Minister claims to be a feminist, claims to believe all women and claims to have zero tolerance for sexual misconduct, but he took zero action and left General Vance in charge of our military and in charge of Operation Honour for years after these allegations surfaced. If the Prime Minister's claims are actually true and he had known General Vance was accused of sexual misconduct in 2018, would he have fired him?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, it is interesting to see the Conservatives continue to complain about a process that they themselves used in 2015. The leader of the official opposition, who was then the minister of veterans affairs, had heard a rumour of misconduct. He told his staff, who told the PMO and the Privy Council Office. The job of politicians and their staff is to ensure that any allegation is given to appropriate authorities. The leader of the official opposition continues to decry a process that he himself undertook.

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

Mr. Speaker, if the Prime Minister had followed our process, he would have done as Stephen Harper did and sat down with General Vance and grilled him personally. We have again, that the Prime Minister fails to recognize that General Vance was in place during these investigations. We are calling for more accountability. The women and men who serve in uniform are calling for more accountability. We know that the Prime Minister's chief of staff lied to the Prime Minister and covered up these serious allegations about our top soldier. The Liberals oversaw a salary increase of $50,000 to General Vance and they extended his contract.

Again, if the Prime Minister's claims are true, and he had known General Vance was accused of sexual misconduct in 2018, would he have fired—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The right hon. Prime Minister.

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, once again, we see the Conservatives simply have no grasp of process or responsibility in this, because it is not the business of politicians to investigate or follow up on a process. It is the job and responsibility of politicians to ensure that independent appropriate authorities follow up responsibly. That is exactly what we ensured in this case when the Minister of National Defence and the ombudsman forwarded that complaint to the appropriate authorities, and they embarked on a process.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, at the end of the day it is very clear the Prime Minister knew about the allegations against General Vance, but what we want to know is what the Prime Minister is going to do now. Right now the message being sent to women in the Canadian Forces is that if they raise a complaint, and even if it makes it to the highest level, nothing gets done. That will send a chilling message to women across this country, and currently sends the message that women are not safe in the Canadian Forces.

What is the Prime Minister going to do? Will he let the minister who allowed this to happen remain? Will he bring in place some accountability? What will the Prime Minister do to protect women in the Canadian Forces?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, anyone who serves in our military and works in any office or workplace across this country deserves to have the supports and resources if they come forward with allegations or concerns, and indeed should be in a workplace free from harassment, intimidation or assault. That is why in budget 2021 we announced over $236 million to eliminate sexual misconduct and gender-based violence in the CAF, including enhancing internal support services to survivors and implementing new external oversight mechanisms. I can inform this House and all Canadians that we will be coming forward very soon with concrete plans on how we deliver exactly that.

Taxation

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, this year has been a very difficult year with the global pandemic of COVID-19, and it has been a very complex tax season for a lot of families. We know that families that depend on benefits to keep food on the table and pay their rent need to file their taxes, but they just need more time. The deadline is fast approaching. It is this Friday.

My direct question for the Prime Minister is: Will he extend the filing deadline for taxes so families can continue to get the support they so desperately need?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, throughout this pandemic CRA has been there to support Canadians, including delivering the CERB, recovery benefits and the wage subsidy. For this tax season we are providing targeted interest relief to Canadians who received COVID-related income supports. They will not be required to pay interest on any outstanding income tax debt for the 2020 tax year until April 30, 2022. We will continue to be there for Canadians who need support, and get Canadians through this crisis.

Health

[Kate Young, Liberal, London West, ON]

Mr. Speaker, it is a harsh reality that cancer is the leading cause of disease-related death in Canadian children. Pediatric cancers are different from adult cancers; for one thing, they grow faster. One of my constituents, Kim Vander Schelde, has watched her daughter Olivia struggle with cancer for most of her life. Kim asked our government to do more for childhood cancer research.

Can the Prime Minister tell us what the budget will do to support pediatric cancer research and help these brave children and their families?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for London West for all her work for her constituents, including Olivia's parents, whom I got to sit down with and have been advocating for a long time for this noble cause that affects far too many parents across the country.

Budget 2021 proposes to provide $30 million over two years to the Canadian Institutes of Health Research to fund pediatric cancer research that can lead to better outcomes and healthier lives for these young patients. This funding will support promising research projects with the greatest potential for fighting pediatric cancers.

I thank everyone who has advocated for this.

National Defence

[Michael Barrett, Conservative, Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, ON]

Mr. Speaker, we have seen the Prime Minister try to dodge answering questions today. That is pretty consistent, because we have heard from him that he does not like the facts, and when he hears the facts on CNN or sees them in The Globe and Mail, Postmedia or in Global News reporting, he calls it fake news.

If Canadians are expected to believe the Prime Minister that he did not actually know, here is a very simple question: If the Prime Minister had been made aware of the allegations of sexual misconduct by General Vance, would he have fired him?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, it is incredibly important that there be a system and a set of resources for anyone who comes forward with allegations of misconduct or sexual harassment and it is incredibly important that processes be followed in that situation. When the ombudsman came forward with allegations, the defence minister ensured that those allegations were directed to the appropriate authorities, who had the capacity to follow up on a process.

It is important that women be believed and it is important that there be a process, and that is what we will always ensure.

[Michael Barrett, Conservative, Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the ombudsman was crystal clear with the defence minister that the allegations were about sexual misconduct perpetrated by the chief of the defence staff on one of his subordinates. That information was given to the Prime Minister's Office and he failed to act. We hear a lot about ministerial accountability from the government. Now we are hearing about systems that it might implement someday, three years after this complaint was made and after it gave him a raise, extended the contract and then gave a high-five to the perpetrator on his way out the door.

Who is the Prime Minister going to hold accountable? Who is he going to fire?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, it is incredibly important that there be a proper process in all of these situations. Yes, we need to create the support and the resources for anyone who comes forward, who has the courage to come forward and push back against a terrible, toxic culture that has gone on for far too long in many institutions, including the Canadian Armed Forces, but we also need to ensure that process can follow through. In this case, the ombudsman was unable to provide further information to the people responsible for the process.

[Michael Barrett, Conservative, Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, ON]

Mr. Speaker, there was a process and it was exercised by the victim. She brought her complaints forward and the Prime Minister failed her. He failed to act. His office was made aware exactly of these allegations, that they were sexual in nature, and then he promoted the perpetrator, he extended his contract, he gave him a raise and no action was taken.

If the Prime Minister is to be believed and that he did not know, that means that the Minister of National Defence or his chief of staff perpetrated a cover-up. Who is he going to fire?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Again, Mr. Speaker, this is the same process that was used by the then Conservative government in 2015. The leader of the official opposition heard a rumour of misconduct, told his staff, who told PMO and the Privy Council Office. It is the job of politicians and their staff to ensure any allegation is given to the appropriate authorities. Conservatives put forward that process in the same way that we did. The difference is they ended up appointing the individual chief of the defence staff.

[Michael Barrett, Conservative, Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes, ON]

Mr. Speaker, let us talk about leadership. Prime Minister Harper heard a rumour, had the head of CSIS investigate it and then had the courage to sit down, look the general in the eye and ask him questions about it. What did the Prime Minister do? He hid behind his chief of staff and the Minister of National Defence. He did nothing. The difference between Prime Minister Harper and the current Prime Minister, among many, is Prime Minister Harper was presented with the rumour and the Liberal Prime Minister was presented with evidence and did nothing.

Who is he going to fire for this failure to these women in the Canadian Forces?

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, Prime Minister Harper was presented with a rumour and still appointed him.

The process involved in politicians checking with their buddies, checking with individuals to see whether they should move forward or not is not a process at all. It actually proves the entire point, that the system that we have right now is inadequate to support women and men who come forward with serious allegations regarding misconduct in the military. That is why we are moving forward with much stronger measures to change the culture in the military and support every survivor.

Labour

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

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is speaking to us with a sudden and unexpected passion for Quebec's interests.

Where was his passion for the will of Quebec when Quebec was calling for health care transfers in the budget?

Where was his passion for the will of Quebec when seniors between the ages of 65 and 75 got nothing?

We are giving him the solution. We made the phone calls that he did not make, and we found the solution to get the Port of Montreal back up and running tomorrow morning. He just has to implement it.

Why does he not do that?