Debates of May 27th, 2021

Official Languages

[Mélanie Joly, Liberal, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to reassure my colleague. It goes without saying that, for us, protecting the French fact in Quebec and across Canada is extremely important.

In 2006, under a former Conservative government, the House also recognized that Quebeckers form a nation within a united Canada.

Of course, we respect the will of the Quebec government in this matter. At the same time, we will act in accordance with our own jurisdiction not only to protect French in Quebec and across Canada, but also to protect linguistic minorities, including the anglophone community in Quebec.

[Christine Normandin, Bloc, Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the minister is being cautious and evasive in her answer, but I would like to reassure her that this is not an ambush. We are seeking a consensus.

I am simply asking her whether she agrees that the Canadian Constitution exists and, if so, whether it contains a section 45 that allows Quebec and the provinces to amend their respective constitutions.

I am then asking her whether she agrees that Quebec has decided to rely on this section to include in the legislation the existence of the Quebec nation and its common and official language, French.

Does the minister agree on these two facts?

[Mélanie Joly, Liberal, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages]

Mr. Speaker, it is always a pleasure to see my colleague in the Bloc Québécois recognize that the Canadian Constitution exists. I would like to thank her for saying so in the House.

Of course, we will work together to protect the French fact in Quebec, because French is Quebec’s common and official language, as well as the fact that Quebeckers form a nation within a united Canada.

That is a fact. Parliament recognized that fact in 2006 and, of course, we will work with the Quebec government on these issues while protecting the linguistic minority in Quebec. I have had several conversations about this with my counterpart, Simon Jolin-Barrette.

Financial Institutions

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the biggest Canadian banks have made huge profits. During this pandemic, they have doubled or even quadrupled their profits.

While people are having trouble making ends meet, banks have made huge profits—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

I must interrupt the member. Someone has forgotten to mute their microphone.

I now invite the member to repeat his question.

The member for Burnaby South.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the biggest Canadian banks have made huge profits. During this pandemic, they have doubled or even quadrupled their profits.

While people are having trouble making ends meet, banks have made huge profits. Now, they are increasing banking fees in the middle of a pandemic. Worse still, the Liberal government has the power to stop them, but it is letting them do as they please.

Why is the Prime Minister refusing to stop banks from gouging their customers?

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his question.

I want to emphasize that our government agrees that all Canadians must do their part, especially now during the economic crisis caused by COVID-19.

That is why our budget increases taxes on luxury vehicles, on vacant property owned by non-Canadians and non-residents, and on large digital service providers. In addition, our budget includes measures to combat tax evasion.

[Jagmeet Singh, NDP, Burnaby South, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I am talking about banks in Canada that have doubled or quadrupled their profits in a pandemic and in this pandemic are increasing bank fees. They are gouging Canadians. What is worse is that the Liberal government has the power to stop them.

My question very specifically is this. Why is the Prime Minister allowing banks to gouge Canadians in a pandemic?

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

Mr. Speaker, let me just underscore that our government absolutely believes that, particularly now during the pandemic and the economic pain caused by it, everyone in Canada needs to pay their fair share. That is why we are introducing in this budget a luxury tax, we are introducing a tax on digital service providers and we are taking unprecedented steps to fight tax evasion and tax avoidance.

Public Services and Procurement

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

Mr. Speaker, the government is still refusing to release the procurement contract documents requested by the Standing Committee on Health.

So far it has provided us with less than 1% of the required documents. Meanwhile, those documents contain deeply troubling information about patronage, attempts to cover up shortages, and the general mismanagement of resources during one of the most critical times of the pandemic.

Why does the government continue to withhold information requested by the committee?

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

Mr. Speaker, the reality is that we are working very hard to comply with the motion and the parliamentary process. We have disclosed millions of dollars' worth of contracts on our website and we will continue to provide documentation as required. We have indeed turned over thousands of pages of documentation to the House of Commons in this regard. We will continue to work hard to comply with our parliamentary obligations while bringing vaccines to Canada for all Canadians.

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

Mr. Speaker, the Liberals are playing a dangerous game. They even tried to hide their risky practices by asking agencies to focus only on promoting the government's success stories.

The Auditor General reported that a number of suppliers received funds in advance. However, the Liberal government did not look into the financial situation of half of these suppliers.

Why did the government gamble with Canadians' money?

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

Mr. Speaker, I take issue with those comments. I am wondering if the hon. member read the report of the Office of the Attorney General, because what it stated is that PSPC managed risks when entering into its contracts in a very competitive global environment and by managing those risks was able to secure 2.7 billion items of PPE for our frontline health care workers. We will not stop standing up for Canadians and we will continue to work hard for them during this—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Chicoutimi—Le Fjord.

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

Mr. Speaker, the government's mistakes have already caused some disasters.

First, it paid Tango Communications Marketing $80 million for faulty masks.

Second, the cabinet knowingly sent the provinces expired medical supplies.

Then, the Liberal government paid hundreds of millions of dollars to presumed friends of the party.

Did the Liberal government take advantage of the urgency of the pandemic to benefit its friends, at the expense of Canadians' health?

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

Mr. Speaker, that categorization of our contracting process is absolutely false. The officials at PSPC undertook checks relating to all suppliers before entering into contracts with them.

In regard to the one contract that resulted in defective product, we have filed a statement of claim and will be seeking recompense for the defective product that was provided because we will stand up for Canadian taxpayers and Canadian taxpayers' money every single step of the way while bringing in PPE and vaccines for all Canadians.

Health

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

Mr. Speaker, Switch Health, the company the Liberals contracted to do post-arrival PCR testing for international travel, reported that a whopping one in six tests took longer than the 14-day quarantine to complete.

Initially, these tests were conducted on the 10th day after a traveller returned to Canada, but after it was clear Switch Health could not turn around these PCR test results in four days, the Liberals changed the law so the test would happen on day eight.

Why did the minister unilaterally change the testing day instead of the company that could not do the job?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, every step of the way the measures at the border have been guided through the lens of public health, science and evidence, and we will continue to do that. It is our commitment to Canadians to reduce importations, to test travellers to make sure travellers are protected and the communities they are returning to are protected as well.

We will continue to rely on science and evidence. Unlike the member opposite, we understand it evolves. This is a new virus. There are new understandings about the virus and how best to protect Canadians against the virus every single day. I am on top of it. I work with my officials. I will continue to provide that guidance to Canadians.

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

Mr. Speaker, what science did the minister use to change the testing date from day 10 to day eight?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, I am sure the member opposite is aware we have a very fine team of scientists and researchers who are advising the Government of Canada, both from the Public Health Agency of Canada and through a number of independent panels. I will tell the member opposite we will continue to rely on the science and evidence as it evolves to inform our stance not just on the border but on how we can best protect Canadians from COVID-19. This is the way forward. Canadians expect us to do this work for them.

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

Mr. Speaker, thousands of doses of vaccines in Detroit are set to expire next week. Shamefully content to let these doses go in the garbage, the Minister of Health, Stephen Lucas and Iain Stewart have blocked every effort of the mayor of Windsor to bring these vaccines into Canada. The mayor is now preparing to close the Windsor Detroit Tunnel to allow his residents to walk to the border line and receive a vaccine from an American vaccinator standing on the U.S. side of the border.

Will the Liberals finally help border communities or are they content to allow Pfizer vaccines to be thrown in the garbage?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, let me just talk for a moment about the number of vaccines we have managed to procure for Canada. In fact, over 26.1 million were shipped to Canada, and in Ontario, over 10 million were delivered and eight and a half million were administered. There are enough vaccines in Canada for Canadians.

I will also point out the United States has deemed vaccination is not an essential reason to cross the border. We are working very closely with our American counterparts to manage travel at the border, and indeed, we encourage the mayor to refocus his efforts to the Premier of Ontario for the doses he requires.

Canadian Heritage

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the National Assembly of Quebec is calling on Parliament to pass Bill C-10. Quebec's cultural sector is calling on Parliament to pass Bill C-10. The Bloc Québécois is telling the government that it will do everything it can to get Bill C-10 passed.

We do this is in the spirit of collaboration, but the government does not seem to be in any hurry. It does not seem to be taking this very seriously, and I must admit that we are concerned. What is the government doing to ensure that the modernization of the Broadcasting Act gets passed?

[Steven Guilbeault, Liberal, Minister of Canadian Heritage]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for the question.

We have been working hard for months to get Bill C-10 passed. We have defended it at every forum across the country, while the Conservative Party has been fearmongering by spreading misinformation.

We have worked with the cultural sector. There is a petition that has been signed by thousands of artists in support of the bill. We will continue to do what we can to get the bill passed as soon as possible.

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, it is easy to blame that on the Conservatives, but the Conservatives are not the ones who put the bill on the back burner for months before bringing it forward. The Conservatives are not the ones who dragged their feet when it came time to call ministers to testify in committee.

The Minister of Canadian Heritage himself said that the cultural industry is losing millions of dollars a month because Bill C-10 has not been passed. This is urgent. What is the government actually doing to ensure that Bill C-10 is passed quickly?