Debates of June 3rd, 2021

Veterans Affairs

[Rachel Blaney, NDP, North Island—Powell River, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Veterans Ombud's report released yesterday says that VAC has been telling survivors of military sexual trauma to get help somewhere else. For too long this government has been blocking the voices of women in the military. Women veterans who experience this trauma have been asking VAC for years to fund a peer support program to share their stories in a safe place and begin to heal. Veterans should not have to keep settling for less.

Will the minister step up and implement a peer support program for survivors?

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence]

Mr. Speaker, we thank the Veterans Ombud for her report and agree with her recommendations. We know how important peer support can be for survivors and in budget 2021, we committed to implementing a dedicated program for veterans and members of the Canadian Armed Forces. It is our responsibility to be there for those who are harmed in the service of our country, and we will continue to work to ensure that survivors of military sexual trauma receive the support they need.

Indigenous Affairs

[Lenore Zann, Liberal, Cumberland—Colchester, NS]

Mr. Speaker, two years ago today, the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls released 231 calls for justice and called for the federal, provincial, territorial and indigenous governments to work together to build a national action plan to end the ongoing national tragedy and shame of missing and murdered indigenous women, girls and two-spirit LGBTQQIA+ people. They all have the right to live and be respected and valued in their communities.

Can the Minister of Indigenous Services please update the House on our government’s progress on co-developing this—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. minister.

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Indigenous Services]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member opposite for her advocacy and deep personal commitment to these matters.

Earlier today, contributing partners from across Canada came together to release the national action plan and the federal pathway to addressing the ongoing tragedy. The federal pathway is a key contribution to the national action plan that will lead to real, lasting and widespread change. By working with over 100 indigenous women and 2SLGBTQIA+ people including indigenous, provincial and territorial partners, we now have a comprehensive plan to put in place concrete measures and the accountability framework that will truly keep indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQIA+ people safe.

Health

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

Mr. Speaker, in spite of repeated requests, the Liberals have never produced evidence to show that their hotel quarantine program stops the spread of COVID over other measures. However, there is evidence of COVID-19 outbreaks at these facilities and there is also evidence of sexual assaults occurring there. Now the government's own expert panel of scientists has called on the Liberals to scrap the program, but instead today the Liberals are inexplicably doubling down on it.

Will the Liberals let the hotel quarantine program expire on June 21?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, let me start by giving my thanks to immunizers and Canadians from coast to coast to coast, because today Canada is leading the G7 in the number of vaccines administered. This is a good news story for Canada. In fact, it is a story of team Canada.

I want to say that we will make sure that whatever we do next on the border will be through the lens of science and evidence, and in full partnership with provinces and territories.

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

Mr. Speaker, in early 2020 this health minister did not listen to science. She said that border measures did not work and subsequently refused to close the border when it really mattered. She is continuing the trend of not making science-based decisions today and that is really unfortunate. The government's own expert panel of scientists, with a report full of science, is calling on the government to immediately scrap the hotel quarantine program in favour of other measures.

Will the minister finally listen to science and let the hotel quarantine program expire on June 21?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, yet again, we see the member opposite fail to recognize that science evolves, that it is a new virus and that it is a global pandemic the likes of which we have not seen in 100 years. In fact, that is exactly what we have been doing. We have been following the advice of public health scientists and researchers. That is why we are in the position we are in today. I want to thank all of the immunizers across the country and Canadians who have stepped up in historic ways to get vaccinated. We are leading the G7. Over 28.6 million vaccines have been delivered to provinces and territories.

We can see the finish line.

Housing

[Kenny Chiu, Conservative, Steveston—Richmond East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister wondered how a young family could afford a home, yet the Liberals' only solution to this appears to be slapping a 1% tax on foreign home ownership. I would like to point out that in my home of Richmond, in the past year during the pandemic travel ban, benchmark house prices shot up by over 22%, edging close to $2 million.

Will the government put aside its sound bites and red herrings and detail a meaningful solution to the housing crisis?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, every Canadian deserves a safe and affordable place to call home and, as the numbers show in the national housing strategy report tabled this week, we have helped over 200,000 families get the housing they need through building new homes, repairing existing ones and providing affordability support. Since 2015, our government has supported the creation of over 100,000 new units and repaired over 300,000 more across the country.

It is very rich for the party opposite to talk about affordable housing, when it did not do anything in its almost nine years in power.

[Kenny Chiu, Conservative, Steveston—Richmond East, BC]

Mr. Speaker, young Canadians are struggling to afford homes. The first-time home buyer incentive is inadequate, and publicly the Prime Minister ignorantly underestimates the housing costs in the Greater Vancouver Area. Perhaps that is why budget 2021 proposes nothing useful for young families.

Will the government finally admit how out of touch it is with Canadian needs and detail an effective solution to the housing crisis immediately?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, it is very rich for the party opposite to talk about this issue. It provided no leadership and no serious investments in housing. We introduced the national housing strategy because we believe every Canadian deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. As part of that strategy, we introduced the first-time home buyer incentive, which will help many middle-class families achieve the dream of home ownership. We are also expanding the first-time home buyer incentive to enhance eligibility in Toronto, Vancouver, Victoria and the greater regions of those areas by raising the qualifying income threshold from $120,000 to $150,000 in household income. The party opposite simply has no credibility when it comes to affordable housing. It can run, but it cannot hide.

Justice

[Rhéal Fortin, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the judicial appointment process is broken.

Everyone knows that the Liberals screen candidates for good donors. The Prime Minister's Office, cabinet, MPs, the entire Liberal family talk to one another to ensure that Liberal judges are chosen. However, I am convinced that even they would say that it is dangerous to insert partisanship into the justice system.

Will the government agree to create a committee to study the judicial appointment process to ensure that it is impartial?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Minister of Justice]

Mr. Speaker, our government believes that Canadians' confidence in our justice system is enhanced by a transparent and accountable selection process.

This process identifies candidates that reflect Canada's diversity. Since 2016, we have appointed quality judges whose diversity reflects that of Canada.

I am proud of the appointments that we have made. I can assure my hon. colleague that the process is independent and focuses on quality and diversity.

[Rhéal Fortin, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we are not questioning the quality of the appointments. That is not the issue.

We are proposing that a committee examine the appointment process, and the Liberals are already panicking. If the judicial appointment process is so great, why are they afraid to let a committee examine it?

If the process is truly independent, what have they got to lose if some members and experts confirm that? If it is untrue that they have set up a system to ensure their Liberal cronies get judicial appointments, what are they afraid of?

We want an impartial system. Can we have fair justice?

[David Lametti, Liberal, Minister of Justice]

Mr. Speaker, we have a just and impartial system. We implemented it in 2016 in response to the well-deserved criticism that had been levelled at the previous Conservative government.

We have advisory committees working very hard across Canada reviewing the candidates. Half of the people do not get past this stage, which is completely independent of politics.

We put a system in place in 2016 that works very well, and I am very proud of the results.

Agriculture and Agri-food

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

Mr. Speaker, the agriculture minister said that support for the 14-day quarantine for foreign agricultural workers was “an emergency program, not a compensation program.”

However, it expires August 31, even though farm workers will continue to arrive in Canada for the fall harvest and farmers will continue to incur expenses. Ending the program before quarantine restrictions are lifted is premature and completely unacceptable.

Either the minister thinks the emergency is over, or the government just does not care about food sovereignty. Which is it?

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food]

Mr. Speaker, our government is obviously very committed to supporting our agricultural producers and agribusinesses, because our food security depends on them.

We have created a wide range of programs to help them, including everything from making their workplaces and workers' residences safe, to helping them bring in foreign workers.

The program that helps cover some of the costs associated with quarantine will indeed come to an end at the end of August. It is an emergency program, not a compensation program.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship

[Richard Lehoux, Conservative, Beauce, QC]

Mr. Speaker, summer is right around the corner, and with it come seasonal jobs.

Two businesses in my riding, Groupe Ferti and Émondage Pouliot, are already on the verge of losing valuable contracts because of a labour shortage. Their files have been gathering dust at the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada office for quite a while. Time is running out and the deadlines are getting tighter.

The immigration minister has announced that the processing of files will be improved in the coming years, but what is being done for right now?

Are we telling those businesses to cancel the contracts, to go back on their word? Is that really the message the minister wants to send?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, we are on track to meet the targets set by Quebec in 2021.

Since September 1, 2020, more than 60,000 temporary foreign workers have arrived in Canada to support the economy. In April alone, more than 11,500 temporary foreign workers arrived. More than 8,000 other workers are ready to travel and more than 3,000 applications are being processed.

In 2021, we keep exceeding our targets and I will continue to work with my colleague on this case.

Air Transportation

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

Mr. Speaker, last month the government released the details of its financial aid program for this country's struggling airports. The Regina International Airport will receive approximately $2.6 million. That is enough to keep it operational for about two months. Meanwhile, the government's bailout for Air Canada included $10 million for executive bonuses.

Why are Air Canada's executives more important to the government than the entire Regina International Airport?

[Omar Alghabra, Liberal, Minister of Transport]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for his question, but I will take a moment to correct him. He is comparing apples and oranges.

I will repeat what the Prime Minister said yesterday. We were disappointed by the decision that Air Canada has taken to pay executive compensation prior to the signing of the agreement. Our agreement ensures that there is a limit on executive compensation.

Secondly, I am really happy to announce to Canadians that we are standing by airports and providing support at a time where we know the pandemic has had a significant impact on their operations.

Persons with Disabilities

[Brenda Shanahan, Liberal, Châteauguay—Lacolle, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this week is National AccessAbility Week. It is an opportunity to celebrate the valuable contributions of Canadians with disabilities and to recognize the efforts of individuals from communities and organizations who are actively working to eliminate obstacles to accessibility and inclusion.

Can the minister inform the House about how budget 2021 supports Canadians with disabilities and helps builds an inclusive Canada?

[Carla Qualtrough, Liberal, Minister of Employment]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Châteauguay—Lacolle for her advocacy for people with disabilities. This week is indeed National AccessAbility Week.

We have accomplished more than any other government for inclusion and accessibility. Budget 2020-21 builds on our pioneering work by continuing to implement our “Nothing without us” plan.

We are investing in accessible communities, inclusive child care, students with disabilities, training opportunities and job creation for Canadians with disabilities, and we are expanding eligibility for the disability tax credit.

We are moving forward with the first-ever disability inclusion action plan to better support persons with disabilities.