Debates of Jan. 31st, 2022

Health

[Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay, Bloc, Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot, QC]

Mr. Speaker, people are worn out by COVID‑19. We are all fed up with omicron, but we cannot give up yet. What we need now is one big push to end the pandemic once and for all. What omicron showed us is that the pandemic will not be over and done with until the whole world is vaccinated. Global vaccination is the only way out of this crisis.

What is the government doing to speed up vaccination in other countries so that we never have to spend another winter in lockdown?

[Jean-Yves Duclos, Liberal, Minister of Health]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for raising that important question.

He is absolutely right. COVID‑19 will not be over anywhere until it is over everywhere. That is why, from day one of the COVID‑19 crisis, Canada was one of the leading instigators behind COVAX, which enabled us early on to make rapid investments not only in vaccine development, but also in delivering and supporting the delivery of tens of millions of vaccine doses. That was the right thing to do.

[Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay, Bloc, Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot, QC]

Mr. Speaker, people are going out and getting their third doses. They are doing their part.

What people want to hear is not that there are enough vaccines for a possible fourth dose. What they want to hear is that the pandemic is over. For that to happen, everyone around the world needs to be vaccinated. Two weeks ago, I heard the government celebrate the fact that there were one billion doses in the COVAX program, but there are more than three billion people in the world who still have not had their first dose.

Does the government understand that half measures no longer cut it?

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Minister of International Development and Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, as my hon. colleague mentioned, the COVID-19 pandemic does not recognize borders and will only be overcome through coordinated global action. This is why Canada stepped up. We are committed to donating the equivalent of at least 200 million COVID-19 vaccines. We are committed to supporting equitable global access to COVID-19 vaccines. This includes therapeutics and diagnostics as well.

[Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay, Bloc, Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot, QC]

Mr. Speaker, it is pretty clear that time is running out.

If 70% of the world's population is not vaccinated within the next six months, there could be a new wave. We could end up in another crisis. Time is of the essence. Last month, the vice president of human development at the World Bank said: “At this stage, it is not obvious that this objective will be achieved”.

Global vaccination is headed for failure. What is Canada doing right now to right the ship and ensure that we end this pandemic for good?

I would like the answer to that, please.

[Harjit S. Sajjan, Liberal, Minister of International Development and Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, as we stated, Canada is stepping up to provide vaccines for the global community. That is why our government committed $2.6 billion to the COVID-19 response, which includes $1.3 billion for the ACT-Accelerator, of which $545 million is for COVAX. Over $740 million is for humanitarian and development assistance. I could not agree more with the member that all of us in the world need to be vaccinated for all of us to be safe.

COVID-19 Protest

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, all Canadians want to see a leader who will work to heal rifts, not further divide. They want to see a leader who will listen, even to those voices he might not agree with. They want to see a leader who will work to understand, not dismiss, name-call and gaslight. Contrary to some, there are thousands of passionate, patriotic and peaceful Canadians on the Hill right now who just want to be heard.

Will the Prime Minister extend an olive branch and will he listen?

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, I think we all support free speech in the House, but there's a big difference between free speech and inciting hatred, inciting violence and desecrating war memorials, and I would hope my hon. colleague would denounce that in the clearest terms. Those radical leaders are not really interested in free speech because they want to pretend as though vaccines do not work. On this side of the House, we know vaccines work. That is the gateway to freedom, and this government will do everything that we can to get there.

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, of course we all condemn hateful and destructive acts by a few at any protest. Whether it is beheading the statue of Queen Victoria in Manitoba, tearing down the statue of Sir John A. in Montreal or putting flags on Terry Fox, whether it is burning churches or wearing blackface, whether it is Hezbollah flags or Nazi flags, we all condemn it, but I am not talking about that.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. Minister of Public Safety.

[Marco Mendicino, Liberal, Minister of Public Safety]

Mr. Speaker, let us be abundantly clear that those individuals who have called for the incitement of violence to overthrow this government, who have caused significant disruption by flagrantly ignoring public health care measures that have forced shops and businesses to close, and who have desecrated war memorials are not interested in free speech. They are not interested in discourse, and they are certainly not interested in advancing our way out of this pandemic.

This government will always listen to those who want to have a robust debate about public health care measures, but we have to draw a bright line between those who are interested in that debate and those who are not.

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the minister is not telling the truth and it is shameful to see what he is doing, accusing Canadians of being—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

Order, order. I think both sides are very truthful in saying what they say. Whether they agree with it or not is another story, but calling someone a name or accusing them of something is not permitted in the House.

I will let the hon. member for Portage—Lisgar start from the top, and I am sure she will ask the question correctly.

[Candice Bergen, Conservative, Portage—Lisgar, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I apologize. The minister is misleading Canadians. I do get very defensive of Canadians who are outside today: patriotic, peace-loving Canadians who are called misogynists and racists by the Prime Minister.

Again I will ask the Prime Minister, who, may I remind the House, wore blackface more times than he can remember, to apologize to the peace-loving, patriotic Canadians who are outside right now just asking to be heard. Will he speak to them?

[Mark Holland, Liberal, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, I think this is a moment when we have to acknowledge that the protests that have occurred have made their point. I would ask the member opposite to encourage the people who are outside to continue in a way that is peaceful, that moves beyond what we have seen. Ottawa is being paralyzed right now. We are seeing imagery that is not appropriate—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

I am going to ask the hon. government House leader to hold on for a second. I am sure the hon. member for Portage—Lisgar wants to hear an answer to the question she asked.

I will let the hon. government House leader continue from where he left off.

[Mark Holland, Liberal, Ajax, ON]

I will just say this, Mr. Speaker. I was in opposition for about seven years and there were times when I was overheated in my rhetoric. There were moments when I got too carried away with what I believed passionately at the time. There is a moment where we need to de-escalate. There is a moment where we need to bring it down and I am asking the members opposite, instead of going outside with these protests, to—

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for North Island—Powell River.

The Economy

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

Mr. Speaker, Canadians are struggling. The cost of groceries is going up. Gas and heating are getting more and more expensive, and the price of housing is soaring. In a recent poll, 60% of Canadians said they were having difficulty feeding their families. Liberals are not making it better for Canadians, especially vulnerable seniors, who are being told they must wait months longer for their GIS payment.

When will the government help hard-working Canadians who are struggling every day just to get by?

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

Mr. Speaker, we absolutely appreciate that there are many Canadians, particularly vulnerable seniors, facing affordability challenges. In the fall economic update, we presented our government's plan to support those seniors with a one-time payment. We will be there for those seniors who need our support.

I want to thank and congratulate all the Canadians who are behind Canada's very robust economic recovery from the COVID recession.

Seniors

[Daniel Blaikie, NDP, Elmwood—Transcona, MB]

Mr. Speaker, the problem with that answer, just like the problem with the minister's announcement in the fall economic statement, is that it does not in any way do justice to the urgency of those seniors. They have lost their home now because the government decided to claw back their guaranteed income supplement, and they are not getting any relief.

They are out on the street and they are freezing in the cold. We have heard reports of people who have already lost their lives. The fact of the matter is that waiting until May is not good enough. It is why we joined with Campaign 2000 to call for an emergency payment for those people, and also to make sure there is a fund to get them housed right away, not in May, so when—