Debates of Oct. 25th, 2022

Public Safety

[Bill Blair, Liberal, President of the King’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, I have been clear, explicit and unequivocal that at no time did I give direction to the RCMP to interfere with operations. I will simply quote the commissioner's testimony before committee and the Mass Casualty Commission, in which she said, “I did not receive direction and I was not influenced by government officials regarding the public release of information [or] on the direction of the investigation.”

That is the commissioner's testimony, and it coincides precisely with my statement that no direction was given.

[Gérard Deltell, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

Mr. Speaker, let us examine the facts as they are. When the RCMP commissioner had a conversation with her acolytes, she said, and I quote, “[I flew] it up the flagpole because it was a request that I got from the minister's office. And I shared with the minister that in fact it was going to be in the news release, and it wasn't.”

It could not be any clearer. The RCMP commissioner directly implicates the current minister. Could she act with the dignity befitting her rank and resign?

[Bill Blair, Liberal, President of the King’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Emergency Preparedness]

Mr. Speaker, again, what is very clear is that the RCMP commissioner, in her testimony before the public safety committee and in front of the Mass Casualty Commission under oath, was very clear that there was no interference, and that I did not give her direction. In fact, she did clarify for the committee that I have always been meticulously careful in not providing her with direction.

That is her testimony. My statement to the House and my testimony previously is that I did not give her any direction on any operational matter.

Indigenous Affairs

[Lori Idlout, NDP, Nunavut, NU]

Uqaqtittiji, Inuit elders have endured many atrocities in their lifetimes and deserve to age with dignity. These atrocities include residential schools, forced religious conversion and the slaughter of sled dogs.

Due to failures from this government, Inuit are exiled down south in long-term care facilities. It is unacceptable that elders in Nunavut fear dying alone, away from home.

When will the government start properly funding home care so that elders can remain home with their loved ones?

[Dan Vandal, Liberal, Minister of Northern Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, this is one of many priorities that we are working on in partnership with the Government of Nunavut and with Inuit rights holders in Inuit Nunangat. We have adopted the Inuit Nunangat policy and, just this morning, I had a very good discussion with the Minister of Health of Nunavut to talk precisely about these issues. We will make progress in partnership with the Government of Nunavut.

Health

[Don Davies, NDP, Vancouver Kingsway, BC]

Mr. Speaker, emergency rooms across Canada are closing, because there is not enough staff to keep them open. Canadians are dying while waiting for care. Just this week, a man passed away in Quebec after waiting 16 hours in the ER. This situation is occurring in every corner of our country. It is an outrageous situation for a G7 nation. We need national leadership.

When will the Prime Minister sit down with the premiers to negotiate stable, sufficient and long-term federal health care funding and save Canadians' lives?

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

Mr. Speaker, we are all grateful for the member's question. We all feel and fear the consequences of the crisis that health care workers throughout the country are going through. That is true everywhere in Canada, as we heard. People are having difficulty accessing appropriate emergency care, but, more than that, difficulty getting access to a family health team, to a safe and quality long-term care home, to home care, to palliative care and to dental care.

That is why we are investing many billions of dollars and we are going to continue doing that, because we promised we would do so—

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Hamilton Mountain.

Women and Gender Equality

[Lisa Hepfner, Liberal, Hamilton Mountain, ON]

Mr. Speaker, this year marks the 30th anniversary of Women's History Month. With the theme “She Did, So Now I Can,” we recognize the actions of strong women who have had a positive impact on our lives and who have been pushing boundaries so others can have more opportunities today. With misogyny on the rise, including in this House, our government recognizes the importance of uplifting and celebrating women's voices.

Can the Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth speak about Women's History Month and share what we can do to support women now and in the future?

[Marci Ien, Liberal, Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for her empathetic leadership. As we close out Women's History Month, I have some thoughts on how women hold up their communities and make them stronger.

From the women working on the front lines, selflessly, simply because they want to serve, to women carving out careers and simultaneously caring for kids and senior parents, and to women marching in the streets for the right to choose, they are not invisible. We hear them and we stand with them.

Finance

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

Mr. Speaker, $54 million was wasted on the arrive scam with millions of dollars missing, $680 million spent on vaccines that were thrown in the garbage after a reckless procurement process and now $400,000 spent on luxuries and hotel rooms for a weekend in London. The Liberal government has no problem wasting the hard-earned tax dollars that it takes from everyday Canadians.

When will the Liberals cap spending, cut taxes and give Canadians a break?

[Rachel Bendayan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, one of the measures in our affordability plan is to provide a direct payment to low-income Canadians who are having trouble paying the rent.

What was the response of the new Conservative leader? It was to say no way and let us not give anything to low-income Canadians, certainly not those peanuts. While that might be fine for the Conservative leader who does not have rent to pay and who, in fact, lives in a big mansion paid for by the Canadian taxpayer, for low-income Canadians, $500 will help them get to Christmas. For low-income Canadians, that is real money, and we are there to support those Canadians.

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

Mr. Speaker, what this side of the House and the Conservative leader said was to not give a half-billion dollars to the Kielburgers. This side of the House has said not to do insider deals with people like Frank Baylis or the government's buddies at SNC-Lavalin.

We are hearing the same old, tired talking points from the Liberals while they are wasting hundreds of millions of dollars of Canadians' hard-earned money, when they can barely afford to heat their homes. Liberals are out of touch and Canadians are out of money. When will Liberals give Canadians a break?

[François-Philippe Champagne, Liberal, Minister of Innovation]

Mr. Speaker, we will take no lessons from the Conservatives. Canadians who are watching at home remember that the last advice they gave to Canadians was about crypto. We will continue to invest in skills and people. We will continue to invest in our ecosystem. We will continue to invest in our critical minerals. We will continue to build an economy that works for everyone and for all Canadians watching at home.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister is acting like a child who has been handed a credit card with no limit, who makes only the minimum payments and who knows full well his children will be on the hook for what he spent. Want to go to London and stay in a luxurious $400,000 suite? Put it on the card. Want to send money to friends? Why pay $250,000 when you can spend $54 million on ArriveCAN? Put it on the card. There is no limit. Need to toss $680 million worth of vaccines in the trash? No problem. Just put it on the card.

Is there an adult among the Liberals who will step up and take the Prime Minister's credit card away?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives are forgetting what happened during the pandemic. The government was there for Canadians. The Government of Canada sent payments to support nine million Canadians who lost their jobs. We were there during the pandemic, and we are here now with the Canada child benefit, child care and support for people who have lost their jobs. We are here for Canadians, and we will not apologize for that.

[Luc Berthold, Conservative, Mégantic—L'Érable, QC]

Mr. Speaker, it was a slip of the tongue, but no, we will not forgive them for adding $500 billion to the debt during COVID-19, including $200 billion that had absolutely nothing to do with COVID-19. That is the reality.

Let us talk about “ArriveSCANDAL”, the $54-million app that should have cost $250,000. It cost $8 million to do the updates on an app that never worked.

The government even claims to have paid millions of dollars to businesses that say they never received a penny. That is the reality.

The costly coalition is costing Canadians dearly. Can we have the list of Liberal lottery winners who won millions?

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

Mr. Speaker, I am certain that many people here in the House were troubled by the member's previous question, when he criticized Canada's vaccine supply.

According to recent figures from the Public Health Agency of Canada, which were validated by other experts, the exceptional vaccine supply that Canadians had access to probably saved about 400,000 lives in Canada over the past year. That is 400,000 people whose lives were saved.

We must also take into account the millions of people who would have lost a loved one if Canadians had not made every effort to get vaccinated and to protect themselves, as well as their loved ones.

Employment Insurance

[Louise Chabot, Bloc, Thérèse-De Blainville, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this is going to be a tough winter for seasonal workers in the regions. They have been abandoned by EI since the recent increase in the eligibility threshold to 700 hours. They are not facing a black hole anymore, they are facing a total vacuum.

That is why the interprovincial alliance of the unemployed is in Ottawa today. We're talking about 20 unions and worker advocacy groups from eastern Quebec and the Maritimes. They have come to tell the government that the comprehensive EI reform it promised cannot wait.

When will the government finally introduce its reform? What is the date? We want a date.

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

Mr. Speaker, we know Canada needs an EI system for the 21st century. That is why we have been consulting widely with Canadians to build a system that works for everyone, including seasonal workers.

Although our temporary COVID support measures are winding down, regular EI benefits will continue to be available for workers, just as they were before the pandemic. With budget 2022, we are investing $110 million to extend the seasonal pilot until October 2023.

We know there is more work to do, and that is why we are committed to fully modernizing Canada's EI system. We look forward to launching our long-term plan.

[Louise Chabot, Bloc, Thérèse-De Blainville, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this kind of answer is no longer acceptable.

The government promised EI reform last summer. We are still waiting for it. In fact, it is a commitment that goes back to 2015. The government has been making promises for seven years all the while telling us that the reform is coming. The workers are fed up. They no longer have time to be patient only to end up being abandoned.

They are here today on Parliament Hill because they do not even qualify for EI anymore. They are in a vacuum. Will the minister's office at least meet with them?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my hon. colleague for her question and her work. I know that she is really tireless when it comes to employment insurance.

I know there are a lot of great ideas on both sides of the aisle when it comes to EI reform.

On our side, we know it is important to do it. Our government is doing its consultations to ensure that employers and employees have access to a quality EI system for Canadians today and in the future.

The Economy

[Adam Chambers, Conservative, Simcoe North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, for seven years the government's mantra has been spend, spend, spend. It added $100 billion in debt before COVID and $500 billion of debt during COVID. It told us not to worry.

The Deputy Prime Minister said just over one year ago, “In today's low interest rate environment, not only can we afford these investments, it would be short-sighted of us not to make them.” However, now, in a leadership launch speech, the Deputy Prime Minister is distancing herself even from her own record, saying that now is the time for restraint.

How can Canadians trust the arsonist to put out the fire?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, what the member opposite is talking about is CERB, the Canada emergency response benefit, which supported nine million Canadians in one of the most difficult periods of time that our country has faced. What he is talking about is the Canada emergency wage supports that supported millions of Canadians and prevented organizations and businesses from closing their doors.

Do members know what those supports did? They ensured that when the economy was ready to open up, when we were able to do that because public health measures worked and Canadians did what they needed to do to get this pandemic under control, people could go back to work, businesses could reopen and our economy could come back just as strong as before.

[Adam Chambers, Conservative, Simcoe North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, even the Parliamentary Budget Officer said half of the COVID spending was not even spent on COVID. The government said interest rates would remain low. It said there would be no inflation and then it said inflation would be temporary. Now inflation is out of control and the government is going to spend more on interest on the debt than we do on national defence.

The government's plan has not worked. How can Canadians afford any more of the government?