Debates of Dec. 6th, 2022

COVID-19 Emergency Response

[Diane Lebouthillier, Liberal, Minister of National Revenue]

Mr. Speaker, the CRA does not agree with the Auditor General's calculations concerning recipients who were not eligible for the wage subsidy. The CRA's actual audits indicate that compliance with the subsidies was high and that the Auditor General's figure is exaggerated. This is not the Auditor General's fault. We all know that she was pressured by the opposition to produce this report. Political games notwithstanding, let us not forget that the wage subsidy saved the economy.

Taxation

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

Mr. Speaker, according to a new report released yesterday, the cost of groceries is going to keep going up in 2023. The grocery bill for an average family will climb to $16,300 next year. That is a big hit to the family budget. Parents are already stretched thin and are unable to feed their family. Now they are being told it is only going to get worse. All these increases are unaffordable for Canadians. I never would have thought that people in Canada would not be able to eat or stay warm.

Will the Liberals promise not to increase taxes so that Canadians can eat?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, the difference between us and the Conservatives is that on this side of the House, we have confidence in Canadians. We understand that less fortunate Canadians need this help. We will provide them with help for dental care, housing, and early childhood and child care services.

We have confidence in Canadians, and we will be there to support them today and in the future.

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

Mr. Speaker, I cannot believe that the member opposite gave us that answer when the government has completely lost control of public spending. The Auditor General confirmed that the government is trying to track down $32 billion in benefits that were paid to ineligible recipients. What are the consequences of that?

Nationwide, Canadians' debt is increasing. People do not have enough money, so they are charging their groceries to their credit cards. The Liberals have allowed themselves to lose billions of dollars.

Once again, will the Liberals show compassion and not increase taxes?

[Randy Boissonnault, Liberal, Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance]

Mr. Speaker, our approach is based on compassion, responsibility and fiscal prudence.

If we look at the facts, millions of mothers who received CERB did not create inflation, and neither did the thousands of businesses that took wage subsidies.

If the Conservatives truly, from the bottom of their hearts, want to help Canadians get through these difficult times, they can do the right thing and vote for Bill C‑32, which will benefit Canadians.

Health

[Mario Simard, Bloc, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, Quebec's finance minister will table his economic update on Thursday. He will have to make do with what he has because the Liberal government is still stubbornly saying no despite Quebec and the provinces calling for higher health transfers for years.

ERs are in crisis. There are not enough workers. Even pediatric units, which care for our children, are paying the price, yet Ottawa continues to say no. Why?

[Adam van Koeverden, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health and to the Minister of Sport]

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

Our health care system is facing major challenges, and we must work together to improve health care for Canadians. We are disappointed in the outcome of the meeting and in the provincial and territorial premiers' statement.

Nevertheless, our government remains ready to work with the provinces and territories and to continue discussing priorities.

[Mario Simard, Bloc, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the government does not want to increase health transfers. It wants standards. What standards?

What makes Ottawa think it can tell Quebec and the provinces how to do their job? Consider what Ottawa did with Phoenix, Roxham Road, the passport crisis, the old age pension delays, and the delays with EI and the immigration department, which is where applications go to die.

How dare the government play backseat driver and tell Quebec and the provinces how to do their job?

[Dominic LeBlanc, Liberal, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, with all due respect, as my hon. colleague is well aware, to say that we are not prepared to increase health transfers is not true. We have been very clear. We will work with the provinces to increase federal transfers to the provinces, which are responsible for managing their health care systems. We recognize that.

We are simply asking to have a transparent discussion with the provinces to ensure that, together, we get results for patients and families in Quebec and Canada.

[Mario Simard, Bloc, Jonquière, QC]

Mr. Speaker, that “transparent discussion” is code for standards. We will say it again. What the health system needs is not standards; it needs Ottawa to contribute its share.

Quite frankly, no one believes that there are no standards in the Quebec health care system. The federal government's pretentious and dismissive attitude toward the provinces, saying that it will show them how to do things, is no longer acceptable to anyone. What the health care system needs from Ottawa is money, not condescension.

When will the government increase health transfers?

[Adam van Koeverden, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health and to the Minister of Sport]

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question, but what he says is not true.

Our government has a long history of working with the provinces and territories, not only to provide funding, but also to ensure a national vision for health care and systems that meet the needs of Canadians. We will increase Canada health transfers by 10% in March 2023. An additional 5% increase was announced a few months ago.

We will continue to work with the provinces and territories to improve health care in Canada.

COVID-19 Emergency Response

[Kelly Block, Conservative, Carlton Trail—Eagle Creek, SK]

Mr. Speaker, in 2021 the government procured a system to track vaccines. This system, VaccineConnect, is set to cost Canadians over $59 million.

The government then decided to delay the development of key capabilities, forcing employees to use spreadsheets instead. This led to significant waste of vaccines and taxpayers' dollars, including confusion on expiration dates.

Why did the government delay key developments on its own project, wasting vaccines and taxpayers' money?

[Adam van Koeverden, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health and to the Minister of Sport]

Mr. Speaker, Canada's COVID-19 procurement strategy was undertaken at a time of considerable uncertainty, with a goal of protecting the health and safety of Canadians. That is what we did.

While Canada's overall COVID-19 immunization strategy has been a success, with modelling suggesting that public health measures without vaccination could have seen over 16.5 million cases and nearly 500,000 deaths, improvements can and will be made to ensure continued success and future preparedness.

However, there was no waste. That is a false claim. To suggest we did not act expediently is outside the—

[The Speaker, Anthony Rota]

The hon. member for Carlton Trail—Eagle Creek.

[Kelly Block, Conservative, Carlton Trail—Eagle Creek, SK]

Mr. Speaker, perhaps that member would like to have a conversation with the Auditor General.

In her report this morning, she made it clear the government is on track for almost $2 billion in wasted vaccines by the end of this year, over 15 million doses wasted so far, with the potential of the majority of another 55 million doses set to expire in 26 days. The government took vaccines meant for underdeveloped countries, the only G7 country to do so, while wasting billions in expired vaccines.

When will the government stop its wasteful spending of taxpayers' dollars?

[Adam van Koeverden, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health and to the Minister of Sport]

Mr. Speaker, leave it to the Conservatives to suggest that buying vaccines during a deadly pandemic was wasteful. Context matters. At the start of this pandemic, no one could predict which vaccine would be most effective.

With an increased global demand, our government prioritized, protecting the health and safety of Canadians. We will continue to work to keep securing the vaccines Canadians need while taking measures to manage our supply and reduce wastage. As recommended, we will also continue to work with provinces, territories and indigenous partners to enhance data sharing across jurisdictions and partners through a pan-Canadian health data strategy.

[Adam Chambers, Conservative, Simcoe North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the Auditor General stated that the process the government relied on to distribute COVID benefits led to $4.6 billion in overpayments to ineligible individuals, and at least another $27 billion that needs to be investigated.

How much of this $32 billion can taxpayers expect to recover? How much money is the government going to spend in administrative costs to recover money for taxpayers?

[Carla Qualtrough, Liberal, Minister of Employment]

Mr. Speaker, we, as a Parliament, approved an approach that was attestation based with a rigorous postpayment verification.

As a result of that approach, Canadians were able to put food on their tables. Canadians remained attached to their jobs. We positioned our economy well to come roaring back at the end of the pandemic. It has, and 117% of the jobs have been recovered. Our public health outcomes are the envy of the world.

[Adam Chambers, Conservative, Simcoe North, ON]

Mr. Speaker, the problem is that the Auditor General said very clearly the postpayment verification process is anything but rigorous.

The problem is that taxpayers are now on the hook for these billions of dollars they may never receive back. This is the same failed process the government is relying upon when distributing its new dental and rental benefits.

Will the government admit it had no controls and finally put some controls in place before it distributes any more government money?

[Carla Qualtrough, Liberal, Minister of Employment]

Mr. Speaker, we are pursuing a very rigorous postpayment verification process based on best practices in the world of risk-based analysis.

We are taking a compassionate approach. We absolutely paused repayment during omicron and other things that came up during the pandemic. I can assure the House that we are on top of it and we are following up.

Health

[Lindsay Mathyssen, NDP, London—Fanshawe, ON]

Mr. Speaker, families are frustrated and anxious about the state of our emergency rooms. Sick kids are waiting in makeshift spaces for up to 20 hours and this government is letting Premier Ford download health care costs onto municipalities.

London city hall, already overburdened, is being asked to pay $300 million to cover health care's restructuring. The Liberal government is leaving families and the cities they live in to fend for themselves against the callous provincial government.

When will the government hammer out a health care transfer deal to ensure cities do not have to bear the brunt of health care costs?

[Adam van Koeverden, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health and to the Minister of Sport]

Mr. Speaker, we share the frustrations and concerns of parents across Ontario with the wait times at hospitals, particularly for kids. It has been a really challenging flu, RSV and COVID season, with all of those piling up. We recognize it has been extraordinarily challenging for health care workers as well. We believe, on this side of the House, that all someone should need to get health care in Canada is their health card, not their credit card, so we will always stand up for our public system. Canadians are proud of our system. It is one based on need, not on ability to pay.

Child Care

[Leah Gazan, NDP, Winnipeg Centre, MB]

Mr. Speaker, for decades advocates have called to nationalize early learning and child care. However, we still do not have legislation in place that ensures long-term protected funding for child care that prioritizes the expansion of non-profit and public service delivery. Families deserve access to high-quality, affordable child care now.

When will the Liberals introduce this important legislation?

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Minister of Families]

Mr. Speaker, it has been a pleasure to work with the hon. member and so many colleagues in the House to deliver early learning and affordable child care across this country.

In fact we have reduced fees by 50% from coast to coast to coast, which means that more families are able to afford child care and more women are entering into the workforce. In fact, women's workforce participation is at an all-time high in Canadian history thanks to some of the policies, including child care, that this government has put forward. I am looking forward to introducing legislation soon to make sure we keep early learning and child care a good for Canadians for all time.

Gender-Based Violence

[Lena Metlege Diab, Liberal, Halifax West, NS]

Mr. Speaker, today is the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. Thirty-three years ago today I was a law student and remember very well the horrific shooting of 14 brilliant women at École Polytechnique in Montreal. Today is a day we vow to fight back against gun violence and gender-based violence.

Can the minister speak about the importance of this day and our government's plan to address gender-based violence?