Debates of Feb. 10th, 2022

Persons with Disabilities

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

I am afraid I am going to have to cut the hon. member off, as I am getting a lot of nays. We have gone far enough, and members have the gist of what the motion is. I can ask the question.

All those opposed to the hon. member's moving the motion will please say nay.

[Some hon. members]

Nay.

[Sherry Romanado, Liberal, Longueuil—Charles-LeMoyne, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I am rising on a point of order.

There have been discussions among the parties and, if you seek it, I think you will find unanimous consent to adopt the following motion that the House condemns the intimidation of citizens and journalists, the incessant honking, the arson attempts, the shooting of fireworks in the downtown core of Ottawa, the flooding of emergency lines such as 911 and the local police phone numbers by fake emergency calls, the blockage of essential roads and infrastructure and the overall siege situation currently being maintained by protesters on the streets of Ottawa and elsewhere in Canada; and, calls on the protesters to the end the blockades and the occupation immediately.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

All those opposed to the hon. member's moving the motion will please say nay.

[Some hon. members]

Nay.

[Blaine Calkins, Conservative, Red Deer—Lacombe, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order.

There have been discussions among the parties, and I think that, if you seek it, you will find unanimous consent for the following motion that, in the opinion of the House, those who question existing government policies should not be demonized by their Prime Minister and used to wedge, to divide and stigmatize Canadians; and, that the Prime Minister should listen to the member for Louis-Hébert, who said it was time we stopped dividing people and pitting people against each other.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

All those opposed to the hon. member's moving the motion will please say nay.

[Some hon. members]

Nay.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

That was pretty clear.

[Alain Therrien, Bloc, La Prairie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, there has been consultation among the parties and I think you would find unanimous consent for the following motion: That the House call on the Prime Minister to meet with the leaders of the three opposition parties as soon as possible to report on the status of the situation around Parliament and to discuss available options for putting an end to the siege in Ottawa.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

All those opposed to the hon. member moving the motion will please say nay.

[Some hon. members]

Nay.

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Kingston and the Islands, ON]

Mr. Speaker, on a point of order, the Prime Minister said in an answer today that those briefings would be available. I am not sure why the Bloc felt the need to bring forward this unanimous consent motion.

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

That is a point of debate.

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Mr. Speaker, on a point of order, is it time for the Thursday question?

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

No. We will do that after the vote.

The House resumed from February 9 consideration of the motion that Bill C-8, An Act to implement certain provisions of the economic and fiscal update tabled in Parliament on December 14, 2021 and other measures, be read the second time and referred to a committee.

Economic and Fiscal Update Implementation Act, 2021

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

It being 3:17 p.m., pursuant to order made on Thursday, November 25, 2021, the House will now proceed to the taking of the deferred recorded division on the motion at second reading stage of Bill C-8.

Call in the members.

(The House divided on the motion, which was agreed to on the following division:)

Vote #22

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

I declare the motion carried.

Accordingly, the bill stands referred to the Standing Committee on Finance.

(Motion agreed to, bill read the second time and referred to a committee)

Business of the House

[John Brassard, Conservative, Barrie—Innisfil, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I apologize. Like my colleague from Lévis—Lotbinière, I kind of jumped the gun.

Let me begin by stating that I am really looking forward to working with you and the government House leader. Despite any preconceived or misplaced characterizations he may have about me or my leadership team colleagues, which he so willingly shared with his caucus and publicly, he should not mistake our passion, our pride and our desire for only the best outcomes for our country and Canadians as any other emotion. If he would like to apologize, I am sure my leadership colleagues would gladly accept.

I note the government House leader gave notice of government Motion No. 7 and Motion No. 8 to schedule a program for Bill C-10 on rapid tests and for Bill C-12 on old age security. Under the terms of these motions, the sponsoring minister will not have to defend their legislation in committee, no stakeholders will be able to testify and no amendments can be made to improve the legislation. I want the government House leader to understand that the official opposition supports both bills, but his proposed approach is not acceptable. I call on him to abide by the time-tested procedures of the House and make sure the government legislation holds up to parliamentary scrutiny.

With that, I ask the government House leader the Thursday question: What is the order of business we can expect?

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

Mr. Speaker, I can see why my hon. colleague was anxious to get to the Thursday question. It was exceptionally well put.

Let me say to the hon. member across the way that I have very much enjoyed getting to know him over the last while as we begin this new working relationship together. It seems we share an affinity for the movie Uncle Buck, so maybe we will have a movie night together at some point in time.

My hon. colleague is correct that we have motions scheduled for rapid testing and critical funds for seniors. We must move as expeditiously as possible. That is why tomorrow morning we will take up debate on Government Business No. 8, which sets out the parameters of how to expedite Bill C-10, an act respecting certain measures related to COVID-19 and more specifically to rapid testing. In the afternoon, we will turn to Government Business No. 7, which is a motion to dispose of Bill C-12, an act to amend the Old Age Security Act (Guaranteed Income Supplement). When we return on Monday, we will continue debate on government Motion No. 8 so that we can pass the rapid testing legislation as soon as possible. Finally, next Thursday shall be an allotted day.

The House resumed consideration of the motion.

Opposition Motion—Federal COVID-19 Mandates and Restrictions

[The Speaker, Liberal, Anthony Rota]

I wish to inform the House that because of the deferred recorded division, Government Orders will be extended by 13 minutes.

Resuming debate, the hon. member for Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill.

[Leah Taylor Roy, Liberal, Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am thankful for this opportunity to address the opposition motion requesting that our government table a plan for COVID.

Let me be clear. Throughout the pandemic, the Government of Canada has prioritized the health and safety of Canadians. We have followed a plan to do this, informed by science and data, and we will continue to follow this plan.

The public health measures we have implemented have been, and will continue to be, based on the best public health advice, data and projections available. This is the plan we have been following and will continue to follow.

This plan has had some of the best outcomes in the world. Canadians have stepped up and done their part. I would like to join my colleague from Vaughan—Woodbridge in thanking all Canadians for doing their part in combatting COVID.

The incidence of serious disease and death in Canada is among the lowest in the world, and our businesses and citizens have been supported by the measures our government has put in place. In fact, as a country we have recovered over 101% of the over three million jobs we lost during this unprecedented pandemic. This is compared to the U.S., which has recovered 87%.

Canadians have pulled together and continue to do so by getting vaccinated. In fact, this past week over 60,000 Canadians got their first shot, and hundreds of thousands of Canadians are getting boosters to further help stop the spread of COVID.

We know vaccines are not perfect, nor are they the only solution, but they are the best solution we have right now to address this unprecedented global pandemic, to control the transmission of COVID and to prevent serious disease, death and hospitalization, especially in our much-needed ICU spaces. Vaccines are the best way to protect our frontline workers, the vulnerable, our health care system, the public health of all and ensure that restrictions can be lifted for the sake of our mental health and economic well-being. I am sure the members opposite would agree.

As the pandemic and our understanding of it has evolved, so have public health measures. These measures will continue to evolve. I am sure that all of us here want to see restrictions lifted and our lives returned to normal. We all want to travel and see our loved ones without testing and extra measures. In fact, it has been over two years since I have seen my granddaughters, who live in the United States. We all want to continue to be united with our loved ones and united as a country.

We will continue to listen to Canadians, as we have been doing and as I have been doing. I have spoken to many constituents, and they are not all in agreement, just like members in the House. I heard from one constituent who was very concerned about another wave if the measures are undone too early. I have heard from constituents who are frustrated with the border testing. I have heard concerns from others who are worried about sitting next to unvaccinated people on plane rides and want the mandates to continue. However, most of what I heard is frustration and anger, which is often directed toward us because people cannot lash out at COVID. It does not have an email address or a telephone number. It does not cross the street here in Ottawa in front of Parliament to come and work to try our very best to make responsible, mature and reasoned decisions.

I know, and members know, that we are all human and that the anxiety caused by COVID and the frustration caused by the restrictions and inconveniences have caused this mounting anger. In my mind, that only makes it more important for us to stay the course, to make changes when and if warranted by science, and to not respond to anger and frustration by telling Canadians that all restrictions will be lifted.

There are many different points of view on how to move forward, but the job of a leader, of a responsible and responsive government, is to listen to Canadians and our experts and make and follow a plan. This is what our government has been doing successfully.

The opposition motion asks for a plan, but what it actually wants is a different plan. We will continue to adjust pandemic measures as the pandemic progresses, as we have been doing all along. We will continue to follow the plan that we have and that has had among the best results in the world.

I hope that we in this House can model the civil and respectful behaviour that the majority of Canadians want and expect from us and is so needed at this challenging time.